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Tuesday, November 25, 2014PSW Staff 11/25/14 02:41 PM,Sennheiser has announced the availability of a Dante card for the EM 9046 receiver, enabling the flagship Digital 9000 wireless microphone system to be integrated into Dante audio-over-IP networks. Also available – as free downloads – are the associated new Digital 9000 firmware version 3.0.3, and the new Wireless Systems Manager 4.2 with a set of optimized monitoring functions. "With the EM 9046 DAN extension card, broadcast and live audio engineers can now easily integrate Sennheiser's top-of-the-range wireless microphone system… View this story
Filed in: AV • Live Sound • Church Sound • News • Product • AV • Ethernet • Interconnect • Microphone • Networking • Software • Sound Reinforcement • Wireless
Wednesday, November 19, 2014PSW Staff 11/19/14 01:10 PM,UK-based live mix engineer Zoe Martin utilizes Harman's Soundcraft Vi6 consoles and the new Realtime Rack while touring with international artists and bands such as Maverick Sabre, Bonobo and The Radiophonic Workshop. Having acquired substantial experience over the past decade, Martin also passes her mixing skills onto university students at the Brighton branch of the British and Irish Modern Music Institute with a Soundcraft Vi1 console. Martin's analog background made Soundcraft the winner when it came to her preferred mixing… View this story
Filed in: AV • Live Sound • News • AV • Consoles • Digital • Engineer • Mixer • Networking • Processor • Software • Sound Reinforcement
PSW Staff 11/19/14 12:53 PM,Eventide announced the formation of a strategic partnership with Yamaha to develop signature effects for a future update to its new flagship live sound console, the RIVAGE PM10. (Read more about this new console here.) The Eventide H3000 Live plug-in will include some of the most widely used signature Eventide effects used in the live sound industry. "We have the utmost respect for Yamaha's deep roots in the music equipment industry," states Ray Maxwell, Eventide vice president of sales and… View this story
Filed in: Live Sound • Recording • Church Sound • News • Product • Business • Consoles • Mixer • Processor • Signal • Software
PSW Staff 11/19/14 06:19 AM,Mackie has announced the availability of new Master Fader v3.0, providing significant upgrades for the new DL32R wireless digital mixer with iPad control as well as DL1608 and DL806 mixers. It's available for free download from the Apple App Store here. "Master Fader is designed from the ground up for wireless mixing. It's the most intuitive and easy-to-use live sound control app out there," states Ben Olswang, Mackie senior product manager. "Now, with a fresh user interface that delivers faster… View this story
Filed in: AV • Live Sound • Recording • Church Sound • News • Product • AV • Consoles • Digital • Mixer • Software • Sound Reinforcement • Studio
Tuesday, November 18, 2014PSW Staff 11/18/14 05:47 AM,Front of house engineer Paul Ramsay (The Who, Annie Lennox and Skunk Anansie) is currently utilizing Waves MultiRack, Waves Extreme Servers, and Waves plug-ins on English rock act Kasabian's concert tour. Ramsay began working with Waves plug-ins on Roger Daltrey's solo 2011 U.S. tour, also utilizing a DiGiCo SD7 console with a pair of Waves SoundGrid servers. "It all went really well, and I was very happy with the results," he notes. "I didn't take any external outboard like I… View this story
Filed in: AV • Live Sound • News • AV • Consoles • Digital • Processor • Software • Sound Reinforcement
Monday, November 17, 2014PSW Staff 11/17/14 08:35 AM,Grenoble, France-headquartered music software and hardware company Arturia has announced the appointment of Ralph Goldheim to the newly-created position of president, U.S. operations, as part of its ongoing expansion strategy. Previously Focusrite-Novation director, U.S. sales, Goldheim brings extensive experience in sales and marketing management to Arturia, having worked in the pro audio/MI industry for more than 25 years at a number of key executive positions, including tenures at M-Audio, 360 Systems, Line 6, and Alesis. "We are extremely pleased that… View this story
Filed in: Live Sound • Recording • News • Business • Digital Audio Workstations • Processor • Software • Studio
Friday, November 14, 2014PSW Staff 11/14/14 11:51 AM,Co-developed with Manley Labs, the Universal Audio Manley Variable Mu limiter compressor plug-in is now available exclusively for the UAD powered plug-ins platform and Apollo audio interfaces as part of UAD software v7.11. The Manley Variable Mu limiter compressor has been Manley Labs' flagship compressor since 1994, with a Class-A, tube and custom transformer-driven design that's a "go to" tool mixing and mastering engineers due to its smooth, transparent dynamics control and ability to add clarity and cohesion to stereo… View this story
Filed in: Live Sound • Recording • News • Product • Digital Audio Workstations • Processor • Signal • Software • Studio
PSW Staff 11/14/14 11:19 AM,Soundcheck, a leading sound rental firm based in Abcoude, The Netherlands, has taken delivery of two new Outline iP24 iMode multipurpose DSP loudspeaker controllers that incorporate the company's proprietary iMode processing platform. Soundcheck owner Rodney van Zwol selected the iP24 following a demo of its capabilities. "I was knocked out by the sonic performance of this iP24 and how easy the iPad control software operates," van Zwol states. "The onboard features are so easy to work with, and the amount… View this story
Filed in: AV • Live Sound • News • AV • Digital • Loudspeaker • Processor • Software • Sound Reinforcement
Thursday, November 13, 2014PSW Staff 11/13/14 03:43 PM,Opened in 1995, the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis is home to the St. Louis Rams of the NFL in addition to hosting a range of other events, recently undergoing a sound reinforcement upgrade utilizing Harman's BSS Audio, Crown Audio and JBL Professional components. Owned by the St. Louis Regional Sports Authority and operated by the St. Louis Convention & Visitors Commission, the facility is part of the city's convention center complex and seats up to 68,000 people. Following… View this story
Filed in: AV • Live Sound • News • Amplifier • AV • Ethernet • Installation • Interconnect • Line Array • Mixer • Networking • Processor • Software • Sound Reinforcement
PSW Staff 11/13/14 03:25 PM,Audio Precision has announced the availability of version 4.0 of its APx500 audio test software, coinciding with shipment of the new APx555 audio analyzer. Version 4.0, available for download by all APx users (here), provides a multi-mode user interface for the entire APx family of analyzers, adding Bench Mode to complement the software's existing approach of user-selectable automated measurement sequences, now called Sequence Mode. With APx systems used throughout the product development process—from design, debug and validation to final production… View this story
Filed in: AV • Live Sound • Recording • News • AV • Measurement • Processor • Signal • Software • Sound Reinforcement • Studio


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|By Larry Carvalho
Article Rating:
|February 18, 2013 08:00 AM EST
I have attended IBM's Lotusphere conference many times, but this year was a different experience. The long-familiar yellow Lotus branded signs were missing as the conference was renamed "IBM Connect." The move away from Lotus branding was expected after IBM's recent repositioning of Lotus products, along with some new acquisitions under the umbrella of IBM Collaboration Solutions.
The change also reflects IBM's overall direction away from selling products to customers to focusing on business outcomes. The three main themes of the Connect 2013 conference were Social Business, Smarter Commerce and Smarter Workforce. These new focus areas are designed to enable IBM to expand into new markets while enrolling new clients.
Social interactions and mobile access bring along a large amount of data snippets, so analytics is an essential piece required to harvest maximum value. Therefore, the Day 2 keynote was appropriately delivered by IBM's Information Management organization that focuses on analytics. Without analytics, developing deep insights from social interactions accelerated by mobile access is simply not possible. Rapid reaction to market sentiments will differentiate social companies from other companies. Social interactions will bring about a big value to IBM and its customers if properly leveraged with the value proposition differentiators listed for the following themes:
Smarter Commerce:
- Managing empowered customers with personalization
- Viewing customers from a 360 degree view leading to increased customer satisfaction and better retention
- Improving customer loyalty through offers based on insights from location and context
- Engaging customers with additional interactions from mobile devices
Smarter Workforce:
- Building better teams with shared values to deliver better solutions to customers
- Acquiring talent to leverage social networks
- Improving innovation by encouraging social interaction
- Reducing turnover by leveraging social media to improve trust between the employer and employee
There are big challenges for enterprises to transform into a social business, especially since enterprise leadership very often sees more risks than gains when considering social strategies. An age barrier exists in many established enterprises with leadership that is unaware of how the younger workforce operates. (Blake Landau, founder of Artemis and a Huffington Post blogger, articulated the challenge of diversity and age for IBM in a well-written HuffPo post where she estimated that 90% of attendees at IBM Connect were middle-aged men.)
Becoming a social business depends on participation from people across the business environment, including employees, partners and customers. The value of social innovation is built on platforms of teams rather than individuals. Recent restructuring of workforces in many organizations has left very little time or motivation for employees to participate in social networking or to contribute disruptive ideas. Much has been said about the Return on Investment in social initiatives, but only broader adoption can enable organizations to accurately measure anecdotal and quantifiable results.
Facebook's rapid growth does not mean enterprises can easily replicate similar success. Instead, they need to drive social media adoption in the same manner as they promote wellness programs to drive down healthcare costs. Just as healthier employees contribute to the bottom line with reduced sick days and improved productivity, social-enabled employees can contribute more fully to better job and business innovation.
Driving social adoption among employees can increase partner and customer participation, too. Initiatives like viral adoption have been tried, but success is spotty. Direct benefits to employees are needed to achieve the goal of improved engagement. Just as employees get reduced insurance premiums from getting annual healthcare exams, they could similarly be rewarded for writing blog posts, gaining more internal and external followers, etc. Analytical tools, like those IBM offers for monitoring social interactions, can and should play a big role in developing quantifiable measurements to award appropriate incentives.
Although IBM Connect 2013 was a useful conference to impart knowledge on becoming a social business and enabling technologies, enterprises need to suggest a strategy that includes motivating adoption. Once such incentives are put into place as part of a broader social media strategy, employees will naturally gravitate to becoming more social, therefore positively contributing to enterprise business benefits. Once a core mass of participation has been achieved, other non-monetary motivation factors, like sense of corporate purpose, will rally corporate social maturity.
This post was first published on Robustcloud.com. Republished with permission.
The 3rd International Internet of @ThingsExpo, co-located with the 16th International Cloud Expo - to be held June 9-11, 2015, at the Javits Center in New York City, NY - announces that its Call for Papers is now open. The Internet of Things (IoT) is the biggest idea since the creation of the Worldwide Web more than 20 years ago.
Nov. 28, 2014 05:00 PM EST Reads: 1,302
15th Cloud Expo, which took place Nov. 4-6, 2014, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA, expanded the conference content of @ThingsExpo, Big Data Expo, and DevOps Summit to include two developer events. IBM held a Bluemix Developer Playground on November 5 and ElasticBox held a Hackathon on November 6. Both events took place on the expo floor. The Bluemix Developer Playground, for developers of all levels, highlighted the ease of use of Bluemix, its services and functionalit...
Nov. 27, 2014 07:00 PM EST Reads: 1,426
"We help companies that are using a lot of Software as a Service. We help companies manage and gain visibility into what people are using inside the company and decide to secure them or use standards to lock down or to embrace the adoption of SaaS inside the company," explained Scott Kriz, Co-founder and CEO of Bitium, in this SYS-CON.tv interview at 15th Cloud Expo, held Nov 4–6, 2014, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA.
Nov. 27, 2014 07:00 PM EST Reads: 1,461
Some developers believe that monitoring is a function of the operations team. Some operations teams firmly believe that monitoring the systems they maintain is sufficient to run the business successfully. Most of them are wrong. The complexity of today's applications have gone far and beyond the capabilities of "traditional" system-level monitoring tools and approaches and requires much broader knowledge of business and applications as a whole. The goal of DevOps is to connect all aspects of app...
Nov. 27, 2014 06:00 PM EST Reads: 1,237
The 4th International DevOps Summit, co-located with16th International Cloud Expo – being held June 9-11, 2015, at the Javits Center in New York City, NY – announces that its Call for Papers is now open. Born out of proven success in agile development, cloud computing, and process automation, DevOps is a macro trend you cannot afford to miss. From showcase success stories from early adopters and web-scale businesses, DevOps is expanding to organizations of all sizes, including the world's large...
Nov. 27, 2014 06:00 PM EST Reads: 1,826
SAP is delivering break-through innovation combined with fantastic user experience powered by the market-leading in-memory technology, SAP HANA. In his General Session at 15th Cloud Expo, Thorsten Leiduck, VP ISVs & Digital Commerce, SAP, discussed how SAP and partners provide cloud and hybrid cloud solutions as well as real-time Big Data offerings that help companies of all sizes and industries run better. SAP launched an application challenge to award the most innovative SAP HANA and SAP HANA...
Nov. 27, 2014 05:00 PM EST Reads: 1,400
Want to enable self-service provisioning of application environments in minutes that mirror production? Can you automatically provide rich data with code-level detail back to the developers when issues occur in production? In his session at DevOps Summit, David Tesar, Microsoft Technical Evangelist on Microsoft Azure and DevOps, will discuss how to accomplish this and more utilizing technologies such as Microsoft Azure, Visual Studio online, and Application Insights in this demo-heavy session.
Nov. 27, 2014 04:45 PM EST Reads: 1,241
When an enterprise builds a hybrid IaaS cloud connecting its data center to one or more public clouds, security is often a major topic along with the other challenges involved. Security is closely intertwined with the networking choices made for the hybrid cloud. Traditional networking approaches for building a hybrid cloud try to kludge together the enterprise infrastructure with the public cloud. Consequently this approach requires risky, deep "surgery" including changes to firewalls, subnets...
Nov. 27, 2014 04:45 PM EST Reads: 1,297
DevOps is all about agility. However, you don't want to be on a high-speed bus to nowhere. The right DevOps approach controls velocity with a tight feedback loop that not only consists of operational data but also incorporates business context. With a business context in the decision making, the right business priorities are incorporated, which results in a higher value creation. In his session at DevOps Summit, Todd Rader, Solutions Architect at AppDynamics, discussed key monitoring techniques...
Nov. 27, 2014 04:30 PM EST Reads: 1,302
Cultural, regulatory, environmental, political and economic (CREPE) conditions over the past decade are creating cross-industry solution spaces that require processes and technologies from both the Internet of Things (IoT), and Data Management and Analytics (DMA). These solution spaces are evolving into Sensor Analytics Ecosystems (SAE) that represent significant new opportunities for organizations of all types. Public Utilities throughout the world, providing electricity, natural gas and water,...
Nov. 27, 2014 04:00 PM EST Reads: 1,372
The security devil is always in the details of the attack: the ones you've endured, the ones you prepare yourself to fend off, and the ones that, you fear, will catch you completely unaware and defenseless. The Internet of Things (IoT) is nothing if not an endless proliferation of details. It's the vision of a world in which continuous Internet connectivity and addressability is embedded into a growing range of human artifacts, into the natural world, and even into our smartphones, appliances, a...
Nov. 27, 2014 04:00 PM EST Reads: 1,703
How do APIs and IoT relate? The answer is not as simple as merely adding an API on top of a dumb device, but rather about understanding the architectural patterns for implementing an IoT fabric. There are typically two or three trends: Exposing the device to a management framework Exposing that management framework to a business centric logic Exposing that business layer and data to end users. This last trend is the IoT stack, which involves a new shift in the separation of what stuff happe...
Nov. 27, 2014 03:00 PM EST Reads: 1,380
The Internet of Things is tied together with a thin strand that is known as time. Coincidentally, at the core of nearly all data analytics is a timestamp. When working with time series data there are a few core principles that everyone should consider, especially across datasets where time is the common boundary. In his session at Internet of @ThingsExpo, Jim Scott, Director of Enterprise Strategy & Architecture at MapR Technologies, discussed single-value, geo-spatial, and log time series dat...
Nov. 27, 2014 03:00 PM EST Reads: 1,522
An entirely new security model is needed for the Internet of Things, or is it? Can we save some old and tested controls for this new and different environment? In his session at @ThingsExpo, New York's at the Javits Center, Davi Ottenheimer, EMC Senior Director of Trust, reviewed hands-on lessons with IoT devices and reveal a new risk balance you might not expect. Davi Ottenheimer, EMC Senior Director of Trust, has more than nineteen years' experience managing global security operations and asse...
Nov. 27, 2014 01:00 PM EST Reads: 1,713
The Internet of Things will greatly expand the opportunities for data collection and new business models driven off of that data. In her session at @ThingsExpo, Esmeralda Swartz, CMO of MetraTech, discussed how for this to be effective you not only need to have infrastructure and operational models capable of utilizing this new phenomenon, but increasingly service providers will need to convince a skeptical public to participate. Get ready to show them the money!
Nov. 27, 2014 11:00 AM EST Reads: 1,329
SYS-CON Media announced that Centrify, a provider of unified identity management across cloud, mobile and data center environments that delivers single sign-on (SSO) for users and a simplified identity infrastructure for IT, has launched an ad campaign on Cloud Computing Journal. The ads focus on security: how an organization can successfully control privilege for all of the organization's identities to mitigate identity-related risk without slowing down the business, and how Centrify provides ...
Nov. 27, 2014 10:00 AM EST Reads: 1,358
The Internet of Things will put IT to its ultimate test by creating infinite new opportunities to digitize products and services, generate and analyze new data to improve customer satisfaction, and discover new ways to gain a competitive advantage across nearly every industry. In order to help corporate business units to capitalize on the rapidly evolving IoT opportunities, IT must stand up to a new set of challenges. In his session at @ThingsExpo, Jeff Kaplan, Managing Director of THINKstrateg...
Nov. 27, 2014 10:00 AM EST Reads: 1,266
"SAP had made a big transition into the cloud as we believe it has significant value for our customers, drives innovation and is easy to consume. When you look at the SAP portfolio, SAP HANA is the underlying platform and it powers all of our platforms and all of our analytics," explained Thorsten Leiduck, VP ISVs & Digital Commerce at SAP, in this SYS-CON.tv interview at 15th Cloud Expo, held Nov 4-6, 2014, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA.
Nov. 27, 2014 08:15 AM EST Reads: 1,322
One of the biggest challenges when developing connected devices is identifying user value and delivering it through successful user experiences. In his session at Internet of @ThingsExpo, Mike Kuniavsky, Principal Scientist, Innovation Services at PARC, described an IoT-specific approach to user experience design that combines approaches from interaction design, industrial design and service design to create experiences that go beyond simple connected gadgets to create lasting, multi-device exp...
Nov. 27, 2014 08:00 AM EST Reads: 1,290
Enthusiasm for the Internet of Things has reached an all-time high. In 2013 alone, venture capitalists spent more than $1 billion dollars investing in the IoT space. With "smart" appliances and devices, IoT covers wearable smart devices, cloud services to hardware companies. Nest, a Google company, detects temperatures inside homes and automatically adjusts it by tracking its user's habit. These technologies are quickly developing and with it come challenges such as bridging infrastructure gaps,...
Nov. 27, 2014 07:45 AM EST Reads: 1,568

subset: commoncrawl


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John's Dungeons and Dragons Utilities
Want to run a local copy of your own D&D Tools? You can !!! Enjoy
Want to run a local copy of your own D&D Tools? You can !!! Enjoy
A guide to developing the personality and background of your role-playing character or NPC
Delight in this beloved dessert with our favorite WD recipes Who doesn't like cupcakes? Spongy and fluffy, and finished with a creamy dollop of frosting, they're a bite-size sweet dream come true. Picking a favorite is nearly impossible, what with al...
No-Bake Chewy Cookies and Cream Bars One 16 oz package of Oreo 5 cups Large Marshmallows 4 tablespoons butter 1. Place Oreos in food
A link to some text I want to share.
You want to know what's weird? Hiding who you are just to have the company of people you don't even like. That's weird.
Commons is a freely licensed media file repository. .
This is a list of .
Here's a bunch of words that, by themselves, have a handful of meanings. Because of this flexibility, they can be instrumental in titles for your songs/poems/stories/etc.
Fantasy City Generator! - Complete with wards, professions, power centers, buildings, guilds, and more!
Press a button to roll a single die with the specified number of sides.
We usually approach Magic as a strategic and tactical game with cool flavor, but sometimes it's fun to let the game's underlying premise (that you are a wizard with a collection of spells at your disposal) to run free. Could we take that a step furth...
Historical detective and best-selling author, Graham Phillips, has been investigating historical mysteries for over 20 years.
Click on a song title to view lyrics and (for most songs) guitar chords. PDF format now available!
Ever feel that books such as Harry Potter have taken all the good Magic set-ups in books? Despite the thousands of types of magic in books, it's still possible to make a brand new magic.
Hello game master/fantasy author. This is a guide to organizing and sorting out the finer details and aspects of a specific country or region of your world: a format for the living details that help you and your players delve in to the...
Even though the Templars swore allegiance to the Pope, their beliefs were not exactly orthodox. They believed that had conceived three children with Mary Magdalene, who moved to France after the crucifixion. Their progeny married into royalty; henc...
Miyamoto Musashi was a legendary Japanese samurai who wrote The Book of Five Rings, detailing his martial art and sword fighting techniques as well as his philosophy on the Way of Strategy and the Way of the Warrior.


text: Injured hockey player Mikey Nichols (center) and his father Steve (left), visited Steve Trevelise (right) to discuss a new treatment possibility and play a few rounds of Trevia. (Toniann Antonelli, Townsquare Media NJ) [ Monroe hockey player Mikey Nichols joins Steve Trevelise in studio By Steve Trevelise 2 weeks ago Monroe Township hockey player Mikey Nichols who was injured in a game last January that left him paralyzed joined me in studio last night with his father Steve. Read More|Comment Category: Host Clips [Audio, Video], Host Posts, Steve Trevelise Tags: Mikey Nichols, Monroe Hockey, Newsletter, Pray for Mikey, Steve Trevelise, Video Send to a friend! Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Pin it! Reddit This! Share on Tumblr!


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Tickets for the annual Father Daughter Dance will go on sale Monday, Jan. 13.
The dance will be held Friday, Feb. 7, at the Chattanooga Convention Center-Ballrooms E-J.
Photos will begin at 6:30 p.m. and the dance will be from 7-10 p.m. There will be light hors d'oeuvres' and a dessert buffet. The event is for girls ages 3-18.
Tickets are $30 per person. There are two ways to purchase them this year. Call 842-6748 to purchase tickets using a credit card (Visa/MC/Discover) and receive the tickets via email or come to Chester Frost Park from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday–Friday to pay cash, check or credit card (please call ahead). Tickets sales are limited to 550.
For more information contact Maureen Davis at 842-6748 or firstname.lastname@example.com.
November 25, 2014
The next Ambi Artists Creative Meeting and Craft and Crop will be held Thursday, Dec. 4, from 6-9 p.m. at Heritage House Arts and Civic Center, 1428 Jenkins Road. Ambi ... (click for more)
Fourteen young ladies graced the stage of the Community Theatre at Memorial Auditorium on Nov. 15, with poise and elegance vying for the crown and title at the Miss Rhomania Pageant. The ... (click for more)
Lakewood Memory Gardens South, 325 Greens Lake Road, Rossville will have its annual candlelight memorial service this coming Monday at 6 p.m. The community is invited to come remember your ... (click for more)
The next Ambi Artists Creative Meeting and Craft and Crop will be held Thursday, Dec. 4, from 6-9 p.m. at Heritage House Arts and Civic Center, 1428 Jenkins Road. Ambi Artists is a "cross-pollinator" where creatives of all stripes gather to reignite their creative spark. Typical get-togethers include writers and poets, fine artists and sculptors, photographers ... (click for more)
Fourteen young ladies graced the stage of the Community Theatre at Memorial Auditorium on Nov. 15, with poise and elegance vying for the crown and title at the Miss Rhomania Pageant. The Miss Rhomania Pageant is Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority's highly anticipated scholarship fundraiser in Chattanooga held every three years. The pageant is a 10-month experience that begins ... (click for more)
Marlon Duane Kiser took the witness stand at his post-conviction hearing on Tuesday to declare that he did not kill Deputy Donald Bond, who was gunned down at a produce stand in East Brainerd 13 years ago. Kiser had not opted to go on the stand when he was convicted by a Nashville jury and given the death penalty in 2003. He said he believes it was Mike Chattin, the man he ... (click for more)
Chattanooga firefighters battled a fully-involved structure fire in Hixson Monday night, and the incident involved at least one fatality. Dr. Steve Cogswell with the Hamilton County Medical Examiner's Office identified the victim as Courtney D. Godwin, 25. Dr. Cogswell said Ms. Godwin died from smoke inhalation. The first call to 911 Communications was received ... (click for more)
This letter will hopefully bring some clarity to the recent situation created by the faculty of Chattanooga State Community College. It is based upon my tenure as a member of the faculty at Chattanooga State Technical Institute, the transformation to Chattanooga State Community College, and my service as the financial and administrative officer at Chattanooga State until my retirement ... (click for more)
I am not predicting this will happen but I have known it to occur – in the middle of the Thanksgiving feast there will come a lull in the conversation and you can save the day if you'll immediately look at the person to your right and ask, "What is the smartest thing you ever heard somebody say?" It is an easy thing, because we all love wisdom, and the ploy comes to mind because ... (click for more)


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Find records of Lauretta Atzback
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Lauretta Atzback (1892 - 1981) was born on October 2, 1892. She was born into the Atzback family.
Lauretta had no-known spouses. Lauretta died in December 1981 at 89 years old.
Lauretta Atzback's last known residence is at West Haven, New Haven County, Connecticut.
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Ngapali Beach Hotel
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Visiting the Fishing Village and Snorkeling
... t have time to try to walk to the fish market so we skipped it. At the end of the jetty, we saw the pagoda that Wendy and Gerda had mentioned - it became a landmark for our next adventure.
Rosemary spoke to my friend Chip who had approached me the day we arrived and offered a boat trip for $25. When we saw him yesterday, we told him we were interested in snorkeling and asked some questions. He had a life jacket, masks, snorkels and fins. He ...
Lazy Day on Ngapali Beach
... have younger people on the tour since there seems to be a preponderance of us golden-agers even on the Explore trips.
Now I am doing "chores" before going out to the ocean...or Bay of Bengal to be more precise..
Well, I finished my chores and went out to the beach, read my new George Orwell "Burmese Days" book. No, I didn't start that until later, but I did finish my Paul Scott ...
Off to Beautiful Ngapali Beach
... after my ocean foray, we went back to the main part of the hotel to find the others. I had been approached by a man promoting his restaurant and another promoting his boat trip so I wanted to share my information. We did manage to get to the hotel happy hour and take advantage of it. Unfortunately, we had to have two of the same drink. Wendy and Gerda switched so they got to try a different one. Poor Hanna had gotten a pina colada that was not the best ...
Beach Bums part Deuce
... 8220;Awwwww" we said and pouted our lips. "OK, happy hour price!" she quickly replied with a smile. After a couple more cocktails we switched up to regular priced beer (50 cents), as we got sick of so much sweet stuff.
Feb 26th - Today we had lunch at our resort restaurant on the inlet. It was fancy, it was overpriced, but damn it was good. We ended up having pasta, with the noodles "el dente", just how ...
Day 15 - off to the beach
... was very hard, and it was not just my feet but also my calves and thighs! We had drinks with Lottie, Geoff and Dennis I then decided I'd had enough cocktails – too sweet, too much sugar syrup, and we had dinner at a restaurant that served red mountain wine. The meal was good but service was very slow, took about 2 hours in total.


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It is a border crossing day. Border crossings are always a mix of heady excitement because you are off to a new country but also anxiety, because you never know what border officials are going to throw at you.
We leave the gross Peruvian town of Sullana behind us in a lather of sweat, it is a very hot day and the ride to Macara is fraught with the usual maniacs, driving with no care or respect for anyone else on the road, let alone a bike. By the time we arrive at the small border town of La Tina we are sweltering. Fortunately this was a very simple crossing, the Peruvian side was done and dusted in under 5 minutes while the Ecuadorian side took about 45 minutes but only because the young guy was a bit slow on the typing/ processing side. However they were kindness itself, even photocopying all the documents they needed from us, for free. We had been warned by one traveler that we needed third party insurance as a requirement on entry to Ecuador but this was not mentioned and there was nowhere to buy it at this tiny border town anyway.
As the sign says - Welcome to Ecuador
Unfortunately while we were getting the paper work done the bike was spewing coolant out onto the road yet again. Oh bugger, not much we can do about it here except top it up and keep riding, so we high tail it out of town and up into the hills, a beautiful twisty ride to Loja which took us over 3 ½ hours. On entering Ecuador you immediately notice the difference, this country is so much cleaner, greener, modern, organised and the drivers, while not perfect, are at least not trying to kill us at every turn. We have to stop at two military checkpoints for paperwork checks and also once for fuel and of course whenever we stop we leak out some more coolant, but we keep heading for Loja. At least we will be able to do something about it there.
As we hit the Loja traffic at about 4.00 pm, the bike hits Danger! Danger! Will Robinson hot hot hot, then boils and spews the last of its fluid on the road, but as luck would have it we were right outside a hotel with parking. Skill stopped the bike on the footpath/driveway on a busy pedestrian street where he is growled at for blocking the narrow sidewalk, meanwhile I bolted inside and got them to lift the roller door to the garage. Without starting the bike Skill rolled into the underground carpark spewing the last of the coolant everywhere. Unfortunately the hotel was very expensive (well for Ecuador - $70.00 per night) but the young guy on reception spoke English and helped Skill find a good motorbike shop. After we had unloaded the bike and it had cooled down Skill pulled it to bits and found that an O ring on a joiner from a radiator hose to the rear cylinder had completely disintegrated, so he had no O ring to take with him to the motorbike shop for sizing.
After a bit of to-ing and fro-ing Skill returned with a few new O rings to try (no suzuki original parts in this town) but as it was now 7.30 pm and we had had nothing to eat since breakfast we found a hamburger, well a hamburger and a hot dog actually, and beer for dinner then retired early.
As we didn't have to check out till 2.00 pm we were hopeful that we would be able to fix the bike the following day then travel to Vilcabamba, our next destination, was only 50 km away. However it was not to be, the O rings did not fit/seal so for Skill it was back to the motorbike shop while I sat in the bowels of the underground car park guarding our now half dismantled bike for 2 ½ hours. Well to cut a long story short, Skill managed to get an O ring that while not the perfect size did the job, put in new coolant and eventually got the bike back together. By this time we had decided to book in for another night so in the afternoon we went for a bit of a walk and checked out the town and had a huge feed of deep fried empanadas and tomato salsa from a very, very dodgy establishment. They were fantastic, but we were expecting to get sick from the look of our surroundings but fortunately luck seemed to be on on our side this time.
That night I showed my age and managed to complain about the doov doov music coming form the next room (there were two teams of football players staying in the hotel). We put up with it for about an hour, but it was so loud it was actually rattling the glass panels in our room and we couldn't hear our own TV. I always feel like the complaining gringo, but the guy on reception was very good and even did something about it, I was completely shocked.
Next day we couldn't wait to get out of the city and our windowless, souless hotel room and it was off into the mountains again to the absolutely gorgeous hamlet of Vilcabamba, all the while checking for coolant leaks with fingers crossed. We made it to Vilcabamba without any sign of leaks, yeah. This little hamlet is apparently renowned for the longevity of it's inhabitants, attributed to the local drinking water. To be honest we didn't see any older inhabitants but the town was heaving with American ex pats.
Parked, looking for a hostel in Vilcabamba
We decide to stay at the German Ecuadorian run hostal of Izhcayluma. We had a little cabin with our own verandah and hammock that overlooked the valley of youth.
Our little cabin
Lan enjoying the hamock
They also had a fantastic restaurant where we overindulged for the four days we were there.
View from the restaurant
We wandered into town on a few days and found a SOAT (Insurance) office and after an hour managed to get one month of third party insurance for the bike (you can only buy a month or a years worth) for $3.00 US per month.
Success we have third party insurance
After 4 days we manage to leave Villcabamba and put in a long day to Quenca (Ecuador's third largest city). It was a beautiful ride up over high passes and into foggy mountains. At one point we rode into really heavy rain and unfortunately did not get our wet weather gear on quickly enough, we were soaked through. On reflection I think this is the wettest we have ever been.
On the road to Cuenca
Despite the conditions we enjoy the countless little villages, where the local inhabitants dress all in black with bowler hats, including the school children.
Sorry about the grainy photo, taken on the move
Anyway it rained on and off all the way to Cuenca and then we had to ride right into the middle of town, where there were detours and roadworks everywhere, it took us well over an hour to get from the outskirts of town into the traffic gridlocked Centro. We eventually found a little guest house where we could get the bike through the double doors into the courtyard. Skill had to ride along the busy footpath through all the pedestrians. After unloading our dripping, soggy luggage, we stripped off everything and hung it all over our miniscule room. After a 5 minute lesson on how to work the shower from our octogenarian owner, we manage a hot shower and it was off to find food then a bit of a wander around the historic centre, then it is early to bed. We are a tad knackered.
Next day we got away by nine and have a six hour ride (with only one stop for fuel) to Banos. We decided we would push through to Banos even though we only had accommodation booked for the Easter weekend. We tried the hotel where we had pre-booked our Easter accommodation but they were full so after a quick check with the tourist office who can't help us with accommodation or a map (what are they there for???) we have an hour hunt to find a place we were happy with. We ended up in a beautiful place on the hill with views over the town all for the princely sum of $20.00 US.
Rainbow views from our Hostel Llanvientos
We quickly checked in for two nights then it was down the hill to Casa Hood ( a restaurant we had read about) where we had a great meal, a sort of Pad Thai and Asian Chicken not to mention a few beers. This turned into our eating place of choice.
We spend our Easter here in Banos which turns out to be quite interesting. On Good Friday we awoke to huge volumes of noise with 1000s of people everywhere camped out on the streets and in the undercover fruit market area. Apparently it was a pilgrims walk to the Manto de la Virgin waterfall where the Virgin Mary appears from time to time. Hmmmmmmmmm it looked more like a huge street party come P**s up to us.
Changing hotel proved to be a bit of a challenge as our prebooked hotel was right near the waterfall and we had to negotiate the hundreds of people in the streets. After checking in I did my usual room furniture rearrangement and got ourselves settled in before we joined the crowds on the street. We even got up to the waterfall but surprisingly Mary hadn't appeared, she was probably put off by the inebriated pilgrims.
The Manto de la Virgen Waterfall and Baths
In the evening while we were out on our own personal pizza hunt we got swept along in a sort of funeral procession where they took the Nuestra Senora del Agua Santa from the Cathedral and paraded her around the streets for a few hours.
Banos Cathedral
Easter Saturday and Sunday proved to be marginally quieter but there are still 1000s of people everywhere. It is quite amazing to see what the locals are doing for fun, of course bathing in the hot springs, then riding around in rhinoceros trains or driving around on hired four wheeler bikes (in the congested streets of the town) or having their photos taken with fake horses. It is a hoot.
The Ecuadorian tourists are taking scenic rides in this mythical train creature
It is also on Sunday we find out that the GPS is completely and utterly dead. It will not turn on, there is absolutely nothing we can do to get it to work, but the unit itself is hot to touch. Very weird. OH BUGGER!!!!
Carmen the Garmin is dead
By Sunday evening down town Banos is deserted, everyone has gone home, we are the only tourists on the street. Unbelievable. On Monday, Skill spends the morning loading software and maps onto the android phone and syncing it to his helmet. We are hoping that we will be able to use this as a GPS at least till we get to Quito
Skill trying to get the phone to talk to his helmet
In the afternoon we go for a walk up to the statue of the virgin, the mirador above town, only to be thwarted 20 metres from the top by a huge swarm of bees, (I, Lan am severely allergic to bees) so it was a no go zone. Feeling a tad miffed we wandered down to the bridge over the river and check out the scenery before buying some of Banos famous sweets. Everywhere in town you see them making it
Canyon below Banos
The sweet makers of Banos
We decide we have spent as much time in Banos as is needed and we will head out to a campground/hostel run by friends of friends in the form of Marc and Sue ex professional overlanders themselves. We leave Banos in driving rain (using the phone as a GPS, it seems to work well) and arrive at Rio Verde 30 km up the road in even worse conditions, the rain is torrential. Marc rescues us and gets us settled into a room. The rain finally abates and we wander the 2kms back into Rio Verde where we encounter some local kids walking home from school.
Careful Kids! The drop off from the wall goes down into the Canyon
In the village we have some local lunch and then walk to the Devil's Cauldron Waterfall. You can approach the waterfall from 2 directions through 2 privately owned paths, so this is what we do. We walk to the bottom of the Canyon and view the falls from the depths of the canyon
Devil's Cauldron Waterfall
Lan at the Devil's Cauldron Waterfall
Skill on the Suspension Bridge at Devil's Cauldron Waterfall
Happy Chappies
On the path back up to the top
Then we walk back up and view them from the top.
Devil's Cauldron from the top
Underneath the falls
Suspension Bridge at the top of the falls
That afternoon we return to the hostel and introduce ourselves to our fabulous hostess Sue. We share a pleasant afternoon with this couple before Marc exclaims that Volcan Tungurahua is erupting and indeed it is, there are a few good belches of ash before it again settles down. We still didn't actually see the Volcano as it was completely shrouded in mist and cloud. The evening starts off bright and clear with a starry night but by eight o'clock it is bucketing down, well I suppose we are in the Cloud forest and it is the wet season.
Volcan Tungurahua belches ash into the clouds
The following day, after a slow start, the weather is looking quite promising and we head into Rio Verde on the bike for some of local identity, Mercede's, famous empanadas, they are fantastic, so good that we get another two to take away for our dinner. Just as we are getting ready to leave for a 50 km ride to Puyo and the Monkey Sanctuary, the heavens open up and thunder and lightning roll in. Off we go anyway (once again, using the phone as our GPS, all goes well) and ride all the way to Puyo in the rain. Fortunately by the time we get to the sanctuary the rain stops and we can enjoy our time here without a rain coat
Skill and his little mate at the Monkey Sanctuary - Puyo
Monkey Sanctuary - Puyo
Monkey Sanctuary - Puyo
Monkey Sanctuary - Puyo
Monkey Sanctuary - Puyo
Monkey Sanctuary - Puyo
Other glorious creatures at the Monkey Sanctuary - Puyo
Lan at the Monkey Sanctuary - Puyo
We manage a rain free ride home to the hostel and share a few beers with our hosts.
The tranquil grounds of Pequeno Paraiso
Next day we awake to absolutely torrential rain yet again, but decide we really do need to move on, so after a delayed start we don the wet weather gear, say goodbye to our fabulous hosts and ride off towards Ambato and Lacatunga in the driving rain. I find out that my wet weather pants are not that waterproof any more as I can slowly feel my draggin jeans soaking up more and more water around my bottom, hmmm not good, I feel like I am wearing a giant nappy. It is also at this point that the phone decides it will not work as a GPS any more and continually loses satellite reception.
We arrive in Latacunga around lunch time and after a few wrong turns, a refuel and air for the tyres we continue on to Pujillo and Zumbhuro where we miss the turnoff for Lake Quilotoa as there are no signs on the main road (in the usual South American style you only get a sign telling you you are on the right road after you have turned off on the right road and no longer need a sign) and we are completely GPS-less. We eventually figure it out and backtrack to Zumbahua and get on the road to Lake Quilotoa.
We are not very good at planning ahead but today we have a plan, we will not visit the Lake but will push on, 19 km up the road, even though it is dirt, to Chugchillan where we know there is good accommodation then tomorrow we will leave our gear in the room and come back to see the Lake before returning to pick up our luggage and completing the Quilotoa loop. Sounds simple and easy in theory.
Because we left Rio Verde late and had to ride fairly slowly because of the rain we are running a bit later than usual and unfortunately the 20 km from Quilotoa to Chugchillan is a nightmare. They are doing road works Ecuadorian style, that means that you rip up nearly the whole 20km of road using earthmoving equipment and people just have to try to get through the best they can.
Road works Ecuadorian style
Click on this youtube video link to see our ride through Ecuadorian roadworks (Excuse my swearing but I am sure you will understand why). Or cut and paste this address http://youtu.be/jrCLTyJJC1s
We ride for nearly the whole 20 km in first gear through awful conditions, even negotiating a couple of water crossings before stopping at 5.30 pm, just short of Chugchillan thinking we have to be on the wrong road, however some kind villagers reassure us Chugchillan is just around the next corner, which it is and we gratefully find the Cloudforest Hostel where we spend a quiet evening with a few other guests.
Next morning we have a decision to make, do we return over the muddied, messy, bulldozed track masquerading as a road or do we continue around the loop and miss out on the Lake. Over breakfast we decide we will have to go back to Lake Quilotoa as that is our whole reason for riding this road. I am extremely nervous about doing this but off we go and we emerge onto the sealed road over an hour and a half later. I cannot believe we didn't come off, it was an awful, awful ride and to think we did it twice. Loco, loco!!!!
We ride into the National Park, pay our $2.00 fee and are told by a dodgy parking attendant that we must park in the car park. For some reason parking attendants feel it is their solemn duty to misinform you and boss you around, we completely ignore him and ride up to the Lake lookout. This is the sight that greeted us. Wow, so pleased we came back.
Panorama - Lake Quilotoa
Lake Quilotoa
Lake Quilotoa
Although it is only 11.00 am we check into a little local hostel across the road, it has secure parking and the rooms have a little wood heater in them. This is our kind of place.
Our little room at Lake Quilotoa
We manage to get a bit of washing done before a quick lunch and it is off for a walk down to the Lake. Well let me rephrase that, Skill takes a walk down to the Lake. We are at about 4000 metres and I know my limitations, the walk down would be tough enough but it is the up bit that I am worried about. I spend an hour at the lookout watching Skill's progress, it is slow going.
By the Lakes shore
By the Lakes shore
Skill returns a good few hours later and confirms it was very difficult to get enough oxygen on the walk back up. We manage to find wood and some lighting fluid to get our wood stove going, we then boil up water for a cat wash (no hot water in the shower) and have a few beers, before we join the hostal's family for dinner. All in all, not a bad way to spend ANZAC day. However at this altitude the weather is completely changeable and it is very cold at night. We are toasty warm in our room, the bed has no less than seven blankets on it. We can barely move.
The bike and Skill hanging out our washing at hostel
Half an hour later this is the same view
The following day we say Goodbye to Lake Quilotoa and retrace our route to Latacunga. Skill was quite keen to ride the roadworks for a 3rd time and complete the Loop road, I was not. I sometimes question his sanity and remind him Happy wife, Happy life We are not riding that road again. Twice is enough!
From Latacunga we have a quick ride to Lasso where we eventually find the delightful Cabanas Los Volcanes to stay in. We manage to get everything off the bike and find some lunch and a little shop in this dodgy town, before the heavens open up for the rest of the day. Oh well a quiet afternoon in with a good book. Tomorrow we tackle another capital city, Quito, and this time without a GPS but Skill is still determined to get the phone GPS to work for us.
Parked at the delightful Cabanes Los Volcanes
It is a quiet Sunday morning in Lasso, we awake to very overcast conditions, have a hearty breakfast, pack up, don the wet weather gear and are on the road to Quito by 9.00 am.
We get only 10 km up the road before the phone tells us we have no satellite reception and decides it doesn't want to navigate us into Quito. We pull over while Skill makes a few adjustments and after a few tense minutes, the problem seems to resolve itself and we are under way, albeit in the rain.
The ride into Quito is totally amazing, absolutely NO traffic, it is like a ghost town. After only one wrong turn we arrive at Casa Helbling (which is to become our home for more than two weeks) where we easily park in the small garage area. The staff are so accommodating. They give us a tour of the hostel, a map of Quito and explain the ins and outs of the hostel and the city. Our room is small but very comfortable. As luck would have it there is a good Chinese restaurant (Chifa) next door so we venture out for an early lunch.
Casa Helbling Dining Area
One of our rooms at Casa Helbling
In the afternoon Skill goes for a walk to Freedom Motorcycles (a motorcycle rental and tour business) which is just around the corner. He gets chatting with the guys there and tells them our GPS woes. They instantly tell him that they can order one for us (at wholesale cost), they also tell him that the best mechanic in town is Diego who has his workshop just across the road. Skill returns to the hostel buoyed by his visit to Freedom Motorcycles, he has ordered a new GPS and he is also sporting 2 new T Shirts.
The next five days are a whirlwind of trying to track down a Galapagos boat tour, so many decisions to make, firstly which travel agent do you use, then what class of boat, which sort of boat, which itinerary, how many days???? After visiting 10 or so different agencies we have information overload, our brains are about to explode but in the end we decide we will have to take a dodgy boat as our budget is not going to stretch any further, we want an 8 day cruise with an itinerary in the Southern Islands including Isla Lobos where we can see the Red footed booby. Having made our decision we go back to the travel agent and get her to book our cruise. The following day she replies via email to say the boat is full and we will have to wait two weeks for the same itinerary. Hmmm what to do??? While we ponder over this problem Skill has booked the bike in with Diego at Mariscal Motos, the poor old bike is overdue for a good service, we need to get the proper seals installed on the radiator plus find where the exhaust leak is plus a few other bits and pieces. Diego is very helpful and the guys from Freedom Motorcycles help with translation.
It is also during this time that we meet Gail, a fellow motorcycle traveller and HU Memeber. One evening at the hostel we share a late night, many bottles of beer, a famous Casa Helbling meze platter and a great many laughs. Gail has been on the road for a year, after retiring from the US Navy. He plans to travel until he gets tired of it. He was great company and we thank him for his going North information.
A few beers with Gail at Casa Helbling
After a few nights of contemplation we decide we will book onto our chosen boat in two weeks time and pay our deposit. No turning back now!!!!! The next problem is how do we get enough money out to pay for the cruise; to pay by credit card you get charged a whopping 12% and you can only get out a maximum of $600 US per day. So every day for the next several days it is off to the automatic teller.
On Friday we head out to Freedom Motorcycles and while we are there our new GPS arrives. After a long chat with the guys we head across the road to see Diego who is having a few problems sourcing some of the service parts and there is the May Day holiday as well so the bike probably won't be ready until later next week. It is at this point we ask him to also install the wiring for the new GPS.
We return to the hostal late in the day and get chatting to Klaus (the hostel owner) about our dilemma. What should we do for the next week while we wait for the bike? After a quick chat and on his recommendation we make a snap decision to book a tour to Cuyabeno Reserve. Within 10 minutes we are booked into the Siona Lodge for a 5 day jungle tour. While we are just finishing off our booking and organising a return flight with Klaus another couple Michel and Iona (pronounced Joanna) from Montreal also get a rush of blood and decide they will book the same tour. They are a lovely couple and we are looking forward to having some travelling companions.
We had never intended to do a jungle tour mainly because of my terrible anxiety. What am I afraid of you may ask? Could it be the FARK rebels who sometimes hold up tourists in this area, or perhaps the wild vigilante town of Lago Agrio, or the dreaded Malaria carrying mosquitoes, or perhaps the flesh eating piranha, or maybe the caymans (alligators). No, none of these things even rate a mention. It is my terrible fear of, and allergic reactions to the dreaded sandflies, beechos, no-see-ums or whatever you care to call them, I loathe them.
What one little sandfly bite does to Lan
So to counteract this problem the following day I go out and buy a couple of long sleeved cotton shirts, a giant can of fly spray and 3 bottles of bug spray containing enough DEET to cause me serious side effects, a quick side trip to the local farmacia for a huge box of antihistamines and I am set. We also buy yet another small cheap carry bag. It is then back to the hostel to sort through our gear, pack our bags and get stuff into storage. Skill goes to see Diego telling him he can have the bike all next week, we will pick it up next Saturday. That evening we have a quiet beer with Iona and Michel, they are such good company and we chat easily about our respective homelands and our guiding passion, TRAVEL.
Next day it is up and at em early, we have breakfast in the hostal's restaurant, check with our receptionist about which bus station we need to go to (hmmm in hindsight a mistake), then walk down the street to catch a taxi. Iona speaks fluent Spanish so she negotiates and we are off . We are five minutes into our journey when Iona asks Michel if he has the passports to which he replies NO so we do a quick detour back to the hostel and then we are off again. We arrive at the bus station only to find that this is not the bus station we need so it is back into another cab and a 45 minute ride to the another bus station. Lucky cabs are cheap in Quito.
Finally we book onto our Lago Agrio bound bus and set off at 10.00 am. We don't get far down the road when my motorcycle addicted travelling companion starts complaining about the bus. It is too hot, there is not enough air, the kid behind me is kicking the seat, he is driving like a madman, the litany of complaints is unending. Skill has never been a good bus traveller!!!! Having said that it was a very long, windy seven hour bus journey, with only one stop for lunch. We indulged in some local barbecued chicken and potato on a skewer, which was great and returned to the bus feeling less ill. The next part of the journey was even faster and twistier than the first, many of the locals turned delicate shades of green and came to the front of the bus to ask the conductor for little black plastic bags. Hmmmm. By the time we get to Lago Agrio all four of us are pleased to get out.
Now everything you read about Lago Agrio tells you how dangerous and ugly it is. To the four of us it just looked like any other dodgy South American town, in fact it was a darn sight better than many we have visited. We opted for the Hotel Araza, a more upmarket hotel than the Hotel d'Mario where we were to join the tour in the morning. Our reason for doing this was because of the reviews we had read, normally we take trip adviser with a grain of salt but we could not find one positive review anywhere on any website. In the end this was a wise decision as the rest of our tour group who either stayed or ate at the aforementioned hotel became quite ill while on our tour.
From the bus station it was a quick 5 minute taxi ride where we easily checked in, showered, cooled down in luxurious air conditioning, I then covered myself in Deet, before joining Iona and Michel for a few beers. A sandwich dinner and an early night after I had used a third of a can of fly spray annihilating any sand flies which may or may not have been in our room.
Next morning we had a big breakfast in our bullet ridden plate glass dining room. Michele said he had chosen this particular table in front of a bullet hole with the theory lightning doesn't strike twice in the same place. After breakfast we pack up, I slather myself in yet more Deet and we stroll down the bustling but friendly main street to meet our tour group. From the word go it was obvious we were with a nice group of people and our guide Jacob, was going to be a friendly, knowledgeable and communicative soul.
Michel And Iona on the bus ride to Puerto Bolivar
It was then a 2 hour bus ride to Puerto Bolivar where we had a quick lunch before getting into our canoe and heading downstream for two hours. It was a fantastic ride with Jacob and Benisio (our canoe driver although he was almost another guide) pointing out all manner of birds, monkeys and even a baby anaconda. These two guys were amazing, their knowledge and passion for Cuyabeno was infectious, they could spot animals that were completely invisible to we mere mortals.
Skill gets ready for our canoe trip
On the Cuyabeno River
Jacob our wonderful guide
Locals call this the Stinky Bird
Snake Bird
Capuchin Monkey
Baby Anaconda
After two hours of travelling up the Cuyabeno River we arrive at Laguna Grande, it is a stunning expanse of tea coloured freshwater. To add to it's beauty are the trees which seem to rise up like monsters from the murky depths. Siona Lodge is one of only two lodges located on the Lake (other lodges are located on the rivers) and we arrive at our little jetty to the sound of howler monkeys in the distance.
Laguna Grande
Howler monkeys are always at the top of the highest trees
Siona Lodge
After a briefing about the lodge, we are assigned to our lovely little huts complete with a four poster bed and mosquito net and also a veranda and hammock. We settle in and explore our surroundings before heading out for a sunset canoe ride and swim.
Sunset on Laguna Grande
Sunset on Laguna Grande
Swimming in Laguna Grande, better not to think about piranahs or cayman or anacondas.
On our return we settle down to a few beers in the dining room before a delicious dinner and then a night walk through the jungle. These are the creatures we discover.
Amazonian Bull frog
After a serious bug spraying of our room we retire to bed listening to the amazing sounds of the jungle. Another pinch myself, I don't believe I'm here moment.
We awake to clear skies, a sumptuous breakfast before donning our unbecoming wellies and it is off in the canoe to the other side of the Lake where we go on a three hour walk through the jungle. Even the uncomfortable wellies and the oppressive humidity can't take the edge of the awe and excitement of seeing all manner of animals and birdlife. At one point we come across the remains of a sloth, Jacob is particularly excited about this and later returns with Benisio who apparently determines it was a Jaguar that killed the sloth.
A Nice Walk in the Jungle (For my teacher friends, can you remember what happened in this story, I don't want to be last in the line)
Blue and Gold Macaus
Monk Saki Monkey
Jacob finds the remains of a sloth
Camouflaged frog
Leaf Cutter ants are everywhere
We return to the lodge for lunch and a siesta. All morning the humidity has been building and as we lay down to rest we can hear the rumbling of thunder which gets louder and louder until the storm is right above us, it rains really heavily for the next two hours.
As we emerge from our cabins for our next excursion the rain has abated and we head out in the canoe looking for the elusive pink dolphins. Fortunately for us they don't prove to be that elusive and we see quite a few. They are very shy creatures so no close up photos. Being out on the lake and rivers watching the passing parade of dolphins and animals is just wonderful, it is so peaceful and we just drift along occasionally turning the motor on to navigate further up stream. After a blissful couple of hours we return to the lodge for a few beers in the dining room before another amazing dinner.
Amazon Pink River Dolphin - trust us it really is....
Dinner is a happy and talkative affair and each day we learn a little more about our wonderful young guide. While highly knowledgeable about the wildlife of this region he also speaks fluent Spanish, Quechua, English, French and also a little German. He is also learning two native languages. A highly intelligent young man. I ask the obvious question How does a boy from a remote Amazonian village become a guide and learn countless languages. He laughingly tells us it was a mistake.
Apparently his brother came home from school for holidays and when he had to return, Jacob at the age of ten went with him to keep him company on the long trek through the jungle and apparently didn't come home. He stayed on at the school where he went from strength to strength and eventually did the studies to become a guide, however while he is passionate about the Amazon, it is languages that he really loves and studies them every chance he gets. He also explains quite succinctly that he is now caught between two cultures. The Western culture with all its modcons and his traditional village culture. He freely admits that if he was still living in his village he would be married with 4 kids and maybe two wives he tells us with a big grin and a wink. He is a delightful young man.
After dinner we are back into the canoe for a night time ride on the Lake, our eagle eyed guides spot all manner of nocturnal creatures.
Amazon River Boa
On our return to the lodge we join another group of travellers and are entertained by their guide who plays the guitar and pan pipes. It is a wonderful evening, later on I go to sleep listening to Simon and Garfunkles Sounds of Silence on the pan pipes. I am in heaven. That night we have another big storm and a huge down pour, it rains very heavily for most of the night. Surprisingly our palm thatched hut is quite waterproof, there is only one little puddle on the floor in the morning.
We are entertained with Guitar and Pan Pipes played at same time.
By now I have realised that there are no sandflies at the Lodge and Skill no longer has to endure my manic room fumigation, besides the rooms are screened and we have a mozzie net. I am sure he breathes a clean-air sigh of relief. Actually Jacob explains that the tannin water of the Lake is too acidic for mosquitoes to breed and for some reason sandflies are also rare.
The following day we take a canoe ride downstream to a Siona Indian community, on the way we spot lots of different wildlife including more pink dolphins, some noisy night monkeys and the sacred and esteemed Harpy Eagles, the boys (our guides) are in seventh heaven.
Noisy night monkey
Our guides and all the local indigenous people are in awe of the almost legendary Harpy Eagle
Two toed sloth
Green Macaw
Snake bird drying itself in the sun
Arriving at the village we dispense with footwear leaving them in the boat and don our gumboots. The walk around the village is interesting, we not only get to see the daily life of the locals but also all manner of insect and frog life in the forest.
Village life
One of many species of Poison dart frog with tadpoles carried on its back.
We are then met by a local woman who welcomes us to the village and shows us how the traditional casabe (yucca bread) is made.
Harvesting the Yukka root
Grating the root and sqeezing the water out of the pulp
Sifting the dry Yukka flour
Cooking the flat bread on a clay pan
The bread is delicious and we have a fantastic picnic lunch before the Village shaman arrives to explain his role in village life. Trying to explain this sounds incredibly tacky like we were some wide eyed tourists invasively peering into their lives, but to be honest this wasn't the case, they seemed to enjoy our company and we definitely enjoyed theirs, especially the shaman who was an absolute hoot. Of course there are also financial benefits for the village. Impressively they have a reasonably equipped school, generators and of course the obligatory satellite televisions, however they still cling fiercely to the remainders of their traditional way of life.
Village Shaman
Village Shaman demonstrating part of a healing ceremony
On our return to the canoe I discover my footwear is missing, hmmm I knew I shouldn't have left my blingy thongs (Austalian for flip flops) behind, after some consternation with villagers running an all directions, I decide that maybe somebody needs them more than me and tell Jacob we should forget them and return to the Lodge. Jacob is visibly disturbed by the turn of events and apologises profusely saying it has never happened before.
We enjoy the 2 hour ride back to the Lodge and are welcomed back by our resident cayman who is lolling in the shallows near the jetty.
Our resident cayman
Our resident cayman
That evening we enjoy quite a few beers with Michele and Iona taking in our beautiful surroundings and discussing the days events.
Blissful surroundings
Blissful surroundings
Just before dinner Jacob returns from taking another small group out on the Lake, he has my thongs carefully wrapped in a plastic bag. Apparently one of the small kids from the village had picked them up out of the boat and given them to another girl who in turn handed them in to the elders. They then put them in a canoe and travelled 2 hours to return them. AMAZING!!!!!!!
The following day all of our group (except for we four) are leaving to return to Lago Agrio, we take the obligatory family photo before we go off paddling with Jacob for the morning.
Our group including our wonderful guide and lodge staff
We paddle quietly around the Lake for a couple of hours and get out to trek to the Equator Monument which is really just behind the Lodge.
Paddling on the Lake
At the Equator
Later in the afternoon we just chill back and finally it is back out onto the Lake to spot more pink dolphins. What a day.
Day five in the jungle and it is time for us to leave, Bernisio takes us the 2 hours back to Puerto Bolivar but not before pointing out more monkeys, bird life and another beautiful baby anaconda.
In the Canoe leaving Cuyabeno
Back at Puerto Bolivar it is time for a quick lunch, then a 2 hour bus journey to Lago Agrio airport, a 3 hour wait, a 35 minute plane tip to Quito before a 90 minute taxi ride in Quito Friday night peak hour traffic. We arrive back at Casa Helbling safe and sound. A long hot shower and a delicious home delivered pizza. What a great 5 days, great company, great scenery, great experience. I am now a jungle convert.
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The third volume of SONE Note, Girls' Generation's official Japanese fanclub magazine, published twice a year; this was the mid-2014 issue. The girls look beautiful in white fashion. Click images for full res (~2000×2600).
SONE Note Magazine vol.3
October 17, 2014 Filed Under: Magazine
Taeyeon @ Japan Tour 2014 in Nagoya
October 10, 2014 Filed Under: Event
Taeyeon at Girls' Generation Japan 3rd Tour in Nagoya on June 5-6, 2014. Bet no SONE had expected that this would be SNSD's last tour as a complete NINE. Click pictures for full resolution (~1500×1000).
SMTOWN Live World Tour IV in Tokyo
October 7, 2014 Filed Under: Event
Official photos of Girls' Generation at SMTOWN Live World Tour IV at the Ajinomoto Stadium in Tokyo on October 4-5, 2014.
Japanese GQ Magazine HD
October 5, 2014 Filed Under: Magazine
[Throwback] SNSD in August 2011 issue of Japanese GQ Magazine. Click image for full resolution (3543×2390).
Credit: GQ (Japanese)
Girls' Generation Holiday Snacks
September 25, 2014 Filed Under: Magazine
[Throwback] Some photos from Holiday, Girls' Generation's 1st official Japanese photobook (which was shot in Guam) in 2011. Snacking time!


text: unicorns Comments 34 Lies About Unicorns By Erik Bergstrom Mar 25, 2013 Back 5 of 8 Next More More Slideshows A Man Builds a Five Foot Long Millennium Falcon Out of Cardboard Boxes in This Week's Geeky Twitter! Master Artist & Animator Colby Bluth Takes You On a Surreal Voyage Shake the SparkLife Eight Ball to Find Out What to Get Your Boyfriend These Holidays Back Next more > Back Next more > Tags: lies, slideshows, mythical creatures, funny things, myths, unicorns, reality Falling Kingdoms: Not Your Typical YA Fantasy Read Falling Kingdoms: Not Your Typical YA Fantasy Read Our Favorite Stop-Motion Shorts Our Favorite Stop-Motion Shorts Related Posts real or fake Are These Animals Real or Fake? Guess. geeky twitter Learn How to Get a Job in the Video Game Industry in This Week's Geeky Twitter! life Top 10 Rock Songs That Are a Tribute to Fantasy tv Help a N00b: Should He Become a Brony? Write your own comment! Hold up there partner! Before you comment on a post there's one more step. You'll have to choose a nickname to be displayed on your comment. Give 'er a shot below! Write your own comment! OR OR Please log in first Email Password Remember me Log in Create an account | Lost password ...or log in using


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Posts: 12851
Location: NZL
No worries, it's cool.
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Posts: 482
Location: Minneapolis, MN
...I didn't expect to see the "fanservice is the cancer that is killing the industry!" argument applied exclusively to comedies.
Different strokes for different folks. The comedy style I can't seem to find funny is the sort (ab)used by Arakawa and Seto no Hanayome* and such:
--allegedly-funny thing happens
--main character yells "THIS ALLEGEDLY FUNNY THING JUST HAPPENED!!"
--rinse and repeat
I do like fanservice comedies. And manzai-type routines. (And I recognize that the sort I just said I disliked is related to these.) I like the rapid-fire-absurdist (Excel Saga, Pani Poni Dash) style the most, though.
*-apologies to the fans if they don't stay like this. I couldn't get past the first episode or so.
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Posts: 10843
|Hahaha RAAM represent!!!
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Posts: 1881
No one but me, well are't you full of yourself.
And no it isn't just me who thinks that. Perhaps anyone who understands comedy.
When Ed is hit by a wrench, the pain he feels is exaggerated and goes away a full panels later. Whereas when Ed is really injured in the manga, Arakawa details it, even if it is just a scratch, we see it in subsequent chapters.
But sure take Winry hitting Ed with a wrench literally.
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Posts: 12851
Location: NZL
Did Winry cause the wrench to actually touch Ed, even for a brief moment? Yes, therefore she hit him with it. Therefore the scene is literal. Unless you're trying to argue that the Anime pulled a Dallas and it was all a dream?
And I do understand what slapstick Comedy is, even if I don't particularly like it. I understand that when a character gets slapped through a wall they might not be truly hurt, but they were still slapped in the first place.
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Posts: 1881
Dtm It seems you don't understand what literal and figurative means.
Just because something happens in the story, doesn't mean the audience should always take it literally. It doesn't have to be a dream (in fact that is a lazy writing method usually).
Whether something is meant to be taken literally or not depends on the context of the scene. And as I explained in my previous post there is a big difference between Winry hitting Ed with her wrench, and when Ed really gets injured in non-comic scenes.
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Posts: 12851
Location: NZL
I can't believe you are trying to argue this. I cannot believe we are having this conversation. I'm flabbergasted, truly flabbergasted.
Ed got hit by the wrench, end of story. He may have not been seriously hurt, or hurt at all. But whether he was hurt or not is besides the point; Winry still hit him with the wrench.
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Posts: 1881
Clearly what I am saying is too difficult of a concept for you. I did not say it didn't happen, I said it should not be taken literally by the audience. As I said you obviously do not understand how this works in fiction.
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Posts: 12851
Location: NZL
Since you're just pulling my leg at this point, I'm going to stop humouring you and go to sleep.
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Posts: 1881
Good and you think about how when Winry hits Ed and he is in a pool of his own blood and his soul is leaving his body and then he is perfectly fine in a couple panels is literal too.
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Posts: 3199
Location: NE Ohio
Next you are going to be saying that when characters heads get larger and distorted when they get angry, we are supposed to take that "figuratively", as if someone's head doesn't really double in size when they get angry.
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Posts: 11
Yet again reinforcing the idea that inflating and distorting your head is socially acceptable so long as it's female on male.
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Thread Killer
Posts: 3423
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Posts: 6542
Location: Windsor Ontario
Yeah, it's not "figurative vs. literal" it's "serious vs. comedic."
Winry hits Ed with a wrench. The act of hitting actually takes place. It is literal, but not serious.
If Winry said something particularly harsh, and Ed's reaction was shown as him getting hit by a wrench, that would be figurative since the wrench is symbolising the impact her words have on him.
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Posts: 16
Hm, the fanservice question is obviously leading and the one asking it is obviously looking to have his opinion parroted back at him, why did Brian take it on? I notice that Brian spends little time actually answering the question and the rest just picking it apart.
Keeping in line with the thread, I *liked* that wrench gag.
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I'm trying to determine what users have been created.
is there a curl command in couch to list all existing couchdb users?
if so what is it is that curl call?
curl gets all users as documents, grep extracts documents
Note, that since 1.2.0 release if you had fixed Admin Party on server, you need to pass CouchDB admin credentials to make such requests for


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Oh how I love these DFL movies, Although This was more of a game than a movie, It gave it a big zing! Make more man! (In Canada Thanksgivin came a month ago)


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Rugby Challenge 2 Questions for Playstation 3Home / Playstation 3 /
Game Questions & Answers (Q&A) service lets you ask questions about video games for game consoles or PC games. So ask your Rugby Challenge 2 question for Playstation 3 and get answers from real gamers or answer questions and share your insights and experience with the rest of the gaming community.
- Developer: Sidhe Interactive
- Publisher: Home Entertainment Suppliers
- Genre: Sports Alternative Rugby
- Release Date: Jun 13, 2013
- ESRB: Not Set
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