text:
'Beach Babe' Memo Says Transport Department May Sell Assets
Canada's transportation ministry could consider selling assets and privatizing airports to narrow its role, the department said in a briefing note to Transport Minister Denis Lebel. The memo also contained biographies of top officials with self-descriptions such as "beach babe."
The government is carrying out a review that "considers a wide set of options for the future of the selected assets," including divestment, the briefing documents say, without specifying which assets may be considered for divestment.
The documents are part of a briefing book prepared for new ministers by departmental officials. Treasury Board President Tony Clement, who is responsible for the government's financial management, has asked all Canadian ministers and their departments to find at least C$4 billion ($4 billion) in annual spending cuts to help return the country's budget to balance.
"Increasing financial constraints on governments at all levels combined with new and emerging demands on Canada's transportation system mean the era of TC being 'all things to all people' has passed," the briefing note says, referring to the department. Policies and programs need to be "reviewed and refreshed," which will require "tough choices and trade-offs," said the documents, which were stamped "secret" and released to Bloomberg under Canada's freedom-of-information law.
Transport Canada regulates safety of the country's air, rail, marine and road industries, with companies such as Air Canada and Canadian National Railway Co. under its purview. Lebel's Transportation, Infrastructure and Communities portfolio is responsible for 16 government-owned businesses including VIA Rail Canada Inc., Canada Post and the Royal Canadian Mint.
Conflicting Roles
The department plays a "conflicting range of roles" in the transportation industry, said the documents prepared for Lebel, who became minister May 18. The government continues to subsidize "financially unsustainable" facilities and services, such as small airports, and owns assets that are "not critical," such as land that includes a golf course, the documents say.
Non-profit authorities manage the country's biggest airports under a policy introduced in 1994. Turning those authorities into for-profit companies "is seen by some as a means to generate additional revenue for the federal government," which would be a "logical next step" toward privatization, the documents say.
'Fire Sale'
Transport Canada should avoid a "fire sale" of its assets, said Olivia Chow, a lawmaker with the New Democratic Party, the biggest federal opposition party.
Privatizing airports may force smaller ones to shut down, depriving towns of vital services, said Chow, the party's spokeswoman on transport issues, who also said selling Canada Post could threaten mail delivery in smaller centers.
Passengers would likely see higher fees if big airports such as Toronto's Pearson International are privatized, she said. "They could hold millions of passengers complete hostage by putting up fees in whatever amount they please," she said in a telephone interview today.
A spokeswoman for Lebel, Vanessa Schneider, said she was unable to comment on potential asset sales, adding she would ask the department for more information.
'Beach Babe'
The documents also include biographies with descriptions of the personal interests of senior departmental officials, written by the staff themselves, according to department spokesman Dan Dugas. The biography of Deputy Minister Yaprak Baltacioglu, the most senior bureaucrat in the department, describes her as "an avid cook and working with her will result in weight gain."
The biography of Doreen Gagnon, Baltacioglu's acting executive director, notes one of her "favorite sports is beach volleyball. In her younger days, she was quite the beach babe."
It's "outrageous" and "unprofessional" for personal information on senior officials to be included in briefing material for an incoming minister, said C. Scott Clark, who worked for 23 years in the country's Department of Finance and served as deputy minister between 1997 and 2000.
"That's really awful stuff," Clark said in a telephone interview. "I would never allow anything like that, as a deputy. In this day and age? This is the 21st Century, for crying out loud."
Chow said she had no problem with officials making light of themselves in the documents. "I don't care how they introduce themselves, as long as they do their jobs as public servants," she said.
'12 Feet of Documents'
The biographical notes were meant to show a more detailed picture of the senior staff in the ministry, Dugas said.
"Have you ever seen what a minister gets?" Dugas said by telephone, referring to the briefing book. "It's like 12 feet of documents, right? We'd thought we'd lighten his day by telling him who it is he's working with."
Bryce Conrad, assistant deputy minister of program operations at Infrastructure Canada, "enjoys the sound of his own voice and is an above-average dancer," his biography said, while Natalie Bosse, a director general in the deputy minister's office, was said to enjoy working at the department because of "its proximity to Holt Renfrew," an upscale department store.
Transport Canada employed 5,346 full-time staff as of April 1, but plans to cut its number of full-time employees to 5,203 by the year ending March 2014, department documents show.


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Cheat Sheet
Calligraphy For Dummies
Calligraphy, the art of beautiful lettering, comes in many forms and styles. When writing in calligraphy, you can use the delicate curlicues of Copperplate, as Regency ladies did, or choose the more forceful and just as intricate Blackletter style. You can even choose a plain, Roman style — or something in between. Your calligraphy choices are limited only by your imagination.
Sample Calligraphy Styles
Calligraphy is beautiful, artistic handwriting, but that handwriting can be artistic and beautiful in a variety of different ways. Calligraphy can be ornate or bold, delicate or forceful. The following samples offer a glimpse of the varieties available.
Italic or Chancery:
Bookhand or Foundational Hand:

subset: commoncrawl


text:
RANCHO BERNARDO: AARP solicits opinions on Social Security, Medicare
AARP is bringing its national "You've Earned a Say" campaign to Rancho Bernardo next week to give the public a chance to share their views about Social Security and Medicare.
Charee Gillins, associate state director of communications for AARP, said participants at the meeting will give their opinions through an interactive audience response system that will allow a moderator to collect responses to a variety of questions.
Those answers will be used by AARP in representing its members before federal legislators, she said.
Similar meetings in California are planned in Palm Desert, Los Angeles, Sacramento, Oakland and San Francisco.
The Rancho Bernardo meeting is scheduled for 6 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday in the Rancho Bernardo Library, 17110 Bernardo Center Drive, San Diego.
To RSVP, call 877-926-8300 or visit http://aarp.cvent.com/CAYouveEarnedASay522 .


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Definition of whet in English:
verb (whets, whetting, whetted)[with object]
1Sharpen the blade of (a tool or weapon): she took out her dagger and began to whet its blade in even, rhythmic strokes
More example sentences
- Using the clear water from the pool, Mo Ye and Gan Jiang whetted swords on this stone to hone their cutting-edges.
- Timothy whetted the knife he used to butcher the goats.
sharpen, hone, put an edge on, strop, grind, file
rare edge, acuminate
1.1Excite or stimulate (someone's desire, interest, or appetite): here's an extract to whet your appetite the selection of quotations may whet your curiosity to investigate the source material
More example sentences
- A house suited for quiet family life but within an hour of Dublin whets the appetite of country loving commuters.
- Just to whet our appetites, and to make us more appreciative of history in the making.
- I hope I've whetted your appetite without giving away too many details, so that you will consider picking up this book yourself - after all, it's out in paperback at the beginning of February.
stimulate, excite, arouse, rouse, kindle, trigger, spark, quicken, waken, stir, inspire, animate, fan, fuel, fire, activate, incite, titillate, tempt, galvanize, prompt, strengthen, intensify
whetter noun
- Example sentences
- The action of the lower tushes rubbing against the upper whetters is called 'whetting.'
- The tusks on the barrs that I have seen are very thick and seem to hold up fine with the whetters intact.
- An adjustment device automatically varies the positions of the knife so that the knife engages the whetter more or less constantly.
Old English hwettan, of Germanic origin; related to German wetzen, based on an adjective meaning 'sharp'.
Words that rhyme with whetabet, aiguillette, anisette, Annette, Antoinette, arête, Arlette, ate, baguette, banquette, barbette, barrette, basinet, bassinet, beget, Bernadette, beset, bet, Bette, blanquette, Brett, briquette, brochette, brunette (US brunet), Burnett, cadet, caravanette, cassette, castanet, charette, cigarette (US cigaret), clarinet, Claudette, Colette, coquette, corvette, couchette, courgette, croquette, curette, curvet, Debrett, debt, dinette, diskette, duet, epaulette (US epaulet), flageolet, flannelette, forget, fret, galette, gazette, Georgette, get, godet, grisette, heavyset, Jeanette, jet, kitchenette, La Fayette, landaulet, launderette, layette, lazaret, leatherette, let, Lett, lorgnette, luncheonette, lunette, Lynette, maisonette, majorette, maquette, Marie-Antoinette, marionette, Marquette, marquisette, martinet, met, minaret, minuet, moquette, motet, musette, Nanette, net, noisette, nonet, novelette, nymphet, octet, Odette, on-set, oubliette, Paulette, pet, Phuket, picquet, pillaret, pincette, pipette, piquet, pirouette, planchette, pochette, quartet, quickset, quintet, regret, ret, Rhett, roomette, rosette, roulette, satinette, septet, serviette, sestet, set, sett, sextet, silhouette, soubrette, spinet, spinneret, statuette, stet, stockinet, sublet, suffragette, Suzette, sweat, thickset, threat, Tibet, toilette, tret, underlet, upset, usherette, vedette, vet, vignette, vinaigrette, wagonette, wet, winceyette, yet, Yvette
For editors and proofreaders
Line breaks: whet
Definition of whet in:
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= trending


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Featured Ride in the
"After the long climb up, the return singletrack route has amazing views from the cliff-side trail."
— Anthony Harasimowicz on Nov 3, 2013
|23.437.6 milesKilometers
|3,589'1,094 m Ascent
|5,439'1,658 m High
|6% Avg Grade (3°)
|45% Singletrack
|-3,589'-1,094 m Descent
|2,450'747 m Low
|23% Max Grade (13°)
Take a
Virtual Ride
OverviewJust northwest of Naches, WA is a great mountain bike ride with a classic long fire road climb and sweet singletrack descent. It's a steady 11-mile climb (2900 ft. gain) up toward Little Bald Mountain with a varied return trip on rugged singletrack with sweeping cliff views.
Need To KnowThis ride can easily be set up as a shuttle with the starting point off of FR 1706 (the stretch of FR 1600 leading to the start of the trail highpoint is quite rough) and endpoint at the Halfway Flat Campground. Best time to ride is late summer, early fall.
DescriptionDriving south on Highway 410, turn right on Old River Road and cross the Naches River. Turn right at the fork and park at the large gravel lot on the left. The ride beings with a long, steady march up FR 1706. The gravel route is pretty straightforward as you follow signs for Little Bald. At just under the 10 mile mark turn right at a fork on FR 1600.
This more rugged road continues for another 3 mile where the upper access point for Little Bald Mountain Trail (#961). The trail initially drops into the forest, down to a switchback, and then opens up to a large clearing and scree field. Take your time working your way across the rocky trail. The trail heads back into the forest and turns to a fast, smooth, and narrow ribbon of singletrack.
After a short climb near the 14-mile mark, the trail takes you adjacent to a steep cliff edge with sweeping views to the west. In the distance, the top of Mt. Rainier is visible across the vast forested hills. The trail borders the cliff edge for another 4 miles as you head northeast.
The route then takes you back into the forest and passes through a large clearing. Turning to the east the trail crosses a gravel road and then to a final series of switchbacks takes you down to the Halfway Flat Campground and along the Naches River. From here follow the sometimes faint trail to a parking area at the Boulder Cave Recreation Area and then finish the loop by taking Old River Road back to the bottom of FS 1706.
ContactsLand Manager: USFS - Okanogan & Wenatchee National Forest Office
Aug 22 Buck Creek Fire UpdateEvergreen Mountain Bike Alliance
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Law enforcement officers from across the state and members of an officer's motorcycle club joined state officials and families gathered at the Alabama Capitol to honor their fallen.
The annual ceremony opened Friday with a prayer for the officers who have died in the line of duty and ended with a 21-gun salute.
Gov. Robert Bentley says communities, businesses and schools depend on the service of law enforcement officers. He thanked those
in attendance and the families of those who had died in the last
Honored at this year's memorial were Officer Trevor Scott Phillips of the Tuscaloosa Police Department, Officer Donald Joshua Newman of the Jemison Police Department, Officer Justin Sollohub of the Anniston Police Department, and Deputy Marvin Mulder of the Elmore County Sheriff's Office.


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« What is "Mythocracy"? | Sacred Cow Dung Home | MYTH: "Patents Protect Small Companies" »
June 05, 2005
MYTH: NDAs are a Good Idea
REALITY: Nothing Screams "I'm Clue-less" Louder than asking for an NDA.
Read my lips: "NDAs are a) unenforceable and b) even suggesting an NDA makes you look like a complete idiot."
BTW, For those of you who don't know:
NDA = Non-Disclosure Agreement
(Although NDA should mean: "No Deal Alert", "Nothing Disclosible Again", "New Dopey Attorney", "Nothing Dumber Allowed", "Never Done Appropriately", "Naive Dumb Attorney", "Naive Disclosure Agreement", "No Deal Agreement", "No Dung Allowed", ...)
The request to sign an NDA is yet another red flag that VCs see all the time. So let's set the scene: VC enters the conference room where the entrepreneur is about to present —
Clue-less Entrepreneur: "Would you mind signing an NDA first?"
VC: "No problem." (VC thinks: "Oh man … not another one!")
(Use of the word "one" refers equally to the NDA and the entrepreneur)
What is the entrepreneur really saying when requesting that executed NDA?
a) "You might be a crook."
b) "What I am about to reveal to you is so earth-shattering that it is a distinct possibility that you will drop everything in your life and try to steal my idea and do it without me."
c) "If I force you to sign an NDA, you will think I am being a responsible businessman."
d) "My ideas will seem much more important if you have to sign an NDA first."
e) "I need to guarantee you will never ever reveal to the world how truly stupid my ideas are."
From my experience, only answer "e" makes sense to me. Over the years, I've signed hundreds, if not thousands, of NDAs. And, so far, I have yet to learn anything from the subsequent disclosure which —
I didn't know already,
I hadn't seen at least ten times before,
Wasn't easily discovered in the public record,
Wasn't generally known by industry participants, or
Wasn't so stupid, mundane, or derivative that I couldn't imagine why anyone would ever consider wasting any time on it.
So it's always be hard for me to take anyone seriously if they request an NDA. From my own past, I can dredge up two relevant stories:
Story #1
In the mid-1980's, I was working late one night with a patent attorney. Being a curious, but naive, engineering graduate student, I asked the patent attorney if people ever had to worry about their patent attorney stealing their ideas:
Attorney: "Hmmmm … Only in the unlikely scenario that the attorney could be guaranteed at least $5 million in cash."
Me: "Huh?"
Attorney: "Well, I figure $5 million is the life time earnings of a typical patent attorney."
Me: "Huh?"
Attorney: "Well, if a patent attorney was ever caught stealing a client's ideas, he would never be able to work again — so really, the temptation to steal an idea would only be if — a) it was a guaranteed pay-out, and b) the pay-out exceeded his subsequent lifetime earnings."
Me: "Gee, that makes sense."
(In retrospect, what I should have said was: "Gee, it's comforting to know I'm working with a patent attorney who has thought through so precisely under what circumstances it would be appropriate to consider stealing a client's ideas." ) [insert lawyer joke here]
Of course, being a chronically naive idiot, I didn't really appreciate what he had just told me … which bring me to —
Story #2
It's the early 1990s and I'm visiting the first VC on the road show for my first venture-backed company —
Me: "Gee, would you mind signing an NDA first?"
(I remember being so proud at the time that I even knew what an "NDA" was. One of those "insider acronyms" that would surely prove I was part of "the club.")
The Kind and Patient VC: "Sure … no problem."
(He signed it without hesitation and handed it back to me.)
Me: "Gee, thanks."
The Kind and Patient VC: "By the way, do you mind me letting you in on a little secret?"
Me: "Wow! … sure thing!"
The Kind and Patient VC: "It's something you should probably think about from time to time. Building companies is really all about execution – not ideas …you know — the old 5% inspiration, 95% perspiration rule …Anyway, no matter how great your ideas are and now matter how great your plan is, it's unlikely anyone will ever understand those ideas and plans better than you …"
Me: "Uh? … Yeah?"
The Kind and Patient VC: "… and people like me, who make a living working with people like you, would always chose to work with you first …"
Me: "Uh? … Yeah …OK …"
The Kind and Patient VC: " … and the truth is — most people never act on ideas or plans anyway — you know: never really commit to the whole perspiration part …"
Me: "Uh? …Huh?"
The Kind and Patient VC: "Let me explain it this way — Even if you were to go down to the corner of Broad and Wall Street — ground zero for the financial markets — and randomly pass out 1000 copies of your business plan, no one will ever execute that plan without you — no matter how great it is."
Me: "Uh? …Oh … soooo, you're saying I'm an idiot for asking you to sign that NDA."
The Kind and Patient VC: "No … just reminds me you're a little green."
Okay. I'm a little slow, but I finally got it —
Key Principle: CONTEXT = TRUST
— not an NDA!
Am I saying an NDA is NEVER called for?
Pretty much … It's a little like asking an Eskimo to agree in writing to never use a refrigerator … It would be a very very rare circumstance indeed that called for an NDA to be executed —
e.g., in a highly-scrutinised high-profile high-stakes negotiation between two highly adversarial and highly litigious parties each armed with high-price attorneys ready to attack on command.
So the next time you catch yourself asking: "Should I get an NDA?" Remember: The answer is "e".
Posted by cmayaud at 08:46 PM | Permalink| Comments (5)
Del.icio.us Tagging | Digg This | Posted to Business Strategy | Entrepreneurship | MYTH of the Week | Open Source | Patents | IP | SOFTWARE IT | Venture Capital Process
Me personally I used the old trick of telling the older guy with the business plan and his letter of confidentiality to mail himself by registered mail a copy of his idea and all relevant material and not to break the seal. In a court of law this will always establish time frame by the post mark and validate the proposal for the brilliant older guy looking to launch his baby. I use the term older because I was the youngest Investment Banker on my street and all the guys with the deals were, well older; reminds me of an article I thought to mail you Chris. It was about ceativity and age; the argument was that as you age you become less creative. Needless to say since I'm 50 I fired off a letter or post so quickly to the reporter that I don't think I'll be hearing that take anymore. Creativity not about age. It's unique to the individual and it's not a colective thing. The deal here is that experience augments one's creative powers regardless of age if we were comparing two healthy individuals; one old and one young.
Posted by: Michael Pokocky at June 6, 2005 04:22 AM
Excellent post. Very pragmatic, high entropy, information content. Well written too. Your's is one of the few blogs out there where visitors, at least this one, are grateful for that you take the time and effort to share your thoughts.
Posted by: rsd at June 9, 2005 12:25 PM
But on the other hand, not everyone is as ethical as one might hope.
Posted by: rsd at June 14, 2005 03:09 AM
I wish I had a nickel for every time I had to make this point to a young guy with an idea.
However, some things have changed in the "new normal" economy.
1. VC's have several "entrepreneurs in residence."
2. VC's have more money than good ideas to put the money into.
3. They get pitched all the time.
I've seen VC's take the concepts heard from several pitches, take the best of those concepts and combine them into a business that they fund themselves run by an "entrepreneur in residence" or someone who has run one of their companies previously that had a track record of execution.
Unfortunately you can't protect ideas. So my advice is to be careful about who you share them with. Which flies in the face of Guy Kawasaki's "Eat Like a Bird, Shit Like an Elephant" theorem.
I guess there is no right answer, just use your best judgement.
P.S. I really enjoy this blog.
Posted by: Bryan Menell at June 20, 2005 10:59 AM
I think you're exaggerating the "idea alone is worthless" thought; I've seen several instances of VCs running off with ideas, in the mold Bryan describes. However, it is entirely true that NDA doesn't protect you from this. Generally speaking, completely agree, NDAs and VC pitches do not mix.
Posted by: Parand Tony Darugar at June 20, 2005 10:14 PM
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text:
Diabetes Health Center
Many With Diabetes Don't Realize Disease Can Harm Vision
"This paper is an excellent example of where the American health care delivery system has fallen down in an area where we can clearly do better," Ratner said.
For the study, researchers used survey data collected by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention between 2005 and 2008 to review the responses of people with type 2 diabetes who had "diabetic macular edema." This condition occurs when high blood sugar levels associated with poorly controlled diabetes cause damage to the small blood vessels in the retina, the light-sensitive tissue lining the back wall of the eye.
As the vessels leak or shrink, they can cause swelling in the macula -- a spot near the retina's center that is responsible for your central vision. Macular edema can ruin your ability to see detailed images and objects directly in front of you, and ultimately can lead to permanent vision loss.
Many diabetics suffer from diabetic macular edema. People with diabetes have at least a 10 percent risk of developing the eye disease during their lifetimes, Bressler said. Recent reports estimate that the eye disease affects about 745,000 people with type 2 diabetes in the United States, the authors noted in background information.
The people in the survey with diabetic macular edema responded to questions about their medical care. The Johns Hopkins researchers gleaned their findings from the survey responses.
"We have to really strengthen our efforts at educating people who have diabetes about the eye complications," Bressler said. "They need to get to health care providers who can provide the appropriate treatment. In the United States, we aren't doing as good a job as we probably should."
Bressler, who is the editor of JAMA Ophthalmology, does not participate in deciding whether studies from Johns Hopkins are chosen for publication in the journal.
Ratner said part of the problem is that people can't afford to see a doctor for their diabetes. "I'm hopeful that as the number of uninsured individuals begins to drop, that structural problem will get better," he said.
On the other hand, doctors need to do a better job when they do see patients of emphasizing the dangers of vision loss from diabetes in a clear manner, Ratner added.
Today on WebMD
WebMD Special Sections
- Managing Diabetes, Insulin, and High Blood Sugar
- Your Child and Type 1 Diabetes
- Next-Level Fitness When You Have Diabetes
- Type 2 Diabetes: Learn How New Treatments Can Help You
- Live Better Daily With Diabetes
- 8 Snacks That Won't Spike Your Blood Sugar
- Living with Diabetes Assessment
- Diabetes: Keys to Better Daily Control
- I Have Diabetes: Is Insulin Right For Me?
- What Kinds of New Insulin Are Out There?
- Diabetes as You Age: Stay Active, Live Better
- Diabetes: Ready to Lower Your Blood Sugar?


text: Alright, so crappy quality but I'd totally make babies with your voice. Like, in a second. If you ever decide to be a thoroughly fucked up borderline-anorexic Asian or South American chick with serious daddy issues I think we could really have a future together. A totally healthy one."OK, I quit. You win. Last post. The end. Goodbye." - Stu, 1 October 2007


text:
Dallas Fed report: Housing and transit issues could affect regional economic growth
Economic growth in Texas accelerated and and unemployment fell in the first six months of the year, but worries continue in some communities about access to jobs given a lack of skills and unaffordable transportation and housing options, according to results released today by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas' Community Outlook Survey.
The biannual online survey covers community organizations that provide housing, health and nutrition, financial aid, workforce development and education services to cities and counties across the Dallas Fed's district, which includes all of Texas, northern Louisiana and southern New Mexico.
Overall well-being in low- and moderate-income communities appears to be rebounding after declining in the last half of 2013. (See Table 1 above.) Service providers noted increased job availability, affordable housing and financial well-being, but they also indicated increasing demand for their services.
The energy industry continued to be strong, but the housing market remained constrained with low inventories of homes for sale.
Expectations of job availability rebounded, but service providers indicated workers having difficulty accessing those jobs due, in part, to unaffordable transportation or "qualification difficulties."
Survey respondents also worry about availability of affordable housing, as the booming energy sector continues to squeeze the housing supply. A lack of capital ranks as the top factor affecting availability of affordable
housing (see Chart 3 at right).
Service providers also noted other issues, including struggles of the elderly (housing, health care and budget constraints).
Still, analysts predict employment growth this year will be stronger than in 2013 thanks to strong energy and business services industries, the report said.


text: All those films listed are in the same genre. It's only fans that debate fantasy vs sci fi vs superheroes and argue about how to categorize and where is space opera and all that cud chewing. It's all stories told outside of the real world and it's all in the same category as far as media and the public goes.


text:
Specializing in Senior Care Placement Assistance since 1996
For immediate placement assistance,
7 days a week, call
FREE professional assistance in finding the right assisted living community, board & care home, or specialized care center for the elderly person in your life.
We are not an internet-based service with just mass listings of care homes -- since 1996 Home Link has personally assessed these facilities. We will discuss with you personally by phone and later in person what the needs, budget and expectations are. You are important to us!
We understand this may be the most difficult decision you'll ever have to make for yourself, your parent, or loved one. Home Link for Seniors can help make this decision process as simple and pleasant as possible.
We will assist you in finding the right Residential Care Facility for the Elderly (RCFE) choice to fit your needs. Quality care will be found to meet each individual's particular needs, including financial, social, emotional and personal care requirements.
Home Link for Seniors
Home Link for Seniors
P.O. Box 3874
Walnut Creek, CA 94598
© Home Link for Seniors. 2013.
All rights reserved.


text:
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Ocean Vistas 8/13/16-8/27/16 $1,195/week!!
From $156 / night
balance of due
Description from the owner
Description from the owner
Bedrooms: 2/
Bathrooms: 2/
Sleeps: 6/
Type: Apt. / Condo
Book this 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom apt. / condo in Daytona Beach today! A total of 6 people can sleep here comfortably.
Guests can enjoy a pool, hot tub, and deck among other amenities offered by this rental.
Travelers are sharing their opinions on this property. It has an overall rating of 5/5 thanks to an average of 13 reviews.
Costs vary, with the average weekly rate as low as $1,095.00 to as high as $1,795.00, depending on travel dates.
The owner responds to 15% of inquiries, which is lower than average, and last updated the property's calendar 2 weeks ago.
Proximity to TripAdvisor's Top Daytona Beach Attractions
Proximity to TripAdvisor's Top Daytona Beach Attractions
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text:
Dinner & Drinks for Two
- Two specialty cocktails or glasses of house-selected red or white wine
- Two appetizers
- Two entrees
- Sorbet or ice cream for two
What we love
- The Beverly Hills outpost of Philippe has sleek decor in a black, white and red palette; the room is as sultry as the Chinese cuisine is notable.
- Whet your appetite with your choice of a glass of wine or specialty cocktail.
- Begin your meal with a classic appetizer (such as shrimp spring rolls) or a seasonal offering (like salt and pepper soft shell crab).
- Described as "regal" and "perfectly glazed and crispy," the Peking duck is specially prepared with house made pancakes and not to be missed.
- Chow is renown for putting a refreshing spin on classic Chinese dishes. Other delectable entrees include succulent chicken satay and the nine-season spicy prawns served with Chef Chow's famous spicy sweet and sour sauce.
- Chef Philippe Chow is a legend. Said Martha Stewart, "Go to Philippe and you'll have an incredible feast."
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Filed under: Human Resources, Notes from Jim | Tags: "Business Etiquette", "workplace etiquette", Communication, employees, Human Resources, PEO, Trust
Cursing in the Workplace – Is it Legal?
By Jim Guttmann, SPHR
Although many people may be thoroughly upset with the use of profanity and rude behavior in the workplace, there are no employment laws that require people to be respectful and polite to each other. Contrary to popular belief, anti-discrimination statutes governing hostile work environment are not general civility codes. The law governs what constitutes illegal activity or behavior; it does not dictate what is appropriate or professional in the workplace.
Believe it or not, in certain situations and industries some view cursing as a positive thing. These individuals believe that cursing by supervisors or employees shows that they are passionate about their work or that the use of foul language adds needed emphasis and motivation to others. When this occurs, these individuals may be viewed as "equal opportunity harassers". In other words, others may be told to learn to deal with a person as having a "potty mouth" around everyone.
So, should we conclude that there is nothing wrong with cursing? Not so fast! If it is viewed that the cursing is specifically directed toward an individual or group of individuals by virtue of their gender, age, race, national origin, religion, disability status or veteran status, it could be perceived as discrimination or harassment and represent the start of an illegal hostile work environment. Therefore, it's a definite problem if a clear connection can be made between hostile language and the perceived motives of a harasser against a category of person(s) that are protected by law.
As an employer, would you want to take the chance of prevailing in court based on an "equal opportunity harasser" defense? This argument takes the position that since everyone is treated in an equally reprehensible manner without regard to any protected characteristics, no discrimination is occurring. There is no litmus test to go by, so a company culture in which inappropriate language such as unwanted, deliberate, repeated, unsolicited profanity, cussing, swearing, vulgar, insulting, abusive or crude language is the norm may place the employer at considerable risk.
Beyond the potential legal risks, I believe it is unwise for a business to disregard the impact that cursing may have on lost work time, decreased work effort, employee turnover and potential violence. Very often, a verbal attack sparks a physical response when the insults involve profanity. According to James V. O'Connor, President of the Cuss Control Academy in Northbrook, Illinois (yes, it really does exist), "Chronic cursers tend to be complainers, and their bad attitude can be infectious. It damages morale, teamwork and productivity." Mr. Connor adds that "A manager with a foul mouth intimidates employees rather than inspires them. He or she also sets a bad example and jeopardizes the respect and admiration he needs for a loyal work force. His behavior shows a lack of character and emotional control, qualities employees expect from an employer".
To borrow and shamelessly embellish upon a line from Shakespeare: To curse or not to curse; that is the question. What is your answer?As a Landrum Professional Human Resources Manager, Jim is certified as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) and has over 20 years of HR generalist experience for a large government contractor and Fortune 500 Company. He holds a Masters in Business Administration from Florida State University and is an active member of the Greater Pensacola Chapter of the Society for Human Resources Management (GPCSHRM), previously serving as their Vice President of Information Services and Chairman of the Workplace Diversity Committee. Jim is also certified as a County Mediator and in the administration of the Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI).
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New Bill of Rights Institute Curriculum Focuses on Media Literacy
Arlington, VA – The Bill of Rights Institute has published Media and American Democracy, a new curriculum designed to help high school students understand freedom of the press and the essential role and responsibility of the media in a free society.
Thanks to the Internet and 24-hour cable news outlets, news and commentary are delivered to the public in real time from thousands of sources, making the protections of the First Amendment more complicated. Media and American Democracy will strengthen understanding of First Amendment rights and develop the analytical skills young people need to become media-savvy. The teaching guide's 15 lessons will examine the following:
- Historical foundations of the First Amendment
- Limits to the First Amendment in the interest of national security
- How media images influence our understanding of current events
- The role of bloggers in mainstream media
- Student journalists' rights
The curriculum also includes resources such as a list of landmark U.S. Supreme Court cases, a media milestones timeline, and glossaries of journalism terms, rhetorical devices, and propaganda expressions.
Based on lessons developed by teachers participating in the "Media and American Democracy" Summer Institute conducted by Harvard University's Joan Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy, Media and American Democracy is designed to meet state and national standards and can be used to supplement any civics, social studies, government, journalism, or English curriculum.
The media literacy curriculum is made possible through a $100,000 grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. The Institute's curriculum builds on Knight's
$12 million High School Initiative to engage students in journalism and in understanding their First Amendment protections. Knight recently unveiled the results of a national research project, the largest of its kind, gauging high school students' attitudes toward the First Amendment. The survey found that most of America's high school students either do not know how they feel about the First Amendment or admit they take it for granted.
The Bill of Rights Institute is an educational nonprofit organization founded in 1999. Its mission is to educate high school students and teachers about our country's Founding principles through classroom materials and programs that teach the words and ideas of the Founders; the liberties and freedoms guaranteed in our Founding documents; and how America's Founding principles affect and shape a free society. For more information on the media literacy curriculum, visit us on the web at www.BillofRightsInstitute.org
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation promotes excellence in journalism worldwide and invests in the vitality of 26 U.S. communities.
About the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
Knight Foundation supports transformational ideas that promote quality journalism, advance media innovation, engage communities and foster the arts. We believe that democracy thrives when people and communities are informed and engaged. For more, visit www.knightfoundation.org.


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For the more information about the air resources of the National Park Service, please visit http://www.nature.nps.gov/air/.
Pine Creek Gorge
Pine Creek Gorge contains superlative scenery, geological and ecological value, and is one of the finest examples of a deep gorge in the eastern United States.
Location: Tioga County, PA
Year designated: 1968
Acres: 30,000
Ownership: State, Private
← Back to listing of all states and territories.
Please remember, National Natural Landmarks (NNLs) are not national parks. NNL status does not indicate public ownership, and many sites are not open for visitation.
Last Updated: June 28, 2012


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The After Effects Apprentice videos on lynda.com were created by Trish and Chris Meyer and are designed to be used on their own and as a companion to their book After Effects Apprentice. We are honored to host these tutorials in the lynda.com Online Training Library®.
- Understanding how keyframes work under the hood
- Controlling the Anchor Point to create more predictable animations
- Mastering the Graph Editor for the ultimate control over keyframes
- Animating parameters including motion paths
- Hand-drawing motion paths to simplify complex movements
- Applying and tweaking Motion Blur
- Using Hold keyframes
Skill Level Beginner
We'd like to leave you with one more idea corner to explore. Again, drawing upon and extending things you've learned earlier in this lesson. Now you might remember this animation from earlier on when we're playing around with hold keyframes. We used to hold keyframes to go ahead and slam the word Reject into various positions and poses and also use hold keyframes opacity to blink the frame that goes round the word Reject. Well, the fact that Reject came as one entire word, it did kind of limit what we can do with it. However, if we have any access or any control over how this file is created, we can make some requests such as hey, could you give me each character of that word Reject as a separate layer in Illustrator or Photoshop? Because if you do that, when I bring it into After Effects, I can animate each layer independently and create a really fun, complex slam-down animation.
Well, we've done that for you. Let's go ahead and import a layered version of this Reject. First, I am going to select the folder I want to import into. In this case, Idea Corner, and I go to File > Import > File. If you have exercise files that came with this lesson, go to Exercise Files > Sources and select Reject_split. That's with the character split onto their own layers inside Illustrator. I can ignore the Import As dialog for now, because I will get the second dialog where I decide how I'm going to import this layered file.
In this case, I want to import it as a Composition. A composition that contained each of those characters as their own layer. I get some choices about how those layers get cropped. Are they cropped based on the entire document size, or an each individual layer size? Quite often, I prefer the individual layers size. The reason is, if I crop down each character and the anchor point defaults to the center of each layer, chances are really strong that that anchor point is going to default to the middle of each of those characters, which is already going to make it much easier to animate.
So I pick Layer Size. I click OK and now I have two things. I have a comp called Reject_split, and I have a folder of each of those individual layers, R, E, J,E, C, T, and the frame. Let's go ahead and play around with this. Well, initially, when I import a layered file as a composition, the composition it creates is going to be the size of either the document size in Illustrator, or of the image itself. In this case, it's smaller than I want for true video image. That's okay.
You can edit the composition settings after the fact. I'll go to Composition Settings. Let's go back to that size we're working with, 640 x 480. I'm happy with the frame rate, remember that, and let's pick something shorter like 5 seconds for now, and the background color black is kind of boring actually. Let's go ahead and do something on white. That makes it pop a lot better. Click OK. I want to animate this down and let's go ahead and make it really exciting. I'm going to make it to slap down into positions on every three frames.
When you go ahead and set new keyframes or new poses, every certain number of frames, like every three frames, that's referred to as animating on threes. If you do it every two frames, it would be call animating on twos, et cetera. Okay, another piece of advice we've given you is sometimes your ending pose is a good place to put your first keyframe. Let's say I want to have one pose, two poses, third pose, fourth pose, and maybe a fifth pose there.
That's where I want to end up here. I'm going to select all of my layers by clicking on the first one, and then Shift+Clicking on the last one, the entire range will be selected. I'll type P to reveal their Position, Shift+S to reveal their Scale, and I could optionally animate the Rotation as well. But since I am going to have a lot going on these characters, I'm going to leave rotation out of it for now. Drag up my Timeline panel to see a bit more what's going on. Click on the animation stopwatch for one of these, Position, and just drag down the list with my mouse held down, and now I've set the keyframes for all those properties.
Life is good. Now let's have fun positioning each character. I'll go ahead and click off for now, so nobody is selected. Otherwise, I might move everybody at once. Go one, two, three frames earlier. Pick up the R. Go ahead and pick a new Scale value for him, like say around there, and he is looking fuzzy. Well, that's because the Continuous Rasterization switch did not default to being on. If this was a pixel-based layer, it'd always be fuzzy. But since it's an Illustrator file based on vectors, if I enable Continuous Rasterization, After Effects knows to render this file on-the-fly to always be sharp.
It's only works for things like fonts and other path-based objects. Click on that. Now it's sharper. Let's go ahead and do that for everybody. Click on 1, and drag down the list, until they are all selected. Great! They're all going to be sharp now. Let's go ahead and move E over to different pose say down here. This is random and I can always move these things later on. Let's go ahead and pick up the J. Fill up some space there with them. Became big and maybe they can crowd in little bit. Take the other E. You are getting the idea.
We're just kind of goofing around here, looking for some interesting balance, and also some surprises. Putting a few things you don't expect them to be, maybe even cut off a little bit. C, yeah, he is fine down here, just scrolling down, scaling. And finally T. Let's just scale him up in place to see what he looks like. Continues to fill some space over here. Scale him up a little.
And the frame, I think I'll have fun scaling him to different sizes as we slam down as well. So let's just try that for now for an alternate framing. Kind of like how that bridges through there, ties these together. Okay, one, two, three frames earlier by pressing Page Up. Pick some different poses. Move the R to an unexpected part of the frame. Scroll up to where I can see him. You notice that the default path is Auto Bezier. That's okay. When I turn it into a hold keyframe for Position, it's not going to matter. Scale him up to some bigger value like there.
Take this E. Cram him up into this corner, make him bigger. Take the J. Move him down here to fill this space up and you know just to randomize things, let's scale him down rather than up. We don't need to have everyone doing the same thing. We need some variety. Repetition with variation, it's one of the main principles of art. Okay, C. Oh, the C is going to be better over here. So let's put the C there, then pick up the J, and move him over there, like that.
All right! I'm sure you've got the idea by now. So there is no need to make you watch me create the rest of these keyframes in real-time. So let's zip ahead while I create the rest of these. If you're working along with me, go ahead and pause this video, create your own keyframes, and let's get back together, set the work area, and preview our work. I go to 20. Type N to set down on my work area. As you probably remember from the earlier lesson, if I just RAM Preview this, I just have a bunch of characters sliding around, and frankly, that's not horrible.
But I want to go for that slam animation. So I'll drag a marquee around all my keyframes, right-click on any one of them, and choose Toggle Hold Keyframe. Notice how all my motion paths drained out automatically, and now I got do-do-do, slamming into position. Remember, if I want to do something with the characters or whatever later on, I can convert these ending keyframes to linear and keyframe some other animation later on. Now in fact, I think I'm going to want to do that with my frame. Let's go ahead and hold down a Command on Mac, Ctrl on Windows.
Click on the keyframes to convert them to linear. Just for fun, I'm going to move the Current Time Indicator back there. Hold Shift so it snaps. Shift+R to add Rotation, and keyframe that too so things drift over time. Get down to this point. A little bit Rotation on the frame. Just to create something fun. Scale up a little bit. I could do more Rotation. Okay, there is my drift. As I drag my Current Time Indicator, I notice something funky is going on here.
The R is actually still animating. As I scroll up my Timeline, ha, I forgot to select them and make those hold keyframes. That was a mistake on my part. But sometimes you get happy accidents. So I'm going to leave like that for now, and see if I want to change him later on. Anyway, I'm going to go back to the home, time 0, start of my comp. I've got a kind of red mess here. It's kind of an abstract. But maybe I want some ways of seeing these things more clearly.
One way to help is lift a layer off of other layers behind it and get some space and distinction is to add a drop shadow to it. I'm going to my Effects & Presets panel and search for Drop Shadow. Double-click him and he'll be added to my layer. Now you see I've got some separation between my R layer and all of the other layers. I'm going to go ahead and scrub the Distance a little bit larger to get little bit more distance and a little bit Softness, because I like the organic feel. Before, after.
Now when I don't have very much softness, you'll see that I'm losing definition on the inside of the R, because my Drop Shadow is going this direction but I don't have anything casting back in the other direction to distinguish the hold on that R. If I increase my Softness, you'll see that this shadow spread so much, it gives me a little bit of definition in there as well. So go ahead and get a little bit of outline there. Once I have one shadow that I like, I can select it, Command+C or Ctrl+C to copy it, and paste it to the other layers.
I'll go ahead and select E through T by Shift+Clicking, and then do Command or Ctrl+V to paste the shadow to them all. Click off to deselect. That's pretty cool. I don't think I'll lost any of my charm either here. So let's go ahead and preview. That's kind of fun with that R moving around, and then I've got my whole frame moving in the background. Now this is a very busy animation, and frankly I'm kind of losing out what's happening to the frame behind stuff. So let's say we let these characters have their hero day and then after they've come down in position, go three frames later and then drag my outer frame to start then in time.
After all, the fun's happen with the other characters. To slide a layer in time, I click anywhere in the layer bar, start to dragging, and notice the keyframes come along with me. I can hold the Shift key to make it snap with the Current Time Indicator, just like I could snap keyframes. Now let's see how that looks. Drag my work area to add a little bit later, to encompass my entire animation, and preview. It's a nice rhythm. The rhythm kind of carries over from the characters to the frame.
I can start it a little bit earlier. Try that. Now it's getting lost. Or start it later since more of a surprise element. Preview. Yeah, just when I think I'm done, something fun happens with that frame. I am going to go ahead and select the Drop Shadow. I had one of other layers, paste it to the frame because it's looking lonely without it. That's little bit more cohesive. Finally, since I have this R sliding around, let's say we enable Motion Blur for that R just for laughs. Peview that.
This is one of those cases when I don't think Motion Blur helped. So I turn it off for that layer, preview again, and I got an alternate slam down, and actually that's fun. That's something that will hold the viewers attention more than once. That's something we try to create. It's something called an "again" animation. Once the animation is where a viewer watches something one time, they get it, and frankly, they're going to go to the fridge and get a sandwich the next time this is on TV. However, if you create something with complexity, and subtlety, and interest, you've created an again animation where someone wants to see it multiple times, and that adds more value for your client, be it a commercial or whatever.
Anyway, that's one idea of what to do with a layered version of this particular title. If you have exercise files, we've created another idea and stored it in Idea Corner > Idea2. Here is the folder of all the individual layers and here is the comp with an alternate idea. We encourage you to go try your ideas. We don't have the only solutions. This is art. Art is somewhat subjective. Experiment on your own.
Come up with your own look and above all have fun.