text:
Jason Alexander Britney Spears
December 21, 2011 by staff
Jason Alexander Britney Spears, For 55 hours back in 2004, Britney Spears was married to Jason Alexander. The childhood pals said "I do" on a whim at The Little White Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas, only to have their union annulled less than three days later.
Last Friday, Us Weekly broke the news that Spears, 30, was engaged to beau of over two years Jason Trawick. While ex-hubby Kevin Federline told Australia's TV Week magazine he was "really happy" for the mom of his two sons Sean Preston and Jayden James, Alexander wasn't exactly thrilled about the pop star's big news.
"I know everyone wants me to be happy about this, but I am not," Alexander, who is currently training for the World of MMA fighting competition, told Us exclusively. "I think it's fake and I think people are afraid to say it."
"If you look at all the pictures between them there is no connection," he added. "They look like they are going through the motions. It seems like a answer to the court thing." (The singer is currently under the conservatorship of her father Jamie Spears; Trawick once served as the star's manager.)
"Sort of a nice way to sew it all up she marries her handler," Alexander sniped. "That way she always has someone controlling her. It's sort of sad."
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
Newsletter from Danish Research Centre for Organic Farming June 2003 No. 2
Consumer demand for organic foods
Control of parasites
Organic tomatoes
Handling of grain
Experimental units
SAFO workshop
Organic Eprints
Livestock science
Ecosystem services
By Mette Wier and Laura Mørch Andersen, AKF - Institute of Local Government Studies, Denmark.
The Danish market for organic foods is relatively mature, meaning that it does not suffer seriously from the supply shortages and barriers, which dominate most of the markets outside Denmark. The well-functioning Danish market makes it possible to collect and analyse reliable data on purchases. In an ongoing study, we analyse consumer demand for organic foods in Denmark. The project is part of the Danish DARCOF centre and participating institutions include AKF, University of Copenhagen, GfK Denmark and CIRED, France. Our study distinguishes itself by being based on observations of stated as well as actual purchasing behaviour. The project applies information at the individual household level (utilising panel data of 2000 households' daily purchases of a large number of organic as well as conventional foods during 1997-2001), which makes a detailed and informative approach possible. In addition, the modelling is supported by a questionnaire, surveying households in the very same panel (response rate 77%) for information on attitudes, stated values and food habits. Description of project, data and full questionnaire is available at www.akf.dk/organicfoods. In this paper, we identify important characteristics of consumers with high propensity to purchase organic foods, with special attention to the importance of valued organic product attributes.
In this study, we compare organic buyers with non-buyers, to identify main differences between the two groups. We define buyers as consumers holding an organic budget share (all food types) higher than 2.5%, following the definition of "medium- and heavy users" applied in other Danish studies (Økologisk Landsforening, 2002; GfK Danmark, 2001). Not surprisingly, organic buyers are more health concerned, more focussed on residues, animal welfare, and environmental attributes, less focussed on low prices, and more often they prefer domestic products, compared to non-buyers. Origin is important to most consumers, and 72% would rather buy conventional domestic fruit and vegetables than organic foreign fruit and vegetables. Thus, the origin attribute commonly overrules the organic attributes - this holds to a higher degree for non-buyers, though. Buyers are more often members of organisations protecting nature and organisations protecting animal welfare, and they recognize and notice the Nordic Swan Label (an environmental label) more often than non-buyers. In general, we find that organic buyers also behave (and think) more environmentally friendly in other areas.
The national Danish organic label is well known - 93% of all consumers recognise it. In general, people have a good understanding of the organic rules. However, consumers in the main believe that the label is more comprehensive than it actually is. Surprisingly, there are almost no significant differences in knowledge of the rules behind the organic label between buyers and non-buyers. Most consumers (59%) have general confidence in Danish products with the Danish organic label - only 29% have general confidence in foreign products carrying the same label, though. Around half of the consumers believe that the rules are good enough to ensure animal welfare, nature and health. Only few consumers (12-13%) disagree in these statements. Trust in organic products without the label is low - especially, for foreign products.
Consumers may hold use values, such as utility from taste, health and/or freshness, i.e. private good attributes which can only be enjoyed by actually consuming (eating) the product. Non-use values are in our study public good values related to improved environment and/or animal welfare.
According to consumers' own statements, non-use values are assigned around twice as much weight on the "importance scale" compared to use values. This result holds for specific product types, as well as for organic goods in general. Comparing specific use and non-use value types reveal that environmental and animal welfare attributes are equally important. For use values, health attributes are most important, taste second most important, and finally freshness the least important.
Before jumping to the conclusion that people purchase organic foods from environmental and animal welfare concern reasons, it may be useful to do some additional analyses. To find out what these findings mean for actual willingness to pay on the real market, we combine information on stated values for organic goods in general with actual purchase behaviour. And very interesting, households having both types of values also hold highest organic budget share on the real market. Consumers can be divided in 4 groups, as shown in Figure 1: The majority - two thirds of all consumers - acknowledges and value organic goods for their non-use values (environmental or animal welfare attributes), as well as for their use values (health, taste or freshness attributes). Highest propensity to purchase organic is found in this group (average organic budget share 5.5%). The second group is households having non-use values only, constituting 16% and holding an average organic share of 2.5%. Households having no values whatsoever constitute another 16% - this group holds an average organic share of 1.2%. The fourth group, households having use values only, is negligible (1%). These results suggest that non-use benefits are generally acknowledged, but only those having use values in addition, actually purchase organic to a high degree. Thus, households having both types of values purchase more than twice as much organic food than households having non-use values only. And again, these households (having non-use values only) purchase more than twice as much organic foods than households having neither use nor non-use values. The very same pattern can be observed when looking at specific product groups.
To explore this further, we perform a regression analysis, using each household's stated importance (5 points scale) of various use and non-use attributes for organic goods in general to explain the household's average annual organic budget share for all food types. The model explains average organic budget share for each household, 1997-2001, using stated values (use and non-use values), a variable measuring health risk perception in relation to pesticide residues, main stated purchasing barriers and various socio-demographic variables as explanatory variables. The barriers are introduced to measure importance of lack of trust and lack of interest: some consumers, assigning values to organic product attributes, may at the same time be unresponsive and uninterested when it comes to actual shopping behaviour, because they are not really dedicated or because they do not really trust organic goods after all. Trust is divided in two variables, one measuring lack of trust in organic control and one measuring lack of trust in any health effect from eating organic foods. Finally, we control for the effect from household characteristics, such as income (approximated by total food expenditure), geography, age of the oldest person in the household, presence and age of children, and education level of most educated person in the household.
Doing the regression analysis, it becomes evident that the propensity to purchase organic increases significantly with the weight assigned to use values. The weight assigned to non-use values is much lower and not significant. That is, acknowledgement of non-use values cannot explain actual purchasing behaviour, but the contribution from use values can. Thus, we can conclude that even though households assign highest values to the non-use attributes, it is the valued use attributes that makes them buy organic foods.
Our results suggest that differences in organic shares across households to a large extent are related to specific household characteristics. Higher disposable household income (approximated by total food expenditure), age and education level all significantly increase organic budget share, as does the presence of children younger than 15 years. Very remarkable, the presence of children aged 15 to 20 years (living at home) has the opposite effect: the presence of older children reduces organic shares. This difference suggests that health and taste concern is more prevalent for parents having younger children.
All barriers significantly reduce organic shares and concern about health risk from eating foods with pesticide residues increases organic budget share significantly. Geography is significantly influencing organic shares too. Household organic shares are higher in urban areas, especially in the capital area - lowest shares are observed in western rural areas.
GfK Danmark (2001): GfK ConsumerScan. Den økologiske forbruger 2000 (in Danish), Copenhagen.
Økologisk Landsforening (2002): Forbrugernotat 2002 (in Danish). Århus.


text:
ASUS X205TA- Low Price High Quality
Asus recently launched the Eeebook laptop in Indian market. The Asus Eeebook comes with a pleasant appearance i and recently the new Asus eeebook sold out tremendously in a twinkle sale on Flipkart. The price of the all new Asus Eeebook is 14999/- X205TA offers excellent battery life, a frozen 11-inch screen, a smooth design and the ability to undertake all your everyday computing needs. This is the best laptop we have seen for such a low price.
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Keyboard and Touchpad
At 4.1 x 2.45 inches, the X205TA's touchpad is kindly sized for such a small system,
Mouse on touchpad around was generally soft and specific.
The Asus X205TA's screen is a rank above those on other notebooks in its price range compared. The Asus X205TA has a limited colour range but is still much better than the competition.
The small stereo speakers on the bottom of the X205TA put out a surprising amount of volume. There are also two hidden stereo speakers behind small mesh grilles on the bottom of the framework that project audio to the front and centre for a most favourable listening experience.
The component camera is clear resolution of X205TA's 420p.
The X205TA's specifications in the actual world, its 1.33-GHz Intel Atom Z3735 quad core CPU, 32GB of flash storage can easily handle your typical computing and 2GB of RAM needs. Streamed 1080p videos from YouTube without a hold up, and look through the Web with additional than six tabs open in Mozilla Firefox or Chrome was also stress-free.
Software and Warranty
To make up for the privation of on board storage, the X205TA derives with a one year contribution for 1TB of cloud storage on OneDrive, and if that's not enough, Asus supplies another 500GB of storage via its Web Storage service.
Prepared with Intel HD Graphics, the X205TA is better suited to playing unexpected titles and graphics dense games support.
Battery Life
Even though the X205TA has a low-power CPU but the X205TA crushed its competition on the Laptop Mag Battery Test (constant Web browsing over Wi-Fi at 100 units), with a runtime of 12 hours and 5 minutes on a solo charge.
Bottom Line
The Asus X205TA has set the piece for what an economical laptop should be. With a hard display, type-leading battery life and stereophonic speakers all packed in a slim, attractive physique, the Asus X205TA feels like a finest device without the quality price tag. Positively, Asus can sort out the touchpad monotonies with a drive update. Further low-priced laptops are coming soon, but it's successful to take a determined effort from other manufacturers to unseat this system.


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text:
The forumites at Why Won't God Heal Amputees pose this question:
How long before Tiger Woods finds God?
We should start a pool. How soon will it be before that happens?
(And if he does find God, will people begin to forgive his indiscretions…?)
The forumites at Why Won't God Heal Amputees pose this question:
How long before Tiger Woods finds God?
We should start a pool. How soon will it be before that happens?
(And if he does find God, will people begin to forgive his indiscretions…?)
Tiger is a buddhist, so the better question may be when is he going to find the "right" religion ;P
It will be revealed that he also had an affair… with Jesus.
There is an escort named God? He's gonna need to buy her more than diamonds.
Are we talking about Tiger Woods, or Tigers Wood?
I guess we can say that his Wood has found many goddesses.
Yes, it will be interesting to see if the "I'm real sorry and I'll do what God says from now on, pinkie swear, so I don't have to resign, right?" trend continues any further.
If he's a Buddhist, I think he'll say that he'll start focusing more on enlightenment, and less on worldly needs (other women.)
Woods is actually a very private person for someone so famous. The degree to which he managed to keep his life private until the accident is rather amazing. I do not think he will publicly play the God card.
I heard he was going to change his name from Tiger to Cheetah.
I think the real question is how long after his miracle conversion will it be before he has another affair? Some people (Bill Clinton, I am looking at you) cannot seem to keep it in their pants despite all they have to lose. Since Tiger has apparently slept with eleven women after getting married and counting at this point, I would say he is one of those people.
Nah, he is not a politician, he doesn't need to.
What's the effing difference what Tiger does? He's just a golfer! He can simply tell everyone to go to hell and the consequences are that we all miss out on watching some excellent golf. I'll bet he has enough money to scrape by for the rest of his life even after he pays off all of the greedy broads. (I'm sure that the girls that truly love him won't sue.)
There has been less controversy about denying gays their rights than the Tiger story has generated. There has been less controversy about almost any of the politicians' recent wrongdoing than Tiger's story has generated. There is a serious shortcoming in our priorities nowadays, don't you think?
Tiger Woods, or Tigers Wood?
For sure its Tiger Would. And did.
If I remember correctly, it took Paris Hilton 1/500 of the time in jail to find God as she spent putting off showing up for jail in the first place, and after she got out, she returned to her party animal lifestyle in 1/500,000,000 of the time she spent in jail, presumably with God.
I think the timing of these celebrity epiphanies are determined by their publicists rather than by their spiritual development. So I'd say that if Tiger is going to mention some kind of spiritual/religious reconciliation, it will be two weeks before whatever is the next really important golf event.
Is any one else *really sick* of hearing about Tiger Woods???? I just don't get all the hype. Boooring!!
From the look of some of his texts, I'm betting he found God a lot. So, did the skanks, I'm guessing.
I'd also be willing to wager they were pretty verbal with Him about their imminent arrival to the pearly
necklaces gates.
When Will Tiger Woods Find God?
If women were gods, Tiger would definitely be a Roman Pagan.
Hey, at least we are not talking about Michael Jackson. I always think of the song "Dirty Laundry" at times like this.
Other than his written statement on his website, he hasn't said anything at all. I don't think he will play the God card.
It really is annoying how people whip out that card when they get busted doing something illegal and/or immoral, as if people are supposed to go easy on them because of it.
Echh, these Tiger jokes are t-e-d-i-o-u-s. Not to mention in most cases recycled. The celeb gossip dreck I can handle (barely), just spare me from the puns!
Leave Tiger alone! Leave him alooooone!!
What's the effing difference what Tiger does? He's just a golfer! He can simply tell everyone to go to hell and the consequences are that we all miss out on watching some excellent golf.
I'd bet that the money he won at golf tournaments is a teeny tiny fraction of the income he made from endorsement deals.
I bet he finds Scientology. Not sure why but it seems that big time celebrities like Tom Cruise and John Travolta go to scientology when their fan base starts turning on them.
I'll put $50 on [Tiger Woods >> 6 months >> Scientology]
The Masters is in April. Look for a March epiphany.
Wow, here we go again. Jabbing fun at God.
All humans sin. Tiger is no exception. He needs to deal directly with this , with his wife, and he should ask for forgiveness from his wife, and God. And the big deal with that is what?
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text:
Photo credit: WAPOP Hall
There's no need to make that hard decision of choosing between K-Pop and K-Drama anymore. Now, fans can enjoy both at the same time with WAPOP (a compound word of "World & Asia" and "WOW POP") concerts (every Saturday, 7p.m.) at the WAPOP Hall located inside Children's Grand Park.
The K-Pop stage features a weekly concert with a lineup of 5 different singers or groups that change each week. B-boy and gugak (traditional Korean music) performances are also the part of weekly fun, mixing contemporary Korean pop culture with traditional music.
K-Dramas featured in the concert include many iconic scenes from Boys Over Flowers, Stairway to Heaven, Moon Embracing the Sun, Winter Sonata and Iris. Subtitles are available in English, Chinese and Japanese for the benefit of international visitors.
Tickets to the concerts are offered as part of tour packages. Contact a travel agency in your country of residence to inquire about availability.
Courtesy of WAPOP Hall


text:
Big City Productions PartiesWhen it comes to performing at parties, Big City Productions knows how to party. We have the music to get everyone smiling and dancing. If you want your party to be the talk of the town, just let us show you what we can do.
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text:
Women's Media Center statement on CEDAW
November 16, 2010
The Women's Media Center (WMC) applauds the decision of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law for holding a hearing on the United States' Ratification of CEDAW (the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women). CEDAW is the only international human rights treaty to focus exclusively on the rights of women. It has been ratified by 186 of 193 countries worldwide. The United States is one of seven countries that have failed to ratify CEDAW, joined by countries such as Iran, Somalia, and Sudan. The treaty protects fundamental human rights, addressing violence against women, the right to vote, sex trafficking, and access to education, among other issues. For the United States to remain a world leader on human rights issues, this critical treaty should be ratified.
WMC's President, Julie Burton, previously served as a Commissioner on the San Francisco Commission on the Status of Women, which was the first city in the US to adopt CEDAW and to create and implement its provisions in a number of its city departments.


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|"Gilbert B Garza (JIRA)" <j...@apache.org>
|[jira] Created: (COUCHDB-97) Bulk insert needs to specify on conflict error which doc is conflicting
|Thu, 24 Jul 2008 18:57:31 GMT
Bulk insert needs to specify on conflict error which doc is conflicting ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Key: COUCHDB-97 URL: https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/COUCHDB-97 Project: CouchDB Issue Type: Bug Environment: using couchdb 0.9.0a677590-incubating, POSTing 20 thousand documents to _bulk_insert via curl --data-binary Reporter: Gilbert B Garza The current error couchdb gives is a 412 error: {"error":"conflict","reason":"Update conflict"} This type of error needs to give which document(s) were conflicted, at the very least. -- This message is automatically generated by JIRA. - You can reply to this email to add a comment to the issue online.
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text:
Bartender Cheat Sheet
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CMJ Music Marathon offers endless opportunities to highlight your brand to the CMJ attendees, musicians, press and fans who are shaping the future of music, media, and entertainment.
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Saturday, Dec. 4, 2010 | 2:05 a.m.
CARSON CITY — As the state looks to save every nickel, fewer state employees might have private offices in the future and may be working out of cubicles.
There also may be fewer managers to oversee those employees.
Agencies may have to cut spending on subscriptions and periodicals, and taking home state vehicles could be limited.
Those are some of the proposals developed by the Spending and Government Efficiency Commission (SAGE) and the Legislative Committee on Base Budgets. The upcoming Legislature will have to deal with a deficit of at least $1.2 billion and probably more.
One recommendation of SAGE is that state employees use less office space. SAGE member Tim Ruffin of Reno said the goal is for the state to use 25 percent less space in five years.
"Some people don't need an office," he said, referring to those who work out of their homes or are on the road a lot. He said he toured Hewlett Packard in Reno and everyone had a cubicle instead of a private office.
SAGE is also recommending consolidating state agency website management. Individual agencies have created websites that have led to redundancy of personnel tasks and increased costs. The cost savings in one year could be up to $500,000.
The panel is also recommending that office leases be conducted by one agency. SAGE Chairwoman Carole Vilardo said eight agencies are negotiating their own leases when there are experts in the state Division of Buildings and Grounds.
"Why duplicate when we don't have the money?" Vilardo asked.
But SAGE found that agencies are doing a good job in negotiating leases below the market level. "I don't' see a lot of inefficiencies in real estate," said SAGE member John Restrepo of Las Vegas.
The Legislative Committee on Base Budgets, meanwhile, wants the 2011 Legislature to look at possible cutbacks on spending by agencies for subscriptions and periodicals that totals about $2.2 million a year.
In another area, employees are authorized to take home 341 state vehicles, excluding Nevada Highway Patrol and Division of Parole and Probation vehicles. Legislative fiscal experts say there is little oversight on allowing these vehicles to be taken home at night. But they said that sometimes the vehicles are less likely to be vandalized at employees' homes than if parked at the state agency at night.
The committee also said an undetermined amount of general fund savings may be realized by increasing employee-to-manager ratios and eliminating manager positions in agencies funded with general fund appropriations.
Different agencies have different employee-to-manager ratios. For instance, the field staffs of state Division of Welfare and the Department of Motor Vehicles use a 10-1 ratio. The state Department of Corrections has a 12-1 ratio.
SAGE is sending its recommendation to Gov. Jim Gibbons and Vilardo said she is sharing proposals with Gov.-elect Brian Sandoval.


text:
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Common causes of back pain includes: Muscle Strain, Bulging or herniated disc, Degenerative disc disease, Osteoporoses, Spinal Stenosis, Sciatica or Pinched Nerve and Sacroiliac Joint Inflamation.Most causes of back pain, however, result from injury or trauma. There are also many other conditions, which can contribute to back pain. These conditions are almost always treated non-surgically, resulting in a successful outcome 99% of the time.
Arthritis is the pain and inflammation of joints. The joints most often affected in arthritis are hips, knees, elbows and fingers. Heat, Redness, Pain and Swelling are the clinical characteristics of inflammation due to arthritis.
The term 'Arthritis' and 'Rheumatism' are both commonly used to describe pain, swelling and stiffness of the joints. But there is a difference between the two. Arthritis means inflammation of the joints. Rheumatism, on the other hand, is a more general term for pain and stiffness in the Muscles, bones, joints and tender parts. Rheumatoid Arthritis is a chronic, systematic inflammatory disease that affects multiple joints in the both side of the body.
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Neck pain can be associated with headache, probably through a muscular tension mechanism. Neck pain affects patients of all ages. It may be disabling you since long time. Ice cubes and antibiotics may give you a short relief, but the problem prevails.
The cause of neck pain includes; simple strain (injury caused by over use or misuse),sprain(injury to a ligament caused by excessive movement of a joint) and cervical degenerative problems. Spine fractures are a frequent cause of neck pain. Rare causes of neck pain include tumors of the cervical vertebral bodies and tumors involving the spinal chord or its coverings. The neck pain is usually in the back or sides of the neck. Pain in the front of the neck is an uncommon symptom in spine problems and should be evaluated by your family doctor. Neck stiffness is frequent. Sometimes, patients will complain of a grinding or popping noise/sensation with neck movement. The pain generally is worse when the neck is extended( head tilted back) .
Our treatment not only gives you all time relief without any side effects, without surgery, but also a rejuvenated health.


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Gaza horse riders have to jump unusual hurdles (AFP) AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE) By Sakher Abu El Oun 04/18/12)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/gaza-horse-riders-jump-unusual-hurdles-093547583.html;_ylt=Ar9t4pQlLKVeEqLhl2TblEi1qHQA;_ylu=X3oDMTQ5b3FxYWxkBG1pdANUb3BTdG9yeSBXb3JsZFNGIE1pZGRsZUVhc3RTU0YEcGtnA2E4YmQ0YjFkLTExY2MtMzkyYi1hYTFjLTFlZjU0MmFmNmQxNgRwb3MDMTkEc2VjA3RvcF9z
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Horse riding has become a popular hobby in the Gaza Strip but local Palestinians face constant hurdles -- from a conservative society to Israel´s blockade on the territory -- to practise the sport on their home turf.
The Al-Faisal equestrian club, on the seafront in Gaza City, attracts around 50 riders a day, according to Samir Salama Saad, director of the "Beautiful Life" society which bought the club several months ago. Founded in 2003, the club now attracts both male and female equestrians ranging in age from eight to 40 years, Saad said.
But the club, which occupies some 10 dunams of land -- around 100 hectares (247 acres) -- has had to resort to unusual methods to obtain the 60 horses it owns, smuggling them in through tunnels from Egypt.
"We don´t have medicine because of the blockade, and this affects the horses we have locally, so their numbers are constantly diminishing because of deaths," Saad told AFP.
To make up the numbers, horses are brought in through the tunnels dug under Gaza´s border with Egypt, but the process is dangerous and often leaves the animals with injuries and psychological problems.
Israel imposed the blockade in June 2006 after the capture of an Israeli soldier. The restrictions were tightened when the Islamist Hamas group seized control of Gaza a year later.
Israel defends the blockade, saying it is necessary to prevent weapons smuggling, but the Palestinians call it collective punishment.
Despite the restrictions, Saad runs an equestrian school at the club, with five trainers, including one qualified at the international level, who provide lessons and organise competitions.
There´s plenty of interest, but Saad acknowledges that the lessons remain out of the reach of most people in impoverished Gaza, where unemployment is around 45 percent and much of the population is dependent on foreign aid.
Still, he said, "the prices are 20 percent less than those in neighbouring countries," and they have come down in recent years as poverty in Gaza has continued to worsen.
Before the Israeli blockade was imposed in 2006, the club charged around 300 shekels ($80, 61 euros) for 15 lessons, according to 18- year-old Ola Abu Safiya who has been riding for five years.
-- ´You´re veiled, how can you ride a horse?´ --
"Now they don´t take more than 150 shekels because they´re taking into account the economic conditions in Gaza," she said. Abu Safiya is a psychology student but she dreams of one day teaching horse riding herself.
"It´s been my favourite hobby since my father took me riding for the first time," she said.
She finds the sport liberating -- "there´s no difference between boys and girls when it comes to horse riding," she said.
Hanan Abu Nada, a 28-year-old lawyer and a mother of two, said she had to overcome some local scepticism when she took up the sport. "My father and mother encouraged me to ride. We had a small stable and my father was passionate about it. He wanted all his children to be excellent riders."
"People said ´You´re veiled, how can you ride a horse? It´s impossible´," she said. "But I insisted on the idea that a veiled girl is like any other girl who wants to enjoy a pastime." "They shouldn´t be criticising. On the contrary, Palestinians should be proud of us," she added.
Abu Nada takes lessons with Omar al-Mamluk, the club´s only international-level trainer, and aspires to one day participate in global competitions "representing the country of Palestine".
But Mamluk says opportunities to compete have been sharply curtailed by the blockade and the division between the Gaza Strip and West Bank because of tensions between rival Palestinian movements Fatah and Hamas.
The division "has greatly affected horse riding and stopped us from participating abroad, which had allowed us to reach the level of our Arab brothers," he said.
"The Palestinian Equestrian Federation works in the West Bank and Ramallah, but because of the division we have been excluded, even though we have horses for show jumping and racing, as well as riders." "If the division were to end, we would be able to cooperate with our brothers in the West Bank," he said.
"For now, all our competitions are local," Saad added. (Copyright © 2012 Agence France Presse. 04/18/12)
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Jeremy Renner Scoffs At 'Stupid, Stupid' Kardashians
With his name attached to two box office-topping blockbuster films this summer - first Marvel's record-toppling "The Avengers," then this month's franchise debut "The Bourne Legacy" - and probably a pretty good idea what "talented contribution to culture" looks like, Jeremy Renner knows a waste of oxygen when he sees one.
Need proof? Play Word Association some time, then toss out "Kardashians." Thoughts, Mr. Renner, sir?
"Oh, all those ridiculous people with zero talent who spend their lives making sure everyone knows their name," Renner remarked recently. "Those stupid, stupid people."
Reporting on Renner's verbal roll of the eyes, Perez Hilton sniped "Well! That's not very nice at all!"
That's why he gets the big traffic, folks: that astonishing grasp of the obvious.
Let's keep in mind, we're not that removed from "Mad Men" star Jon Hamm being even more blunt still earlier this year when he called Kim Kardashian a "f**king idiot." It seems Renner and Hamm simply have the same standard-issue bulls**t detector that twinges the talented and makes them ask, "I know why people respect me, but just what exactly do you do?"
Hilton begs to differ. Of course, he does.
"You've got over 15 million followers on Twitter and get paid the big bucks to do what you do, so clearly, you're not that 'stupid,'" he remarked.
No, Pumpkin. Ignore Perez. The above actually means nothing.
Kim Kardashian having 15 million Twitter followers just suggests that probably at least 7.5 million people are aware that video evidence exists immortalizing at least one occasion when she's played "Hide the Hose" with Brandy's little brother. That is, indeed, what made her famous, along with being the daughter of a super-attorney and step-daughter of an Olympian (incidentally, both people who earned their way with defined skills.)
The "big bucks" she has could largely be traced back to one thing she "does" - or, in this case, "did": successfully exited just the right vagina. Since then, what she "does" or "has done" consists mostly of taking her clothes off, screwing, taking her clothes off again, and being famous for.....well, we're still not really sure what reason.
Most of the above takes precious little of the talent Renner acknowledges she lacks. In fact, her biggest "talent" would get her thrown in the pokey were it to "earn" her any income anywhere except Las Vegas.
Quite possibly the funniest part? Or perhaps, the saddest? The number of people who will click this article, based largely on the name Kardashian" in the headline, and comment below - in rambling fashion, perhaps in all caps, and with hilarious spelling - about how little they care about this story.
I'm setting the over-under at two-dozen remarks of emphatic apathy. Takers?
Keeping Up with The Kardashians, The Avengers, The Bourne Legacy, Kourtney and Khloe Take Miami, Kourtney and Kim Take New York


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Arabian Courtyard Hotel & Spa, located in the heart of the ancient cultural district of Dubai, will provide visitors and exhibitors at this year's Arabian Travel Market (ATM) an insight on how the property had survived and exceeded customer expectations amidst the global crises that has greatly affected the travel and hospitality industry.
ATM, the region's leading travel exhibition running from 30th April to 3rd May, 2012 at the Dubai International Exhibition Centre will help unlock business potentials within the Middle East for inbound and outbound tourism. The event will feature tourism destinations from the Middle East and around the world showcasing a diverse range of accommodation options, breathtaking tourism attractions and new airline routes.
Habib Khan, General Manager of the hotel and CEO Hospitality Division of Planet Group, said: "ATM offers multidimensional opportunities and exposures. We would like to capitalise on our ability to weather the past few years of global crises and yet able to meet and exceed customer expectations in our hotels and associated companies in Planet Group. These are the positive notes that we would like to send to the industry and clients alike. Our aim will be to provide the visitors a sense of achievement making their visit a worthwhile exercise by projecting confidence in UAE in general and Dubai in particular, the city having a safe, progressive and dynamic economy!"
The property, exhibiting since 1996 at the region's annual travel and tourism event, will support the Dubai government in promoting Dubai as a Destination and the UAE. This year's show is expected to gather more visitors and exhibitors as the tourism market in the country is picking up and a number of hotel developers are restarting projects that were put on hold in 2009 as a result of the economic downtown.
Arabian Courtyard Hotel & Spa will be exhibiting along with its sister company, Planet Travel & Tour under the Department of Tourism & Commerce Marketing (DTCM) pavilion. The team will be present during the four-day exhibition to meet existing clients to thank them for their business and support and at the same time, meet with potential clients to update them with the hotel's products and services.
[1] https://www.albawaba.com/en/node/355857?nid=419715
[2] https://www.albawaba.com/idea-agency
[3] http://www.albawaba.com


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Antarctica Picture
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The Bar
©Copyright D. Allsop - picture taken 1980 / 1981
A typical night at the bar, probably a pre-dinner drink after a day at work. Immediately after dinner people would usually go off and do their own thing for a few hours before returning after about 9 p.m. if they were going to do so.
The most surprising thing at first on arrival on base is that there was no formal front or behind to the bar. All drinks were "free" with a honesty system operating whereby base members would "lob" cases of beer, soft drinks, when they arrived on base with someone tasked with the job of making sure they were brought from store to bar as required and at a regular time period so stocks lasted the winter. If you were "behind" the bar you would find yourself stocking the fridge and handing drinks out to those in front.
Goodies such as bottles of spirits etc. would be brought up by base members on a ad-hoc basis when people felt they hadn't lobbed anything for a while or if it was a special occasion. It was in Antarctica that I became particularly adept at opening bottles of champagne lobbed by myself or others.
The difficulty comes in arriving back home in the UK when there definitely is a font and behind to the bar and drinks are definitely not free - oh for the return of this egalitarian system!
The fact that drinks were purchased entirely duty-free at ridiculously low prices helped in being magnanimous with generosity too of course.
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|This picture is one of a collection assembled in
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Base: 60°43'S 045°36'W. Thank you to those who sent their treasured memories of their time in
Antarctica and allowed them to be made into a commemorative cd
and then placed here on the web.
The reunion
weekend was 14-16 September 2007.
The reunion weekend was 14-16 September 2007.
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|What's Special about Spessartite?
The garnet family of gemstones is large and varied, but spessartite garnet is no ordinary garnet. Spessartite is a brilliant gem that has an even higher refractive index than sapphire. In fact only zircon, sphene and diamond are higher on the refractive index scale.
Garnet has always been highly regarded for its good hardness (7 to 7.5 on the Mohs scale) and excellent durability (it has indistinct cleavage). Whilst inexpensive everyday garnets - almandine and pyrope - tend to be dark-red with a distinct brownish tone, spessartite differs. Its striking orange and orange-red color combined with tremendous brilliance make spessartite very special.
Namibian spessartite is famous for its tangerine orange or "mandarin" color. This material tends to be included with many small crystals and needles. We are now seeing less and less Namibian spessartite on the market. The Mozambique spessartite ranges from pure orange to orange-red and red-orange, with many very clean specimens.
Some included material with excellent color is cut in very attractive cabochons. We have bought such cabochons as large as 50 carats. High quality clean red-orange spessartite can be found in gemstones weighing up to 10 carats, but the mandarin orange variety tends to be found in smaller sizes.
- First Published: January-30-2008
- Last Updated: June-19-2014
- © 2005-2017 GemSelect.com all rights reserved.
Reproduction (text or graphics) without the express written consent of GemSelect.com (SETT Company Ltd.) is strictly prohibited.


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Deus Ex: Human Revolution - The Missing Link Reviews
With The Missing Link now released, here are a couple of new reviews. First, CVG likes the fact that this is a "standalone adventure", and awards a score of 8/10:
Accessible straight from the main menu, the Missing Link has enough to do with the events of Human Revolution to be worth the attention of backstory-mongers, but those who've only dipped a toe in the wider plot should find it perfectly digestible.
At five or six hours in length (your mileage will surely vary), the pack's a fully fleshed-out miniature campaign. There's a new villain to rock the socks off, a handful of bystanders to shoot the breeze with (our favourite's the so-typecast-it's-brilliant Irish weapons merchant), a fancy rocket launcher to assemble, a smattering of Big Decisions to make and a stack of guards, turrets and robots to shoot at, KO, stab, hide, gas, electrify, flat-out confuse or avoid entirely.
IGN also goes for 8/10, praising the story and new approach to the boss battle, although the criticise cramped, repetitive environments:
It's great to have an opportunity to revisit Deus Ex: Human Revolution, and The Missing Link is a substantial, tense and exciting piece of downloadable content that's far more than just filler. It presents a stiff challenge and a great sub-plot alongside the opportunity to experiment with a different playstyle, branching out from what you may have done before. The repetition and the rather light runtime prevent it from being an essential purchase, but there's still a lot to love here, especially for experienced players.
Information aboutDeus Ex: HR
SP/MP: Single-player
Setting: Sci-Fi
Genre: Shooter-RPG
Platform: PC
Release: Released


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Truck boss penalty 'pitiful', says union
Page Tools
Jim Hitchcock ... guilty of failing to provide safe working conditions.
Photo: Peter Morris
A truck boss whose lax safety management contributed to a driver's death has been fined $42,000.
Darri Haynes, 37, was killed when he crashed his semi-trailer into another truck on the Pacific Highway at Tyndale, near Grafton, on the NSW north coast, in 1999.
In a landmark ruling in October that confirmed a driver's truck is his workplace, the NSW Industrial Relations Commission found Mr Haynes' employer Jim Hitchcock guilty of failing to provide safe working conditions.
Today, IRC Vice President Michael Walton fined Mr Hitchcock $42,000. The maximum penalty is $110,000.
"In determining penalty I have considered the objective seriousness of the offences, including the compelling need for general deterrents and the limited subjective factors ... including Mr Hitchcock's high civic standing," Justice Walton said in his judgment.
The Transport Workers Union labelled the sentence "pitiful" and said in cases such as these a custodial sentence should be considered.
"This sentence is lacking as a commercial deterrent," TWU NSW secretary Tony Sheldon told reporters outside the court.
"In this case the employer failed to take responsibility for a safe working environment."
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Dog Mate Dog Door - White
|Dog Mate Dog Doors are suitable for a wide range of dog breeds. The medium and large doors feature robust 2-way locking panels for security. All flaps are fully brush sealed with magnetic closure for total weatherproofing and minimum energy loss from the house. For dogs up to 18" shoulder height Self lining to 2" thick - ideal for all doors and walls Robust 2-way locking security panel Silent action weatherproof flap with vision panel Lightweight flap may be used by cats Super strong, lightweight flaps are suitable for dogs small and large. Wall installation is possible using standard sheeting to line the wall. Available in medium & large sizes. Manufacturer offers a 3 year guarantee.Available in a wide range of sizes to suit most dog breeds. Self lining to 2" thick - ideal for installation into thin panels, screens, doors and walls (using standard sheeting to line the wall).Small Dog DoorThe small door is suitable for Yorkshire Terriers, Pekinese, Dachshunds, and cats up to 14" shoulder height. May be used for walls.Specifications: Self lining to 2" (50 mm) Overall size: 9.25"W x 10"H x 2.125"D Cut out size: 8.25"W x 9"H Medium Dog DoorThe medium door is suitable for Spaniels, Terriers, Poodles, etc. up to 18" shoulder height.Specifications: Colors: White Overall size: 11-3/8" wide x 13-3/4" high Cut out size: 9-1/2" wide x 11-3/4" high Large Dog DoorThe robust construction of this door makes it suitable for Labradors, German Shepherds and other large dogs to 25" shoulder height.Features: For dogs up to 25" shoulder height Self lining to 2" thick - ideal for all doors and walls Robust 2-way locking security panel Silent action weatherproof flap with vision panel Lightweight flap may be used by cats Colors: White Overall size: 14-3/8" wide x 17-3/8" high Cut out size: 12-1/2" wide x 15-3/8" high
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Being Brando
Docu pic back on track
Director Ridha Behi spent months interviewing Marlon Brando in 2004 for his latest film Brando And Brando. But work on the documentary, which chronicles a Tunisian kid's quest to meet his favourite thesp, was halted by the slightly tricky problem of the great man shuffling off the mortal coil.
But now it's all back on and Behi will finish the film across the next six weeks, with filming in Cannes this week, followed by production in the UK, US and Tunisia. Oh, and the film also has a new name: Citizen Brando. Featuring interviews and work by Christopher Walken and Hend Sabri, the final footage should be a feast for Brando fans as it features hours of recorded interviews with the Godfather himself.


text: Hello everyone, Joined the forum yesterday and this is the first question I post. I bought two OTR suits from MJ Bale in Sydney during the X'mas / NY special for 2 suits for a grand. The material feels good and I have been told they are all 100% Australian Marina wool. I paid another $100 for the extra trouser for each suit so 4 in total. Two suits are the exact same cut. As you would expect the fit isn't perfect and there are a couple of adjustments to be made to make it look smart on me. I have paid MJ Bale to make some really minor adjustments such as take in the back shoulder a tiny bit and shorten the length of the trousers. To my surprise they have done a really bad job as all the length were way too long when I pick up the suits. They kept rushing me out (maybe because it was 5:15 pm on Sunday) and assured me the measures of all 4 pants would be identical. I regret I didn't try them all on in the shops because I later discovered back home some trousers are longer than others... Also as mentioned I need more alterations to make to suit fit me better, things like: - the width of the trousers are a bit to wide so I need to take in a bit - Trousers need to be shorten again!! - the length of the jacket is too long - the jacket can be further slim in the waist area I think the cut is a Italian style, with minimal padding on the shoulder. I prefer a slim style suits. Both suits are mainly for work purpose. So here are some of the questions I have. I would appreciate some input and comment: - How's the quality of MJ Bale suits? What people think of their cloth material? they claimed they are 100% Australian Marina wool. They don't tell you if they are super 120 or something like that, just 100% wool... - Most importantly, can someone recommend me a good tailor that can do a good job on suit alteration in Sydney without charging too much. I really don't know how much I should expect to pay for jobs described above. - Should I just take it to the alteration place in some major shopping centre? I am close to "Looksmart" in Chatswood Chase. I know this question has been asked in the past a couple of times but based on what I have searched some of the replies were quite dated. Some updated advice would be great! Thanks again and cheers


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It is the 40th death anniversary of the former member of rock band "The Doors" Jim Morrison. As a way of remembering and honoring the lead singer and lyricist, former members and fans of The Doors light up candles at his grave located in Paris. Jim Morrison has been popular as a lead singer of a rock band and with his partygoer's lifestyle.
Jim Morrison died on July 2, 1971 at the age of 27-years-old. It is said that the artist died because of heart failure in his bathtub. Since there is no evidence of foul play, there is no body autopsy performed. This has left many of the fans with questions about Jim Morrison.
Former members who take time to remember Jim Morrison are Ray Manzarek (keyboardist), and Robby Krieger (guitarist). Some of the fans even offer flowers to Jim's grave. Others are participant with the remembering by wearing black T-shirts with white drawing of Jim Morrison's face.
Jim Morrison aside from being a lead singer, he was also popular with his poetic statements. Morrison used to make impromptu poem passages while the band is performing. In the record, he was ranked as top 47 on Rolling Stone's list of greatest singers of all time.
Jim Morrison is known to be the lyrical of The Doors. Together with Krieger, Morrison has made the lyrics of their biggest hits. Their popular songs include "Light My Fire", "Love Her Madly", "Love Me Two Times" and "Touch Me."


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Does the former Florida governor deserve the credit he gets on education?
All they have to do is go on the site, pick a dinner, and enter their credit card number.
Or, in other words: They can blow up the credit of the United States—or they can yield.
It suggested that consumers be vigilant about checking and monitoring their credit.
Lehrer hopes to bring a similar attitude to other policy areas such as entitlement reform and credit union deregulation.
During the Mexican war he had fought with credit under Scott.
Freet was very complimentary and told Jim he was a credit to his teacher.
The stability of credit becomes the watchword of high finance.
The story was doubtless received with differe at degrees of credit.
He served to the close of the war with credit to himself and usefulness to his country.
1520s, from Middle French crédit (15c.) "belief, trust," from Italian credito, from Latin creditum "a loan, thing entrusted to another," from past participle of credere "to trust, entrust, believe" (see credo). The commercial sense was the original one in English (creditor is mid-15c.). Meaning "honor, acknowledgment of merit," is from c.1600. Academic sense of "point for completing a course of study" is 1904. Movie/broadcasting sense is 1914. Credit rating is from 1958; credit union is 1881, American English.
1540s, from credit (n.). Related: Credited; crediting.


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Robert Pattinson Takes New York
Attention New Yorkers; your ever-humble city has been invaded by a force more powerful than nature itself!
Fresh from his triumphant appearance at this year's MTV Movie Awards (and his intimate late-night dinner with co-star Kristen Stewart), Twilight hunk Robert Pattinson was stomping around the Big Apple on Tuesday, looking particularly rugged and ready for action.
One reason for his demeanor may be that the typically twiggy Pattinson has been packing on the muscle lately. Contrary to rumors that his six-pack was airbrushed on for the upcoming Twilight sequel New Moon, his co-star Kellan Lutz says that it's all real, baby.
"Taylor [Lautner] been training Rob a lot, and that's why he's got such ripped abs," "New Moon" Lutz reveals to the New York Daily News. "Rob's been working hard. He's trying to be the best Edward [Cullen] he can be."
One thing's for sure; he's already the best Robert Pattinson he can be.
Have your say in the comments section: What do you think of RPattz's New York City photos?


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POLICE want to identify a man and a woman in connection with a theft from Currys at Lakeside.
The duo were caught on CCTV the time the theft took place at 1.30pm on Saturday, January 25.
The two suspects entered the shop and took two wireless Xbox One controllers from a shelf before hiding them in a Currys carrier bag and walking out of the store without making any attempt to pay.
Anyone who recognises either of the people in the images is asked to call PC Aidan Walsh at Essex Police on 101 or ring Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.


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No TV cameras are allowed in the courtroom in Santa Maria, Calif., during Jackson's child molestation trial. So Robles and his colleagues are the sole visual link to the proceedings.
Television networks, the Associated Press and several foreign media are Robles' main clients for the Jackson case.
The pop star has proved challenging to draw. "He has a petite nose and prominent cheekbone alignment that comes down to the jaw. Fortunately, he has that big hair that almost covers it," Robles says. "If you don't hit him right on, people are going to say, 'Wow, that doesn't look like Jackson.' So there's a lot more pressure."
But as the trial goes on, Robles has found it easier to capture Jackson's idiosyncrasies. "The more you do him, the easier he becomes. But sometimes I do him and I say, 'My God, who is that?' I just throw it away and start over."
As for his opinion on Jackson's guilt or innocence, the artist says: "I'm not going to form an opinion until I hear the evidence."
Jackson's is just the latest high-profile case Robles has covered in his long career, which began in 1970 with Charles Manson's trial. He has sat and sketched during the trials of O.J. Simpson, Unabomber Theodore Kaczynski, Oklahoma City bombers Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols and serial killer Richard Ramirez.
"What's amazing is that in this day and age of satellites, digital this and digital that, I still have my $20 drawing pad, my pen and my colored markers," says Robles, who lives in Los Angeles. He declines to give his age except to say he's "younger than Dan Rather," who is 73.
Robles says he has been a news junkie since childhood. During the 1950s, he spent three years in the U.S. Army, drawing murals and maps. After the Army, Robles was a student at Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles when a classmate who worked at a CBS affiliate asked him to sketch the Manson trial. He has been freelancing ever since.
His day rate is $400 per media outlet. "Jackson has already made my year, but, boy, it's going to be exhausting." The trial is expected to last up to five months.
Robles, one of three courtroom artists covering the Jackson trial, usually draws six sketches a day. He can be creative. "You can edit out what you don't want, slightly move things for the sake of composition."
But Nina Zacuto, who is producing the Jackson trial coverage for NBC News and has known Robles since 1979, says the artist is "very good at reproducing what you see in court. He's done a remarkable job of giving you a sense of what these people look like. He's really quick, and his style is very clean. I think everyone agrees that in terms of his sketches, he's the best in L.A."
A few weeks ago, Robles made headlines when Jackson approached him to inquire about a drawing that showed the pop star with his three attorneys. "Jackson lit up like a candle when he saw it. He was totally fascinated," Robles says. One of Jackson's attorneys later offered to trade the pop star's autograph for a drawing.
Robles' asking price for sketches is $650 and up, "depending on how famous" the subject is. He hasn't yet made a deal with Jackson's camp. "I think they have more important things to deal with than acquiring drawings."
When he's not in the courtroom, Robles makes a living doing portraits. But he still loves watching the judicial process and its cast of characters.
"Here I am 35 years later and still doing the highest-profile trial in history. I love what I'm doing."


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The first video in the project Korporal Labyrinth.
Starring: Astrid Astra Esther Indricane and Maria (Felix) Korporal.
Video and all artwork by Maria (Felix) Korporal.
Korporal Labyrinth is a work in progress, an account of a visceral journey in different stadia, expressed in a series of short videos. The artist's drawing of the labyrinth was the starting point for the project, together with a bunch of footage taken mainly from July to October 2013. This is a very important period in the artist's life, in which two women play the lead role: her mother Ariena and her new lover Astrid – a life which has come to an end, and a life which has taken a new start.
In her Korporal Labyrinth, the artist explores several ways of walking through the labyrinth – there is no absolute truth, every possibility is worth trying and leads to new experiences and points of view.
titolo: In the Beginning was the Word
tecnica: Video sperimentale e animazione
durata: 3'25"
anno: 2013
© Maria Korporal


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Rihanna: Loving Drake—and Strip Clubs?
Sounds like Rihanna has moved on from her relationship with Chris Brown—and somehow, miraculously, from her former flame Shia LaBeouf.
The New York Post reports that the "Disturbia" singer spent Monday night at Lucky Strike Lanes & Lounge in New York, hanging out with friends—and making serious time with Canadian child actor-turned-rapper Aubrey "Drake" Graham.
"She was drinking whiskey and apple juice and making out with him all night," reports a witness. "They were really cute together."
Rihanna and 22-year-old Drake—who graduated from Degrassi: The Next Generation to his current single "Best I Ever Had"—split from the bowling alley/boozery at about midnight.
But Ri-Ri has been making quality time with the ladies these days, too. E! Online reports that, on Sunday night, the "Disturbia" singer made her very first visit to a strip club with her band after finishing up a studio session.
An insider reveals that Rihanna had a grand old time at Flashdancers gentlemen's club, drinking in the eye candy and throwing around the green.
"She and her group were tipping the girls quite frequently…it wasn't only Rihanna," says the source. "They had a good time. They were drinking sodas and water."
Alas, the Barbados-born singer split at 2:30 a.m. without treating herself to a lapdance. There's always next time…


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Fixed Rate Mortgages
Print print Fixed Rate Mortgages page
Find peace of mind in knowing exactly what your interest rate will be for the term of your mortgage with a President's Choice Financial® fixed rate mortgage1.Open Features
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- Take a break from your mortgage with our "Rainy Day" skip-a-payment option and skip one scheduled mortgage payment every year5
Turn PC Financial fixed rate mortgages into free groceries with PC® points³. With our fixed rate mortgage, you'll earn 2,500 PC points for every full $1,000 of your total balance at the time of closing. On a $200,000 mortgage that would equal $500 worth of PC points for you to use towards groceries and more at go toparticipating grocery storesThis table lists the value of PC points on closing.
|Mortgage Amount
|Value of PC points on closing
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New York City & Caribbean On NCL's Gem At Chanukah & Christmas Time: Norwegian Gem Cruise Review by Uniall
Overall Member Rating
New York City & Caribbean On NCL's Gem At Chanukah & Christmas Time
Destination: Eastern Caribbean
Embarkation: New York (Manhattan)
An outbreak of Noro Virus among the disembarking passengers necessitated an intensive ship's disinfecting and cleaning before we could board. Boarding, originally scheduled for 1130 am, was delayed until 3pm which pushed back sailing from 4 pm till 530 pm.
Our "Yellow Diamond" Owner's Suite #9004 was magnificent. The 25x20 Living & Dining room was adjacent to a 12x25 Bedroom and 12x25 Master Bath including dressing room/closet, shower stall and separate tub. There's a powder room off the Living Room Foyer. There are two balconies, one side balcony off the Living/Dining Room and a forward facing balcony off the Bed Room.
Hotel Director, Jenny Lim and Concierge, Carlos Zarate had large urns of ice tea and lemonade laid out in our dining room with huge bowls of munchies for our Cruise Critic Sail Away Party. Despite the late departure, 35 CCers had a "smashing" good time. We were able to enjoy the electric More lit New York skyline in the dark and a breath taking view of the Statue of Liberty set aglow by flood lights.
After the Sail Away, about half the CCers stayed on for an extra half hour to help our Jewish members celebrate the last day of Hanukah with the lighting of the eighth Menorah candle. The observance was concluded with a short prayer and sharing of Challah bread and wine.
We attended the 7 pm show in the Stardust Theater which was an overview of the NCL singers and dancers troupe routines. At the end of the show we returned to our suite where our butler served late supper of steak and lobster in our dining room for us and our good friends: Franco & Karen.
We began the day with breakfast in our cabin, delivered by our butler at 830 am. The sea was rough and our tummies a little queasy but hot tea and toast helped quell the discomfort.
We arrived at the Cruise Critic Meet & Greet in the Bliss Lounge (deck 7 aft) at 11 am. The meeting was a superb success due in great measure to the great planning of Lou (Brighten Line). Lou had provided preprinted lanyard name tags and a list of all of the officers who would be in attendance.
The Meeting was commenced with the introduction of Captain Stephan Vilhelm; Hotel Director, Jenny Lim; Food & Beverage Director, Vitor Da Silva; Cruise Director, Matt Sole; Executive Housekeeper, Alex Patagnan; Executive Chef, Tyson Pinto; Restaurant Manager, Marek Bus; Beverage Manager, Sandy Delos Reyes; Guest Service Manager, Nomita Rambhuunjan; and Group Service Coordinator, Etienne Saladin.
We took lunch in Cagney's which serves breakfast and lunch to Platinum and Suite guests. We attended the Captain's private cocktail party in the Haven at 7pm and had late dinner in La Bistro. The rack of lamb was superb and well accompanied by Wolf Blass Australian Cabernet at a very reasonable price. With an after dinner snifter of brandy enjoyed with goof friends, we retired for the evening.
Set the clock ahead on hour tonight.
We slept in and had late breakfast served en suite by our butler. I had a few glitches in the computer preparation of my daily Cruise Critic daily report but the ship's Tech Manager helped solve the problem.
We got to the 11 am Slot Pull a little late. We found 30 or so CCers having a fun time under the direction of Lou (Brighten Line), our great Roll Call Coordinator. Lady Luck was not smiling on us and we each received a refund of $5 on our $15 "investment" after 5 pulls on the slot machine.
After the Slot Pull, we adjourned for lunch in Cagney's restaurant with Lou & Dee and our cruise mates, Franco & Karen. We finished a leisurely noon meal just in time to meet and greet the Captain and senior officers at the 230 pm Latitudes cocktail party in the Spinnaker Lounge. (I wonder if the Spinnaker will be converted to Suites like other ships in the NCL fleet?) I bought two future Cruise Rewards certificates and won 100 internet minutes in the door prize drawing….. Oorah, I can keep my daily log going.
We retired to our cabin for an afternoon nap to prepare for the evening's festivities. We met our cruise mates, the Muratores, in the Pacific Main Dining Room and were seated at a lovely table for four by the Aft windows. We all ordered the lamb shank but opted for different sides: Franco had the bean casserole, Karen and Sharon with mashed potatoes, and penne pasta for me. After dinner, we headed for the theater and had our butler serve us a glass of champagne before the show. It was a magnificent performance in five languages by Jennifer Fair a superb Soprano Prima Donna backed by the ship's orchestra.
Following the theater, I headed to the Atrium Bar to convey the best regards of a friend and CC regular (Mandy in Seattle) to Michael Blackwell, a great "mood music" pianist. I then re-joined my wife (save the marriage) and our companions who were listening to the Beatles Nostalgia tunes by Leo in Magnum's Bar.
Off to bed……..tomorrow San Juan, PR.
We slept in today and began with a late breakfast served en suite by our Butler, Elvie Valencia. This is her try out week as a new butler. What she lacks in experience, she makes up for with a lot of heart.
After breakfast, we just lolled around watching TV and tried to stay out of the way as our superb Cabin Steward, Irma Lendame, straightened up our daily cabin disarray.
We were scheduled to arrive in San Juan at 3pm. So we asked Elvie to serve lunch in our cabin for ourselves and cruise mates at 2pm. Elvie outdid herself bringing Club Sandwiches and Cobb Salads for four at the appointed hour. The foursome "lunch bunch" was treated to a magnificent entry into San Juan harbor from our forward facing balcony under the Captain's bridge.
At 3pm, we went up to the Star Bar for an early VIP escort debarkation from the ship led by "The Stalwart of the Fleet" Concierge, Carlos Zarate.
Once ashore, we signed on for a 2 hour tour of the Old City and Fort Moro in one of the many 15 passenger mini buses waiting just outside the terminal. The price was $20 per person. It included a stop at the Puerto Rican Capitol with statues of US Presidents who have visited San Juan, starting with Teddy Roosevelt and at Condado Park overlooking the Caribbean with its beautiful fountain. Our guide gave an excellent presentation on this history of the San Juan neighborhoods and Puerto Rican culture. Our final stop was a 40 minute visit to Fort Moro, the iconic fortress protecting San Juan Harbor. It was enough time to see a short 10 minute movie of the history of Puerto Rico with a photo op of the fortress and a quickie visit to the gift shop. Our driver dropped us off in the old town, where we visited the CVS pharmacy for several sundry items we'd forgotten, while our cruise mates went off afoot for more exploring in the Old City. With a leisurely stroll of 4 blocks, Sharon Rae and I returned to the ship about 7pm.
A Special Dinner was served in our cabin. The day before, I'd opined my disappointment that the ship's menu no longer included Shepard's Pie. Our butler learned the chef had prepared the dish just for us. She served the wonderful comfort food after hors d'verves and cocktails in our dining room.
At 930 pm we went to down Magnum's Bar to catch the last set of Michael Blackwell's magic on the baby grand piano accompanied with a bottle of bubbly uncorked and left for us by our butler. We were joined by fellow CCers: Will & Jenna (MJ Six) and Franco & Karen (Esperanza).
At 10pm, Michael was followed by the ship's six member "Amar Orchestra" (comprised of a pianist, sax, trumpet, trombone, bass guitar and drummer.) Their first set included a new female vocalist, Rachel Paige. She did a nice job on some of Barbara Streisand's songs from "Funny Girl" the musical bi-op of Fanny Brice. Rachel has a nice (not great) voice. The hoots & howls of her fellow ship's entertainers' fan club, from the back of the room, was a little distracting.
The orchestra's second set was vocalist free and provided a lovely end to a lovely day.
At 730 am we were awakened by the aroma of fresh brewed coffee laid out in our dining room by Elvie, our butler. We had several cups and started dressing for the day. About 9am we joined our cruise mates, Franco & Karen, in Cagney's to complete our breakfast of poached eggs and smoked salmon.
We were delighted to see the NCL Sun docked at the same pier. This was a festive omen since we're booked on the Sun next September for 22 days including a Panama Canal transit.
Our foursome disembarked about 10 am and proceeded to the modern and stylish cruise port just inside the pier entry and obtained a superb map of the island at the Information booth. Walking about 20 meters outside the port enclave we found a major domo who informed us of the length and prices of tour guides. We opted for the 2.5 hour island circle tour with 40 minute visit in Marigot on the French far side.
Our driver was James and drove a blue minivan which was very comfortable for the four of us; We made several stops on the way to Marigot including a small wild life and fauna f preserve where we photographed iguanas in natural habitat along us indigenous caged snakes and monkeys.
Continuing on, we preceded to the marked but unguarded border between Dutch & French sides of the island. After photo stops, we arrived in Marigot and enjoyed a cappuccino with fresh baked goods from the French bakery. On our way back to Phillipsburg on the Dutch side, we wound our way through the narrow streets of the tiny village of Grand Case (pronounced Cass). It has more than 18 restaurants covering everything from Caribbean beans & rice spots to French haute cuisine bistros.
When we returned to Phillipsburg, our friends decided to explore the many and varied shopping opportunities while we returned to the ship. Then, we enjoyed a cocktail while overlooking the port facilities from our forward facing balcony.
We and our cruise mates met our illustrious Concierge (Carlos Zarate) for dinner in La Cucina Italian restaurant. We all ordered the mouthwatering Osso Bucco (Veal shank braised in tomato sauce) which was done to perfection.
We decided to skip evening entertainment, since we had seen the NCL production of "Earth, Wind & Fire" several times before on other cruises. Instead, we had our dessert sent to the cabin to be enjoyed with brandy and cappuccino prepared with the espresso machine in all the suites.
We ordered room service coffee and juice at 7am and met our cruise mates for eggs and smoked salmon in Cagney's at 8 am. We watched our arrival in St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands from the restaurant's windows.
After breakfast, we disembarked on the pier located about a mile south of the Havensight Port Mall's shops and restaurant. The port shops are usually reached by motor tram circling between the dock and Mall every 15 minutes. We had used this tram before but it was not running today.
The only other transport available at the pier were mini vans for 7 and open air jitneys for 16 passengers which traveled the 4 miles to the Main Village for $4 per person. Our mates headed for town on a jitney. The Taxi Starter (Tsar) insisted there were no private hire taxis available and we'd have to share space with others and pay an extra charge for my wife's rollator (wheeled walker with seat).
The only venue within our walking distance was the pier side "Senor Frogs" bar and restaurant with patio and pool. Since the ship provided free food and pool we returned to our suite and spent the morning sipping Canadian Club whiskey with 7up and vodka with tonic on our forward facing balcony with a view of the harbor, pie and main village. We spent the day playing cards and reading. At 2pm we played movie trivia in Magnum's Bar while enjoying a bottle of bubbly. It turned out to be a perfect day of decompression. When hungry, we called our butler who brought sustenance and fresh ice for our CCs & Tonics.
There were some excellent movies available on DVDs or "On Demand". So, we decided to skip the comic providing the evening's entertainment in the theater. Our butler, brought served dinner from the main dining room menu (BBQ Ribs and coconut breaded shrimp) and brought after dinner dessert and popcorn for movie munchies.
It was a very low key, catch your breath day.
We dropped anchor about 3 miles off shore from Samana DR around 730 am. There were rain squalls all around us with wind gusts and choppy seas. Many of the guests had booked the ship's shore excursion to a small island of Cayo Levantado in Samana bay for its private beaches. Others opted for tendering to Samana for local tours. Having visited here several times, we took the tender to Samana had our photo taken by the ship's photogs, did a quick look see and returned to the ship.
We spent the remainder of the morning sipping cocktails on our balcony and ordered in noon lunch. At 130 pm, we took advantage of the ship's Spa Special of a one hour massage for $10, which put us in the mood for an afternoon nap.
Our evening began with complimentary cocktails with the Captain, Hotel Director and Cruise Director at the Latitudes Party in the Spinnaker Lounge at 7 pm. There was an excellent combo with female vocalist who performed iconic 1950s rock and roll and country songs. The Cruise Director, Matt Sole, did a very good rendition of The Righteous Brothers "Lovin feeling"
We headed to the Orchid Asian restaurant for our 8 pm reservations. Alas, the hoped for wonderful repast of Asian cuisine was not to be. The food was not up to NCL's usual standards. The service was poor. And, the ambiance was totally destroyed by the loud audience participation piano bar sing along carried throughout the restaurant from the open atrium Magnum's Bar one deck below. Oh well, live and learn. We'll not return for Asian food on the Gem again.
We retired to our room about 11 and hope to make a full day and night of it on the morrow.
Began the at sea day with breakfast in the cabin at 830 am.
At 11 am we had a VIP tour of the bridge for 3 couples guided by the Captain. Following the bridge tour, we enjoyed lunch in Cagney's.
At 100 pm We went to the photo department to pick outstanding photos from the last 48 hours. We found a great photo in the photo department which was perfect for us to order 300 Christmas/Chanukah cards. Now, that's one stop shopping..
We returned to our suite and met with the concierge and our butler to plan our Cruise Critic pre-dinner cocktail party. We mad finish reservations with Pacific Main Dining Room Manager, Aurora, for CC farewell dinner a 7pm. The food was delightful and the service impeccable under the leadership of Aurora, Dining Room Maître 'D.
We hosted a lovely pre-dinner cocktail party in our Owner's suite at 630 for 14 Roll Call members. We added another couple for dinner and a rousing toast was made to salute our Roll Call Coordinator: Lou (Brighten Line)..
We finished off the evening with a bottle of bubbly served by our butler in the Stardust Theater. The show of the evening was an eclectic presentation by the NCL dance troupe of various music genres from the Jersey Boys to Mo-Town to neo mod rock.
Tomorrow will be out last cruise day….
We set our clocks back an hour last night and got an extra hour of sleep. We invited our cruise mates, Karen & Franco, to breakfast with us en suite. Once again, our "eager to please" butler, Elvie brought double portions of our order. When multiplied by 2 persons it was a lot of food but multiplied for 4 people it made the wooden table creak and groan.
After breakfast I spent about an hour making my final selections of on board photos and ordering a thumb drive copy of all of my chosen pics.
We started organizing our clothes to expedite the afternoon of packing and wrote thank you notes to accompany an extra gratuity for those who provided special service and assistance.
We went off to lunch with a bottle of champagne. Good Lord, we have 2 more bottles of sparkling wine and 2 bottles of red wine. What to do? What to do? We developed a game plan over cold salmon and bubbly. The four of us will drink 2 bottles of red in Le Bistro tonight. Then we'll share a bottle of champagne in the theater and finish off the second bottle with breakfast in the morning. Oh the pressures of these heavy decisions. I may crack under the strain.
We finished packing after lunch and laid out our clothes for the morning, including warm sweaters and coats….. back to reality. Time for a last vodka tonic and Canadian and 7 Up. Now, off to Le Bistro. The meal was superb and the service impeccable. Since we were guests of Mr. Di Silva, the Food & Beverage Director, we must email a thank you when we return home.
The final show was very enjoyable with an outstanding encore by comedian Jeff Harms who memorializes the contrast between growing up in the 1950s and 2013. The Assistant Cruise Director put on a bravura baritone performance of operatic song. The Grand Finale' was act that keeps on giving: "Fountains". If you have to ask, you must cruise NCL to learn what that means....The evening has ended. It has been a wonderful 9 days.
For debarkation day, NCL changed the VIP breakfast venue from Cagney's to Le Bistro, deck 6, which is also the deck for the NYC gangway exit. But, after breakfast we and our cruise mates went back to our suite to wait for debarkation last call in more comfort. We wanted to limit our waiting time for hotel room availability.
The Concierge Carlos's stalwart Butler Team provided rapid debarkation off the ship and through customs and the terminal for all VIP guests. Once outside the terminal, the nightmare began. Most people left the terminal at street level and had to cross 2 roadways: a 2 lane service street and an 8 lane main street to reach the outdoor taxi stand (about 1/2 mile). They were then exposed to the cold wind off the river for a 15 minute wait in the taxi line. Others went to the second level of the terminal which is in a wind protected area with overhead heating lamps. But, here the wait was 30 minutes because you were waiting for taxis dropping off guests for that days sailing and they were just starting to arrive. In the future, I will order a private car to pick us up on the upper level.
The taxi ride was about 2 miles but took 30 minutes ($18) in NYC traffic caused, in major part; by using one of two lanes for bicycles on 44th St. It was crazy. A ten block back up of stop and go traffic with an empty lane for nonexistent bikers.
We got to our hotel (Mela) one block from Times Square (120 W 44th St.) and they said they would have a room in about an hour. We went next door to the Irish Pub to await our room and the arrival of former cruise mates, Jim & Jeanne, who were coming over from NJ to spend the day with us. When they arrived, we enjoyed a light lunch in the pub and set off for a walk around Times Square. When we returned, my room was ready and I asked if there was an upgrade available with a sitting room so we could entertain our guests. Hotel Mela suggested an Exec Mini Suite for a modest price increase which was perfect.
Sharon and Jeanne went up to the room while Jim and I walked around the corner to a drug store (Duane & Reed) to buy soda, wine and beer. The four of us visited for several hours when we were joined by our Gem ship mates, Franco & Karen. After another round of libations and chat, we went to the Bistro French restaurant which is also adjacent to the hotel (other side) for their pre theater (5-7pm) pre fixe 3 course meal (choice from 6 starters, 6 entrees, and 4 desserts) for $28 and a lovely wine list ($30-$50 per bottle). The food was terrific (steak, chicken, mussels, salmon, pasta entrees), the service superb and the room and ambiance lovely. Our total bill for six (including wine, tax and 20% tip) was $300. Not bad for NYC one block from Time Square.
We returned to our mini suite for an after dinner drink and conversation. Jim & Jeanne left for home about 10 pm. Karen & Franco stayed another half hour to plan tomorrow's NY adventure.
Good Night
We slept until 9 am and were awakened by room service delivering our breakfast from The Bistro next door to Hotel Mela. We ordered three egg sandwiches with ham on Kaiser Rolls ($8 ea.) and a pot of coffee with 4 cups($6)
W relaxed little and waited for Karen & Franco to come by at 1130. We walked the half block on 44th St. to the Times Square Toys R Us in light snow flurries.
When we left the toy store there was snow mixed with light rain blown by a cold wind. We walked to Ben's Kosher Deli on 38th St. Karen & Franco had a bowl of matzo ball soup and split a high piled corned beef on rye. Sharon Rae and I enjoyed the free homemade pickles and Cole slaw and also split a corned beef sandwich. The four of us shared a bottle of Baron Herzog cabernet.
By the time we headed back to the hotel the snow & rain was mixing with sleet. We were careful in our steps to avoid freezing sleet on the side walk. We went up to our room to rest and chat for an hour before heading over to Radio City Music Hall for the annual Christmas Spectacular with the Rockettes.
We went to the hotel lobby 30 minutes before show time and the door man told me cabs were not plentiful and there were two parties ahead of us. There was no way we could walk the 1/2 mile in the strong wind and sleet. So, the door man arranged a private car for $20.
After a 5 minute ride, we were dropped off at Radio City but at the wrong door. We walked around the corner and were in our center seats 10 minutes before show time.
The next 2 hours were some of the most memorable and magic moments I have ever spent in any entertainment venue. The special effects, 3D cinema, cast of singers and dancers and the world famous Rockettes delivered an incredible performance of fun, nostalgia, humor, ancient and traditional Christmas music, a mix of sets, props and background film creating a realistic tour of NYC Christmas sights by tour bus, fantastic dance numbers and ended with a full stage tableau of Bethlehem valley and birth in the manger.
When we left the theater the weather had gone from bad to worse. I asked a NYC cop what was my best bet to find a cab for my wife with mobility issues? He told me he'd get me a cab. It took him 10 minutes but he got us a cab which we took to 6th Ave & 44th St & Broadway.
We went for dinner in the Dr Jekyll & Mr. Hyde Club which is a restaurant of kitsch and corny humor (ala Disney's Haunted Mansion) with secret doors and walls and statues that come to life as ghosts and ghoulies. We very disappointed with our server but the burgers were a full 1/2 pound and very good. They had a nice Sonoma cabernet for $35. It was fun but may be an only once experience.
The four of us walked a block back to the hotel and had a night cap while reminiscing the last wonderful 2 weeks. With hugs all around Franco & Karen headed back to their hotel.
We fly home tomorrow. Less
Published 12/25/13
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Project DescriptionSound Transit, formerly known as Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority, operates express bus, commuter rail, and light rail service throughout Washington State.
Forms+Surfaces worked with design firm, OTAK, to provide a range of seating options to travelers at a number of Sound Transit stations. Our Tecno RS Seating is shown here in three configurations: backed seats with diagonal armrests, backless seats with horizontal armrests, and perch seats -- all surface-mounted with cylindrical posts.