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Soldano Hot Rod 50 Avenger 50W Tube Guitar Amp Head
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This Avenger 50 tube guitar amp gives you pure distilled Soldano overdrive tone, and if that's the sound you gotta have, this is the amp for you"a 50...Click To Read More About This Product
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Brings 50W of all-out Soldano overdrive tone to the table.
This Avenger 50 tube guitar amp gives you pure distilled Soldano overdrive tone, and if that's the sound you gotta have, this is the amp for you"a 50-watt amplifier head with the SLO-100 overdrive circuit and no channel switching to complicate things. Stripped to the bone, this simplified signal path also improves dynamic response for a punchier sound.
The Soldano Avenger's High and Low gain input jacks provide the option of using the full SLO lead circuit or skipping the first gain stage for a darker crunch. In addition to the preamp Gain, Bass, Middle, Treble, Master Volume and Presence controls, a Depth control is included for boosting low end, and a rotary impedance selector switch allows the use of 4-, 8-, or 16-ohm speaker cabinets. The amp head uses 5881/6L6 power tubes, like the SLO.
- 50 watt amplifier head with SLO-100 overdrive tone
- Straightforward, no-fuss overdrive
- Gain, Bass, Middle, Treble, Master Volume, Presence, and Depth controls
Reviewed by 1 customer
Comments about Soldano Hot Rod 50 Avenger 50W Tube Guitar Amp Head:
This amp blew me away. It has more gain than I could ever use and there are no bad tone settings.Features got a 4.5 because it has all the features I was looking for not necessarily all the features out there. It's half the price of the SLO and when I opened it up all the soldering was very clean and everything was solid. I've read everywhere that this amp has the same circuit as the SLO but there is a difference. The SLO has a clean channel that is never off so despite playing the lead channel there is still the clean channel running parallel which alters the tone ever so slightly. I've owned this amp for a year and I highly recommend this amp however if you want reverb, effects loops, or multiple channels look to one of the other Soldanos.


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Trash can with a clip-on edge feature for household or commercial use, the trash can and clip-on edge feature sold as a unit
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Mike McDougal is seeking to unseat Republican National Committeeman Tim Lambert, saying the incumbent has an overzealous pro-life stance that has compromised party unity.
Lambert, meanwhile, said his opposition to partial-birth abortions is consistent with the party's position, and he questioned McDougal's party loyalty, noting that McDougal's family once made campaign contributions to House Speaker Pete Laney, a Democrat from Hale Center.
Both men will seek the Republican committeeman's position at the party's state convention next month in Houston. A committeeman and committeewoman are nominated by some 15,000 delegates from state congressional districts to represent the state at the national level. Lambert was elected to the post in 1996.
McDougal, the chief financial officer for McDougal Companies real estate and development, said he share's his opponents pro-life belief, but he does not believe Republican officials should be judged solely on their abortion stance.
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''When you look at Tim and I, we're both conservative. We agree on a lot of the same issues,'' McDougal said.
''Philosophically, there's not a lot of difference, in my opinion, but when it comes to leadership, there is,'' McDougal said. ''Since Tim has taken the job, a lot of people around the state are disappointed that the party is moving toward this issue, abortion. It's alienated people, and people have left the party.''
''I don't think he can point to anything,'' Lambert countered. ''Probably what he's talking about is my resolution at the national convention to oppose partial-birth abortions.''
Lambert made national news in 1998 when he urged the Republican National Committee to withhold campaign funds from candidates who did not oppose partial-birth abortions. The move failed at the national level, but the state party approved a similar measure.
He said the procedure, where a fetus is partially pulled through the cervix, amounts to infanticide, and the majority of the country opposes it.
While the ban on partial-birth abortions has passed in Congress three times, Democrats have opposed an outright ban, and President Clinton has said he would veto such a bill.
''I don't think you can say there are other issues that are more important than infanticide,'' Lambert said.
McDougal said Lambert has used the issue as a litmus test to weigh support for Republican office holders.
''One thing that I want to do that Tim has not done is support Republican elected officials,'' McDougal said. ''There have been speeches given by Tim speaking out against sitting Republicans because their stance on abortion isn't as strong as his.
''He'll try to get them kicked out of office, when in fact we may have a common ground on 95 percent of the issues. That's not what party unity is all about,'' he said. ''We need to help get people elected and then stand behind them.''
Lambert accused McDougal of being ''disingenuous in how he decides to work in the Republican Party.'' He said campaign contribution records showed that McDougal and family members gave a combined $2,500 to Laney in his 1998 re-election campaign against Republican Hollis Cain of Springlake.
''I supported (Laney's) Republican opponent,'' Lambert said. ''I have a broad base of support from around the state.''
McDougal, 34, has a bachelor's degree from Texas Christian University and is a certified public accountant. He belongs to several accounting and real estate professional associations.
Politically, McDougal has served as campaign treasurer for his brother, City Councilman Marc McDougal, and for Sheriff David Gutierrez. He also served in financial capacity in County Commissioner Nathan Ziegler's campaign, and he has held several positions within the Lubbock County Republican Party.
Lambert, 49, has been involved in politics for many years. He was elected to the state Republican Executive Committee in 1991, ran unsuccessfully for county commissioner in 1994 and lost to David Duncan in the 1996 state senate race. He has led the Texas Home School Coalition in various capacities since 1990.
The Republican state conventions begins June 15, and the elections are June 17.
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I'm sure everyone is getting ready to enjoy their 3-day holiday weekend but and now it just got even better. Gameloft has announced they will be giving away a few free Android games each day until Labor Day. I don't know about you guys but free games for our favorite Android devices is always welcomed.
Yesterday they kicked things off with the popular game NOVA HD and not only that, but every Gameloft game is also on sale for only $0.99 cents this weekend. There is a small catch here and the free game will only be available for 2 hours, and 2 hours only. Follow @GameloftAndroid on Twitter or like Gameloft on Facebook and at random times each day this weekend they will announce the freebie.
I've a deal all set up with friends that if they see the deal to make sure to alert me on Twitter or G Talk so I don't miss any awesome free games and I suggest you all do the same. Oh and if you're interested in those $0.99 cents deals you must buy those by clicking here. That's all folks, enjoy the weekend and keep an eye out for free HD Games thanks to Gameloft.
[via Gameloft]


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Turtle Creek rises in north Dallas and winds its way through the posh communities of Highland Park and University Park until it flows into the Trinity River at the foot of the city's emerging communities to the south.
Considered "the most notable waterway in Dallas," Turtle Creek has witnessed the city's history from its farming and ranching roots to its current status as the city with the largest number of corporate headquarters in the country.
Fed by numerous fresh springs, Turtle Creek has never run dry. It is this quiet, consistent strength that has fed the core of what Dallas is, and all it will be. This is where optimism meets opportunity.
TEDxTurtleCreekWomen reflects this same strength with fresh ideas that never run dry. We look to draw our speakers, attendees and staff from all of the diverse communities that make up the areas of Dallas touched by Turtle Creek.
In following the TEDWomen theme of Invented Here, TEDxTurtleCreekWomen is working hard to make this event memorable! Please check back with us regularly to see our progress.
2403 Flora Street
Dallas, Texas, 75201
United States
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THERE was sunshine and it was pretty close to Leith when The Proclaimers turned up to celebrate Yes Scotland announcing it had reached its target of securing more than a million signatories to its Yes Declaration, with less than four weeks to go until the independence referendum.
The Reid twins, Craig and Charlie, have been campaigning for independence for their entire adult lives, penning the famous lyric for one of the tracks on their 1988 album Sunshine On Leith, "I can't understand/Why we let someone else rule our land/Cap in hand."
Their views haven't changed and they are currently writing songs for a new album. Will there be a new political lyric? Charlie replied: "Not yet. We've got to win first."
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Craig suggests: "Maybe we'll do a special reworking of Cap in Hand." Referring to the English celebrities love-bombing Scots with appeals to reject separation, he adds: "I say, 'we love you too but this is about independence'. I want to see a Scotland where our young guys and women are not sent out to fight illegal wars."
The event at Dynamic Earth, round the corner from the Scottish Parliament and not far from the Reid twins' beloved Easter Road, home of Hibernian FC, was to publicise the achievement of securing the million-signature target.
Yes Scotland chief executive Blair Jenkins said breaking the million barrier at this stage was a clear indication the Yes campaign is on a winning trajectory.
He said: "We are hugely grateful, not just to the one million-plus people in Scotland who have now signed the Yes Declaration, but also to our many thousands of volunteers all around the country who have worked so hard to help us reach this target with just under a month still to go.
"More and more people are waking up to the fantastic opportunities that would be created by a Yes vote. People realise that only with a Yes can we protect our NHS and other public services, grow our economy to create better jobs, and make Scotland a fairer society.
"Today's announcement is a clear indication of the level of support we are getting, and it gives us great confidence as we work towards securing a Yes majority on September 18."
Mr Jenkins said every signature had been cross-checked and verified on the voters' roll. Celebrity supporters who do not have a vote next month were excluded from the figures.
One man enthused by the milestone was Moray MP Angus Robertson, the SNP's leader at Westminster, campaign director for the party's referendum effort, and a fluent German speaker who delighted in showing off his prowess for visiting broadcasters from that country.
He has his origins in Stockbridge in Edinburgh, where he recalls as a teenager opening the door of his parents' flat to an SNP canvasser who persuaded him to join the party. A few weeks later he saw the same person on stage as half of The Proclaimers and realised it was Charlie Reid who had been his recruiting sergeant.
Mr Robertson is now one of the sharpest strategists in his party and is convinced that things are shifting on the ground - what he calls "the community effect" - as the Yes message gains traction.
Back in front of the media the Reid twins fielded questions about the SNP's failure to address uncertainty. Craig said: "There is uncertainty in getting out of bed every morning. Yes there are risks, but there are certainties about what is coming down the line under the Union - Prime Minister Boris Johnson pulling us out of Europe, for example."
Charlie added: "I'm worried about a right-wing agenda driven by the south of England being imposed on the Scottish people. That's the real risk."


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Book Report: My advice: Try these as presents
It's gift-giving time. I like to give books. Why? A book's conformation is easier to wrap than a snowmobile. And, properly selected, it's good for the recipient, better by far than a Whitman Sampler (No, not Walt! I mean the candy.)
This season we have a wonderful collection of biographies and autobiographies, ranging from stories of politicians, to artists to athletes. Here's just a small sampling:
Let's begin with a story that's already familiar to readers of a certain age. They know about the famous architect Stanford White, who designed the original Madison Square Garden and who was subsequently murdered there by Harry Thaw.
White was a womanizer and had an affair with Thaw's bride-to-be, Evelyn Nesbitt.
Years back a movie was made of the story called "The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing." In a new biography, we get a more comprehensive story entitled, "Triumvirate: McKim, Mead & White: Art, Architecture, Scandal and Class in America's Gilded Age," by Mosette Broderick (Knopf, $40).
Broderick tells the story of White and his two partners McKim and Mead and how aristocratic professionals lived back in the 1890s. White died broke, but the firm took care of his bereaved wife.
How bereaved could she have been?
This is fine biography spiked with a look at what New York City was like more than a century ago.
And speaking of movies that eventually turn into books, there's "Native Son: The Life and Sporting Legend of Jim Thorpe," by Kate Buford (Knopf, $35).
When I was a kid I went to see Burt Lancaster as the famous Native American athlete in "Jim Thorpe, American." It was a very sad movie, but not as sad as Buford's new book.
It's a big one, full of fascinating information about the Carlisle school, where Thorpe got his start and about the way professional football got started in the Pittsburgh area and Thorpe's role in it.
Some interesting sidelights: Who was Thorpe's favorite teacher back at Carlisle? None other than Marianne Moore, who later won a Pulitzer Prize for her poetry.
A not so pleasant female in the Thorpe story was his third and last wife, who drove the poor fellow to drink and distraction.
"Begin Again," by Kenneth Silverman (Knopf, $40), tells the story of composer/philosopher, Renaissance man John Cage, who died in 1992, but not before he shook up the fine arts world.
On the regional front there's lots of variety from which to choose.
"The Man Who Invented the Computer," by Jane Smiley (Doubleday, $29): Pulitzer Prize winner Smiley ("One Thousand Acres") turns from fiction to biography in her story about John Atanasoff, a Bulgarian immigrant's son who became a physicist at Iowa State.
One night, sitting in a bar outside Ames he concluded that a combination of the binary number system with a series of electric switches on a moving drum could yield a computing machine.
Iowa State College did not have money for such a project so Atanasoff built one himself. It worked. And the rest is history.
Except it isn't. Atanasoff never patented his idea and so his followers and imitators get most of the publicity.
"H.H. Bennett, Photographer," by Sara Rath (Terrace Books, $24.95 paper): Have you ever heard of Bennett? I haven't, so I was fascinated to read about the fellow who put Wisconsin Dells on the map.
Bennett ran a photography studio in the little town of Kilbourn City. There was lots of beautiful scenery in the neighborhood and Bennett photographed it and sold prints to the tourists who wandered through.
More and more tourists came and before you knew it the town's name was changed in the 1930s to Wisconsin Dells.
Rath, who writes beautifully about Wisconsin icons ranging from milch cows to H.H. Bennett, does a fine job explaining Bennett's entrepreneurial skills as well as his advances working the camera.
She also points out that Bennett was worried that all the publicity might cause the Dells to be overrun with tourists.
Never happen?
You know the answer.
Fans of women's basketball will want to receive "The Lindsay Whalen Story," by Wisconsin author R. S. Oatman (Nodin Press, $19.95 paper), who tells the story of the Hutchinson, Minn., girl who went on to play for the Gophers, in Europe, and finally for the Lynx.
"Extraordinary, Ordinary People," by Condoleezza Rice (Crown, $27), is the only autobiography on my list. It's by George Bush II's secretary of state and how her parents, humble folk, brought her up to become president of Stanford University and later a recent cabinet member.
Rice's book ends before she goes to work for the president.
Let's hope there'll be a sequel.
Dave Wood is a past vice-president of the National Book Critics Circle and former book review editor of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Phone him at 715-426-9554.


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A Slice of Life
Today's Free Kindle eBook: A Slice of Life
Originally published in the anthology, A Walk in the Woods, with six other stories.Grace Coulter has been hiding in the kitchen of her family restaurant since she was eight years old. That's when the name-calling began. Stretch, skinny-minny, boy in girl's clothes, all because of the slender height that had her towering over even the tallest boys in the class. Now, nearly thirty years later, Grace is head chef of the failing restaurant and still hiding in the kitchen. Like many businesses during the current recession, Coulter's may have to start laying off employees or even close. But Grace has a plan to save the restaurant and the people she's known all her life; a plan that will force her to go out into the world and face her fears.
To get the freebie please click on this link:
A Slice of Life
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Tariffs: The Smoot-Hawley Fairy Tale
Once again, it's necessary to debunk the Globalist fairy tales about the "damage" caused by the Smoot-Hawley Tariff. Below is a copy of U.S. GDP from 1929 through 1939. These are official government figures from the US Bureau of Economic Analysis
(Here is a link to graphic copy of the 1929-39 GDP chart with the key numbers underlined. The Trade Balance has been underlined in Red. Exports have been underlined in Blue. Imports have been underlined in Orange.)
Notice that there is a slight decline in both exports and imports by the end of 1930. The trade balance remained around 0 during the entire time. Exports bottomed in 1932 — 2 years before any revision or modification of Smoot-Hawley occurred.
The Smoot-Hawley Tariff was signed into law on June 17, 1930, and raised U.S. tariffs on over 20,000 imported goods. Legislation was passed in 1934 that weakened the effect of the Smoot-Hawley Tariff. In effect, the 1934 legislation functionally repealed Smoot-Hawley. Thus, the effects of Smoot-Hawley cover only the period between June 17, 1930, and 1934. This is the time frame that should be focused on.
So in reviewing the chart, what evidence is there that the Smoot-Hawley Tariff "hurt" the economy?? Is there any evidence at all?
No, there is practically NO evidence that Smoot-Hawley hurt our economy.
The US was already in a Depression when Smoot-Hawley was enacted. Prior to Smoot-Hawley, the 1929 Trade Surplus was +0.38% of our GDP. In other words, it contributed less than 1/200th to our economy.
What happens if we focus on exports alone? Exports were $5.9 billion in 1929, and had declined to $2.0 billion in 1933, for a -$3.9 billion decline. This $3.9 billion decline was roughly 3.8% of our 1929 GDP, which had already declined by a whopping 46% over the same period of time. Thus, of the -46% GDP decline, only 3.8% of it was due to a fall in exports.
But the effects on trade must also include the reduction in Imports, which ADDS to GDP. (A decline in imports increases GDP). If the import decline is added back to the GDP total (to measure the net trade balance), the "loss" becomes only -$0.2 billion from our GDP — or less than ½ of 1% of the total GDP decline.
In other words, the document-able "loss" from the Smoot-Hawley Tariff — the "net export" loss — contributed less than ½ of 1% of our our -46% GDP decline. Overall, the Smoot Hawley Tariff caused almost 0 damage to our economy during the Depression.
To put this in better perspective, let's compare all the GDP components together:
1929 .......................................................... 1933
GDP $103.6 billion----------------------->$56.4 billion ( decreased -$47.2 billion)
Consum. Expend $77.4 bil------------> $45.9 billion ( decreased -$31.5 bill)
Private Invest $16.5 bil----------------> $1.7 billion ( decreased -$14.8 billion)
Trade Balance +$0.3 bil----------->+$0.1 billion ( decreased -$0.2 billion)
Exports $5.9 billion----------------------> $2.0 billion ( decreased -$3.9 billion)
Imports $5.6 billion----------------------> $1.9 billion ( decreased -$3.7 billion)
Again, to re-emphasize, how much difference to US GDP did the export loss make? The Trade Balance worsened by only -$0.2 billion, or about 0.19% of our 1929 GDP ( less than ½ of 1% of 1929 GDP).
Meanwhile, our total GDP decreased a whopping -46% (or $47.2 billion).
How much effect did a ½ of 1% loss of GDP have on the Great Depression, especially when spread over a 4-year period? Not much.
Based on available statistics, Smoot-Hawley had almost NO effect on the Great Depression. At the very most, caused a -3.8% decline in GDP from loss of exports. But factoring in the GDP increase from a decline in imports, it caused less than 1% of the GDP decline.
The Smoot-Hawley Tariff did not cause the Great Depression, nor did it worsen it or extend it. Claims to the contrary are not only false, but easily refutable. The evidence to disprove those claims is abundant, overwhelming, and freely available to the public.
The Smoot-Hawley myth needs to be put to rest, once and for all. The claim that it worsened the Great Depression is nothing but a fairy tale.
Sorry to inform you that you've made an incorrect comparison in comparing decrease in exports as a percent of GDP with the percentage change in GDP. I'll let you figure out for yourself what's wrong with it. What you should have done, however, was measure the percentage change in exports from about 1931 to 1934. If you wanted to make a comparison you could have compared that number with the percentage change in exports in say the 4 years proceeding 1930. That would be 1927-1930.
I would not use the 1930 number at all, because the Act was not passed until June 1930 and it would take some months for its affect to start showing up in any significant way.
The that we were in a deflationary depression should have helped exports, making the precipitous decline in exports from 1931 to 1934 all the more startling. Smoot-Hawley was NOT a good idea!
When you put Tariffs on imports, your trading partners put Tariffs on their imports to counter!
Perhaps what is absent is jobs in the picture. Tariffs cause companies to lose their export market. Add this to an already bad situation of crashing stock markets, company failures, bankruptcies, and we have job losses from the smaller export markets, and job losses from the smaller import market. The problems were compounded by forces acting in concert.
In other words, the tariffs made an already bad situation even worse, by not pulling the economy in the positive direction.


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Meander artist's inspiration is homegrown in west central Minnesota
APPLETON -- All artists are born with their own creative talent.
Some learn how to express it through formal study at schools with well-known artists.
Kerry Kolke-Bonk was arguably more fortunate.
"I grew up with it; all the time it was around me,'' said Kolke-Bonk. She is the featured artists for the 2011 Upper Minnesota River Art Crawl known as the Meander.
No different than a carpenter's son or daughter growing up with the tools of the trade always at hand, the materials and opportunities for creating art were always a part of the Kolke household.
Her father, Erling, was a superintendent of schools. He served the Atwater schools before becoming the superintendent for the Appleton schools in 1972 when she started second grade.
It was her mother, DeVaughn, who had the artistic talent. Kolke-Bonk said her mother was "adamant'' about the arts and introducing them to peoples' lives.
Her mother offered the encouragement and guidance that undoubtedly played a major role in her own pursuit of art.
That is, if encouragement was ever needed. Kolke-Bonk said she has always needed a creative outlet. When she is not at work on canvas she turns her attention to home decorating and other projects.
"The Kerry Touch'' is how her family and friends describe her talent.
Kolke-Bonk did not undertake formal art studies after high school. She studied photography at what is now Ridgewater College in Willmar. She was interested in photography with an eye toward a career in commercial art.
Marriage to Paul Bonk, an Appleton area farmer, and raising three children led to a change in course. When her children reached school age, she took on a job with the U.S. Postal Service, which she continues to this day.
She also began to study art at workshops. Always, she set aside time to create art. She created her first work as a high school student. One of her former instructors holds the distinction of being the first to purchase her works.
She works mainly with watercolor. "Water color is a hard medium, but yet it's more satisfying ... if you can conquer it,'' she said. "You can't just paint over it like oil and acrylic if you make a mistake. You have to plan.''
She works from photographs she takes of landscapes, objects or buildings. Some of her most popular works are renditions of buildings now vanishing from the rural landscape. An autumn scene showing the Appleton Mill and mill pond on the Pomme de Terre River in Appleton captures its serenity. The apple-red colored doors to the former Appleton High School hints at the bustle and life once found inside.
The image she created to represent this year's Meander -- a farm place windmill standing amidst white coneflowers with modern wind turbines on the horizon -- is based on a real place she photographed.
"I'm a realist,'' she said of her approach to art. She stays true to the original scene or photograph as much as possible.
Yet there are changes in the wind, too. She finds herself working more on abstracts than formerly.
And, she is refining her approach, acting on the advice given her by her mother, who died this last summer.
Kolke-Bonk said she has always had a tendency to be detailed in her works. For example, if she painted a leaf, she was sure to add the veins and shadows in exacting detail.
Today, she is more disciplined and willing to pull back and provide more room for the viewer's imagination.
"My mom said they are going to like it because they are never going to imagine something they don't like. You have to leave something for them to finish,'' she said.
Her mother enjoyed a life-long journey in art. Kolke-Bonk's goals are no different. "I never thought of where art would lead me,'' she said, "but there was always art for me.''
The opportunity to meet the artist and view her work during the Meander are found at her home and art studio located about five miles east of Appleton. Follow Swift County Road 6 from Appleton to 170th Avenue Southwest. Her works are also available at Billy Maple Tree's gift shop in Milan.


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At Gemvara, we believe that the jewelry you wear should be one of a kind, like you. That's why we make each piece to order, one at a time, just the way you want it. Choose alexandrite and platinum or diamond and sterling silver: it's your choice. Mix and match gems and precious metals for a look that's exactly you. It's jewelry for all life's occasions, from an anniversary or graduation to your own personal milestones and celebrations. Gemvara uses only the highest quality materials to craft your palladium three stone emerald jewelry design with meticulous attention to detail. Our precious metals are recycled or responsibly mined. Emerald is the gem of love, fertility, and new beginnings. Style icons from Jacqueline Kennedy to Angelina Jolie love the dramatic statement of this vivid green gem. Gemvara's emerald has exceptional color and lasting value. In addition to being the May birthstone, emerald is the 20th anniversary gem and the 35th anniversary gem. Palladium is the newest precious metal. A platinum group metal, palladium is rare, lustrous, and naturally white. Our wide selection of palladium three stone emerald jewelry by Damon Washington, Ruzanna Davtian, Jessica Behzad, and other talented designers means you can find jewelry that's exactly your style. You can also shop by style, choosing our Family, Featured, or Featured Collection Collections. Three-stone jewelry can be personalized with the birthstones of your family: your parents, kids, or siblings. Gemvara's fine quality palladium three stone emerald jewelry is designed to be passed down for generations to come, crafted by hand in the United States.
We can help right away. Chat with a jewelry expert now!


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Product Code: s22lao2c6
Specialising in quirky illustrations and playful characters, Corby Tindersticks is a design brand started by Yorkshire-born designer, Carly Gledhill.
This season were delighted to be working with her on a new range of babywear, enriched with bold designs you cant help but fall in love with.
This knitted jumper is the perfect layering piece for the cooler months, pair with jeans for a complete look suitable for nursery or playtime.
- Nickel-free popper opening at back
- Long sleeved
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- Knitted jumper
We'll work around you. Let us know which day is best, and we'll deliver it to you; whether that's to your home, the nearest store or collection point. For more information about all our delivery options click the link below.


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CASH-strapped families are increasingly being asked to fork out hundreds of dollars to equip their children with laptops for school.
As notebook computer programs expand into more public schools and year levels this year, one Frankston mum says the cost could be crippling.
Amy Dawson said she is facing a $100-a-month bill for notebook computers for her two sons.
Victorian Association of State Secondary Principals' president Frank Sal said government schools were "between a rock and a hard place" because they were expected to offer state-of-the-art curriculum, but were criticised for raising costs.
Ms Dawson said her sons' school - Mt Erin College in Frankston South - this year had a deal with a private provider where parents could buy notebooks for $1341 or rent-to-buy for $88 with monthly payments of $50.
The school is introducing a program this year where students in years 7 to 9 will be expected to have a notebook for use at school and at home.
"I cannot afford two laptops for this price and the lease option (would cost) $3700 for two laptops over 36 months," Ms Dawson said.
She said she had been told that her sons could not download the education programs required to their own laptops.
Ms Dawson said she did not want her children to "sit there feeling like the poor kids".
"I will get (the laptops), but I'm going to struggle because of it."
Many schools are introducing new notebook programs to years 7 and 8 students this year, but costs vary wildly. Some schools offer leases from $200 a year.
The Federal Government's Digital Education Revolution has funded 967,000 computers, one for every student in years 9-12 in every public school. Funding is due to expire in June.
In a letter to parents, Mt Erin's principal said no student would be disadvantaged.
The school said one-to-one notebook programs enhanced students' learning.
Parents Victoria's Gail McHardy said the biggest frustration for parents was that they felt they could get laptops cheaper elsewhere.
Mt Erin's program includes the notebook, insurance, a carry case, repairs and a spare battery.
Education Department spokeswoman Helen Stevanovich said there was a new licensing agreement so students could access most education-related software used in Victorian Government schools at no cost.
She said some schools had run one-to-one laptop programs for student use at school and home. Schools might charge for the laptops but "are expected to subsidise the cost so they are affordable", she said.
Originally published as Parents in bind on notebooks


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Listen. Talk. Fight. Grow. Provide. Rest. Serve. Submit. Pursue. Worship.
Being a husband is easy. Being a good one, however—one characterized by those ten actions—is not. That's why I'm thankful for Darrin and Amie Patrick's new book, The Dude's Guide to Marriage: Ten Skills Every Husband Must Develop to Love His Wife Well (Thomas Nelson). Cultivating such behaviors in a consistent manner, they contend, is the secret to a healthy, Christ-honoring marriage.
I spoke with the Patricks—highschool sweethearts, pastor and wife, parents of four children—about the biggest issue couples face, the danger of mere compatibility, the effect of kids, and more.
What's the most serious problem you perceive in typical Christian marriages?
Darrin: The husband is passive and the wife gets disillusioned with his lack of engagement and leadership. It's a huge failure in headship.
Amie: I think we tend to impose all kinds of our own ideas and expectations onto our marriages that aren't biblical, which leads to a great deal of confusion and disappointment.
Darrin, you confess: "It didn't take too many years of marriage for me to see that I had a deficient philosophy that would destroy my marriage if I did not repent of it." What was this deficient philosophy and what, humanly speaking, occasioned your repentance?
My deficient philosophy centered around how my wife likes to be loved. The popular treatment of this is in Gary Chapman's The Five Love Languages. The premise is that human beings prefer to be loved in specific ways. We have a whole appendix in the book that explains it, but let me answer the question succinctly. My wife loves to receive gifts; I love to be served. For years I loved my wife the way I love to be loved (being served) instead of loving her the way she wanted to be loved (receiving gifts).
What's wrong with merely looking for compatibility in a wife or husband?
Darrin: I think the word merely is relevant here. It's essential that some polarities exist in a marriage relationship. For instance, my wife is super-detailed and I'm hyper-visionary. This causes a ton of conflict, but it also helps us stay future-oriented without neglecting the present. The problem is functionality: looking for someone who will help me fullfill the dream I have for my life as opposed to looking for someone to worship with as we pursue God's dream for the world.
Amie: Compatibility is important, but since it's often based on preferences and circumstances that inevitably change, it's simply not enough to build a marriage on for a lifetime. When tragedy turns our worlds upside down, or a season of suffering or disappointment seems endless, we need something more substantial than shared likes and dislikes in order to love one another sacrificially for the long haul.
You discuss the importance of husbands pursuing their wives mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually. Amie, what's the single-most helpful thing Darrin has done to pursue you in each area?
Amie: Physically, Darrin is great about being affectionate in lighthearted and playful ways. Especially in a tense or stressful moment, he often lightens the mood with some sort of affectionate gesture, which is a great reminder that we truly enjoy each other and and have fun together. Mentally, he's almost always up for an interesting or challenging discussion. He genuinely respects my intellect, and shows it by engaging me in thoughtful discussions with insightful questions, particularly in areas where I'm more knowledgeable than he is. He also looks for opportunities to engage my sense of humor; we laugh a lot together. Emotionally, Darrin's willingness to go to counseling by himself and with me has been transformative for our marriage. He knew emotional health was an area where he needed some help, and he was humble enough to pursue it—both for himself and so he could learn to be more emotionally available and engaged with me and our kids. And spiritually, although there are many things I could mention, the most profound way Darrin pursues me in this area is in his willingness to admit and repent of his own sin. His continual choice to do that is a beautiful reminder to me that we are both sinners desperately in need of the grace and mercy found only in Christ. And nothing is more humbling and honoring than when Darrin prays for me and asks me to pray for him.
You've done marriage and relationship counseling for hundreds over the years. What's the biggest issue couples need to address for their relationships to honor God?
Darrin: Taking a sabbath. Period. Without a weekly Sabbath, our scheduling overwhelms our spirituality. This is true even if both spouses can't take the same day. God gave us one day to refocus on him and be renewed by him.
Amie: It's important to regularly consider where we're looking for joy and fulfillment apart from Christ. Our attempts to do so always have an effect on relationships with those closest to us, particularly our spouse and our children.
What would you say to people who genuinely feel they've fallen out of love with their spouse?
Darrin: Welcome to marriage. Since love is not primarily a feeling, we all go through dry times. The most important thing is to get help—now! Find a good counselor who can help you and your spouse work through this tough season. Also, get some Christian friends who are married to hang out with. Married couples need community all the time, and counseling some of the time. Don't give up!
Amie: I talk to a lot of people who feel alone in this struggle, and I think it's important to know it's not at all uncommon, and doesn't mean your marriage is hopeless or over. C. S. Lewis's chapter on Christian marriage in Mere Christianity is one of the most helpful and enlightening things I've ever read with regard to this issue. He writes at length about the value of "being in love," but also about the futility of trying to build a whole life on that state—as well as the beauty of letting that initial "thrill" go in order to experience something different and deeper. Darrin and I have been married for 22 years, and I've found the realities Lewis writes about here to be profoundly true and helpful, year after year.
How has parenting four kids affected your marriage? What's your biggest piece of advice for fellow parents with respect to their marriages?
Amie: Parenting has definitely exposed things, both good and bad, that we didn't know or understand about each other before we had children. That's been really fun and and incredibly hard, as we both have strengths and weaknesses as parents that need to be graciously affirmed and respectfully challenged. Overall, parenting has deepened our love for and understanding of each other as we learn to unselfishly love, enjoy, and parent the amazing children God has entrusted to us.
It takes a lot of ongoing and intentional refocusing to keep your marriage from drifting to a place where everything revolves around your children and a healthy marriage becomes a low priority. This is true when kids are little, and we've found it continues to be equally true as our kids get older. It's rarely convenient or easy to get time alone or away together. But we've seen a lot of marriages disintegrate after kids grow up and leave home, and have learned it's not healthy or beneficial to anyone when kids are raised as the primary focus and goal of a marriage and family.


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2014 elections: give European voters bigger say on Commission, say MEPs
European political parties should propose candidates for Commission President at the next European elections, which should be moved forward to May 2014, said the European Parliament in a resolution passed on Thursday.
Members recommended that each European alliance of political parties should propose a candidate to run for European Commission President and lead their 2014 European election campaign. This would boost the profile of the elections and offer an added incentive for citizens to participate, say MEPs.
As many members as possible of the next European Commission should be chosen among newly-elected MEPs so as to give voters more say, says the text, which argues that this would strike a better balance with Council, given that governments currently nominate all candidates.
Member states should also propose two candidates, a man and a woman, for each Commissioner's post, so as to ensure gender equality, MEPs add.
Elections in May, not June
The resolution also recommends holding the next European elections in May rather than June, as for previous ballots. MEPs propose polling days on 15-18 May or 22-25 May 2014 to give the new Parliament time to prepare the election of the Commission President in July.
Finally, Parliament suggests member states to modify their electoral law to introduce "appropriate and proportionate" minimum thresholds for the allocation of seats so to ensure that the House can work smoothly, as well as duly reflecting the citizens' choice.
According to EU treaties, the European Parliament elects the President of the Commission and gives its consent to the whole college of commissioners. The new Commission is due to take office on 1 November 2014.
The resolution was passed with 316 votes in favour, 90 against and 20 abstentions.
Procedure: Motions for resolutions
Federico DE GIROLAMO
Catherine BUNYAN


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Vertical Village
Known for its outlandish architecture, Dubai's latest trend is sustainable design. Few designs exemplify this more than the Vertical Village, created by the architects at Graft Lab.
The structure's arrays of solar panels will sparkle in the scorching Dubai sun, but the real genius of the Vertical Village's design lies in how everything will be positioned to keep the building cool while maximizing solar capture at the same time. Each of the jettisoning "walls" that hang over the structure's base will point their panels at the sun while also being perfectly placed to provide shade.
Check out more about this and Graft Lab's other projects at its website here.


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Yvette Nicole Brown, who plays Shirley on NBC's "Community," walked the carpet before the event. The actress wanted to show her support for MPTF.
Brown talked to "THR" before the event, and dished out a little advice for aspiring actors.
"Save your money, be good to people on set, be professional," she said. "I always heard, my mom said, when I was growing up, 'How you start is how you finish,' so if you start with integrity and character and as a responsible human being, you'll end that same way."
"Take care of each other in this industry, that's the best advice I have," she added.
She also told "THR" what she is excited about in this season of "Community": The return of her character's on-again-off-again-on-again husband, Andre Bennett (Malcolm-Jamal Warner).
The event, held at Milk Studios, was hosted by Robert Downey Jr. and featured readings performed by Jodie Foster, Jennifer Garner, Chris Pine, Nick Offerman and Josh Brolin. "Reel Stories, Real Lives" features readings which tell the stories of industry members and their families who have benefitted from MPTF's services over the years. A gallery exhibited also features photography by Scott Caan and Jeff Bridges.
"THR's" Next Gen list features a select group of 35 people working in the industry under the age of 35. Among those included on this year's list are: Armie Hammer, actor in "J. Edgar"; Adepero Oduye, actress in "Pariah"; Elizabeth Olsen from "Martha Marcy May Marlene"; Lauren Abrahams, director of production at Columbia Pictures; and Dana Archer, EVP at DDA PR.
Over the years, the list has also included Stacey Snider, Mike De Luca, Ari Emanuel, Amy Baer, Ben Silverman, Sue Naegle, Donna Langley and Kevin Huvane.
– The Hollywood Reporter


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Gagne, Otsuka ready to anchor 'pen
Gagne, Otsuka ready to anchor Rangers 'pen
SURPRISE, Ariz. -- The Rangers message to new closer Eric Gagne on the first day of workouts: Take it slow and be ready for Opening Day. The Rangers message to former closer Akinori Otsuka: You haven't been demoted. Both will be needed for the Rangers bullpen to be a "competitive advantage," but right now Gagne is the closer and Otsuka is the eighth-inning setup reliever. The Rangers just need to make sure that Gagne is fully recovered from elbow and back surgeries, the two physical issues that limited the former National League Cy Young Award winner to just 16 appearances over the past two years.
Gagne, who has been throwing and working out at his home in Paradise Valley, Ariz., this winter, played catch on Sunday and will have his first bullpen session on Monday. "It felt good to be out there, even if it's just PFP," Gagne said, referring to pitcher's fielding practice. "It's just good to be with the team again, out there talking and joking around." He and Otsuka met and talked for a little bit during the workout. Otsuka admitted it was a little strange. He is trying to make the best of the situation and mask his disappointment over not being the closer anymore. He saved 32 games for the Rangers last year and was their Pitcher of the Year. But Gagne was one of the best relievers in baseball before he got hurt, setting a Major League record by being successful on 84 straight save opportunities. So he will close for the Rangers, and Otsuka gets the eighth inning. "If he's healthy, he's great and it's good for the team," Otsuka admitted. "Everybody who has been a closer, once he's done that, he doesn't want to go down. But when the game starts, if the pitching coach or manager tells me I'm the setup guy, I have to do that. I can't control that." The eighth inning is not insignificant. The Rangers lost nine games last year where they were leading after the seventh inning. For the season, the Rangers outscored their opponents in the fifth-seventh innings and in the ninth. But their opponents outscored them 75-74 in the eighth inning. The Rangers need Otsuka to help fix that. "He's a big part of what we're trying to do to win," manager Ron Washington said. "If Gagne is healthy and Aki is pitching in the eighth inning, that will make us a great team. It's not a demotion. It's all about team and making us better."
News and features:
MLB.com coverage | Schedule | Ballpark | Tickets
Multimedia:Spring Training info:
Ron Washington on Millwood: 350K
Kinsler, Rangers ready to go: 350K
Michael Young at Rangers camp: 350K
Ron Washington interview: 350K
Brad Wilkerson interview: 350K
MLB.com coverage | Schedule | Ballpark | Tickets
Gagne said the Rangers bullpen now reminds him of the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2004. The Dodgers won the National League West that year with a terrific group of relievers who were a combined 36-19 with a 3.06 ERA and 51 saves in 60 opportunities.Gagne had his third straight great year as a closer, going 7-3 with a 2.19 ERA and 45 saves, winning the Rolaids Relief Pitcher of the Year for the second straight season. But he had a strong supporting cast that included Duaner Sanchez (3-1, 3.38 ERA), Guillermo Mota (8-4, 2.14), Giovanni Carrara (5-2, 2.18), Yhency Brazoban (6-2, 2.48) and others. "That was my best year in baseball," Gagne said. "These guys remind me a lot of the Dodgers in '04 -- a lot of young guys that have been playing together for a while and are ready to flourish and make the playoffs. We have a lot of great arms in our bullpen. We have guys who can throw 96 [mph] rolling out of bed." Gagne was once a guy who could throw 96 or better. But that was before undergoing Tommy John elbow reconstruction surgery on June 24, 2005, and surgery to repair a herniated disk on July 8, 2006. His best pitch, though, has been his changeup, and Gagne knows because of the injuries, he'll need to be more of a complete pitcher, rather than a guy who just rears back and fires the ball. He once tried to rear back and throw the ball by Hank Blalock in a crucial situation, and it cost him the 2003 All-Star Game. Trevor Hoffman made the adjustment after surgery. From 1996-2002, while establishing himself as a premier closer, Hoffman held opponents to a .198 batting and averaged 10.7 strikeouts per nine innings. He then missed almost all of 2003-04 because of elbow reconstruction surgery and hasn't been quite as overpowering since then. Over the past two years, he has struck out 7.7 batters per nine innings. But opponents are hitting just .220 off him, and he is 89-for-97 in save opportunities. "My favorite pitcher is a guy like Paul Quantrill, who throws 85, 86, 87," Gagne said. "You focus on hitting your spots and keeping people off balance. You know you're not going to throw 100 mph the rest of your career, so you've got to learn to pitch. That's what I've been doing the last three or four years, and I've learned a lot." One thing he has learned is to go easy in Spring Training. If he forgets, he has people who will remind him. He is not sure when he'll be ready to pitch in an exhibition game, but he is not worried about it. Ten innings in game situations would be a lot for Gagne. He said he can get just as much out of playing catch as he can throwing off the mound. He is healthy. Now, he needs to build arm strength and endurance. "I've learned over the past two years that you have to be ready for the first day of the season, not yesterday, tomorrow or next week," Gagne said. "Even if you're 100 percent healthy, you're going to be sore this time of this year. I feel I can do everything, but we're going to take it in baby steps. "Right now, I feel great. I want to keep feeling good every day."
T.R. Sullivan is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


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When you send thredUP a Clean Out Bag, you cede all rights to the contents of that bag. thredUP's trained assessors promise to award you a fair amount for your great quality clothes.
In general, awards are non-negotiable. However, thredUP is still perfecting pricing and feedback is welcomed. If there is a discrepancy with how an item was priced, please contact us within 48 hours.


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Global Tax Alert (News from Americas Tax Center) | 17 April 2014
Canada's proposed treaty shopping framework could affect private equity investments
In the Federal Budget tabled on 11 February 2014, the Canadian Government suggested certain measures it might implement to curtail "treaty shopping" by nonresidents investing in Canada, and announced a new (second) round of consultations in relation to the proposed measures. In the 2013 Budget, the Government had announced the first round of treaty shopping consultations, and its specific comments in the 2014 Budget reflected the public input received. Based on the direction the Government appears to be heading, these measures could affect private equity investments in Canadian real property, such as interests in oil and gas exploration and production companies. To further advance the consultation process and discussions, the Department of Finance set out the main elements of a proposed rule to address treaty shopping. While the announcement did not include draft legislation, the Government did provide insights on possible direction of future legislation.
The Canadian Government's specific comments about what a Canadian treaty shopping rule might look like have garnered widespread discussion throughout the private equity and international investment community. The Government's comments are focused on the prevention of what it perceives to be the improper use of treaties by nonresidents who invest in Canada. Although the Government did not specifically address private equity holding company structures, the framework is sufficiently broad to potentially negatively affect those structures.
For example, if Canada introduces anti-treaty shopping provisions that apply to deny treaty benefits when a holding company disposes of taxable Canadian property (TCP), then 50% of any such capital gain would be taxed at a rate of 25%. This tax would be collected by the purchaser through a specific Canadian withholding process for dispositions of TCP.
Below is a summary of the proposed conceptual framework for the anti-treaty shopping rule, followed by certain practical implications to consider when evaluating holding company structuring alternatives for investments into Canada on a go-forward basis.
Budget 2014 implications
After a first round of comments, the 2014 Budget proposal appears to signal the Canadian Government's intention to move forward with a general, domestic anti-treaty shopping rule, as opposed to attempting to renegotiate some or all of Canada's income tax treaties. The 2014 Budget proposal concludes that a specific rule (such as a US-style limitation of benefits provision) would not capture "all forms of treaty shopping," and that a treaty-based approach would not be as effective as a domestic law rule (presumably because of the inability to renegotiate treaties in a reasonable period).
The main elements of the proposed anti-treaty shopping framework are as follows:
- • Main purpose provision: Subject to the relieving provision (see below), a treaty benefit would not be provided to a person for an amount of income, profit or gain if it is reasonable to conclude that "one of the main purposes" for undertaking the transaction, or a transaction that is part of a series (e.g., use of a holdco), that results in a benefit for the person, was for the person to obtain the benefit.
- • Conduit presumption: It would be presumed, in the absence of proof to the contrary, that one of the main purposes for undertaking a transaction resulting in a treaty benefit (or that is part of a series resulting in the benefit) was for a person to obtain the benefit if the relevant treaty income is primarily used to pay, distribute or otherwise transfer, directly or indirectly, at any time or in any form, an amount to another person or persons that would not have been entitled to an equivalent or more favorable benefit had the person or persons received the relevant treaty income directly.
- • Safe harbor provision: Subject to the conduit provision, it would be presumed, in the absence of proof to the contrary, that none of the main purposes for undertaking a transaction was for a person to obtain a treaty benefit if:
- − The person (or a related person) carries on an active business (not including investment activities) in the relevant treaty jurisdiction that is substantial in relation to the activity carried on in Canada giving rise to the relevant treaty income;
- − The person is not controlled, directly or indirectly in any manner whatever, by another person or persons that would not have been entitled to an equivalent or more favorable benefit had the person or persons received the relevant treaty income directly; or
- − The person is a corporation or a trust, the shares or units of which are regularly traded on a recognized stock exchange.
- • Relieving provision: If the main purpose provision applies in respect of a benefit under a tax treaty, the benefit is to be provided, in whole or in part, to the extent that is reasonable under the circumstances.
The 2014 Budget proposal notes that the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is expected to issue recommendations on treaty shopping in September 2014, as part of its Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) Action Plan initiative, and that these recommendations will be relevant in developing a Canadian approach to address treaty shopping. Therefore, the timing may be linked with the BEPS timeline, and it is possible that the Canadian Government will not move forward with a specific treaty shopping rule prior to considering the OECD recommendations in this regard.
Practical implications for private equity investors
The 2014 Budget proposal is merely a conceptual framework and the Department of Finance has not yet released draft legislation. Private equity investors will generally be interested in how the "main purpose test" and "conduit provision" will apply in practice. In particular, will the Canadian tax authorities conclude that having a valid business purpose is sufficient "proof to the contrary" that "one of the main purposes" for using a super-holding company was not to obtain the benefits of a particular treaty, notwithstanding the jurisdiction of the holding company? Further, even if the conduit presumption is not satisfied, it is not clear whether the holding company can rely on the safe harbor provision because of the uncertainty regarding whether the holding company may be viewed as being controlled by the general partner, notwithstanding its limited indirect economic interest in the holding company.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the increased scrutiny that Canada and other jurisdictions are placing on holding company structures reinforces the need to bolster and provide substance for recommended super-holding company structures (e.g., Luxembourg or Netherlands holdcos that are managed and controlled in their country of incorporation and own multiple investments in multiple jurisdictions). With respect to Canada, the following reflects an understanding of certain key points of Canada's potential anti-treaty shopping provisions:
- • Existing holding company structures into Canada are not expected to be "grandfathered," meaning that any change in law or approach could apply to new or existing holding company structures. In particular, the Canadian Government indicated the new rule would apply to tax years commencing after enactment of the new rule. However, it also requested comments as to whether transitional relief would be appropriate.
- • It appears as though Canada may not introduce any actual draft legislation before the OECD's BEPS plan is released in September.
- • The genesis of the proposed anti-treaty shopping provisions appears to be a focus on two primary sets of circumstances:
- − Treaty benefits related to the disposition (directly or indirectly) of taxable Canadian property
- − Treaty benefits related to interest and dividends
Despite the likelihood of the introduction of a Canadian treaty shopping rule with the elements discussed above, it is hoped that many recommended investment structures will continue to be viable if properly structured, implemented and maintained for investments into Canada. This remains to be seen. The proposals do, however, strengthen the need for recommended leading practices to be followed and maintained (substance of super-holding companies, as well as non-tax reasons for international holding companies – governance, location of key employees/technical resources, multiple jurisdictional holdings, mitigating the administrative burdens and compliance filing requirement of funds' partners), as well as consideration to be given to flexibility and possible unwinds in the event of adverse legislation. If the framework ultimately moves towards enactment and such provisions negatively affect an existing holding company structure, funds could consider the viability of a look-through approach or substantive strategies to crystallize any inherent gain and/or evaluate basis strategies.
For additional information with respect to this Alert, please contact the following:
Ernst & Young LLP (Canada), Calgary
- • Warren W. Pashkowich, Energy Segment Market Tax Leader
+1 403 206 5168
- • Karen R. Nixon, International Tax Services
+1 403 206 5326
- • Dean W. Radomsky, Canadian Tax Services
+1 403 206 5180
Ernst & Young LLP (Canada), Toronto
- • Heather Kerr, FS Tax Leader
+1 416 943 3162
Ernst & Young LLP, New York
- • Jeffrey L. Hecht, Americas Private Equity Tax Leader
+1 212 773 2339
- • Gerald E. Whelan, Jr., Private Equity Tax
+1 212 773 2747
Ernst & Young LLP, New York, Houston
- • Deborah L. Byers, Energy Market Segment Tax Leader
+1 713 750 8138
- • Greg M. Matlock, Transaction Tax
+1 713 750 8133
EYG no. CM4358


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Bruce Springsteen Extends Broadway Concerts Into Feb.The Boss plans to stick around on Broadway — before he even gets started on Broadway.
Bruce Springsteen Plans A Series Of Broadway Fall ConcertsThe Boss is coming to Broadway — but he's ditching the E Street Band.
Bruce Springsteen's Archive to Add 25 Rare RecordingsBruce Springsteen completists will soon have new audio from 25 concerts to download: The Boss' official archive is adding dozens of shows to the collection.
Bruce Springsteen To Make Broadway Debut?Bruce Springsteen will make his Broadway debut this fall, according to the New York Post.
Springsteen Releasing Ultra Rare Vinyl On Record Store DayRead this Springsteen fans!
Ed Sheeran on Bruce Springsteen's Influence on 'Castle on the Hill'"The River" was an influence on one of Sheeran's new songs.
Bruce Springsteen Gives Farewell Concert For Obama StaffersPresident Barack Obama's farewell gift to some of his longtime staffers was a private concert from "The Boss."
Bruce Springsteen Goes Back To SchoolSpringteen will sit down with Robert Santelli, a fellow New Jersey native who directs the GRAMMY Museum.
Bruce Springsteen Hangs Out With Bikers Who Rescued HimThe Boss chipped in $100 bucks for drinks
Springsteen, Bon Jovi to Join Clinton for Final Campaign Event TonightBon Jovi has stumped for Clinton throughout her campaign, while the Boss has spoken out about the unique threat he believes Republican candidate Donald Trump poses.
Bruce Springsteen Praises Bob Dylan After Nobel Prize WinBruce Springsteen has acknowledged Bob Dylan's Nobel Prize win by posting an excerpt from his new autobiography Born to Run.
Bruce Springsteen: 'I Admire [Colin] Kaepernick'In a wide-ranging interview with Rolling Stone, he also talks about #BlackLivesMatter, Kanye, Kendrick and the state of rock music in 2016.


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June 4, 2004, 01:55 AM
I've got a repro Dragoon that's really got me scratching my head. I think it's an Armi San Marco...picked it up at a gun show a few years ago, never really had the opportunity, living in the city, to get it out and shoot it. Well now I'm back where I belong, out in the boonies :) , and I want to shoot it some. And of course, now is when I notice the problem with it. All the chambers line up perfectly with the breech, but one of them, when the trigger is pulled and the hammer falls, gives a little 'twitch', moving to a position of just past true, out of line with the breech. I'd thought about just loading five chambers and just using the one that's giving trouble as my safety, but if one of the other five starts giving trouble then the first I'll know of it is when I fire a ball out of it. I don't care what Martha Stewart says, definitely not a good thing. Is this a problem with the timing, do you think? If so, is there someone who works on such things and is it even worth the trouble for an Armi San Marco? I don't really know much about reproduction handguns...I'm a Civil War reenactor so most of my attention has been taken up with infantry longarms up to now. I'm new here, so my apologies if I've put this in the wrong folder. Thanks for any help.


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Skip to comments.Occupy's Descent Into Mobbery Threatens Democracy
Posted on 05/02/2012 2:13:16 PM PDT by IBD editorial writer
The Left: After a day of mayhem, Occupy protesters have shown themselves to be little more than a dangerous mob. Democrats coddle them even as their outrages escalate. Criminal behavior has no place in a democracy.
After turning New York and other cities' public parks into open sewers with their extended camp-outs last year, the left-wing protestors of Occupy had little more to do than look for ways to remain relevant after public sentiment turned on them, crowds thinned and donations dried up.
By descending into a mob that is the antithesis of democracy, they found one.
May Day arrived and suddenly Occupy decided the holiday of the international left was its ticket to getting names in the news again.
But instead of peacefully assembling to present their dog's breakfast of causes from hating capitalism, to amnesty for illegal aliens, to halting foreclosures they descended into violence and criminality that can only mean worse to come.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.investors.com ...
OWS should just go camp out on the WH lawn where their puppet master can better make them dance to his tune.
"A whiff of grapeshot..."
Response: Wrong! Democracy contains the mob within itself. Democracy, of necessity, produces mobocracy.
OWS are only dangerous to the 2 blocks they occupy. They are simply too lazy to go much past that. If they weren't, they would get off thier collective lazy butts and get jobs.
A whiff of grapeshot...
Among other things....
I thought that too....but I drive across the SR82 bridge on a regular basis. It was incompetence that stopped them, not laziness.
Should read: Government's unwillingness to enforce law threatens democracy. But then this type of thing actually empowers government in the long run, so why would they do anything to stop it...yet?
Selective enforcement IS tyranny.
"There is something seriously wrong when we have government sponsored protests and riots."
You're right, but I think it is much more of a threat to democracy when donors' names are released and voter fraud is ignored. The invasion into the personal lives of the opposition to the Bolsheviks is frightening; the "silent majority" is silent because they will lose their jobs if they dare speak their minds aloud.
BTW, this is why I'm hoping Obama will lose badly in November; a lot of people who have been cowed into silence, and had to eat all kinds of PC crap, are going to get the only chance they'll probably ever get to lash out at the source, the symbol, of everything that is wrong with America today.
"Mobbery threatens democracy"
Well, duh—that's the idea.
He OccuCommie Idiots?
Vacant. Pretty Vacant.
You're wrong. They're a perfect example of pure democracy that's why America wasn't designed to be a democracy. We are, or used to be anyway, a Constitutional Republic.
We descended into democracy at some point and we are about to reap that particular whirlwind.
Once again, IBD hits it out of the park. I never miss an IBD editorial or a Thomas Sowell essay.
They were going strong for a long time before Reagan came and wacked them. He lowered the boom on leftist race rioters and hippy mobs. They are a loud minority.
"It was incompetence that stopped them, not laziness."
They never had a chance for all kinds of reasons.
Has Occupied started running ads on Craig'sList yet? If not, they're toast.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.


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Recent and related:
For the sake of their younger siblings, details on the murders of teenagers Amber Dubois and Chelsea King should never come out, Moe Dubois said shortly after a judge lifted a gag order in the cases Thursday.
His biggest fear about releasing the information is "the effect it has on Tyler and Allison," Dubois said during a press conference held after San Diego Superior Court Judge David Danielsen lifted the order preventing law enforcement agencies from releasing information about John Albert Gardner III.
Gardner pleaded guilty Friday to murdering 14-year-old Amber Dubois of Escondido on Feb. 13, 2009, and 17-year-old Chelsea King of Poway on Feb. 25.
Dubois said Amber's sister Allison, 6, and Chelsea's brother Tyler, 13, have "suffered more than anyone" and deserved to be shielded from the brutal details in the murders that rocked the county and gained national attention.
"We're talking about two minors here and to protect their dignity is very important," he said.
Dubois said he and Amber's mother, Carrie McGonigle, were frustrated by Danielsen's ruling. McGonigle was not at the press conference.
"We feel that Marsy's Law is there to protect victims and their families and it should have applied here," Dubois said.
Marsy's Law, known as a Victim's Bill of Rights, was enacted in 2008. Attorneys for the King and Dubois families had argued in court that the law required victims and their families to be treated with dignity and respect throughout the criminal process. Releasing photos or investigative reports detailing crime scenes, sexual assault exams or autopsies violated that requirement, the attorneys said.
Danielsen disagreed, saying that interpretation of the law was too broad and restricted the public's right to information.
As his attorney had in court, Dubois drew a distinction between Amber's case and Chelsea's. Gardner was arrested three days after Chelsea disappeared, while investigators probed Amber's disappearance for 14 months before Gardner led them to her remains in March.
The lengthy investigation in Amber's case resulted in a massive amount of documentation. The gag order also prevented Dubois from seeing the reports, but he said Thursday he has been told they include almost no information related to Gardner.
He said he worried that releasing the documents would harm people, including family members, who had been interviewed over many months.
Family members "confided in law enforcement and poured their hearts out to them," he said.
Details that some might hope to find, such as how Amber was abducted while walking to school, are not in the voluminous reports, Dubois said.
"Details of how Amber was abducted were never given," he said. "Investigators don't know."
Dubois said he supported Brent and Kelly King in their efforts to seek a gag order, in part because autopsy and crime scene information probably would be more gruesome because the teen's body had been found five days after she was killed.
"We're a family," he said of the Kings. "We may not have known each other a couple of years ago but we suffered the same horrific experience."
While the Kings have lobbied the Legislature for a tougher law governing sex offenders, Dubois said he is working with Assemblymen Paul Cook, R-Yucca Valley, and Pedro Nava, D-Santa Barbara, to standardize enforcement statewide.
Dubois said he will attend Gardner's June 1 sentencing and would make a statement.
If Gardner offers an apology, Dubois said he won't accept it.
"I wouldn't even acknowledge the words," he said. "There's no apology. How can you apologize for ruining a family's lives?"Copyright © 2017, The San Diego Union-Tribune


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Some Sad News To Share........
Decorating By candyladyhelen Updated 4 Jun 2007 , 9:31pm by cakecastle
So sorry about the loss of your husband of so many years. Your belief and faith in God is the greatest thing you have and I know He will see you through for the duration of your healing, and long after that.
Smiled big when reading your crisco story.......of course you must keep decorating! God made sure of that when he blessed you with 40 cans of trans fat crisco after they quit making it!
God speed and you and your sons are in my prayers.
May God be with you and your family during this very hard time. Words just cannot express .
I'm so sorry for your loss. I wish there were words I could share that would make this easier. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your sons.
Don't make any decisions about your business just yet. Give yourself time and know that we are here to support you. 40 cans of trans fat Crisco - someone upstairs thinks you need to keep baking!
Im so sorry for the loss of your husband. I'll pray to God that he may comfort you and your sons in this time of sorrow.
you and your sons are in my thoughts and prayers.
sympathies to you and your family.
God Bless you and your family.............
I am deeply sorry to hear of your loss. The Lord will get you through this, just lean on him. God Bless. Jodie
First off {{{{{{{{{{{hugs}}}}}}}}}}}}}. You & your family will be in my prayers.
Secondly, I would recommend you keep decorating when you feel like it, to keep busy. (As another poster said, God blessed you with 40 cans of good Crisco!) But seriously, you will need an outlet, after all the family is gone home.
God bless you & grant you peace!
Please know that you and your sons are in my prayers.
Oh, Helen, I am so sorry about your loss. How comforting it is know that your dear husband is with the Lord and you will see him again one day. I will be praying for you and your sons.
I'm so sorry for your loss, you and your family are in my prayers.
I'm so sorry for your loss. I'm glad that you have a strong faith- it will really help. It's also good to see you can still see the humor through your pain. My thoughts are with you.
God Bless,
well said.
Gods peace passes all understanding. rest in Him.
(wow, 40 cans, that is ALOT of frosting.)
Just read about your loss.As a widow myself of two years , I guess I know how you and your children must feel. May God give you the strength needed in times like this.
God Bless You and Your Family during this most difficult time. You are in my prayers.
Beth in KY
we are but strangers here....
heaven is our home.
He's home... and preparing a room specially for you.*
Rest in God's arms and His peace.
*where cakes never fall, all crisco is good and it always look just like we imagined
Sorry to hear about your loss. You and your family are in my thoughts and prayers. May God be with you in your time of sorrow . Debby
Helen I am so sorry for your loss. It was he first thing I read in the firom tonight. My prayers and thoughts are wih you and your family. God bless you and remember thathe will always will be with you.
May God our Lord bring you comfort, peace and strength. My prayers are with you and your boys.
I am so sorry to hear about your loss.
Mrs. Helen, I offer my condolences. I will keep you and your family in my thoughts and prayers. (And yes, I did get a chuckle at you 40 cans of crisco story!) I am also glad that you will continue with your wedding baking. God Bless you and your family, Nikki
Helen, I am so very sorry for your terrible loss. My thoughts are with you and your family.
I'm so very sorry for you loss. How lovely you had so many wonderful years together.
You are right. He is in God's arms.
I will keep you and your children in my prayers. It's always hard to lose a father no matter how old you are.
I was happy to see that even in this sad sad time you are able to still find things to laugh about. I KNOW you will be ok.
God bless you and yours.
I too, am sorry to hear of your loss. May Hashem bless you with peace and strength as you and your family deal with your grief. Take strength from G-d and each other.
You are fortunate to have a faith, I hope it carries you through along with your friends and family. I'm so sorry you are going through this hard hard time. Take care of yourself and allow those around you to do whatever they can to help you and love you.
Im sorry to hear that.. My condolence to your family.
I am so sorry to hear of your loss. My husband is the same age and your news really bought a tear to my eye.
My thoughts are with you.
So very sorry for your loss. My prayer for you and your family is that you will be able to thank God for those 38 years and have a lot of great memories to hold close.
So sorry to hear of your loss.
Sorry for you loss.You and your family are in my prayers.God bess


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Caesars Entertainment is taking advantage of marriage equality in New Jersey and launching a lavish wedding contest for same-sex couples in Atlantic City.
Caesars Entertainment, which operates four casinos in AC, is prepared to dole out a $50,000 wedding for 100 guests as part of their "Love is Love" promotion. On top of the ceremony and reception, the whole production includes a cocktail hour, dinner, custom cake designed by Deb Pellegrino, photographers, flowers, entertainment, hotel rooms, and bachelor/bachelorette parties. The celebration could take place at Cesars, Harrah's Resort, Bally's, or Showboat.
Those couples wanting to blow it out with an AC wedding need to make an Instagram video demonstrating why you're the queer couple who should win. Click here for more details.


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Flat Chested Mouse Pad
- Categories: Games, News
- Date: Jun 30, 2008 08:01 JST
- Tags: Anime Goods, Little Busters, Loli, Pettanko
Tired of resting your wrist between some curvaceous parody of a lady's bosom? Noting that lovers of delicious cake are neglected by the prepondence of such well endowed mouse pads, packaged with the just released 電撃G's Festival! DELUXE Vol.3 電撃リトルバスターズ!エクスタシー / Dengeki G's Festival! Deluxe 3 Dengeki Little Busters! Ecstacy (catchy title there) is just such a pad; sure to appeal to both fans of underendowed young ladies and Little Busters (if indeed there is any difference between these groups). "Faithfully reproduced".
The photos speak for themselves:


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20 rural retreats in Majorca
Forget the beach resorts and head instead to mountains and agricultural plains, where you can stay on an agroturismo farm
High summer on Majorca. Hot, hectic, with stratospheric hotel prices and beaches crammed with bodies. So why not forget the beach resorts and head instead to the mountains and agricultural plains, dotted with more than a hundred agroturismo properties, where you stay on a farm and eat locally grown food.
Agroturismo in Majorca encompasses everything from simple farm stays to luxurious hotels in converted estancias. The best time to go is September and October, when the weather is still warm, prices are lower and the island is quieter.
1 For romantics: Es Mirabó de Valldemossa
Hidden away up a winding track, Es Mirabó is a former private finca that dates back to the 1500s. Simply but comfortably furnished with beautiful views make this a fabulous…


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Archives » March 2011
Poem and Art for Japan – Please Donate!
This is a poem by my friend, cartoonist Yuuko Koyama about her experience in Japan right now. She is in the Tokyo area, she and her family are doing OK. Please consider donating to Doctors Without Borders at this link or other charities listed here. I'm living among the machines which I cannot repair I'm […]
Choice Eats is Almost Here – Check the Map!
Sweet Links of the Week – 3/25!
Today is International Waffle Day! (Midtown Lunch) Ruby et Violette's Cookies! (Sweet Freak) Le Sportsac's Cupcake Bags! (Cupcakes Take the Cake) Graffit's Dessert in Close-up! (Fork in the Road) Giant Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe! (Oh!Nuts) Grape Nuts Ice Cream! (Fork in the Road) Payard at the Plaza! (NYC Style & a Little Cannoli) Cupcakes in […]
Dine in Brooklyn March 21st-31st!
Dine in Brooklyn starts this week featuring discounted multi-course meals ($25 for dinner, $20.11 for lunch) at over 200 restaurants across the borough, it's a fun way to try out new restaurants or enjoy old favorites at bargain prices!
Today (March 20th) is Macaron Day NYC!
Today is Macaron Day! It's that special day when various bakeries across the city give patrons a free macaron! Just tell them you're there for Macaron Day! Lots of amazing bakeries are participating including Francois Payard Bakery, Jacques Torres, and Bouchon Bakery! Click here for full bakery list and more details!
Sweet Links of the Week – March 18th!
Help Robicelli's open a new shop! (IndieGoGo) Four & Twenty Blackbirds in Manhattan! (Grub St) Communal Table Potluck in BK 3/30! (Communal Table) Crumbs Launches App! (Fork in the Road) Mari's Carmel Krispies! (Serious Eats) Global Cocoa Project Rundown! (DessertBuzz) Cafe Zaiya Refrigerates! (Midtown Lunch) The Best Hamentaschen in Queens! (Serious Eats) Nolita Cupcake Battle! […]
March 14th – It's Pi Day!
Time to enjoy some pie! As you know pie has been catching fire popularity-wise in NYC these days, so it shouldn't be too much trouble to find some. Try out Four & Twenty Blackbirds, The Blue Stove, and First Prize Pies!
Purim is March 20th!
Remember to get your Hamantashen and candy for Shalach Manot gift baskets (Purim is March 20th)! Oh! Nuts has ideas here!
Sweet Links of the Week – 3/11!
This Week's Food Events! (Serious Eats) Chocolate Stout Cakes & Irish Buttercream! (Cupcakes Take the Cake) Adorable Panda Bread! (Jezebel) Free Starbucks Sweets with Drink purchase! (Cupcakes take The Cake) Zenzai at Ushiwakamaru! (Serious Eats) Robicelli's Will be at Wburg Bklyn Flea! (Grub St.) Cornelia St. Cafe's Desserts! (Dessert Buzz) Kee's Macarons! (Sweet Freak)
Kirakuya Sake Bar's Yogurt Panna Cotta!
This week I got to sample a meal at Kirakuya Sake Bar (2 W 32nd St Ste 2F, NYC), courtesy of travelzoo.com. It's an izakaya (Japanese bar/ restaurant) in the Koreatown neighborhood and has some pretty unique food.
Sweet Links of the Week 3/4!
Woman Attacks Cupcake Shop in Wales! (Jezebel) NYC's Best Pancakes! (Serious Eats) Levain Branches Out to Harlem! (Eater) Chefs of America Comic! (The Beat) NYC's Macaron Day is Coming 3/20! (Fork in the Road) NYC's Best Muffins! (Serious Eats) Cupcake Crawl March 13th! (Sweet Fix) A Look At Quatro's Desserts! (Dessert Buzz)
Pancake Dreaming on National Pancake Day!
March 1st is National Pancake Day. Enjoy your favorites and have sweet pancake dreams like Kitty Sweet Tooth!


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Song of the Day #204
Song of the Day: Give My Regards to Broadway, music and lyrics by that great Irish composer, George M. Cohan, was immortalized by another great Irishman, James Cagney, who won an Academy Award for his portrayal of the composer in the 1942 film, "Yankee Doodle Dandy." Listen to an audio clip here. Happy St. Patrick's Day!


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Cal State Fullerton is hawking this production of Oklahoma! as a deconstructed mounting of the trusty old Rodgers and Hammerstein standard. It's a tantalizing concept, for beneath all the crinkly gingham and knotted kerchiefs smolders the sort of sexual anxiety and longing that a truly deconstructive approach might really illuminate.
That possibility will have to wait for some other production. Here, director James R. Taulli's apparent attempt at a critical textual analysis either gets lost somewhere between page and stage, or he has confused deconstruction with physical minimalism. What does make it to Matthew Scarpino's effectively spare set is a hormonally challenged succession of unrealized opportunities without even a glimpse of a deconstructive spin.
At Oklahoma!'s smoldering core is the lusty triangle forged by strapping young rancher Curly (Michael Baker); the feisty and virtuous apple of his eye, Laurey (Regan Tedder); and her sinister hired hand Jud (James Knudson). Where Curly is a warm puppy dog, Jud is a stall-kicking stallion, and it's this clash of desires that fuels Laurey's sexual angst.
Of this lovestruck threesome, Baker fares the best. His Curly is an engaging, open-faced fellow whose relaxed, easy charm is often at odds with Tedder's tense, frozen-smile Laurey. The kindest thing that can be said about Knudson's Jud is that he is painfully miscast, able to muster only peevish indignation where seething sexual menace is called for.
Knudson's neutered Jud merely reflects the killer flaw in Taulli's staging: this lust triangle not only lacks a combustible sexual chemistry, but it also exists entirely in some alternate Oklahoma! universe where sex and sexuality simply do not exist. And there is nothing deconstructive about that. That just simply isn't OK.
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Oklahoma! at Cal State Fullerton's Little Theatre, Nutwood Ave. & State College Blvd., Fullerton, (714) 278-3371. Wed.-Fri., 8 p.m.; Sat., 2:30 & 8 p.m.; Sun., 5 p.m. $11-$15.


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of course.
1 stick unsalted butter
1/2 small onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, finely grated
1 # fresh crab meat (i like to mix backfin and lump)
8 oz cream cheese
salt, pepper to taste
optional: parmesan cheese, parsley
sweat onions and garlic in butter until translucent and soft
add crab meat and cream cheese. soften cream cheese to make this process go faster.
add your salt, pepper, and parmesan cheese if desired. fresh parsley is nice for color as well.
You can also top with cheddar, or a shredded cheese blend and broil it for a nice crust on top. serve with slices of good baguette.


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In Reply to: ANY HELP FOR MY 24BOYFREIND THAT ONLY LASTS 1-2 MINUTES??? HELP!!!!!!!! posted by KAREN on May 12, 2000 at 07:51:26:
It depends on what is causing it...It also depends on his age and physical condition..here are a few suggestions. 1. More sex, instead of less2. Masturbate a couple of hours before sex3. Buy a product called pro-long (find in storewhere the condoms are)4. Wear a condom (good idea in any case)5. When you think he is about to cum, pull it outand slap it.Good Luck
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Search 346 Americus jobs from job sites, newspapers, associations and company career pages.
The Americus, GA job market is strong compared to the rest of the US. Over the last year, job postings in Americus, GA have declined by 13% relative to a national decline of 32%.
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|Necromancers can be annoying if left unchecked because they'll just
keep resurrecting enemies
|Fighting a giant cyclops
While not having enough character models and environments can be annoying, bugs in a game are infuriating, and God Mode has its fair share of these. I've been fortunate enough to not be struck by the particularly bad ones that others have been hit by, like the game not even loading. The bugs I've experienced have occurred while in an online session with others. In a couple of instances I came to a level where enemies were constantly stuck in place, then zipping off somewhere else really fast. I'm assuming it was lag, but everyone in the session was getting hit by it. Another time, none of the enemies were appearing for me, but everyone else could see and interact with them just fine. These bugs weren't the end of the world, but it was annoying having to leave each session and try to find another group because the game wasn't working properly. As it stands, the developers are aware of the problems, and say that they will fix them, but for now there are still quite a few bugs littering the game.
|Gladiator types like charging players, and pummeling them
This leads us to another odd quirk about the game, that being you have to invite people to a custom session, and can only choose from people on your Steam friends list. If none of your friends have the game, then you won't have anyone to invite, will have to try your luck in the game's Quick Match mode, and see how well its match making works. It's not very good either, as it takes quite a while to round up an additional three players to join you. I've also noticed here that while the game was able to max out your group to four people consistently in the days after God Mode came out, recently it has been having more trouble with this whenever I try to do a quick match, and often I'll get plunged into a match with only one other person. This can make things complicated when playing on higher difficulty settings. Moreover, the game doesn't actively try to fill empty player slots while a session is in progress. If you start with less than the four player maximum, or if players leave mid-session, no attempts are made to fill the slots. Whoever is still playing will just have to make due until they are finished the playthrough.
There is also a progression system in God Mode, and it's very hard to justify the thing's presence. Players have to keep earning experience points and gold in order to unlock and upgrade new weapons, as well as new costumes for characters. Unlocking the costumes I have no problem with, but the weapons aspect grates on me. It's not as though it's difficult to grind out the experience and gold to get them, in fact it's easy, but why does it have to be this way in the first place? There are so many better ways of implementing a weapons system that are actually interesting. Slowly unlocking the weapons over time is just tedious. If I want that, I'll play one of the umpteen free to play MMOs out there and grind to my heart's content. It just feels like a missed opportunity going with a traditional progression system for unlocking weapons.
|Tests of Faith add a random element to each area
The running around and shooting stuff aspect of the game is reasonably entertaining, as the game likes to throw quite a few enemies at players, and there's a good mix of melee and ranged baddies. There are also certain enemies that need to be prioritized when they take the field, so some thought needs to go in to what to do when. After a while, though, it just gets tiresome fighting yet more skeletons, mutants, and minotaurs. At least some of the bosses are fun. Dark Mage in particular proved an entertaining fight.
There is one specific feature in the game that I actually do like, and that is the Tests of Faith. These just act as a modifier for each new area that players fight in. They could be beneficial like having unlimited ammo or occasional invulnerability, negative like dealing with stronger enemies, or just plain random with enemies exploding on death, bombs falling from the sky, and the like. These sorts of things helped keep the game a little more interesting.
|More columns
- Jeff Nash
- Nice enemy and character models
- Environments look pretty
- Tests of Faith add a little bit extra to each area
- Lots of bugs
- Not enough variety in enemy / character models, or environments
- Always-on microphones
- Match making system isn't very good
- Progression system for unlocking weapons is tedious
Score: 6.0 / 10


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So, in the spirit of the Thneed, I'd like to draw attention to versatile, convertible running gear.
The Buff, for instance. This tubular shaped piece of wicking material can be twisted into a hat. It can be worn as a neck gaitor during cold runs, a bandana during long races on hot days. It can be twisted around your wrist for a sweatband. And, as the folks on Survivor show us, the larger versions can be worn as a skirt or tube top (probably once you lose half your body weight from starving on an island).
There's also the Gel-Bot. This water bottle/gel dispenser doesn't convert to many things like the Buff, but it does carry water like a standard water bottle, then change to a gel container with a tweak of the cap, and back. It's kind of the Transformer of hydration/nutrition carriers.
There's a company called Core Concepts making shirts and other items that tuck into their own pockets and become a fanny pack, waist strap and all. This is more of a hiking application that running, and I don't find it too cumbersome to simply tie a shirt around my waist with just the sleeves, but it's good to see new thinking out there.
There's the JakPak (see ridiculous pic of me and a friend trying them on at a trade show)—a jacket that turns into a self-contained, full-body shelter/sleeping bag. It's completely waterproof, and therefore, a whole lot of fairly heavy material to lug around in this attached backpack...Overkill for running, but this would come in very handy at, say, a late-fall football game or kids' soccer game, sitting in the stands and staying dry in the rain.
And then there's the Snuggie. Oh, the Snuggie, and its campy commercials. "It's the blanket with sleeves!" I cringe every time that guy raises the roof with that goofy look on his face. Drives me nuts, but I do appreciate the ingenuity.