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The Terrorist Inside Robin Williams' Brain
The journal Neurology published a unique and touching paper today: it's by artist Susan Schneider Williams, the widow of actor Robin Williams, who died by suicide in August 2014. It's titled The terrorist inside my husband's brain, the 'terrorist' being Lewy Body disease (LBD), the neurodegenerative disorder that, as Schneider Williams recounts, destroyed his life.
Here's how she describes the first signs of her husbands' illness:
The colors were changing and the air was crisp; it wa
California's wildfire woes rage on
Even as the costliest wildfire to fight in U.S. history nears containment, a new, dangerous blaze has ignited
I knew something bad was up when a Facebook friend posted this yesterday:
Oh joy! Now I have smoke coming in from TWO wildfires!
And then a little while later:
104F yesterday. Nowhere to hide. Moving to Canada. 😬
He lives in the Carmel, California, right on the edge of the Soberanes Fire, which has been burning since July 22. And his comments pretty well sum up California's wi
How to Add Real-Time Communication to Your Existing Marketing Stack
Let's think back to the early days of social media for a moment, and how it impacted our marketing.
Not only did it bring the potential of massive free exposure, it radically increased transparency as well. Every good or bad customer experience suddenly became a potentially viral story. And thus the relation between business and consumer was changed, forever.
But social media isn't at the top of the digital food chain anymore. As of 2015, messaging apps have overtaken social networking apps in monthly active users.
In 2015, messaging apps overtook social media platforms in monthly active users. (Image Source)
This balance tip coincided with a few other developments: Facebook's launch of Messenger for Business, WhatsApp announcing a move into B2C communication, an increasing reliance by businesses on message-based communication tools like Slack, and advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) entering a critical phase. The last point was nicely illustrated by AlphaGo wiping the floor with our human champions in Go.
Chris Messina, the guy who brought us the #hashtag, noticed the interplay between these developments, and concluded in a post on Medium that we're at the brink of another revolution in B2C relationships.
Where before you would use your messaging apps for simple interactions with friends, the above developments allow them to be used for real-time conversations with businesses as well – whether that's with a service rep or an intelligent chatbot. He dubbed this new era of B2C relationships 'conversational commerce'.
So, how can you take advantage of this development? How can you integrate real-time communication into your existing marketing stack?
First, let's clarify why you'll want to jump aboard this trend in the first place. Then we'll share some ideas and company examples that will help you start off today.
The Promise of Real-Time Communication
For years, marketers have known the power of 'now'. Pay attention to the banners and billboards you'll run into throughout the rest of the day, and notice how often they're filled with maxims like 'instant access', 'same day delivery', and 'quick checkout'. Immediacy strongly impacts our buying behavior.
Amazon Prime, a prime example of our desire for immediacy. (Image Source)
In The Art of Thinking Clearly, Rolf Dobelli shares an experiment into our weakness for 'right now' with two groups of participants.
Group A was asked whether they would rather receive $1,000 in 12 months, or $1,100 in 13 months. Most chose the 13-month option, because where else will you find an investment option with a 10% monthly interest rate?
Group B was offered a slightly different choice. They could choose to receive $1,000 today, or $1,100 in one month. Here, most people choose the $1,000 today option. This is remarkable. The choice is basically the same – except that the $1,000 today targets our weakness for wanting things right now. That's hyperbolic discounting, our irrational preference for what we can get now over what we can get in the future.
Real-time customer service has a similar effect on our preference for right now. According to a Forrester Research study, 57% of online customers leave a website if they don't receive a quick answer on their question.
This was confirmed in a case study with Intuit, the company behind the financial products QuickBooks and Mint. By placing live chat for real-time support during its checkout process, Intuit increased its average order value by 43%.
From "Interaction" to "Relation"
A major benefit of communication via messaging apps is that it results in a permanent and low-barrier connection with the customer.
Once a phone call with a customer is over, the connection is broken. That is not the case with email, but email has a high barrier to contact compared to writing a message on Facebook.
A permanent low barrier connection promises a major increase in customer interaction – keeping your business top of mind and always accessible.
Also, when a conversation picks up again, it happens within the context of a messaging thread. This makes it easier for support reps to understand the situation and provide a good answer. While emails and phone calls are mere snapshots, messaging threads represent long-term relationships.
Lower Costs per Interaction
As mentioned above, the existing messaging thread will prevent duplication. Things become more efficient when customers don't have to repeat their issue with every service handover – not to mention more pleasant.
At the same time, advancements in natural language processing fuel expectations of chatbots soon solving many support questions that humans are tackling at the moment. Not all, of course. But a modest 20% would already represent a huge gain in efficiency.
We're still some years away from scenes like in the movie Her, in which we're having natural conversations with smooth sounding chatbots that are indistinguishable from those with humans. What is closer and easier to picture, however, is a sort of 'chat cyborg' – a human service rep that uses AI to deliver a superior service.
When a question comes in, AI runs it through the database of customer interactions and offers answer suggestions to its human colleague. The human serves as the last check, and can choose to override the suggestions or adjust them. The AI learns from the answer that is given, as well as the response from the customer (was it the right response?). That way, the chat cyborg is continuously growing in smarts and efficiency.
Now let's look at how you can start with reaping the fruits of these developments today.
How to Get Started With Real-Time Communication
Live Chat on your Site
Web chat has been around for some years, but is developing fast together with the abovementioned trends. You implement a live chat window on your website, through which visitors can reach out and receive support.
Live chat offers many of the benefits described above, such as the power of instant support and minimizing duplication. What makes it especially powerful is that the chat is available at a critical moment in the buyer's journey – on the website.
A customer might be ready to buy, but has some small concerns or questions before doing so. With live chat there's no need to delay the purchase, since questions can be resolved on the spot.
A great example of how to do chat right is Apple's live chat service.
Live chat is an important ingredient in Apple's service setup.
If you're an Apple user, I recommend you try it out next time you have a service question. You receive full and detailed answers in no time, which suggest they make use of an intelligent knowledge base in the backend.
Facebook's Messenger for Business allows live chat providers to connect to their platform, and tools like Telegram and WeChat are open for this as well. We can expect tighter integrations between website chat and messaging support in the future.
Rogers connected its support team with Facebook to help customers via their favorite channel.
Messaging support
Messaging support is very promising, simply because it's so darn convenient for consumers. They send a question through their favorite messaging app, and receive an answer in their back pockets.
For this to work, you need to hook up your support team to your messaging channels – be it Facebook, WhatsApp, WeChat, Telegram, or a combination – and let your customers reach out to you.
One example of a business deploying large scale messaging support is Livecrowd, a Dutch company offering next-level customer service and experience for mass crowd events. Think festivals, football matches, or concerts (see Beyoncé's concert page below). Such events are major logistical challenges. A quick and easy way to advise visitors about transport or safety is invaluable.
Messaging support is perfect for customers on the go, such as music event visitors.
Another messaging example from the Netherlands is KLM, Royal Dutch Airlines. Since a few weeks, they've added Facebook Messenger support to their booking process.
This makes it easy for flyers to check the status on their flights and ask support agents any questions:
Managing your booking with an app you're already familiar with.
When you're booking a flight and are logged into your Facebook account, you can select to stay updated about your flight through messenger. When you have a delay, for example, you receive an update on the app. You can also receive your boarding pass through Messenger, or ask questions to the KLM service team directly.
As you can see, part of KLM's messaging support is automated. Which brings us to the next application.
Chatbots are a hot and exciting area of the tech industry, mainly because they're fueled by advancements in machine learning.
Slack allows you to connect an existing chatbot to your team or build one with its own logic, while Facebook's Chatbot API allows you to build a bot for Messenger. There are also plenty of third party apps that allow you to set up a chatbot fairly easily, such as Motion AI.
One example of the extensive use of chatbots is Call of Duty. Players can connect with Lieutenant Reyes chatbot, and solve a not-so-easy-to-solve puzzle. This chatbot sent over six million messages to its gamers in total.
Chatbots will only become more interesting with the continuous advancements in machine learning. The more intelligent the chatbots become, the more customer interactions can be left to them.
How to Get Started
Make a comprehensive communication plan.
To get started with real-time communication, you'll need to integrate it in a comprehensive communication plan. Ask yourself: What channels make sense for me and my customers?
Set up a dedicated service team.
The fact that conversational commerce is based on text means that compared to phone, more interactions could be done per service agent. But you'll also have a lower barrier for contact, so you can expect the number of customer interaction to rise. You'll need a dedicated real-time communication team to support this.
Empower frontline employees.
In real-time communication, speed is king. Zendesk stated that customer satisfaction in live chat dropped after 30 seconds of waiting. Since you'll be having so many customer inquiries requiring fast responses, it's essential to empower your frontline employees to resolve issues themselves. The number of cases that require involvement from higher up should be minimized.
Set up communication guidelines.
That doesn't mean your real-time communication should be a free-for-all. On the contrary, it takes directed effort to maintain a consistent voice across all channels. Like The Economist maintains a style guide for its articles, you should require a style guide for your real-time communication as well. On what level of familiarity will you communicate? If you'll speak in English, will it be British or American?
Play together with your other channels.
In the world of conversational commerce, one-on-one conversations will cover a much wider area of topics than before. That's why your frontend employees need to be well aware of all external communications. Whether it's social media, content, email, or performance marketing – your real-time communication channel needs to be in sync.
Track key metrics.
One key benefit of written communication is that it can easily be tracked. Most live chat solutions, for example, have standard integrations with analytics solutions like Google Analytics and Kissmetrics. With them, it's easy to measure key indicators of quality communication: first response time, handovers per issue, service ratings, etc.
We really do seem to be at the brink of another revolution in the relationship between businesses and customers.
You can start reaping the benefits of real-time communication today, by taking the first steps with website chat, messaging support, and chatbots. Happy chatting!
About the Author: Pascal van Opzeeland is CMO of Userlike, software for website and messaging support. He and his team share tips about customer communication on the Userlike Blog.
These Bees Bore Through Rock to Make Nests
The big bad wolf won't be blowing these bees' house down any time soon.
Unlike other species of excavating bees who build their homes in wood or soil, Anthophora pueblo carves a home out rock in the Utah desert, creating nests that can withstand the tests of time and elements. The species was discovered almost 40 years ago by a USDA entomologist named Frank Parker who found dozens of new species of insects in the region.
He took samples of the unique hives, but never formally published
A/B Testing vs Multiple Variant Testing: And the Winner Is…?
During the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, Mahe Drysdale rowed 2,000 meters (1.24 miles) in just 6 minutes and 41 seconds.
However, despite his impressive performance, the world record-holder nearly lost the race.
In one of the closest finishes in Olympic history, Drysdale won by mere millimeters.
Have you ever seen anything like this!?
Mahe Drysdale takes single sculls gold… just! https://t.co/Lwvrwbys18 pic.twitter.com/5nY1L7cc7q
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) August 13, 2016
In contrast, Great Britain's Men's Eight team rowed the same distance in just 5 minutes and 29 seconds—over 70 seconds faster than Drysdale's time!
What's more, the Brits won by more than a half second.
That might not seem like a huge margin, but in the Olympics, a half second is a big deal.
So, why was Britain's team so much faster than Drysdale?
The answer is simple: they had more oars in the water.
Now, at this point, you might be thinking, This is all well and good, Jake, but what does rowing have to do with online marketing?
Well, it turns out that conversion rate optimization (CRO) is a lot like rowing.
The more oars you have in the water, the faster you'll make it to your goal and the more likely you are to beat out the competition.
The Secret is Testing Multiple Variants
Over the years, CRO seems to have become synonymous with A/B testing in the minds of many marketers.
Now, there's nothing inherently wrong with this. A/B testing is a form of conversion rate optimization. You have a page and you want it to perform better, so you change something and see if it improves your results.
But here's the thing, A/B testing isn't the only way to do CRO.
It might not roll off the tongue as nicely as "A/B testing", but if you've got enough traffic, A/B/C/D/etc testing can allow you to produce meaningful results much more quickly.
For example, Optimizely recently studied and reported on the factors that defined the world's best testing companies.
Guess what the 4 biggest factors were?
- Testing the things that drive the most revenue
- Testing every change
- Testing to solve real problems
- Testing multiple variants simultaneously
Does #4 surprise you?
Apparently, the most effective CRO doesn't come from A/B testing—it comes from testing multiple variants.
Essentially, A/B testing is like the Mahe Drysdale of CRO. It works and it can even deliver amazing results.
But, it's only two oars in the water—there's no way it can compete with an 8-man team.
To put this in more concrete terms, according to Optimizely, just 14% of A/B tests significantly improve conversion rates. On the other hand, tests with 4 variants improve conversion rates 27% of the time.
So, if you test 4 variants, you are 90% more likely to improve your conversion rate than if you just ran an A/B test. However, 65% of CRO tests are—you guessed it—A/B tests!
Why Testing Multiple Variants Works Better
Basically, there are two reasons why multiple variant testing outperforms A/B testing: 1) it's faster and 2) it allows you to test more variants under the same testing conditions.
Multiple Variant Testing is Faster
Sure, you can test the same things with a series of A/B tests as you can with a multiple variant test—it just takes a lot longer.
When you run an A/B test, you can really only learn one thing from your test. Your variant will either perform better, the same or worse than your original.
And that's it, that's all you can learn.
Now, if you're smart about your A/B testing strategy, your results can teach you a lot about your audience and make your future tests smarter, but you're still only learning one thing from each test.
On the other hand, with multiple variant testing, you can try out several ideas at the same time. That means you can simultaneously test multiple hypotheses.
So, instead of just learning that a hero shot with a smiling woman outperforms a shot of a grumpy man, you can also see if a grumpy woman image drives more results than the grumpy man pic or if a happy man outshines them all.
Or, you can try multiple combinations, like a new headline or CTA in combination with either the smiling woman or the grumpy man.
Running all of these tests simultaneously will allow you to optimize your page or site much more quickly than you could with a long series of A/B tests.
Plus, running a test with multiple variants will greatly improve the odds that a single test will deliver at least one positive result, allowing you to start getting more from your website sooner.
Multiple Variant Testing is More Reliable
Another problem with successive A/B tests stems from the fact that the world changes over time.
For example, if you are in eCommerce and run your first A/B test during October and your second test during November, how do you know if your results aren't being skewed by Black Friday?
Even if your business isn't seasonal, things like differences in your competitors marketing strategies, political change or a variety of other variables can make it difficult to directly compare the results of A/B tests.
As a result, sometimes it can be hard to know if a particular A/B testing variant succeeded (or failed) because of factors outside of your control or even knowledge. The more tests you run, the murkier your results may become.
However, with a multiple variant test, you are testing all of your variants under the same conditions. That makes it easy to compare apples-to-apples and draw valid, reliable conclusions from your tests.
What Does Testing Multiple Variants Look Like in Real Life?
To show you just how testing multiple variants can improve your CRO results, let me share an experience we recently had with one of our clients.
The client wanted to get site traffic to their "Find Your Local Chapter" page, so we decided to add a "Find Your Local Chapter" link to the client's footer. That way, the link would be seen by as many people as possible.
Makes sense, right?
So, we put together something that looked like this:
At first, we figured we would just put the link in the footer and run a test to see if the link made a difference.
But then, we started wondering if there was a way to make the link even more noticeable. After all, getting traffic to this page was a big deal to the client, so it made sense to emphasize the link.
With that in mind, we added color to the link:
Now, this idea seemed logical, but at Disruptive, we believe in testing, not gut instinct, so we figured, "Hey, we've got enough traffic to test 3 variants, let's take this even further!"
The problem was, the client's site was a designer's dream—modern and seamlessly designed. To be honest, we had a bit of trouble selling them on the idea that creating a page element that interrupted their seamless flow was worth testing.
But, eventually, we convinced them to try the following:
It was very different from anything the client had tried on the page before, but we decided to run with the idea and include it in our test.
A few weeks and 110,000 visitors later, we had our winner:
Not surprisingly, adding the "Find Your Local Chapter" link increased page visits by over 60% for every variant—that's an awesome win, right?
But here's the thing. With our original, strict A/B test, we would only have discovered that adding the link increased traffic by 63%.
On the other hand, by including a couple of extra variants, we were able with the same test to discover that—contrary to the client's belief—the more our link "interrupted" the site experience, the more traffic it drove to the chapter page.
Sure, we might have reached the same conclusion with several more tests, but we achieved these results much more quickly and reliably than we would have with an A/B testing series.
Should You Test Multiple Variants?
When it comes to testing multiple variants, there's only one real reason not to use it: your boat is too small.
Think about it: if the entire British Eight Man team had tried to cram onto Mahe Drysdale's boat, they never would have made any forward progress.
The same idea applies to CRO.
As great as multiple variant testing is, if you don't have enough traffic, a test could take months or years to complete.
In fact, in true multivariate testing—where you test to see how a large number of subtle changes interact to generate your conversion rate—you want at least 100,000 unique visitors per month (for more information on multivariate testing, check out this great article).
On the other hand, you need far less traffic to simultaneously test multiple page variants.
To see how long a multiple variant test will take on your site, try out this VWO has a free sample size and test duration calculator from VWO. If the time frame makes sense for your business, go for it!
Whether it's Olympic rowing or CRO, the more oars you have in the water, the better your results will be.
Although it may be tempting to limit CRO to A/B testing, testing multiple variants will allow you to improve your conversion rates more quickly and reliably than you could with a series of A/B tests.
You've heard my two cents, now it's your turn.
Have you tried multiple variant testing? What was your experience like? Did any of the data in this article surprise you?
About the Author: Jacob Baadsgaard is the CEO and fearless leader of Disruptive Advertising, an online marketing agency dedicated to using PPC advertising and website optimization to drive sales. His face is as big as his heart and he loves to help businesses achieve their online potential. Connect with him on LinkedIn or Twitter.
ZAMP by ZAMPOLINI Spring Summer 2017 | ArtHeartsFashion New York by Fashion Channel
Hubble Finds More Evidence of Plumes on Europa
Hubble hasn't found aliens on Europa, but it may have found new evidence that plumes of salt water from the moon's globe-spanning salty ocean can escape through cracks in its icy shell.
Using its Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS) instrument, Hubble captured far-ultraviolet images of what could be geysers of water from beneath the surface, erupting in Europa's southern hemisphere. If the features in those images are really geysers, that could be very good news for future missions
What is Data Quality and How Do You Measure It for Best Results?
We've talked a lot about data quality in the past – including the cost of bad data. But despite a basic understanding of data quality, many people still don't quite grasp what exactly is meant by "quality".
For example, is there a way to measure that quality, and if so, how do you do it? In this article, we'll be looking to answer those questions and much more. But first…
Dispelling Data Quality Myths
The foundation for ensuring data quality starts when basic requirements are created
One of the biggest myths about data quality is that it has to be completely error-free. With websites and other campaigns collecting so much data, getting zero errors is next to impossible. Instead, the data only needs to conform to the standards that have been set for it. In order to determine what "quality" is, we first need to know three things:
- Who creates the requirements
- How are the requirements created, and
- What degree of latitude do we have in terms of meeting those requirements
Many businesses have a singular "data steward" who understands and sets these requirements, as well as being the person who determines the tolerance levels for errors. If there is no data steward, IT often plays the role in making sure those in charge of the data understand any shortcomings that may affect it.
You Can Have It Good, Fast or Cheap – Pick Two
Everything from collecting the data to making it fit the company's needs open it up to potential errors. Having data that's 100% complete and 100% accurate is not only prohibitively expensive, but time consuming and barely nudging the ROI needle.
With so much data coming in, decisions have to be made and quickly. That's why data quality is very much a delicate balancing act – juggling and judging accuracy and completeness. If it sounds like a tall order to fill, you'll be glad to know that there is a method to the madness, and the first step is data profiling.
What is Data Profiling?
Data profiling involves looking at all the information in your database to determine if it is accurate and/or complete, and what to do with entries that are not. It's fairly straightforward to, for instance, import a database of products that your company manufactures and make sure all the information is exact, but it's a different story when you're importing details about competitor's products or other related details.
With data profiling, you're also looking at how accurate the data is. If you've launched on 7/1/16, does the system record that as 1916 or 2016? It's possible that you may even uncover duplicates and other issues in combing through the information you've obtained. Profiling the data in this way gives us a starting point – a springboard to jump from in making sure the information we're using is of the best possible quality.
Determining Data Quality
So now that we have a starting point from which to determine if our information is complete and accurate, the next question becomes – what do we do when we find errors or issues? Typically, you can do one of four things:
- Accept the Error – If it falls within an acceptable standard (i.e. Main Street instead of Main St) you can decide to accept it and move on to the next entry.
- Reject the Error – Sometimes, particularly with data imports, the information is so severely damaged or incorrect that it would be better to simply delete the entry altogether than try to correct it.
- Correct the Error – Misspellings of customer names are a common error that can easily be corrected. If there are variations on a name, you can set one as the "Master" and keep the data consolidated and correct across all the databases.
- Create a Default Value – If you don't know the value, it can be better to have something there (unknown or n/a) than nothing at all.
Integrating the Data
When you have the same data across different databases, the opportunity is ripe for errors and duplicates. The first step toward successful integration is seeing where the data is and then combining that data in a way that's consistent. Here it can be extremely worthwhile to invest in proven data quality and accuracy tools to help coordinate and sync information across databases.
Your Data Quality Checklist
Finally, because you're dealing with so much data across so many different areas, it's helpful to have a checklist to determine that you're working with the highest quality of data possible. DAMA UK has created an excellent guide on "data dimensions" that can be used to better get the full picture on how data quality is decided.
Their data quality dimensions include:
Completeness – a percentage of data that includes one or more values. It's important that critical data (such as customer names, phone numbers, email addresses, etc.) be completed first since completeness doesn't impact non-critical data that much.
Uniqueness – When measured against other data sets, there is only one entry of its kind.
Timeliness – How much of an impact does date and time have on the data? This could be previous sales, product launches or any information that is relied on over a period of time to be accurate.
Validity – Does the data conform to the respective standards set for it?
Accuracy – How well does the data reflect the real-world person or thing that is identified by it?
Consistency – How well does the data align with a preconceived pattern? Birth dates share a common consistency issue, since in the U.S., the standard is MM/DD/YYYY, whereas in Europe and other areas, the usage of DD/MM/YYYY is standard.
The Big Picture on Data Quality
As you can see, there's no "one size fits all" approach to maintaining accuracy and completeness on every type of data for every business. And with big data's appetite for information growing more and more every day, it is becoming more important than ever to tackle data quality issues head-on. Although it can seem overwhelming, it's worth enlisting data hygiene tools to let computers do what they do best – crunch numbers.
The most important step you can take is simply getting started. The data is always going to grow as more prospects come on board and new markets are discovered, so there's never going to be a "best time" to tackle data quality issues. Taking the time now to map out what data quality means to your company or organization can create a ripple-effect of improved customer service, a better customer experience, a higher conversion rate and longer customer retention – and those are the kinds of returns on investment that any business will wholeheartedly embrace!
About the Author: Sherice Jacob helps business owners improve website design and increase conversion rates through compelling copywriting, user-friendly design and smart analytics analysis. Learn more at iElectrify.com and download your free web copy tune-up and conversion checklist today!


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Helloooo! I'm currently working hard toward becoming an elementary school teacher (my #1 passion) -- I've been taking classes, working as a substitute teacher, volunteering as a Girl Scout leader, ...
Helloooo! I'm currently working hard toward becoming an elementary school teacher (my #1 passion) -- I've been taking classes, working as a substitute teacher, volunteering as a Girl Scout leader, studying for exams, volunteering at an elementary school, and working as a group tutor. In between all of this, I try to remember to BREATHE and make some time to get away from the hustle and bustle of day-to-day life. In these moments, I dive into another passion of mine -- creating. Whether I'm crocheting, sewing, sculpting, drawing, or painting, the act of creating something unique and special is rejuvenating and rewarding. I've fallen head over heels with amigurumi (the Japanese art of crocheting/knitting cute, anthropomorphic creatures) for a few years now, and the process of designing/creating new soft sculptures has brought me great happiness. Each creation means a lot to me, so I hope that my designs bring the same joy to you and your loved ones. :)Read More » View all patterns by designer (18) »
I take Waldo, my red Travel Owl, on hikes, plane flights, and road trips! This crochet animal has been my travel buddy for a few years now, and I never leave town without him. He has sparked conversations with strangers abroad, had dangerous encounters with foreign animals, and posed for dozens of photos! We've gone on a ton of adventures together, and now we want to share these travels with YOU.
I made these travel owls in hopes that they'll be new companions for you or your loved ones. Whether these owls are traveling with you all over the world or cuddling with you at home, they're sure to bring a little extra pop of cuteness in to your life. So why not crochet a travel owl in your favorite color and join in the fun??? :P
ABOUT THE PATTERN: This is a FREE crochet pattern for a palm-sized amigurumi owl. It's a larger version of my baby owl ornaments! Instructions are easy to follow and PERFECT for beginners. :)
YOU ARE WELCOME TO SELL THE ANIMALS THAT YOU MAKE FROM MY PATTERN! Since you'll be dedicating lots of time and love to crocheting, I'll totally support your efforts to earn some money! All I ask is that design credit and a link are posted in the description of the item. :) PLEASE READ the copyright portion of my pattern for more information. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me at firstname.lastname@example.com.
I'd love to see the results of your hard work! Please share photos of your new animals on my Facebook wall.
Thanks again for visiting this page, and happy crocheting!
<3 Josephine
Come connect with me on other sites:
Facebook: facebook.com/amorningcupofjocreations
Etsy: amorningcupofjo.etsy.com
Instagram: @amorningcupofjo
50 yards of Worsted weight

subset: commoncrawl


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Monday By the Numbers: A standing 'O' for one of Cirque's greatest shows
This week, Monday By the Numbers delves (or, dives) into "O" at Bellagio. This show remains one of Cirque's bestselling and most-appreciated productions, (water) logging more than 17 years on the Strip. I caught the show again ...
Strip Scribbles: Ben Vaughn's new downtown restaurant; Canon USA benefit; Rio turns 25
Culinary personality and Food Network star chef Ben Vaughn is joining forces with Kent and Lance Johns of the historic Atomic Liquors & Bar on Fremont Street to open a downtown Las Vegas restaurant late spring or early summer.
Nightclub operator Hakkasan acquiring Light Group in $36 million deal
Hakkasan Group initiated a major shakeup of the Strip's nightlife business today with plans to acquire another prominent nightlife company, The Light Group, for $36 million. Morgans Hotel Group ...
2015 Vegas Uncork'd preview: Gordon Ramsay, new chefs and attractions
Vegas Uncork'd by Bon Appetit returns to the Strip from April 23-26. Star chefs including Michael Mina, Masa Takayama, Jean-Georges Vongerichten and Guy Savoy will join Gordon Ramsay. Julian Serrano also will debut his restaurant Lago at Bellagio.
- Business
Drinking at the Bellagio: How booze travels from a secret room to your glass
An outsider might conclude there's a lot of partying going on in an employees-only floor at the Bellagio. There's no bar in sight but still the place smells like booze. Inch closer to a pair of double doors across the hall from the resort's carpentry office, and the alcoholic aroma grows stronger. Peek through a pair of windows and you find the source.
Landscape photographer Jeff Mitchum: Compose your own Mona Lisa — in nature
Composing a scene with a camera is a meticulous process. The pace is slow unless there is a fast-moving scene that requires quick instincts. ...
Before Yellowtail and Kumi, chef Akira Back was a pro snowboarder
Growing up in Korea, everyone loved baseball. We were fanatics and, by age 7, even I had a favorite pitcher. Everybody worshipped him, so, naturally, I wanted to be a baseball player.
Another 15 minutes: Bellagio's 'Warhol Out West' extended through 2014
Due to its continuing popularity with visitors, the "Warhol Out West" exhibit at the Bellagio Gallery of Fine Arts has extended its exhibition run through Jan. 2.
Counter Intelligence: World Food Championships and Food & Wine All-Stars return to L.V. in the fall
Hot off the grill! Following last year's successful debut, the World Food Championships are returning for its second-annual outing, but not on the Strip ...


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KINGWOOD, N.J. (AP) - Former NBA star Jayson Williams surrendered Monday and was charged with manslaughter in the shotgun slaying of a limousine driver at his mansion.
The 34-year-old NBC sports commentator used a back entrance into the state police barracks and declined comment as he entered or left the building. He was freed on $250,000 bail.
If convicted, Williams could face five to 15 years in prison.
Costas Christofi, 55, was found shot to death at Williams' 65-acre estate in Alexandria Township on Feb. 14. Published reports have said Williams was playfully twirling a shotgun while giving a tour of his mansion when the weapon discharged.
Acting Hunterdon County prosector Steven Lember declined to comment on details of the shooting Monday.
"The death of Mr. Christofi was a tragic accident, but it was an accident," Williams' attorney Joseph Hayden said. "We are very confident that after a full, fair and thorough exploration of all the facts, it will be clear that Mr. Williams is innocent of recklessness and innocent of any criminal conduct."
Initially, some of his guests reported the death as a suicide. After an autopsy, the medical examiner ruled the shooting a homicide.
"We are most interested in getting to the truth in this case. Those witnesses should come forward and do the right thing. If they do, they have nothing to be concerned about," Lember said at a news conference Monday.
Earlier, Lember told the New York Daily News that his office also was investigating whether Williams allowed Christofi to bleed to death before authorities were notified.
Hayden has denied there was any horseplay prior to the shooting, and has not commented on who was holding the gun.
Christofi had been hired to drive Williams' friends from a charity event in Bethlehem, Pa., to Williams' home, about 30 miles northwest of Trenton.
The 6-foot-10 Williams was once among the NBA's best rebounders, but leg injuries ended his basketball career.
He retired from the New Jersey Nets in 2000 and now works for NBC Sports as an NBA analyst.
"We've been unable to get in contact with Jason's representatives and feel it's inappropriate to comment until we do so," NBC Sports vice president Kevin Sullivan said.
Williams has freely admitted past mistakes, describing them in a 2000 autobiography as "a lot of beers and barroom brawls and some scrapes with the law and too many fights and some yelling matches with coaches and a bunch of headlines."
In 1992, he was accused of smashing a beer mug over a patron's head at a Chicago bar.
Two years later, he was accused of firing a semiautomatic weapon into the parking lot at the Meadowlands sports complex.
He wrote in his autobiography that he almost shot New York Jets wide receiver Wayne Chrebet while firing a shotgun on his skeet-shooting range. And Williams faces a hearing this week on a charge that he pushed a police officer last November in a New Jersey bar.
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3 posts tagged with Pettit.
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Flying through an aurora, like going through a giant neon sign
European Space Agency astronaut Alexander Gerst captured this photograph from the International Space Station and tweeted "Words can't describe how it feels flying through an #aurora. I wouldn't even know where to begin..." Not many can share his experience, but photographer Paul Williams captured an aurora while on a flight from London to New York (stills on Flickr). NASA's Science News has an article on Flying Through a Geomagnetic Storm, with information on how auroras are formed, and a bit more on what it's like to fly through them, with an accompanying video (previously).
"One small fling for a bird, one quantum leap for birdkind."
"A space station is a serious place. We're doing serious research." Rovio and NASA further explore the classic avain-porcine rivalry (and microgravity) through a Space Act Agreement. Angry Birds: Space is launching today.
Video of aurora from orbit
Auroras Underfoot is a short documentary about auroras by NASA, which uses high-definition images taken by International Space Station science officer Don Pettit of aurora from orbit. Pettit writes about the difficulties of taking photographs from orbit and other subjects on his blog.
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Identificazione completata
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- Il simbolo Airbnb di Lia
Ciao, sono Lia!
Barcellona, Spagna · Membro da Settembre 2011
I'm italian living in Spain with my husband.
I love to learn at least one thing a day.
I'm curious like a monkey and I love to travel and get to know new cultures.
I'm a happy person and I love laughing a lot. I like to meet people but I prefer to stay alone or with a good friend.
I don't smoke, I don't like watching TV and I get sad if somebody is hurt or judged or unlucky or discriminated.
But I love movies and books and crochet and kids and games and cooking and sweets and the smell of rain during summer and the cold wind on mountains and sweating in a gym and sleep under duvet and catch a smile on whoever face.....


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My Snowman by caboose11l2Watch
©2011-2016 caboose11l2
.... I had to! I mean when you have the stuff why not?!
Yesh! Snowman camo, only effective in certain environments and climates. But I never thought of doing something like this before.
lovely AK you Snowman have ! XP
isn't though! I used to have a laser on is for CQC... But I took it off I forget why too?
laser pointer bah Aimpoints, Propoint and EOTech are much better...
... I already have a good enough red dot. I mean just an acurate laser thingy for close quarters.. Plus I don't have $100 just to spend on sights.
well replica EOTech of good quality are less than 100$


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Discover the variety of gardens and parks that we look after in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight - from world class rose gardens to the most comfortable spot for a picnic.
Carpets of spring bulbs, a stunning walled rose garden, rich autumn leaves and a colourful winter garden make Mottisfont a feast for the senses all year round. We offer free guided walks around the grounds daily.
With over 400 years of history, the gardens surrounding The Vyne's former Tudor palace offer a welcome escape to the outdoors. Find out useful information about bringing your dog and our family friendly activities.
Relax in the garden at Hinton Amper, enjoying bursts of colour from early spring right through to the glorious shades of autumn.
The gardens here offer an experience of great variety, from herbaceous borders to new plants for a changing climate.
Discover a variety of houses and unusual buildings in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, from grand mansions to a very special chapel with murals by Stanley Spencer.
There's woodland, wetland, farmland and more for you to enjoy in Hampshire, including the commons of the New Forest. Plus the dramatic coastline of the Isle of Wight. So come out and play.
Help your local National Trust places in Hampshire like Mottisfont, The Vyne or Winchester City Mill by joining your local supporter group. Some are more volunteering focused, and others enjoy social outings together like trips and tours, or lectures.


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Winners here.
9-10th September 2016 Site visit and tour
Watch the film of the recent joint event with the British Institute at Ankara
24 September at the British Academy.Tim Mitford: East of Asia Minor. Rome's Hidden Frontier.
presented by the Hellenic and Roman Societies on 20 July, Senate House, London
AD410 The History and Archaeology of Late and Post-Roman Britain
There are still places left on the Society's trip to Fishbourne Roman Palace and Gardens
21 June, 2014 at The University of Nottingham Museum
Support the Library by Adopting a Book!
MAMA XI Monuments from Phrygia and Lykaonia, Peter Thonemann et al


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DC Dispatches
"I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die." Nelson Mandela @ trial in 1964. RIP
Tuesday, July 26, 2016
Hillary makes history - but is it enough?
Bernie Sanders graciously bowed out. Hillary Clinton becomes the first woman nominated by a major political party to be President. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz is out (finally). But with so many Americans so upset about so much - and feeling so disconnected - will it be enough? Time will tell, but democrats inability (or unwillingness) to connect to voters emotionally is still Hillary's Achilles heel.
Tuesday, January 12, 2016
Really Martha Raditz? The MSM shills for the military industrial complex again.
In tonight's State of Union speech, President Obama rightly noted that while ISIL certainly represents a threat to American citizens but not an existential threat to the US. While it seems to many to be a wildly inaccurate statement, the reality is that ISIL can not destroy the US unless we as a nation cower before them.
Yet ABC's Martha Raditz picked up the banner of war and dismissed the President's assertions as everything but fiction.
And that is the core of the problem - Anerica has the ability to defeat ISIL and yet our media is told to fear them as if the very Constitution itself would be torn asunder if we don't completely destroy ISIL right now.
Frankly, if we look to history we see that quiet, consistent ignoring of such ignorant apostates usually forces them to go away. We would also know that a failed state - be it Syria, Iraq, Sudan, Lybis, or Russia - is not always the job of the US to fix.
Too bad the MSM isn't sophisticated enough to lead us there. For Shame.
Thursday, December 10, 2015
Are gas prices going to sabotage COP21?
Driving home tonight I needed to get gas in my wife's car. Our preferred purveyor had an excellent price:
From a pocketbook perspective this price is great - in fact it's been several years since we've seen prices this low in the National Capitol Region.
Problem is, lower gas prices severely underprice the environmental impact of their associated carbon emissions. So while many educated and well meaning people are trying to reach an agreement in Paris to address our growing Climate Crisis, they are being undermined by the local economics of cheap gas. Unless we can change the economic incentives, all the Paris's and Kyoto's in the world won't save us from our own hubris.
Thursday, September 3, 2015
A Truly Compassionate and Christian Response to Kim Davis "fear" of Issuing Marriage Licenses to Gay and Lesbian Couples
Much of what drives modern American Politics is fear - fear of people who do not look like you; fear of people who do not sound like you; fear of people who do not love like you. And fear has been used to control Americans since America was "founded" - afterall, how many runaway slaves were turned over to slave hunters by poor whites out of fear they would see their own farms burned?
Yet I would argue politely that part of the loving and compassionate response to Kentucky Clerk of Court Kim Davis' fear that issuing marriage licenses to gay couples is a "heaven or hell" decision, is that Christ - whom she said she must follow since she is a "Christian" - was very clear that we should both render unto Caesar that which is Caesar's, and turn the other cheek to those who would smite us. Like it or not that means she has a choice - a choice to do her public duty as an elected official, or to leave her job.
What she cannot do is commit the second biggest sin Christians are called to avoid, for when Christ was asked what where God's greatest Commandments, He responded that 1) you should love God with all your heart, mind, and strength and 2) love your neighbor as yourself. These gay couples are her neighbors, seeking to render unto Caesar that which is Caesar's (i.e. obtain a secular marriage license from a secular state office). If indeed Christian Scripture is right, she will be judged more harshly by Christ for refusing to love them as she does herself by denying them the secular state license to which they are legally entitled, then she will be for following that same law as written in this matter – since Christ's teaching are absolutely silent on whom God will consider married.
The Free Press and The Security State: no, reporters aren't generally spies
Driving to work today, NPR was running coverage of the latest arrests of reporters covering Turkey's fighting with the Kurdish PKK. Seems the Turks are using the "reporters siding with our enemy by writing about them" argument to suppress potentially unfavorable coverage.
During the discussion, the NPR host made note of a recent document released by the Pentagon which says that journalists often take actions similar to spies, and thus can be treated like belligerents in certain circumstances.
And it's true - journalists write stuff down, take furtive pictures, and sometimes try to hide their identities. But that's where any similarity ends. Spies do this to collect information to be used secretly by one nation to do harm to another. Journalists do it to collect information that will become public so that all people can be informed about why is happening and why in a given place at a given time. One if these is a direct threat to national security - and the other is not unless you fear the truth will embarrass you and show how you have broken your own laws and/or mistreated your own people.
Which is EXACTLY what the Security State fears.
Monday, August 24, 2015
George Will misread's the source of Republican's Immigration Quagmire
Two quotes from Yogi Berra seem appropriate looking over the field of Republican Presidential candidates – and particularly their tortured responses to America's desire for leadership on immigration.
"You've got to be very careful if you don't know where you are going, because you might not get there."
Today's column on immigration (and particularly the xenophobic approach of Donald Trump to the issue) by George Will hints at the disconnect between the Tea Party "base" that allegedly captures the Republican Primary vote, and the reality of America's history and modern economy. In a nut shell, Mr. Will reports on, but doesn't really analyze, the disconnect between the vast majority of Americans who favor a path to legal status for America's 11 million undocumented immigrants, and Mr. Trump's call for mass deportations and a border wall that keep the "bad" immigrants out while allowing the future return of the "good" immigrants – a deportation and return that will require (in Mr. Will's estimation) a significant growth in the size of government, since immigration and border control are a governmental function that cannot (yet anyway) be outsourced to a private entity. Mr. Will casts Mr. Trump's immigration plan as a mysterious assault on the Small Government Principles the Republican Party allegedly stands for, and manages to include the supposed failures of the "government" to "run" Amtrak as but one example of why bureaucracy will fail to do what Trump suggests.
For starters, Mr. Will grossly misleads readers on why Amtrak has problems. Created in 1970 to answer the abandonment of passenger service by private railroads, AMTRAK is not a government agency like the FBI or USDA – rather is a Congressional Chartered semi-private corporation providing a public service to Americans. Further, Amtrak's budget is approved every year by a Congress that insists it make a profit (competing against airlines and personal automobiles), while starving it of operating capitol, failing to invest in highspeed rail, and (until the late 1990's) preventing Amtrak from advertising in the same way as airlines or even Greyhound. So Mr. Will's operational analogy is failed on its face, a fact the WaPo would do well to correct publicly.
All that, however, pales in comparison to Mr. Will's most notable and most enduring failure as a pundit – his unwillingness to call out Republican's for the bed which they have created for themselves. After decades of demonizing minorities to gain electoral advantages (including Blacks, Asians, Muslim Arabs, and now Latinos); after claiming to want to reduce the reach of government while bailing out Too Big TO Fail banks for their misdeeds in the Great Recession, and after taking America into a decade long war based on purposely falsified intelligence (a war used to create and enhance fear and mistrust of "the other") – What exactly does Mr. Will think the Republican base would accept as immigration policy? Republicans have fought tooth and nail (added and abetted by a spineless Democratic Party since late 2001) to create a xenophobic surveillance state where needs of corporations outweigh the needs and freedoms of average citizens. Those illegal immigrant – who FWIW pick our fruits and vegetables, clean our offices, build our homes, and care for many of our children – can no more be successfully turned away from our borders then can the lily white poor who became Tea Party supporters because they wanted the same bailout the banks and stock brokers and hedge fund managers got.
In his closing, Mr. Will notes that mis-handled immigration policy –in a nation built on and proud of its immigrant heritage – has cost the republican Party national elections before. As Yogi also says:
It's like deja-vu, all over again.
Friday, August 21, 2015
A well regulated militia . . . Didn't do this. A violent society did.
This is a memorial to victims of gun violence in Washington DC since the start of 2014. I photographed it today on the lawn of the Northminster Presbyterian Church, which sits just into DC from Silver Spring, MD. No matter your views on the Second Amendment to the Constitution, we all need to remember that guns are used regularly in our violent society to kill innocent people. That's a social justice/ public health issue we all need to focus on.
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@thegreatest2345 I'm sending the payment in an hour. Will you still be able to ship today?
New Videos
Subscribe to the Sneaker News Youtube Channel
January 10, 2014 BY John Kim / 10
To say LeBron James' sneaker game is "ferocious" would be an understatement. Despite coming off a loss to the New York Knicks, LeBron is certainly winning with this pair of 1-of-1 Nike LeBron 2s, which feature an animal-friendly combination of leopard and zebra print on the upper. This isn't the first time LeBron turned back the clock to wear an older model, but these are certainly fresh pairs that were crafted for him and him only. A full shot of King James' 'fit below, so take a look and let us know what you think.
Source: kingjames
Filed under: LeBron Upcoming Sneakers
@thegreatest2345 I'm sending the payment in an hour. Will you still be able to ship today?
he made em work with the outfit tho....i wouldnt wear em, but yeah...he swagged it out
Ask yourself,would you wear this outfit?Dudes lost his mind with fashion,hopefully he doesn't turn into the next Kanye west with his foolishness .
you can keep these lebron.
taking this animal print shit too far
Comfortable, lightweight, flexible. Doesn't feel like I'm wearing shoes. Very happy with them.http://www.nikemaxair.us/
@AirJayMe yo I got an 11 in the thunders if you're interested
@AirJayMe already sold cuz
@thegreatest2345 damn aight thnx tho
@AirJayMe yessir
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Steeped in the musical traditions of the Near East and trained in western concert music and jazz, Syrian-American Kareem Roustom is a musically bilingual composer who has collaborated with a wide variety of artists receiving numerous commissions to compose works for Kronos Quartet, Daniel Barenboim and the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and others. Roustom has composed works for Daniel Barenboim, the Kronos Quartet, the Landmarks Orchestra (Boston), the Philadelphia Orchestra's Educational Department, the Michigan Philharmonic, the Crossing Choir, Coro Allegro (Boston), the Boston Children's Chorus, the Gammage Center at Arizona State University, the Hopkins Center at Dartmouth College, the Aplle Hill String Quartet, and others. His music has been performed by the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, under Daniel Barenboim at the Lucerne Festival, the Salzburg Festival and the BBC Proms. Performances of Roustom's works include the Malmo Opera Orchestra (Sweden), the Pittsburgh Symphony, the Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra Chamber Music Series, Choir of the 21st Century (London), The Peninsula Women's Chorus in collaboration with the Golden Gate Men's Chorus, Alba Ensemble (France), Notes Inegales (U.K.), LSO St. Luke's (U.K.), the Verbier Festival, the Braunschweig Music Festival, the Rheingau Musik Festival, and the forth coming American premiere of Roustom's Ramal for orchestra at the Grand Teton Music Festival under Donald Runnicles (August 19th & 20th 2016). Roustom's music has been performed in Europe, Argentina, China, Japan, Armenia, and in parts of the Near East.
Roustom's recent orchestral work Ramal, commissioned by Daniel Barenboim for the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, was described by James R. Oestreich in the New York Times as "propulsive, colorful and [an] immediately appealing creation." Stephen Pritchard in The Guardian described Ramal as "arrestingly quirky and postmodern…music with lots of personality."
Of his triple string quartet A Voice Exclaiming, commissioned for the Kronos Quartet and Providence, Rhode Island- based Community MusicWorks, David Harrington (Kronos Quartet founder and first violinist) wrote: "I think that with A Voice Exclaiming, Kareem Roustom has made a vivid, thought-provoking new piece that reflects hope in the time we live in, and the immense possibility for positive change as well as its awesome uncertainties and dangers."
In a review of Roustom's oratorio "The Son of Man" The Boston Globe wrote "The music… is pitched toward the impassioned, adapting Arabic-derived scales into a rich, heavily perfumed chromaticism, affording both eerie atmosphere and high-impact drama. Moment to moment, [Roustom's] invention is prolific." In 2012 Coro Allegro, under the direction of David Hodgkins, won the prestigious ASCAP/Alice Parker Award for the 2011 premiere of "The Son of Man."
Roustom's work in film has been recognized by an Emmy-nomination and includes a number of award-winning narrative and documentary films that have competed at festivals that include Sundance, Cannes, Tribeca and many others. Roustom is the recipient of the Pete Carpenter Fellowship from BMI and is a Sundance Film Composers Lab Fellow.
Kareem Roustom's Emmy-nominated work in film includes a number of award-winning narrative and documentary scores presented at festivals including Sundance, Cannes, Tribeca, and others. He received BMI's Pete Carpenter Fellowship and a Sundance Film Composers Lab Fellowship. Roustom has also written high-profile arrangements for pop artists Shakira, Beyoncé, and Wyclef Jean. Roustom is an oud player who has performed in the USA and Europe and has recorded for groups such as the Boston Camerata on the Warner Brothers Classics label. Roustom has been a resident/visiting composer at the College of William and Mary, Arizona State University, Curtis Institute of Music, Dartmouth College, Northern Illinois University, and the New England Conservatory of Music, among others.


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Immigrating to Local Hospitals
There's a front-page piece in today's New York Times about how Dallas and Fort Worth--and, for that matter, most of Texas' hospitals--deal with illegal immigrants. It says, in essence, that Parkland Memorial Hospital has a don't-ask-don't-tell policy when it comes to treating its patients, since doctors there don't question their patients' immigration status. Says Parkland President Dr. Ron Anderson, "I don't want my doctors and nurses to be immigration agents...We decided that these are folks living in our community and we needed to render the care." (Of course, Parkland still wants Mexico to pay for treating its former residents, but still.) But over in Fort Worth, it's a different story:
"JPS Health Network requires foreign-born patients to show legal immigration documents to receive financial assistance in nonemergencies, like elective surgery and the treatment of routine or chronic illnesses. Executives said that their first responsibility was to legal residents, but that they were uncomfortable about having to make such distinctions.
'I don't think you should ask the hospital to make moral decisions for the State of Texas or, for that matter, for the United States,' said Robert Earley, a senior vice president of JPS.
To some Fort Worth residents, the hospital--which does provide emergency and maternity care to illegal immigrants--has nonetheless sent a message that illegal immigrants are not welcome."
The Times then goes on to interview a Plano software salesman, Tim Gallagher, who recently wrote a letter to The Dallas Morning News in which he insisted, "If somebody here needs health care, they should get it, and then if they are illegal, they should go bye-bye." Says the Paper of Record, that's how most Texans feel. Really? Really? Yeah, probably. --Robert Wilonsky
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Vt. senators push for Saturday mailStaff Report | February 13,2013Sen. Bernard Sanders, I-Vt., and Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., were part of a group of U.S. senators to introduce a bill Wednesday to preserve Saturday mail delivery.
The measure may provide the Postal Service with new options to make money by permitting services such as notarizing documents, issuing hunting and fishing licenses, and allowing beer and wine shipments, Sanders said.
The legislation, which was simultaneously introduced in the U.S. House by Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., would also prevent mail-sorting centers and rural post offices from shutting down.
A commission of successful small business and labor representatives would be created to recommend other directions the U.S. Postal Service could pursue to remain relevant in an age of electronic mail.
Sanders said the Senate bill also seeks to repeal a 2006 law that mandated the post office pre-fund 75 years of future health care benefits for retirees over 10 years.MORE IN This Just InKILLINGTON Police are waiting for the results of an autopsy of a 30-year-old woman who was... Full Story
Rutland's application to become a resettlement site for up to 100 Syrian refugees has... Full StoryARLINGTON The Otter Valley boys soccer team earned its second win over Springfield in four days... Full Story
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Toshiba recommends Windows.
Technical Support (Computers)
Technical Support (Televisions)
Business, Education, Government,
Enterprise and Reseller Sales
800-705-2397 email@example.com
05-14-2009 01:10 PM - edited 05-14-2009 01:22 PM
I just bought a refurbished toshiba tecra m-3 and I'm trying to figure out how to change the brightness of the monitor,does anyone know how to do this? thanks.sj
PS,I am a newbie and this is my first post and everything I know about pc's could fit in a thimble.
I just hit the search and found out that you can press fn and then press f6 or f7,I tried but nothing changes.
found out that you can press fn and then press f6 or f7,I tried but nothing changes.
You must hold down the Fn key while pressing the F6 or F7.
If that doesn't work, try reinstalling these two Toshiba utilities in this order.
Toshiba ACPI Common Modules for Windows XP/2000
Toshiba Hotkey Utility for Windows XP/2000
I just bought a refurbished toshiba tecra m-3
See the specs at the very top of this message.
See the Tecra M3 Series User's Guide
Your Toshiba drivers and utilities are at this download site.
Come see us again.
Copyright © Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.


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South Lake Tahoe Cake Shops
Shari's Berries
Serving the South Lake Tahoe area.
- (888) 396-1892
Thrive Market.
Never Pay Full Price Again.
Always 25-50% Off Organic Products
1. Grass Roots Natural Foods
The prices of grocery items here are much reasonable than competitors especially if you buy in wholesale. My money can buy more when shop here.
2. Witt's Cakes
South Lake Tahoe, CA 96151
3. Cakes By The Lake
661 Emerald Bay RoadSouth Lake Tahoe, CA 96150
From Business: INNOVATORS IN CAKE DESIGN ~ EXPERTS ON FLAVOR We are Lake Tahoe's premier specialty cake maker. If you are looking for a unique design or something traditional our …
4. Sugar Pine BakeryMenu
3564 Lake Tahoe Blvd Ste GSouth Lake Tahoe, CA 96150
5. Nestle Toll House CafeMenu
1001 Heavenly Village WaySouth Lake Tahoe, CA 96150
6. Tahoe Bakery
1680 Hekpa DrSouth Lake Tahoe, CA 96150
From Business: We are a custom cakery so please call ahead for ordering. We specialize in custom cakes, cupcakes, donuts, cookies, treats for your special occasion. Unique birthda…
7. Bread & Broth
1041 Lyons AveSouth Lake Tahoe, CA 96150
8. Lake Tahoe Ameca Bakery
3440 Lake Tahoe BlvdSouth Lake Tahoe, CA 96150
9. CinnabonMenu
1001 Heavenly Village Way # 23South Lake Tahoe, CA 96150
10. Don's Bakeshop
South Lake Tahoe, CA 96155
11. La Mexicana Meat Market
2572 Lake Tahoe BlvdSouth Lake Tahoe, CA 96150
From Business: Go where the flavor takes you. We carry a huge stock of groceries and grocery supplies for every cuisine! For the avid baker, find extracts, fresh fruit, and gourme…
12. Simple Bliss Vegan CafeMenu
2540 Lake Tahoe BlvdSouth Lake Tahoe, CA 96150
13. Mi Pueblo
3885 Pioneer TrlSouth Lake Tahoe, CA 96150
14. Flour Girl Wedding Cakes
South Lake Tahoe, CA 96151
15. La Promesa Bakery & Mexican Food
3447 Lake Tahoe BlvdSouth Lake Tahoe, CA 96150
16. Tahoe Stateline
4000 Lake Tahoe Blvd # 6South Lake Tahoe, CA 96150
17. Piece of Cake Pops
276 Kingsbury GradeStateline, NV 89449
18. Shari's Berries
There are several cake shops near town but this one is the one we usually go to. If you happen to visit them, ask for their bestsellers and you won'…
19. Cake Tahoe
Truckee, CA 96160
20. Tahoe House Bakery & GourmetMenu
21. Walmart - Bakery
1511 Grant AveGardnerville, NV 89410
22. Brockway Bakery
8710 N Lake BlKings Beach, CA 96143
From Business: Situated in the beautiful, rustic and hip Kings Beach, Lake Tahoe... BROCKWAY BAKERY is a "must visit." Owned and operated by John and Julie Wainscoat, the family b…
23. 88 Cups Coffee & Tea
1663 Lucerne St Ste BMinden, NV 89423
From Business: Hidden Find locals coffee shop & brunch. Live music & entertainment on weekends, special events, community events, beer & wine. Worth the drive to enjoy a tasty dri…
24. Russell's Mercantile
1685 US Highway 395 N # BMinden, NV 89423
25. Scolari's Food & Drug Company
From Business: Your local Good Neighbor Pharmacy (GNP) is your one-stop shop for prescriptions, health information, and friendly service with a smile. Our warm, hometown service c…
26. Obexer's Boat Co
5300 Westlake BlvdHomewood, CA 96141
From Business: Obexer's General Store is located in Homewood, on the West Shore of Lake Tahoe at Obexer's Boat Company, the oldest full-service marina on the lake. There are multi…
27. Scolari's Food & Drug Company
1331 US Highway 395 NGardnerville, NV 89410
Showing1-27 of 27results


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Seems like so long ago Joe Wilson yelled YOU LIE when ObamaCARE wouldn't be available to illegal invaders. Turns out
Category: ObamaCARE
Actual ObamaCARE sign up question: Have you had an accident that resulted in your death?
For those forced into signing up for ObamaCARE, you may have gotten a question like this: Have you ever been
Obama regime asking gays to send selfies for ObamaCARE
The Obama regime is begging gays, specifically gay men to send selfies from the gym to use for promotion of
8 or 23 ObamaCARE co-ops closing by end of the year
ObamaCARE is such a major success story that motr than one-third of the state run co-ops set up by liberal
ObamaCARE fines are here!
Benjamin Miller posted a photo to Facebook showing the new 'fine' or ObamaCARE penalty. Benjamin Miller and his wife were
House bill introduced to force SCOTUS on ObamaCARE
Now I know why Bush appointed SCOTUS 'Justice' John Roberts loves ObamaCARE so much. He doesn't have to enroll in
John Roberts re-writes ObamaCARE again to keep subsidize
SCOTUS John Roberts does it again and saves ObamaCARE. Just three years after letting ObamaCARE become the law the land,
ObamaCARE, Same-sex marriage SCOTUS ruling coming Thursday or Friday
The ObamaCARE subsidies and same-sex marriage Supreme Court ruling are coming later this week. Either Thursday or Friday we will
800,000 affected by ObamaCare tax glitch
ObamaCARE is just one big pile of failure. From the website launch to the ObamaCARE tax glitch tax, it just
ObamaCARE sharing personal data with online advertisers
So much for privacy. ObamaCARE's online website is sharing people who signed up for ObamaCARE personal information with online advertisers.


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Elliot Schrage
Brin Suggests Google Might Reverse Chinese Censorship In The Short Term; Meanwhile, China Ramps Up Google.com Blocks
"Brin says Google compromised principles" from the Associated Press covers Google cofounder Sergey Brin telling reporters yesterday that it's possible Google might ... read more
Watching Google Press Day, Slides & Live Commentary
Google Press Day gets underway, well, now. Not a member of the press? You'll find the webcast here, where you can watch. ... read more
Statements To US Congressional Hearing On Chinese Internet Censorship
Gary Price has an excellent listing of prepared statements of testimony before United States House of Representatives from yesterday. We even have ... read more


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Top Definition
A shithole amongst towns, hundreds of miles from the nearest non related female thats not the issue it dosent stop the locals from a little inbreading.
Hi my name is tim and i really love the ladies, ehhhhhh.
Bob Marleyによって 2004年07月27日(火)
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The ACLU Strikes Back
Give the ACLU a little credit. Here they are, ready with a lawsuit against the FBI less than a month after agents pressured an ISP and filmmaker to remove a film deemed dangerous from crowdedtheater.com. The plaintiffs are, of course, Mike Zieper, the artist whose Y2K military takeover video was pulled, and Mark Wieger, the ISP owner. The suit names Attorney General Janet Reno and FBI director Louis Freeh, among others, as defendants.
"As a result of the government's actions, an artist has experienced censorship and intimidation, and a businessman has been forced to choose between his rights and his livelihood," stated Ann Beeson, a staff attorney with the ACLU's national office, which filed the case together with the ACLU of New Jersey. The suit seeks financial damages, a court declaration that the government acted unlawfully, and an injunction against further activities of this sort.
Wieger clearly suffered when he pulled Zieper's site. Angry netizens flamed his Web site, damaging his reputation as a host friendly to cyber-liberties. But now that Wieger and Zieper have joined forces against the FBI, perhaps Wieger will emerge as a hero.
"As soon as I realized the FBI was not going to charge me, I started to talk to him about doing business together again." says Z. "I honestly think he did what he had to do at the time, he complied with their request because he thought he had to. He thought it was a criminal proceeding."
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The damage to Z. is less clear. He was left without a Web site for a few days, and was scared out of his wits when agents showed up at his doorstep, but the controversy sparked more publicity (the first of many articles appeared in the Voice) than he ever dreamed of. "Always my intention was to get the work seen by people," says Z. "I wouldn't have wanted it to happen this way, but it certainly has helped to get the word out that I have a different way of approaching filmmaking, and for that I am thankful to the FBI." Indeed, at last count crowdedtheater.com had 200,000 hits, as compared to a few thousand before the FBI's clumsy attempt at censorship.
The real question, though, is whether the case is an aberration or part of a larger practice of government surveillance. And unfortunately, we may never get a satisfactory answer.
The ACLU believes that Project Megiddo, the FBI strategy for fighting religious terrorists, is the root cause of the censorship attempt. In its court brief, the ACLU cites Megiddo and draws a parallel between the project's mandate to silence prophets of doom and the way the FBI pressured Z. and Wieger. But that's a reach. It's hard to see how Z.'s video could be categorized as religious extremism, especially as it contains no allusions to biblical prophecy. So either Megiddo has a broader mandate than the FBI has publicly stated, or there's another project involved.
The FBI is likely to keep details of the strategy under wraps. And when it comes to the Z. case, their tactic is complete denial. Spokespeople are already saying that neither Zieper nor Wieger were ever asked to remove the site.
For lack of a better segue, this brings us to the myth of Sisyphus. Recall that Sisyphus's punishment for angering the gods was an eternity of fruitless labor. The ACLU lawyers are in a similar situation. They have plenty of work on their hands, but little leverage over the FBI. For those who worry about government surveillance, the key questions are:
* How many Web sites and newsgroups does the FBI monitor on a regular basis?
* Who decides what constitutes a domestic threat? What criteria does the FBI use to determine whom to put under surveillance?
* How many other ISP owners and Web site operators has the FBI approached without a court order?
Don't hold your breath waiting for answers.
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Kunkhyen Pema Karpo
|Kunkhyen Pema Karpo
Pema Karpo
|Senior posting
|Gyalwang Drukpa
Kunkhyen Pema Karpo (Tibetan: ཀུན་མཁྱེན་པདྨ་དཀར་པོ་, Wylie: Kun-mkhyen Pad-ma Dkar-po) (1527–1592 CE) was the fourth Gyalwang Drukpa, head of the Drukpa lineage of Tibetan Buddhism. He was the most famous and learned of all the Gyalwang Drukpas. During his lifetime, he was known as the grand lama amongst all grand lamas, and was a teacher to many lamas and disciples all over Tibet.
Pema Karpo authored twenty-four volumes writing on philosophy, logic, literature, history, and astrology which have since formed a widely studied corpus of work. He is also quite famous for his writings on Mahamudra. He founded Druk Sangag Choeling monastery at Jar in southern Tibet, establishing it as the new seat of the Drukpa lineage.
This omniscient master was the first Gyalwang Drukpa to concoct the famous enlightenment pill known as Ja-Tsukma, utilizing esoteric ingredients offered by the dakinis. Before he died, Pema Karpo promised that he would have two incarnations to propagate the spiritual teachings. In accordance with this prophecy, two incarnations were discovered.
The multi-award winning Druk White Lotus School in Shey, Ladakh, is named after him.[1]
Important monasteries of the Drukpa order include:
- Ralung Monastery in central Tibet just north of Bhutan
- Druk Sangag Choeling Monastery
- Hemis Monastery
- Thimphu Dzong, which houses the Central Monk Body of Bhutan in summer
- Punakha Dzong, the winter home of the Central Monk Body
- Namdruk Monastery
External links[edit]
- Drukpa facts and a biography of H.H. the Twelfth Gyalwang Drukpa
- The award-winning Druk White Lotus School in Ladakh
- Drukpa Publications
- Namdruk Institute
- Nangchen
- H.E. the Ninth Khamtrul Rinpoche Shedrup Nyima b. 1980 (the site is presently under construction)
- H.E. the Ninth Khamtrul Rinpoche Jigme Pema Nyinjadh b.1981
- The European Centres of Gyalwang Drukpa
- Drukpa Trust


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Daphne Guinness: 'There Hasn't Been Anything Real Since Grunge'
Dark days, these are.By Charlotte Cowles
Dark days, these are.By Charlotte Cowles
But she regrets buying them.By Charlotte Cowles
Plus, Lea Michele covers the new issue of 'Allure'.
How disappointing.By Alex Rees
She's apparently "not very good at getting dressed up."By Alex Rees
Plus Jessica Biel, Lindsey Wixson, Jonathan Adler, and more.By Bennett Marcus
Also, Maxine Simoens replaces Véronique Leroy at Leonard.
Also, Rihanna is on the cover of British 'Vogue,' and more news.
"Eccentrics are almost asexual, and that is not something you can say of me, by any means."By Charlotte Cowles
She prefers to let other people do the sewing.By Amy Odell
Plus, Heidi Mount defends her husband, and the ringleaders of a counterfeit-handbag smuggling operation face up to fifteen years in prison.
Her downstairs neighbors in her ritzy Fifth Avenue building have had about enough.By Amy Odell
Maybe she is sick of hats.By Caitlin Petreycik
Notably, there were no hash brownies on the menu this time.By Kate Hutchinson
Also, Julia Restoin Roitfeld had to stand at a show in London.
They wore their finest somber McQueen looks.By Amy Odell
Along with Daphne Guinness, Julianne Moore, and Rita Wilson! Ahhhhh!By Amy Odell
Plus, Christian Dior's controversial "Shanghai Dreamers" campaign, Nike's big butts, and DVF's benevolent gesture.
Plus other truths learned from the fashion idol at ACRIA's Cocktails at Sunset benefit in Bridgehampton.By Jada Yuan
Wearing something very fancy, naturally.By Amy Odell


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According to Raiola's sister Janine Detore, the VH1 reality star's treatments have not been working. Therefore she has created a GoFundMe page seeking $25,000 for alternative cures. In just two days, the campaign has exceeded that goal and raised more than $35,000 in two days.
"My sister was diagnosed with stage 4 brain and lung cancer," Detore wrote on the crowdfunding account. "Chemotherapy was started January 5th. On January 26th the doctor reviewed her CT scan and informed us that the treatment was not working, and in fact one tumor grew larger and the other tumors had no change."
Raiola, 55, was diagnosed with a lemon-sized tumor in her throat in March. The mother of two and grandmother underwent surgery again in June.
Many of you know her as "Big Ang" of Mob Wives, but we know her as Angela our sister , mother, grandmother , aunt ,...Posted by Janine Detore on Tuesday, 2 February 2016
"We were advised that she would start immunotherapy the following week. Well here we are at the emergency room waiting to see why her breathing is labored and the amount of pain she is having is by far more than she could handle," Detore continued.
"So I suggested cannabis oil as an alternative. This is why I am putting up this go fund me to try to help my sister to get this oil to help her at least be pain free. Angela cannot function to work anymore."


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Product Review: KitchenAid Pasta Press Attachment
on this gadget ever since spotting it on the Williams-Sonoma website a few months ago. We finally got our hands on one and immediately cleared our schedule for an entire afternoon of pasta-making. And boy, was it worth it!
The VerdictWe'll spare you the suspense: we absolutely love this pasta press. It's easy to use, super fun, and makes great pasta. Watching the first tubes of bucatini emerge from the machine, we felt like we were witnesses to a minor miracle. We couldn't take our eyes off it and almost ended up with two-foot-long strands of spaghetti. In our first few rounds of pasta-making, we made batches of bucatini, rigatoni, and fusilli. The process is so easy. You make the dough and then feed walnut-sized chunks into the hopper. An auger inside the press catches the dough and forces it through the pasta plates. The pasta emerges completely smooth and uniform. You use a swinging wire arm to cut off the pasta at the desired length. Once we got a feel for when and where to cut each pasta shape, the whole process went smoothly and quickly. The pasta plates are easy to change out, even with the entire press still attached to the mixer. All the parts feel solidly made and durable, with the possible exception of the wire cutting arm. We could see snapping that thing very easily, and with the possible exception of kitchen shears, we're not sure if another kitchen tool could do as nice a job. All the parts also fit together intuitively, so assembling and disassembling are a snap.
Here are some specific pros and cons we noted while testing the press:


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Umklewu Bushveld Lodge is a tranquil bush retreat with attentive personal service at affordable rates, offering luxury rooms and fully equipped self catering units. Umklewu Bushveld Lodge has outstanding conference facilities and is also an beautiful wedding venue.
At Umklewu we offer a wide variety of luxury accommodation from a fully equipped self-catering chalet to a beautiful family room with everything you can imagine. Umklewu lodge can sleep 43 people comfortably and can be extended to 50 people for functions sharing. Umklewu Bushveld Lodge is only 6 km outside Nylstroom and just over an hour's drive from Pretoria.
At Umklewu we have a remarkable conference centre with all the equipment to make any occasion spectacular, we can seat up to 120 people in schoolroom style and 80 people sitting down.
Umklewu offers a special touch to all your function requirements and our cuisine for our functions have become legendary!!
So if it is just for a break away from the city, your wedding, team building, business conference or any special occasion, at Umklewu we will make you feel at home and turn your dream function into reality!!
So contact us and let us create your special event to suit your needs.


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Movies and Music
With your library card, you can borrow from a collection of thousands of DVDs including feature films, foreign films, how-tos, documentaries, popular TV series, and childrens programs as well as thousands of audiobooks and music CDs.
Freegal® Music
Freegal® Music is a free service from the Lancaster Public Library. All you need is your library card number.
- 8 Million+ songs /15,000+ Music Videos
- 28,000 labels including the world's largest–Sony Music Entertainment
- Over 200 different genres; everything from Classical Music to Rap, including Pop, Rock, Children's, Country, Classical and many more…
- Thousands of popular artists including Adele, Alicia Keys, Barbara Streisand, Bruce Springsteen, Carrie Underwood, Céline Dion, Daft Punk, Dave Matthews Band, Elvis Presley, Kenny Chesney, Jason Aldean, Johnny Cash, John Legend, London Symphony Orchestra, Mumford and Sons, One Direction, P!nk, Pearl Jam, Pitbull, P!nk, Sara Bareilles, Santana, Yo-Yo Ma and many more…
- Music from over 80 different countries
- Unlimited simultaneous access for the library for both downloads and streaming
- New music available the same day it shows up on I-Tunes or in the stores. New content added daily.
- All content is exclusive to Freegal Music (We are a Sole Source provider for Public Libraries)
- Free Mobile apps for Apple and Android devices
Under the terms of the agreement, registered cardholders of the Lancaster Public Library can download three Freegal® Music MP3 files each week at no direct cost via http://lancasterlibpa.freegalmusic.com.
The Lancaster Public Library underwrites the purchase of the music.


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BeirutView all 2 Hostels
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Check out the Hostelworld.com selection of hostels in Lebanon. Read customer reviews of Lebanon hostels, view hostels on map of Lebanon and avail of free SMS confirmations. And why not check out our pick for the best things to see and do in Lebanon while you're there. Hostelworld.com - the definitive guide to Lebanon hostels.
Hostelworld Mobile Apps
Book on the go with the new Hostelworld mobile apps.


text: The old water tower of Baden was built in 1905 with a height of 12 meters. In 1985 it was replaced by a new 34.5-meter tower, very close to the restaurant Baldegg. It is supported by four pillars, approximately 18 meters high, followed above by the slide chamber, the service water chamber and the chamber with firefighting water. In 2004 the height of the tower was increased by another 4 meters. An information panel shows the location and names of nearby villages and hills as well as the foothills and the Alps.