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My friend uses this, she has mild acne. I used this when I was at her house one day, simply because I needed to remove my makeup and I forot my regular facial cleanser at home. Once I used this, my face burned and got all red and itchy. It was horrible. I do have sensitive skin, so please stay away if you do too.
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More reviews by BeautyQueen3791
I was amazed when I first tried this product! It's a great scrub, but it's still really gentle. I don't really like the smell though, it's kind of chemically.
More reviews by livcrawford1234
Ive been using this for a few days now, and to honest i found result straight away. I have acne prone skin with redness and blackheads, I've been using it morning and nice and washing it off with cold water to close my pores. Most of my spots on my forehead have disappeared but most of my acne is around my chin and cheek area but have dramatically gotten better. so please. I was previously using cetaphil oily skin cleanser.
The only downside is that it is expensive for me... BUT SMELLS AWESOME
I don't have that much acne, but I occasionally break out. Before this, I used a plethora of products, including Proactiv, which made my skin even worse than before. All I can say is that I love this grapefruit scrub. What initially drew me to it was the scent. I absolutely hated how Proactiv and a lot of other acne treatments I've used smelled. This scrub is not only tolerable in scent, but it smells great. As for effectiveness, it definitely doesn't work overnight, but it can clear zits in a few days to a week. It said to use twice a day on the bottle, but it actually dried my skin out noticeably, so I use it once at night while I'm showering, which is the perfect dose for me. I credit my decent skin to this product. I still have some acne, but it would be significantly worse without this. I've gone a few days without using it, and there is a difference I could see. My skin was oilier and with more blemishes. This is a great product, especially for people like me who don't have major acne, but just some breakouts every now and then.
I recently ran out of this, and I cried when I ran out of it. I loved it that much.
When I first tried it, I immediately noticed softness in my face and less bumps. It also smells amazing! I wouldn't recommend it for dry skin or people who sometimes have dry skin because it is OIL FREE. But for oily and normal skin, it's amazing.
Tip: if you pop the pink beads and rub the inside of the bead on your face, you get more coverage.
It was fairly expensive for a drugstore product. I got it at CVS for $6-$7, but I think it's worth the extra money.
I loved the packaging up till the end. I was trying to get my last drop of it but then the lid broke, probably because I added too much pressure onto it. But if you won't add too much pressure to the product then I'm sure it won't break for you.
Just used this twice, and its enough for me. Stripped my oily/acne prone skin. It made my skin so dry ..., and the last thing I want is extra oil production as a result. The smell was kind of irritating as well.
I had a tube of this lying somewhere in my toiletry basket. I think i bought it months ago because it looked so pretty but didnt actually get down to using it. So anyways, the other day, i found it again and decided to give it a go.
First off...i loveee the smell..it gives you a pick up. I love citruses.
Im usually averse to anything grainy because although i have oily acne-prone skin...it tends to be too harsh. But i LOVE this cleanser...it made my face sooo smooth and refreshed and i didnt feel tight or dry after using it. You just have to make sure you dab some water while massaging so it don't get dry and use gentle circular motion. I love it. Will use it everyday now for sure.
Edit: after using this for two weeks.. I started to get irritation bumps ad itchy skin which went away after I stopped using it. So I guess it's back to the drawing board
When I used this cleanser, I tend to find it very drying and irritating despite the fact I get oily skin. This caused me more breakouts but I could see the improvement of my blackhead removal.
The smell was fairly nice and refreshing but since it was too irritating to my skin, I would not buy this again.
I hope to see a good product from Neutrogena introduced to the shelves.
I have sensitive-oily skin and I thought this was the worst for my face! This dried out my face soooo much that I had to follow with a deep moisturizer each time I washed my face. After using this for 2 months , the smell was horrible. I would have liked it if it wasn't so harsh to my face though. 2/5 for this one.


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CHARLOTTE, January 1, 2014 – It is no coincidence that the recent wave of terror in Russia happened just before the Winter Olympics are set to begin in
Islamic jihadists delivered several messages in the aftermath of their destruction, not the least of which was an attempt at global intimidation on multiple levels.
Understanding Muslim radicalism at its lowest common denominator can be simplified in just three words; intolerance, victimization and justification. Nearly every act of terrorism can be traced to this triumvirate of causes.
Before embarking upon the motivations for the Russian bombings, however, we must first ask where was al Qaeda in all of the chaos? Since American media believes terrorism does not exist unless it is committed by al Qaeda, the violence in Russia must certainly be of no consequence.
The reality is that terrorism can be perpetuated by any organization with a propensity for destruction. Al Qaeda is just one of many. The massive slayings in Russia is proof positive that pointing fingers at specific groups is of little or no importance. Whether or not al Qaeda was involved in the deaths of four Americans in
As for Russia, all a non-Muslim needs to know, other than the three words above, is that there is no joy in Islam. Islam is devoid of happiness. It has no cheer, no music, no decoration, no color. As far as Muslims are concerned, if there can be no joy in their own lives, then no one else should be happy either.
Go to a shopping mall during Ramadan and find any semblance of celebration that differentiates the Holy Month from any other day in the year.
The same is true of music. The only music in Islam is the chanting from minarets when believers are called to prayer. Imagine a world where music does not exist. How can there be happiness where there is no song of celebration?
Mosques in Saudi Arabia are colorless. Decoration is forbidden. To decorate a mosque would be tantamount to idol worship. That is the very reason Muslims reacted so violently when Muhammad was depicted in a Danish cartoon or the prophet was mocked in a YouTube video.
Islam in its purest incarnation is not unlike a small child who throws a tantrum when a sibling or a friend gets a piece of candy that he or she cannot have. Why should someone else be allowed to enjoy something that they cannot have for themselves?
In February the world is scheduled to meet in a celebration of athleticism and competition. It should be an international festival where countrymen cheer their native sons to victory and the world unites for a span of time, no matter how brief, where the human spirit determines the victors rather than bombs.
But that is not acceptable in the world of jihad. Fun is anathema to the dire seriousness of life. There can only be joy in death. And so, like the child who cannot have the candy, the jihadists let the world know they will not be allowed to play without consequences and violence.
Word one: Intolerance
Without being a victim, Muslims have little justification for their actions. Therefore, nobody is better at being victimized than an Islamic jihadist. Paranoia is the national pastime of Saudi Arabia and "CYA" is the primary rule of business. Always find a way to blame someone else whensomething goes wrong.
It doesn't take much to be a victim. Perception rather than reality is frequently the bulk of the battle. In July of last year jihad leader Doku Umarov warned the Russians about hosting the winter games in
Word two: Victimization
Once "victimized" then justification easily follows. Finding a reason for an act of terror is the easiest thing in the world to do. After all Hillary Clinton claimed it was a YouTube video that caused
Word three: Justification
Unfortunately we have a problem in the U.S. called "Islamophobia" where political correctness overrides rational thinking. Therefore, in large part thanks to a president who wears blinders, it is difficult to differentiate between an Islamic extremist and a so-called moderate Muslim in this country.
Which for the moment means that bombs will continue to wreak havoc and the world will just have to stop enjoying itself.
Bob Taylor has been traveling the world for more than 30 years as a writer and award winning television producer focusing on international events, people and cultures around the globe.
Read more of What in the World and Bob Taylor at The Washington Times Communities
Follow us: @wtcommunities on Twitter
This article is the copyrighted property of the writer and Communities @ WashingtonTimes.com. Written permission must be obtained before reprint in online or print media. REPRINTING TWTC CONTENT WITHOUT PERMISSION AND/OR PAYMENT IS THEFT AND PUNISHABLE BY LAW.

subset: commoncrawl


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Neogeek consumidor neofilico, no muy compulsivo, nerd frustrado, enemigo de los cambios drásticos emocionales, nazy de superlativo e infinitivos, pésimo con los cumplidos y de hábitos sociales pingüinarios.
Veronica Belmont - about.me user since 2010
"First, customize your page. It's easy and fun to design!"
Hi! I'm currently living in (City), where I work at (Work Place) doing (Job Title). When I'm not working I like to (Hobby), (Interest) and (Passion). Connect with me!
"Next, connect services and send people to your page."
"That's it! Let about.me do all of the work for you."
Showcase a 360 degree view of who you are
Help people find and follow you on your social networks
Be found for new opportunities


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by Jac La Tour
If you're an ECCU member and are free Wednesday morning, August 28, you might want to set an appointment in your calendar for 8:30 to 9:20 a.m. That's when ECCU staff gather for our weekly staff meeting , and we'll be hearing from a very special guest speaker that day.
U.S. Representative Ed Royce (R), chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, is coming to speak about the committee's efforts to end human trafficking.
Royce is uniquely positioned to address this topic that resonates deeply with many ECCU member ministries. He has served on the Foreign Affairs Committee since being elected to Congress in 1992 to represent Southern California's 39th District. Named chairman in January 2013, he recently sponsored the Vietnam Human Rights Act of 2013 (H.R. 1897).
You do not need to register to attend, but attendance is limited to ECCU members and staff. For more information, please check out our news release.


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The creators of new technologies — radio, TV, the Internet — all hold forth their great educational possibilities. And somehow we wind up with "American Idol" and scabrous home videos on YouTube.
Now some of that Internet promise seems close to being realized, thanks in part to that same YouTube.
Lectures and courses by famed professors have long been commercially available on audiotape, but we live in a video world and the venue of choice, the car, makes for a poor lecture hall since it is a tough place to concentrate on matters other than driving — as cell phone users regularly demonstrate.
Now many universities are making available — for free — lectures by their best and most famed professors on YouTube, iPhone and their own Web sites. The subjects run the gamut of higher education — religion, math, politics, law, physics, the classics.
MIT is said to have 1,800 classes online, viewed by about 35 million people. Yale has posted its introductory courses; Johns Hopkins its public health courses. The teachers are aware of their unseen audience because they get e-mails.
The online classes, aside from the fact that you don't have to be in a classroom at 8 a.m., seem to appeal to the deep-seated American craving for self-improvement. The Washington Post writes that the biggest surprise to MIT has been "that almost half who use the site aren't students or teachers but people just curious to learn."
The viewers have access to an educational experience they wouldn't otherwise have, and the professors get recognition they too wouldn't otherwise have. For the universities, it's good publicity to make the lectures available for free, especially since their costs to students have gone up by more than a third in the past five years.
It's a way to have the college experience without the crushing debt.


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Round two with Dirk Holmberg, exec chef of Cafe 180
Dirk Holmberg
Café 180
3315 South Broadway, Englewood
Read part one of my interview with Dirk Holmberg, exec chef of Cafe 180.
What you'd like to see more of in Denver/Boulder from a culinary standpoint: More Mexican seafood dishes -- that would be a good start. But I'd also like to see more ethnic seafood dishes in general.
What you'd like to see less of in Denver/Boulder from a culinary standpoint: With all the Latin American influence here, I want to see a different overall menu rollout in the ethnic culinary kitchen. Let's see more establishments doing things the way they're done in the kitchens in Mexico, Brazil, Italy and Vietnam -- the real authentic way. That would make me happier.
Favorite Denver/Boulder restaurant(s) other than your own: Centro Latin Kitchen & Refreshment Palace in Boulder. I had the grilled corn and mushroom ancho chile relleno plate, and it was very rewarding.
Favorite cheap eat in Denver: Waffle House. I like the Southern menu and its history. I also have immense respect for short-order cooks; they're a breed unto themselves, and they have a true God-given gift. It's simply amazing to watch them work, especially when all the orders are called in and nothing is written down. I'm sure there are other kitchens that might be more authentic, but I grew up with Waffle House
If you were visiting Denver and had 24 hours to eat, where would you go? I'd start the day by going to the Egg and I and ordering either the corned beef hash or the sunrise chile rellenos, followed up with a double espresso. From there, I'd hit up Brothers BBQ for the pulled-pork sandwich. I came across Brothers after being given a challenge from a female friend of mine. She had spent some time in Nashville, and wanted to know if I could do a Southern-style pulled pork. I'd had a conversation in the past with some fellow Southern chefs, and they all seemed to agree that anyone born west of the Mississippi doesn't know their way around a grill -- period. But I wanted to impress the Southern belle, so I researched barbecued pulled pork and found that it originated in North Carolina during the settlement of the colonies there. She recommended that I try Brothers BBQ since it was the closest to what she was looking for, and I have to admit that their hot vinegar sauce is worth the travel in and of itself. I'd also have dinner at Jax Fish House, where I'd start out with fresh shucked oysters before moving on to the catfish or shrimp po' boy.
Best thing about cooking in Denver: The fact that everyone seems ready to try something new.
Location Info
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Members of the ASUO:
I would like to restate several of issues that I brought up Saturday night at the special assembly, mostly because several of you were not in attendance, and partially because the Emerald failed to accurately report what transpired at the meeting. The reasons that the members of the band are upset need to be made absolutely crystal clear—the ASUO has shown poor leadership, poor communication, poor collaboration, and has attempted to use the band as a pawn in an argument with the Athletic Department, the President's office, and the School of Music and Dance.
ASUO has participated in something that we like to call "intention/function fail" over in the Music Education Department. That is, where someone does or says something with the best intentions, but does not take the time to see how their actions or words function against other groups of people.
The ASUO's intentions were pure and noble. In fact, many of us fully agree with the intent behind moving the bands funds to other places—The ASUO wished to make the band more secure by transferring our budget to areas that have more stability and longevity in leadership (i.e. the Athletic Department) because these groups do not go through yearly elections.
Regardless of the ASUO's intentions, the function, or consequences, of their actions were immensely frightening and hurtful to the members of the band. The ASUO started this commotion with a scare tactic: The majority of them believed that the money for the band should come from somewhere other than student fees (and they may be correct), so what did they do? They took it away! This makes perfect sense. Unfortunately, there was little foresight by the ASUO as to how outside observers may perceive this action.
The plan from here was to go meet with several groups on campus—The AD, the School of Music, the President of the University, Enrollment Services—and tell them that the band needed funding from them because ASUO would no longer be providing it.
Let's think about this for a second.
The ASUO functionally decided it was going to bully other members of the University Community. A game of chicken came into play—and the band was stuck in the middle! The most unfortunate part? The majority of the ASUO forgot to do what they were supposed to do—listen and respect the students they were elected to represent. Roughly 240 OAB students—along with thousands of friends, parents, and alumni—were left with a loud message from the ASUO: We don't care about you.
Intention? Move the money to someplace else so that is more secure. (An intention that was not explained to the general population up front.)
Action? Take the money from the band and then try to find it elsewhere.
Function? We took your money and we're hoping someone else will fund you. (We don't care about you.)
The ASUO found itself in a very embarrassing situation—no one was willing to pick up the band's tab. Even worse? The ASUO couldn't decide whether or not they wanted to continue to fund the band after failing to secure funds (Let's not mention the promise made at the original budget hearing to continueto fund the band if no money was found, shall we?). The students were left in limbo about receiving funding from the ASUO—will they or won't they? An anxiety-inducing situation that borders on cruel and unusual.
Communication—proper, mature, and open communication—could have solved the ASUO's problems earlier and easier. They should have sat down with the AD, etc. to talk about options for funding theband before removing the funds.
ASUO threw around the word "communication" like nobody's business last night. It has become very clear to me that the ASUO Senate does not know the meaning of the word. Stating your opinions out loud does not mean that you communicated with each other. You have spent the last several months "talking at" each other, with no intention of compromising and no respect for the feelings of the band members (who, lest we forget, are still among the students that you were elected to represent). On the other hand, the students of the OAB, of whom I am very proud, have communicated openly (with the ASUO and with each other) and worked to make lasting and useful compromise.
ASUO Senate, I am embarrassed by the way you have handled yourselves as a whole. The point of a senate is to come together to make compromises that benefit the body they were elected to represent. Unfortunately, the majority of you were too wrapped up in your own opinions and too infatuated with the sound of your own voice to work together to resolve the budget issue. Your inability to reach a decision lies on the shoulders of all of you.
I am a proud alum of the University of Oregon, where I received my undergraduate degrees. Currently, I am a proud student of the UO doing graduate work. I am proud of my university. I am proud of my band community. I am ashamed of my student "led" government.
I would like to extend thanks to the few members of the ASUO that diligently worked with Melinda McConnel, Loren Clupny, and Abbie Ortman of the OAB to reach a viable and realistic compromise. This thank you extends beyond the ASUO members who agreed with us to those who were willing to participate and entertain concerns and conversations from the band.
Thank you for your time,
Nathan Irby
GTF, Athletic Bands/Music Education


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Thread Starter: SILOGIC Started: 7/18/2011 7:32 PM Replies: 3
Hello.From the manual:Possible fault causes - No "speed-dependent field weakening" (P081=0) is parameterized even though operation in the field weakening range isneeded for the requested maximum speedNote:In motor operation, it is possible to reach EMF values corresponding to the peak of the phase-to-phase supply voltage at afiring angle of αG=30° (rectifier stability limit P150) and low armature currents. - Setpoint EMF for field weakening operation too high (parameter P101 is set too high) - Supply voltage dip - EMF controller or field current controller is not optimized, possibly resulting in excessive EMF on power-upSo, may be you have, e.g. voltage dip.
Patricio NovotnySILOGIC Engineering and Automationwww.silogic.com.ar


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Pop's Wines & Spirits
New Wines, Wines of Note, Wines you can't live without!! February 3, 2011
They say $10 (Gerald D. Boyd), we say $3+ .....89 points too!! Yes..... This is too good to be true! We just bought a huge amount of unsold 2011 Nouveau. Our vendors know that, if the price is right, we'll take it all, and we'll pay our bill. "It's Nouveau time again and the "King of Beaujolais," Georges Duboeuf has come through with another in a series of grapy juicy, new Beaujolais. This is all Gamay all the way sporting a deep purple-ruby color, ripe strawberry aromas and flavors, full tannins, crisp acidity, 12.5% alcohol. If you're looking for a quaffing red at a good price, Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau fills the bill." $10 89 points, Gerald D. Boyd, December 6, 2011 2011 Beaujolais Nouveau, Georges Duboeuf, 750ml $10.29 - Good Wine Stores $3.60 - Pop's Single Bottle Price $3.60 - Pop's Mixed Case Price $43.21 - Pop's Case Price
"Picture this....." "Picture this: Friday evening, the pizza just arrived, sausage, pepperoni, OK even anchovies if you insist; maybe a salad lightly dressed, vinegar, oil, whatever. What to drink is the only part of this Friday night ritual in the homes of millions of Americans where there will be no disagreeing… that is if you reach for the '09 Redi Sangiovese. More and more we've seen wines from Italy bearing the name "Sangiovese" and as customers pick up these bottles quizzically examining the labels, ah, that's the "teachable moment" for a Sommelier. Surprised to learn that Chianti is not a grape but a region and that Sangiovese is the stellar grape in the wines of Chianti, and also Rosso di Montalcino and, of course, the renowned and more expensive Brunello di Montalcino, wine lovers eager to expand their knowledge and enjoyment of Italian classics are exploring the wonders of Sangiovese. Enter Umbria, almost the smallest of the wine producing regions in Italy. Known historically more for white wine: the ever popular Orvieto; as well as home to the candy capitol of Perugina, Umbria is also referred to as the "green heart of Italy". Umbrian Sangiovese is the wine Italians drink every day, no occasion needed. Could you be in better company?" Dorothy Jacobs, Certified Sommelier, Pop's Wines & Spirits, February, 2012 2009 Sangiovese, Umbria, Argo et Non Briareo, Redi, 750ml $9.05 - Good Wine Stores $8.14 - Pop's Single Bottle Price $7.24 - Pop's Mixed Case Price $81.45 - Pop's Case Price
They say $25 (Wine Spectator), we say $8+ So.... you want a deal? Like we said earlier..... Our vendors know that, if the price is right, we'll take it all, and we'll pay our bill. "Soft and fruity, delivering a brash mouthful of pear, apricot and spice flavors. Feels a bit sweet on the finish. Drink now." ($25) 87 Points, Wine Spectator, March 31, 2011 2010 Mollydooker Verdelho, The Violinist, McLaren Vale, 750ml $22.50 - Good Wine Stores $7.87 - Pop's Single Bottle Price $7.87 - Pop's Mixed Case Price $94.50 - Pop's Case Price Limited!!
They say $16 (Wine Spectator), we say $7+ Hmmm..... Grand Cru Beaujolais from a great vintage and a 90 point rating!! I could make a strong case for this wine being worth every bit of $16. But at $7+..... "This is packed with ripe, almost jammy, black cherry, boysenberry and damson plum fruit flavors, but it's well-balanced by integrated, juicy acidity. The fruit mixes with vanilla and clove notes, wrapping around chewy tannins that raise their heads on the long finish. Drink now through 2014." ($16) 90 points, Wine Spectator, February 28,2011 2009 Fleurie, Georges Duboeuf (Flower Label), 750ml $16.99 - Good Wine Stores $7.64 - Pop's Single Bottle Price $7.64 - Pop's Mixed Case Price $91.74 - Pop's Case Price Extremely Limited. We have good supply, but we expect very brisk sales
They say $383.00 (Wine Spectator), we say $168+ "This has density and a chewy quality to its macerated cherry, licorice, mineral and spice aromas and flavors. Elegant, firmly structured and well-integrated, with a long finish of spice and mineral. Not a flattering red, but soulful and expressive of place. Best from 2012 through 2024." ($383) 93 points, Wine Spectator, October 15, 2010 2007 Clos de la Roche, Cuvee Vieilles Vignes, Domaine Ponsot, 750ml $375.45 - Good Wine Stores $168.95 - Pop's Single Bottle Price $168.95 - Pop's Mixed Case Price $1013.71 - Pop's Case Price (6)
"There's nothing better than a Great Everyday Red that drinks twice it's price!!..... .....The 2009 Liotro Nero D'Avola is so delicious and so dirt cheap... it has to be one of the best values in the store! The Liotro is an I.G.T. Sicily red wine, made from Nero D'Avola grapes. Ruby red in color, the wine has a gorgeous fragrant bouquet with a very pleasant hint of forest fruits. An agreeably velvety taste, well balanced fruit with soft tannins and no hard edges. Perfect for everyday drinking... especially for those nights when you want an extra glass of wine and don't want to open something expensive. This fruity and full bodied wine best evokes the unique characteristics of the Sicilian wines. Highly Recommended! Ted Clark, Wine Consultant, Pop's Wines & Spirits, February, 2012 2009 Nero d'Avola, Sicilia, Liotro, 750ml $10.89 - Good Wine Stores $9.80 - Pop's Single Bottle Price $8.71 - Pop's Mixed Case Price $98.01 - Pop's Case Price
Telephone: (516) 431-0025 Fax: (516) 432-2648 Price & Availability subject to change without notice.


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As part of its Responsibility commitment to help consumers adopt healthier lifestyles, Mars Czech Republic – in partnership with other food producers – has been playing a leading role in the country's Hrave žij zdrave (Play and live healthily) campaign. The scheme is an educational campaign, whose objective is to educate Czech children on the benefits of a healthy lifestyle, balanced diet and physical activity. The programme was launched in 2008 and, following the endorsement of the country's Ministry of Health and active participation of its leading nutritionist, Dr. Iva Málková, has been joined by almost 7,500 children supervised by 624 teachers. The information are presented as a four-lesson, Internet-based course ending with a competition.Children are asked to keep an online record of their daily diet, drinks and the physical activity they take. They then receive personalized feedback from Dr. Málková, the initiative's lead sponsor, in the form of an email containing tips on diet and exercise.The lessons, which children have to complete to qualify for the final competition, are on the different aspects of a healthy lifestyle: how to create a balanced diet; the role of various food groups – bread and cereals, fruit and vegetables, dairy products, meat, and others; the importance of hydration and healthy snacking; and the benefits of sport and physical activity.To support the lessons, more in-depth information on key areas, like voluntary nutritional GDA labeling (Guideline Daily Amounts) are also taught.
Find out what we believe and how we operate as a business around the globe.
Living our principles in everything we do around the world.


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Bryan Lambert
Founded AllKars 20 years ago. A City of Guilds of London mechanic by trade. Been around motors for eternity. There's not a lot about cars Bryan doesn't know.
Lyndon (Bin) Lambert
Son of Bryan and Lesley. Been around vehicles all his life. Arrived back at AllKars after 10 years travelling the world. See Bin for a non hassle approach to your financing needs.
Brett Weir
Has been with AllKars for 12 years. A jovial character, Brett is very approachable and has an extensive knowledge of the cars we stock. Is passionate about all sporting activity, especially the social aspect.
Office (09) 438 7409 Fax (09) 438 5484 Call Brett (027) 431 6773 Or come and see us: 115 Robert Street, Whangarei - Alternatively
Email us: firstname.lastname@example.com


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tbwftctts cover art
Jun. 16th, 2003 07:12 pmStill gotta do the inside art and spine text, then double check that everything will look good when cut/folded. And leave a white rectangle for the bar code.
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Still gotta do the inside art and spine text, then double check that everything will look good when cut/folded. And leave a white rectangle for the bar code.
yesterday: went to mark's to cut 24bit files. i was sure it would take a couple hours, but mark thought only one, which is funny since everyone calls him up and insists they only need an hour of his time and end up taking two or three. the man hasn't had a day off in a month and a half.
nearly dozed off, and we weren't even cutting drum tracks. played with his epiphone casino (semihollowbody guitar) and wurlitzer, which was really fun. talked portishead and massive attack. asked him if he knew what hardware massive attack used for their bass sound, and mark thought it was just someone playing bass guitar. no way. listening to mezzanine; ok, maybe someone who plays everything perfectly. an amazingly competent bassist who doesn't want to put unnecessary frills and fills in, and doesn't try to go off on [guitar-wannabe] bass guitar solos that make the song lose the bottom end. no way, i say.
if i had a bassist who sounded and played like that, i would SO build a band around them. that or alison shaw's voice. good thing they're already in cool bands, eh?
mark said he'd see me at tino tonight. i should get him a cd of the remix (he wants a copy) and ask him if i owe him more money, since i paid him for an hour and noticed it had been two and a half when i left.
jason's gonna be gone for a couple weeks; will be good to have a break from these 12 songs for a while. should start writing new ones. to keep from getting sick of these, and as an outlet.
seriously need this two day weekend. might cancel rehearsal so i can sleep more, drop the cds off at da5id's, get some artwork done. get some serious r&r time in, as in lazing about like a fuckin' bum. need to do some serious house cleaning too. like always. unhappy sim.
i'm starting to worry how much money it'll cost to ship 1000+ cds to my house. it may actually end up being cheaper to keep most everything online (cdbaby, amazon, couple other places), and ordering copies for people that i want to give copies to, rather than shipping most of them to me, then shipping them individually to various places (friends, djs, labels, etc.). we'll see.
Oh yeah. If you're curious. Please don't listen using laptop speakers (or even headphones plugged directly into a laptop); apparently we didn't think of that and it sounds crappy without bass for the kick.
drk.scrt.lv - The Last Time (album mix). 4mb, 2:55
drk.scrt.lv - The Last Time (Mark Pistel Remix). 6.5mb, 5:36
Stream both tracks.
I'd love to hear your opinion.
The Boy Who Flew Too Close to the Sun recording sessions, day 10 (final day).
It's kind of sad right now. I mean, it's exciting having my songs recorded and mixed and all. And I'm glad we worked quickly; if I had to go over the same songs for another two weeks I think I woulda gone a bit crazy. But I'm gonna miss Mark.
Not like he's gonna go away or anything. I'll keep in touch. We may need to work on that particular session again for remixes or whatnot, or maybe I'll go back for some other songs. I'll be sure to get him a cd. It's just... I dunno. Good working with him.
I'm really not good at long goodbyes. I think ours was about right.
( We fixed Waste Away )And that's it. We said our goodbyes, I loaded my gear into the truck, and then Mark drove off to his dinner party.
I had said at the beginning that I'd be happy with 8 songs completely finished, though we could try to tackle 14 songs, remixes, and mastering if we had time to burn. Ended up with 12 songs I'm happy with, a kickass remix, and a quickly mastered "single". And a good working relationship with a guy I have a lot of respect for. I'd call this a huge success =)
The Boy Who Flew Too Close to the Sun recording sessions, day 9. This is gonna be a long one; I can feel it. LJ-cut for your sanitary protection. -the mgmt
[EDIT]: Urm. Can't sleep. Editing this entry.
I had bought a firewire/usb2 drive yesterday, so we copied my Pro Tools sessions there and started working off that. Now I need a Mac. Or I'll be dragging that thing back to Mark's every few months... not that I'd mind that.
The Boy Who Flew Too Close to the Sun recording sessions, day 8. I'll have to be brief, since I left my laptop AC adapter at Mark's:
( We mixed Peaches in Springtime. )Also, someone needs to take Serial Experiment Lain's Protocol episode and make a dance remix from the narrator sections. Neural network. Someone's probably already done it.
The Boy Who Flew Too Close to the Sun recording sessions, day 7:
( We finished The Last Time. )Might go to BaGG tonight. Dunno. Maybe Affliction tomorrow instead. Or sit at home and masturbate to my nearly finished mixes. Madden 2003 is slowly losing its deathgrip on my free time, which I think is a good thing. The Sopranos season 2 disc 1 is here, though, which is tempting.
The Boy Who Flew Too Close to the Sun recording sessions, day 6:
( We tweaked Despite. )Feeling tired and a bit down, but not 'cause of today. Three things make me happy, and I've been living on one and a half of them for a while now. Knowing that one's subject to mood swings and the other might go away in the near future makes me feel a bit edgy.
Jason's been stuck in L.A. all week for work. Guess he hasn't picked up advance Infected Mushroom tix. Maybe I'll go to that tomorrow. Maybe I'll go to Counterstrike for the first time. Maybe I'll crash after a long week of recording.
First off, stuff I've forgotten to mention already.
Anyway. With that vital information disclosed, I can proceed on to
The Boy Who Flew Too Close to the Sun recording sessions, day 3:
We spent the first half of the day working on drum tracks again. After seeing how long it took to fix a drum track, I decided to just record Peaches and Beautiful Dream (instead of trying to track them live Saturday, then fixing them all day Monday). Laid down guitar tracks for those, laid down the rest of the vocals, then fixed Outro's piano bits.
Boom. We're done with the basic tracks.
I might want to fix certain parts after we hear the in-progress mix, but we're moving on to mixing tomorrow. And I have an idea of how to end the album. Got a beginning and end. The middle's a little fuzzy, but we'll get there =)
The Boy Who Flew Too Close to the Sun recording sessions, day 2:
Recorded all the guitars, except Beautiful Dream's second half and Peaches in Springtime. Jason and I feed off each other on those tracks, so I want to record them live on Saturday. (We'll see how that goes.)
Managed to wow Mark with my Sustainer. He turned around mid-solo and watched my fingers, watched my feet, but he just couldn't figure out how I was getting the Ebow/controlled feedback sound. Secret weapon baybee. Told him how it works, and he was pretty impressed =)
( We worked for a long time on the drum tracks. )Anyway, we tweaked a few other things, and had 3 or 4 songs ready for mixing by the end of the day.
And they sound amazing. Already. Before mixing.
Kick. Ass.
I think more of that, plus the vocals, tomorrow. (I *still* want some dynamic mic on there... but we'll see after we put some effects on my vox. Maybe record with the tube mic pre distorting a bit.)
I gotta decide if I want to go to BaGG tonight. I think I will... haven't been able to sleep til 2 the past couple nights anyway.
The Boy Who Flew Too Close to the Sun recording sessions, day 1:
Packed up my rig this morning, then drove across the bridge to the studio. Traffic wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I was 40 minutes early, so I drove around for 20 minutes.
Didn't notice last time: the studio has a ( vending machine that sells guitar strings! )We spent a lot of time exporting 24 bit tracks off my laptop into his mac, which was expected. But we also managed to track the guitars and vocals for Tension... Release, Insidious Beauty, and Dreamslime. That went so quick (2-3 takes per, with some double tracking) that we think we can get all the basic tracks done this week, and mix next week.
That was actually my first go at singing through a condenser mic. Thought I sounded ass when I was singing (even asked if we could try a track or two with my SM58 comfort zone), but on playback I sounded pretty good. Not sure if it's $3.5k mic good [plus tube preamp], but that's probably due to my voice being what it is.
We talked Napster and Netscape, major labels and Meat Beat Manifesto. Apparently Consolidated's first album came out a month before Down In It (which he calls Up Above It =). [And look at how successful Trent is now, Mark says ;-)] And Jack Dangers taught Trent Reznor how to write drum'n'bass a little bit before the Perfect Drug era. And Jack played with Mark at Mark's gig Sunday, so all of MBM was on stage for that one =)
( Coupla pics of the control room )I'm happy. Great working on something I love all day =)
Think I'll crack open that cabernet and go to sleep earlyish. Gotta track nine songs over the next two days =) =) =)
public service announcement
I'm pretty sure I'm going to be blathering on about recording and the like over the next few months, at least.
I hope I'm not boring the pants off of you.
If I am, let me know. Or feel free to take me off your friends list. Or just suffer, in silence, gnawing your arm off at the elbow as your brain slowly turns to sludge.
Today I went to Mark's studio for a quick look-see. Gave him a deposit and a cd with the nine songs I have recorded that I wouldn't mind being caught dead with. Hm, that doesn't sound very flattering.
It reminded me of a very important point: Mark isn't god, and we don't suddenly enter bullet time when we go into the studio. He has expertise, equipment, and software I don't have, and for some things I can rely on him for that. But it would be a good thing if I went back over my songs and got them as good as I can beforehand, and identified *precisely* what I want fixed in each song.
80 hours isn't that long when you're talking about 8-14 songs.


text:
Price: $ 9.95
Find AHP's guide to reviewing fantasy guides here.
One of the most expensive fantasy guides out there is the Major League Fantasy Baseball Yearbook and Guide. They tout themselves as the #1 Rated Fantasy Mag, but after reading and comparing it to the competition, it's clear that whoever rated it #1 is probably on their staff.
While there is some value here, on the whole I do feel you could spend your money much better elsewhere, get a better guide and save a few bucks too. This guide does have several good features and good writers which will help experienced players get value from this guide but most people would benefit from just moving past this below average guide on the new stand. In other words, this is the guide I wish my competitors in a fantasy league would use.
In the following categories – let's see how it scored.
• Articles - The only word I can use here is pitiful. There is a grand total of one article spanning two pages (most of which are covered with pictures and graphics), and the article is extremely simplistic.
• Top Prospects - Covers 60 prospects, 20 American League guys ready for 2009, 20 National League guys ready for 2009 and 10 of each to expect in 2010.
• Boom and Bust predictions - They offer 3 sleeper picks for each league at each position in the position by position rankings, which isn't really what this category is about, so it's a pale attempt. The only other section on predictions is the "Expert Picks" chart where the guide's fantasy experts offer their predictions for MVPs, Cy Young awards, RoYs, and divisional and world series champions.
• Medical watch - None.
• Cheat Sheets - Check.
• Team Previews – Check.
• Depth Charts - Projected lineups, starters and setup/closers. None.
• Mock Draft - None.
• Position eligibility chart - Yes.
• Park Factors chart - None
• Information Key - Not available for dollar values in auction leagues. A slight explanation for how the capsules were written and by who (they has six writers each who handled a single division) which may skew the values slightly.
• Rankings by positions - Decent, but not great. But this section does contain the guide's best feature -- grades for each player in each of the standard 5x5 categories.
• Internet updates - None publicized in the magazine.
• Player capsules – Thin -- the philosophy here seems to be that if you can't say it in two sentences then you shouldn't say it. Needless to say, you don't get much flavor or opinion. Alphabetized in a section for hitters and a section for pitchers. Not attached to position by position rankings which makes quick look up easier.
• Bonus features which are nice to have - None.
Upsides: Sold prospect article. Some good writers did the capsules. Grade charts for players' production in each category.
Downsides: Thin on opinions, thin on articles, thin on content in general, one of the most expensive fantasy guides.
Overall: This is one of the worst, if not the worst, fantasy guides for the buck, but like all guides there are some gems a very experienced player could mine from this guide.
We give it 0.5 balls.
AtHomePlate.com grades books with the following system
One Ball: This book has something to say but is nothing special.
© Copyright 2012 by mojoomla.com


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Recent Comments:
Breakfast Topic: An earnest letter {WoW}
Jun 26th 2010 11:41AM OMG! The same thing. My mage has been buying those eggs for over 18 months. I finally gave up.
15 Minutes of Fame: 76-year-old player relies on strategy {WoW}
Mar 16th 2010 1:15PM Perhaps you should do an article on mice. I use a logitech trackball that has the ball under my thumb then regular mouse buttons. No mouse movement at all, just a "twitch" of your thumb.
Drama Mamas: Mismatched ambitions in the Dungeon Finder {WoW}
Dec 25th 2009 5:01PM The "real" problem is a society where honesty is considered rude and lying is acceptable.
It's better to let someone know they suck at something so they realize they are doing something wrong and need to improve then all this hand holding, no one fails, steer manure!
No one owes you anything, get of your complacent backside and go earn it!
Ships! Star Trek Online community Q&A answers, part 2 {Massively}
Nov 19th 2009 11:41AM Dodged a few? Most were replied to with political skill.
Quote "and the Prometheus broke apart to better shield crew – it didn't really provide much tactical superiority"
What universe do you live in that 3 seperate targets firing on you don't have a tactical advantage over one?
Blizzard launches real money in-game pet store {WoW}
Nov 5th 2009 12:55AM I saw the pets ingame, how I found out about them. Unable to purchase them at this time myself. 106 pets isn't enough and come on, a Baby Kel'Thuzad, what could be cuter?
Officers' Quarters: Partners in crime {WoW}
Oct 26th 2009 1:31PM OMG! What rock have you been laying dead under?
Quote "a few people who really want that item have been offering the winner gold"
This is exactly why they made this change to bop items in the first place. This has always been the case and before the change it involved the holder of the item filing a petition to give the item to the other person.
Blizzard made the change to make things easier on themselvs, not us, how niave.
Authentication problems continue {WoW}
Jul 23rd 2009 5:06PM I have a seperate email account I made just for wow. Blizzard is the only one I've ever given it to and somehow this address made it onto wow gold sellers spam list. None of my other email accounts get spam for wow gold. So, your email isn't safe already.
Authentication problems continue {WoW}
Jul 23rd 2009 4:56PM I ask again, would you please inverstigate why blizzard is forcing us all to change our wow acounts to battlenet accounts and post a story about it. I'm no fool, the base reason is money but, in what way do they think this is going to increase their revenues beyond the hundreds of millions they already bring in each month in subscriber fees for wow alone.
Gearing up for PvP - Your mouse part II {WoW}
Jul 21st 2009 3:10PM Every single mouse you show is fundamentaly wrong for gaming and ergonomics in general.
I don't have to move my hands at all, if I so much as twitch my right thumb my game character spins around to face the other direction. The sensitivity is adjustable and anyone brave enough to make the move to a better way will have to begin with it set very low until they learn to control it. I use a Logitech Trackman Wheel for the right hand. The "thumb ball" is the key, the rest of the buttons are oriented like a regular mouse.
I also use a belkin n52te for the left hand. It took quite a bit of getting used to also but if you ever saw my gnome rogue dancing all around a boss while never missing a sinister strike or letting SnD drop, you'd see the advantage was obvious.
PS take your cordless input devices and stick them where the sun don't shine while the rest of us are recovering from the wipe you caused because your battery died.
WoW Moviewatch: Craft of War: BLIND {WoW}
Jul 17th 2009 12:40PM I have this in hi quality mp4 format. I don't remember where I managed to grab it but it didn't take too much searching. Still the best World of Warcraft movie.


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Wareham Orthopedics offers the latest diagnostic, therapeutic and surgical techniques to treat a wide variety of musculoskeletal conditions. Our in office x-ray department and on-site physical therapy group allows for "one stop" treatment. We also offer in office fitting and instruction for custom bracing and orthotics.
Wareham Orthopedic surgeons routinely perform arthroscopy of the knee, shoulder, ankle, and elbow to treat cartilage injuries, ligament tears, loose bodies, and rotator cuff repairs. Our doctors are also using the latest "small incision" techniques to perform partial or complete knee replacement, hip replacement, and shoulder replacement. In addition, fracture care of all patients and all body parts is a daily routine of our practice. Wareham Orthopedics can meet all of your orthopedic needs from simple bumps and bruises to complex reconstructive surgery.
- Dr. Baltz received his medical degree from the University of Connecticut Medical School. He completed an internship in general surgery and
a residency in orthopedic surgery at the Medical University of South Carolina. He then completed a fellowship in sports medicine at New England Baptist Hospital in Boston.
- Dr. Baltz is a member of the American Academy of Surgeons and American Orthopedic Society for Sports Medicine. His special interests include arthroscopy of the knee, shoulder and ankle, sports related injuries, general fractures and hand surgery.
- He previously served as assistant team physician for the Boston Celtics and Northeastern University. Currently, he is the team physician
for the Massachusetts Maritime Academy and the Wareham Gatemen.
- Dr. Baltz is board certified in orthopedic surgery.
- Dr. Dee graduated with honors from the University of Wales with a bachelors degree in Biochemistry.
- He earned his Doctor of Medicine from Leicester University Medical School in the U.K., and then completed an internship in general surgery at the State University of New York at Stony Brook followed by a residency in Orthopedic Surgery.
- After completing fellowship training in spinal surgery at the University of California, San Francisco, Dr. Dee moved back home to New England. He spent 12 years in private practice in Connecticut and has enjoyed treating patients with a variety of orthopedic conditions, including knee, hip and upper extremity problems resulting from work related injuries and carpal tunnel syndrome.
- Dr. Dee performs the most current arthroscopic and total joint procedures.
- Dr. Dee is a Fellow of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons and he is Board Certified in Orthopedic Surgery.
- Dr. Heacox is a graduate of Washington and Jefferson College, where he earned his undergraduate degree, and the Temple University School of Medicine.
- After receiving his medical degree, he completed an internship in general surgery at Abington Memorial Hospital in Abington, Pa., and a residency in orthopedic surgery at Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia.
- Dr. Heacox has practiced orthopedics with Wareham Orthopedic Associates since 1984. He previously served as Chair of the Department of Surgery and Medical Staff President at Tobey Hospital.
- Dr. Heacox is board certified in orthopedic surgery and is a member of several professional organizations, including the American Academy
of Orthopaedic Surgeons and the Massachusetts Medical Society. He has served as a trustee of Southcoast Health System from 1996 to 2011.
Download Dr. Heacox's bio card


text:
Lyme disease is an infection that is spread by ticks. You can get Lyme disease if you are bitten by an infected tick. But most people who have had a tick bite don't get Lyme disease. It's still important to see your doctor if you have a tick attached to you that you can't remove.
Lyme disease is common in the United States. It can also be found in Canada, Europe, and Asia.
Lyme disease is caused by bacteria. Infected ticks spread the bacteria by biting people or animals.
Two types of ticks carry the Lyme disease bacteria in the U.S. They are:
Remove ticks as soon as you notice them. Infected ticks usually don't spread Lyme disease until they have been attached for at least 36 hours.
WebMD Medical Reference from Healthwise
Last Updated: August 21, 2012
This information is not intended to replace the advice of a doctor. Healthwise disclaims any liability for the decisions you make based on this information.
© 1995-2014 Healthwise, Incorporated. Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated.


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Not much time left for this, maybe a couple of weeks because the weather this year has been colder. The Magnolias at the San Francisco Botanical Garden have mostly reached the peak of flowering and it won't happen again until next year. Many flowers are on the ground but there's still many up in the trees
full flickr set here


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Reviewed Slow Cooker Melt-In-Your-Mouth Short Ribs
Dec 4, 2011 in Food Network Community Toolbox on FoodNetwork.com
"I added a small potato and onion (both diced also a can of fire roasted tomatos. The flavor was very good, however, I wound up with too much "fat". Next time I'll try to remove some of the fat before cooking."""


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Business Mum: 'Get some T.S.T – Time Saving Technology!'
Do you need more TST in your life? I think every woman does, as we are always so busy. Personally, I need a clone of myself. By that I don't mean I want someone to dress like me and follow me around (that would be a bit weird) but just the ability to split myself in two so I can get everything done! Does this sound like you too?!
I work from home now but I still remember the days when I'd be rushing to work in my smart clothes, wearing an old t-shirt over them so any stray porridge or bogeys from the kids didn't get onto my 'office wear'! Then at the other end of the day, I'd be screeching to a halt at the front door, having raced home in the dark to get back to my family and still having a meal to prepare, washing to do and the marketing presentation to finish!
We all do it, and we either deserve a medal or certifying, but if neither are forthcoming then see if any of these little gems can make your daily juggle that bit easier…
At the Start of the Day
My parents used to have a Teasmade in the 1970's but in our 'Grand Design' and 'Property Ladder' era, this would seem naff, so how about a solution that lets you switch on your downstairs kettle from your bed? The Siemens Home Automation system from B&Q allows just that! You use the remote control to activate the kettle so your 'wake up' coffee can be making whilst you are still waking! Genius! Once you are up, you can make a dent in the household tasks by getting a wash load done in only 14 minutes! The Beko machine has a 9KG drum and the fastest cycle time of all washers of this size, so you can hang the clothes to dry before you leave and they'll be ready to iron that evening!
During the Day
I firmly believe that the internet is any Jugglista's best friend. You can be everywhere at the same time – shopping, ordering birthday presents and working out what film to see at the weekend, all without leaving your seat! But it can become more trouble than its' worth when you have to get up even earlier than you already do to arrive at the postal depot to collect all the parcels that got delivered when you were out at work. Shop Box is a new device that you can rent to stay outside your home and provide a secure drop off point for any deliveries. It is secure, but has its limitations (for example, they recommend emptying it between deliveries which you can't do if you are at work all day- so you'd have to plan and make sure your stuff arrived on different days), but it is a possible solution to avoid the running around after work! See www.shopbox.co.uk for more details.
With the Kids
I recently found this little lifesaver – it's a funky child's wristband that you programme with your mobile number (up to 5 numbers in total) so that if the child wanders off, an adult can use the band to get your number and call you! Its heart stopping in a busy shopping centre if you can't see them, and this device provides peace of mind – genius! It's called a Me Finder and it's from www.kidsshowandtell.com.
At the End of the Day
How cool would it be if you could let your dinner cook itself?! It can if you use the Jamie Oliver Multicooker. Just chuck in your chicken and it can be left unsupervised and cooks really fast! This is perfect to allow you chance to help with your child's homework whilst the meal is getting sorted!
Remember that washing you hung out this morning? It's dry and ready to iron by the end of the day, but this usual chore can be 30% quicker with the new Rowenta Steamium iron. Keeping on top of the ironing pile is one of the biggest time stealers but this just got easier, and trust me, I've tried it and this iron works!
Sweet Dreams
If you have a baby in the house, you will do anything for a bit of extra sleep. This new technology in baby bottles promises an extra 30 minutes in bed as it delivers a perfect breast-milk temperature feed at the touch of a button – in under 60 seconds! Yoomi is the UK's first self warming baby bottle, which brings an end to stumbling around the kitchen in the middle of the night. All you do is pick up Yoomi, push the button and baby's feed is ready in under a minute so you can get them settled quicker and back to bed yourself! For more information, go to www.yoomi.com.
Let's face it, when we have everything to do, a little technological help can go a long way! Do you have any secrets for bending technology to fit your life? Let me know in the comments below!
More from Nadine
Business Mum: 'Find your lifestyle mojo!'
Business Mum: 'How to plan when nothing goes to plan!'
Business Mum: 'Run your home like a business!'
About the author
Nadine Hill is a busy working mum (is there any other kind?!) who has a fascination with time management which borders on the obsessive! She loves to find more effective ways of doing the daily juggle whilst enjoying the journey, and has lots of practise through raising her two children, growing her small business, being a best-selling author, running her home, public speaking and inspiring others as an Enterprise UK Ambassador. Nadine's ambition is to help busy mums claw back a bit of 'me time', by sharing tips with at home in her fortnightly columns, her own life stories on her blog Time Management Mum, and micro-blogging on Twitter. You can learn more about Nadine at www.NadineHill.com.


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Parting the Veil
Now is no time to give up on supporting democracy in the Middle East. But to do so, the United States must embrace Islamist moderates.
America's post-September 11 project to promote democracy in the Middle East has proven a spectacular failure. Today, Arab autocrats are as emboldened as ever. Egypt, Jordan, Tunisia, and others are backsliding on reform. Opposition forces are being crushed. Three of the most democratic polities in the region, Lebanon, Iraq, and the Palestinian territories, are being torn apart by violence and sectarian conflict.
Not long ago, it seemed an entirely different outcome was in the offing. As recently as late 2005, observers were hailing the "Arab spring," an "autumn for autocrats," and other seasonal formulations. They had cause for such optimism. On January 31, 2005, the world stood in collective awe as Iraqis braved terrorist threats to cast their ballots for the first time. That February, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak announced multi-candidate presidential elections, another first. And that same month, after former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri was killed, Lebanon erupted in grief and then anger as nearly one million Lebanese took to the streets of their war-torn capital, demanding self-determination. Not long afterward, 50,000 Bahrainis–one-eighth of the country's population–rallied for constitutional reform. The opposition was finally coming alive.
But when the Arab spring really did come, the American response provided ample evidence that while Arabs were ready for democracy, the United States most certainly was not. Looking back, the failure of the Bush Administration's efforts should not have been so surprising. Since the early 1990s, U.S. policymakers have had two dueling and ultimately incompatible objectives in the Middle East: promoting Arab democracy on one hand, and curbing the power and appeal of Islamist groups on the other. In his second inaugural address, President George W. Bush declared that in supporting Arab democracy, our "vital interests and our deepest beliefs" were now one. The reality was more complicated. When Islamist groups throughout the region began making impressive gains at the ballot box, particularly in Egypt and in the Palestinian territories, the Bush Administration stumbled. With Israel's withdrawal from Gaza high on the agenda and a deteriorating situation in Iraq, American priorities began to shift. Friendly dictators once again became an invaluable resource for an administration that found itself increasingly embattled both at home and abroad.
The reason for this divergence in policy revolves around a critical question: What should the United States do when Islamists come to power through free elections? In a region where Islamist parties represent the only viable opposition to secular dictatorships, this is the crux of the matter. In the Middle Eastern context, the question of democracy and the question of political Islam are inseparable. Without a well-defined policy of engagement toward political Islam, the United States will fall victim to the same pitfalls of the past. In many ways, it already has.
The Islamist Dilemma
The "Islamist dilemma" is nothing new. It is the same dilemma that has plagued policymakers since the Algerian debacle of the early 1990s. On December 26, 1991, in that country's first free legislative elections, the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) won 47 percent of the vote and was poised to capture a commanding parliamentary majority. The staunchly secular military, claiming to save democracy from itself, intervened, canceling the elections and provoking a brutal civil war that would rage for more than a decade.
After the election results were annulled, the State Department said that it "viewed with concern the interruption of the electoral process" and expressed "hope [that] a way can be found to resume progress." But the United States stopped well short of outright criticism, saying instead that the military intervention did not actually violate the Algerian constitution. The George H.W. Bush Administration's indifference to what was a blatant breach of the democratic process seemed a far cry from the lofty rhetoric of a "new world order." As one State Department official later remarked, "By not saying or doing anything, the Bush Administration supported the Algerian government by default." Even in hindsight, James Baker, who had been secretary of state at the time, was unrepentant: "Generally speaking, when you support democracy, you take what democracy gives you…If it gives you a radical Islamic fundamentalist, you're supposed to live with it. We didn't live with it in Algeria because we felt that the radical fundamentalists' views were so adverse to what we believe in and what we support, and to what we understood the national interests of the United States to be."
Such realpolitik was not supposed to have a place in the current Bush Administration. In his second inaugural address, the president declared, "All who live in tyranny and hopelessness can know: The United States will not ignore your oppression, or excuse your oppressors. When you stand for your liberty, we will stand with you." Egypt, the second-largest recipient of U.S. foreign aid, was to be the centerpiece of the new "forward strategy for freedom." And for a time, the strategy seemed to bring results. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice canceled a March 2005 trip to Cairo to protest the imprisonment of Ayman Nour, a leading liberal figure and head of the Ghad Party. Responding in part to U.S. pressure, President Mubarak announced that Egypt would hold multi-candidate presidential elections for the first time. Emboldened by the changing atmosphere, opposition groups began to assert themselves. In late March, the Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt's largest and most influential opposition group, launched a series of protests calling for greater freedoms and constitutional reform. When the inevitable clash came, thousands of Muslim Brothers were arrested in one of the most extensive government crackdowns on the group in decades.
After the mass arrests, the Bush Administration refused to criticize the Egyptian regime, expressing instead "disagreement with many of the things the Muslim Brotherhood stands for." The Administration was trapped, torn between unsavory autocrats and unsavory Islamists and not willing to push conclusively in either direction. As a result, it was unable to take the next logical step: formulating a coherent policy toward political Islam. Soon after Bush's landmark inaugural address, many in the Arab world were growing confused by the mixed messages. Nor did it help that, in May, First Lady Laura Bush made a spring trip to Egypt, a week before a national referendum on proposed election reforms, which most major parties had decided to boycott. In Cairo, Mrs. Bush, with the Egyptian president's wife, Suzanne, at her side, called Mubarak's reforms "bold" and "wise." Sensing the lost momentum, Rice was sent to Egypt in June to give a major policy speech at the American University in Cairo. In what seemed a thinly veiled reference to the need to integrate Islamists in the political process, Rice stressed that "the fear of free choices can no longer justify the denial of liberty." Yet in the question-and-answer session, she said that the United States would not engage with the Muslim Brotherhood. Rice then met briefly with members of the Egyptian opposition, most of whom turned out to be "reformists" with close ties to the ruling National Democratic Party.
But the electoral rise of the Islamists would continue. In Egypt's 2005 parliamentary elections, the Brotherhood won 40 percent of the vote and ended up with an unprecedented 88 seats–a more than fivefold increase from its previous total of 17. The first round of the election was conducted in a relatively open atmosphere; however, during the second and third rounds, the ruling party resorted to brute force. Thugs hired by the regime attacked voters, kidnapped election monitors, and blocked entrances to polling stations. 10 people were killed and hundreds injured. More than 1,000 Brotherhood members and supporters were arrested. While the violence was being broadcast on satellite stations throughout the world, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack insisted, "We have not received, at this point, any indication that the Egyptian Government isn't interested in having peaceful, free and fair elections."
The Palestinian territories were the other main point of focus for the Bush Administration, and here again, the United States stumbled. Rice had put her support behind holding legislative elections, but the results were not what the administration had hoped for: Hamas, a State Department–designated terrorist organization, won the elections. If one event marked the final, tragic demise of the freedom agenda, it was this. The shocking outcome illustrated the paradoxes of a strategy that was high on rhetoric but hollow on implementation. By all accounts, the elections were clean, free, and fair. This was democracy, but it was also a democracy in which our enemies had been elected to power.
Accepting an Islamist Future The fear of Islamist ascendancy, while understandable, is based on a series of fallacies. American Prospect writer Spencer Ackerman, for example, argues that "the United States is insane to promote democratic elections in which the victors proclaim eschatological hostility to it." Ackerman and others fall under the illusion that Islamists are a monolith of irrational fanatics. But it is worth remembering that the two Middle Eastern countries which are Islamist-led–Turkey and Iraq–are close American allies. It is of course true that Islamist groups use fevered anti-American rhetoric, but so too does every other political grouping in today's Middle East, even Western darlings such as Kifaya and Ayman Nour's Ghad Party, both part of the Egyptian opposition movement. Nevertheless, despite their strong opposition to U.S. policy, most mainstream Islamists go out of their way to explain that they have no gripe with America as such. Even their dislike of the U.S. government has its limits. The Brotherhood's leader, General Guide Mahdi Akef, usually known for his inflammatory anti-Western comments, admitted to me in an August 2006 interview that the Bush Administration's pressure on the Mubarak regime had had a positive effect on Egyptian reform.
There is also the oft-repeated claim that free elections will lead to a scenario where Islamists would come to power and then end democracy as we know it ("one person, one vote, one time"). However, this is a purely speculative claim; such a scenario has never actually happened. But some might counter that it could happen in the future. Islamist leaders are well aware of the Western fear that their commitment to democracy is not whole-hearted and, in response, point out that they have peacefully played by the rules of the democratic game since at least the 1980s. They recognize that if they did come to power through democratic means and then refused to let go of power, it would cast a permanent shadow on the integrity of Islamic movements throughout the world. Islamist parties would no longer be trusted in the eyes of their own people and their secular opponents would have yet more justification to ruthlessly suppress them. As Khairat al-Shater, the Brotherhood's deputy general guide, wrote in a 2005 Guardian op-ed, "The domination of political life by a single political party or group, whether the ruling party, the Muslim Brotherhood or any other, is not desirable: the only result of such a monopoly is the alienation of the majority of the people."
Commitment to democracy aside, most Western analysts and policymakers agree that an entrance into politics must be made conditional on non-violence. But with the exception of Hamas and Hezbollah (which were founded explicitly as militant organizations), the vast majority of mass-based Islamist groups in the Middle East have already renounced violence. Groups such as Jordan's Islamic Action Front (IAF), Morocco's Justice and Development Party (PJD), Tunisia's Al-Nahda, Turkey's Justice and Development Party (AKP), and the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood are not armed, nor do they have military wings.
In the Egyptian context in particular, critics point out that jihadists have often started out as members of the Brotherhood, only to move on to more violent pursuits. But it is precisely because the Brotherhood is committed to gradual rather than revolutionary change that more militant cadres have left to join groups like al-Gamaa al-Islamiyya and Islamic Jihad. In fact, many jihadists consider the Muslim Brothers kafirs (disbelievers) because of their participation in elections and accommodation with the secular nation-state. As Ayman al-Zawahiri, Al Qaeda's second-in-command, said, "What is truly regrettable is the [Brotherhood's] rallying of thousands of duped Muslim youth in voter queues before ballot boxes instead of lining them up to fight in the cause of Allah. They have substituted Allah's bidding with the conditions and regimes of the infidels."
None of this is to say that Islamist groups are ideal allies in the struggle against autocracy, or that they are paragons of liberalism. Their views on women's rights, social policy, and the implementation of sharia law leave much to be desired, while their understanding of international affairs and globalization tends to be simplistic and prone to demagogic flourishes. But one does not need to like Islamist parties or what they stand for to support their right to stand in free elections. That said, Islamists have made impressive strides over the years, focusing less on empty religious sloganeering and more on the importance of democratic reform. As early as 1994 and 1995, the Muslim Brotherhood released a series of documents clarifying its position on issues of concern. In the statement "Shura and Party Pluralism in Muslim Society," the Brotherhood publicly affirms its belief in popular sovereignty, calls for a "balance of powers," and disavows all forms of political violence. Its "Statement on Democracy" addresses the status of non-Muslim minorities: "Our position regarding our Christian brothers in Egypt and the Arab world is explicit, established and known: they have the same rights and duties as we do…Whoever believes or acts otherwise is forsaken by us." More recently, the Brotherhood released its 2004 reform initiative, in which it reiterates in its most clear language to date its commitment to alternation of power, separation of powers, the unrestricted right to form political parties, and freedom of personal belief and opinion.
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Two Florida Men Sentenced For Heroin Conspiracy
Orlando, Florida - Senior U.S. District Judge G. Kendall Sharp today sentenced Jose Manuel Jorge (41, Orlando) to life in prison and Julian Gil (45, Miami) to 20 years in prison for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute at least one kilogram of heroin. Jorge and Gil were indicted on July 12, 2012. They were convicted by a federal jury on September 19, 2012.
According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, from May 2012, through June 11, 2012, Jorge negotiated controlled substance transactions with a Drug Enforcement Administration confidential source. The negotiations involved cocaine and heroin that would be trafficked between New York and Orlando. Agents learned that a package of heroin was to be delivered to Jorge in Orlando, with a portion of that heroin going to Gil. DEA agents intercepted the heroin package in New York, which ultimately resulted in the arrest of the New York source of supply.
On June 11, 2012, agents facilitated a controlled delivery of 1.2 kilograms of heroin to Jorge. On that date, Jorge, driven by Gil, arrived at the predetermined meeting location. There the confidential source transferred to Jorge and Gil what they believed to be heroin. Jorge and Gil were subsequently arrested.
This case was investigated by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Vincent A. Citro.


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Restaurants for the respectable
For 21st-century Americans beckoned by fast-food joints and cafes on every corner, it can be difficult to imagine a world where restaurants were intimidating. But Andrea Broomfield, professor, English, explains why – and how that intimidation was conquered – in a soon-to-be-published article.
The work will appear in "Gastronomica: The Journal of Food and Culture."
Broomfield combined her studies of Victorian journalism, food and history to write about the life of Nathaniel Newnham-Davis. Newnham-Davis was an obscure restaurant reviewer who wrote about dining for a new type of customer – the middle class.
In early 20th-century London, Broomfield explained, restaurants were complicated affairs where customers needed to show off their sophistication – or be shown the door. The middle class (also known in Victorian society as the "respectable class") wasn't versed in restaurant etiquette. The taverns and chophouses they frequented plopped the food in front of them without much fanfare. A menu was a foreign object.
Few dared venture into the London restaurants that catered to the wealthy and powerful, Broomfield said. "Restaurants were really for people who could put together a multicourse dinner and not have any qualms about that. Dining for the middle class was a means of closing deals or fueling your body, but it was not done just for fun," she said.
Newnham-Davis wrote reviews that aimed to demystify the restaurant, offering readers advice on how to select from the intricate menus, even providing the names of maître d's and waiters so patrons could enlist their help in the dining experience.
His reviews of restaurants first appeared in the newspaper and then were reprinted in book form – a sort of Zagat's travel guide for those who were not traveling. Those books became instructional guides for the middle class to follow, leading to a restaurant revolution where families began to dine outside the home.
"It took away all the mystery, so people could go into restaurants and not be embarrassed. This was an important contribution to ongoing restaurant reviews, because suddenly it became more popular to dine out, and he instigated that popularity," Broomfield said.
He also offered special advice for select audiences, such as women and vegetarians. He introduced ethnic restaurants to all of London as well. "He created a new map of London, a map of restaurants, and a new way to understand the city."
The article is titled "Soldier of the Fork: How Nathaniel Newnham-Davis Democratized Restaurant Dining in Fin de Siècle London" and follows Broomfield's 2009 "Gastronomica" article on the food served on the Titanic.
She is also the author of "Food and Cooking in Victorian England: A History," and is working on her second book. Not surprisingly, the subject will be related to the topic of her last "Gastronomica" article: dining on trans-Atlantic ships around the time of the Titanic cruise.
While she writes, Broomfield is also leading an honors forum on the food in America during the time Newnham-Davis was writing about London eateries.
"I really didn't know that much about American food – and what makes food essentially American, even though I'm here in Kansas," she said. "I'm learning along with the students."


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Arizona State Sun Devils NCAA Youth AC 59FIFTY Cap
Made of 100% Polyester, Woven
This NCAA Youth AC 59FIFTY® fitted cap features an embroidered Arizona State Sun Devils team logo on the front, stitched New Era® flag at wearer's left side and alternate team logo on the rear. Interior includes branded taping and a moisture absorbing sweatband.
- 20592631
- Color:
- Maroon
- Availability:
- In Stock - Ships 1 business day
International shipping not available to Canada - info


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First Dog Barney Bush Commemorated on PETA's Tree of Life
From Abigail Adams' dogs, Juno and Satan, to Bo Obama, the animal companions who live at the White House become such a part of our country's collective culture (there is even a Presidential Pet Museum!) that everyone, regardless of political affiliation, mourns their passing.
When we heard that President George W. Bush's dog Barney, famous for his annual "BarneyCam" Christmas videos, died, PETA sent a letter of condolence to the Bush family, mentioning that a leaf with Barney's name engraved on it would be added to the Tree of Life memorial sculpture at our Norfolk, Virginia, headquarters:
PETA received this gracious response from President Bush:
Whether you're an ordinary Joe (or Jane) or the leader of the free world, when a dog takes hold of your heart, it's the start of something very special. Make sure that your dogs know just how special they are to you before they turn off the lights forever by treating them right—and that includes making a proper fuss over them on a regular basis.
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Check out this Agfa Clack Illustration I made - free shipping if you use the link in this post!
The Agfa Clack is one of the coolest in my collection – an old timer and a beautiful work of art. That is why I thought to make it the subject of one!
The illustration is hand made, scanned and further colored in illustrator. There are tees available, art prints, hoodies, bags, iPhone cases, laptop covers…
Check it out, let me know if you like it! I plan to go on making it in to a series (of all my collection, eventually) so I'd be nice to get some feedback.
use this link to get free shipping: http://society6.com/EhudNeuhaus/So-Analog?promo=c0c201


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Thu, Jun 1, 06 at 15:19
I'm trying to replace the string in my weedwacker, but I can't seem to figure out how to dis-assemble the canister with the string in it. it is a plastic canister with a bump feed. I got it used with no manual, and Sears has not been helpful. Any help would be appreciated. |
Follow-Up Postings:
Usually you unscrew the bump knob and remove the spool. |
That does not seem to work with this one. That was the first thing I tried, and the knob did not seem to un-screw. |
On mine, you just pull it straight off, there is a metal clip that holds the bump part in. |
Push the button in, then pull it off. You may have some little lines to line up. In that case, line them up, push in, and pull out. You then remove the spool and either rewind it with your own string or insert a prewound spool. You may need to spary the spring inside with a little WD400-makes the wacker work better, and makes it easier to get the spool off next time you need to. |
- Posted by princevalium (My Page) on Sun, Oct 8, 06 at 13:41
I have tried to take apart the spool as well and have not had any luck either. I am about to go out and purchase another weedwacker extension...but would rather just find out how to replace the string on this one!! Anyone have a diagram of it?? Rob |
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'It's a bad week. I gather we've lost one.' Sir Neville Marriner, himself a huge name, is talking about the death of one of the world's top conductors. Lorin Maazel,… Read more
John Bishop doesn't just tell funny stories. He also tells the sort of life story that makes you sit up and listen. He grew up on a council estate outside… Read more
On 18 September, the Scots will decide whether they want to become independent. But it is only a coincidence that Scotland's most celebrated violinist is launching an album that brings… Read more
Paloma Faith is an unusual pop star. Her flamboyant, retro appearance is upholstered by a deep-thinking mind and she articulates herself in an uncut East London accent. She hangs out… Read more
As Lang Lang walked from the stage at the Royal Albert Hall in November, a little girl emerged from the audience to embrace him. It was a disarming moment that… Read more


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The Remote
I have three Pioneer Elite receivers, two Elite Blu-Ray players and an Elite plasma display spread through my home so the X-SMC4-K remove felt right at home in my hand. Pioneer uses the same basic layout for most of their modern products. For the asking price of nearly $480, the remote should have shipped with a function display like the SC-37 receivers did.
The remote gives you full access to the unit so you don't want to lose it or getting to menu items like Set Up will be tricky.
The 2.5" Display
There are actually two displays on the unit that provide information. The first is a red LCD system that greats you when the system is first powered on. This also becomes a time display.
The 2.5" LED display provides a nice experience with its full color output.
The menu system works well on this limited sized display and is typical Pioneer. If you have a Pioneer AVIC system in your car you are already familiar with the basic layout and how to navigate.
Your docked iPod or iPhone acts as a third screen. The remote moves the highlighted areas on the display, which is a feature I thought was nice.


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This is an old picture. I took it on a September afternoon of 2004, while hiking in the Gran Sasso National Park. Many years have gone by, but I can perfectly remember the marvellous joy of that encounter and the happiness of having found one of the true gems of the Apennine wildlife. The meadow or Ursini's viper is a shy creature. It's a snake about 35cm long, which lives among the dwarf junipers above the timberline on just very few mountain massifs in Europe and feeds almost exclusively on wingless crickets and grasshoppers. The colors of its scales perfectly match the characteristic lichen-crusted, calcareous stones of the Apennines. It is a venomous animal but too tiny to be harmful for people. Its habits are so secretive, its temperature and climate requirements so strict, that very seldom one can meet this mountain dweller. Nevertheless, several snakes get killed every summer as too many people still consider them dangerous.
Look well into the eyes of this viper. Climate change, unregulated livestock farming and habitat destruction made it an endangered species. If nothing will be done to change this trend, it might disappear, silently and secretly as it lived. And the most sad thing is that probably only very few people would even notice it.


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ChordsChords v2Chords v3TabsTabs v2Ukulele
------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About The Future - Yves Klein Blue ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tuning:Standard Beautiful little song, unfortunately I can only work out this last bit where it gets really intense. If anyone can tab the first bit I would love them forever. Chords: F A Dm Bb X C e|---1----5----5----6----5----8--------------| B|---1----5----6----6----5----8--------------| Im not entirely sure about G|---2----6----7----7----5----9--------------| that X chord but michael D|---3----7----7----8----5----10-------------| seems to play something A|---3----7----5----8----6----10-------------| like that... E|---1----5----5----6----5----8--------------| F A So please dont let me go without you Dm Bb My heart never shows without you, F A Lately things have been so distant, Dm Bb And I dont know what I can do to fix this, F A Why dont you love me like you used to? Dm X Why do I worry about the future? Bb Was it just that how we managed, C Was not by love but force of habbit? F A And if only I could be a man, Dm Bb And rip down all your dreams and plans, F A And smashing all your pretty things, Dm Bb So the only thing you could see was me, F A Well what weve done should be a crime, Dm X We should be locked up so we never see the light, Bb So in the darkness we could see, C How worthless all our live must be, F A If two lovers like us could drift apart, Dm Bb There must be something wrong with our hearts, F A Or something wrong with all of us, Dm Bb To never care until dreams are lost, F A Why dont you love me like you used to, Dm Bb Why do I worry about the future? Cheers, Nelson Comments
Popular Yves Klein Blue tabs & chords Song lyrics
↑ Back to top | Tablatures and chords are parodies/interpretations of the original songs. You may use it for private study, scholarship, research or language learning purposes only |


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It's well after 10 p.m., yet the refreshingly under-decorated white room is only starting to fill. Why so late?I ask my dinner guest, Peter Nagy, an avant-garde New York artist who runs a gallery in Delhi. "Because Delhites usually eat late and then they're off," he notes cattily, "even society hostesses don't bother serving dinner until midnight." While we talk, the waiter proffers an appetizer of kakori kebab. The ground mutton is tenderized with papaya and pounded until it achieves a strange pâté-like consistency. Legend has it that the recipe was created for an aged maharajah who wanted to eat his favorite dish but had no teeth. Chicken khushk purdah, however, is something to sink our teeth into, a taut, juicy whole bird cured in star anise, grilled in a tandoor, and then steamed under a layer of dough to lock in the aromas. Lamb chops in a syrupy, bittersweet pomegranate sauce is another revelation, as is this evening's vegetable, whole baby eggplants in a lush mantle of tamarind and pulverized peanuts and sesame seeds—typical Hyderabad flavors. We decide that the pink rose-water syrup drizzled on the kulfi ice cream should be bottled and sold as perfume.
It's my last morning in Delhi, and I'm craving a proper southern Indian breakfast, which brings me to the Sagar Ratna restaurant in the tatty Lodhi Hotel. The painfully plain surroundings fade with one bite of the vada, a single crisp rice-flour doughnut afloat in an explosive rasam. There's also uthappam, a pizzalike pancake charred around the edges and scattered with chilies and coconut, and an incomparable masala dosa. This gigantic rice-flour crêpe with the texture of lace is folded around a dry potato curry. I eat it with dabs of coconut chutney and a spoonful of spicy-tart, soupy vegetable stew called sambhar. The flavors of chilies, cumin, and tamarind still sing in my mouth as my plane touches down in New York.
Kandahar Oberoi hotel, Dr. Zakir Hussain Rd.; 91-11/430-4256; dinner for two $40.
1911 and Spice Route Imperial Hotel, Janpath; 91-11/334-1234; drinks for two $10, dinner for two $45.
La Piazza Hyatt Regency Delhi, Bhikaiji Cama Place, Ring Rd.; 91-11/ 679-1234; dinner for two $47.
Tea House of the August Moon Taj Palace Hotel, 2 Sardar Patel St., Diplomatic Enclave; 91-11/611-0202; dinner for two $32.
Dastarkhwan e-Karim 168-2, Hzt. Nizamuddin W.; 91-11/469-8300; lunch for two $20.
Kwality 7 Regal Building, Parliament St.; 91-11/373-2310; lunch for two $17.
United Coffee House E-15 Connaught Place; 91-11/332-2075; snacks for two $8.
Dum Pukht Maurya Sheraton Hotel & Towers, Sardar Patel St., Diplomatic Enclave; 91-11/611-2233; dinner for two $35.
Sagar Ratna Lodhi Hotel, Lala Lajpat Rai St.; 91-11/436-2422; breakfast for two $10.


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This being a quasi-Three Jaguars sort of post… yesterday, I finally caught up with my accounting and had a look at my statistics. They surprised me! So, some fun facts:
My revenue right now comes from the following sources:
67% – e-books
11% – web comic
10% – print books
10% – Earthrise serial
01% – audiobooks
And that's the kit and caboodle. Not in the running at all are print and original sales, merchandise sales or Kickstarter monies (since I haven't run any campaigns yet this year). Some other interesting statistics:
Despite a great deal of positive feedback, Earthrise has been my poorest-earning serial to date! And that's counting my little-known/read serial edition of Flight of the Godkin Griffin (which had something like 50 subscribed readers that I knew of). Length isn't part of that: both The Aphorisms and The Admonishments did better, and they were shorter by about 50 episodes. Rosary also did better, which surprises me, since Rosary isn't everyone's cup of tea.
I should clarify here that even my "poorest performing" serial is still making a lot more money than one would suspect for something that's being given away for free. It may be that Black Blossom's near five-digit earnings have skewed my expectations.
Anyway! I'm not sure what's behind Earthrise's curious performance. My guess is that the content makes it the sort of book people prefer to read in one sitting, so I'm thinking it will do better as an e-book than it did as a serial, particularly with its beautiful cover.
The web comic is also not doing as well as I expected: I'm glad I'm not depending on it for my livelihood! I was expecting to see some merchandise/related book sales, but it hasn't really inspired any of those if my referred links/royalty statements are any indication. This may indeed be a single-year experiment: as much as I like doing the art, it uses up all my drawing time, so I haven't done anything except web comics for four months now (aside from quick doodles).
My suspicion is that web comics might need more than a year to ramp up to their full potential, in the same way novel-writing does. Given that, though, I'd rather write novels. But who knows! Something surprising may happen between now and the end of the year. So we'll keep on to our December 31st date with destiny (Business Manager's account books).
Even if the web comic ends up being a single-year experiment, I don't regret doing it at all. It's been tremendous fun, and I will certainly leave it up for people to peruse for humor and business advice in the future.
My e-book royalties are off the charts. In fact, right now in April I'm seeing double the e-book royalties I made last year. The whole year. This is mostly due to the big brouhaha in February with the Games Workshop thing. My sales numbers have dropped back to normal-for-me in subsequent months. If I got even half the amount I made in February on a monthly basis, I would be over the moon with delight…! I will have to do my part by writing more books. Which brings me to—
—my final observation, which is that the common wisdom is true: series are good money-makers. Sales have been gratifying following the release of the rest of the Stone Moon trilogy; thanks to near real-time tracking from Amazon, I can watch people buy book 2 and then move on to book 3, or start on book 1 and then go on to book 2 and 3 within a couple of days. This seems like a do-able way to succeed. Even an otherwise low-profile indie author like me can get to the point of comfortable earning with enough series out there, as long as readers can easily figure out which book belongs to which series, and what order to read them in. So I'm going to focus on that for a while.
That's what I've got ("and why," Marketer Jaguar says, "it's important for me to see the numbers along with Business Manager."). I should note, this post is not intended to inspire pity or money! I am analyzing my numbers to see where it's useful to spend my time, which is an important part of running any business. If seeing any of this makes you anxious about helping me (or nudging one of your favorite projects back into my immediate queue), I recommend telling your friends about my work, blogging about it or reviewing it. Those things help! Word of mouth is king. :)
Now, back to work with me.


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Sat, Jun 30, 12 at 20:16
Wow! Adding pics got easier! That's how long since i've checked in. Love looking at all your ideas. Started a path and added a boarder of plants...hope to do away with all sod on this side of the house!! |
Follow-Up Postings:
Love the kitchen junk area but that looks like my potato masher!!! |
I like your kitchen area only I use all my old stuff like that! Looks like that might have been a metal recipe holder that is holding plants now. Large scoop with plants, love the baking powder can & the black or brown bottle. The turquoise handles are scarce here! I think in new stuff it is getting very popular, I even saw a Kitchen Aid mixer in it on TV few days ago.Is the blue mottled pan a birdbath? Think it will be a fun path to explore your treasures! Jan |
I love it all! Very homey looking. I love your enamel pans. Jlily |
Welcome back! I love what you are doing, but I can't part with my kitchen things. I also have the potato masher. I would love to have a chopper/slicer like that one. I would use the B P can that I have. no fond memories of it-Grin. And I do have a brown pint jar. Looks like you have a great start removing the grassy area. |
- Posted by jeannespines 4 (My Page) on Sun, Jul 1, 12 at 22:21
Your path is lookin' good! & the kitchen area looks like it will fill in nicely w/those plants! Welcome back! Jeanne S. |
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My Life.
You came into my life from no where and became an integral part of it. I love you without knowing you. You make my life beautiful and amazing. I love you and don't want you to ever leave me. I want you to forgive my mistakes and love me like no one has ever loved anyone before. You are my love… My Life.
An Amazing Divine Force..
Kiss Me..