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Tagged: property
Breaking news: Occupations extremely likely to be property speculating
I have undertaken cutting-edge statistical analysis of the Register of Pecuniary and Other Specified Interests of Members of Parliament, which has revealed some shocking information.
People of the following occupations are all extremely likely to own real property beyond the family home and Māori land interests:
Labour MP: 50%
National MP: 76.27%
Green MP: 50%
NZ First MP: 58.3% or 61.54%*
United Future MP: 100%
These rates are all extremely high – far higher than any ethnic or national group, for example. It is clear what we must do to curb property speculation and solve the housing crisis: Ban MPs from buying property in NZ.
*Info not available for new MP Ria Bond.
Don't believe the scaremongering on capital gains tax
The unholy trinity of National, right-wing blogs and the mainstream media are scaremongering about Labour et al's proposed capital gains tax again. Because it's new and because it's a tax, it seems scary and there's easy political points available in opposing it. But in fact most countries have capital gains taxes. New Zealand's tax system is one of the most generous to the rich, and part of that is our anomalous lack of CGT.
The current scaremongery relates to inherited family homes of deceased family members. The impression John Key et al are putting across is that a grieving, struggling family will have to scramble to sell their deceased parents' family home to avoid being stung with a hefty capital gains tax they can't afford. IF that were the case, a one-month "grace period" certainly doesn't sound like long enough to grieve, get organised & sell the house to avoid financial ruin.
But it's NOT the case. Even without a grace period, only profit since inheritance – I repeat, profit since inheritance – would be taxable (and at a modest 15%). If a family inherited a house worth $400,000, and sold it a year later for $430,000, they'd incur tax of $4,500, but they'd get to keep the other $25,500. They'd still be $25,500 better off than if they'd sold the house straight away, and $425,500 better off than if they hadn't inherited the house.
This is no different from inheriting any other profitable asset. Currently, if you inherit a company, and it makes $30,000 profit over the next year, you'll be liable for 28% ($8,400) company tax on that profit. There's no "grace period" there. And more importantly, there's no "grace period" on the profits – 72% of which you'll keep and no doubt enjoy.
So it's extremely dishonest of Key to portray families inheriting profitable assets as somehow hard-done-by, simply because they'll incur tax on those profits. Truly hard-done-by families are the families of (increasingly numerous) people who've never managed to buy a house (largely because of tax-free property investment). Those families will receive no inheritance (let alone profitable inheritance), and many struggle to pay for (increasingly exorbitant) funeral and burial costs.
Years from now, if my siblings and I inherit my parents' house and it makes capital gains by the time we get around to selling it, we're not hard-done-by if we incur tax on those gains. We're lucky my parents own their home in the first place, and have something to leave us (in fact, something that continues gaining value until we sell it).
That said, I do tend to agree there should probably be a grace period of maybe six months, because the tax is supposed to target people who buy extra houses for profit, not people who gain an extra house by accident because a relative died. Besides, it may take some months to decide whether they'll sell it, keep it as a rental, or have other family move in (in which case it remains a family home, thus exempt from CGT). But a grace period would be an act of compassion to people who don't really need it; certainly not a demand of justice or need.
Of course, Cunliffe didn't help his own cause by remembering the policy wrong and declaring unequivocally that the grace period will be one month. In truth, the length of the grace period is a detail that they'll leave to an expert advisory group to work out. It was incompetent of Cunliffe not to know this.
Anyway, despite those two caveats: don't believe the hype. Look into it, listen to David Parker's explanation, think about it, etc. After doing so, no right-thinking person would think there's anything to worry about.
National's big housing announcement: tinkering for the middle-class, hand-outs for the rich
One-word summary: Pathetic.
I've blogged before about National's staggering denial of the housing affordability crisis. It seems they've now woken up somewhat, as they've released a housing policy as the flagship policy announcement of their campaign launch.
They claim to have "overhauled" the existing scheme (introduced by Labour in 2007) whereby you can withdraw from your KiwiSaver savings for a deposit on your first home, and many people can get a government top-up too.
In fact, they're only making a few changes to the scheme:
1) They're increasing the house price limits – you can now buy a house worth more and still be eligible for the top-up. This is good and necessary, given our skyrocketing house prices. But it will be generally wealthier people gaining eligibility.
2) That's even more true for the second change: Currently, the top-up is $1,000 for every year you've been in KiwiSaver, to a maximum of $5,000. National will double these amounts, but here's the kicker: only for those buying or building brand new houses.
3) Aside from the top-up, you can currently only withdraw your employee and employer contributions for your first home deposit. National propose to let you withdraw your annual government contributions (max $521/year) too. I'm actually 100% behind this, and don't know why it's not already the case – but, again, the people with the maximum government contributions will usually be wealthier.
4) In October, the Reserve Bank introduced Loan-to-Value ratio restrictions, meaning most buyers now need a 20% deposit for a home loan. This has slowed house-price inflation, but also priced poorer people out of the market. Under National's proposal, first home buyers will now only need a 10% deposit. This will certainly help, but it's only a partial backing-away from the Reserve Bank's policy.
I agree with most of the above, and I'm glad the government have stopped ignoring at least one aspect of the housing crisis.
But there are at least five significant problems, which mean this policy completely misses the mark:
Firstly, it's pretty small-fry. A lot of it is good, but "tinkered" or at best "expanded" is more accurate than "overhauled." A couple with maximum eligibility will be able to draw $7,294 more of their savings for their house deposit. If they can afford a new house, they'll also get $10,000 more from the government. They'll also probably benefit from being able to buy with a lower deposit – let's round up the total benefit to $20,000. But that's still only how much house prices inflate in Auckland and Christchurch every few months. (If you're buying on your own, all these amounts will be halved, except the house cost/inflation of course.)
Secondly, it helps the better-off the most. "Maximum eligibility" does not correspond to maximum need, but maximum privilege. This is already a flaw with KiwiSaver and the home withdrawal scheme – the people with the most to withdraw are those who've earned the most since 2007. But it's compounded under National's proposals.
Even more significantly, while the proposed expansions let normal buyers withdraw more of their own savings, they give an extra hand-out of $5,000 per person free money to those who can afford to build or buy new houses. How many people do you know who can afford a new house, let alone for their first home? If you can think of anyone, I'm guessing they either have parental assistance, inherited wealth or very high-earning jobs (you can earn quite a lot and still be eligible, btw). Acknowledging that even these privileged people need help buying homes is admission that our house prices are out of control. But it's disgusting that the less-well-off are denied this generous and much-needed hand-out.
Thirdly, National's numbers look impressive by themselves (90,000 helped! Thousands of $ of support! Only costs $218 million!), but if you actually whip out your calculator and analyse them, you'll notice that only the 10,000 luckiest will be eligible for the big bucks, their mortgages will still be officially classified as 150% unaffordable, and even with these big benefactors pushing up the average, the average assistance is only about $2,000 per home-buyer.
Fourthly, this only helps people buy their first home; it doesn't do anything about the investors with multiple homes, crowding the market and pushing both rents and house prices sky-high. Unlike in most other countries, you can still "earn" tax-free passive parasite income off other people's poverty, and unlike Mana, Green and Labour, National don't see a problem with this (not surprising, since many of them are property investors themselves).
Fifthly, the best National can offer is modifying an old Labour idea, which speaks volumes about their lack of vision. Labour thought up KiwiSaver in the first place, and now they, Green and Mana actually have new ideas to help people into home ownership – and, unlike for National, the most emphasis goes to the people that need it the most.
Housing crises are great for Brownlee's net worth
Graph from The Press
A quick recap on the NZ and Christchurch housing affordability crises:
– 80s-present: NZ housing affordability worsens throughout the neo-liberal era (p. 13-14, 68-70).
– 24/1/2011: Auckland, Christchurch, Wellington and Tauranga house prices assessed as "severely unaffordable."
– 2010-2012: Canterbury earthquakes reduce housing supply and increase rental housing demand.
– 20/3/2012: National and Gerry Brownlee decide to leave the market to sort out the Christchurch housing crisis.
– 18/6/2012: Brownlee suggests rent rises in Christchurch aren't "astronomical" compared to other cities.
– 29/6/2012: Brownlee and John Key deny there's a housing crisis in Christchurch.
– 7/7/2012: Brownlee says he can only see positives in Christchurch's skyrocketing rents.
– 29/10/2012: John Key rules out a capital gains tax like most countries have, simultaneously showing just how out of touch he is.
– 27/8/2013: Housing is now less affordable in Christchurch than Wellington.
– 14/5/2014: Christchurch rents projected to hit Auckland levels in January 2015. Housing Minister Nick Smith suggests "the real problem" is not enough rental accommodation for tourists.
– 15/5/2014: The Budget offers a pittance and cuts for housing, and worse for Chch.
– 19/5/2014: An OECD report finds New Zealand has the most over-valued houses in the developed world. Key, true to form, disagrees with the OECD, and tries to spin the news as a positive as more people are entering the "housing market."
A consistent theme emerges in the current government's attitude to these developments: (a) there's no crisis – if anything it's a good thing, (b) if there is a crisis, the market will sort it out by itself (because dog-eat-dog individual selfishness systems are great for the vulnerable, eh).
It's tempting to say they're simply idiots, but it's better to ask which groups in society are they representing, and which aren't they?
For most groups in society, the above information amounts to a housing crisis nationwide, and particularly in Christchurch. But for one group, rapidly rising rent and house prices doesn't amount to a crisis, but an opportunity for increased profit. This is the group that treats housing as an investment, not somewhere to live: rental property investors.
Gerry Brownlee and many other National MPs are in this group of people. Most of Brownlee's rental properties are in his own Ilam electorate, where rents in one suburb (Aorangi) rose by 51% in a year. I think this is a pretty important conflict of interest at the best of times, but even more so amid the housing crisis Brownlee and his party are determined to ignore.
I recently wrote to Brownlee, essentially asking him to clarify the question I asked in an earlier blog:
How much passive income does Brownlee get for his properties, and how much has it gone up since 2010 and him subsequently "letting the market sort out" the housing crisis?
If you're interested, here's Brownlee's response. My attempt to name-drop the Official Information Act backfired – it turns out this info isn't available under the OIA because it's not government info. So the public don't get any more detail than what's listed on the register of pecuniary interests. I asked if he'd answer my questions anyway, as a goodwill gesture to one of his constituents… I'll let you know if he replies.
If National win this year's election, it will be because of personality and PR. If they lose, it will be because of housing. It's the biggest issue in Brownlee's electorate and the country. While National are denying, blaming and doing nothing, Labour are making supply-side and demand-side action on the housing crisis the centre of their campaign.
A quick word on tax cuts
National has announced their first budget surplus, after plunging us into debt for the last five years.
They've also hinted that at some stage before or after the election campaign, they may announce what makes all our hearts instinctively leap, at least before we think about it: tax cuts. This would mark the first changes to tax since 2010, when they shifted the tax burden from the rich onto poor and middle-income earners.
Mana's John Minto has an interesting reaction. He says tax cuts are a great idea, and suggests shifting the tax burden back again: abolishing GST and tax on the first $27,000 of income, and paying for this by finally taxing the unproductive untaxed income of the 1% – capital gains and financial transactions.
Something tells me a party of property magnates and investment bankers is not going to propose those kind of tax changes – any recovery-era tax cuts will presumedly be along similar lines to their recession-era tax cuts.
Does this strike anyone else as a little strange? Not just because they're promising tikka masala before the chickens have hatched (the surplus is tiny, and only a projection based on fudged numbers, disguised cuts and abandoning Christchurch).
The main reason it's strange is that when we were heading into rough financial times, they thought the appropriate thing to do was to cut taxes on the rich. And now in healthier financial times, they again think the appropriate thing to do is to cut taxes (presumedly again on the rich). Never mind the fact that they haven't paid off their debt from the last tax cuts and tough economic times yet.
The truth is that they're not responding to the economic climate at all. In tough times or healthy times, they're pushing a philosophical agenda to let the rich continue getting richer while paying lower taxes, and reduce the social safety net to pay for it. Bill English recently let this agenda slip in a recent speech to the party's Southern Region conference. They've already let public goods and services drop from 35% of GDP to 30% – one of the lowest rates in the OECD – and they intend to reduce that even further, to 26% over the next six or seven years. This is not what NZers want.
The obvious solution is not to let them rule for the next six or seven (or three) years.


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GOP man about town Adam Probolsky isn't a big fan of Shirley Grindle. He doesn't think there should be any campaign contribution limits, let alone the limits she wrote into the county's ordinance. And he sure doesn't see a need for the elections watchdog commission for which she's trying to win approval.
Probolsky is even skeptical that the retired engineer pushes for all of this campaign ethics stuff purely from the motivation of public good. So he posted a reward on the Red County blog last week: $1000 to anyone who can show that Grindle is getting paid for her efforts – that she is, in fact, a lobbyist.
It's hard to image a better way to prompt Grindle's gag reflex.
"I would sooner be a prostitute than be a lobbyist," she said. "There's no greater insult."
Grindle gained an audience last week with Supervisor John Moorlach's chief of staff, and told me that she's optimistic they'll work out a watchdog commission to propose to the Board of Supervisors. It sounds like it's getting scaled back from earlier versions Grindle has discussed, and that the proposal may focusing largely on making sure candidates properly file their campaign disclosure forms and follow contribution limits.
"I have confidence the Board of Supervisors will want to assure the public that the campaign laws in Orange County will be fairly implemented and enforced," she said.
As for Probolsky, Grindle suspects he's just trying to tarnish her name, and make it harder to win approval for the elections commission. She also complained that the reward amount was too low.
"They ought to make it $1,600," she quipped. "That's the campaign contribution limit."
Book 'em
Reps. Loretta Sanchez, D-Garden Grove, and Linda Sanchez, D-Lakewood, started tongues wagging last week when they were spotted heading into the House Ethics office with prominent Washington lawyer Stanley Brand.
Southern California's congressional sister act together in a scandal? Too good to be true.
Aides for the two quickly let the purpose of the visit be known: The two are working together on a book about their experience getting to Congress and serving in the House, according to the Associated Press.
"The sisters were consulting about how to proceed with their publishing project without running afoul of any ethics rules, which limit outside income," AP reported.
Smart people vote
Educated voters are way more likely to vote than their less educated neighbors, even if the election winners sometimes don't always seem like very smart choices. According to the Census Bureau's analysis of the 2004 elections:
• 80 percent of those with a bachelor's degree voted, while those with no more than a high school diploma voted at a 56 percent clip.
• 74 percent of military veterans voted, while 63 percent of non-vets did so.
• 72 percent of those 55-years-old and over voted, while just 47 percent of those 18-24 took the effort.
• 65 percent of women reported voting and 62 percent of men say they did so.
A record 126 million people voted in the 2004 general election.
• 20 percent of 2004 voters cast ballots before Election Day, either by mail or in person.
Contact the writer: 714-285-2867 or email@example.com


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Bleed It Out by El-i-orWatch
©2012-2017 El-i-or
WOW this is so amazing!!
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Owning a home of yours is something that you should be enjoying. There are so many things which needs proper attention. It is necessary for you to understand what exactly you are in need of. It is not just about the interiors of the home but also exteriors that need proper attention. Having a fiberglass pool kits can be a great way to add to the aesthetics of your property. More than all that, it can be the best way you can spare your time during summer holidays with your family. If you wonder why to use the same then it is good for understanding the pros of using the same.
See also our article on Types of in ground pools
Here are the pros of using fiberglass pool kits
Not Very Bad
It is good enough for using the fiberglass pool kits as it provides you with that. Try to understand the various things related with. There are chances for you to get that in finest. There is a misconception that the whole thing of fiberglass pools are a bad thing to even consider. If you are thinking to use the better way then things may be fine for you. If you are considering this then finest and better way for better chance in the finest way.
Repairs are Less Expensive
Fiberglass pool kits are something that need only less amount of money down road for repairs. This is something that is how fiberglass material can interact with water when that is compared with the concrete. Fiberglass has got much better longevity compared to that. Try to always choose what is most expensive for you. The repairs you should do for it does need much attention. Try to be very sure that the fiberglass can actually be much good as the time and money that you need to spare for the same is actually very less. When you are choosing fiberglass pools then it can actually last for much longer time.
Softening on Feet
The ones who have got concrete pools may complain about the rough nature of the material that is there on feet. A fiberglass pool kits is something which is very smooth and has got no risk for cutting the feet when you are walking on it. It is really something that you should be knowing about it. The softness that you get when you actually make use of the same is incredible. Understand what can be much better and suitable for you.
Flex Strength
Flex strength is something that the fiberglass pool kits have which is not at all there with the concrete ones. This is something that makes this pool much appealing by the home owners. Flex strength talks about the ability that the pool has got for resisting the torsion kind of forces. These are the forces which can come out of various things that include larger trucks which rolls in to it during quarry mining, earthquakes etc. Under any circumstances you will be able to retain your pool without any difficulty at all. This you cannot expect from the concrete pools. It is necessary to understand all these factors before you make the best choice.
Less Expensive & Faster Installation
Unlike the concrete pools, this kind of the fiberglass swimming pool kits can provide you with better way of installation. Installation process is fast compared to concrete pools. These pools made of concrete is something which takes so much of time. It even need time for settling and this can be done in proper way through the finest installation process. In the case of fiberglass pool kits there is nothing for which you should be waiting for. They are much less costlier and can be something that you can use without any issue. It is also necessary to understand that fiberglass pools even have much better and higher values whole reselling comparing to counterparts.
The fiberglass pool kits are very widely available in the market but there are people who still stay away from these in spite of all these pros related to the pools. These pools are mostly not liked by people due to the cheaper look that it has got and it is also not something that can be much easily customizable so that you may not get the best kind of results.


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The top B-to-B and B-to-C brands in the world. The best creative talent and account management. 400 years of marketing expertise. Neely & Daughters. Because what you do is awesome – but how you sell it? Could be better. Not gonna lie.
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Margo Neely is a creative mastermind.
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Margo Neely of Neely & Daughters is the most talented, inventive visual designer with whom I've had the pleasure to collaborate. She possesses a unique combination of meticulous professionalism and creative vision which is not only invaluable in today's marketplace, but raises the production value of every project she works on. I cannot recommend her work highly enough, and frankly I cannot wait until our next project!
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text: New York -- The body of Salvatore Maranzano, after he was murdered in his office on the ninth floor of the New York Central Tower on New York's fashionable Park Avenue. A girl stenographer told police of the three men who quarreled with Maranzano before the shooting and stabbing took place. (1931)


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Rocky Mountaineer TrainSee the beauty of the Rockies on The Mountaineer Train! SOLD OUT! 15 day train tour - August 17, 2017
Tour Highlights
- The World Famous – 5 star Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel. Located in the heart of Banff National Park. The Banff Springs Hotel stands as a landmark in the picturesque alpine town of Banff, Canada's "Castle" in the Rockies. It has been providing legendary hospitality to guests for more than 125 years. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- The World Famous – 5 star Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise Hotel. It is surrounded by soaring mountain peaks, the majestic Victoria Glacier and a glistening emerald lake. The iconic Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise Hotel is located in Alberta's Banff National Park. It was built over 100 years ago and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- The World Famous – 5 star Fairmont Chateau Whistler Hotel. Nestled at the base of Blackcomb Mountain is Whistler's landmark hotel and golf. Combining classic elegance and a modern alpine setting.
- The 5 star Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver. The Four Seasons hotel chain is one of the top hotel chains in the world. The Four Seasons Hotel's exceeds the standards used to rate 5-star luxury hotels.
- The 5 star Oak Bay Beach Resort Victoria, B.C. on Vancouver Island. Winner of several "Travelers Choice Awards" for 2015 – Luxury Hotels in Canada #4 – Top Hotels in Canada #9 – Romantic Hotels in Canada #20, every bedroom has a fireplace!
Click here to view our brochure
Rocky Mountaineer's "Grand Rail Circle Program"
- You will spend two wonderful days traveling by train during daylight hours from Vancouver to Banff in either GoldLeaf Service or SilverLeaf Service. You do not sleep on the train with either program. The train stops in Kamloops where we will overnight in a hotel, then continue on the next morning to Banff, where everyone will leave the train. Here our two groups will join together, stay together in luxury hotels and tour together.
- The hotels in Kamloops, Banff, Lake Louise, Jasper and Whistler were all arranged through the train company. It was the only way we could reserve the hotels we wanted. In Vancouver we were able to reserve the 5-star Four Season Hotel on our own (the same hotel the train uses). The train did not include Vancouver Island so the Oak Bay Beach Resort we reserved ourselves.
- Below are the really big additions we made to improve on the Train's Program:
- The train stays 3 nights in the 5 star Four Seasons Hotel in Vancouver. We stay 2 nights in the 5-star Four Seasons Hotel in Vancouver. We felt 3 was too many and we could make better use of our time staying in other areas!
- In Jasper, the train program had two issues: First they only stayed one night and second the GoldLeaf program hotel was out of town. We decided to stay in the SilverLeaf Hotel in town (it actually had a higher customer satisfaction rating) AND we decided to stay 3 NIGHTS in Jasper instead of just one.
- The train stays only 1 night in the 5-star Fairmont Château Whistler Hotel. We stay 2 nights in the 5-star Fairmont Château Whistler Hotel.
- We added Vancouver Island: We stay 2 nights in a fantastic beach front property on Vancouver Island: The Oak Bay Beach Resort Victoria.
- We have included two full days of touring on Vancouver Island including Victoria and the famous Butchart Gardens.
- We have also added all airport transfers. The Train's Program did not include airport transfers.
- We chose to travel to Vancouver Island from the Seattle Airport. The drive is filled with staggering beauty as we travel up the Olympic Peninsula to Port Angeles where we will board a ferry to Victoria, BC on Vancouver Island.
- None of this is included in the train's "Grand Rail Circle Program" and we are still over $1,000 Less than the train charges without all of the extras!
Giant Future Bonus!
Meals are not included on the train's program at any of the hotels they use including the Four Seasons Hotel in Vancouver. We are using all of the trains hotels except for the Victoria Oak Bay Beach Resort Hotel that we arranged directly. That hotel does include breakfast. On the two days of train ride to Banff, breakfast & lunch are included. There is a really good chance we will be able to get many of our breakfasts and a dinner or two taken care by the train company in some of our hotels they have reserved. Let me explain: For the last number of years the train has had an early booking bonus. It happens at the start of a new year of sales. The new booking bonus is then reduced or taken away as trains fill up. The early booking bonus has usually been in the form of a credit of $400 to $500 given to each early booking passenger. In the past that credit, could be used to buy breakfasts or dinners at your fancy hotels. They never allow a group that locks in prices far in advance, to also get the early booking bonus. So they told us that there is no early booking bonus for our passengers. This was not the answer we wanted. We let them know, that if our passengers could not have the 2017 early booking bonus, offered to others, we would not be willing to charter their rail cars. It was a deal breaker for us. They had to run this issue way up the chain of management, but finally they agreed. If they offer an early booking bonus for 2017 train tours (which we believe, is close to 100% that it will happen), then you will also receive the early booking bonus. We believe it will pay for many of your breakfasts in the fancy 5-star Luxury hotels and possibly a dinner or two.
The Big Differences between the Train's Program and Our Program
- We have 4 additional days, 4 additional hotel nights, additional touring, Vancouver Island and two rides on ferries that are not included on the "Grand Rail Circle Program". The only area the Train Program beats Our Program is the train between Jasper to Whistler, which we will take by bus. But their passengers lose, as they do not have enough time in Jasper and Whistler!
- We are a lot less money for a lot more! The train's 11-day round trip Vancouver through Whistler tour would cost you over $1,000 more than our 15-day complete package with a ton of extras: 4 additional 5-star hotel nights, Vancouver Island, Olympic Sound, Ferry to Victoria, Ferry to Vancouver, guest educator Michael Wilcox, Fun For Less Tours Staff throughout and so much more.
- How were we able to arrange everything for less money and add so many extras? We paid a huge non-refundable deposit up front to lock in our prices now for 2017 AND we agreed to buy full rail cars! No one else would be this crazy, then again, no one else has our pricing! We have a limit to the number of seats we can sell. This is one special train trip you do not want to miss!
We really do have the best itinerary and tour AND for more than a $1,000 LESS!
Package Price Includes:
- Our Program Package Price (using SilverLeaf Train Car):
- Rocky Mountaineer Train Vancouver to Banff in our chartered SilverLeaf Train Car. The GoldLeaf and SilverLeaf are together in the same 5-star hotels and doing the same tours throughout the trip. The only difference is the class of service on the train and GoldLeaf passengers pay for upgraded rooms in the Oak BayBeach Resort in Victoria. The SilverLeaf Train includes:
- Single Level rail car with large windows (but not a domed glass roof).
- Hot gourmet meals served at your seat.
- First class hotels in Kamloops.
- Transfers and luggage handling in Kamloops.
- The following is also included in the package price:
- 2 nights 5 Star Luxury Oak Bay Beach Resort Hotel Victoria – standard room with city view.
- Puget Sound and driving up the Olympic Peninsula, WA.
- Ferry transfer Port Angeles, WA to Victoria, Vancouver Island.
- 2 days of touring Vancouver Island.
- Tours include Victoria and Butchart Gardens.
- 2 nights luxury Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver.
- Transfer to Rocky Mountaineer Train.
- 2 nights luxury Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel.
- All tours in Banff Springs, Lake Louise, Ice Fields, Jasper & Whistler.
- 1-night luxury Fairmont Château Lake Louise Hotel.
- 3 nights first class hotel (IN TOWN) Jasper.
- Bus from Jasper to Quesnel.
- 1-night deluxe hotel Quesnel.
- Bus from Quesnel to Whistler.
- 2 nights luxury Fairmont Château Whistler Hotel.
- All train, hotel and tour taxes.
- Bus from Whistler to Vancouver airport.
- Dr. S. Michael Wilcox as guest educator.
- Fun For Less Tours Staff throughout.
- Whisper perfect headset receivers – you hear everything, even when you step away to take that important picture.
- Airfare is not included in the Package Price: Airfare will not be expensive. Best guess at this time – approx. $400 to $650 from Salt Lake City. NOT $1,700 like most of our tours out of country!
- Rocky Mountaineer Train Vancouver to Banff in our chartered SilverLeaf Train Car. The GoldLeaf and SilverLeaf are together in the same 5-star hotels and doing the same tours throughout the trip. The only difference is the class of service on the train and GoldLeaf passengers pay for upgraded rooms in the Oak BayBeach Resort in Victoria. The SilverLeaf Train includes:
Package Price: $6,595*
*Per person cash discount price, based on double occupancy.
Does not include airfare, tips, optional GoldLeaf package and most meals (see "giant bonus" above).
- Rocky Mountaineer Train in our GoldLeaf Chartered Train Car.
- Two Level Train Car.
- Top Level includes the best viewing possible with a completely domed glass roof.
- Bottom Level includes a luxury restaurant where you will dine.
- Bottom Level also has a vestibule or balcony area where you can go outside for better picture taking and fresh air.
- Price includes upgrading your hotel room at the Oak Bay Beach Resort Hotel Victoria. Your room will either be a standard Room facing the ocean or a Boutique Suite with a city view.
Day 1 Aug 17: Fly to Seattle
Today you will fly from your home to Seattle. We will spend the day traveling up the coast of the Olympic Peninsula to Port Angeles Washington. We will then travel by ferry to Victoria BC, Canada. You will overnight in the 5 Star Luxury Oak Bay Resort Hotel Victoria.
Day 2 Aug 18: Victoria
Full day tour of Victoria area that will include the Butchart Gardens and the Royal BC Museum in Victoria. Overnight Oak Bay Resort Hotel.
Day 3 Aug 19: Vancouver Island – Vancouver
We will spend the day driving up the coast and exploring Vancouver Island. Late this afternoon we will take a ferry to mainland Canada and on to Vancouver. We will overnight in the 5 Star Luxurious Four Seasons Hotel in Vancouver.
Day 4 Aug 20: Vancouver
Today is a free day to explore and enjoy the best Vancouver has to offer in walking streets, sites and the Warf area. Everything is easy to access and explore. Overnight Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver.
Day 5 Aug 21: Luxury Train to Kamloops
Early this morning we will head to the train station to board our luxury train cars with extra large glass windows or glass ceilings. We will spend the day enjoying fantastic settings as we travel to Kamloops to overnight. Breakfast and lunch is included on the train today.
Day 6 Aug 22: Luxury train to Banff
This morning we will re-board our Luxury Train and continue on from Kamloops to Banff. You will witness some of the most jaw dropping scenery anywhere in the world as your train passes into the majestic Rocky Mountains. The train will pass by Lake Louise on our way to Banff. You will overnight at the Famous Banff Springs 5 Star Luxury Fairmont Hotel.
Day 7 Aug 23: Banff
Today is a full day tour of Banff including a Gondola Ride. The tours throughout the Canadian Rockies were bought from the train company. Whatever important sites they include we will be visiting. You will again overnight in the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel.
Day 8 Aug 24: Banff – Lake Louise
Today we will head to Lake Louise for a ½ day tour. You will have some time to enjoy the wonderful 5 Star Luxury Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise Hotel, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Day 9 Aug 25: Lake – Louise – Ice Fields – Jasper
Today will be a full day tour as we head to Jasper. No tour of this area would be complete without a stop at the famous Ice Fields. We will spend the day touring and traveling to Jasper. You will overnight in the middle of town, where everything is within easy walking distance.
Day 10 Aug 26: Jasper
Full Day tour Jasper area.
Day 11 Aug 27: Jasper
Everything we have seen and read suggests you need a day just to enjoy the town of Jasper. Today will be a free day to explore and enjoy this special area. Overnight Jasper.
Day 12 Aug 28: Jasper – Quesnel
This morning we will travel deep into the famous Gold Rush area. We will travel by bus, stopping at special sites to take pictures. We will overnight in Quesnel about ½ of the way to Whistler.
Day 13 Aug 29: Quesnel – Whistler
We will finish our drive from Quesnel to Whistler. Tonight you will overnight in the World Famous 5 Star Luxury Fairmont Chateau Whistler Hotel.
Day 14 Aug 30: Whistler
Today will be a free day to relax and enjoy the beautiful hotel and the surrounding area.
Day 15 Aug 31: Whistler – Vancouver Airport
Today you will transfer to the Vancouver airport to catch your flight back to the US and home.


text:
Dr Woodrow Pattinson PhD
Dr Pattinson has worked on air quality exposure projects since early 2009 and when he commenced a Master's thesis on exposures while commuting.
His PhD research focused on variation in traffic-related pollutant concentrations throughout low-income communities situated alongside major highways.
Since completion, he's held postdoctoral fellowships at Canterbury University's GeoHealth laboratory in Christchurch, NZ, and at the Atmospheric Laboratory for Urban Air Pollution and Climate, Federal University of Technology, Paraná, Brazil.
He currently works as a senior scientist at a specialist environmental monitoring company which provides high-end integrated solutions to the commercial and academic sectors. AirQualityLtd has close partnerships with the University of Auckland and the University of Canterbury which have a number of ongoing projects to improve population exposure characterisation using leading measurement technologies.
Dr Pattinson maintains a strong interest in issues of environmental justice and community health and enjoys collaborating with other researchers in this area.


text:
[In a 1993 Guitar Magazine article,] (http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/mastersofreality/article15.htm) Chris Goss states that his main Telecaster has Dimarzio X2N pickups, an important factor in his sound. Along with the pickups, it has had other modifications done over the years and has been used throughout the existence of Masters of Reality.more
With an Equipboard account you can rate this item, add it to your collection, submit a review to discuss what you like and dislike about it, and associate Fender Telecaster Deluxe White to artists that use it. Create an account!


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|"Yonik Seeley (JIRA)" <j...@apache.org>
|[jira] Updated: (LUCENE-2718) separate java code from .jj file
|Thu, 21 Oct 2010 19:58:16 GMT
[ https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/LUCENE-2718?page=com.atlassian.jira.plugin.system.issuetabpanels:all-tabpanel ] Yonik Seeley updated LUCENE-2718: --------------------------------- Attachment: LUCENE-2718.patch Here's a first cut at this, pulling out most stuff in QueryParser into QueryParserBase. This would make it easier to do refactorings and changes in Java (instead of a .JJ file which isn't well supported in IDEs), and allows more changes w/o having to recompile the grammar. Thoughts? > separate java code from .jj file > -------------------------------- > > Key: LUCENE-2718 > URL: https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/LUCENE-2718 > Project: Lucene - Java > Issue Type: Improvement > Components: QueryParser > Reporter: Yonik Seeley > Priority: Minor > Attachments: LUCENE-2718.patch > > > It would make development easier to move most of the java code out from the .jj file and into a real java file. -- This message is automatically generated by JIRA. - You can reply to this email to add a comment to the issue online. --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, e-mail: email@example.com For additional commands, e-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
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