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- Please select a date to see the proper prices!
Description of the Accommodation
Rooms, services Welcome to Citigate Motel Newcastle! We hope you will be satisfied the offers of the motel, and will be happy to choose it as a resort to stay at. The motel is offering 28 nicely furnished rooms to stay in to those seeking accommodation in Newcastle. If you wish to learn more about the exact scope of services provided by Citigate Motel Newcastle (including those available for an extra fee) or about the equipment of the rooms, you can find the complete list on the information sheet below.
Payment In order to finalize the reservation you may be required to provide credit card guarantee or advance payment by credit card, depending on the chosen room, date and price.
Arrival, opening hours The earliest check-in time is 14:00, the latest check-out time is 10:00. The personnel can speak English.
Citigate Motel Newcastle rooms Rooms
- Please select a date to see the proper prices!
Accommodation services
Hairdryer, Fridge, Desk in the room, Microwave oven, Tea/coffee-maker


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NACUSO to Honor the Best
The March 15 nomination deadline is fast approaching for NACUSO's 2013 Collaboration & Innovation Award and the 2013 Credit Union Collaboration & Innovation Award.
NACUSO said it will recognize the credit union demonstrating the successful use of a CUSO collaborative model to serve their members. The awards are given to both a CUSO and a credit union that have demonstrated outstanding collaboration and/or innovation over the past year.
In addition, the award recipients will highlight how CUSOs helped credit unions effectively and efficiently serve their members. This can include how credit unions are using CUSOs to meet the needs of their credit union members, including collaborative operational and IT CUSOs, to help lower costs and provide better service, NACUSO said.
The announcement and presentation of both awards will take place on April 18 during the 2013 NACUSO Annual Conference in Las Vegas. For general rules and to download the nomination form, visit the "2013 CUSO & CU Collaboration & Innovation Awards" section at www.nacuso.org.

subset: commoncrawl


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For Elizabeth Edwards, it was difficult and merciless on all sides of life.
Her teenaged son killed in a car crash. Her body, attacked, and attacked again by cancer. Her famous politician husband, John Edwards, leaning deeply on her and then infamously stepping out, secretly fathering a child with another woman.
And through it all, Elizabeth Edwards looked for grace and hope and championed resilience. Yesterday, at home in North Carolina, the cancer finally killed her. But the inspiration she gave was public, real, and lasting.
We remember the grace of Elizabeth Edwards.
-Tom Ashbrook
**Listen back to On Point's interview with Elizabeth Edwards in 2006.
Eleanor Clift, contributing editor to Newsweek and author of, "Two Weeks of Life: A Memoir of Love, Death, and Politics." You can read an excerpt, and hear her conversation with On Point about the book.
Siddhartha Mukherjee, cancer physician and researcher. He is author of the new book, "The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer." Read an excerpt.
On Monday, Elizabeth Edwards posted her last Facebook message:
You all know that I have been sustained throughout my life by three saving graces — my family, my friends, and a faith in the power of resilience and hope. These graces have carried me through difficult times and they have brought more joy to the good times than I ever could have imagined. The days of our lives, for all of us, are numbered. We know that. And yes, there are certainly times when we aren't able to muster as much strength and patience as we would like. It's called being human. But I have found that in the simple act of living with hope, and in the daily effort to have a positive impact in the world, the days I do have are made all the more meaningful and precious. And for that I am grateful. It isn't possible to put into words the love and gratitude I feel towards everyone who has and continues to support and inspire me every day. To you I simply say: you know.


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Marcelo Balboa is a well known Colorado Rapids and U.S. Men's National Team legend. He's been honored by the National Soccer Hall of Fame as well as the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame. This week, the former captain turned broadcaster was on a media tour (above with Univision's Luis Canela) promoting Sunday's CONCACAF Gold Cup matches at Sports Authority Field.
Balboa interview with The Denver Post
In the first game, Panama will face Canada followed by Mexico taking on Martinique. Tickets are available at the Sports Authority Field at Mile High box office or Ticketmaster.
Balboa was on the U.S. team that won the first Gold Cup back in 1991 by defeating Honduras 4-3 (more in the video with the Denver Post). He played in three of the early editions of the premier regional tournament. Here's our Q&A with Balboa ahead of Sunday's matches:
From your first Gold Cup to now, what's the biggest difference in the Gold Cup?
Marcelo Balboa: "Now, with the implication of being able to get into a big tournament like the Confederations Cup, it's huge. What CONCACAF has done now, I think, is smart. This year's winner, the year before the World, and the winner of the next Gold Cup will have a playoff (for the Confederations Cup berth), which I think is fantastic. It puts meaning into both years, and it's something we didn't have. If you win this one, you have a shot at the Confederations Cup, so I like that they've made the Gold Cup important in this off year."
And what about in the tournament itself?
Balboa: "Now, it's a mini-World Cup for CONCACAF. They are playing in 13 different cities all over - I like that they are spreading this tournament throughout the United States. Before it was always isolated to one or two spots."
What type of teams should fans expect in the tournament?
Balboa: "First, there's no such thing as a friendly. And the importance right now, especially this tournament, is that it's played the year before the World Cup. So especially for the U.S. and Mexico, they are bringing a lot of young players and kids that the coach is looking at. You've got that next generation of guys who are in their 30s who won't be around for the next qualyfing cycles, so it's important for many of the players. And what a great opportunity - a big tournament like this - for the coach to get a look at players who may get a shot at the World Cup roster."
What can fans in Denver expect from Mexico, Panama, Canada, and Martinique?
Balboa: "Panama is bringing a full team. Panama wants to win this, they've made it very clear from the beginning. Mexico is bringing a young team, but I think that's the exciting part - you want to see these guys, like Marco Fabian and the next generation of Mexican players.
But I think the most important part is the results. Mexico lost their opener. Their next two games are huge, huge for Mexico, playing against Canada and Martinique, here. They have to win both. And Pamana, once the Dely Valdez brothers took over - Jorge's the assistant, who used to play here for the Rapids - they've changed. Their mentality has changed, the way they look at soccer has changed, the way they play has changed. They've become one of the better teams in CONCACAF, one that people are a little bit afraid to play.
There's a lot to look for. Canada is an up-and-coming team with a new coach. And I'll be honest with you, Martinique surprised me against Canada. They had some great opportunities, how quick they are, the way they move. (They are) a little disorganized in the back, but at the end of the day, they attack in numbers and they're very quick."
What do you expect out of Sunday's games?
Balboa: "I expect Mexico to feel a lot of pressure. Mexico is one of the favorites coming, and they're not used to losing. I think Mexico will win their game in midweek (vs Canada), and Panama or Martinique will win. So hopefully you'll have a team on Sunday that's desperate, in Mexico, to win. That means they're going to come out to win. They are going to attack. They can't afford to sit back and get a tie.
So this will be a team that comes in desperate, with a lot of pressure - especially on the coach, right now - so I expect a wide open game. If Martinique happens to win (vs. Panama on Wednesday), they may pack it in, or they may play with 'I have nothing to lose' mentality."
Why should the typical sports or soccer fans go to the matches on Sunday?
Balboa: "We don't get international games - we don't get the Gold Cup games - often. This year for us to get a World Cup Qualifier was a surprise - and everyone was so excited. For us to get a Gold Cup game - an important one, the third game which can mean getting to the next round - is everything.
You're not going to get a chance to see Mexico playing a tournament game here in Denver too often. They can always come for a friendly, or exhibition game - we've seen those. But here in Denver, to get a meaningful game, tournament games where all four teams are going to be going after it to get to the next round, let's be honest, that's special. We don't get that too often. So if you're a soccer fan, this is something that would attract you."
How will you watch the game?
Balboa: "The beauty of Sunday for me is, I'm not doing radio, or TV, so I can honestly finally go see a game and enjoy a game. Just to watch who's playing well, who's not. I can sit back as a fan and see four teams go out there after it.
The fun part for us as athletes is to see what kind of formation they're playing, what kind of strategy the coach has - are they going to sit back, are they going to open them up, are they going to try to exploit the flanks, are they going to go right down the middle? The mind still spins like an athlete, so you're still trying to look where this team can break them down. That's the beauty of our sport, everybody has an opinion."
What are your prediction for this group and what we'll see Sunday?
Balboa: "I always have a hard time going against Mexico. But I have to be honest, this is the first time I'm saying to myself, I couldn't tell you with the Mexican team who's going to show up to play. I think Panama is going through. Martinique surprised me, but I think they are going to run into two meaningful teams (Panama and Mexico). So I'm going to say that Mexico and Panama will go through."


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Major business leaders and UN officials will meet next week at the International Business Leaders Forum in London to talk about the private sector's ability to impact poverty. The Financial Times has a great article on some of the ups and downs of involving business with international development.
International Business Leaders Forum Kicks Off
Nick Aster is a new media architect and the founder of TriplePundit.com
TriplePundit.com has grown to become one of the web's leading sources of news and ideas on how business can be used to make the world a better place.
Prior to TriplePundit Nick worked for Mother Jones magazine, successfully re-launching the magazine's online presence. He worked for TreeHugger.com, managing the technical side of the publication for 3 years and has also been an active consultant for individuals and companies entering the world of micro-publishing. He earned his stripes working for Gawker Media and Moreover Technologies in the early days of blogging.
Nick holds an MBA in sustainable management from the Presidio School of Management and graduated with a BA in History from Washington University in St. Louis.
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Alice Perfect
Fine Dining And Fine Servers! - Poem by Alice Perfect
A friend flys in, wanting to hit the town,
all dressed up, an amazing party gown!
I got out the fine German car, Perry Ellis adorned me,
I even showered, used deodorant and cologne a plenty!
(lol, boy was I fakin' it)
Amazing lights, amazing food, $100 a plate,
not much there to possibly hate,
What were those servers thinking?
Perfect 10s, perfume, bells tinkling!
God's best work, the finest sculptures,
way too much meat for all us vultures!
Dear goddess with flesh so perfectly fine,
do you have to make men's desires whine?
What you got is as good as it gets,
when you get ready, half your clothing you forget!
Not that I don't love it, every square inch,
just makes me lusty, all of it I want to pinch!
Sitting here trying to act mature,
all my carnal thoughts you do allure!
You've got it goddess
you were very well blessed,
but for my dark mind's sake,
PLEASE keep it well dressed!
Topic(s) of this poem: love
Comments about Fine Dining And Fine Servers! by Alice Perfect
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Caged Bird
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Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening
Robert Frost
I Do Not Love You Except Because I Love You
Pablo Neruda


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text:
Robust Mini-B-USB Receptacle Serves both Consumer and Industrial Applications
SUYIN's 020200MA005XX56XX series offers a type-B, 5-pin Mini USB receptacle for surface mounting that is specially designed to meet the requirements of consumer products. At the same time, however, due to its particularly robust construction, it is also well suited for use in industrial automation tasks. This new USB receptacle with dimensions of 7.50 mm x 4.20 mm (L x W) features an in-board design. That means that it is mounted in an offset manner on the PCB, which reduces its height above the PCB to 5.25 mm.
Beyond this, the USB receptacle features outstanding mechanical toughness, even when subjected to high insertion and removal forces. Besides the five upright SMT contacts, two supplementary SMT soldering tabs and two side-mounted plastic guide pins as well as an additional THT bifurcated contact ensure reliable anchoring on the PCB. The number of mating cycles is specified at 5,000. This robust Mini USB's other specifications include a contact current capacity of 30 V DC /1.0 A per pin, the contact resistance of 50 m? (max.), the insulation resistance of 100 M? (min., initial) and the operating temperature range of –40 °C to +105 °C.
SUYIN can supply customers with a quote for production volumes beginning at 80,000 pieces per year. Additionally, SUYIN can support the product ramp-up phase by supplying smaller amounts. Depending on the order volume and delivery times, diverse customer-specification adaptations can be made, for instance for modification of the plastic housing, different numbers of positions, types of contact plating, etc.
Key specifications at a glance:
Connector type
Mini USB receptacle, type B, robust SMT design
Number of circuits
5 pins
7.50 x 4.20 x 5.25 (L x W x H in mm, overall)
Part number
Additional information is available at www.suyin-europe.com.


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Cold Cereal Facts
Serving size 1 chapter
Number of servings 40
Primary human characters 3
Scottish Play Doe, aka Scott - possible changeling
Erno Utz genius
Emily Utz supergenius
Magical creatures at least 3
Mick Leprechaun (or Clurichaun)
Harvey Pooka (rabbit-man)
Biggs indeterminate origin (hairy, large)
Evil organizations 1
Goodco Cereal Company: Purveyor of breakfast foods aspiring to world domination
Adventure 75%
Diabolical Schemes 40%
Danger 57%
Legend 20%
Magic 68%
Humor 93%
Puzzles 35%
Mystery 49%
Not a significant source of vampires.
May contain nuts.
Daily values based on individual interest. Reader's estimation of value may be higher or lower, depending on your tolerance for this sort of thing.
©2012 Adam Rex (P)2012 HarperCollinsPublishers
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If you find this review inappropriate and think it should be removed from our site, let us know. This report will be reviewed by Audible and we will take appropriate action.


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IL Honeywell Plant Shuts Down For Upgrades
METROPOLIS, Ill. (AP) — A Honeywell plant in southern Illinois that helps make nuclear fuel has been shut down because the Nuclear Regulatory Commission found the facility unable to withstand a seismic event.
Structural upgrades will be needed before operations can resume.
The Paducah Sun reports (http://bit.ly/P6R3zZ ) that company officials met with regulators Wednesday to discuss the shutdown agreement. Honeywell will not produce uranium hexafluoride until a plan is in place for the upgrades. No timeline was announced.
The agency described the reasons for the shutdown Friday, saying an extensive inspection had determined some of the plant's equipment would not be able to hold up under a "credible seismic event." The area is at risk for earthquakes and tornadoes.
Honeywell spokesman Peter Dalpe says the plant had already been making some safety upgrades.


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Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara broke his own record in the Hardest Shot competition on Saturday night, winning the event for the fourth straight year.
Chara blasted a 105.9 mph slap shot in the final round of the competition, beating Predators defenseman Shea Weber's 103.4 mph shot and breaking his previous record of 105.4 MPH. Rookie Tyler Seguin also competed in the competition, topping out at 97.1 mph.
Here's the video of Chara in 2009, when he first broke Al Iafrate's record.
Tim Thomas competed in the fastest skater competition against Hurricanes goalie Cam Ward. The B's netminder wiped out while turning a corner and quipped following the event that "Fortunately, with my style I've had lots of experience falling down."


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Despite regional efforts, trafficking continues to take heavy toll on children
Study finds efforts to prevent trafficking have fallen short – recommends new approach.
BANGKOK/WELLINGTON, 1 September, 2009 – A recent assessment of child trafficking programs in seven countries in East and Southeast Asia has found that the tides of trafficking have yet to be stemmed despite the best efforts by governments, donors and international and local aid organisations, and that a new approach is needed to confront not only child trafficking, but also other related forms of abuse and exploitation.
The study, Child Trafficking in East and Southeast Asia: Reversing the Trend, found that a great deal had been accomplished in this region in generating bilateral, multilateral and transnational cooperation. There have also been unprecedented developments in legislative and policy reform.
However, the study also found that, although most countries have developed or amended laws and policies with gusto, enforcement has generally been weak, due in some part to insufficient resources, limited capacities, poor coordination, or a lack of leadership.
The study is being released on the eve of the Pacific Trafficking in Persons Forum in Wellington, New Zealand on 2-4 September.
Tackling core vulnerabilities together
"We have a situation now where there are dozens of child trafficking programs in the region, but there are also dozens of child labour, sexual exploitation, child violence and neglect, and juvenile justice programs as well," said UNICEF Regional Director, Anupama Rao Singh. "Yet the core vulnerabilities that put children at risk in these situations should really be addressed together rather than separately."
"As a result, the same justice and social welfare structures and personnel in these countries are generally responsible for working on all of these child protection violations. This splits financial resources, burdens human resources, and stretches already limited capacity to keep apace with new laws, regulations, and similar but different training, procedures, and guidelines," she added.
With donors, funds are often distributed based on ever-shifting and competing priorities, which has led to a worrying trend of support flowing toward one area of child rights violations and away from others. For example, to prioritise victims of child trafficking over victims of sexual abuse or child labour is neither practical nor equitable, and misses the fact that most child protection issues are related.
Child protection systems needed
The same factors that make children vulnerable to trafficking, including poverty, family breakdown, lack of educational opportunities, gender inequality, demand for cheap labour or brides, and widening disparities between and within countries, are the same factors that make children vulnerable to other forms of abuse, violence and exploitation.
The study concludes that what is required to address this situation is the development of national child protection systems within countries similar to the creation of effective health systems decades ago. By taking a comprehensive, system-based approach to addressing the vulnerabilities of children in this region, trafficking, as well as other violations, can be more effectively prevented before they happen.
"Given the complexity of factors which frame child vulnerability, adopting a systems-building approach to protecting children would provide the most logical, sustainable, effective and resource-efficient means for achieving long term impact on issues pertaining to the trafficking of children," said Rao Singh. "It is time to stop confronting trafficking as a separate issue and address it more systematically along with other child protection issues."
The seven countries assessed in the study are: China, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.
Madeline Eisner, UNICEF Regional Communication
Geoffrey Keele, UNICEF Communication Specialist
David Youngmeyer, UNICEF New Zealand
Reversing the trend
Music Video
Goodnight, Travel Well
Newsline - Trafficking
21 January 2011:
Child trafficking film spotlights abuses
1 September 2009:
Anti-trafficking efforts have fallen short
13 July 2009:
The Killers raise trafficking awareness
21 August 2008:
Anti-sex child measures needed
The Protective Environment


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BBC's policy on poppies belies its impartiality
The practice by BBC Northern Ireland of insisting broadcasters and presenters wear the poppy at work must surely tarnish the image of impartiality which the BBC likes to portray of itself.
It is my understanding that, following the signing of the Belfast Agreement, a new code of ethics was agreed, which included the banning of political emblems and flags in the workplace.
Without question, the wearing of the poppy has overtly unionist overtones and, indeed, has the potential to offend, as the money raised is used to provide support for British ex-servicemen - some of whom would have served in the north during the Troubles.
Chair, Irish National Congress, Dublin
Belfast Telegraph


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Release Date: 2000 |
Et voilà.
Haha it censors Yoshitoshi.
sounds pretty cool you just suck
Reminds me of more restrained Angizia without the ludicrous vocals, neither are really a good thing. Music like this is just weird for the sake of being weird I think.
I second this ^^
it's my game ya dingus, i just let curseworship handle this round
oh also bad review. won't neg though cause i don't believe in negging
Please, tell me the faults of my review.
well it sounds like you listened to it once or twice without really meditating on it and decided that since you didn't get it you're gonna call them names write a negative review on sputnik to take out your anger
review is awful yeah
gotta neg
Well yeah, that is about right actually. Though half of the reason for its awefulness is how, despite my request to be given something else to review since I wasn't experienced in this kinda music and "didn't get it", darn WashboardSuds told me to write what I did get from it. And here you have it, though it was more cynicism than anger. xD
you signed up for the game. you knew that you might have been handed something you're not familiar with. this review looks like you didn't even try
I stated my opinion and backed it up with several points, using correct standard English.
Damn, don't take this so seriously.
tbh your opinion is fine, I'm sure I'd have written something similar were I assigned this
it's the way you presented your opinion that makes this a bad review.
Gonna have to neg
Overall it seems too rant-like and rushed
this is a not good review
Lunacy LUNACY LUNACY LUNACY LUNACY
Album Rating: 3.5I'm pretty sure you're taking subtle blows at me in the first paragraph but, oh well
I was hoping this album would get a deeper analysis since I myself wanted to hear an alternate perspective on the album but, instead it gets a pretty unfairly harsh critique turning people off to the album, shame considering this album is not nearly as bad as you claim.
also you can darn me all you want, I was trying to help you out when I said write what could get from the review since you said you were struggling.
Bands: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z


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'TWIB' to honor Gehrig in ALS special
'TWIB' to honor Gehrig in ALS special
That's why "This Week in Baseball," the longest-running sports serial in television history, has chosen to honor Gehrig and his speech on this week's episode. The timing is perfect -- Gehrig spoke behind home plate at the old Stadium on July 4, 1939. It is fitting that this year's Fourth of July falls on a Saturday, so "TWIB" -- airing on FOX at 3:30 p.m. ET -- can feature the speech on precisely its 70th birthday.
With Gehrig's speech celebrating a milestone and Major League Baseball's overall push to raise awareness for ALS, the disease that ultimately killed Gehrig at age 37, the "Iron Horse" and "TWIB" were a natural fit.
"He always played with Babe Ruth, so he was always the second man," lead producer Matt Anderton said. "But if he played with any other team, he would definitely have been the front man, so we're showcasing that."
On Saturday, all on-field personnel, including players, coaches, umpires and groundskeepers, will wear a "4♦ALS" patch. Additionally, the "4♦ALS" logo will appear on top of first base in each ballpark. Gehrig played first for the Yankees for 17 seasons. The bases will be auctioned off to raise more funds for ALS.
Gehrig finished his career prematurely with a lifetime batting average of .340, to go with 493 home runs and 1,995 RBIs. Armed with Ruth hitting third and Gehrig fourth, the Yankees won six World Series titles between 1927-38. Gehrig hit .361 in postseason play. He also played in 2,130 consecutive games, a record broken in '95 by Baltimore's Cal Ripken, Jr.
In 1939, Gehrig was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The illness has come now to be known as "Lou Gehrig's Disease." The Yankees held "Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day" on July 4 of that year, when he delivered his famous "Luckiest Man" speech. He died five months later.
"TWIB" has interviews with current players, including Milwaukee's Prince Fielder and Houston's Lance Berkman, talking about Gehrig's courage and effect on the game. The show will also feature his talent on the field and his consecutive games streak that earned him the nickname "The Iron Horse."
Finally, "TWIB" will air a spot highlighting MLB's ALS initiative and continue raising awareness for a disease that ended the life of an American hero too early.
"Lou Gehrig displayed tremendous courage and strength in the face of a debilitating illness, and his speech 70 years ago still stands as one of the defining moments in baseball history," Commissioner Bud Selig said in a statement.
Also featured on this week's show will be:
"Chevy All-Star Classics" will relive the 1999 All-Star Game at Fenway Park in Boston, when the All-Century Team was announced -- a list that included Gehrig.
Pepsi's MLB Clutch Performer of the Month award will be given out for June, from a list of players that includes Boston's Josh Beckett, San Francisco's Tim Lincecum and Los Angeles' Andre Ethier.
Jared Diamond is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


text:
This post is sponsored by Tyson Foods, Inc. All comments and opinions are my own.
Heads up guys...we have a high value Jimmy Dean Bacon coupon that you can use to grab a super deal at Publix! You'll save $1 on a package of tasty bacon but you'll have to hurry as the coupon is only available for a short time...it expires 12/22!
I'll be serving up some tasty Brussels Sprouts with my holiday dinner so this coupon comes at the perfect time!
Jimmy Dean Bacon offers a thicker cut bacon that delivers the great taste and consistent quality that you have come to expect from the Jimmy Dean brand. You can get either the Hickory Smoked or Applewood Smoked bacon at Publix. Both are delicious as a side to your breakfast or as part of any recipe. It is sure to come in handy for your holiday meal or just serve it up with some eggs and toast.
Remember, great mornings lead to great days! Head into Publix and pick up a great deal on a delicious bacon that your whole family will love! Need some recipe ideas? Head over and visit the Jimmy Dean recipe page.


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Albany High teacher sought for battery charge
Thu, 27 Oct 2011 21:02:49 GMT —
1st Update
Bass has taught for the Dougherty County School System for 11 years and has no prior record.
1st Update
Charles Bass has been booked into the Dougherty County Jail.
Initial Story
An Albany High teacher is wanted by school police on battery charges - but they say he'll have an opportunity to turn himself in.
Police have taken a warrant out on 32-year-old Charlie Bass for misdemeanor battery after an argument over a cell phone yesterday.
Police say they are still working to get that warrant signed.
Bass and a 14-year-old student got into an altercation, which led to pushing, shoving and superficial injuries according to investigators.
Bass has taught for the Dougherty County School System for 11 years and has no prior record.
Dougherty County School System Public Information Officer R.D. Harter said that Bass will be removed from his position effective immediately.


text: both types of rackets are marketed as the ultimate in terms of precision and control, however as they are different set ups, there must be differences. i know the general concensus is that a 95 has a more forgiving sweet spot and a 90 has more spin production; however if there are any other pro's and con's of each set up when compared to each other i would be grateful to know. more specifically, i would like to know how these different racket set ups compare to each other in the following areas: placement on serves angled / drop volleys punched deep volleys offensive / short angled backhand slice flat offensive forehands many thanks in advance.


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HOUSTON, Jan. 6 (UPI) -- A Texas state trooper who made a traffic stop on Sandra Bland three days before she was found dead in her jail cell has been indicted by a grand jury, a special prosecutor said Wednesday.
The indictment says trooper Brian T. Encinia lied about his actions during a traffic stop on Bland, 28, as she passed through a Houston suburb on her way to take a new job at Prairie View A&M University. Encinia stopped Bland for failing to use her turn signal.
During the ordeal, which was recorded by the trooper's dashboard camera, Encinia threatened to subdue her with a stun gun and told her, "I will light you up, get out!"
In July, while being questioned for a legislative inquiry, Texas Department of Public Safety director Steven McCraw criticized Encinia for his actions during the stop, saying the trooper violated DPS policy, behaved rudely and failed to de-escalate the situation -- which involved Bland refusing to extinguish her cigarette or get out of her car.
The charge, a Class A misdemeanor, carries a maximum penalty of a year in jail and a $4,000 fine.
To date, Encinia is the only person involved in the case to be indicted by a grand jury. Last month, the panel's investigation of the Waller County Sheriff's Office and guards at the county jail did not result in any charges.
It is believed that Encinia's indictment is the last major act by the grand jury, which began its investigation in August, prosecutors said.
Three days after her arrest, Bland was found hanging dead in her cell in the Waller County Jail. The case prompted a national outcry and doubts raised by her family that she took her own life. Her relatives also filed a wrongful death suit against Encinia and "others responsible" for Bland's death.
Cannon Lambert, an attorney representing the Bland family, has called the county's investigation a "sham."
Prosecutors, though, said the probe is ongoing and that justice is their ultimate goal.
"We're just going to finish what we started," special prosecutor Darrell Jordan said. "Our goal in this process is justice. Whatever that might be."
About two dozen protesters gathered at the Texas courthouse Wednesday to demand the termination of Encinia.
"Officer Encinia should not get off. He escalated the situation," Houston resident and National Black United Front national vice-co-chair Jinaki Muhammad said.
Texas Rep. Garnet Coleman, D-Houston, said during a legislative inquiry in July that Encinia was the "catalyst" that led to Bland's death.
"What he did triggered the whole thing," he said.
Encinia, who joined the state police in 2014, was placed on administrative leave following Bland's death.


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You can try these similar gifts instead.
Scroll Paper Pen
Jac Zagoory
As long as you have this pen you will always have paper for jotting down notes and lists. This ballpoint pen has a barrel that conceals a handy roll of paper that can scroll out for writing and back in for safekeeping.


text:
NFL: Controversial rule may be changed soon
The rule that negated using video replay to confirm a Texans touchdown "may be too harsh" and will be re-examined immediately, NFL director of football operations Ray Anderson said yesterday.
Anderson said a change could come this year. The NFL traditionally resists changing rules during a season.
Justin Forsett's third-quarter 81-yard run in the Texans' 34-31 overtime victory at Detroit on Thursday initially was ruled a touchdown, although replays clearly showed his knee and elbow touched the turf when he was hit by Lions defenders. Detroit coach Jim Schwartz challenged, resulting in a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty and the negated use of video replay.
Jim Harbaugh said he expects Alex Smith to be medically cleared to play, but the 49ers coach wouldn't say whether Smith or Colin Kaepernick would start tomorrow against the Saints.
The status of Bears quarterback Jay Cutler remains uncertain because of a concussion.
Steelers safety Troy Polamalu (calf) practiced for the first time in seven weeks, but remains doubtful.
NBA: League-best Grizzlies top Lakers
In Memphis, Tenn., Rudy Gay scored 21 points, and the Grizzlies beat the Lakers 106-98 to regain the NBA's best record at 9-2.
Zach Randolph had 17 points and 12 rebounds, and Marc Gasol added 14 points and eight assists.
The Lakers have lost all four road games this season and their second straight with Mike D'Antoni on the bench. Kobe Bryant scored 14 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter.
In Boston, Paul Pierce scored 22 of his 27 points in the second half and the Celtics beat the Thunder, 108-100 to snap a two-game losing streak.
Kevin Garnett had 18 points and nine rebounds, and Rajon Rondo finished with 16 assists and eight rebounds. Kevin Durant scored 29 points for Oklahoma City.
golf: McIlroy leads by a stroke in Dubai
Rory McIlroy shot a 5-under 67 and was tied for the lead with Luke Donald and Marc Warren after two rounds of the season-ending Dubai World Championship.
McIlroy, the top-ranked golfer, already has won the money titles on the European and PGA tours. He was one stroke in front at 11-under 133 with Donald (68) and 189th-ranked Warren (67).
Sergio Garcia, playing for the first time since laser eye surgery, matched the course record with a 64 to leave him four shots behind.
ETC.: Morehead St. suspends pushy coach
Morehead State suspended basketball coach Sean Woods for one game after he pushed Eagles player Devon Atkinson in the back during Wednesday's loss at No. 8 Kentucky.
Gail Harris, the last player to hit a home run for the New York Giants before they moved to San Francisco following the 1957 season, died at his Gainesville, Va., home on Nov. 14. He was 81.


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Discussion in 'Tennis Tips/Instruction' started by Larrysümmers, Dec 20, 2010.
This thread went from legitimate discussion to J011y hate to LeeD hate, got to love it.
My problem are uneducated and low skilled tennis players who seem to be oracles on the internet forums.
Actually, at my 3.5 thru 4.5 level, none of them ever even considered vid 'ing themselves or their friends. Gotta consider, some ugly strokes on the screen, like most of what pops up here.
Of the 20 or so guys I play tennis with, NONE have a decent service motion.
I have the worst forehand. Yea, I'm number ONE!
Most hit second serves like girls...or you guys.
Some bend their knees just fine, most don't at all, but the ones who do are the worst players.
The best doubles guy, maybe a true solid 4.5 in doubles, uses the same face of the racket for all shots....yet he digs up low and half volleys with no problems.
Almost every one of us have some debilitating injury that would keep most tennis players OFF the courts until recovery. Yet we still forge on and play.
You want to see such carnage?
And the best guy, an inshape 30 year old, who hits like a 5.5 at times, still can't serve or volley well, and is constantly injured.
Jolly hate kinda makes me nostalgic. Those were some fun days of name calling back and forth. Sure nothing got accomplished but I was entertained for a little.
Dude its a forum take a chill pill. Is Leed a bs artist sure but he isnt hurting anyone. You act like he is tying down virgins and sacrificing them to the gods.
entertainment is the name of the game.... too bad not many see it this way.
Yes. What he said! 8)
I wish I read this last night after leading by 4 strokes after the front 9.... at which point I started thinking overtaking the course record, and what kind of trash talking I can put on my opponent.
It was very entertaining, especially since it was usually j011y, joel, and dennis against drak, topaz, and tw mac. Pretty fun days, now it's just listening to LeeD's ridiculous posts
Never hit with Clint but Tony is the real deal. BHBH
..er.... pretty much sums up what I thought of TonLars...
I hope his newfound more powerful serve doesn't come with advancing age, reality check, and new injuries.
some well placed comic relief
Laugh if you must, or want. I know you didn't hit any 129 mph serves ever.
First off, Im hitting with a 4.0 player in the video you posted of mine. You may like how another stroke looks better than mine, but ill take my forehand with almost anyones. From a front view in this video there is no racquet head speed difference at all:
You think 12 and 14 year olds are better than division 1 college players though so I cant be surprised with any garbage you say.
Just as much as i know you didnt.. EVER
Dude, you do not understand that people here are looking for real advices? The last thing they need are semi-smart advices of an uneducated and low-skilled tennis player who seems to know everything and who seems to play as Federer (or better). This is a real problem for me. This should be a real problem for you, too.
Sure, but consider...
I claim about 110 nowadaze. I'm 62. I assume I hit a faster serve then, as would you.
Now about the 110. Nobody wants to hit with me, and you know I"ve posted my phone # more than 10 times. Rain happens often, and the one solid lead was for hitting on Monday at around 7PM, when I had to be in Oakland at 5;30PM, the other side of the flyover traffic and tied up with g/f. AND, I didn't get the notice until 11AM that day. Could you get notice at 11AM, then drop everything on a day rain was supposed to hit by evening, to forego finish dimensions on g/f's cabinet's, to be done with said g/f, just to chance a possible hit with somebody who had to drive 40 miles into BayArea traffic?
You poo poo my "110". Consider, I have played doubles with a few Div1 singles players, and a few Opens. Mostly they stand in, close to the baseline, to return serves. I hit a few right at them, and they stand back 4' to return my first serves. They don't stand that far back for anyone else's serves.
This is all irrelevant. You said you have a better serve than a touring ATP pro. How can you defend that statement?
Ask them for cameras.
Only one way to solve this. We all have to convince Clint Thomson to play the upcoming 15,000 dollar opens tournament in Victoria. Then we could have the TTW showdown: Tonalrs vs. Clint
I predict a thread lock before the 1500th post.
Are you serious with this. There is so much bad advice given here on a daily basis but you choose Leeds to attack. Sure he makes up more crap than anyone else but his advice is on the same level as most of the other average posters. There are very few people on here that give out solid advice.
And its not a problem for me. I would never ever use an internet forum to fix my tennis stroke. Seriously think about that. Someone who has never seen you hit or hit with you is gonna fix your stroke?
Fun days indeed. I wish it hadnt been at a nice guys expense but it kept everyone busy for a little.
I would take Clint in that match up but I will say that Tony would give him a hell of a match. If you watch Tony hit there is no way you are beating him with ease unless you are a top 200 caliber player. He is quick, consistent, and his strokes do not break down. That is a recipe for a tough player to beat.
Hey LeeD look at what age you posted,
I thought I mentioned I qualify for SocialSecurity back in Feb. That's 62.
No. He did.
Oh, I thought you said you turned 63 in Jan.
He did what? He attacked you? He doesnt really attack as much as say he could do something better than someone that he couldnt. That isnt attacking that is a lie.
Well, unfortunately a video wouldn't show how good Lee's serve "was." Like my grandpa says, "the older you get, the better you were."
You know, your grandpa is a sage.
But if you see my serve now, extrapolate back 35 years, you MIGHT be impressed.
What do they say? You lose about 10 % for every 10 years after 30?
So I lost 32%. Even if I spin a fast second serve in at 100mph, something I can do with a really high percentage that bothers most players more than my flat 110 serve, you'd have to think I could hit that serve around 115 in my younger years. So extrapolate what additional speed I'd get for a pure flat, and it might be right arouned the mid 120's, like I always said! :shock:
Kinda like...my average first try no warmup standing long jump right now is right at the 6'6" mark. 45 years ago, with no warmup and first attempt, right around 9'. Well, I've gained over 30 lbs since, have a currently swelling sprained ankle, and out of shape from 3 years of no running or jogging.
Did did you sprain the ankle?
Sprained ankle..
Couple Sept's ago, I windsurfed a few days barefeet (I normally wear 3mm booties), so I tightned the straps on a different Mike'sLab slalom board and went out whoppee. But the winds rose, and 6.0 sail in 27mph gusts mean big chop for jumping. After a few, the straps slipped bigger, and I landed hard so foot slid forwards and twisted the front of my ankle severly. Barefeet in 57 degree waters, I didn't feel much pain, so I sailed for another hour.
I've lived with it ever since, no jogging, no running, no jumping (no land jumping)
Life is tough, then you die.
that sounds like a line from a 60+ .. I have some friends of this age range... although they are very optimistic people, they use similar lines in a humourous way with reference to death.
Finally. The conclusive proof we've all been looking for.
Haha, serve you probably have me beat but Ive got you on the standing jump. At the Olypmic training center last fall they had a place on the floor that measured it out, and I did it for fun and got about 9 3/4 feet.
Damn, you must have some strong legs. I guess that's why you have great movement on the court. Do you do any exercises or has just playing tennis built it up?
Yes, and that is why I've always respected TonLar's game. He has movement, but more important, he's WILLING to move for each point. Lots of guys, like Monfils, can leap huge distances...in his case, easily 10'. But it's the willingness to use your athletic ability on every point that makes a player stand out from all the posers.
You can look up SanFrancisco's AbrahamLincoln standing long jump record all around the top of the boy's gym. From 1964 thru 1982, I had the 10'2" record. In my mid '30's, going there to play 3 on 3, I saw my name was no longer up there, some guy did 11', but I don't know his nationality or size.
By the time I started tennis at age 24, I'd already collected two compound fractures of my tib/fib on different legs, one collarbone, several dislocates.
Yup, played today, maybe tomorrow, rain on weekend, some clearing and unsettled next week, gotta work either/or Sat-Sun AM's.
I didn't picture this when I started the thread.
Yes, the guy who thought a successful pro was a 4.0 and thinks TonLars is even in the same league with Clint
Of course if someone had a good jump, you must have had a better one. You are good for a laugh I must say.
Wow, this is a comedy routine. Tony slaps at his forehand for goodness sakes. Clint has amazing racquet head speed and was once in the top 500. Give me a break.
it's serious on these boards!! :cry: :shock:
well, it's 10:21 and I've got 30min before going to bed...
this evening has been a little disappointing... not a lot of actions yet.
Yeah, he has got the ranking and who can say different that he is the better player? But what is your issue with me? I have told you that I have beaten and played close with guys similar to that ranking and level. You dont like the way my forehand looks, but that doesnt mean a thing. I dont play futures and tour around, but when I beat or play close with those kind of players at open events it makes you look stupid when you keep ragging on me.
Hey Tony I thought you swtiched to APD GT, did you try out the PST GT find it better?
Does this make any sense to you?
Negative Ghost Rider
Hey I went to Lincoln too. My year was the last good year (last class to graduate without taking that stupid exit exam too). Lincoln went to **** after my year.
But can you do this? (w/a full cup of hot tea)
so with a faster swing. you get more topspin with the power, correct?
Not a chance, I can't pass the sobriety test, standing on one foot, touching fingers to nose. Neither foot. I'm flat footed, cannot balance on one foot.
What year did you graduate? SanFrancisco, right? I graduated in 1966.
Separate names with a comma.


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Mail Online
June 29, 2011
The cost of U.S. military action in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan will run to at least $3.7trillion, a study has revealed today.
The staggering figure could reach as high as $4.4trillion, with the deaths of up to 258,000 people, according to research by Brown University's Watson Institute for International Studies.
In human terms, 224,000 to 258,000 people have died directly from warfare – including 125,000 civilians in Iraq.


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If you ACCIDENTALLY got pregnant by a famou$ celebrity..would..
Posted by Anonymous
- 316 Replies
You keep the baby ?
Posted by Anonymous on Nov. 18, 2013 at 9:07 PM
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12 moms liked this
Cha Ching ;)
Cha Ching ;)
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10 moms liked this
Yes. Because the only celebrity who could make me THINK about stepping out on DH is the Rock. And how cool would it be to have the Rock's baby?
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by Silver Member on Nov. 18, 2013 at 9:09 PM
HELLLLL YEAH I WOULD... dh could fight and fight all he wanted to, i would keep it
5 moms liked this
Keep the baby & collect child support. Hell yes.
I mean...say whaaat?
I mean...say whaaat?
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text:
It's not only our houses that can get cluttered. Our minds can get overwhelmed with ideas, things to do, and "where did I put that?" questions. Keeping track of all the stuff in our lives can be exhausting, and I for one have a few dedicated stress balls on hand to help me out in these situations. The mind doesn't still anymore without a concentrated effort. Instead it is constantly working in overdrive. Processing. Remembering. Prioritizing..
Once the mind becomes too tired we start to forget things or lose focus. I hate days when I feel frazzled and pulled in different directions.
So how can we release this mind clutter? How can we can have more energy and focus?
Write everything down
Have a master list of all your to do's in categories. Don't try to remember everything. Then have a daily to do list for today's must do's.
Keep an idea journal for things you might want to do or think would be a great idea even if you can't do them right now. I have vacations I want to go on, books I want to read, a plan for an ebook, a title of something I want to write, and some constellations I want to memorize. You can keep your idea journal on the computer or in a notebook.
Put a notepad by your bed and other places you come up with thoughts and actions. Then in the morning you can transfer them to the master list or idea book.
One form of mental clutter are those thoughts that keep cycling over and over.
"I can't believe she said that to me. I felt so dumb. And I didn't even reply coherently. I should have said…."
"I am so worried about my finances. We have too much debt, and one of us might lose their jobs, and we'd lose the house and I know I am going to end up being a bag lady."
"I failed big time that time. Why did I do that? I should have… I wish…"
When you start ruminating over something write it down in a journal or notebook. Once it's written down you have less of a feeling that you have to continue having it junk up your head. You might even come up with some solutions or lessons learned. This is also a good practice for before bed if you stay up at night worrying.
Put your plans to paper. Write down your goals so they can become action plans instead of vague, "I want to" do's.
Sketch out project plans on paper instead of letting them become huge boulders in your head. When you put them to paper you break the project down so it feels more manageable.
If you have some things you want to tell a certain person next time you talk, write it down in your planner under Agenda. Write out your menu plan for the week so you aren't trying to defrost something by microwave at dinnertime.
All those plans in your head? Get them down on paper. Don't try to remember all the details.
Try thinking about just one object, one word, on thought. Let the other thoughts pass through your head. Have this peace, even if it's just for a minute. When you walk, just walk. When you wash dishes, feel the soap bubbles.
See how long you can pay attention to what is going on right now instead of regretting the past or worrying about the future.
Take 10 deep breaths, concentrating on your breathing and nothing else. How do you feel?
Dip into your heart
Too often we are in our heads all day long. Take a moment to ask yourself, "What am I feeling?" "What do I need?" "What do the people around me need?"
Instead of picking your next to do by the calculated priority you placed on it earlier, feel what you should do next once in awhile.
Release the unhelpful thoughts
Your thoughts think they are helping you, protecting you and want to be listened to. But, sometimes thoughts hold you back. What have you been thinking about lately that is counterproductive to how you want to live? When the thought comes up try saying to it, "Thanks for sharing and here is the door." Release the thought. Some people like to visualize those thoughts as balloons floating away. Or leaves in a stream. Play with it until you find something that resonates with you.
Sometimes it's helpful to dialogue with the thought to see what it is really trying to say. Often you'll find out it was just trying to protect you. If it says, "You don't really want to lead that workshop. No on will be interested and it will go badly," it may really be saying, "I am afraid that you may fail and then feel hurt." Then you get the chance to tell the thought it is very kind and you are going to try anyway. You can suggest other nurturing thoughts instead. (If you are one of those rare people who don't talk to yourself, then you can ignore that last bit.)
Other times you really do need to take action – pray, forgive, research, call someone. Write the action down or do it now. And then the thought will dissipate.
What is cluttering up your mind today?
Photo Credit: Temari
5 comments
Very good post!
I'm a list maker to the nth degree and write everything down. It's a huge help when you're tired to have something to refer to right in front of you instead of trying to remember everything and feeling bad if you forget something.
Lists help you cut yourself some slack!
Thank you for such a timely article … for me! A "cluttered" brain has been hampering me recently, and these suggestions are awesome!
adding a little to these awesome suggestions
Cogitation: Thinking is undirected; try to go back from your thinking to where the thought came. Go back retrace the steps, and then you will see that another thought was there and that led to this and they are not logically connected. One thought leads to another without any direction from you. The thought itself leads to another because of association. There is no logical connection-only association in your mind.
Contemplation: It means thinking-directed thinking. We think but that is not contemplation. That thinking is undirected, vague, leading nowhere. Thinking becomes contemplation when it moves not through association, but is directed. The mind always tries to escape from one side path to another, from one bypath to another, to some association. You cut off all the side ways. On only one road, you direct your mind, then you bracket out all associations. This is called contemplation. As a scientist, a logician, a mathematician, a poet, a musician working on something, say any problem, are in contemplation. Many things from the sideways will attract, but he does not allow his mind to move any where, mind moves in one line, directed. This is contemplation. Science is based on contemplation, it is logical and rational, it is not absurd.
Concentration: Then there is concentration, to stay at one point, being at one point, not allowing the mind to move at all. It is not thinking, it is not contemplation. In thinking, in ordinary thinking, mind moves like a madman. In contemplation the madman is led, directed, he cannot escape anywhere. In concentration the mind is not allowed to move; in ordinary thinking, it is allowed to move only somewhere. In concentration it is not allowed to move. It is only allowed to be at one point. The entire energy, the whole movement sticks to one point. Yoga is concerned with concentration. The yogic mind has its thinking focused, fixed at one point; no movement is allowed.
Meditation: In ordinary thinking, mind is allowed to move anywhere; in contemplation, it is allowed only in one direction, all other directions are cut off. In concentration, it is not allowed to move even in one direction, it is allowed only to be on one point. And then comes, Meditation. In Meditation, mind is not allowed at all. Meditation is 'no-mind', not even concentration is allowed. Mind itself is not allowed to be, that is why meditation cannot be grasped by the mind. Up to concentration, mind has reach, an approachable reach. Mind can understand concentration, but not meditation. Mind is not allowed at all really in meditation. In ordinary thinking, all directions are open; in concentration, only one point is open-no directions. In meditation even that point is not open, even that point is taken away. Mind is not allowed to be. Thinking is an ordinary state of mind and meditation is the highest possibility. The lowest one is ordinary thinking-association, and the highest, the peak, is meditation i.e. no-mind.
Self-Realization is concerned with meditation. The blissful life is based on meditation. Meditation makes a man a master of the mind. The glory which the modern man has lost in his rat-race in the outside world can be regained, discovered or reclaimed through meditation. How can, contemplation, and concentration which are mental processes help in achieving a state of no-mind.
If the process of thinking becomes more and more dense, thick, then you are proceeding to one-mind to multi-mind, if the process of thinking becomes less thick, less dense, is decreased, is slow down, then you are helping yourself towards no-mind. It depends on you and mind can be a help, because really, mind is what you are doing with your consciousness " Chetna" this very moment. If you leave your consciousness without doing anything with it, it becomes meditation.
Deep down mind, space filled occupied by thoughts. If you remove some thoughts, space is created or reclaimed. If you go on removing your thoughts by and by you go on regaining your space. This space is meditation. When you remove the thoughts, just as you remove some commodities or furniture from the living room, some space is discovered there. Space is not created by removing the material or furniture then no space comes in from outside. It is always there your have recovered it while removing the furniture.
So there are two possibilities – either slowly, gradually decrease your mind, by and by empty your mind. Or it can be done suddenly also. There is no need to go on for lives together removing the furniture by and by there are problems. One goes on slowly decreasing thoughts and then again creating new thoughts. You can make a jump or devote full time to remove unnecessary thoughts in one time and then, while becoming the master of mind, you may enter the world to fulfill the role with the torch of Third Eye. This is the right way and right approach towards leading a blissful life in the world.
CONTACT http://WWW.VISHVAS.ORG FOR MORE DETAILS
[…] is one way to eliminate getting caught up in the rush of life. I particularly like this article A Cluttered Mind: My Simpler Life – Simple Living by Beth Dargis. This article has a lot of great easy steps to make your life […]


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Egyptian journalist Hamdi Kandil faces defamation charge
|Committee to Protect Journalists
|Publication Date
|20 May 2010
|Cite as
|Committee to Protect Journalists, Egyptian journalist Hamdi Kandil faces defamation charge, 20 May 2010, available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/4bfd2b7f23.html [accessed 22 November 2017]
|This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.
New York, May 20, 2010 – The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns a criminal defamation lawsuit filed by Egyptian Foreign Affairs Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit against independent journalist Hamdi Kandil. He faces up to six months in jail and a discretionary fine if convicted.
A prosecutor summoned Kandil on Tuesday to inform him of defamation charges brought in connection with a May 3 article in the opposition daily Al-Shuruq, according to local news accounts. The article covered several issues, including corruption, the recent renewal of the Emergency Law, and criticism of Aboul Gheit for issuing a statement that contradicted previous comments by Egypt's ambassador to Israel.
"Public officials cannot hide behind such outdated laws as criminal defamation," said Mohamed Abdel Dayem, CPJ's Middle East and North Africa program coordinator. "Journalists not only have a right but a duty to scrutinize the work of government ministers. We call on the Egyptian judiciary to drop its charges against Hamdi Kandil without delay."
Kandil, a veteran journalist and one of Egypt's most prominent media personalities, is the spokesman for the newly established National Association for Change, a coalition of Egyptians from diverse political backgrounds who oppose the current government and have called for an overhaul of the country's political system.


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The new lads in La-La-Land weren't supposed to be the ones causing trouble.
When the Los Angeles Lakers signed Gary Payton and Karl Malone last summer, the thinking was their heretofore unfulfilled championship aspirations would keep the wandering minds of Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant focused on the task at hand.
But this past weekend, Payton provided his own distraction by openly complaining about his court time in what a newspaper report described as a calm but pointed five-minute monologue.
"I didn't come here to sit on the bench," Payton said. "I've been trying to hold it in, but it's a problem for me right now.
"I want to play. I don't know what they're trying to do. I'm trying to stay away from controversy, but controversy is going to come if I keep sitting on the bench."
And, of course, the Lakers know nothing of controversy already, right? But to be fair, they're used to it coming from O'Neal, Bryant and coach Phil Jackson, not Payton.
The veteran point guard still is averaging almost 34 minutes a game, but he is used to playing 40-plus.
"This is (Jackson's) team and he has to coach it the way he's going to coach it," Payton said. "But I'm not hurt. I've played 40 minutes per game for the past 14 years.
"Whatever's going on, I can adjust to it. But I'll wait till the end of the season and then I'll make adjustments. I have to weigh a lot of things. Do I want to go back to being the guy I want to be, dominating on the ball, getting more looks, helping the team win? I have to go to a coach who's going to let me do that."
Those last few sentences amounted to a veiled threat, since Payton is eligible to opt out of his contract this summer.
When Payton was reminded that he and Malone had agreed to sacrifice some elements of their individual games when they joined the Lakers, Payton snorted, "Not this kind of sacrifice."
Thus proving once again that in the world of professional athletics, the term "sacrifice" is far easier to say than to do.
The NBA is going to play host to more dramatic returns this week that an old Clint Eastwood cowboy movie.
Tonight in Sacramento with the Los Angeles Clippers providing the opposition, Kings forward Chris Webber is due to play his first game this season. He has been out with a knee injury for most of the campaign and missed the past eight games while on league suspension because he lied to a U.S. federal grand jury about accepting illegal benefits while he was a college player at Michigan.
Tomorrow in Portland will mark the return of former Trail Blazers bad-boy Bonzi Wells and the Memphis Grizzlies.
Then on Thursday, also in Portland, the No. 1 former Blazers bad-boy of all time, Rasheed Wallace, will strut back into the Rose Garden with the swaggering Detroit Pistons.
"It will be a little more heated than usual, I suspect," Blazers coach Maurice Cheeks predicted.
On Friday in L.A., there's a possibility Malone may be ready to return from his two-month absence due to a knee injury. The Lakers play host to the Seattle SuperSonics that night.
"That's my medical decision," a hopeful Payton said. "(Malone) is coming back Friday."
And finally, also on Friday evening, former Raptors coach Lenny Wilkens and his new team, the New York Knicks, will take on the Raptors at the Air Canada Centre. The Knicks looked great for a while after Knicks general manager Isiah Thomas made the coaching change, but now they've dropped to a mediocre 10-11 with Wilkens at the helm.
Wallace arrived at a recent game at the Staples Center in Los Angeles wearing a red Montreal Canadiens jersey with NHL Hall of Famer Guy Lafleur's No. 10 on the back. Always figured 'Sheed to be more of a Pierre Bouchard man ... There were many who thought it was a bad idea when the Charlotte Hornets moved to football-obsessed New Orleans before last season, and those people now are saying, "We told you so." As of the end of February, New Orleans ranked second last in the NBA in home attendance this season with an average of 14,274. Only the Atlanta Hawks were worse, with an average of 13,721 ... With Kevin Garnett, Sam Cassell and Latrell Sprewell of the Minnesota Timberwolves appearing on the cover of Sports Illustrated this week, coach Flip Saunders was asked if he's worried about the legendary SI cover jinx: "I know Michael Jordan has been on the cover a lot. So has Tiger Woods. And they had pretty good success after being on the cover. It just depends how good you are." We admire the confidence, Flip, but maybe the T-Wolves should win a playoff series for the first time in franchise history before you start referencing Jordan and Woods.


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USA must respect international standards on protection of whistleblowers
27 Jun 2013
This content is available in: , French
ARTICLE 19 reiterates its calls for the US government to respect international human rights standards on the protection of whistleblowers. This is in light of the US authorities' recent actions against whistleblower Edward Snowden and the ongoing trial of Private Bradley Manning.
We are concerned that the US Government is not only unwilling to protect whistleblowers who reveal serious wrongdoings in the public interest, but instead actually pursues them. As a result, its commitment to openness, freedom of information and democratic governance is open to question.
On 21 June 2013, US Federal prosecutors officially filed a criminal complaint against Edward Snowden. Snowden, a former contractor for the US National Security Agency (NSA), had left the USA for Hong Kong, where he leaked information about the NSA's secret surveillance program to journalists from The Guardian (UK). The US charged him with theft of government property, unauthorised communication of national defence information and wilful communication of classified communications intelligence information to an unauthorised person. Snowden fled Hong Kong when the US filed a request for his extradition. He is currently in the transit area of Moscow Sheremetyevo airport and awaiting a possible refugee status decision from Ecuador.
The charges against Snowden came in the fourth week of the trial of another whistleblower, Private Bradley Manning. In 2010, Manning leaked classified material to the WikiLeaks website. He was subsequently charged with a number of offences, including failure to obey a lawful order and aiding the enemy.
Recently, there have been further reports of controversial investigations into the activities of reporters at both Associated Press (AP) and Fox News with regard to whistleblowing.
ARTICLE 19 reminds the US authority that whistleblowing (or unauthorised disclosures) may constitute a vital source of information on human rights violations, illegalities and wrongdoings, including when committed by the intelligence and security forces which are, by the very nature of their work, not subjected to the same level of transparency as other national institutions. ARTICLE 19 deeply regrets the US Government's knee jerk reaction to such disclosures, consisting in bringing criminal charges against the alleged whistleblowers, instead of properly assessing the overall public interest of the disclosed information or addressing the wrongdoings they may have exposed.
Freedom of information and national security under international law
ARTICLE 19 argues that the actions of the US authorities must be considered, first and foremost, on the basis of international standards on the right to freedom of information.
On numerous occasions, we have highlighted that freedom of information is crucial for the protection of human rights and democratic accountability. If people do not know what is happening in their society and if the actions of those who rule them are hidden, then they cannot play a meaningful part in that society.
Under international law, national security is a valid reason for imposing restrictions on freedom of information.[i] However, if the presumption in favour of freedom of expression and access to information is to be respected, the scope of the exception needs to be defined as strictly and as narrowly as possible. To this end, a restriction on the right to free expression can only be justified in the interests of national security if its effect is to "protect a country's existence or its territorial integrity against the use or threat of force, or its capacity to respond to the use or threat of force."[ii] Moreover, the presumption in favour of freedom of expression requires governments to demonstrate that the expression will actually harm national security. It is not sufficient for the government to simply assert this.
Furthermore, a state may not categorically deny access to all information related to national security. Instead it must designate in law which specific and narrow categories of information are necessary in order to protect legitimate national security interests.
In addition, national security cannot be used as a justification for preventing disclosures of illegalities or wrongdoing, no matter how embarrassing to the government.[iii]
Whistleblowers' freedom of expression should therefore be recognised to be worthy of protection, even when legitimate national security considerations are in play.
Protection of whistleblowers
Whistleblowers are typically employees, or other persons involved with an organisation, who have come across information about wrongdoing or danger to the public. These can include information about criminal acts, danger to public health or the environment, misfeasance, or poor decisions. The organisations can be in the public or private sector.
Whistleblowers play an important role in revealing information that has not been made public because other laws have either blocked its disclosure or failed to force its release. This is especially important in the area of intelligence and national security where public disclosure is limited and abuses can remain undetected by standard legal mechanisms.
A growing number of international instruments recognise the importance of whistleblowers and require or encourage states to adopt measures to protect disclosure. This includes disclosures the fields of anti-corruption, freedom of expression and good governance. Whistleblowing is protected as an aspect of freedom of expression under Article 19 of the International Convent on Civil and Political Rights and by a number of regional human rights agreements.
Under the UN 2005 Convention Against Corruption (Article 33), states should undertake appropriate measures to provide protection against "unjustified treatment" of those who disclose information "in good faith and on reasonable grounds."[iv]
In 2008, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights, in Guja v. Moldova, ruled that public employees have a fundamental right of free expression in order to reveal wrongdoing to the public if it is in the public interest and oversight mechanisms are not adequate. This includes the revealing of classified information.[v]
The United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Opinion and Expression has recognised numerous times that whistleblowing is an important aspect of the right to freedom of expression.[vi]
The importance of whistleblowers has also been recognised by other UN experts:
- The UN Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms While Countering Terrorism has stated that whistleblowers are crucial to "break illegitimate rings of secrecy" inside those intelligence and security agencies that are committing human rights violations, and that in these cases, the public interest in disclosure outweighs the public interest in non-disclosure.[vii] He has further stated that whistleblowers should be protected from legal reprisals and disciplinary actions when disclosing unauthorised information and mechanisms for their protection are necessary.[viii]
- The UN Special Rapporteur on the Right of Everyone to the Enjoyment of the Highest Attainable Standard of Physical and Mental Health has called for all workers to be able to report dangers in the workplace without reprisal.[ix]
- The UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders has called for all countries to adopt protections of whistleblowers who reveal wrongdoing or illegal activities.[x]
The 2004 Joint Declaration of three special freedom of expression mandates from the UN, Organisation of American States (OAS) and Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) stated that "'whistleblowers' releasing information on violations of the law, on wrongdoing by public bodies, on a serious threat to health, safety or the environment, or on a breach of human rights or humanitarian law should be protected against legal, administrative or employment-related sanctions if they act in 'good faith.'"[xi]
In The Public's Right to Know: Principles on Freedom of Information Legislation, developed by ARTICLE 19 in 1999, we stipulated that individuals should be protected from any legal, administrative, or employment-related sanctions for releasing information on wrongdoing. "Wrongdoing" in this context includes: the commission of a criminal offence, failure to comply with a legal obligation, a miscarriage of justice, corruption or dishonesty, serious maladministration regarding a public body, a serious threat to health, safety or the environment, whether linked to individual wrongdoing or not.[xii]
Such protection should apply even where disclosure would otherwise be in breach of a legal or employment requirement.
These points are also emphasised in the Johannesburg Principles on National Security, Freedom of Expression and Access to Information,[xiii] which state that no person may be punished on national security grounds for disclosure of information if (i) the disclosure does not actually harm and is not likely to harm a legitimate national security interest, or (ii) the public interest in knowing the information outweighs the harm from disclosure.
Similarly, the recently released Tshwane Principles on National Security and the Right to Information[xiv] stipulate that the law should protect from retaliation those disclosing wrongdoing if, inter alia, whistleblower "reasonably believed that there was a significant risk that making the disclosure internally and/or to an independent oversight body would have resulted in the destruction or concealment of evidence, interference with a witness, or retaliation against the person or a third party" and "reasonably believed that the public interest in having the information revealed outweighed any harm to the public interest that would result from disclosure."
The recent action of the US Government
ARTICLE 19 reiterates that Edward Snowden deserves the full protection of international law as a whistleblower. His disclosures on the PRISM programme have revealed widespread, largely unregulated surveillance by the US government. These surveillance systems have been implemented in secret, with little oversight. They have also been based on questionable interpretations of national and international law which have not been made public.
The type and scale of the PRISM mass surveillance programme has a chilling effect on the right to freedom of expression and information. It violates the right to privacy of millions of people who are not suspected of any crime. The oversight mechanisms - which are intended to ensure that proper safeguards are taken - have proven to be inadequate. Snowden's disclosures have created a public debate which President Obama has said is necessary.
Since the information about the PRISM programme is clearly in the public interest, the action of the US Government to pursue criminal charges and extradite Edward Snowden amount to a punitive measure. It is not in line with international standards on the protection of whistleblowers. The charges must be dropped immediately.
For the same reasons, ARTICLE 19 also remains concerned about the ongoing trial of Private Bradley Manning in military court and about investigations into American journalists who have published national security material in the public interest.
ARTICLE 19 believes that in order for the public's faith in democratic governance and the USA's commitment to human rights to be maintained, the US Government must respect international standards on the protection of whistleblowers. It must therefore, among other things, objectively assess whether the disclosed information meets public interest criteria, and refrain from all retaliation against whistleblowers.
[i] ARTICLE 19, The Johannesburg Principles: National Security, Freedom of Expression and Access to Information, 1996, Principle 1(c)
[ii] Ibid., Principle 2(a)
[iii] Ibid., Principle 2(b)
[iv] UN General Assembly, United Nations Convention Against Corruption, 31 October 2003, A/58/422.
[v] European Court of Human Rights (Grand Chamber), Guja v. Moldova, Application no. 14277/04 of 12 February 2008.
[vi] See, for example UN Committee on Human Rights, Report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, Mr. Abid Hussain, submitted in accordance with Commission resolution 1999/36 E/CN.4/2000/63. 18 January 2000; see also the Joint statement of the UN Special Rapporteur on the Protectionand Promotion of the Right to Freedom of Opinion and Expression and Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, 21 June 2013.
[vii] Report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, Martin Scheinin, A/HRC/10/3, 4 February 2009, para 61.
[viii] Ibid.
[ix] Report of the Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health, Anand Grover, A/HRC/20/15, 10 April 2012, para 26.
[x] See, for example Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Margaret Sekaggya, Mission to Ireland (19–23 November 2012), A/HRC/22/47/Add.3, 26 February 2013, para 92-95.
[xi] Joint Declaration on access to information and secrecy legislation, 2004.
[xii] ARTICLE 19, The Public's Right to Know: Principles on Freedom of Information Legislation, April 1999.
[xiii] The Johannesburg Principles, op.cit.; the Johannesburg Principles have been endorsed by the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Opinion and Expression in his reports to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, U.N. Doc. E/CN.4/1996/39 (1996).
[xiv] Global Principles on National Security and the Right to Information (The Tshwane Principles), finalised in Tshwane, South Africa, issued on 12 June 2013.
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The economic collapse of 2008 shook many Americans faith in our free market system and created calls for reform. But in his new book, writer Thomas Frank argues that for some conservatives, the financial crisis and the Obama administration's response has only bolstered their belief in the power of the free market. Frank joins Kerri to talk about his new book "Pity the Billionaire."
Pity the Billionaire


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When I purchased my first house just over a year ago I found myself making list after list of things to do and buy and very near the top of my ?to buy? list was a telephone. Having lived with my mother until I was 18 and then spent the next five years (mainly at University) renting, it was to be the first time I?d ever had to buy such a product. It was actually quite a strange experience because I didn?t really know what I was looking for. Getting a fair amount of free calls each month on my mobile I knew that the new phone didn?t need to be spectacularly brilliant, just simple and reliable. Therefore baring this in mind I set off to my local Asda to view their range. I was actually shocked at all the different models on offer and it took some time to actually decide on the one to buy. In the end I went for the Binatone Icarus 8. = The Phone and it?s Features = The Icarus 8 is a Binatone product and comes in the choice of three colours: black, silver or champagne (greeny, gold if you ask me!). It is a touchtone phone and being cordless it comes with a power adapter and base unit. The unit is fairly small and fits nicely into a corner although a wall mount is supplied should you wish to use it. Once fully charged the handset can be used for up to five hours of talk time, whilst if left not in use it will stay charged for around ninety-six hours. It has a range of fifty meters indoors and if you get close to exceeding this then the phone gives off a warning tone. Although this is an analogue phone it still has an excellent reception and it?s eight channel function allows you to search for the best reception should it not be one hundred percent clear. The phone allows you to store ten numbers that are memorised from 0-9 and instantly available for speed dialling. There is also a last number redial button. The volume of the ringer can be high or low and the system has several different melodies, although none very exciting!
If you want to talk to someone in the same room as you but don?t want the person on the other end of the phone to hear then you can freeze them out by using the secrecy button. If you have a habit of leaving the phone all over the house or losing it down the back of the couch then you?ll be happy to know that it has a handset locator on the base. This is a simple button that when pressed will activate the phone so that it rings, hopefully helping you to find it. On the down side this machine doesn?t have a built in answer phone, although you can use BT Answer 1571 (see earlier op!!) if you like, nor does it have a screen to see the number of the incoming call. = Using the Phone = The phone was very easy to set up. I plugged the base into the phone socket and adapter in the mains electricity and by placing the handset on the base it began to charge for the reccomended eight hours. Calling and receiving calls couldn't be simpler. The green button is pressed before dialling the number whilst pressing the same button when the phone rings will allow you to take an incoming call. The manual received with the phone is simple but sufficient explaining how to use all the features. Having had the phone for over a year it has remained reliable without a single technical problem. = Overall = This phone is fairly small and from the range of colours you available it can match any colour room. It?s very simple to use and although it has no really flash features it has been very reliable and has a great reception. It currently retails for under £20 and can be found at most good electrical stores that sell phones.
About 6 months ago my previous answerphone packed up so I was in the market for a new one.This time I had decided to buy a cordless one as I was fed up just getting in the bath etc when the phone rings.So off I went one saturday afternoon to trail round the electrical warehouses. There are so many choices of phone and answerphone combinations some so big that they take up half the table and some so expensive you dont get much change out of £120. Then I set my eyes on this little beauty ,the price first attracted me at only £49.99 although I think its slightly cheaper now.The phone base unit is approx 7inches by 8inches and the phone is as small as the average mobile phone. It is really easy to set up,before you use it for the first time you have to plug the phone in to charge for at least 12 hours to make sure your battery gives you a trouble free life.After the 12 hours are up plug it into your phone line and you are ready to make your first call. The handbook is clear and written in plain english no techno babble here.It has a choice of 9 different tones and a high and a low option for the volume,It also has the now standard list of options like recall and a secrecy button and some other usefull ones like caller display . The range is about 200 metres away from the base station although i have managed over 300 metres with ease.The sound quality is also excellent considering its price,you get better with a "dect" phone but they are twice the price. The answerphone is built in and is fully digital so no more messy tapes to worry abot and you can actually hear the message being replayed and doesnt sound like you are being called by an alien.You can also retrieve your messages remotely using a security code supplied. All in all a great value product
The Binatone Icarus 8 "high frequency cordless phone" is a modern looking product, with a compact design and many features. Not top of the range, just a cheap analogue gizmo that does the job. It comes in a range of colours: silver, black, blue, green. However, I wouldn't recommend this phone to the very elderly, as I could not explain all the functions to my Grandfather, who I had originally bought the phone for! The little green "reciever" button, made to mimic the mobile phone handset, is too modern and non-sensical for the very elderly. Most of them have never even seen a mobile phone close up! In fact the whole handset is designed to look like a mobile phone, it even has a screen area whith what look like indicators on it. But don't be fooled. The only indicator that works there is the green light that tells you when the handset is in use, or the battery is getting low (it'll blink at you). The aerial is hidden in the handset case, with a decent-sized top which allows you to easily pull the aerial up. Quick and easy to do. It has a range of 200 meters when used out of doors. Some of the features are: CH button (channel)= get the phone to change to a different frequency to improve your reception. MEM (memory) = for storing your 10 frequently used numbers. SEC (secrecy) = mute button. LNR = last number redial. VOL = volume, handy if you have difficulty hearing the person who's called you. There is an additional button there with a bell on it. this allows you to choose from 9 ringing sounds, so you can more easily identify your phone amongst all the noises of modern life (TV etc) It really helped me, as I was always mistaking this phone for the ones on TV, especially if I had turned the ringer volume down... ...and there is a sliding switch on the side to alter the volume of the ringer, very handy. A button on
the base unit will sound the handset if you lose it, making it easier to find. All in all I have found this phone very useable. So long as you position the base unit/and its aerial quite high up to avoid some interference from other equipment it is fine. I do find some buzzing and loss of volume when I walk near my pc monitor, ahh, the joys of wandering around, doing what you please while on the phone. I'm so glad I started buying cordless phones, they give you so much freedom. Although, as recommended, I do have a regular corded phone for use when the mains power is lost. You see, there is a power adaptor that the Icarus phone uses to power itself, and you would lose that in a power cut. Oh, and remember to keep your handset charged up! It is easy to forget, unless you get into a habit straight after you buy it, of putting it on the charger while you're out. The batter has a 96 hour standby charge in it. So unless you're talking on it a lot it will stay powered for about 4 days on a full charge (has been charged overnight, or the initial 21 hours). The regular price for this phone is about £35, although I got it on offer, of course.
Picture all these scenarios ......... Scenario 1: ------------- You are sat down, well as ladies do, in that little room and the damm phone rings, rushing to pull you knickers up just as you realise you have forgotten to do something when you notice what it was by the dribbles down your leg! Scenario 2: ------------- You have had a hard day, what ever it is doing, so you decide that a nice relaxing bath will help you relieve all the tension from your body. As you lay there, the warm bubbled filled, lightly scented water, swirls around you body, you are deeply relaxed, you don't want to move but you have to, to wash your hair. So you sit up after giving your hair a nice long soaking, gently squeeze some nice fragranced shampoo on, you give it a good lather up, just about to rinse it off, when suddenly the phone rings again! So quickly you get up and try to rinse the suds away, when ouch!!*!*, the suds have gone just where all the warnings on bottles tell you to avoid contact in! Scenario 3: ------------- The kids have come home from school, they have had a play around, and used up all their energy and now they decide to tell you they are hungry. So out pops the food, in the oven it goes, then you put the chips on (kids love these for some reason, perhaps they just love food that not good for them). You have a quick browse of the TV guide and the go and check on the chips, oh good you think, nearly done, that should keep the kids quiet for 5 minutes, then the phone rings. In a rush you go to answer the phone, it's your long lost auntie Bloomer, you remember the aunt that like to keep chatting and chatting away, then the smell of overcooked chips fill the living room. In a quick panic, you have to cut the conversation short and go investigate the damage. The chips are ruined and you have to start dinner all over again, to make matters worse the kids are moaning, all they are interested in is their tummy,
when its going to get filled. Ok, so the scenarios do sound a little far fetched but trust me, I have had similar happen to me, many, many times. Don?t you just wish that you had a cordless phone, one where you can have beside you or in your pocket, what ever room you are in or what ever you are busy doing, at times? I did, and now I have one, and it is a total godsend. Well with Christmas being the usual, leave everything until the last minute and needing to browse our Empire catalogue, we spotted one, not that we were looking, it just caught our attention as we were flicking through to the toy section and as it was so competitively priced we decided to add it to our perspective order, well at just £30 from a home catalogue, who wouldn't? About the phone ------------------- The whole phone is quite small compared to many cordless phones or normal telephones. The design is pretty well thought out (provided small children don?t take an interest in the antennas), stylish looking and comes in a choice of 4 colours, white, navy, silver/black or like the one we have silver. It can if you want, be wall mounted or like we have sitting on the side. It comes with it's own power adapter that is pretty long, so it should be able to reach most phone sockets that have a power point fairly close. Features ----------- 8-Channels: When I say 8 channels, you have the option that if during a call you started to get any kind of interference that causes problems with the call, you can press a button to change the channel, this will auto select the channel for the best reception. Volume: If like me you have trouble sometimes to hear what the other person is saying to you on the other end of the line, maybe because the line is a bit quiet, or they are not talking loud enough, this feature allows you to tog
gle between high and low volume. Memory: With the Binatone Icarus 8 you can store up to 10 numbers of your choice. It is so simple to do too, just 4 steps and then the number is stored on your phone ready for when you need to use it. In order to dial one of the numbers stored is even easier, and within 3 presses of the buttons your call will be dialling. The only problem you may have with this is remembering who?s number is stored where, well you have a 1 in 10 chance of being right :o}. Ringer: At the side of the phone there is a switch that you can slide upwards or downwards to select the ringer volume, either high or low. Ring tones: You can set the phone to ring 1 of the 9 ring tones available, with the press of a button; the selection is then chosen with the numbers on the key pad. I must admit, I am a big kid at heart, I think the majority are, so me being me decided to have a play around with this feature. Upon going through the choices, I found that a few were pretty close in similarity to each other but overall it did have a couple of interesting ring tones. Secrecy: A pretty standard feature that comes with most phones, that allows you to mute the microphone so the other person on the end on the line doesn't hear what you don't want them to hear. Battery indicator: When your handset is switched on, there will be a green light that will appear, if the light keeps flashing slowly than this will mean that the battery is low and will need to be placed back into the base for charging. This is also a phone in use light; if the light is on permanently, or to let you know you have an incoming call by it flashing rapidly. Recall: Another standard feature on most phones that are out, it is mainly intended for those whose phone is connected to a PBX or to use in conjunction with BT's select services, how this works I would have to be honest and say that I am not sure. Handset locator: On the
base unit there is a fairly sized button, if for any reason you have misplaced the handset, simply press this button and it will activate a tone on the handset, this will keep sounding the tone until you locate the handset and press the telephone button. This does come in handy and it is a feature I like, but with our son being a little curious and button happy he has pressed it on a few occasions, making us think that the phone is ringing and then looking like a right idiot saying, 'hello is there anyone there?'. Other stuff and all that --------------------------- If you do have decide to get this phone you will find that it will work even better and you can get the most out of it, if you position it fair high up, also to keep it away from most electrical appliances, as it works using radio waves so some things may cause a bit of interference. On both the base unit and on the handset you will find telescopic antennas, the one on the base unit is best fully extended for better reception, ours is half way due to our 2 year old, best not draw his attention to it, we find that despite the antenna is not fully extended the reception is fine. Safety note ------------- As this phone will only work with a phone line and power point, it will need electric to run it, in this case you will also need a normal plug in phone that doesn't need power to run it, in the event of needing to make an emergency call during a power cut or running out of 50p to put in the meter. Also, water and power does not mix too well, so it is best not to use the hand set outside during wet weather. Overall --------- I am impressed, so many features and such a little unit when complete or otherwise. The price is very reasonable and competitive, but then all the Binatone products on the market that I have come across have always given value for your hard earned cash. Yes it may not be a top of the range phone, with
all these wonderful gizmos incorporated in it, but does serve its purpose, it does look stylish and it is at a realistic price for anyone's budget. The only thing that does let it down, is the antennas, the fact that the one on the base unit can become damaged if little hands mess about with it, but if it is well looked after and kept out the reach of small children then you should have a phone where reception quality is always there. Very impressive!!


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Farmers Finance Available
Accepts Farmers Finance Card for your convenience.
A+ Dynamic Bike Fit System
Trained staff use computer software and video footage to ensure the perfect set up on any bike maximising efficiency and comfort.
PRO DEALER Avanti
Offering a wider range of premium Avanti bikes.
PRO DEALER Scott
Offering a wider range of premium Scott bikes.
Along with being Dunedins most established and experinced bike shop we are the proud stockists of some of the finest bicycles and bike equipment available. Bicycle brands include-
E Bikes (Electric Bikes): Dunedin leading range of pedal assist bikes from world leading brands Scott, Avanti and Ezee , Magnum.
Avanti Bicycles: A home grown brand that continues to put our athletes in front at an international level. They have been designing and developing bikes for over 20 years in Australia and New Zealand.
Scott Bicycles: Always up with the latest technology Scott has made its mark as a force to be reckoned with in the international bike market through quality products and impressive results by their athletes.
GT and Haro BMX: Both leading brands in the BMX world are available thru us.
Raleigh: The Raleigh brand has a long and rich history in the biking world and it continues right through to today, these bikes are designed locally and have an emphasis on good quality and great value.
Drop by and visit us some time to meet our helpful staff or to take a test ride.
You can find us at:
110 Crawford St,
Monday to Friday 8.30am - 5.30pm
Saturday 9.00am -4.00pm
Sunday Closed. Out riding with you!
Closed SUNDAYS May-September