text:
English cottage home to NZ premier's works
More than two dozen rare watercolours painted by a former New Zealand prime minister have been found hanging on the wall of an English cottage.
The find has New Zealand historians pleading for the "rare" collection to be reproduced or exhibited, so that Kiwis have the chance to see an "exciting" part of their history.
Waikato Times journalist Chris Gardner stumbled upon the paintings - by English pastoralist-turned-politician Sir Frederick Aloysius Weld - on his native Isle of Wight this month while researching the history of the ruins of an 18th-century mansion where he grew up.
They were painted about a decade after the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi and about a decade before Weld served as New Zealand premier, or prime minister, from 1864 to 1865.
"I knocked on the door of this cottage, no longer part of the estate, introduced myself and asked if I could swap historical notes with the owner," Gardner said.
"When we had finished he asked me if I had heard of Weld and would like to see his paintings. I was almost speechless when the cultural and historical significance of what I was seeing hit me."
All the paintings were recognisable New Zealand places, with annotations on the back.
New Zealand's foremost expert on Weld, Waikato Times sub-editor Jeanine Graham, thought Weld might have painted some of the works in October 1854, when he and a parliamentary colleague, James Stuart-Wortley, travelled from the General Assembly in Auckland to Tauranga, Maketu and Rotorua.
Included in the set are paintings of the Thames Valley, at the base of the Coromandel Peninsula, the volcanic Mt Tarawera, its pink and white terraces and a nearby Maori village, which were destroyed when the volcano erupted on June 10, 1886, and Whakarewarewa thermal village.
The paintings were discovered by Weld's great-great-great-grandson in the the family home's attic about 25 years ago.
"They were in a folder kept in a trunk with a lot of family archives, loose leafed in a folder," he said.
Back then the New Zealand High Commission in London was contacted, and it showed great interest in the find, but neither the family nor New Zealand House could easily place their hands on any correspondence relating to the pictures.
"There are 22 framed and a number of additional watercolours and pencil sketchings we have loose in a large envelope," a family member said.
New Zealand historians are pleading for the collection to be reproduced because the family have no interest in selling them. The family were open to having them exhibited.
The collection is insured but the family did not want to reveal its value. But experts say it would be tens of thousands of dollars.
The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongrewa in Wellington knew of Weld's work, but had none, referring the Times to The National Library of New Zealand Te Puna Matauranga O Aoteroa, the Alexander Turnbull Library.
Curator of drawings, paintings and prints Marian Minson described the find as "very exciting" because about 200 of Weld's watercolours were known but only about 50 were in New Zealand.
"I would be very interested to look at them. Copying them would be a good thing to do. It's the sort of thing we would talk to the owners about."
After leaving New Zealand in 1866 Weld became a colonial governor in Western Australia, Tasmania and the Straits Settlement of Malaya. He died in 1891, aged 68, in the UK. As well as Graham's biography, Weld's life inspired Michael Wall's detective novel The Temptations of Frederick Weld published in 2003.
As New Zealand premier, Sir Frederick Aloysius Weld met with mixed success.
In 1865 the capital was moved to Wellington, and his proposals for Maori relations were adopted. These generated considerable bitterness, however – Aucklanders were angry about the change of capital, and Maori were angry about the confiscation of more than 400,000 hectares of land in Waikato.
Weld's other success, the withdrawal of British troops from New Zealand, was also controversial, and generated considerable hostility from the governor.
In addition, the government's financial situation was precarious. A little less than a year after taking office, Weld's government resigned.
Source: Wikipedia
Waikato Times


text:
Charm Flag: Folksy Hand Pieced American Flag Quilt Pattern
Make this easy, all-American Charm Flag quilt pattern wherever you are, from children's sporting events to doctor's offices, with easy, portable hand piecing. Step-by-step photos show you how to hand piece curved patches. Template pattern is included.
Skill Level
Finished Size 13 5/8" x 21˝
Featured Fabrics
Carol used assorted fabrics from her stash to make this quilt.
Further Information
Pat Yamin's acrylic template allows you to rotary cut patches and mark sewing lines through slots. Order from Come Quilt With Me, Inc., 3903 Ave. I, Brooklyn, NY 11210; 718-377-3652; comequiltwithme.com. Pat's book, Quilt Savvy: One-Patch Scrap Quilts, is available as an e-book from American Quilter's Society. To purchase a downloadable copy, visit americanquilter.com.
McCall's Lesson!
Our experts show you how to hand-piece curved quilt patches, and how to make a knife-edge finish, with step-by-step photos and instructions.
Check out our website for...
FREE Quilting Lesson & Download - How to Hand Piece Quilt Patches, including How to Make and Use Templates for Hand Piecing - click here!
The Charm Flag hand-piecing quilt pattern is fully patterned in the McCall's Quilting/America Loves Scrap Quilts Winter 2012/2013 issue shown below. Print (while supplies last) or instant digital download available for purchase at QuiltandSewShop.com.
Appeared in:
|To comment on this article you must be logged in. Not a member?
Sponsored Links
Get 10 FREE Vintage Scrappy Quilt Patterns when you subscribe today!
The project magazine for those who love of knit. Try a free issue today!
Subscribe to Quiltmaker Magazine and get 21 original quilting motifs!

subset: commoncrawl


text:
+ Log in or register to post
Results 1 to 2 of 2
Threaded View
Sunday, 7th October, 2012, 02:40 PM #1HarrrbingerGuest
Monster Hunter International Employee's Handbook And Roleplaying Game
Monster Hunter International Employee's Handbook And Roleplaying Game: Vampires, werewolves, zombies, and other horrors have plagued our world unchecked for far too long. Now you can help put an end to these monsters, and many others, with The Monster Hunter International Employees Handbook and Roleplaying Game!
Based on the best-selling "Monster Hunter International" novels by Larry Correia, the MHIEHRPG is your official guide to Monster Hunter International and the world it fights monsters in. Even better, it's also a roleplaying game that includes all the rules you need to create characters, play the game, and have amazing adventures in the MHI setting! The MHI Roleplaying Game uses the award-winning. HERO System rules. They'll be included in the MHIEHRPG book itself so you don't need to buy any other books to play the game.
For more RPG Kickstarter projects, check out RPG Kickstarters.
Last edited by Morrus; Sunday, 7th October, 2012 at 03:16 PM.
vBulletin Message
Similar Threads
Help finding these articles. One from former WOTC employee and one from former TSR employeeBy Greg K in forum Older D&D Editions (4E, 3.x, 2E, 1E, OD&D), D&D Variants, and OSR GamingReplies: 17Last Post: Friday, 11th January, 2013, 10:48 PM
The Rogue Mage Roleplaying Game Player's Handbook is here!By Steve Conan Trustrum in forum Roleplaying Games General DiscussionReplies: 0Last Post: Wednesday, 29th August, 2012, 12:38 AM
[4WFG] Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Edition Monster Knowledge Cards now available!By hunter1828 in forum Pathfinder & Starfinder RPG Discussion, Rules, Houserules, & HomebrewsReplies: 0Last Post: Thursday, 22nd October, 2009, 02:55 AM
Monster Hunter (based on the game itself)By TheCrazyMuffinMan in forum Older D&D Editions (4E, 3.x, 2E, 1E, OD&D), D&D Variants, and OSR GamingReplies: 0Last Post: Tuesday, 10th July, 2007, 04:31 PM
The Zombie Hunter's HandbookBy talien in forum Roleplaying Games General DiscussionReplies: 21Last Post: Sunday, 4th April, 2004, 07:20 PM


text:
São Paulo CityLights Hostel
Voorzieningen Kaart Streetview Recensies
R. Padre Garcia velho, 44, Pinheiros
Opmerking: Het is de verantwoordelijkheid van de hotelketen en/of de individuele eigendom om de juistheid van de foto's die weergegeven worden te waarborgen. Travellerspoint is niet verantwoordelijk voor eventuele onjuistheden in de foto's.
CityLights Property is located in the Pinheiros district, one of the best neighborhoods of Sao Paulo. Situated two blocks from the Faria Lima metro station and near to several bus stops, it is easily accessable from almost anywhere in the city. With just a block or two from the property are many great restaurants, bars, pharmacies, supermarket, and a countless shops and stores.
The property itself is a calm and relaxing place, with lush greenery and open architecture creating an inviting atmosphere for guests. Our focus is on comfort, privacy, sustainability, and promoting the interaction of guests with one another. The managers and staff are always working to maintain a vibrant atmosphere, at the property we've dinner parties, festivals, and cultural and sporting events. We also organize unforgettable days trips to spetacular beaches between Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.
We have shared rooms varying from 4 and 11 beds, an all girls ensuite dorm room, and two private rooms with queen beds and contemporary bathrooms. All standard rooms have a sink. Each bed has an individual power socket, reading light, and a locker.
Located on a quiet street off of Av. Faria Lima. We sit just blocks from the galleries and boutiques of Vila Madalena, and the countless restaurants of Pinheiros. With Faria Lima Metro only 600m away, you can be at Paulista or Liberdade in less than a half hour.
Our bar serves natural smoothies, cold beer, and mandatory caipirinhas.
If you like to cook, go to the nearest market which is 3 minutes walking and prepare yourself a meal in our fully equipped professional kitchen.
From remote waterfalls to hidden fishing villages, Flower Power Alternative Trips let's you visit inaccessible locations, and gives you the freedom to soak in the local culture. When it's time to leave Sao Paulo, let us show you our favorite out-of-the way spots.
Ben je hier geweest? Schrijf een recensie
Opmerking: Het is de verantwoordelijkheid van de hotelketen en/of de individuele eigendom om de juistheid van de foto's die weergegeven worden te waarborgen. Travellerspoint is niet verantwoordelijk voor eventuele onjuistheden in de foto's.


text:
The half brother of a senior Conservative MP has been charged over alleged historic sex abuse.
Charles Napier, 67, from Dorset, is accused of one count of inciting a child to commit an act of gross indecency, Scotland Yard said.
He is the half brother of MP John Whittingdale.
Loading article content
Police also charged a second man, Richard Alston, 69, from Suffolk, who is accused of five counts of indecent assault and three counts of gross indecency with a child.
The charges date back to the late 1970s and concern an alleged victim who was 11 years old at the time.
Both men are due to appear at Westminster Magistrates Court on July 29.


text:
South Carolina vs. Alabama
* Alabama leads the overall series 24-13. USC has won nine of the 15 games in Columbia.
* Alabama has won five of the last six in the series.
* Six of the last nine games have been decided by six points or less.
* The last meeting - Alabama defeated South Carolina 68-58 on February 16, 2013 in Tuscaloosa. The biggest difference in the game came from the free throw line. The Tide hit 18 of their 33 attempts while the Gamecocks hit seven of 13. USC won the battle in the paint 34-26 and their bench outscored the Bama bench 26-23.
* USC's last win in the series was a 56-54 victory on January 25, 2012 in Columbia.
Holding Teams Under 60
Carolina has held five of its opponents to under 60 points this season. USC won all five of those games. Last season, USC held four teams to under 60 points. USC went 2-2 in those four games.
Field Goal Shooting Against Vandy
The Gamecocks shot 37.5% from the floor against Vandy on Thursday. It was their second consecutive game shooting less than 40% from the floor. However, it was the first time this season they won a game shooting less than 40% from the floor.
Dominating the Boards Against Vandy
USC pulled down 45 rebounds with 26 coming on the offensive glass. It was the most in a game for the Gamecocks since grabbing 45 against USC Upstate. The season high for Carolina is 50 versus Longwood.
Bench Scoring
The Gamecocks are 1-2 in their last three games but their bench has combined to outscore their opponents bench 44-21 in those three games. (14-6 vs. Auburn, 19-13 at Tennessee, and 11-2 vs. Vanderbilt)
Second Chance Points
The Gamecocks scored 23 second chance points against Vanderbilt on Wednesday night. It was the most for USC in a game this season. The most second chance points USC had in a game last season was 23 at St. John's.
*Led the team in scoring in the last two games.
*Led the Gamecocks in assists in the last five games.
*Only Gamecock to start in every game this season.
* In the last three games he has 19 assists to 10 turnovers. The first three SEC games this season, he had five assists to 12 turnovers.
* Came off the bench and played 21 minutes on Thursday night against Vanderbilt.
* Pulled down six rebounds including four on the offensive side of the glass.
* The six rebounds were the most for him since grabbing 11 against South Carolina State on January 3, 2014.
* The four offensive rebounds tied his career high. He pulled down four against South Carolina State and USC Upstate this season.
* Played at least 30 minutes in the last four games.
* Hit exactly four field goals in each of the last four games.
* Pulled down at least four rebounds in four of the last five games.
* Since the Texas A&M game on January 15, 2014, he has scored in double figures in every other game. (12-4-14-2-19-9-12-9-10)
Starting Five
Coach Martin changed up his starting five slightly against Vanderbilt as he started Thornwell, Williams, Notice, Carrera, and Kacinas. It was the first start for Kacinas since January 15, 2014 at Texas A&M. In the previous six games to Vanderbilt, USC used the starting five of Thornwell, Williams, Notice, Carrera and Henry.
Scouting Alabama
*10-14 overall, and 4-7 in SEC play.
* The Tide is 0-7 on the road this season including an 0-5 record on the road against SEC opponents.
*Head Coach is Anthony Grant. Grant is 96-66 in five years at Alabama and has a head coaching record of 172-91 in eight seasons.
* Relefor and Obasohan are the only two players averaging in double figures and 30+ minutes a game.
* Rodney Cooper is leading the team with 5.1 rebounds per game.
* Scored 62 points or less in six of their seven SEC losses. Scored 67 or more in their four SEC wins.
Trevor Releford (12 / 6-1 / 190 / Sr. / G)
* Averaging 18.7 points per game this season. In the last two games, he has scored 25 at Florida and 26 vs. Ole Miss.
* Hit six of his last 12 three point attempts.
* Played in 23 games this season with 22 starts.
Nick Jacobs (15 / 6-8 / 245 / Jr. / F)
* Started the last two games and has nine starts on the season.
* Scored 18 points and pulled down eight rebounds against Ole Miss earlier this week.
* Five of the eight boards were on the offensive glass.
Shannon Hale (11 / 6-8 / 220 / Fr. / F)
* Started the last 13 games.
* Scored in double digits in eight of the last 14 games.
* Averaging 11.1 in SEC play.


text:
In New York City, there is little sense and no rules, and those who fly the highest often come crashing down the hardest.
A deranged, derelict, crazed Vietnam vet has been arrested for gunning down successful young lawyer Glenn Holtzmann at a corner phone booth on 11th Avenue - and the suspect's brother wants unlicensed private investigator Matthew Scudder to prove the madman innocent. But Scudder's curiosity and dedication are leading him to dark, unexplored places in his own heart…and to passions and secrets that could destroy everything he loves.
In this unmerciful metropolis, no one is truly innocent - including Matthew Scudder.
©2009 Lawrence Block (P)2014 Blackstone Audiobooks
A man's got to do what a man's got to do..
"A journey between murder and melancholy"
Matthew Scudder' s books are not the typical detective story where a detective -the good guy- solves a mystery of a murder and gets the bad guy behind the bars and where suspense, violence and intensity are the basic ingredients of the plot. There is a bit (at times a lot) of all this in Scudder's stories, but there is much more. Scudder is continuously in a soul-searching mode, engaged in a journey towards redemption from his demons (alcohol, bad memories, life failures). He does all this without rhetoric or drama; he is a man with a natural sense of self-reflection combined with a self-deprecating sense of humour. He is also smart, though when needed and a great at reading people behaviours.
In this particular book Scudder is asked to help solve the mystery of the death of a prosperous lawyer; a presumed killer is caught by the police, but …. Other more personal events cross Matt's journey toward the truth and allow different levels of reflection, which the standards detective books do not usually do.
New York provides a fantastic background to the story and Joe Barret is as good as it gets.
"Drags a little"
Joe Barret is a great reader for this genre.
The story drags a bit here and there compared to other Scudder novels like When the Sacred Ginmill Closes but finishes very strong. It seems like Block is most compelling when Scudder is miserable.
"smart, funny, inclusive crime"
really well written, enjoyable plotlines with great characters. really well narrated. Lawrence Block has become a favourite auther and Joe Barrett is hands down the best narrator.
"as usual Lawrence Block provides a unusual story"
I love Matt Scutter stories, excellent dialogue and great returning characters. Good read, great series
"A MUST read like all t of Lawrence Block books ."
Super reades always from the master of NYC stories and people, places and atmosphere ..
Report Inappropriate Content
If you find this review inappropriate and think it should be removed from our site, let us know. This report will be reviewed by Audible and we will take appropriate action.


text:
Going Coed at Lesley College
Few events on a campus can alter the culture of an institution as drastically as a decision to part from a tradition as an all-female college to one that admits men. Most women's colleges were founded on a mission to provide education to women during periods when educational opportunities for women were few, even radical. The emotional attachment to that notion and the single sex experience is understandably passionate.
This past fall, Lesley College (Mass.) admitted its first coeducational freshman class. When the young men and women arrived in Cambridge this September, they met no resistance, no outrage, and no demonstration from students, faculty or alumni that their presence on campus was anything but positive.
Few institutions of higher learning have made this transformation without some pain. How Lesley University moved to admit men to Lesley College, the residential undergraduate school, without anguish in the community stems partially from a thoughtful and careful approach, but more from a clear sense of our history and mission.
Lesley College was founded at the turn of the last century to educate women for careers in early education. At the time, founder Edith Lesley was serving as a "trouble maker," in the best sense of the phrase, by training women for careers outside the home. As much as we still praise her rejection of unjust social norms of the day, her greater legacy is to view early education teachers as true professionals, and quality teacher preparation as essential to improved outcomes for children.
In both arenas, education and empowerment, Lesley's core mission was and is to meet unmet needs and to fuel improvement in society. Today, Lesley University has grown to become a national institution, with graduate programs in 22 states, four schools--of which only Lesley College has ever been single sex--and among the largest providers of Master's in Education degrees in the country. Whether in education, the arts, social services, or the environment--over 90 percent of our graduates goes on to careers in public service.
The decision to admit men to the college stemmed from the explicit sense of mission that drives all our programs. We knew that a vast majority of women graduating from high school would refuse to consider a single-sex college. We also knew that teaching, in particular, one of our taproot programs, suffers from persistent shortages in high-need fields and a chronic lack of gender (and racial) diversity.
Ultimately, the question was not "How can we admit men to Lesley College peacefully?" but "Why are we closing our doors to so many when there is such need?" Given the growth and dynamism of the larger university and all the societal factors, our mission dictated that Lesley College could no longer justify closing our doors to men.
Moreover, in 1998, we merged with the Art Institute of Boston, a coed undergraduate art college, and much of campus life had survived the presence of male students without disruption. We felt confident that we could undertake a more thorough transformation, one that not only would expand opportunities for more students--both men and women--but enhance the overall educational experience we provided.
The decision was announced in the spring of 2004, and it involved an exhaustive internal examination of our academic offerings, programs, pedagogy, and campus culture--conversations that continue even after the first coeducational class checked into the dorms. Students, faculty, administration, and alumni were all involved in the decision and its implementation. Faculty almost immediately undertook an initiative to proactively work against the so-called "chill factor" that can negatively affect classroom dynamics when men enter.
Through a thoughtful re-branding effort, we set out to reach students for the first coed class who would be specifically attracted to our mission--to prepare men and women for lives and careers that make a difference, and the university's strong social justice orientation. The new "Let's Wake Up the World" brand is a better reflection of our mission and the culture of the university. Rather than trying to be all things to all prospective students, we outwardly project that we are looking for the students who feel a calling to public service and civic engagement.
Students making college choices responded. Applications and essays from prospective students hit record numbers from prospective students who were unabashed in their activism and desire to make the world a better place. They started campus life with a blaze of electricity that has already sparked new energy across the campus.
This energy is the primary characteristic of the class of 2009, and has trumped the novelty of a new gender balance. Whether male or female, the desire to be a positive force in the world is still the common denominator among students.
No doubt, Lesley University will always have an entry on its timeline marking 2005 as the year the college "went coed," but the text of our history will show it as part of the university's continued evolution, rather than a revolution. The real revolution takes place when our graduates carry their passion and commitment to their careers in public service.
Carol Streit, Ph.D., is associate provost and vice president of Enrollment Management at Lesley University (Mass.)
Register now for UBTech 2018
Register now for UBTech 2018, June 4-6 at the Mirage, Las Vegas. At UBTech 2018, you'll network with a dynamic community of higher ed leaders who are shaping the future of campus technology and explore topics like cyber security, distance learning, campus learning space design, communications, personalized learning and more. Your UBTech registration also includes a free pass to the InfoComm exhibit hall.


text:
> This may just be a typo, but if you really did create write (dirty) > block device cache by writing the pg_dump file somewhere, then that > is what it's supposed to do ;) The pgdump was across the network. So the only caching on the machine was read caching. > Read cache of course does not need to be flushed and can simply be > dumped when the memory is needed, and so Linux will keep more or > less unlimited amounts of read cache until it needs the memory for > something else .... Right, that's the normal behavior. Except not on this machine. --Josh
Next: From: Campbell, Lance Date: 2012-03-29 17:59:12 Subject: database slowdown while a lot of inserts occur Previous: From: Merlin Moncure Date: 2012-03-28 16:39:57 Subject: Re: Distinct + Limit


text:
Located in central London, Durley House is a business-friendly hotel within walking distance of Sloane Square and Saatchi Gallery. Additional points of interest include Hyde Park Corner and Trafalgar Square.
Recreational amenities include an indoor pool and a sauna. This 4-star property has a business center and offers small meeting rooms, secretarial services, and limo/town car service. Complimentary wireless and wired high-speed Internet access is available in public areas. Room service is available 24 hours a day. The hotel serves Continental breakfasts (surcharges apply). For a surcharge, the property offers a roundtrip airport shuttle (available on request). Guest parking is available for a surcharge. Business services, concierge services, tour/ticket assistance, and tour assistance are available. Other property amenities at this Victorian property include multilingual staff, laundry facilities, and a garden. This is a smoke-free property.
11 air-conditioned guestrooms at Durley House feature iPod docking stations and minibars. Accommodations offer city views. Beds come with premium bedding. All rooms include separate sitting areas along with desks and sofa beds. Kitchens include refrigerators and coffee/tea makers. Bathrooms feature shower/tub combinations, designer toiletries, bathrobes, and scales. Wired high-speed and wireless Internet access is available for a surcharge. Guestrooms offer complimentary newspapers and safes. Televisions have premium satellite channels and DVD players. Also included are CD players and complimentary bottled water. Guests may request microwaves, in-room massages, and irons/ironing boards. A nightly turndown service is offered and housekeeping is available daily. Guestrooms are all non-smoking.


text:
Posted by Newmont Waihi Gold Update on 30/11/2011
In their current update Newmont asks 'what has mining done for our town and district'?
How much of the town's economy relies on the mine for employment? What groups benefit from the mine's operation?
Why should people who don't work for the mine be interested about whether Newmon't activities continue?
What facilities has the mine helped fund?
They background the recent telephone poll conducted by an independent research company and detail their new opening hours for their Golden Link Information Office on Seddon Street next to the Waihi Memorial Hall.
The office is a point of contact for anyone wanting to know more about the Golden Link proposal.
Newmont Update 30/11/2011Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Newmont External Affairs Manager Sefton Darby talks about the update and comments on the Kauaeranga Valley protest on Monday
Gold FM is no longer 'faceless'. Now we can socialise with you on our Gold FM facebook page.
All you've got to do is click the link on the left and you'll be welcomed to our facebook page. We'd love you to 'like' us so that we can keep you up to date.
Gold FM - Hear the difference!
© Gold FM 2011. Gold FM retains the copyright on all textual content produced by them on this website. Images may also be subject to copyright.
Users are forbidden to copy, republish or redistribute material produced by Gold FM in any other form without permission from Gold FM.
For permissions and other copyright-related questions, please email your question to: firstname.lastname@example.com


text:
G4 Changes Premiere Date for "Iron Man" and "Wolverine" Anime to July 23rd, 8-9 PM
The online schedule for the G4 network has listed its first broadcast for the Marvel's Iron Man and Wolverine for Saturday, July 23rd. Iron Man will air at 8 PM while Wolverine will follow at 8:30 PM. G4 had previously announced their premieres for July 29th.
These shows are two of four "Marvel Anime" animated by the Japanese studio Madhouse. The others, X-Men and Blade, are tentatively planned for broadcast on G4 later this year.


text:
PARIS (Jan. 27)
The nine hundredth anniversary of the birth of Rashi (Rabbi Solomon Ben Isaac), the great Biblical and Talmudical commentator and expounder, will be marked this year by special celebrations in the city of Troyes, where he was born, it was announced today.
M. Berg, head of the consistory of Troyes, disclosed plans to honor the great teacher's memory in his birthplace. He pointed out that the anniversary should have been celebrated in 1940 but it was impossible to do so then owing to the war.
Rashi was born in Troyes in 1040 and died there in 1105.


text: thanks! it didnt come down to me and anyone lol.. i didnt play very well.. i gave open a shot though lol.. i finished 5 over for the 2 rounds and he finished 13 under! but i was on his card the first round at least, that was pretty sweet!


text:
3143 E. Anaheim StLong Beach, CA 90804-3811
(562) 961-3425
House of Craft on E. Anaheim St in Long Beach, CA is in the Beach California section(s) Hobby, Toy, And Game Stores. The map of House of Craft shows the approximate location in Long Beach, but you should call them at phone number (562) 961-3425 to verify their address is 3143 East Anaheim Street, Long Beach, California 90804-3811 and to get hours and driving directions.
1. anaheim and disneyland theme parks... or House of Blues, Farmer's Market and Craft Fair on Thursdays, ball games at Angels Stadium, shopping for sneakers in the discount stores near Disneyland, ...
2. solvang california, home to danish lifestyle near michael jackson's ...Dedicated to the teachings of crafts and values of their ancestors, Danish is still ... antique shops in Los Alamos and Santa Ynez, a carriage house museum, two ...
3. disneyland hotel, anaheim, california, photos reservations ...... Granvilles Steak House, Yamabuki (Japanese), Hook's Pointe & Wine Cellar ... ESPN Zone or House of Blues, Farmer's Market and Craft Fair on Thursdays, ...
Things to do in Long Beach CA
Long Beach Hotels
Long Beach Attractions
Long Beach Shopping
Long Beach Restaurants
Long Beach Events
Book Hotels in Long Beach CA
Signal Hill
Seal Beach
San Pedro
Beach Travel Planning Resources:
California Shopping |
California Dining |
California Casinos |
California Vacations
California Coast Vacations |
California Kids
Vacations |
California Beach Hotels |
California Beach Vacations |
California Theme Parks |
Disneyland Vacations |
Surfing Vacation |
Southern California Vacation |
California Weekend Getaway |
California Spa Vacation |
California Hotels |
California Churches |
California Things To Do |
Orange County California Hotels |
California Family Vacations |
California Videos |
California Resorts |
California Beach Resorts |
California Business Directory |
Things To Do in California
California Beaches -
Beach Cities -
Alphabetical List -
Search -
Beach Photos -
California Events -
Privacy -
Contact Us


text:
Armed robbery late Friday
Sat, 11 May 2013 13:03:36 GMT —
Officials have released the surveillance footage from the May 10th burglary at the Save-Rite Petro Station in the hopes that it will help solve the crime.
The video shows two men run into the store dressed in all black and point handguns at the cashier while demanding money. The cashier then hands over two drawers holding an undetermined amount of cash and the men run out of the store just minutes after they came in.
Officials are asking for anyone with information on the two men or the case to please call the Albany Police Department or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at (229) 436-TIPS, or 8477.
Albany Police are reporting that two male suspects ran into the Save-Rite Petro Station, at 427 South Westover Boulevard at around 9:30 PM Friday night .
The two men were dressed in all black, and were each carrying a handgun. The 32-year-old female cashier reported that the suspects jumped up on the counter, pointed their weapons, and demanded money from the register.
No one was injured, and Albany Police are asking that anyone with information contact the department offices or Crime Stoppers at (229) 436-TIPS.
Stay connected to MySouthWestGA.com as stories develop and the FOX 31 Newscast at 10 PM. Visit us on Facebook and Twitter to join in on the conversation and connect with FOX 31!


text:
Even more houses could be built in the district, as Maldon District Council is said to be considering increasing plans for 3,000 homes by 2029.
Burnham town councillors discussed the situation at Thursday's town council meeting and have branded it "a concern".
The proposed development already affects Heybridge (900 homes), south of Maldon (1,250), North Fambridge (300) and land west of Burnham (450).
Councillor Mike Wood learnt about the possibility of extra homes in a meeting with Maldon District Council's head of planning Derek Lawrence.
He said: "Mr Lawrence said that the 3,000 houses is likely to be increased, he said it's not sacrosanct but it's likely.
"I asked whether he has any idea how many houses are being given any consideration outside the development boundary.
"He said yes, a little more than a trickle."
See this week's MBS for the full story.


text:
A Timber Framer's Workshop, Joinery Design and Construction of Traditional Timber Frames by Steve Chappell
This 250-page workbook includes comprehensive technical information on the joinery, design and construction of traditional timber frames. Illustrated with...
Advanced Timber Framing
Advanced Timber Framing: Joinery, Design & Construction of Timber Frame Roof Systems Hardcover
By Steve Chappell
This Award Winning hard cover First Edition has 368 pages and...
Build a Classic Timber Framed House
Build a Classic Timber-Framed House
by Jack A. Sobon
1994, paperback, 208 pages.
From the Back Cover
With the step-by-step instructions in this...
Building the Timber Frame House
Building the Timber Frame House: The Revival of a Forgotten Craft
by Tedd Benson with James Gruber and Jamie Page
Companies We Keep
Companies We Keep: Employee Ownership and the Business of Community and Place
by John Abrams
2008, 2008. Paperback, 333 pages.
From the...
English Historic Carpentry
English Historic Carpentry
by Cecil Hewett
From the Back Cover
Rarely can a work on ancient methods of building construction have had...
Learn to Timber Frame by Will Beemer
A classic timber frame is as practical and beautiful today as it has been for centuries. In this beginner-friendly...
Master's Guide to Timber Framing
Master's Guide to Timber Framing
by James Mitchell
James Mitchell's new guidebook, Master's Guide to Timber Framing, is designed to progress...
The Complete Rigger's Apprentice
The Complete Rigger's Apprentice
by Brion Toss
illustrated by Robert Shetterly
Hardbound, 494 pages, 700 illustrations.
From the book's publisher:
This book will show...
The Timber Frame Home
The Timber-Frame Home: Design, Construction, Finishing
by Tedd Benson
Hardcover, 8-1/2 x 11 in., 240 pages, with color photos and drawings.


text:
Come visit us!
Drop by our shop for a free demo or have a talk about how virtual reality can be used in your business area.
Khora VR
Høkerboderne 8, 1712 København
Danmark (DK)
Email: email@example.com
Telephone: +45 3116 9181
The shop is open:
Monday-Friday: 10:00-18:00
Saturday & Sunday: 10:00-18:00


text:
Gods Rose Garden / Various
- Artist: Various Artists
- Format: CD
- Release Date:4/8/2008
|your cart is empty
This C.D. is a collection of ten of songwriter Nell Gillilan's first songs. God's Rose Garden being the very first set to music. It was originally written as a poem for Patty [the singer's] mother, when she lost her oldest daughter to an automobile accident. Five years later, Patty's baby sister was drowned in a scuba diving accident. This poem was then set to music as a tribute to both the sisters, as sung by Patty her self. For the next few years, poem writing became songs for Nell. Patty, along with other great singers from Miramar Church of God, came together to produce just some good old gospel singing on this album. All these songs have special meanings, but God's Rose Garden has an extra special meaning.


text:
Nobel Prize Winner Praises Viet Nam's ten-year StrategyOct 11, 2001
Ha Noi - Professor Joseph Stiglitz, who was recently awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics, has expressed a positive view on Viet Nam. During a series of high level consultations organized by UNDP in Hanoi this past June, Stiglitz commented that: "The new ten-year socio-economic development strategy has been developed in a way that has engendered broad consensus. The strategy is one that attempts to ensure equity and stability at the same time that it promotes growth. It embodies a deliberate and gradual transformation of the economy. Indeed, I believe that without equity and stability, one cannot attain sustained growth."
Professor Stiglitz was visiting Viet Nam within the framework of UNDP's ongoing advisory assistance to the Government in the implementation of the country's new Ten Year Socio-economic Development Strategy 2001-2010.
"Professor Stiglitz is well known internationally as a sympathetic and reliable friend of developing countries, and a world class independent thinker and advisor offering alternative views" said UNDP Resident Representative Edouard Wattez, and "we are obviously very pleased that he was so enthusiastic about participating within the framework of our ongoing policy advisory services to the Government."
During 1993-97, Dr. Stiglitz was the Chairman of the U.S. Council of Economic Advisors under President Bill Clinton. Following three distinguished years as Chief Economist of the World Bank, Dr. Stiglitz left in early 2000 to pursue independent policy thinking and research. Professor Stiglitz has taught and lectured at most of the world's very best universities including Stanford, Yale, MIT, Princeton, Columbia, Oxford, Cambridge and others.
Stiglitz, and his American colleagues, George A. Akerlof and A. Michael Spence, were yesterday awarded Nobel Laureate in Economics by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences "for their analyses of markets with asymmetric information".
While in Viet Nam, Professor Stiglitz had private meetings with Prime Minister Phan Van Khai, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Manh Cam; Trade Minister Vu Khoan and State Bank Governor Le Duc Thuy, on a variety of policy issues and challenges facing Viet Nam. Stiglitz also met with the National Committee for International Economic Cooperation; delivered a public lecture at National University on "Public Policy for Knowledge-based Development"; and participated in a session of UNDP's Monthly Donor Group Forum, a regular monthly forum of the ODA community organized by UNDP.
Stiglitz has researched and written extensively on a number of policy challenges of great relevance to Viet Nam including: The Challenge of International Economic Integration for Transitional Economies; Lowering the Risk of Market Failure; The Role of the State; Institution Building for Successful Transition; Mitigating Negative Social Impacts from Integration; Public Policy for Knowledge-based Development; and Second Generation Reform Strategies.According to Robert Glofcheski, UNDP's Chief Resident Economist, "Stiglitz was very positive about his consultations with Viet Nam's leaders and policy makers, and plans to return to Viet Nam during 2002 within the framework of UNDP's policy advisory assistance to the Government". Contact informationUNDP Public Information Unit, phone 942149


text: Refugees in Greece in a never ending ordeal 'We are travelling the same road, a road where our hearts have died, a road that is taking us far from home.' Omar Havana | 11 Mar 2016 09:37 GMT | War & Conflict, Human Rights, Humanitarian crises, Europe, Greece Lesbos, Greece - More than 100,000 refugees and migrants have arrived in Greece since the beginning of 2016. They cross the Mediterraenean, risking their lives to board dinghies after paying smugglers on the Turkish coast. They must survive a boat ride of more than two hours across the waters that separate the Turkish coast from the Greek island of Lesbos. More than 400 people have already drowned attempting the journey this year. The Greek coastguard patrols the Aegean Sea in search of boats in trouble. In Lesbos, doctors team up with rescue workers, firemen, and volunteers waiting for the daily arrivals, who disembark on the beaches of Greece shaking from the cold, but happy to have made it alive. The teams of helpers work fast to provide hot drinks, blankets, medical support and, in many cases, a comforting hug. European governments have put up a number of obstacles to curb the inflow of people. Recently, migrants from specific countries were blocked from continuing their journey on the Balkan route by crossing into Macedonia, which has led to protests and clashes between refugees and authorities. In Lesbos, refugees are sent to registration centres, such as Moria, where they wait for days to receive documents that will allow them to board ferries to Athens. Despite the difficulties, many refugees persevere having left behind homes torn apart by violence and war. "We all have the same story, we are travelling the same road, a road where our hearts have died, a road that is taking us far from home," said one Syrian refugee. Volunteers push a dinghy that has crossed the Aegean from the Turkish coast to safety on the beach of the Greek island of Lesbos. [Omar Havana/Al Jazeera] A volunteer carries a child from from one of the boats. Each day, around 2,000 refugees arrive on the shores of Greece. Children make up a third of arrivals, according to the United Nations. [Omar Havana/Al Jazeera] A refugee helps Sara, a grandmother, off a dinghy. She crossed the Aegean with her son and grandsons. [Omar Havana/Al Jazeera] A family awaits registration at the Moria centre. [Omar Havana/Al Jazeera] Refugees take the ferry to the port of Pireaus on the Greek mainland. [Omar Havana/Al Jazeera] Thousands of refugees disembark from the ferry at Pireaus. [Omar Havana/Al Jazeera] Having arrived in Pireaus, refugees who have paid for the trip prepare to board buses that will take them to the Macedonian border. [Omar Havana/Al Jazeera] Refugees who cannot afford the bus trip are stranded at the port where volunteers provide support. [Omar Havana/Al Jazeera] Many stranded refugees who are left without money are forced to stay in public places on the outskirts of Pireaus or in the squares of Athens. [Omar Havana/Al Jazeera] Volunteers are on hand to help refugees who lack the resources to travel further. [Omar Havana/Al Jazeera] Buses are stopped at a petrol station on the road to the Macedonian border by Greek authorities. UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, has set up a transit camp in a petrol station car park 20km from the border. [Omar Havana/Al Jazeera] The Idomeni refugee camp on the Macedonia border is designed to house about 2,000 people. It is equipped with heated tents and showers. Several aid agencies operate in the camp, providing refugees with medical help, psychological support, food, and water as they wait to cross to Macedonia. [Omar Havana/Al Jazeera] A group of refugees approach the border after their names are called. When the border was still open, a maximum of 50 refugees were allowed across each hour. Now the number is significantly lower. [Omar Havana/Al Jazeera] Macedonia has closed its border, allowing only Syrian and Iraqi refugees to trickle across. The camp is now a bottle-neck housing more than 10,000 refugees. [Omar Havana/Al Jazeera] An Afghan child inside one of the tents set up to house refugees at the Idomeni camp. Afghan refugees are no longer allowed to cross into Macedonia. [Omar Havana/Al Jazeera]


text:
Related Products:
This 1 oz Gold coin comes from the Perth Mint's first lunar series that began in 1996. The 1 oz Gold Lunar Year of the Dragon coins features the serpentine creature next to the Chinese character for "dragon".
Coin Highlights:
- Contains 1 oz of .9999 fine Gold.
- PCGS encapsulation protects and guarantees the MS-69 condition.
- Mintage of 30,000 coins.
- Obverse: Shows the Ian Rank-Broadley likeness of Queen Elizabeth II along with the face value.
- Reverse: Displays a traditional dragon with a "pearl of wisdom" above the words "Year of the Dragon".
- Sovereign coin backed by the Australian government.
Protect and display your Gold coin in style by adding an attractive presentation box to your order.
Perth Mint Gold Lunar coins are some of the most popular collectibles around the world. Add this certified 2000 1 oz Gold Lunar Year of the Dragon coin to your cart today!
Not yet rated. Be the first to Write a Review
We provide all of our customers with a refund, return and / or exchange on everything we sell including all bullion and certified coins. If for any reason, you have a problem, please feel free to call us. We will always do our best to accommodate you.


text:
Friday, March 26, 2010 | 3 a.m.
The airline industry's recovery won't necessarily lead to more flights in and out of Las Vegas, McCarran International Airport's director told a Southern Nevada real estate organization.
The reason: Some airlines are cutting flights as part of their recovery strategies.
Clark County Aviation Director Randall Walker pointed to the downsizing of US Airways in Las Vegas as an example of a carrier trimming capacity as a means to become profitable.
Over the past two years, the Tempe, Ariz.-based carrier has cut more than half of its Las Vegas flights and now has 34 daily operations to and from McCarran. But Walker said the damage may not be as bad as some perceive because 20 percent of US Airways' McCarran traffic connected passengers to other flights and didn't result in customer stays in Las Vegas.
Some of the capacity Las Vegas lost is slowly being picked up by other carriers, Walker told the Southern Nevada Chapter of NAIOP, the Commercial Real Estate Development Association, at a breakfast meeting March 18.
Walker said Miramar, Fla.-based discount carrier Spirit Airlines picked up abandoned US Airways routes to Detroit and Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Frontier, Midway and Allegiant Air have added capacity during the recession.
Walker said high fuel costs still hamper the airline industry and discourage expansions, especially on the long-haul routes Las Vegas needs most.
Fuel costs about $80 a barrel, said Walker, who monitors the price daily. In 2005, airlines were cringing when the price was hovering around $50. In 2008, it climbed to about $145 a barrel.
"If it gets to $100, we'll be back to where we were in 2008," Walker said. "I'm thinking we're not going to get back to the 2007 high-water (traffic) mark anytime soon."
"This (high fuel costs) dissuades a lot of carriers from looking at long-haul markets into Las Vegas and that's the area where we're underwater in terms of supply and demand."
One high-profile exception is British Airways' decision to offer daily nonstop service between London's Heathrow International Airport and Las Vegas. It was the only new nonstop route from Europe to North America last year, and it was the first time a foreign carrier started a transoceanic route to Las Vegas with daily service. Most carriers start with two or three flights a week.
Walker said another international route on the horizon for Las Vegas in May is tiny XL Airlines' twice-weekly scheduled charter service between Paris and Las Vegas.
Walker said airport officials and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority have focused on recruiting foreign carriers because domestic carriers have too much invested in their U.S. hubs to offer point-to-point service to Las Vegas from overseas.
"We tell foreign carriers that they would have a competitive advantage over U.S. domestic carriers if they offered nonstop routes to Las Vegas," Walker said. He points to the successes enjoyed by Virgin Atlantic and British Airways over airlines such as United, American and Delta.
McCarran will have new accommodations for international flights in 2012 when the $2.4 billion Terminal 3 is scheduled for completion.
Terminal 3 will have 14 gates, six capable of handling international arrivals and departures. It will be able to accommodate five wide-bodied jets at once. The current international facility at Terminal 2 can handle two at a time. Terminal 3 will be able to process 2,000 international arrivals an hour compared with 800 an hour at Terminal 2.
Walker said Terminal 3 is considered a "unit terminal," meaning it will have airline ticket counters and baggage claim areas and can operate independently of the other terminals. But Terminal 3 also will provide access to passengers going out from Terminal 1's D Gates.
"It's definitely going to be a learning process when we open in June 2012 because passengers will have to know where their airline is at the airport before they show up," Walker said.
Terminal 3, which has eight subcontracted projects under way such as roadways and a parking garage in addition to the terminal building, is the largest single construction project undertaken at McCarran, Walker said.
He anticipates critics will second-guess why airport officials decided to proceed with a multibillion-dollar project in the middle of a recession. But he told the breakfast meeting he thinks it was the right thing to do.
"The conversation went something like this," Walker said. "You have one of two risks. One risk is you could build the facility and we open up in 2012 and we don't need it. The second risk is that you do not build the facility and in 2012, (convention authority President) Rossi (Ralenkotter) has been able to encourage all these additional people to come to the community and they can't get here.
"So which risk do you want to take? The (Clark County Commission) chose to take the risk of going forward with the project. I think that was the right decision, but there will be a lot of people that will want to second-guess that in June 2012."


text:
New Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg has answered "no" when asked on BBC radio if he believed in God.
The rapid-fire question and answer format on 5 Live meant the 40-year-old did not have the chance to elaborate.
He later said he had "enormous respect for people who have religious faith", that his wife is Catholic and that his children are being brought up Catholic. "
Later the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, reacted to Mr Clegg's declaration.
Dr Williams told Radio 5 Live presenter Simon Mayo: "It matters less to me than to know they are honest and reliable and that what beliefs they have they hold sincerely.
"This isn't a country where Christianity is imposed by law. It's a country with a nominally Christian majority. And that's good.
"And whoever becomes prime minister has to understand that and work with it rather than against the grain of it."
We have tried to calculate the true cost of producing and transporting bottled water before, and have come up with just vague approximations, which did not take the production of the bottle into account. Over at Triple Pundit, Sustainability Engineer and MBA Pablo Päster has done a thorough and exhaustive study of the cost of bring a litre of Fiji Water to America. He starts with the production of the bottle in China, taking the bottle blanks to Fiji, and confirming that it takes more water to make the bottle than it actually holds. He then transports the bottle to the States by ship. Not even including the distribution in the States, the numbers are absolutely staggering.
In summary, the manufacture and transport of that one kilogram bottle of Fiji water consumed 26.88 kilograms of water (7.1 gallons) .849 Kilograms of fossil fuel (one litre or .26 gal) and emitted 562 grams of Greenhouse Gases (1.2 pounds).
Last year Microsoft filed a patent application, published yesterday, that explains a method by which embedded advertising can't be skipped. From the application abstract: "Enforcing rendering advertisements and other predetermined media content in connection with playback of downloaded selected media content. Playback of selected media content is made conditional on acquisition of a playback token that is generated in response to playback of the predetermined content."
The easy way to circumvent this: don't buy any Microsoft technology.
Teenagers who have had formal sex education are far more likely to put off having sex, contradicting earlier studies on the effectiveness of such programs, U.S. researchers said on Wednesday.
They found teenage boys who had sex education in school were 71 percent less likely to have intercourse before age 15, and teen girls who had sex education were 59 percent less likely to have sex before age 15.
Sex education also increased the likelihood that teen boys would use contraceptives the first time they had sex, according to the study by researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which was published in the Journal of Adolescent Health.
"Sex education seems to be working," Trisha Mueller, an epidemiologist with the CDC who led the study, said in a statement. "It seems to be especially effective for populations that are usually at high risk."
Last summer, two burglars broke into Ricks' home. He shot and killed one of them. Police determined he acted in self-defense, and cleared him of any criminal wrongdoing. But local police did find a small amount of marijuana in Ricks' home, which Ricks says he uses to manage the pain of his arthritis and a hip replacement surgery. Ricks was never charged for the marijuana. But finding it in his home was enough for city police to confiscate Ricks and his wife's life savings under drug war asset forfeiture laws. Oddly enough, the FBI then stepped in, and claimed the money for itself.
Consistent with asset forfeiture laws, the federal government now says Ricks has to prove he earned the money legitimately in order to get it back. Of course, he doesn't have dated receipts going back thirty-plus years. And he can't hire a lawyer—the government has all of his money.
Teachers banned a nine-year-old boy from his class Christmas party because his parents had barred him from RE lessons.
Douglas Stewart was forced to stay at home while his friends received presents from Santa and tucked into ice cream and jelly.
His parents were told he was not welcome at the celebration because they had pulled him out of religious eduction classes earlier in the year.
She contacted Moray Council to find out its policy on school parties and was told these were non-religious.
So a party they stole from Saturn is now exclusively Christian?
Comedians Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert followed their NBC late-night counterparts, Jay Leno and Conan O'Brien, in announcing late Thursday that they will begin taping new shows in the new year despite the ongoing writers' strike in Hollywood and New York City, which is crippling the entertainment industry.
"We would like to return to work with our writers," said Stewart and Colbert in a joint statement. "If we cannot, we would like to express our ambivalence, but without our writers we are unable to express something as nuanced as ambivalence."
I hope it's 30 minutes of Jon Stewart making comical faces in reaction to a live CNN feed…


text:
This is it, ladies and gentleman, the envelope please… the final week of our presentations on the Oscar Men of 2013. This upcoming weekend we find out what manly men will be taking home that heavy piece of trophy-dom, and which men will simply smile and nod, appreciating the fact that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences considered them good enough to place them in the "best screen acting" ranks in the first place.
As far as Academy appreciation goes, this year was pretty bizarre. Not only did Michael Haneke get attention (while he's one of my favorite filmmakers, if he can't scar you, nobody can!), but musicals got the love. This week's Myth of Macho will be looking at the work of the Australian-born entertainer Hugh Jackman. While you may not think that he was appropriate for the role of Jean Valjean, there can certainly be no argument that he counts in the "manly" camp. The guy played Wolverine, for heavens' sake!
Hugh Jackman's nomination this year was for the cinematic adaptation of Les Miserables (Tom Hooper, 2012). While not adored by many online film critics, it has gotten a certain amount of attention in the industry at large. This should be no surprise when it comes to the talents of Jackman as he has had a long and successful career in the musical theater world. This stage experience has given him immense flexibility and diversity in performance, especially when it comes to exploring ideas of the masculine. Hugh has played everything from Joe Gillis in the musical version of Sunset Boulevard toCurly in the Royal National Theater's London production of Oklahoma (garnering him an Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical). Jackman's Tony Award for playing Peter Allen, the gay Australian singer-songwriter in The Boy from Oz in 2004, was no small feat either. All in all, his stage performances gave him enough fodder for anything Hollywood could throw at him.
As it turns out, these previous career moves translated to some exceptionally strong cinematic roles. Although capable of playing anything from a superhero or romantic leads to a comedic or dramatic character, there have been a couple of films that really showcased the depth of Jackman's acting ability. This year's nomination may stem from Jackman's flair for musical theater, but this week's Myth of Macho will explore two films in which Jackman's highly masculine sensibility plays a crucial role in investigating ideas of success and failure, emotionality and technology in relation to what it means to be a man.
Christopher Nolan's The Prestige (2006) and Shawn Levy's Real Steel (2011) both study the idea that to be a complete man is to divide and conquer. These two films explore commonly held masculine notions of personal success and failure, dissecting them through the contexts of magicianship and robot boxing. The Prestige and Real Steel both question what would make someone continually shove aside productive human relationships in exchange for that which is damaging, and focus on the intense ideals of winning versus losing that are part and parcel of much of male psychology. The men in these films have blinded themselves to their own self-destructive tendencies through their career choices although the films do not leave them at that location. As the films expand, so do the characters and they end up at very different places (and as very different men) than where they began.
The Prestige is not like any movie you've ever seen or ever will see. It's a difficult movie to describe without ruining and… you do not want it to be ruined. Trust me. I initially watched it because it was Christopher Nolan and Michael Caine but I ended up falling for it in a variety of ways. At its most basic level, this film is about magic. No, not the elves and fairies and Lord of the Rings-style stuff, but the rabbit-out-of-a-hat, card trick, Houdini-style stuff. And please, no associations that with that wanna-be hack "magician" Criss Angel: he's taking up precious oxygen on this planet when it comes to magic craft.
The Prestige tells the story of two 19th century magicians: Robert Angier (Hugh Jackman) and Alfred Borden (Christian Bale). Assistants for a higher-ranked magician at first, something goes wrong during a trick, and Angier's wife Julia (Piper Perabo) is accidentally killed. Angier blames Borden for her death and, as they say, "there goes the act." The two men end up as top performers in their field, going out on their own. Due to this incident and what appears to be a toxic mix of ego, desire for revenge and the need to prove who is the greater "man of magic," Angier and Borden spend the next few years trying to "one-up" each other. This journey ends up involving Nikola Tesla, prison sentences, murder raps and the devastation of many people's lives, most notably their own.
In many ways, The Prestige is about trying to regain something that is lost. Whether it is simple pride in being the best magician or a sense of worth and power over the man who accidentally caused the death of the woman who gave meaning to your life, the sense of wanting to retrieve that feeling through causing a rival to fail is potent and present within this film. The many situations in which Borden disguises himself to spy on Angier's show to see "how he's doing" and the many times in which Angier does the same is a perfect example of the lengths that these men will go to in order to get one over on the other. And yet each time they go to the other man's show, they make themselves known in the final stage. In a sense, when they perform their "spy missions" they are, in fact, performing the three stages of a magic trick. In the very first few minutes of the film, Cutter (Michael Caine), the magician's assistant, discusses that a magic trick is made out of three parts. In his voiceover Cutter explains…
"Every great magic trick consists of three parts or acts. The first part is called 'The Pledge.' The magician shows you something ordinary: a deck of cards, a bird or a man. He shows you this object. Perhaps he asks you to inspect it to see if it is indeed real, unaltered, normal. But of course… it probably isn't. The second act is called 'The Turn.' The magician takes the ordinary something and makes it do something extraordinary. Now you're looking for the secret… but you won't find it, because of course you're not really looking. You don't really want to know. You want to be fooled. But you wouldn't clap yet. Because making something disappear isn't enough; you have to bring it back. That's why every magic trick has a third act, the hardest part, the part we call 'The Prestige.'"
According to this logic, the magic trick that the two men have pulled on each other is that they are not in the audience, they are not present nor watching each other with great detail. Thus they seem ordinary. Upon being selected, Borden seems to Angier like just an average audience member (and vice versa). However, it is upon closer evaluation that everything falls apart. While it is not supposed to do so in magic, in this power play/ambition game the two men are playing, their "prestige" causes Borden's fingers to get shot off as Angier uses a real bullet in a bullet catch trick and Borden causes another audience member's fingers to be caught, bloodied and broken in a birdcage when he catches Angier off his guard. The prestige of these men's relationship is of the most brutal and destructive variety.
The two men continue to "compete" and Angier cannot stop. He will not stop. Even once he gets semi-romantically involved with his new assistant, Olivia (Scarlett Johansson), he cannot give up on his war against Borden. It has progressed far beyond Julia's death, beyond his mourning and loss and moved forward into an obsession. While Borden has gotten married and had a child, Angier's entire existence is based upon beating Borden and "winning." This tendency worsens as Borden's career begins to take off and it appears that Borden can actually do things that Angier cannot.
When Borden begins to perform a disappearing/reappearing trick called "The Transported Man" it is the final straw for Angier. He tries to do the same trick himself and it works out for a time, but it is with a drunken double who ends up being more trouble than he's worth. Angier sends Olivia to Borden to find out his "trick" and she comes back with a journal. The information contained inside the pages of this journal take him all the way to America and straight to the door of Nikola Tesla (David Bowie). Angier is determined not only to match Borden but to outdo him by whatever means necessary, including new scientific methods.
Tesla looks at him warily upon the proposal of this "transportation" machine and hearing the reasoning. He asks Angier if he has considered the cost. Angier mumbles something about having plenty of money. Tesla says, "Go home. Forget this thing. I can recognize an obsession. No good can come of it." While Tesla agrees to the assignment, his point is well made. Angier has not only stopped considering what is good, right and healthy but has placed his focus entirely on Borden, managing to construct his entire life around "beating" his rival's magic skills. Angier has lost any sense of the definition of "cost" and sees only "price." The distinction between the two is now entirely beyond him. All he sees now is "who is first" and "who is best" and beating Borden at this has become an all-encompassing agenda.
Tesla was a smart man. No good does come of this obsession. Angier's world only deteriorates. The competitiveness that Angier exudes is present in Borden as well and the two men only end up ratcheting each other's desire for more and better until they spiral downwards at a rate that only two professional secret-tellers can travel. The finale of The Prestige is one that cannot be told because, like most of the film itself, it is all about the reveal. But the two men have ramped each other up for most of their lives, knowing (or thinking that they know) how each other does their show, trying to figure out the other one's methods, succeeding and failing, biting and scratching, all to achieve… what? What is it that they actually wished to get?
While Angier was broken and destroyed at his wife's death, it became more about proving his manhood after a while. For Borden, who was unsure about how he affected the accident with Julia, he simply wanted to live his life and perform his craft (even if he did live with a horrible sense of guilt). These single-minded and ambitious men struggled intensely with each other. Their egos and desire to remain on top did not help. At the end of the day, what builds can also destroy. These magic experts were not able to move forward into fertile life territory and it was not just a case of "breaking a few eggs to make an omelette." These men, most notably Angier, made the quick descent into self-destruction due to the desire to win, proving themselves the "best magician" and, in that process, the dominant male.
While Real Steel's narrative is about boxing robots, the concepts of male dominance and competition are not far behind. This film charts the story of Charlie Kenton (Hugh Jackman), an ex-boxer now using robots to compete instead of men. In the world of 2020, this is what fighting has come to. Charlie begrudgingly gets reunited with his son Max (Dakota Goyo), the child he left behind many years previous. Max's mother has died, but Charlie isn't really interested in any reunion. One thing does hold his interest however: the kid's Aunt and Uncle have some money. Charlie is not financially stable and his fights are not going well so he agrees to sign off on custody of Max in exchange for a certain amount of money from the Aunt and Uncle. He also agrees to care for Max for the summer while the couple travel to Italy.
Max turns out to be more of a handful than Charlie had counted on. Stubborn, precocious, and mouthy, it is pretty clear that he's inherited a few things from his dad. It also turns out that Max is quite an expert on the kind of robot fighting that Charlie does. When Charlie loses yet another fight and may be out of the robot boxing game, his son manages to locate a strange old robot in the parts yard. While Charlie is convinced that Max's find is useless, Max thinks otherwise. With the assistance of Bailey (Evangeline Lilly), Charlie's inferred love-interest and long-time robot boxing partner (she does repairs and other tech work) and sheer persistence, Max is able to turn an otherwise junky robot into a champion, all the while forming a stronger bond with his father, and making it to the Real Steel championships.
As in previously discussions about films like Boyz in the Hood, He Got Game, and A Bronx Tale, father/son relationships play a very important role in masculine development. Real Steel is another one to add to this list. However, the plot also centers on the ways in which emotional response and technology are aligned and the reversal of traditional father/son roles. Instead of the generic story about a father regaining the trust of his son through awkwardly teaching him the ways of the world, the Real Steel landscape places Max in the unenviable position of being able to see through Charlie's failures, mistakes and feelings of ineffectiveness.
While this viewpoint comes from the standpoint of a pre-adolescent boy, just coming into his own the innocence that Max exudes when he "instructs" his father is refreshing. It is almost a wake-up call for adults reminding us that sometimes… children do know better. It is also partially how the father and son get to victory. By working together, they are able to form an awesome team (in the true sense of the word "awesome") and kick every other robot's ass. It is not entirely Max- he certainly needs his father. But the two men together form a team with this "underdog" robot, Atom that cannot be stopped.
Charlie's personal center of operations is based in the past, fed by ego and overconfidence, as displayed by the first match he takes Max to. He has a robot that he has bought with the money he received from Max's Uncle called Noisy Boy, and he pits him against the "main card" robot, Midas. While Max warns him not to go forward with the match, he does it anyway, realizing about halfway into the match that he's in way over his head and he is about to lose… hard. When Max sees that he's operating the controls wrong and tries to help him, Charlie simply ignores him.
After the match, Charlie just shrugs. He is ready to toss the remaining parts of Noisy Boy away, blaming the loss on the robot itself, refusing to take any responsibility. Max is furious. He likens Charlie's abandonment of the devastated robot to what he himself had suffered when his father deserted him. He says, "Do you even think about the stuff you do before you do it? You had no idea how to fight that fight. Those combination codes. You didn't even know what half of them meant. You just threw them in there cocky and half-assed. Of course he lost. You never gave him a chance… Noisy Boy was a great robot… so you throw him away… that's what you do, right? Anything you don't need you just throw away?"
In this sense, Real Steel also bears a distinct resemblance to Myth of Macho's discussion of Warrior. Much like those characters, Charlie cannot face emotional reality and his past is scarred and troubled, so he leaves it behind or chooses not to confront it. He has a hard time emotionally engaging with Bailey and he opted out of Max's life entirely, until he was forced to face him. His own personal pain is dealt with through his alignment with the robots that he works with, all of which are made of metal and electrical parts. He maintains a much closer relationship to that technology than to human technology. Much like the men in Warrior, Charlie is a man who has always worked out his own pain in the ring. The problem is, as we are shown, it has become less and less successful with the onset of this new technology until Max comes into his life. When he is forced to connect with humans again, and face emotional reality he is able to succeed in the ring. Max teaches him how.
Boxing and wrestling films are the ultimate films about masculinity. They are about performance, competition, body image and pure unadulterated testosterone. So what about a robot boxing film? In Real Steel, the technological elements and robotics are used as a tool. During the final fight between Atom and the massive robot Zeus, Max and Charlie have worked with Atom and trained him so that he can box, much like Charlie used to back when it was men in the ring and not machines. At a key point, Charlie must actually do the boxing movements so that Atom can mimic them in the ring. The positioning of the two boxing machines (man and robot) in this sequence is critical: it finally places Charlie back in a location of power and masculinity where he has not been since he was knocked out of the ring by the machine age and his resulting failures. The resulting scenes show the ways in which a competitive man's self-image can be repaired by success and hard work that has paid off.
Both The Prestige and Real Steel function on ideas of masculine competition and ego. While one plays upon secrets and individual solutions, the other looks to cooperative ideals and communication. Both films are highly technological in their content (albeit in very different times), showing the strong connection that masculinity has to machinery and self-expression. Whether it's robots or magic, beating a rival or trying to have the most badass robot on the block, that focus on the technical and competitive can lead to emotional deterioration or complete downfall. What these films express is the beauty and the bastardry of machines and their users and how one can lead to the other, warning us to have a careful balance.
I'm very glad that you've engineered yourself through another fantastical Myth of Macho with me and through our little study of the Men of the 2012 Academy Awards. I will be taking a brief sabbatical from this column to finish up my scholastic work and make sure that I'm all grad-u-tated! It won't be terribly long and I promise to come back in full force!
But in the mean time, remember: the brain is a muscle… pump it up!
Ariel Schudson is a featured columnist at CraveOnline and the president of the Student Chapter of the Association of Moving Image Archivists at UCLA. Stalk her electronically at @Sinaphile.


text:
Washington, June 5 (ANI): If people are unable to perceive their own errors as they complete a routine, simple task, their skill will decline over time, a new study by Johns Hopkins researchers have suggested.
The researchers report that the human brain does not passively forget our good techniques, but chooses to put aside what it has learned.
The term "motor memories" may conjure images of childhood road trips, but in fact it refers to the reason why we're able to smoothly perform everyday physical tasks. The amount of force needed to lift an empty glass versus a full one, to shut a car door or pick up a box, even to move a limb accurately from one place to another - all of these are motor memories.
In a new study, the Johns Hopkins researchers try to find out how motor memories are formed and lost by focusing on one well-known experimental phenomenon: When people learn to do a task well, but are asked to keep doing it while receiving deliberately misleading feedback indicating that their performance is perfect every time, their actual performance will gradually get worse.
It had been assumed that the decline was due to the decay of memories in the absence of reinforcement, said Reza Shadmehr, Ph.D., a professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
But when Shadmehr and graduate student Pavan Vaswani asked volunteers to learn a simple task with a few twists designed to deliberately manipulate the brain's motor control system, they learned otherwise.
Shadmehr stated, "Our results correct a component of knowledge we thought we understood. Neuroscientists thought decay was intrinsic to motor memories, but in fact it's not decay - it's selection."
The finding was published last month in The Journal of Neuroscience. (ANI)


text:
Attorney: Former Army captain from Port St. Lucie shot husband in self-defense
By LAMAUR STANCIL | Treasure Coast Newspapers, Stuart, Fla. | Published: February 20, 2014
PORT ST. LUCIE — A Miami attorney retained to represent the Port St. Lucie military veteran accused of killing her husband is calling the shooting an act of self-defense.
Valerie Lowe, 53, remains at the
St. Lucie County Jail without bail one week after police charged her with second-degree murder for the killing of Laurence Edward Daly, 64, on Feb. 5 at their home. Lowe told detectives she grabbed a handgun and fired at her husband during an argument when he lunged at her.
"We look forward to the opportunity to present the entire truth of what really happened," attorney Robert Barrar said in a statement. "(We) are confident that she will be acquitted as she acted only in self-defense."
Barrar has represented several clients charged with murder.
He said the Lowe family extended condolences to Daly's relatives and described the shooting as a "tragedy that has devastated both families."
Barrar described Lowe as a mother and a grandmother. She had no children with Daly, whom she met 3 1/2 years ago and married in July, police said.
Assistant State Attorney Bernie Romero is prosecuting the case for the State Attorney's Office. He would not comment on the state's case against Lowe.
The former Army captain called police to her home in the 5700 block of Northwest Cleburn Drive after the shooting. She told police she shot Daly in the chest as he charged at her with fists clenched.
Detectives said Lowe was inconsistent in her interviews about Daly's aggression before the shooting.
article continues below
comments Join the conversation and share your voice!
from around the web
more top news