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The Night of the Were-Ed series of fancomics is created by Nintendo-Nut1 on deviantART.
Night of the Were-Ed: http://nintendo-nut1.deviantart.com/gallery/#Night-of-the-Were-Ed
Night of the Were-Ed 2: Solar Eclipse- http://nintendo-nut1.deviantart.com/gallery/#Night-of-the-Were-Ed-2-Solar-Eclipse
Night of the Were-Ed 3: All Hallow's Eve- http://nintendo-nut1.deviantart.com/gallery/#Night-of-the-Were-Ed-3-All-Hallow-s-Eve
Night of the Were-Ed spinoff: Were-Eds in London, a fanfic written by NatThePopcornFairy- http://natthepopcornfairy.deviantart.com/art/Were-Eds-in-London-159207889
Night of the Were-Ed spinoff: Prophecy of a Hybrid, another fanfic written by NatThePopcornFairy- part 1: http://natthepopcornfairy.deviantart.com/art/Prophecy-of-a-Hybrid-Part-1-163747825
Ed - Is a werewolf, he is the one who gave Double D his werewolf powers, Ed was bitten by a infected dog, in which he bit Double. He has very limited control over his powers except when the retained his humanity side in "All Hollow's Eve". Ed still retains his fun-loving, loyal, and dim-witted personality, but seems to have become much more intelligent. He has a vast knowledge of sci-fi and horror movies which help the Ed's when they are fighting certain monsters. Ed's appearance changes throughout the series; his hair becomes slightly shorter in each comic. He and May Kanker becomes a couple at the end of "All Hollow's Eve", seeing as how they have so much in comen.
Edd - More commonly known as Double D. Is a werewolf, later becomes a vampire/werewolf hybrid (A WereVamp) in "Solar Eclipse" after Marie Kanker bit him. Double D was bitten by Ed in his werewolf form in which he became one himself. Double still stays the brains of the group, he seems to be more social now as he is able to cope with the rest of the cul-de-sac kids Double D's appearance changes in "Solar Eclipse" were he now wears an orange and yellow shirt instead of his red one. He and Marie Kanker becomes a couple at the end of "Solar Eclipse". At the end of "All Haollow's Eve" Edd goes back to being a Werewolf instead of a WereVamp.
Eddy - Stays human throughout the series and becomes a beginner monster slayer. Eddy seems to have changed the most, personality wise (most likely from the events of "Big Picture show"). He seems to care a lot more for his friends and seems much less selfish and is a lot kinder around others, but still retains some of his personality by still calling Ed and Double D "Lumpy"and "Sock Head." respectivly. Eddy's appearance changes mostly in the "All Hollow's Eve" were he combs his three hairs back and keeps it that way for the rest of the series. He and Lee Kanker becomes a couple at the end of "All Hollow's Eve", after Lee knocks out his older brother, Eddy qwot "Ayone with the guts to punch my Bro in the face is good enogh for me".
Eddy's Brother - He is the brother of Eddy. He stays human throughout the series and is an expert monster slayer. He still keeps his personality from "Big Picture Show" and still calls Eddy "pipsqueak". At the end of the third comic he and Eddy reconcile. He is the only character who has the same appearance from the original series, minus the sunglasses.
Sarah - A kid of the cul-de-sac and Ed's sister, she is human but becomes a zombie in "All Hollow's Eve". She still seems to have a short temper but seems to keep better control of it. She is a lot nicer and less harassing toward Ed and his friends and seems to care more about her brother. Her appearance changes only slightly, sporting a ponytail instead of her hair being down.
Kevin - A kid of the cul-de-sac. He is human, but becomes a zombie in "All Hollow's Eve". Kevin seems to be on better terms with the Eds but still calls them "dorks" but not as much as before. His appearance changes in "Solar Eclipse"; his hair is pulled back into a ponytail and sports an earring, as well as having a green muscle shirt.
Rolf - A kid of the cul-de-sac. He is human but becomes a zombie in "All Hollow's Eve". Rolf still retains his personality referring himself as "a son of a shepherd". His appearance changes in "Solar Eclipse", he then sports a goatee and also and yellow and red muscle shirt.
Gusterd - One of Rolf's chickens who is killed in "Solar Eclipes" and even gven a funeral to trick the readers into thinking it was Edd's funeral. He makes a reappearence in "All Hallow's Eve" as a true zombie.
Jonny 2X4 - A kid of the cul-de-sac. He is human but becomes a zombie in "All Hollow's Eve". Johnny still retains his weird personality and consults with Plank to help fix problems. His only appearance changes in "Solar Eclipse" were he gains a mohawk like hairdo.
Plank - Johnny's imaginary 'friend" he is a plain piece of wood that Johnny carries around. He is used as a weapon in to kill a Vampire in "Solar Eclipse." He becomes a zombie in "All Hallow's Eve."
Nazz - A kid of the cul-de-sac. She is human but becomes a zombie in "All Hollow's Eve"; she keeps most of her personality. She is really good in medical treatment as she patched up Double D after his werewolf attack. Her appearance changes in "Solar Eclipse". Where she has a strapless tank top and tighter fitting jeans.
Jimmy - A kid of the cul-de-sac. He is human but becomes a zombie in "All Hollow's Eve". During some time before the first book, he had his braces removed and has longer hair. He is best friends with Sarah and cares deeply for her.
Marie Kanker - One of the Kanker Sisters, becomes a vampire in "Solar Eclipse", she is the most calm and smartest of the sisters. She is the one who gave Double D vampire powers causing him to become a hybrid. She and Double D becomes a couple at the end of "Solar Eclipse".
May Kanker - One of the Kanker Sisters, becomes a vampire in "Solar Eclipse" She is the most fun-loving and dim-witted of the sisters. She and Ed becomes a couple at the end of "All Hollow's Eve".
Lee Kanker - One of the Kanker Sisters, becomes a vampire in "Solar Eclipse. She is the leader and toughest of the sisters. She and Eddy become a couple at the end of "All Hollow's Eve".
Sumary of the Books
Night of the Were Ed
- The Ed's are building the supplies for the scam when Ed's bitten hand starts to act up. Double D convinces Eddy to let Ed go home much to Eddy's annoyance. Later that night, Ed has trouble sleeping and looks out his window to see a Full Moon. Ed suddenly gets pains and falls to his knees unsure what is happening. He then sees one of his favorite videos "Curse of the Werewolves." and starts to transform. Sarah hearing Ed's screams heads down to the basement to tell Ed to be quiet, but she only comes upon Ed who had fully transformed into a werewolf. Elsewhere Double D and Eddy are planning the scam and hear a knock on the door. Edd answers it and Sarah runs inside with her clothes torn and claw marks on her saying that there was a monster out there. Eddy, thinking it's a joke opens the door and barely dodges Ed's claw. They escape from the house and escape to the Junkyard. Edd, Eddy and Sarah get trapped and Double D takes a look at the beast and realizes its Ed. But before anyone can look more into this, Ed attacks them and manages to bite Double D. Eddy manages to find a rusty pipe and knocks Ed unconscious. After this happens the rest of the Cul-Da-Sac kid's show up coming upon Ed, Eddy, Double D and Sarah. The next morning Ed wakes up with a bat wielding Kevin watching over him. Sarah and Eddy come in the check on him much to their relief. Ed then asks Eddy if he hurt anybody, then he hears Double D and finds him bandaged much to Ed's shock and sadness. Later Johnny tells the group about werewolves and Rolf suggest find the original werewolf who bit Ed and kill it, thus restoring Ed and Double D's humanity. Later that evening the kids go out to hunt down the main werewolf as Ed and Double D are locked in Ed's room. Ed and Double D consult of how to beat the head werewolf as were Ed explains the people who are infected use their werewolf form to beat the main werewolf. Double D then comes up with a plan to use their forms to weaken the werewolf so their friends and deliver the killing blow, Ed it at first reluctant, but agrees with Double D. They then transform and escape from Ed's room to go catch up with the others. Meanwhile the other kids manage to find the main werewolf and attempt to kill it with a pure silver cookie cutter supplied by Jimmy. The werewolf unfortunately is able the overpower them and tries to attack them, but they are saved by Ed and Double D. Ed and Double D then attack the werewolf to everyone else's surprise. Ed and Double D manage to weaken the werewolf enough for Eddy to deliver the killing blow. The werewolf is killed and Ed and Double D are restored to their human forms, which both then fall unconscious. The next morning Double D wakes up to see Nazz over him to check his wounds but finds them already healed. Eddy then appears and says Ed is all right and the threat is gone. Later that evening Double D writes in his journal and then goes to see the full moon. Both he and Ed meet each other at the lake and looks up at the full moon, ending with Double D saying he would never look at it the same way again.
Night of the Were Ed 2: Solar Eclipes
- The Eds are in Double D's room when they hear on the radio that says that solar eclipse would happen the next day at at 11:12am. Eddy and Double D talk about the eclipse. Double D says it would be an exciting experience to see the supernatural effects behind it. To which Eddy jokingly says he thought they had enough of supernatural experiences, in which says after what happened in the first book they needed to be ready for anything. After this, Eddy brings up the subject that they hadn't been harassed by the Kankers for over a week. Double D says what they do is their own business, but Ed says it's still weird. Double then tells Ed there is a Full Moon today and asks if he would take a stroll with him. But Ed says he can't because he has to watch Sarah, and Eddy says he would think Sarah was old enough to look after herself, saying he was whipped, so Double D walks by himself. Edd then narrates and explains that what happened in the first book which was 4 years ago. Unknown to him a Vampire is following. The vampire lunges at him tackles him to the ground. Edd sees that it's Marie Kanker, he manages to snap Marie out of her blood crazed trance by calling her name. Scared about what she almost did Marie throws Edd into a tree and flees. Double D hits his head and tries to call her but he passes out. The next morning the kids and the Eds are starring at Rolf's dead chicken Gustad on the sidewalk. Double D questions Rolf about what attacked his chickens, but Rolf couldn't recall what the creature was but knew it was some sort of humanoid. Kevin realizes this and asks Double D if it was werewolves, Ed then says it looks more like a vampire did it. The scene then shifts to the Kanker's trailer home where Marie is recovering from the night before, May and Lee leave to go meet "Him". Marie stays saying she would meet them later. Edd goes to his home with Ed. Ed gives him much info, and once he told him all he knows Edd goes on the internet for more. When they meet up with the others Eddy and the other kids and tell them that vampires will attack werewolves most often when they're transformed. Edd says that they will transform on a solar eclipse even though the curse is broken. Edd goes to speak to Marie as the rest of the cul-de-sac kids prepare for the battle. Double D meets with Marie and accidently causes Marie to burn her hand from the sunlight. They tell each other how they got their powers. Marie tells how she became a vampire by meeting a young man who turned out to be a Vampire and bit them. Double D then tells Marie to bite him so he can have the power to kill the head vampire, a reluctant Marie then bites Edd's neck. As the eclipse starts, Double D then transformed into a Vampire/Werewolf hybrid giving him the ability to speak, they head to regroup with the others. Meanwhile Eddy, a transformed Ed and the rest of the kids prepare to face the vampires, and are surprised to see it's the Kanker. Unfortunately Eddy is reluctant to attack the Kankers and Ed breaks free from the restraints and everything falls apart. Thankfully, Double D is able to bring the head vampire out of hiding and a battle occurs between Edd and the Vampire, and Double D is wounded from the vampire because he got distracted when Ed was attacked by Lee and May. Marie then knocks out Lee and May and holds down the vampire that and Eddy delivers the death blow with Plank. The eclipse ends, the curse is gone. Ed and Edd become human again Ed gain conscious from the battle gets up Double D stays ground bloody and scratched seemingly dead. The next day the kids gather around what seems to be Double D grave. Rolf is giving a emotional speech about the deceased. A hand is placed on Rolf's shoulder to comfort him. It reveals to be Double D who is really bandaged but alive. The grave turns out to be Rolf's dead chicken Gustad's. He tells Rolf that Gustad is in a better place. Ed and Eddy have heated confrontations with Lee and May with a tearful May saying she was sorry for almost eating Ed while hugging him. Which Ed yells "Girl Germs" and Lee is trying to get closer to Eddy, but Eddy is moving away telling her to stay back while looking at her in a threatening way. While Marie and Double D look on, Double tells Marie that he was right to trust her and had a chance to learn more about her. He then asks her if he could trust her to meet him in the Junkyard later that night. Marie blushes and says yes, with a confused looking Eddy, Ed, May, and Lee looking on. Double D then narrates the end saying he was now a terrible hybrid but he got something more in return. He meets up with Marie in the junkyard where they admire the moon... and then kiss with Double D saying that everything seems lovelier under a full moon.
Night of the Were Ed 3: All Hallows Eve
- It starts with the Eds watching a zombie movie in Ed's room (his basement), Edd said it could have used a little more and him and Eddy start arguing. Ed sees Edd is reading something. Edd said it's abbout Halloween (A.K.A All Hallows Eve) Eddy asked why and Edd said the thing about the eclipes during the summer. Edd and Eddy had to go but before Edd went home he told them everyone said yes to the Halloween Party tomarrow. On Halloween almost everyone was there. Eddy asked why Edd was a scarecrow. Edd was telling when the doorbell rang. Edd greeted them and you see Ed and Eddy's faces are treiffied. Eddy then screamed 'You invited the Kankers?!' Things start to go bad at about 10:07pm. Sarah, Jimmy, Nazz, Kevin, Rolf and at least one of his chickens became zombies. Ed and Edd started to transform, Edd told the others to run. Ed and Edd were both surprised about what Ed can do. Edd said that they ran to Rolf's so they should meet them there. But before Edd could finish speaking they were lookng at the end of a gun barrel. Will they live? Who was holding the gun? Will the others survive a zombie ambush? I will say this a hybrid damages the boundry between spirts' world and the humans' world, and on Halloween the boundry is broken. Eddy Brother thinks there must be a sacrifice.
- In "All Hallows Eve" there is a reference to "Ed, Edd n Eddy's Boo, Haw, Haw."
- When they go in the old house May refrences "Honor Thy Ed."
- Rolf's knowledge of werewolves might be a reference from the episode "No Speak Da Ed" were Rolf had a rivalry against an werewolf like enemy.
- When Ed and May were in the basment and there was a zombie in jester clothing it looked like the catacombs from "The Cask of Amontiado" a book writen by Edgar Allan Poe.
- Edd falls in love with Marie, Ed falls in love with May, and Eddy falls in love with Lee respectivly..
- The 2nd book takes place 4 years after the 1st.
- The 3rd book takes place the same year as the 2nd book only during Halloween.
- Marie called Edd a 'Werevamp' apparently that is what a Werewolf Vampire hybrid is called.
- Eddy's Bro appears in book 3 as a monster slayer.
- Aparently Edd might have set himself on fire while lighting a pumpkin once, as mentioned by Eddy.
- At the end of "All Hallow's Eve" Edd was able to choose between being a vampire or werewolf. He chose to be a werewolf and he is no longer a hybrid.
- Odin is the King of the Gods in Norse Mythology.
- Ravens and wolves are hunt brothers.
- The 3rd and final book ends a little open-ended and the author encorages others to make spin-offs because the Eds are registed monater slayers.
- At end of the last book Ed and Edd aparently are able to transform on every full moon even though the curses are broken.
- An average full moon lasts for about 3-4 days.
- In the 2nd book Plank is sharpened into a spike but in the 3rd book he's back to normal but has alot of dirt on him.
- The 2nd and 3rd books have better drawings than the 1st.
The Ritual/Sacrifice
- Go to the highest hill.
- Start a fire.
- Kill the hybrid to restore balance.
- The hybrid will be revived by Odin because of the noble sacrifice.
Book 1 Qoutes
*Edd: [looking at the werewolf] Eddy...look at it.
Eddy: What?
Edd: Auburn hair...Heavy brow...I think that it is Ed.
*Jonny: Yup! it's werewolves alright! Plank knows all about 'em!
*Ed: In the movies when the main charecters get infected they usally take out the head werewolf.
*Rolf: Ed-boy would like the honor of breaking your friends curse?
Book 2 Quotes
*Eddy: You'd think your bratty sister would be old enough to take care of herself...
Ed: Tell that to my mom.
Eddy: You're so whipped.
*Ed: [Looking at the dead chicken.] Poor chicken...
*Ed: Accually...It looks more like the work of...A vampire.
Kevin: What?! Vampires you've got to be kidding me!
*Edd: [Talking to Ed.] Now tell me everything you know...About vampires.
*Edd: That makes sense, there food source is identical, so I'd imagen the would be some compition.
Ed: Eww.
Edd: Don't you 'Eww' me. You're the one who sank your teeth into my shoulder, remember?
Ed: It wasn't my fault.
*Edd: [Hugging Marie.] ...Bite me Marie.
*Rolf: [Sharenping Plank.] Do not freet Jonny 2x4...The wood shall have the honor...Of slaying the vampire himself.
Jonny: I know. Be brave buddy.
*May: Waahhh!! Oh, Ed!! I'm so sorry I tried to eat you!! Waahhh!!
Book 3 Quotes
*Ed: Awww, the spirits aren't that evil anymore, Double D...They just like to play.
*Ed: Hello, Double D did you warn away the evil spirts?
Eddy: Without lighting yourself on fire again?
*Edd: [Greeting the guests.] Well, good evening! I'm glad you could make it.
Eddy: You invited the Kankers!?!
Edd: Well, why not?
*Eddy: [Seeing Edd kissing Marie.] Oh, get a room you two!!
*Eddy's Brother: You got two seconds...To convice me not to blow your brains out.
*Eddy: "I've got two werewolves backing me up! I'm unstopable! Soon I'll be a better slayer than you!"
*Eddy's Brother: [After the Eds kissed the Kankers.] It's Halloween, not Valentine's Day.


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WASHINGTON, DC – Imagine you are a parent with a large number of children and limited resources. Your oldest child is mature enough to move out of your home, but he does not want to. So he stays, consuming resources that his siblings desperately need. Is it right to allow your other children to suffer because their big brother is reluctant to strike out on his own?
A similar dynamic is playing out between the World Bank and the recipients of its International Development Association program. IDA supports equitable growth in poor countries by providing low-interest, long-term loans and grants to national governments. The program supports 77 of the poorest countries in the world – half of which are in Africa. It also provides assistance to one country that no longer deserves it: India.
At the end of the 2014 fiscal year, India officially graduated from the IDA program, because it was no longer poor enough to qualify. The World Bank sets a threshold for receiving assistance, based on per capita gross national income (GNI). In the fiscal year 2016, the threshold is $1,215. India's per capita GNI has exceeded the World Bank's limit each year since 2010. In 2014, it was $1,570.
India is also considered creditworthy, giving it access to international capital markets. And yet India continues to receive $3.2 billion over a three-year period in transitional support from the IDA program, even as other poor countries plead for more funds.

subset: commoncrawl


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2 Interesting things about me
-I don't do drugs
-I graduated high school.
Everything from rap to country!
Ridiculousness, breaking bad, weeds, destination truth, how i met your mother.. thats all i can think, i never get to watch tv.
Ill eat anything but i love chinese, mexican and italian foods.


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MINI Cooper S Model
The car I want, only add racing stripes! High MPG, compact, and fun. It will be the first major purchase I make after graduation in May!
Solar Camera Strap designed by Weng Jie. With this solar camera strap, it will charge your camera by just hanging around your neck while you're out taking pictures.Tags: gadgets, style, stylish, Eco, green, photography, cameras, sustainable, solarAdded 7 Years Ago from Likecool


text: This has got to be one of my favorite drinks. ABSOLUT RASPERRI vodka in a freezing cold glass with perfect clear ice cubes, small part of Cremé de cassis and a splash of sprite. Juicy red sweet raspberries with a hint of citrus. Mmm yum, doesn't get any better than this. Tin, tin!


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Toby Keith Music To Be Featured On 'Glee'
Country music has been featured a lot on the Fox TV show 'Glee'. And now one of the best in the business is going to be featured on an upcoming episode.
Toby Keith's latest hit "Red Solo Cup" will air in the November 15th episode. I can't wait to see what the kids of 'Glee' do with that song!


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Street Chic: New York
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Who: Mariko Nakayama
What: A cotton jumpsuit is the perfect piece for summer in the city.
Wear: Jill Stuart jumpsuit, Chloe bag, vintage sunglasses and shoes
Want to see more street style? Check out our Global Street Chic feature!
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Looking for WordCamp Ann Arbor 2016? Please click here!
October 24th 2015
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Best of all – WordCamps are fun!
They offer a perfect time to jump in, participate, and get to know other WordPress enthusiasts.
WordCamp Ann Arbor is Coming
WordCamp is coming to Ann Arbor and will be perfect for users, designers, developers and businesses. We'll be hosting the event on October 24th in beautiful downtown Ann Arbor. It will be the best time of year in Michigan (the fall) and we're going to have a great line up of speakers and attendees. We hope you'll be one of them.
We are currently looking for speakers, sponsors and volunteers.
We'll be updating this website more and more in the coming weeks, so please check back for more updates.


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The process of a smut(female) building a innocent/good girl persona into the mind of a male shes interested in, in turn making the male believe that he thinks she is a innocent/good girl while he can clearly see her smut ways
through the process of smutception lisa was able to make mike believe he could turn a hoe into a house wife.
by @TranceRandom December 18, 2010
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One side has the word, one side has the definition. Microwave and dishwasher safe. Lotsa space for your liquids.Buy the mug


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A taxman tribute, our 420 playlist, DJ Spooky's #PrivateJam and more in the music we tweeted this week
Grace Jones: Me! I Disconnect From You
Model turned new wave R&B diva, Grace Jones remains on heavy rotation at clubs around the world, but for many its her covers that stand out most. Jones reinterprets songs with a certain refined soulfulness that gives even the most familiar track a new allure. Her previously unreleased take on Tubeway Army's "Me! I Disconnect From You" is Jones in her element, injecting her brand of assertive vocals over a stripped-down dub backing. To celebrate Record Store Day, the track will be available on vinyl for the first time from Island Records through an expanded reissue of her 1981 LP Nightclubbing.
Junior Parker: Taxman
Tuesday, 15 April was Tax Day in the States, and depending on where residents fall on the country's economic scale, some received a small chunk of change in return for year-long investment while others had to give up some hard-earned cash. To punctuate the dubious occasion, we gave a listen to Junior Parker's slowed down, soulful rendition of The Beatles' "Taxman," which reminds us that while we may not always know what it's for, just be thankful he doesn't take it all because in reality, he can come for it any time he wants it. And file those extensions because if you don't want to pay, you'll just pay some more.
Prince: Controversy
For this week's #PrivateJam, DJ Spooky—the man who exemplifies the idea of the disc jockey as artist and creator of new music—cited Prince's epic seven-minute jam "Controversy" as the song he'd be "really embarrassed to be caught doing air guitar to." He says, "I remember when Purple Rain and stuff like that came through. I always felt it was reaalllly slick and pop. When I was a kid, I liked more independent and underground music like Fugazi or Minor Threat and Bad Brains, and didn't like pop that much. But there's something about Prince…" There's no better guitar legend to air guitar to, we'd say.
This week marks the 20th anniversary of Nas' (aka Nasir Jones) seminal debut album Illmatic, which remains equally relevant today. The record—permeated with thoughtful and poetic lyrics, performed in Nas' trademark gravelly and passionate voice—is often credited with bringing East Coast hip-hop back into the raw fold and paving the way for the likes of the Notorious B.I.G. and Jay-Z. One listen to "NY State of Mind" and it's clear why the Queensbridge artist became a hip-hop icon—his first recordings have the refined clarity and lyrical range of a songwriting veteran. The anniversary coincides with both special vinyl releases for Record Store Day and commemorative documentary "Time is Illmatic," which kicked off this year's TriBeCa Film Festival.
Cool Hunting's 24 Songs for 4/20
Today marks the annual cannabis lover's holiday, fondly known as 420. To celebrate, we've selected 24 tunes that are sure to put you in a festive mood whether you're a casual toker or a self-declared pothead—or (questionably) neither of these. With legalization sweeping much of the United States and acceptance among most of the modern world, there's even more reason to roll up a fatty and enjoy the positive vibes put forth by musicians across all genres. So crumble some herb and take a hit from the bong or burn one down—just be sure to pass the dutchie to the left-hand side.
ListenUp is a Cool Hunting series published every Sunday that takes a deeper look at the music we tweeted throughout the week. Often we'll include a musician or notable fan's personal favorite in a song or album dubbed #PrivateJam.


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The Australian Chamber Choir is renowned for its successful international concert tours. From 2007 to 2017, we will have given a total of 100 performances in six tours of Austria, France, Germany, Denmark, Italy, Poland and Switzerland.…Read more
Douglas Lawrence founded the Australian Chamber Choir in 2007 after 25 years directing the Choir of Ormond College.…Read more
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James Watson has long assumed a certain special status among American scientists. And I have been among those who have long held him in high regard.
Watson shared the Nobel in 1962 for identifying the elegant and unexpected "double helix" three-dimensional structure of deoxyribonucleic acid, commonly known as DNA. On Oct. 14, 2007, one of his former assistants, Charlotte Hunt-Grubbe, wrote about him in London's Sunday Times that quoted him making racist comments about black people by suggesting there are inherent, unalterable biological differences in intelligence between black people and everyone else. The response was swift and impressively devastating. The father of DNA had spoken the unspeakable.
Echoing racist remarks that have been used to justify the enslavement and colonization of black people since the Enlightenment (think Hume, Kant, Jefferson, Hegel), Watson's comments implied that he believed that nature had created a primal distinction in intelligence and innate mental capacity between blacks and whites, which no amount of social intervention could ever change. It was as if one of the smartest white men in the world had confirmed what so many racists believe: that the gap between blacks and whites in, say, IQ test scores and SAT results has a biological basis and that environmental factors such as centuries of slavery, colonization, Jim Crow and race-based discrimination — all contributing to uneven economic development — don't amount to a hill of beans.
Five days after the article was published, he profusely apologized in a statement to the press; on Oct. 25, he abruptly retired from his position at Cold Spring Harbor, a lavishly funded and idyllic center on Long Island for the advanced study of genomics and cancer, after 40 years of service there.
When I read about Watson's remarks, I was astonished, not to mention angered and saddened. I was also determined to ask him about these comments directly. I sent him a letter, offering him a platform in the black world through which he could explain, defend and perhaps clarify the remarks attributed to him. He accepted my invitation to give The Root his first major interview since the Hunt-Grubbe article appeared.
I had read, with the admiring avidity of a high school senior hellbent on medical school, his bestselling book, The Double Helix, back in 1968. But it was not until December 2006 that I met the scientist I had so admired. I was in New York, delivering a lecture. As I rose to the podium, an official whispered to me that James Watson was in the audience. I was astonished; I had no idea that he was still alive. Afterward, I was seated next to Dr. Watson at dinner. I found him friendly, but a bit awkward in conversation; generous and thoughtful, funny, but quirky-funny. A week later, unsolicited, a signed copy of The Double Helix arrived at my home.
I thought of all that as I arrived at his offices at Cold Spring Harbor for our interview. We talked for well over an hour, with no holds barred.
"Well?" one of my friends asked later. "Is he a racist?"
I don't think James Watson is a racist. But I do think that he is a racialist — that is, he believes that certain observable traits or forms of behavior among groups of human beings might, indeed, have a biological basis in the code that scientists, eventually, may be able to ascertain, that the "gene" is some mythically neutral space and what it purportedly "measures" or "determines" is independent of environmental factors, variables and influences.
The distinction between being a racist and a racialist is crucial. James Watson is not the garden-variety racist as he has been caricatured by the press and bloggers, and he seemed genuinely chagrined, embarrassed and remorseful that David Duke and other racists had claimed him as their champion, as one of their own, because of his remarks as quoted in the London Sunday Times. And, as we might expect, he apologized profusely for those remarks, contending that he had been misquoted, at worst, and his remarks taken out of context, at best.
But I did leave Cold Spring Harbor convinced that Dr. Watson believes that many forms of behavior — such as "Jewish intelligence" (his phrase) and the basketball prowess of black men in the NBA (his example) — could, possibly, be traced to genetic differences among human beings, although no such connection has been made, and will probably never be made on any firm scientific basis, it seems to me.
And I have to say that it was ultimately chilling to me when he remarked, with what seemed monumental naivete, "if they find genes for all kinds of Jewish intelligence, I don't think it's going to affect me in the slightest," especially when we couple that sort of remark with his passionate belief that "everyone should be judged as individuals. No one should be judged by a term like 'black.' "
Yet precisely because of the misuses of science and pseudoscience since the 18th century, which put into place fixed categories of four or five "races" to justify an economic order dependent upon the exploitation of blacks (and other people of color) as cheap sources of labor, starting with slavery and continuing through Jim Crow and beyond, it has never been possible for a person of African descent to function in American society simply and purely as an "individual."
And if the presidential candidacy of Barack Obama has taught him, and us, anything, it is that this perhaps ideal state — to function as an individual and to be judged on your individual merits — still remains a most elusive and somewhat naive dream.
Watson's error is that he associates individual genetic differences (which, of course, do in fact exist) with ethnic variation (which is sociocultural and highly malleable). Character traits — abilities and behaviors, such as intelligence or basketball skills, that are popularly attributed to groups and are defined as "genetic" — will, in fact, continue to delimit the freedom of choice and expression of individuals who fall into those "racial" categories, regardless of our individual attainments and achievements. In the end, visions that are racialist may end up doing the same work of those that are racist. This is a lesson Watson has lived, and it is one from which we all might learn.
Having spent the past three decades studying racist discourse in the West (starting with my dissertation on the Enlightenment), I know such conclusions — say, about an entity called "Jewish intelligence" — would deleteriously affect me as a black person because it would reinforce stereotypes about Jewish people being genetically superior, and that such a conclusion would reinforce stereotypes about black people being inherently less intelligent than others in the human community.
If such differences in intelligence were purported to have a genetic basis, as David Duke proclaimed on his Web site with such naked glee, all of the social intervention in the world could have only so much effect. (Head Start? Why bother, when nature is to blame.) Sooner or later, in a time of increasing economic scarcity, members of these supposedly "different" or "lesser" ethnic groups or genetic populations could very well find their life possibilities limited and perhaps even regulated. Who among us can doubt that this would be true?
As I drove away from Cold Harbor, I realized that my conversation with Dr. Watson only confirmed something I already, with great trepidation, have come to believe: That the last great battle over racism will be fought not over access to a lunch counter, or a hotel room, or to the right to vote, or even the right to occupy the White House; it will be fought in a laboratory, in a test tube, under a microscope, in our genome, on the battleground of our DNA. It is here where we, as a society, will rank and interpret our genetic difference.
Henry Louis Gates Jr. is editor in chief of The Root and is the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor at Harvard University.


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These cities are none too friendly
Published 4:00 pm, Thursday, August 21, 2014
Think the Seattle Freeze is bad?
Cool. Perhaps. But maybe not unfriendly.
Condé Nast Traveler readers have ranked the friendliest and unfriendliest cities in America.
Seattle makes neither top 10, which probably is fitting in a town of cool politeness. The usual suspects that we love to make fun of -- were's talking about you, Portland and San Francisco --didn't make the list either.
San Francisco's neighbor Oakland came in as the second most unfriendly city in America, proving there is a there there but not a friendly there.
Newark, N.J., was ranked the most unfriendly. Tony Sprano? The Bada Bing! Seems friendly to us.
Readers apparently love the land of cotton. Charleston, S.C., and Savannah, Ga., ranked 1 and 2 in friendly. "Y'all come back now, hear'" does wonders for civic image.
Eight of the 10 friendliest are in the South or Southwest.
Take a look at the five friendliest and unfriendliest.


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Jim Furyk didn't come close to matching his historic second round 59, but it was good enough for him to grab the outright lead headed into the final round of the 2013 BMW Championship.
Furyk shot a steady 69, while Steve Stricker shot the second lowest round of the day at 64 to come from six shots back at the start of the day to get into serious contention only a stroke back.
Stricker already had five birdies when he matched Furyk's previous day hole out from the 15th fairway, by dunking his wedge into the cup for eagle to move him to -7 on the day. His only bogie of the day on the 17th was followed by a closing birdie on 18 to finish the round.
Furyk had a two shot lead coming into the final hole, but he three putted the par five 18th green for bogie to drop a shot to finish the round.
"The goal was to go out and shoot a good number today, get myself in position to win this golf tournament," Furyk said. "It could have been better out there. … Obviously, I dropped that shot at 18, which I'm disappointed. It was probably one of the easier holes of the day. But I've got myself in good position, so rather than harp on the last hole, I'd probably tend to want to think about tomorrow and what I have to do to try to win a golf tournament."
Second round co-leader Brandt Snedeker had an up and down round, rallying from three early bogies to shoot an even round 71, leaving him in third alone two shots back at the close of the day. Zach Johnson's 69 left him three shots back in fourth.
Tiger Woods shrugged off the two shot penalty he was assessed by PGA Tour officials at the end of the second round, by carving out a very solid 66. The round left him in fifth alone four shots back, and put him in strong position to make a run if he can duplicate or better that effort on Sunday.
Woods got within two shots of the lead before putting his drive at the 15th in the water, leading to a bogie. He recovered later with a birdie to finish at 18.
Charl Schwartzel and Ryan Moore stand another stroke back at -8, tied for sixth entering the final round. Schwartzel's performance solidified his FedEx Cup standing. He likey will be playing in the Tour Championship next week in Atlanta for the very first time. Moore is projected to finish here in 36th place in FedEx Cup points. He'll need to go very low Sunday and move up the leaderboard to keep his FedEx Cup hopes alive.
Matt Kuchar, who had played poorly in the first two rounds, shot a brilliant 61 to move into a tie for 16th. While he never really flirted with matching Furyk's 59 from Friday, he did finish the round with three straight birdies. Kuchar is solidly in contention for the FedEx Cup title heading into next week.
A host of competitors will be playing for the FedEx Cup lives today. Dustin Johnson, Bubba Watson, Harris English, D.A. Points, Nick Watney, Jimmy Walker, Rickie Fowler, and Kevin Stadler all need either solid or spectacular rounds to day to either maintain position or surge into qualification. Only the top 30 in FedEx Cup points at the end of the day on Sunday will play next week in Atlanta.
With a $10 million prize awaiting the FedEx Cup winner, and with plenty of cash otherwise available to all those left standing next week, there's a lot of incentive to play the best golf in the 'tournament inside the tournament' going on at Conway Farms Golf Club.
Your man cave is your home field advantage for every game. When the game is on the line, you should be able to look around and be reminded of the great moments you've watched unfold in that very room! MJR Sports Integrity offers a wide range or team and player-specific memorabilia that can do just that and take your game day room to the next level. Find your inspiration at MJR Sports Integrity and will your team to victory!Tags: BMW Championship, Brandt Snedeker, Bubba Watson, Charl Schwartzel, Dustin Johnson, FedEx Cup, Golf, Jim Furyk, Matt Kuchar, Nick Watney, Rickie Fowler, Ryan Moore, Steve Stricker, Tiger Woods, Tour Championship


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Adele Cancels US Tour: How Long Will We Have To Wait To See Her?
Were you lucky enough to nab tickets to see Adele this month? Well, I'm very sorry to report that her upcoming 10-city US tour has been cancelled thanks to a vocal chord hemorrhage. "Singing is literally my life—it's my hobbie, my love, my freedom and now my job," Adele wrote, explaining her rationale for canceling her dates along the East Coast and in the South for the second time. "I have absolutely no choice but to recuperate properly and fully, or i risk damaging my voice forever … I have great confidence in believing you know how much this upsets me, how seriously i take it and how truly devastated and annoyed i am by this." [Gossip Cop]
So will Adele reschedule these dates? Or are we just out in the cold? We look to recent history for some answers.
- On August 1, Kings of Leon reported that they were canceling the remainder of their US tour because Caleb Followill was suffering from "vocal issues and exhaustion." Rumors that the band was breaking up quickly flared. The band has claimed that's not the case, but they also have yet to reschedule their missed dates. [Huffington Post]
- In July, Taylor Swift came down with a case of bronchitis and cancelled two tour dates, in Charlotte and Atlanta. "I would never cancel if I thought I was physically able to perform these shows," Taylor said, promising to reschedule. Fans in those towns just got to see her last weekend, but she did go above and beyond, surprising the Atlanta audience with a duet of "Live Your Life" with T.I. [Celebrity Health Fitness]
- Last year, U2 was forced to cancel the North American dates of their 360 Degree world tour when Bono needed emergency back surgery. This summer, the US and Canada finally got to see Bono and The Edge do their thing. But it would have been funny if they'd renamed these dates the 365 Days Later tour. [PR Newswire]
- This actually isn't the first time Adele has had to cancel dates. In September, she cancelled four UK shows because of a chest infection. They have been rescheduled for early November. In June, she cancelled shows in Los Angeles and Vancouver because of laryngitis, and she made good on those appearances in August. At the same time, she had also cancelled the 10 cities who were supposed to get to see her this time around. [LA Times, Fanatix]
The verdict? We just have no idea. But it could be a long while before we get to see our girl. All this leads me to believe that tour bookers (or is it managers) need to be very wary of packing in too many tour dates. It might seem like a great idea money wise, but it sure can wear a performer out.


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Tech Spending: The Great Divide
There's something puzzling going on in the computer industry. Sales of many products for businesses are plummeting, while other categories are doing quite well. Makers of powerful server computers, for instance, have seen quarterly sales drops of 20% or more. In contrast, Salesforce.com (CRM), which sells customer-management software as a service delivered over the Internet, saw revenues grow 34% last quarter, to $290 million.
The main reason for the disparity: Salesforce.com typically receives monthly checks from its customers. Companies don't have to rack up capital expenses or borrow money from tightfisted lenders to pay for computers and software. "Traditional hardware and software purchases are made through capital expenditures. That's an incredibly difficult thing to do in the current environment," says Marc Benioff, Salesforce.com's CEO. He says we're moving into "a zero-capex world." Avon Products (AVP) recently opted to use Salesforce.com's service to track 75,000 salespeople.
A great divide is opening up in the tech industry for companies that sell to businesses. Because of the severe economic downturn and credit crunch, companies such as Salesforce.com that rely on customers making purchases as an operating expense have a distinct edge over those whose customers use capital expenditures to pay for technology. The trend gives an advantage to services-oriented companies.
Outfits on the wrong end of the situation can't switch business models overnight. They're being forced to come up with ways of addressing their vulnerabilities—including, in some cases, becoming zero-interest banks for customers. Dell (DELL), for instance, recently rolled out a package of promotional financing for some server computers, including interest-free financing for certain products for up to three years. Cisco Systems (CSCO) is also offering interest-free financing for some customers on certain products.
Software companies that rely primarily on capital expenditures are making adjustments, too. German software giant SAP (SAP) has begun marketing its software in smaller, more-affordable pieces—hoping that when the economy improves customers will come back to it for more. Microsoft (MSFT) has laid out a sweeping vision of managing software for corporate customers, allowing them to rent rather than buy outright.
On the happy side of the divide are tech services companies. Accenture (ACN) and Indian tech leaders Infosys Technologies (INFY) and Tata Consultancy Services continue to see revenue growth, while IBM (IBM), with about half of its revenues coming from services, is holding up better than rival HP, which is more dependent on computer sales. IBM has another edge: its healthy balance sheet. It's able to make interest-bearing loans to customers so they can afford its high-end computers. Financing brought IBM $700 million in revenues and pretax margins of 38.2% last quarter. "Our high-end server business is strong, and I'm sure the financing business helped with some of those sales," says Jesse Green, vice-president for financial management.
The credit crunch has given rise to some surprising situations. Ruckus Wireless, a four-year-old maker of networking gear, just received its first request from a customer for a zero-interest loan so it could buy equipment. "Can you imagine?" says CEO Selina Lo. "We're a startup, and we're being asked to provide vendor financing." Ruckus has no plans to offer customers no-interest loans.


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There are two big pieces of news about EU enlargement in 2013 – a good and a bad one. The good news is that the euro crisis has not killed the enlargement process. On the contrary, without much fanfare, the accession process of the Western Balkans to the European Union is steadily moving ahead, albeit at a slower pace. The pivotal event this year will be Croatia becoming the 28th member-state on July 1st, as a deal with Slovenia over a prolonged banking dispute cleared the final obstacle for formal entry. The bad news is that the first EU enlargement since the euro crisis will be also be the last in this decade, at least for South-Eastern Europe.
Croatia's case deserves more attention. It will be the first EU country with a recent legacy of war and large-scale ethnic violence. Gerald Knaus and Kristof Bender of the European Stability Initiative remind us that to qualify for membership, Zagreb not only adopted hundreds of new laws and regulations but also radically changed its political culture.1 It stopped disrupting statebuilding in neighbouring Bosnia, allowed the return of Croatian Serb refugees, engaged a Serb minority party into a government coalition and completed the extradition of all of those indicted by The Hague war crimes tribunal. The main outstanding issues in the European Commission's final report on Croatia are the need to continue the fight against corruption and human trafficking. These are by no means alarming: similar demands could be made to a number of EU memberstates. This transformation would not have been possible without the EU enlargement process, and without an early go-ahead for the membership negotiations in 2005. The question is how the EU's transformative power can be sustained for this fragile corner of Europe that is gradually emerging from its troubled history – and how this "incomplete mission"can be kept on the EU's political agenda at a time when it is undergoing its own great transformation.
Although the pace of enlargement is slow, it can still generate turning-points.2 Last June, the EU opened membership negotiations with Montenegro. In June 2013, the European Council might decide to set a date for opening negotiations with Macedonia and Serbia.
This decision will be based partly on two special reports that the Commission is expected to present on April 16th, just before the GLOBSEC 2013 conference. Macedonia's case still depends on solving the name issue with Greece, and Serbia's on finding a durable means of coexistence with Kosovo. Both are hard issues to solve, and American diplomacy continues to play a crucial, if less visible role "from behind", as it does in Bosnia and Herzegovina – the most complex trouble spot in the region.
The Commission's report on Serbia will be presented in co-ordination with the EU's High Representative, Catherine Ashton. In early April, under her facilitation,the Prime Ministers of Serbia and Kosovo came very close to rewriting history, pondering an agreement on the future administration of Serb-run northern Kosovo. The hope is that both sides will find a last-minute compromise. Time is running out and without a deal the Council will not approve the start of membership talks with Serbia in June. Germany, the key decision-making player, needs at least eight weeks to get parliamentary approval.
Last but not least, this year has started in a promising way for Europe's relations with Turkey, the largest and most important country in the enlargement process. After a three-year break, the Irish EU Presidency is taking advantage of French President Hollande's softer line on Ankara to open new chapters in the membership negotiations.
Under the most positive scenario, however, full EU membership even for the most credible aspirants is not realistic before 2020. First, if we accept that Turkey is a special case, Montenegro has the greatest chances of entry, but is still at the start of the accession process which took Croatia more than eight years to complete. Second, due to lessons learned from the last round of enlargement to Bulgaria and Romania, and under the pressure of enlargement-sceptic EU members, the whole accession process has become more difficult and rigorous. Strict emphasis is now placed on the rule of law and the fight against corruption, with more benchmarks along the way and more opportunities for member-states to block the process. The third reason is due to Europe's own crisis: no-one knows what the EU will look like in a year from now, never mind a decade.
One thing is clear: as EU membership for the other Balkan countries becomes a distant prospect, stagnation
trends as well as public disenchantment with the EU are going to be reinforced.
Four important trends and challenges can be observed:
- The Croatia test. The entry of Croatia into the EU is a big test ofthe benefits that European integration can still bring to a stagnant Balkan country. The other Balkan candidates will pay close attention. Will the inflow of foreign direct investment to Croatia increase? Will EU funds help to create more growth and infrastructure development even though Zagreb's fiscal space for co-financing is almost non-existent? Will Croatia be relegated to a second-class member state with little or no influence? Much will depend on the Croats themselves. Smart economic policy can seize on new trade and business opportunities inside the EU, turning them into growth and jobs. Smart diplomacy can reinforce Croatia's ties with her non-EU neighbours (Serbia, in particular) laying ground for future trade and growth across the region. With good strategy and alliances inside the EU club, Zagreb can do a lot to keep the vision of the European Balkans credible and on the agenda. It is in Croatia's interests to help its neighbours (among them its former enemies) to join the EU as soon as possible, but Croatia could also misuse its seat behind the EU table to score political points, reinforcing new divisions in the region and free riding on the huge credit and political investment behind its own EU membership. If Croatia is unable to leverage the opportunities EU membership brings, it would have wider repercussions for the region. The EU is now ill-equipped to afford another case like Bulgaria or Romania, and failure in Croatia could dramatically slow down further enlargement.
- Exclusion in a multi-speed Europe? The emergence of a multi-speed Europe has downgraded the value of EU membership, and relegated the Western Balkans to the "outermost circle" of European politics. Dimitar Bechev, Senior Policy Fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, calls it the "periphery of the periphery – countries that have an important stake in the current debate about the future contours of Europe but no real voice".3 Their economies are closely interconnected with the EU, which is by far the most important source of their financial flows – either in the form of foreign direct investment or labour remittances from abroad. More than 90% of the banking sector in the Balkan countries is owned by banks from Austria, Italy, Greece and Slovenia, which have significantly deleveraged their loans and exposure in the face of huge problems at home. Montenegro and Kosovo use the euro, while Bosnia's and Macedonia's currencies arede facto pegged to it. Such interdependence exposes the region to the economic slump in Southern Europe, and to the ongoing problems in the euro zone.
- Long-term stagnation? After a sluggish recovery, Balkan economies are now struggling with a doubledip recession, characterised by a decline in outputs and sharp increases in unemployment. Serbia has an unemployment rate above 25%, Macedonia over 30% and Kosovo over 40%. Exports, foreign direct investment and remittances have all been hit in recent years. The World Bank, in its December 2012 report4, warned that no other region in Europe is experiencing greater shocks from the on-going crisis. It projected a drop of 0.6% in the combined real GDP of Albania, Bosnia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia for 2012. Such troubles are to a large extent also due to policy failures at home – lack of competitiveness and reforms, strong monopolies with political patronage, and old infrastructure. New sustainable growth needs to be based on accelerated structural reforms, and on major infrastructure projects of regional significance (highways, rail, energy, gas, tourism). The European Investment Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the World Bank will help fund cross-regional infrastructure projects in a joint €30 billion scheme for 2013-14. New projects and business opportunities will be promoted at the 1st Balkan Infrastructure and Construction Summit in Vienna at the end of May 2013. In the long run, however, additional financing for growth will not be effective unless accompanied by smarter government policies along with tough fiscal adjustment. Austerity might be politically suicidal, as shown by recent protests in Bulgaria. But, according to the World Bank, a continuation of current policies could lead to a vicious cycle of low or negative growth, high debt and even higher risks of social upheaval.
- Strategic adjustment or desperation? The new Balkan approach is a combination of slow EU integration along with a search for new loans and investment from the East. Last year, Turkey was among the top three foreign investors in Croatia and Serbia, and among the top five in Bosnia. The Serbian government is courting new loans from Russia and Asia as it needs $6 billion this year to service its debt (25% more than in 2012). In addition, state assets in energy and agriculture are being sold to Arab sheiks and Azeri oligarchs. A new bridge over the Danube in Belgrade and 140 km of highways in Serbia are being built by Chinese companies. Such diversification of investment partnerships, now common across the region, reflects larger shifts in the global economy, but also shows a degree of desperation. In any case, it will make the EU a less dominant partner than before.
Although the EU is still referred as the "indispensable power" in the region, it might have to struggle more to impose its agenda in the near future. Deeper crisis could bring the Balkans region closer to Europe – but only if the EU keeps its door open and reframes the enlargement agenda in economic terms, as a credibleblueprint for sustainable growth and new jobs. More than new strategies, however, we first need to renew something fundamental: the ethos of shared responsibility, of Europe for the Western Balkans and of the Balkan countries for themselves.
1 G. Knaus and K. Bender, "Why Croatia's EU accession will strengthen the EU", Rumeli
Observer blog, 19 October 2012, http://www.esiweb.org/rumeliobserver/2012/10/19/whycroatias-
2 For more detailed account of the EU enlargement prospects in 2013, see: T. Żornaczuk,
"The Prospect of the EU Enlargement to the Western Balkans in 2013", Bulletin PISM no. 24,
8. March 2013, http://www.pism.pl/publications/bulletin/no-24-477
3 D. Bechev, "The periphery of the periphery: The Western Balkans and the Euro crisis", European Council of Foreign Relations, August 2012,
4 The World Bank, South East Europe: Regular Economic Report No. 3, December 18, 2012
Milan Nič is a Senior Fellow at the Central European Policy Institute (CEPI), a regional think-tank by the Slovak Atlantic Commission. This is a joint publication of the Central European Policy Institute, Centre for European Studies and the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung. This publication receives funding from the European Parliament. The Centre for European Studies, Konrad Adenauer Stiftung and the European Parliament assume no responsibility for facts or opinions expressed in this publication or any subsequent use of the information contained therein. Sole responsibility lies on the author of the publication.
The views and opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of their employers or of the publisher. © CEPI, 2013


text: Brazil: Winners and Losers Gerdau ( GGB), producer of long rolled steel, was the top gainer, up 8.8% last week on investor optimism regarding the tax cuts. Vivo Participacoes ( VIV) rose 2.5%. Companhia Siderurgica Nacional ( SID) was up 2.5%. The steelmaker recently revealed that it signed a memorandum of understanding with Spanish-based Alfonso Gallardo Group for the negotiation and eventual acquisition of stakes in three Spanish companies, namely cement maker Cementos Balboa (Balboa), and steel producers Corrugados Azpeitia (Azpeitia) and Corrugados Lasao (Lasao). These transactions valued at about $472.7 million are likely to be concluded in first quarter of 2011. Companhia de Saneamento Basico do Estado de Sao Paulo-SABESP ( SBS) increased 1.8% during the past week. The company last week launched a $350 million, 10-year bond issue with a yield of 6.25%. Among others, Vale ( VALE) was up 1.1%. Leading the losers' list was Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes ( GOL), a low-cost airline, which shed 7.8% last week despite a 2.9% year-over-year increase in domestic passenger traffic for November and a 27.2% gain in international traffic. Companhia Paranaense de Energia - Copel ( ELP) dropped 5.2% although the company was upgraded to neutral from the earlier underperform recommendation by Zacks Investment Research. Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras (Eletrobras) ( EBR) and TAM ( TAM) were down 4.35 and 3.8%, respectively.


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Anime Club Art Extravaganza
All teens are welcome to Anime Night at the library. Our next gathering will be on Monday, January 12th at 6:00 p.m. Bring your artwork to share! Have you written any manga? Bring that, too! Or just come to hang out and watch Death Note in high-definition surround-sound. Please register in person, online, or by phone at (203)265-6754.
- Wallingford Public Library's blog
- Login to post comments


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If the flags featured yearly at Alliance City Cemetery appear brand new, its thanks to tireless effo
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- Released: Jan 1, 1987
- Sound: 9
- Lyrics: 10
- Overall Impression: 9
Users' score:
(3 votes)
Sound — 9
Savatage's fourth studio album really combinges prog rock and power metal. The sound is incredable. The guitar has this amazing crunch to it. Criss Oliva, the guitarist, had really outdone himself on this album. His brother Jon, on lead vocals, also did an amazing job. His vocals are kinda how I'd describe as a beautiful shrieking/ growling sound. The drum work pretty good too on this album. The bass on this album does wonders too.
Lyrics — 10
The songs on this album are very prog rock/ power metal worthy: 01. 24 Hours Ago: this song is pretty good as an opener. It's really heavy, kinda fast, and the lyrics always deliver. The solo here is really outrageous (in a good way) 02. Beyond The Doors Of The Dark: more of a orog rock song here. This one is one of those song where it rises up in excitment and volume as the song proggresses. 03. Legions: this one starts out with a cool little bass solo. ANother catchy power metal meets prog rock song. "legions of the night!" 04. Strange Wings: this one could have been a single for the radio stations to get the album a bit more notice. The guitar on this song is heavy, but to the point where even a non-metal fan can listen to it. 05. Prelude To Madness: this is the first of 2 instrumentals on this album. This song is kind of a guitar interpretation of an old famous orchestra number, cant remember the name. 06. Hall Of The Mountain King: the title track, obviously. This song really stands out on this album, and is considered to be Savatage's best-known song. The solo on this song is probably on of my favorites. 07. The Price You Pay: this is the only song on the album I haven't gotten into that much (I've listened to the whole album like 20 times). It's a little catchy, but not to the point where I'd reccomend it. This is probably the low point of the album. 08. White Witch: another kinda prog meets power metal song. Though even though you'd probably think its about a witch, I think its actually about cocaine and the effects of it. YAY! 09. Last Dawn: a very short little guitar intro to the next song.... 10. Devestation: the guitar riff on this song is very memorable and it is very catchy. It's just in of those metal songs you can bang your head to. The solo is pretty good too. GOod song to end the album.
Overall Impression — 9
This album is one of Savatage's best albums. Probably in the top 3 for me. 01. Gutter Ballet 02. Hall Of The Mountain King 03. Power Of The Night The best songs on this album are: Strange Wings, Beyond The Doors Of The Dark, the title track, White Witch and Devestation. I really love the feel and aspect of the album. The only thing they coulda done was made the bass a bit more noticable, it wouldn't have hurt to do that. If it was stolen, or deleted from my computer, I would buy it again. This album is one I think every metal head should listen to...


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No approved endorsements
About Lea Marquez Peterson
Lea Márquez -Peterson is a business broker with the Business Source and the owner of TucsonBizForSale.com. Previously, she was a multi unit retailer in Arizona for several years. In addition, Lea is the Executive Director of the Greater Tucson Leadership, the Founder and Past Chairperson of the Pima County Small Business Commission and the Past Chairperson of the City of Tucson?s Small Business Commission. She is also the Past President of the local chapter of NAWBO (the National Association of Women Business Owners), and sits on several boards and committees in the community.

Lea has been recognized with several awards. They include most recently the 2006 40 under 40 award given by Tucson Business Edge, and
- 2003 Small Business Leader of the Year (awarded by the Tucson Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Wells Fargo Bank)
- 2002 Tucson Minority Small Business Retailer of the Year (awarded by the Small Business Development Council)
- 2001 Woman Business Owner of the Year (awarded by the National Association of Women Business Owners)
- 2000 Tucson Small Business of the Year ? Retailer/Supplier category (awarded by the Small Business Development Council)

She received her undergraduate degrees in Marketing and Entrepreneurship from the University of Arizona, and her Masters in Business Administration from Pepperdine University.
If you notice offensive or incorrect information, please contact us.


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AN Aboriginal woman born brain-damaged with foetal alcohol syndrome is stuck in limbo in a West Australian prison after the Northern Territory Government reneged on a promise to place her in a special-care home.
Former NT policeman Ian McKinlay, who is Roseanne Fulton's adult guardian, said she had been locked up without conviction in a Kalgoorlie prison for 18 months.
The WA court system declared her unfit to be tried after the 24-year-old was charged with a driving offence.
She grew up in an abusive home in Alice Springs and spent her teenage years homeless and sleeping in a river bed, Mr McKinlay said.
Mr McKinlay said the NT Government had promised her a place in a secure group home in Alice Springs called Kwiyernpe House.
"Just weeks ago they backflipped on their commitment," he told AAP.
"They're claiming she's incompatible with the two male clients in that facility."
He speaks to her daily by phone.
"She's just bewildered, she doesn't know why she's there and why she's stayed so long," Mr McKinlay said.
"She's very childlike ... but she's very open to receiving help."
Mr McKinlay estimated there were about 30 other intellectually disabled Aboriginal people in jails across the NT, Queensland and WA because of a lack of proper facilities to care for them.
"Governments have been happy to let this be cloaked (in secrecy) because of the silence of the high-needs people," he said.
Victoria and NSW instead operate disability services and special accommodation and support services for such cases.
A spokeswoman for NT Health Minister Robyn Lambley declined to comment.
The NT health department said it held the health and wellbeing of clients as paramount but could not comment on specific cases for privacy reasons.


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Random thoughts.
Sometimes I care only about Kyiv. Sometimes I can't bring myself to care about any other place in Ukraine but Kyiv. What happened there in February, what went on there between March and now, and what's still to come. Sometimes nothing else but this matters.
And then sometimes I realize I have it in me to care about other places as well.
I've been there a few times in the past. It wasn't always nice. Actually, the city felt alive only once when I was there - ordinary, normal, happy. FC Shakhtar was playing Lazio that day; Google says it was Sept. 12, 2000. Shakhtar played beautifully, but lost 0:3. They played beautifully in between those three goals. And before they lost, they city had been alive, there were many people out in the streets, happy and hopeful. I don't know, maybe it was like this many times before and after Sept. 12, 2000, but I wasn't there. I'm sure it wasn't an ugly place during the UEFA Euro 2012. I hope it wasn't.
And I remember the doctors from Donetsk region that we got to interview back then. One of them more than others. He used to work with coal miners - with their lungs, that is. He told us some really scary things about those coal miners' lungs. I remember how shocked I was when I saw that doctor go out for a smoke into the hallway of the Nadezhda Krupskaya library. Those lungs he sees every day at work - and he's a smoker? I wish I remembered his name. I hope he's still around, safe.
In Moscow, I know one woman from Donetsk. Her husband was a coal miner, he died very young in a mine explosion, leaving her with their little daughter. The daughter's name, Luiza, always makes me think of a little bit of sunshine that someone accidentally allowed to enter into an otherwise dreadful place. I wouldn't want to talk about politics with this woman - I tried once, sometime in April, and it felt surreal. She's one of those people who believes what the Russian TV is telling her. She was not bloodthirsty at all. But she was scared - when it wasn't scary at all yet - and fear does make some people bloodthirsty. Not her, I hope. She works with kids, she cannot afford to be bloodthirsty. And I hope her elderly parents in Donetsk are safe. Or safely out of Donetsk by now. No matter what bullshit they believe in when it comes to politics.
And I remember how one day in 2004 people in the huge orange crowd in Kyiv were chanting "Slava shakhtaryam!" ("Glory to coal miners!"), as they stood face to face with the pro-Yanukovych crowd. Some in this pro-Yanukovych crowd turned out to be from Crimea, not from Donbas, and this chant pissed them off, for some reason. "We're not coal miners, damn it! We're from Crimea," they yelled back - but the orange guys waved them off and went on with their cheerful chant: "Ah, who the fuck cares! Slava shakhtaryam!" And soon afterwards some of the orange guys were chatting with whoever still remained from the pro-Yanukovych camp, and the Romanian TV journalist I was helping that day was running around, asking everyone what seemed like a very silly question back then: "Is there gonna be a civil war in Ukraine?" Everyone - the orange and the remaining pro-Yanukovych guys - seemed to find this question absurd. "A civil war? In Ukraine? No way! East and West are together!" Well, it's different now, ten years on. And there is a difference between Donbas and Crimea after all.
And then there is Lugansk. A place I'll never really care about, definitely not the way I care about Kyiv or even Donetsk. But one of my dear Moscow friends has a cousin there. This cousin's wife is pregnant. I hope they are out of there, safe. They - and a few more people I know who have families there.
Everyone, actually. I want everyone to be alive and safe. In one piece. I want everything to return to normal.
It's weird when you have to make such an effort to care about places in your own country. Maybe it's because of what happened in Kyiv in February. It hurts so much it makes you numb. And it mutes you. Me. It mutes me.
I know people who used to say, "Oh, screw the south-east, Donbas and Crimea, let them go to hell, to Russia." At least a few of my friends, and at least one well-known, award-winning Ukrainian author. It wasn't all that uncommon to think this way, I guess. And I used to get furious: it's never pretty when shit like this is happening for real and not just in people's heads. A humanitarian catastrophe and all that. As if we don't have enough problems with healthcare, etc. Oh, and the shit that people in those "pro-Russian" areas used to carry in their heads - somehow, I never took that seriously. Similarly, at some point I began to just take for granted the crazy stuff that the Yanukovych government was doing - nothing to discuss there - but was fuming over the mistakes of those I'd been voting for.
Enough for now. Maybe I'll write more sometime soon. It feels good to vent. Like blowing one's nose during a cold.
Monday, August 11, 2014
Random thoughts.
Friday, May 02, 2014
I'm tired of many things now, very tired in general, have only slept through the night twice since January 19, when the protests at Hrushevskogo began and I was so far away from Kyiv. I still am. Which is tough. But I can't help it.
One of the things I'm tired of now is Facebook. It's too crowded for me, I'm tired of always feeling as if I'm addressing someone when I write there. I've never been fond of public speaking.
Writing here, on the other hand, used to feel sort of private, somehow. A room of my own. I liked to show it off, of course, loved to have guests around, but it was still mine alone. And in real life, I've become very territorial over the past few years - must be how this age thing is affecting me. So I guess I'll migrate back here for a while. Not sure if it's gonna work, not sure if it makes me feel better, but I'll give it a try.
Actually, I already feel better - because I missed this blog, felt guilty for having deserted it - and now I've returned, and can talk to myself out loud all I want, whenever I feel like it.
Saturday, December 29, 2012
2 AM, Friday-to-Saturday night. Cihangir, Istanbul.
I've just spent over half an hour watching an absolutely awesome bus rescue operation on our narrow street.
Two guys - I guess they were just two random guys, neat, casually dressed, driving home from some party perhaps - directed two buses that were unable to pass through a curved segment of the road.
The two guys dismantled and dragged away part of the pavement border - large, heavy stones that would've damaged the buses - and then they were yelling directions to the bus drivers - and also making sure that the numerous cabs and other vehicles driving past them up and down the only available - and curved - lane didn't collide...
First one bus, then the other.
Then they spent 15 more minutes putting the pavement border stones back. They probably didn't have to: there's some construction going on here, they could've left the mess for construction workers to clean up tomorrow - but they didn't.
Truly amazing.
Somewhat sad that none of the cars driving by stopped, that no one got out to help these guys, but it doesn't really matter: there was more than enough brotherly spirit, definitely much more than I've seen back in our part of the world in a long time.
I wasn't the only one watching the operation: an upstairs neighbor smoked four cigarettes while the first bus was being led to freedom - I saw the butts fly down past my window, all four of them.
I was filming it all, but I doubt I'll ever post this footage anywhere: too long, too dark - and I've already killed all the suspense. Those guys are heroes, period.
Istanbul's random, unsung, anonymous heroes. If I were a guy, I'd like to be like them :)
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
The sea and the ferries of Istanbul - and now London's gorgeous parks as well: urban tranquility zones that I miss having easy access to.
Thursday, November 08, 2012
Earlier this week, I took a stroll along a cordon made up of two or three rows of huge guys in black riot gear.
They were there to contain the opposition protesters inside the square in front of the Central Election Commission. They were there to intimidate these protesters - as well as those who might have been considering joining the protest against vote-rigging that night.
I walked past them, a meter or so away, at a leisurely pace, smoking a cigarette, never once turning my head to look at them.
The decision to ignore these huge guys was spontaneous, and it didn't make any sense. All of a sudden, I just felt like strolling all the way to the cordon's corner point, pretending it was just an ordinary stroll. Took me about two minutes to get there. Then I turned around and moved away, back towards to the protesters.
At one point during this stroll, I forgot that the huge guys were there. I felt as if I was walking next to a tall black fence on my right - walking all alone, in the dark.
It was a powerful, weird sensation, which didn't last too long - a dozen steps at most. I knew they were there, yet I was able to convince myself that they weren't, just by not looking at them.
But after those dozen or so steps, the huge guys' presence slowly began to be felt again. They all stood there in silence, but they were staring at me. I knew they were. The wind - and it was a windy night - was blowing the smoke from my cigarette into their faces, which was a cruel thing of me to allow.
I may have looked like someone lost in thought - but I also looked like I was teasing them.
Teasing them like that mean cat in Hayao Miyazaki's wonderful film, Whisper of the Heart: the cat that liked to drive the neighborhood dog crazy by getting itself up on a tall fence, turning its fat ass to the poor dog, and letting it try to grab its tail for a while, then getting up and continuing on its way as if nothing happened.
The cat, unlike the dog, was free to go wherever it liked. So was I, unlike those huge, armed guys.
Wednesday, November 07, 2012
The only comment I've got so far on my most recent Ukraine piece for GV - which mentions Donetsk a few times - is this:
Who cares about this election and other politics when we've got our girls - even in Donetsk, it turns out.
Woke up to the sound of communist marches outside. Explained to Marta that it's the day when people are a bit more eager to fight with each other over history and politics than on other days.
Opened the news to find that Obama's got four more years. Reacted with a gasp: they voted yesterday, and the results are already in today. Here, it's been ten days, and the results are some crazy mess, as always.
Later, when Marta mentioned she was helping other kids with origami at school, I said it was really nice of her. Then, for some reason, I decided to warn her that when she grows up a little and they start having serious tests and stuff in their classes, she shouldn't let other kids copy her work, because it's called cheating, and in the U.S., for example, they expel kids from school for it.
"Oh, I don't think I wanna study at an American school then," said Marta.
So I had to use their and our elections as an example to explain why schools that don't
allow tolerate cheating are better than those that do.
Without any cheating, it takes so much faster to cast and count the votes, determine the winner and move on with life.
In Ukraine, however, all this cheating leaves no room for life whatsoever: few things get done properly, because they're all very busy trying to make you believe that their guy is the true winner, and then it's time for a new election, and it all starts all over again - all, including the cheating.
I think Marta found this explanation pretty convincing.
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Here's something to encourage myself to get up and go to the polling station:
Refat Chubarov, #111 on the United Opposition list, speaking Crimean Tatar, Russian and Ukrainian in the Crimean Parliament. I wish more of our politicians were like him.
Such a shame that he's #111, he should be much higher up - he has to be in the Parliament - and so I've decided to vote for the United Opposition because of him - and not for Klitschko's Udar - to help him get in.
Saturday, October 27, 2012
Too many elections since 2004 - since Maidan - but not much effect.
Interesting to think of how optimistic some of us were eight years ago.
Sad to think of all the crushed hopes - especially the hopes of those of us who were more idealistic and naive than others.
Frustrating to think of the incurable public amnesia that we seem to be infected with - we keep voting for exactly the same people, keep pretending to expect them to deliver on the promises they've been making for the past 20 years or so, conveniently forget (or pretend to) about these candidates' faults ahead of each new vote.
Would be great to be able to revert to one's 20-year-old self every time there is an election here: the results are likely to be rigged and protest would seem like the only decent option - and the "younger generation" is so much better at dealing with it than the rest of us (until most of them turn into "the rest of us" themselves, that is).
In the past eight years, however, we've seen far too many 20-year-olds taking part - for a fee - in staged protests, and maybe I should finally stop generalizing about and idealizing those "new kids on the bloc"...
A strong sense of déjà vu: I've come to Kyiv to vote - will stay for two weeks or so. In 2004, I also came to Kyiv for just two weeks, but ended up staying for two months. This time I'll go back as planned.
History repeats itself, first as tragedy, then as farce: not sure about the "tragedy" part, but there's been plenty of farce lately.
The latest farcical episode - which reminded me of our seemingly legitimate fears eight years ago - features the arrival of tanks and other military vehicles at Maidan last night, a day and a half before the vote. There was some initial outrage on Facebook and elsewhere, until someone reported that the tanks were old, that they were part of a WWII-related exhibition. Then some folks chose to ignore common sense and went on screaming about the imminent bloodshed - while others discussed the all-too-obvious symbolism and timing of these antique tanks at Maidan, and the message that the bastards up above seem to be sending to the masses: don't even think of coming to Maidan with your protests on Sunday.
Thursday, June 07, 2012
[I need more space than Twitter and Facebook are giving me. More air. I'm tired of counting characters and words when I write. I need to relax. That's why I'm back here, at least for a while.]
In the afternoon, I read this Ukrainska Pravda text [ukr] about the crazy mess on Trukhaniv Island, where the Euro 2012 camp for Swedes is (or was?) supposed to be. There're enough shocking pictures in this text to make everything clear for those who don't read Ukrainian.
Then I saw a couple of people discussing the text on Facebook, including a Swedish friend of ours. And when I went outside, I took a picture of the Swedish Corner on Khreshchatyk for him:
(As far as I can tell, everything looks okay inside the Khreshchatyk Fan Zone so far. Especially if you compare it to the rest of the city.)
Anyway, then I decided to walk to Trukhaniv Island, hoping to see something at least a little bit different from what the Ukrainska Pravda reporters had seen.
Unfortunately, everything did look pretty terrible. The camp's opening is scheduled for June 7 - but there's too much construction still going on to consider the place livable.
Right after I crossed the Pedestrian Bridge, the sky turned black and it started raining, so I had to run for shelter to the only place nearby that had some roof and some walls around it. I spent over an hour stuck there, listening, among other things, to bits of conversations of some nervous, skinny construction workers.
I have a feeling that they and their bosses are somewhat nervous, while the bosses' bosses aren't - because if the Swedes don't show up, the money saved on this pseudo-construction project would feel even safer and more comfortable in their pockets than it is now. No man, no problem. But it's just a feeling that I have. (Oh, and how does this booking thing work? Is there a way for the Ukrainian side to keep the deposits that the Swedes pay even if they find the conditions unsatisfactory and refuse to stay there? Do they get their money back? I hope so.)
When the rain was over, it was already past 8PM, and it was a bit too dark and a bit too cold to walk around the place.
Some pictures are here, with a bunch of my comments.
And here're my tweets from the cafe where I was hiding from the rain:
Huge, scary thunderstorm got me stuck at a shitty little drinking hut by the Pedestrian Bridge at the so-called Euro-Camping for the Swedes.
If I were a Swede, I'd go elsewhere. No camp here, no facilities, no easy way to get in or out. No wifi. Stinky mess & construction.
Ukrainians are brave. Lightnings are striking right next to us, but a couple dozen folks stand outside, smoking. I wouldn't mind a cigarette
No bathroom at this cafe, of course. A girl who asked the bartender was pointed outside, some drunk told her that "toilet's all around you."
Still raining, I'm still stuck at Trukhaniv :) Not much fun. Other people are drinking, I'm not. All in all, a hopeless place.
"Swedish Camp" construction guys are skinny, look like Kyiv's average drunks. Curse a lot, under much pressure, now that time's almost up.
Taking shelter from the rain at Trukhaniv Island:
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
As part of my attempt to do some spring cleaning online, here's a list of my "stray" blogs.
On Blogger:
- Moscow Snapshots (the most recent one, and the only one that I'm updating every once in a while)
On Wordpress:
- Cities 101 (just one post so far, plus a list of books; a dream project, never to be fulfilled due to short attention span and lack of free time)
On Tumblr:
- Quick photos and notes (June 2010-February 2011)
- Quotes on writing, mainly from The Paris Review (used to have a soothing effect on me in January, February and April of 2011)
- Marta on Otok Vis (Marta's photos from the Island of Vis, taken in July and August 2011)
And now there's also Pinterest, of course - but that's not a blog.
And I'm doing more blogosphere translations and overviews on Global Voices again - and, as before, store them on Work Log.
That's it, I guess.
Saturday, March 10, 2012
They did lots of awesome things together when they were younger. She was always ahead of him, always in front of him, he says, when they skied, biked, kayaked and hiked all across the country. He was always following her.
He sits in our kitchen, telling us about her last days. He is my husband's uncle. His wife was 74, just like my father, when she died on Dec. 30, 2011.
First, she stopped eating. He tried to give her some food, but she refused, ordering him not to argue with her. "Не перечь мне," she told him, and the firmness with which she said this surprised him.
A little later, she bid him farewell: "Ну, прощай."
Then she lay still for two days, just breathing.
During these two days, when he was asking her if she could hear him, she was nodding in reply.
Then she was gone.
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Dearest friends,
Wishing you lots of joy, health and fun in the New Year!
Much love and warmest wishes,
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Maidan 2004 - seven years ago:
From my Facebook page (which this blog has long become secondary to, unfortunately...):
200 photos seems like a lot (and I do have some more, but a FB album only allows 200, so I had to abide) - but I've actually got surprisingly few photos from Maidan, partly because my camera was broken much of the time, and I spent half the time sick back then, and also because it was just too awesome to be there, around people, etc., it was great to live in Kyiv during those two months... Anyway, the quality of these photos is kind of crappy (I'm a late-night person who doesn't know how to shoot properly in the dark) - but I'm feeling nostalgic for that time, and selecting and posting these photos has brought some relief... :)
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Autumn does weird things to me. After spending a few hours listening to Arthur Meschian's songs and reading Mark Grigorian's posts about Yerevan and about his grandfather, an Armenian architect who, among other things, designed Matenadaran, I felt homesick - in a way I had never experienced homesickness before.
Suddenly, I was craving to look at all the old photos and papers stored back home in Kyiv, a messy and neglected collection, some of it packed into an ancient suitcase that I keep in my room, the rest hiding somewhere in the dark and dusty mazes of the so-called entresol, a space I've never really explored.
Home is where all this stuff is. A family history that's too sketchy and disorganized, that won't reveal itself unless someone talks about it. And my father's no longer around to talk about his part of this history. My history, too - but most of it out of reach now.
In Kyiv, I keep promising myself to buy a scanner next time I'm there, then sit down and go through as much of this paper and photo stuff as possible. But I never do this somehow. Part of me, I guess, is scared of attempting to connect with the family's past: what if I fail to connect - or, what if I find something I don't want to find there?
Here in Moscow, I only have a few photos of my father's father, and a few of my mother as a little girl. And I've a scanner here. So, to alleviate this unusual homesickness, I went ahead and scanned those few photos of Sergei Andreevich Khokhlov that I keep in the little pocket of my Dear Diary.
I don't know as much as I'd like to know about my grandfather. He was a very good man, everyone used to say. He died in 1969, unexpectedly, due to a surgery gone bad, at the age of 61. My father missed him very much, but he rarely talked about him - or maybe I just didn't listen well enough. I love to look at the photos of him: I find him very handsome. He had some Greek roots, according to my father (I wrote more about it here). He had nothing to do with tennis and was pretty upset when my father quit his studies at the Construction Engineering Institute after one year and switched to sports. For a while, he was furious, actually. He worked as a quantity surveyor (I had to look up the translation of the boring Russian term "сметчик": it sounds as boring in English). He was said to be the best quantity surveyor in Ukraine at some point, whatever that means. I had spent some time looking at his work-related papers - and also at his insanely detailed calculations for repairs in our two-room apartment (hilarious stuff, somehow) - and even though I don't understand anything about the field he worked in, I do understand that he was a very stubborn and meticulous person. And very independent. I find it moving. And I'm proud of him. And I'll try to write more about all this later. For now, here are some of his photos.
With my father - who looks Marta's age on the first picture and a little bit older on the second one, so this must be one of the last pre-war years, 1939 or 1940, but there's no way of knowing for sure, I guess:
At some party at our place in Kyiv, with my father's friends - gymnasts Yuri Titov, Boris Shakhlin and Larisa Latynina - Olympic and world champions (only these three are identified on the back of this photo in my mother's handwriting):
At work:
And some miscellaneous photos:


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