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The character names belong to Stephanie Meyer. All insane plots, twisted dialogue and smutty scenes belong solely to the author.
Happy reading. :)
Eliza Randall 2010 (TM)
When You Come Undone
Words, playing me deja vu, Like a radio tune I swear I've heard before,
Chill, is it something real, Or the magic I'm feeding off your fingers
Can't ever keep from falling apart... at the seams
Can I believe you're taking my heart... to pieces
-Duran Duran
Chapter 1
Home is where the heart is...
Herman Melville said "Life's a voyage that's homeward bound." In this moment I understood that sentiment. The trip to Forks from Seattle wasn't a long one but it was enough that I could feel the anxiety of my youth pressing in on me. The burden I was going to face upon my arrival was something I didn't want to ponder. Jacob was fighting for his life and I would be there for him. The mere thought of that truth tore through my heart like lightening across a stormy sky. Tears gathered in the corners of my eyes and I blinked them away. I wouldn't cry. I refused to give up.
Jacob Black was my oldest friend. Growing up together, we were the daughter of the police chief and the Quileute kid who were inseparable. I think it was the not-so-secret hopes of our fathers that we'd be more than just friends. It wasn't meant to be. Jake and I weren't wired that way. I wasn't wired that way. I loved him, as I always had, but I wasn't, nor had I ever been, in love with him. Charlie had called me on Tuesday night to let me know that Jake had taken a turn for the worse and the treatment he was undergoing was unsuccessful. The last I had heard, Jacob's leukemia was in remission and he was doing fine. This was such a cold blow from out of nowhere. I packed up my car without a second thought and left early Wednesday morning. Here I was now, locked in silent battle with grim thoughts for three and a half hours. I think I'd rather have bamboo shoots shoved underneath my nails, but this was my fate. Suck it up, Swan. Sleep was a passing fantasy while the miles stretched out before me. I was going home, for better or worse.
The house where I spent my teen years was largely unchanged. I'd moved to Forks from Phoenix to live with my Dad. Charlie Swan, my father, had retired as Chief of Police eight months ago. He now spent his time watching football or fishing with Billy Black, Jake's dad. Walking into that place was almost like stepping through a time warp, dragging me back to the awkwardness of my past. I felt like I was seventeen again instead of twenty nine. I had to remind myself that I was a grown woman and not a girl anymore. Something about Forks had that effect. I called out to Charlie as I unlocked the door. I wasn't surprised to find him sleeping on the couch, television blaring, the Redskins game on. I stepped to the table, picked up the remote and killed the offensive cheering with a button push. Charlie's eyes popped open. He smiled when they lit on my face. He clamored to his feet and wrapped me in his arms. "Daddy," I breathed and relished in the feeling of human contact. It hit me with some force just how lonely I was."It's been too long since you've been home, Bells," he chastised. It'd only been six months since I came into town and had dinner with Dad, Billy and Jake, but now it felt like an eternity. Everything had changed so damn much in such a short piece of time. "Tell me about Jake, Dad." I didn't want to ask but some dark, twisted portion of me drew out the question like a sword being unsheathed. Like the weapon, the inquiry was double edged and quite capable of cutting me to the quick. "The cancer is back. He didn't want anyone to tell you just how sick he was. He tried to be strong for you, Bella. That boy has always carried a flag for you." He muttered something about kids and not seeing the forest for the trees.
I knew in the back of my mind Jake was in love with me. It was simply something I thought he'd outgrow. I guess I was terribly wrong. I gasped as a sharp pain of regret stabbed my heart. The tears loomed again but I would prevail over them once more.
I was drowning in the thoughts of what could have been. I could have been Bella Black with ease. That life held its arms wide open to me. It would have been so much simpler than the path I'd etched out for myself.
If Jake and I would have taken that next step, I'm sure we'd have a couple of kids now. Maybe a little girl with Jake's shining black hair and solemn eyes and a boy with his crooked smile and my father's nose. I'd be a teacher at the rez school and he'd run his mechanic business. Had he spent his life pining for me? All signs pointed to yes. Guilt left a bitter taste in my mouth and I choked on it swallowing it down. Too much time had passed to even consider what might have been. But still, the thoughts of it lingered.
I composed myself and hugged Charlie goodbye. My stomach seemed to twist itself in knots of epic Boy Scout proportions as I came closer and closer to the hospital. I gripped the steering wheel of my Jeep like a lifeline. I did not want to go into that cold, sterile room and see him looking defeated and broken. My stomach clenched at the image stamping itself in my brain. Realistically, I knew what awaited me but the shock of seeing Jacob Black in that bed was something I never could have prepared for. His eyes, dull and glassy from the medication being pumped through his system, met mine. They had lost the mischief and happiness that had been there the last time I'd seen him. "Jake." I whispered. "Baby Bells," he croaked out and lifted his hand to me. I moved to the bedside and took his proffered hand. It was still large and warm and reminded me of brighter days. His fingers engulfed mine and pulled. He was still quite strong much to my surprise, but then again Jake had never been frail. I climbed into the bed with him, trying to mind the wires of the iv and the monitoring equipment that was attached to him. He wrapped me in his arms, his chin resting on the top of my head and held me. It was hard to say who was comforting whom. "Why, Jacob? Why did you wait so long to tell me? I could have been here for you." He said nothing for the longest minutes."I love you, Bella," was whispered against my hair. I nodded and responded in kind. "I didn't want you to see me this way. I wanted to be strong. I needed to be whole for you." Jacob drew a labored breath, then slipped into a medicated sleep. Once more, I was left alone with thoughts I didn't want. I listened to his heart beating below my ear and was soothed by the rhythmic rise and fall of his chest. I prayed to a god that I wasn't sure that I believed in then cried myself to sleep. The tears won out this time. I was just tired of being strong. At least no one saw.
Sometime later, as I still lay on the bed with Jake's six foot, six inch frame taking most of the space, the door opened, spilling light into the dim room. A white lab coat appeared in my peripheral vision and then came nearer. The figure, carrying a chart reached the bed only to loom over me. Slowly coming to my senses, I fumbled for an explanation as to why I was in bed with Jake before I fully looked at the doctor. He was tall, maybe, six one with unruly shining, copperish hair. It looked like his hands had been dragged through it repeatedly. He had that rumpled, sexy, doctor look and my female mind was appreciating the view. The man filled out a pair of periwinkle scrubs like an Adonis. I continued my assent until I reached his face. His eyes were golden, cinnamon brown and he had the fullest lips. Those lips would certainly know how to kiss. I was surveying the land like a hungry prospector looking for a claim to jump. Recognition hit me like a sledge hammer and ended my survey like a traffic light suddenly gone red. Oh my god, it couldn't be. My hand flew to my mouth, eyes widened with shock. A startled sound escaped my lips before I could contain it. "Edward?" It was Edward Cullen and from the looks of it he was just as surprised to see me as I was him. Holy mother of God. Fucking Forks. "Hi, Bella," rolled off his tongue. The sound of my name leaving his mouth was enough to drag me kicking and screaming down memory lane.


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Whole Duck Foie Gras - Landes
Maison Paris à Pomarez
This product is no longer sold
Red label foie gras from Landes, made from free-range duck
Part of French tradition since 1907!
The house of Paris has specialised in the production of foie gras for over a century. Located in Pomarez, their foie gras is prepared using rigorously-selected duck and geese livers of the highest quality. The animals used are bred in the Landes or in the Pyrenees in accordance with strict regulations, one of which is that the birds should be fed exclusively on corn.
To enjoy this foie gras at its best, we suggest that you take it out of the refrigerator and its packaging 15 minutes prior to serving.
Composition :
Duck foie gras, salt, pepper, sugar.
Origin :
Maison Paris à Pomarez
With this product, we recommend :
0.95 €
5.95 €
50g jar
1.15 €
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subset: commoncrawl


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MOVIE SYNOPSIS [ +16 years-old ] A fake documentary that portrays the brutality situation in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, using mixing fiction with reality. The film is separated into three parts: the search for a college student a superhero course, after reading an article in the paper where the owner of a garage says he knew as a child. This search uses multiple players who move between madness and unreality: the Doctor corruptela a wrestling expeleador now become a peaceful man who teaches at a school; Paris by Night, a prostitute who always seeks to take advantage and where nobody trusts ; The Golden wrestling coach who has lost everything, and now lives to tell the story of how he trained that hero ; and the black prince, a strange gothic cowboy lives somewhere lost in the desert. The second part focuses on the testimonies of people in Ciudad Juarez who talk about violence, insecurity and how it should be ideal for the town hero. The last part focuses on the popular wrestling arenas, specifically Firefighter, in the neighborhood of the Aztecs, in Ciudad Juárez .. You can watch El héroe online on TV cable or theaters with original audio in Spanish at different dates. This film premiered in theaters in 2011.
Rating: 5 by 220 users./
Runtime: 77 minutes
Marisol Valdés, Edgar Delfín, Humberto Leal Valenzuela, Valta Ortega, Osvaldo Esparza, José Badía, Suleyka Alemán and Javier Barón.
77-minute film (full movie) directed by Juan Manuel Fernández Chico.
The original audio of El héroe has dialogues in or Spanish, it was produced in Mexico.
It premiered in cinemas or television in 2011.
Screenplay written by Juan Manuel Fernández Chico.
Arturo Gutiérrez.
This film was produced and / or financed by Chihuahua Vive, Programa de Desarrollo Cultural para la Juventud, Vagón, Consejo Nacional para la Cultura and las Artes, Gobierno del Estado de Chihuahua and Instituto Chihuahuense de la Cultura.
Without commercial breaks, the full movie El héroe has a duration of 77 minutes; the official trailer can be watched in streaming on the Internet. You can watch this full movie free in English or Spanish in movie TV channels, renting the DVD or with VoD services (Video On Demand player, Hulu) and PPV (Pay Per View, Netflix).
See the page of this full movie, El héroe in FULLTV Movies.


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Texas Instruments introduced four development kits for TI's latest ARM Cortex-M3-based Stellaris MCUs. The kits start at $99 and enable developers to immediately start their designs, leveraging the advanced connectivity, data efficiency and motion control features of the fourth generation 32-bit Stellaris MCUs. Each kit includes the StellarisWare Peripheral Driver Library, Graphics Library, USB Library, and code examples.
Stellaris LM3S9B90 and LM3S9B92 Ethernet+USB-OTG Evaluation Kits
- Both evaluation kits include two boards for a simple out-of-the-box experience: an In-Circuit Debug Interface board and the 36mm x 102mm EK-LM3S9B90 or EK-LM3S9B92 evaluation board
- The 80 MHz LM3S9B90 MCU features a hibernation module for extended periods of inactivity
- The 80 MHz LM3S9B92 MCU features eight PWM outputs for motion and energy and two Quadrature Encoder Inputs (QEI) modules, along with options for maximal peripheral connectivity
- Integrated advanced connectivity peripherals including Ethernet 10/100 with two LED indicators and USB 2.0 Full-Speed OTG
- Standard size terminal headers for all MCU I/O for ease of prototyping
- Complete source code, documentation and a choice of evaluation tools from third party ARM tools vendors for simplified development
- Both evaluation kits (EKx-LM3S9B90 and EKx-LM3S9B92) are priced at $99 (USD)
DK-LM3S9B96 Development Kit
- Feature rich development platform with 3.5″ landscape QVGA TFT color LCD graphics display and thumbwheel potentiometer for simple menu navigation
- SafeRTOS in ROM can be used as a standard operating system or as part of a high integrity application requiring IEC61508 or FDA510(k) certification
- Highly integrated 80 MHz Stellaris LM3S9B96 MCU
- Two External Peripheral Interface (EPI) daughter boards – one featuring 8MB SDR SDRAM memory and one featuring easy access to all 32 EPI pins
- Integrated Interchip Sound (I2S) Interface with an external audio codec and interface supporting line in/out, microphone in and headphone out
- MicroSD card slot, 1 MB of serial flash memory, precision 3V analog reference voltage
- StellarisWare software and evaluation tools from third party ARM tools vendors for simplified development
- The kit is priced at $425 (USD)
3.5-inch Landscape Single Board Computer Intelligent Display Reference Design Kit (RDK-IDM-SBC)
- Cost- and form-factor-optimized example of a Human Machine Interface (HMI) touch display panel for embedded control devices
- Highly integrated 80 MHz Stellaris LM3S9B92 MCU in addition to extended board-level memories including 8MB SDRAM, 1MB Serial Flash, USB Host connector for external mass storage, and a MicroSD card slot for image, data and code storage
- 3.5-inch landscape-oriented QVGA 16-bit color LCD resistive touch panel display with white LED backlight
- Serial, digital and analog connectivity options including 10/100 Ethernet RJ45 Jack, USB 2.0 Type A connector, CAN through a terminal block interface, as well as UART and I2C through an expansion header
- I2S Audio codec with power amplifier to drive an external 8 ohm speaker
- The kit is priced at $299 (USD)
More info: Stellaris MCU Development Kits


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Sat 20th Aug 2011 8:00amLacanau Surf Info's Lacanau Surf Report
Clean fading XSMALL range swell from the NNW with light offshore winds. Too small to surf. More on www.lacanausurfinfo.com
View the Lacanau Surf Report and Forecast. Lacanau Surf Info's Reports have received a total of 470755 views.
This report has received 461 views since 20/8/11.


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Firstly, I am not entirely sure what happened to my eyes in this quick doodle. But, to be honest, it's an accurate representation of what I look like when I rise early in the morning. Welcome to such a sight. Here I lie; bewildered, wild and racoon-eyed as the remnants from last night's makeup fiercely hold on for dear life around my nicely formed eye-bags. This is a typical morning.
Before now, I would soak up all the hours of sleep that I wanted. Sometimes, I would arise way past the 'morning' hours - entering into 'late afternoon' territory. I'll put my hands up and admit, this was extremely lazy of me. I may as well have been a 'sloth' descendant.
I thought I was fairly happy with my lazy routine. I felt 'well rested' and smug that I'd enjoyed hours of slumberous sleep. Little did I know that this routine was having such negative impacts on me.
For starters, I discovered that by cutting my hours of sleep - I was wondrously more productive. I will never be a 'morning' person. Although I can function relatively well soon after my early rise, my brain power isn't always at full throttle. However, because I was awake earlier, I was planning for my day ahead and at least making a start on the tasks that I wanted to accomplish.
I also found that by cutting my hours of sleep that I didn't actually ever need as many as I was getting. Often, after too many hours of 'dream time', I would spend the rest of the day as if I was still in that dream. My state of mind was incredibly cloudy and my head felt all fuzzy. Too much sleep was the culprit.
As soon as I slashed those 'sleeping' hours down to the recommended eight hours, I no longer had that 'head in the clouds' sensation. I'm sure this isn't the case for everyone, but it certainly made a massive difference for me.
The next discovery is going to sound obvious but I realised just how many hours there were in a day! I realised the obvious - sleeping for long durations of time decreases the amount of 'alive' time in the day. I found that I could be more leisurely in the mornings - enjoying the process of 'getting ready' and investing time into making a healthy, nutritious breakfast to start my day off. This has made a huge impact on the way that I function throughout the day.
All in all, my lie-ins were actually my worst enemy. They sent me into a false sense of security. Just because I was stealing those extra moments of 'slumber' did not mean that I was 'well rested'. I was badly rested - too rested!! I was so rested that I wasn't even able to function like a human. I had reached a level of 'rest' that is unknown to humans. I missed being normal.
I used to curse at the wretched alarm clock. I basically cried every time I heard that insulting, nagging, frantic noise. But now, I realised its just my mate telling me to start the day.
I will never love my alarm clock - I'm programmed to detest it, just a little but it's helping me with life - so I can't complain. The point is, I've ditched my lie-ins and I'm happier this way. This post is not supposed to be revolutionary. Perhaps I'll receive some comments of a shocked nature. People may even question if I'm descendant from human ancestry after reading such a piece of personal news. But, despite the fact that I'm still sleepy in the mornings and get tempted by more hours of sleep luring me to the 'dark side' - I'm happier rising before mid-day.
To most people my eight o'clock rise (nine o'clock on an indulgent day) is still a lie-in. In this case, I am sorry to be so inconsiderate...I suppose this post has now lost its value for you. But, for the rest of you lazy ones - try shifting out of bed earlier than your instinct tells you. The morning hours are more pleasant than you may think but don't shoot the messenger!


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|It has been a long winter indoors. This morning, we woke up to a thin blanket of snow on our lawn again. It is almost May!
|We are looking at the weather forecast and wondering when Spring will really be here to stay.
|My funny little Lipstick plant gave me one solitary bloom and it fell off today.
|Ben is volunteering to remove the snow for us. David has a Lowe's gift card burning a hole in his pocket (Thank You Mum & Papa Cuddy!). It just has to be planting time soon! It just has too!


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Mortgage Fraud
If you intentionally keep information out of your mortgage loan application or misrepresent information on your mortgage loan application in order to get a loan, you will be guilty of mortgage fraud. This is a crime in the state of Connecticut, and if charged, you should seek help from an attorney as soon as possible. For more information regarding mortgage fraud, read on.
Many times, this crime falls under the following categories:
- Bank fraud.
- Mail fraud.
- Money laundering.
- Wire fraud.
In the United States, the penalties for this crime can be severe. You can face a prison sentence of up to 30 years if you are convicted of mortgage fraud.
In the state of Connecticut, the penalties for this offense are:
- First offense (Class D felony): 1-5 year prison sentence and a fine of $5,000.
- Subsequent offense (Class C felony): 1-10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
As you can see, the consequences for mortgage fraud can be severe. You face time in prison as well as hefty fines. A judge may impose additional punishments, such as probation, community service, etc. To avoid serious crimes, you need to establish the best defense possible. This can be done with the help of criminal defense lawyer, such as the lawyers at Ruane Attorneys.


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My Own Revolution (Hardcover)
Special Order
In 1960s Czechoslovakia, Patrik participates in and rebels against the communist regime, knowing that anyone could become an enemy in the blink of an eye. Fourteen-year-old Patrik rebels against the communist regime in small ways whenever he gets the chance: spray-painting slogans, listening to contraband Beatles records, even urinating on a statue of Lenin under cover of night. But anti-Party sentiment is risky, and when party interference cuts a little too close to home, Patrik and his family find themselves faced with a decision -- and a grave secret -- that will change everything. As the moments tick toward too late, Patrik takes his family's fate in hand, risking everything for a chance at freedom. Examining the psychological toll of living under an authoritarian regime, Carolyn Marsden allows readers to experience both Patrik's persistent worry and his hope for better things.
About the Author
Carolyn Marsden is the acclaimed author of The Gold-Threaded Dress and its sequel, The Quail Club, as well as Silk Umbrellas, Moon Runner, When Heaven Fell, The Buddha's Diamonds (with Thay Phap Niem), The Jade Dragon (with Virginia Shin-Mui Loh), Sahwira (with Philip Matzigkeit), Take Me with You, and Starfields.
Praise For…
Inspired by a true story, this easily accessible novel should appeal to teens who, like Patrik, are keen observers of the chaos that surrounds them.
The overall story is excellent, conveying feelings of dread, suspicion, despair, and frustration experienced by citizens in Communist Eastern Europe. The relationships among Patrik and his friends and family are realistic and genuine. This novel will open some eyes about how difficult and unfair life was in the Eastern Bloc.–
—School Library Journal


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By Don Feder
More than 300,000 people assembled in Washington, D.C. yesterday for the 36th Annual March for Life.But as far as The New York Times is concerned, it never happened.
If 50,000 feminists had gathered on the Mall in D.C., to demand passage of the so-called Freedom of Choice Act, it would have been above-the-page-one-fold coverage in The Times, accompanied with an aerial photo of the crowd.
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If 25,000 environmentalists had congregated in our nation's capital to call for the deindustrialization of America, to combat global warming, it would have rated at least a photo-illustrated half-page spread.
If 10,000 anti-war activists came to D.C. to agitate for a U.S. withdrawal from the Eastern United States, The Times would have given them a half-page news story, along with a companion editorial and a blubbering commentary by Maureen "The Canyon Ranch Kid" Dowd.
TRENDING: 'Little House On The Prairie' Actress Accuses Hollywood Producer of Sexual Harassment During Audition
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The Wood Mill and Wood Idea worked together to produce superior quality wide pine flooring starting in 1991, and have shared a home in Mercer, Maine since 1999. In 2013 the companies officially merged to form The Wood Mill of Maine, and continue to produce amazing wide pine flooring. We complete the entire process from buying logs to milling your pine floor in house, and our quality and consistency are unmatched. Widths are available from 7″ to an amazing 20″ wide, kiln dried to 6 to 8% moisture content, with an average length of over 12 feet. When you buy a pine floor from us, you are getting nothing but the best, and our guarantee backs that up.
"Our claim to fame is our exceptional quality. We are not just good at what we do, but we are proud of our product as well." Mychael Bartholf – Founder
Our mill is located in the heart of Maine, the Pine Tree State, providing us with the highest quality pine trees in America. Our pine flooring is proudly made in America by our experienced team of woodworkers.
Wood Idea has been the premier supplier of fine wide pine floors for over 25 years. Established in 1987, Wood Idea began when Mychael Bartholf bought a mobile saw mill and offered a product thought to be impossible to produce. Twenty inch wide, sixteen foot long pristine, clear pine boards. Legend of Myke's exceptional wide pine boards spread, and through hard work and dedication, Myke became one of the only sawyers specializing in top quality, knot free eastern white pine boards in America.
By 1999, Wood Idea had expanded to a level in which it was ready to bring more of the process in house. To do this, Myke wanted to create the premier facility for drying and milling wide pine flooring. This process began by purchasing The Wood Mill, which originated in Livermore Falls as a log home supplier and planing service. Since the moving of that business to Route 2 in Mercer, The Wood Mill has added two dry kilns which are used for drying our wide planks as well as other products. With the addition of the kilns, we are able to control the entire process of making your pine floor, and this allows us to produce the highest quality pine flooring, with unmatched consistency.
In 2012 Myke and Sue were ready to retire. Wood Idea was sold to Bjarki Gunnarsson and Josh Saltmarsh, two men who have carried on Myke's vision of creating the best pine floors available. Since then, Myke has taken on an advisory role, and still enjoys exercising his expertise in selecting the logs used on our knot free select grade floors. As part of the transition in ownership, the companies were officially combined under one name, The Wood Mill of Maine, and have continued operations otherwise unchanged.


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Emil Calleja Bayliss
Malta: ONE Radio 92.7 Offers Alternative Broadcast
ONE Radio 92.7 will also be joining the traditional coverage of the Eurovision Song Contest this evening with a LIVE broadcast set to take place during the evening featuring running commentary by Daniel Falzon Mallia, Charlene Azzopardi, Kelly Peplow and Donna Marie Ellul. The latter being a singer/songwriter, most recently a finalist in the International Festival of Maltese Song. The show which will bear the name ESC Live! will provide extra insight to this year's showcase.
In the absence of Deo Grech, who is part of the Delegation representing Malta at this year's edition of the Eurovision Song ontest, Daniel Falzon Mallia was his substitute on Eurovision Radio and previewed the songs in contention during the semi-finals on each of the past two shows alongside a panel which included three local writers from escflashmalta.com and esctoday.com, a fan as well as a renowned songwriter. ESC Live! will be running on ONE Radio 92.7 as from 20:00 CET whilst the Facebook & Twitter acounts of escflashmalta.com will provide a running blog with Antoine Farrugia, Danica Muscat, Daniel Testa, Miriam Christine and Matt 'Muxu' Mercieca.
Source: ONE Radio 92.7
ESC 2014: Firelight Speak Tolerance with Conchita
The Austrian singer has been chosen internally and ever since the choice was done, one can say it was surrounded by controversy. In fact a lot of online groups and petitions cropped up trying their best to stop Conchita Wurst from competing in Denmark. This made the singer stronger and in the Eurovision Song Contest, Conchita is not only competing to win the song competition but she's also in Copenhagen to pass on a strong message.
In fact whilst meeting the press and also the other singers in the competition, Conchita keeps doing her best to pass her message of embracing tolerance and acceptance without any discrimination. Firelight had the opportunity to meet Conchita Wurst in the press centre and after chatting a bit, the Maltese band was seen sporting the 'Knit for Tolerance' joining her in her quest of promoting her cause.
Conchita Wurst will be singing Rise like a Phoenix in the second semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest – the same semi-final in which Malta will be competing in. Both songs are being seen as qualifiers both by the fans and also by the press in Copenhagen – hopefully the two countries will have the opportunity to compete against each other also in the finals. Stay tuned to escflashmalta.com even on Facebook and Twitter for all the latest news.
Source: PBS, TVM, Deo Grech (Maltese Delegation)
Malta: Federica Falzon Emerges Victorious in Italy
Malta has been nicknamed by many as the small country with big talent and after a number of close finishes in the Eurovision Song Contest and victories in foreign festivals, Malta was able to win the Junior Eurovision Song Contest last year thanks to Gaia Cauchi, Elton Zarb, Gillian Attard and Matthew Mercieca. It was no surprise when after Gaia's emergence from La Voix Academy, that Federica Falzon from the same academy made the headlines by making it through to the finals of 'Ti Lascio Una Canzone'.
The young Maltese starlet was partnered with Vincenzo Carni and together they formed a lyrical duo. The duo hit the right chord straightaway as they impressed from the very first programme where they went on to win it. After that the duo had another four victories – something impressive especially considering the talent of all the singers competing in this show. The duo did not compete in one of the ten programmes because Federica was unwell but in the others they left their mark as when they did not win they still managed to reach the finals in that particular programme.
Tonight the lyrical duo sang two songs 'Un Amore Cosi Grande' and 'Il Mare Calmo Della Sera'. Federica was impressive in both songs tonight whilst Vincenzo after a small glitch in the first song picked up well and was as equally impressive. This never hindered them in anyway, as the song 'Un Amore Cosi Grande' went on to the final three. After the super finalists sang again, it was very evident that the Maltese/Italian duo meant business as they managed to up their game to a new level and their performance had everyone on their feet right from the start.
Federica Falzon and Vincenzo Carni were announced as the winners of the seventh edition of 'Ti Lascio Una Canzone' with the song 'Un Amore Cosi Grande'. Another feat for our country, especially considering the amount of talent one finds in Italy, known for its culture and musical capacity. A well deserved mention goes to Federica Falzon's teachers Gillian Attard and Matthew Mercieca from La Voix Academy who have guided the young star throughout her impressive journey. Stay tuned to escflashmalta.com for all the latest news.
Source: Rai Uno
ESC 2014: An In-Depth Review of Montenegro
It has become customary for the escflashmalta.com editorial board to engage professional individuals from the music industry to assess the songs competing in the Eurovision Song Contest as presented to the European Broadcasting Union during the Heads of Delegation Meeting. Martin Isherwood, Deo Grech, Stano Simor and Matt Mercieca from the United Kingdom, Malta and the Czech Republic have been entrusted with the first semi-final, comprising of sixteen songs and set to take place on the 6th May 2014 at the B&W Hallerne in Copenhagen, Denmark. Making use of the running order and thus moving onto number #16, we catch up with Montenegro (RTCG) who will be represented by Sergej Cetkovic and the song Moj Svijet co-written with Emina Sandal.
His talent was noticed so he became one of the best students in piano classes, in the primary and as well in the secondary music school "Vasa Pavic". During the day, at school, he played Bach, Mozart, Schubert, and at night, at home, he played Peter Gabriel, Beatles, Joe Cocker. Sergej was definitely "infected" with pop-rock sound, therefore three years later in 1989 his official musical career started with the band "Burning Heart" in which he played keyboard and sang back vocals. Five years later, in 1994, he sang in a full capacity in the band "Amphitheatre", where he began as a keyboardist and back vocal and he later became the lead vocal. Four years later, in 1998, Sergej begins his solo career by appearing at the summer pop festival "Sunny Skale" in Herceg Novi, where he sang the song You Were A Rose.
Early in the new millennium, driven by his musical feeling, Sergej announced a new sound in our pop music. His first album Kristina was published by "Goroton" in 2000. New musical tendencies, which were felt in the sound of his compositions, were accepted even prior to the official appearance of his CD. That summer at the prestigious Budva festival called "Song of the Mediterranean", Sergej sang the song Hours, Days, Years and was well received by the audience and the critics. In addition to the above mentioned song, the following songs I Will Stop The Time, Wake Me Up, City were included on the first album made by the author himself who set a "new sound" so the songs topped all the charts and became the most popular songs of the year.
Carried by the good feeling that his musical formula is verified by the enormous number of fans of the new pop sound, two years later, in 2002 Sergej released his second studio album Be Like Water, published by "Goroton". With his performances in 2003 at the Mediterranean Festival in Budva where he sang I Exist As Well, which is still the ultimate hit, and a year later at the festival "Eurovision – Euro song Monte Negro" where he sang I Can Not Forgive You he confirmed the position of his musical direction. Next year, in 2005, he released his third studio album When You Need It published by the record company "City records". This album break all records, both in circulation and the audience: songs Look Into The Darkness, Damn You, The Ring On The Table for two years were in the top of the charts in all the countries of former Yugoslavia.
With his fourth album, Half Of My World published in 2007 by "City Records", Sergej Cetkovic definitely placed his music disc into the history of pop music in the Balkans. The fifth CD 2 Minutes published by "City Records" and "Aquarius Records" was released in the year when this well known musician celebrates a decade of work on Balkan music scene. After ten years of professional career singer and composer Sergej Cetkovic can boast the success of the artist and the businessman, the qualifications for top pop star. This fact supports figures, which are related to album sales (CD), visitors at concerts or any other parameter that is taken into account when the music industry is concerned. Montenegro are yet to find success in the international event with an 11th placing in the semi-final achieved in 2009 still their best result.
Professional Critics Voice their Opinion
Rating: 73%
Martin Isherwood: Good voice Feels like it should be Ireland's entry Great sounding song and production with flavours of ''You raise me up'.
Deo Grech: Here goes my bias again. I have to declare that this entry hits all the right keys to earn my respect! Ethno-ballads are amongst my all time favourites. So this follows close on the heels of 'Lane moje' (Serbia 2004), 'Lejla' (Bosnia & Herzegovina 2006), and 'Nije Ljubav Star' (Serbia 2012), amongst others. It's downside might be that it is far too predictable. However, with an elegant presentation on stage this will surely soar high towards the finals.
Stano Simor: A ballad, which in modern design doesn't forget to decorate a national tradition.There is emotive text, which supports the melody and great voice of Sergej Cetkovic. I believe that "Moj Svijet" will have a place in the final.
Matt Mercieca: Sounds like a nice song production is really nice, I wish I knew what he was saying but either way its a beautiful song.
Source: eurovision.tv
Malta: Promotional Video Causes Controversy
As it was the case in most years, the Public Broadcasting Services has once again taken the initiative of producing a video for the Maltese entry Coming Home. Gianluca's video was a massive success and it was never a surprise that PBS led by Tonio Portughese and Anton Attard decided to go to the man behind its success. Duane Laus along with his spouse Angie Laus were the brains behind the promotional video of Malta's entry. Along with the input of PBS, Rodney Gauci and Gordon Bonello they came up with a product that will fit amongst the best popular videos in the music scene.
The idea behind the Maltese video this year was exceptional and the cast and crew made sure that the message came across well. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the First World War and the video is "REMEMBERING THOSE WHO NEVER CAME HOME." As any Brit would tell you, the idea of the 100th anniversary of this event has take the country by storm, as the media has been promoting this event for quite a long time now. Surely the Maltese video will feel right at home there and one would think, we really hit the right spot by appealing to the emotions of the public and gave the song a newfound meaning. Having said that, the perspective from where you actually look at it plays a vital role.
In fact one could say not everyone took a liking to our creative masterpiece or rather it was misinterpreted. The first reports of complaints came flooding in, after our video was previewed on BBC. A senior representative released an official statement earlier this week saying: "My heartfelt sympathy goes to all the families who have lost someone dear to them during the First and Second World War. The Maltese video has been sent to us by the European Broadcasting Union to promote the Maltese entry at the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest and like every other promotional video we were obliged to air it - we never thought it would touch so many people. We would like to express our sincere apologies but the video intended no harm."
A number of nursing homes reported that after the preview of the Maltese video most of the patients were moved to tears. In fact in some extraordinary cases there were patients who needed medical attention as they started hyperventilating and went into a panic attack during and after the video was previewed. One disgruntled family member went on to comment that if she knew what the video was about she would have never let her mother watch it especially since she her mother had lost her father in the First World War and her husband in the Second World War. After the St Catherine's Nursing Home in Surrey revealed their story to thesun.co.uk another twenty-four nursing homes said that they had experienced a similar situation.
In an ironic tone some even went on to comment that after the preview video was aired they had estimated that for this particular week they have used 5% more toilet paper as they had to provide their patients with a lot of tissue paper to wipe away their tears. Local markets also said they saw a sudden increase of sales in tissue paper but never thought that the reason behind all this would be a Eurovision video from the tiny country of Malta. On the other hand locally, the video was well received although some senior citizens did comment that the video was a bit overwhelming but would have loved to see more scenes featuring the happy moments were families of the lucky ones who actually made it home were reunited.
Well, not all press is bad press because thanks to this those who hadn't yet watched the video went on to the popular website YouTube to watch the most talked about video in this year's Eurovision Song Contest and thanks it the video has garnered almost 170,000. In fact most the hits came in the past week after it was previewed on BBC. Coincidence or not, the video is a strong one and perhaps in the light of recent political turmoil Malta's song and video will make the troubled countries realize that in every war there are no winners - only martyrs – the ones who never come home. Stay tuned to escflashmalta.com for more of the latest news.
NOTE: We would like to inform everyone that this was the April Fools Article for the day. It is pivotal to point out that the reception for the video has been more than satisfactory. We would like to wish Firelight the very best of luck as they represent Malta with Coming Home.
Source: BBC, escflashmalta.com
Malta: Nadine Launches Debut Album this Evening
On the 27 February 2014, the album Velvet by local singer Nadine Axisa will be launched. The album includes twelve original songs in the 'easy listening jazz' style, penned by various composers and authors. The album features a total of 38 top musicians renowned in the local jazz scene such as Dominic Galea, Sandro Zerafa, Charles 'City' Gatt, Paul Abela, Vinny Vella and Paul Giordimaina amongst others. Nadine is also collaborating with foreign musicians in this album, where two tracks feature bass player Roberto Badoglio and saxophonist Gabriele Comeglio respectively.
Although all tracks fall under the jazz idiom, there is a variation in the style of songs which include latin, swing, blues, ballads and funky tunes. Eleven tracks have lyrics in English while one song (1) entitled Għanja is in Maltese and boasts a certain musical charm. This was in fact the tune which Nadine launched as a single a couple of weeks ago. The album was named Velvet after one of the tracks which talks about the passion for music, which in turn is compared to velvet.
This album is a very special project for Nadine since it reflects her passion for this style. It encompasses the experiences she lived for the past ten years with some of the musicians she collaborated with in events such as the recording of other albums, gigs in Malta and outside Malta, and the Malta Jazz Festival. The album shows her versatility and brings together the talent of local composers and authors together with the ability of all these musicians. Nadine admits that this project is a dream that became a reality and thanks the Malta Arts Fund and other contributors for their support.
Nadine enjoys an interesting track record both in Malta and abroad, however she considers this project to be the most satisfactory accomplishment she has experienced until now. The album was recorded, mixed and mastered by David Vella at Temple Studios. For more information on the album, visit Nadine's Facebook Fanpage whilst the event page encompasses the creation of the concept to the actual release of the album. Stay tuned to escflashmalta.com for all of the latest news and a review of the album to follow in the next couple of days.
Source: Press Release, Bernard Polidano (Photograph)
Finland: Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu (UMK) - LIVE
Espoo, a small town in the Scandinavian country of Finland will be hosting the final of Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu (UMK) with eight (8) entries in contention to keep the strong tradition that the international music competition has upheld for the nation in recent years. The national selection was divulged back in 2012 with Pernilla Karlsson winning with the track När Jag Blundar written by her brother and dedicated to their mother, and evolved with Krista Siegfrids and her entry Marry Me which made headlines for a risquè stage performance.
Barona Arena will be playing host to this magnificient event, with Anne Lainto and IIe Uusivuori being the hosts to take you through most of the evening. As has been the case in recent years, the final result will be decided by a mixture of jury and public voting, the latter having had the opportunity to cast their vote since last Monday. The professional judges forming part of the panel this evening are none other than Aija Puurtinen, Redrama, Tomi Saarinen and Toni Wirtanen. Krista Siegfrids, representative of Finland in 2013 will be amongst the special guests. You may follow the LIVE stream for this national final through the official website of the Eurovision Song Contest.
The Show (Part 1)
Krista seems to be singing one of her hit songs, she seems like she is still wearing the bridal dress she wore at the Eurovision Song Contest and judging by its colour, it seems she hasn't even removed it since May. She is joined on stage by three female dancers in yellow dresses and all of a sudden a group of male dancers come to 'Marry Me' and the song plays in the background as the finalists of this year's show are introduced one by one on stage. The fun continues and Krista changes her outfit and bursts singing what she declares as the most beautiful song in the world. Guess what is it? Yeah….. You're there. It is Marry Me . Surprised much? The judges are introduced and the voting numbers are now on screen and off we go.
Softengine - Something Better (Topi Latukka, Henri Oskár)
A great show opener tonight and if this is anything to go by we should expect a great show. A great soft pop rock number which gets you moving – the five piece male band do a great job at delivering the song and the added pyrotechnics give the performance a great touch. Unfortunately, towards the very end of the song the emotions get the better of the singer as he sounds a bit shouty but it shouldn't stop them from doing well. Surely a favourite to win tonight's show.
Hanna Sky - Hope (Hanna Sky)
An interesting song which you'll either love or hate – it does have a great feel but some might think that the subject is a bit cheesy. It does have a feel of an R&B hit though. The vocals of the singer get better as the song goes on. The backing singers do a good job and the amazingly flexible dancer seems to show the free spirit element of the song. Not entirely sure on this number though – something is not working for me unfortunately but a good effort nonetheless.
MIAU - God/Drug (Anu Kaukola, Henna Juvonen)
An electro pop rock number with a very strong performance – the outfits are crazy but they work with the song and the staging is interesting too. The band seems to be enjoying themselves performing and their performance comes across as strong. Something very typical from Finland but they know how do it best when it comes to a good rock number. Strange but I like this one too – something bizarre in it but it works.
Lauri Mikkola - Going Down (Lauri Mikkola)
Another good number but I don't think the song is memorable enough to do so well tonight. The singer's red suit is surely something you can't forget though. He is accompanied on stage by a band and two backing singers who harmonize throughout the song. Vocally, the song is possibly the strongest yet and the singer's good looks will surely get him some extra votes but I don't think it is a strong song, good effort still.
Madcraft - Shining Bright (Tom Nuorivaara, Juho Rinne, Jesse Mäläskä, Otto Uotila)
Madcraft seem mad! Their school boy images with some crazy outfits on stage and street like graphics give the song an authentic feel. Unfortunately it seems that the music is a bit too high in comparison to the voice. Yet the band give a very energetic performance of their alternative rock number with pyrotechnics and some bikers doing stunts on stage which send the audience into frenzy. They might have a chance I think considering that the energy transmitted on stage.
Mikko Pohjola - Sängyn Reunalla (Mikko Pohjola)
A simple effective ballad enhanced entirely by the visuals on stage. The black and white element works perfectly on stage and the colour comes in just in time when the pace of the song picks up. I doubt this is a winner tonight but considering how different it is to all the other songs in the selection it has a chance in doing well. It's a kind of song that if it wins it can either do very well or end towards the bottom of the table I guess as a lot of elements come into play.
Clarissa feat. Josh Standing - Top Of The World (Oxley, Neisser, Rabb, Lundell, Standing)
A dance number by a duo who seems to feel on top of the world - the graphics on stage for this number are great and the simple choreography makes you feel like standing up and dancing along with them.
They all seem to having a party on stage and surely create a dynamic atmosphere on stage. The vocals were good throughout but overall the song seems to be missing that something special for it to stand out. The energy on stage though SCREAMS WINNER.
Hukka ja Mama - Selja (Lasse Hukka)
I can't understand the cake on top of her head and even if it has to do with the song you just do not wear a cake hat. The folk number itself is not bad, it is easy and fun to listen to but the staging and the outfits are too bizarre and distract from the song. The audience seems to have loved it though. Oh guess, she is a popular Finnish artist and the joke doesn't transmit beyond the country.
The Show (Part 2)
Following a recap of all of the songs performed this evening, one of our members in the professional jury takes to the stage for a special performance. The jury is now announcing the first result as we expect the TOP THREE (3) for a super-final. Following yet another guest appearance, one of the dancers gave an envelope with the all important result of the super-final it seems. The winner of the selection is;
Softengine - Something Better (Topi Latukka, Henri Oskár)
Malta: Marc and Dorothy Face Off on 'Sibt Familja'
Spiteri Lucas Entertainment, in conjuction with Media.Link Communications retired the format of Sas-Sitta in favour of a fresh take on a Saturday afternoon programme, Sibt Familja, which also incorporates light entertainment, interviews and a lot of laughter. Ray Attard, is joined by Debbie Scerri, 1997 representative in the Eurovision Song Contest as hosts and are known to welcome a number of personalities from all walks of life. The programme kicks off at around 13:30 CET and finishing at about 16:00 CET, meaning around two and a half hours of pure family entertainment for all. It is broadcast on NET Television.
Marc Calleja Bayliss, editor-in-chief of escflashmalta.com will be featuring on the programme as one of the guests, joined by none other than former Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza Talent Żagħżugħ runner-up, Michela Dalli. They will be battling it out against Dorothy Bezzina, sister of Gianluca, Malta's representative at the 2013 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest and a four time national finalist herself. The programmes' vocal entertainment will be provided by former Eurovision Song Contest representative; Ludwig Galea as well as former national final participant and Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza runner-up, Neville Refalo, as always accompanied with a LIVE band led by Maestro Mark Spiteri Lucas. This weeks' one-on-one interview will be with Corazon, who has just launched her debut album Hawn Jien to highly positive acclaim. Other attractions include female fashion trends by resident experts Rita Gatt and photographer Clint Gerald together with a team of models as well as comedian, Toni Busuttil. Stay tuned to escflashmalta.com for more news.
Source: Press Release
Malta: 'Hawn Jien' by Corazon - Album Review
Corazon is slowly becoming a household name in our country, the young talented singer songwriter has slowly established herself as one of the best contemporary artists on our islands – with three Malta Eurovision appearances to her name and three 'Għanja Tal-Poplu' wins, the name Corazon is surely a name to look out for years to come. Simplicity has always been the key for Corazon and when you see her performing, you would expect to see her behind a piano – a sound she truly cherishes. Apart from being the girl behind the piano, Corazon is popularly known for her crystal clear diction, something a lot of her critics praise her for.
Defying all the odds, Corazon has finally managed to release her first studio album – surely a milestone especially since the album itself includes songs only in our mother tongue language, Maltese. The work on this album has been substantial and in all it took around five year to complete but the singer songwriter wanted this project to be launched at the right time, when every single thing would have come together. Surely, the wait was worth it as the tracks on the albums along with the arrangements and the detail in the production come together to perfection. Every little detail is important in fact even the CD cover and booklet compliment this maginifcent work.
Album Title: Hawn Jien
Released: 11th January, 2014
Escflashmalta.com had the pleasure to be invited to this album launch which took place at Sir Temi Żammit Hall at the University of Malta and it was surely an absolute pleasure to be able to listen to the album carefully whilst enjoy each track in order to review it for our readers. I dare say it is one of the best releases in recent years. Unfortunately, most artist seem to focus a lot on releasing material in English and lately we did not have any artists releasing albums entirely in Maltese but Corazon has always been one to challenge the norm.
The album is sophistacted with different musical genres and various subjects explored and exploited to perfection by the talented singer songwriter. Some of the subjects Corazon writes about, challenge the usual subjects we get to hear in songs and her insight into every little detail of the Maltese society makes you envious. In fact, a number of artists would tell you that you know how good a song is when they wish that a particular number is written by them and most of the tracks on this album would surely be the envy of many.
Tracks to look out for:
Jgħidu Kien Hawn Raġel – This track for me is surely the stand out track of the whole album. Musically is so different to what we are used to hearing that automatically makes this song and intruinging one for the listener. The music is complimented perfectly by the lyrics which speak about betrayal and mystery and this is also translated into the general feel of the song. The mastery of all this is that in this track one could hear the typical Maltese sounds and as the song progresses you find yourself tapping and also singing along to its lyrics. After it finishes, you find yourself wondering how it finished so quickly and without even thinking you would want to listen to it again.
Fid-Dar Tan-Nanna – A track I first heard live on television and as soon as I heard it stopped dead in my tracks, listening to every single word. It pictures the old Maltese household to perfection, to every single detail. Those listening to it will surely be reminiscent of either the houses they lived in or else the houses of their parents or grandparents. The younger generations can only picture the typical Maltese house which by time has been replaced by small apartments. The music serves as a bridge that takes you back to the old days and then brings you back to shock you with what the current generations are faced with. The mix itself is sophisticated and done so delicately that without wanting the listener stays on reflecting on what is happening to our generation.
Illejla B'Xejn – This is possibly the most sensitive subject Corazon exploits on this album – the theme of prostitution and someone desperately yearning to be loved. The way she puts the words helps in making the song acceptable. There is a very fine line when dealing with these theme but Corazon has the class to know that she does not need to cross it to get her point across. Musically the song it compliments the lyrics and strings are used to give the song a very intimate feel and her velvety voice help create the desired effect of lust. The song itself won the best social theme in 'L-Għanja Tal-Poplu' and this goes on to show that you do not need to conform to the norm to get good results in festivals – if it is done properly one can challenge the norm and achieve great results, something which Corazon keeps doing.
Final Verdict:
Narrowing down three tracks from eleven tracks on the album have surely been challenging and I would simply put it down to a matter of taste. Each track can stand alone and carries an even weight. I guess this album sends out a clear sign to all doubters of local music and the Maltese lanaguge that songs in our native tongue can sound great and have a contemporary feel to them. Some might argue that this review is a tad too positive but when something is good, you can really fault it in any way especially when Corazon has made sure that even the nitty gritty things critics would normally pick on have been taken care of and dealt with to perfection. A big well done to all the people involved in this album – it surely worth listening to and its songs will surely be ones that will be played on for generations to come.
Malta: Animae Gospel Choir Release Festive Single
Christmas songs in Maltese are not unheard of but you do not get to hear them so often – the more popular songs in English get priority and in recent years it seemed quite an unusual to hear a Christmas song in Maltese around this time of the year. One of the first song in Maltese to make a hit in recent years was the release of Ħelu Bambin sung by the popular Chiara alongside Ludwig Galea. The popular gospel choir Animae have decided to get into the Christmas spirit too with their take on one of the most popular Maltese Christmas songs Ninni La Tibkix Iżjed. The original song was written by Fr. Andrew Schembri back in 1846 but Animae alongside young talented singer Isaac Mercieca gave a song a facelift with a modern touch.
It is always great to hear a popular song with a different vocal arrangement to the one we are used to and Pamela Bezzina did a great job on that, whilst alongside Christian Borg, she also took care of the musical arranagement. The direction of the choir was left in the capable hands of Pamela Bezzina too, who seems to be the mastermind behind this track. Animae Gospel Choir is known for their perfect harmonies and takes on different popular songs. The journey started back in 2008 with ten well-known performers, nowadays the group is made up of 21 well established performers and their aim is to provide those listening to some true soul music. Have a listen to the track and leave your comments below on what you think about this number. Stay tuned to escflashmalta.com for all of the latest news.
Source: Animae Gospel Choir (Facebook)


text:
While Congress is debating "patients' bill of rights" legislation, a far more serious issue facing America is the large number (roughly 43 million by Census Bureau estimates) of Americans without health insurance. 1 With rising health care costs and a slowdown in the economy, this number will surely increase.
To address this problem, some Members of Congress, such as Senator Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA) favor a national health insurance program. The promise and performance of such a conventional approach to health care financing and delivery, well established in Britain and Canada, is very well documented. 2 Others, including representatives of the Health Insurance Association of America (HIAA) and Families USA, a liberal group, favor an incremental expansion of government programs, including Medicaid, coupled with new tax breaks targeted to employers, including small employers, to encourage them to cover previously uninsured Americans. 3
Beyond either dramatic or incremental expansion of government health programs, there is another option. Many moderate and conservative policymakers argue that the best way to make progress in cutting the number of Americans without health insurance is to give individuals and families tax credits for the purchase of insurance. This approach would rectify inequities in current tax law, which favor high-income rather than low-income taxpayers, and, if crafted properly, could cover as many people as possible. Moreover, tax credits, if they are refundable, can sharply reduce the number of Americans without health insurance while promoting consumer choice and competition in the private markets. Politically, tax credits are particularly appealing because they advance personal freedom: When individuals and families can pick and choose their own plans, benefits, and doctors, they are far less likely to be attracted to government-run health insurance programs that determine (a) what they will and will not get and (b) under what government-defined conditions they will or will not receive their medical care.
Assuming that Congress and the Administration adopt a tax credit strategy, a related issue is how current markets would respond to such a major change in policy. Many of the current assumptions about the viability of the tax credit approach are based on the current market, which is largely dominated by employer-based health insurance arrangements and a small individual market. Another key question is how the tax credit, as well as the insurance product, is actually marketed to the uninsured population. There is a growing consensus among health policy analysts that the marketing, not just the size of the credit , is a key issue in expanding coverage among the uninsured population.
New research, based on an analysis of actual consumer behavior in the individual market and conducted by researchers at eHealthInsurance.com, a major broker of insurance policies on the Internet, shows that many assumptions about the individual market are outdated. Indeed, based on this latest analysis, health care tax credits, particularly those being proposed by the Bush Administration and leading Members of Congress in both parties, are a viable option, and their availability would make health insurance coverage affordable for millions of Americans who are currently without it.
The Coming Debate Over Tax Credits
Will tax credits work to reduce the number of the uninsured? The short answer is yes. The degree to which a tax credit strategy can reduce the number of the uninsured would depend on a variety of factors: the character of the marketing that one assumes with a tax credit strategy; the size of the tax breaks; whether the tax credit is refundable or not; how employers would respond; how insurers would respond; and how government responds, particularly at the state level where insurance regulation is heavy and benefit mandates, driving up health care costs, are not uncommon. Moreover, for policy analysts, an accurate measure of the effectiveness of the tax credit strategy would also depend on such factors as the data base of the market and the kind and quality of the economic model being used to measure the impact of such a tax credit strategy.
Critics of the tax credit policy argue that tax credits, even refundable tax credits, would not be enough to offset or help lower-income families buy health insurance. The major reasons: (a) Individuals are incompetent to make such complex decisions, which should be left to corporate health care benefit managers or other professionals; and (b) individual health insurance policies are too high, and even with tax credits going to individuals and families, the insurance coverage is too expensive to purchase outside of the place of work, so the "take-up rates" for a tax credit system would be too low to make much of a dent in the thickening ranks of the uninsured. In a related vein, some analysts say that current tax credit proposals would generally be insufficient for certain categories of the uninsured, particularly persons who are older but not yet eligible for Medicare. 4
Some models of tax credit options do suggest a relatively low take-up rate, but tax credit proponents make the common-sense argument that if one offers a richer or more generous level of assistance, the take-up rate will naturally be higher, and the number will increase significantly if it is properly explained and marketed. For example, Professor Mark Pauly of the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania has argued that a change in tax policy through direct tax relief (equivalent to a giant tax cut) would have a significant impact in expanding private coverage to millions of Americans. According to Professor Pauly and his colleague Bradley Herring, a tax credit equal to 50 percent of the premiums would reduce the number of uninsured by half. 5 Similarly, Stuart M. Butler, Vice President for Domestic and Economic Policy Studies at The Heritage Foundation, has outlined how a tax credit strategy could supplement employment-based health insurance and sharply expand coverage. 6 Butler has also recently proposed an updated version of the original and comprehensive Heritage health care consumer choice plan, under which the generosity of refundable federal tax credits would increase for those with lower incomes or higher health care costs, combined with a program of supplemental state assistance to help low-income persons. 7
New Research on the Individual Market
What do people actually buy if they have a chance to buy their own coverage? Is there a real market that reflects consumer choice? As it turns out, there is in fact such a market. There is new, groundbreaking research on this emerging market. It is not based on surveys of health care benefit managers, assumptions or extrapolations based on employer-provided health insurance, or what employers or employees might think, but on real consumer behavior in the individual health insurance market.
At a June 21, 2001, press conference with House Majority Leader Dick Armey ( R-TX), House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee Chairman Nancy Johnson (R-CT), Representative William Lipinski (D-IL), and White House adviser Mark McClellan, the executives of eHealthInsurance outlined the findings of their study, "Analysis of National Sales Data of Individual and Family Health Insurance: Implications for Policymakers and the Effectiveness of Health Insurance Tax Credits" (available at www.eHealthInsurance.com).
This unprecedented market analysis shows that premiums for health care coverage are far more affordable than many analysts have previously thought and that tax credit policies would substantially offset the cost of many of these policies for millions of Americans who do not now get health insurance through the place of work. The company examined 20,000 policies purchased in 42 states covering 95 percent of the U.S. population, roughly divided equally between men and women. There were 7,000 different health policies offered by more than 70 insurers, including large Blue Cross/Blue Shield plans.
This study of the individual market has direct implications for consumer choice options being promoted by both the Bush Administration and conservatives and moderates in Congress. For example, Representatives Dick Armey (R-TX) and William Lipinski (D-IL) have sponsored the Fair Care for the Uninsured Act (H.R. 1331). Their bill would create a tax credit of $1,000 per individual, $2,000 per couple, or up to $3,000 per family. As Representative Lipinski remarked, " Not only do eHealthInsurance's findings provide insight into the cost effectiveness of tax credits for the uninsured, but the data also proves that the proposed tax credit will cover plans that are good for the consumer." According to White House health policy adviser Dr. Mark McClellan, "The eHealthInsurance report, which is based on real world data on the affordability of private health insurance, is another piece of evidence showing that health insurance tax credits can significantly reduce the number of uninsured Americans. The report highlights the importance of implementing a workable tax credit, like that proposed by President Bush and many members of Congress."
Some of the key findings:
- Policies are more
affordable than commonly thought.
The data show that individual policies are $100 to $125 per month, or $1,200 to $1500 per year. According to the report, "These market data points from eHealthInsurance, together with average premium data from various health plans and government programs, all seen to refute the perception that average premiums are multiples of two to three times more."
Another surprising finding is that the insurance premiums in this market were lower than those commonly found among small businesses in the small group market. Why is the perception so widespread that individual market premiums are so much higher? According to the report, "General perception may stem from specific high premium cases rather than from statistically significant and geographically and demographically diverse data sets. Individuals paying high premiums may typically have pre-existing health conditions, be near Medicare age or reside in one of the few states with high prices due to guaranteed issue regulation for the individual market."
- Tax credit options make
individual insurance policies even more affordable, particularly
for low-income working people.
The study also found that a generous tax credit proposal, like the Armey-Lipinski proposal, would be "meaningful": Half of the individual and family premiums purchased are within the limits of the proposed tax credits, and three-quarters have premiums that are within 75 percent to 100 percent of the tax credit amounts.
- These consumers buy
"comprehensive" coverage rather than just "basic" or "bare bones"
The policies that people buy on the individual market are more likely to be "comprehensive" than "basic." The study defined "basic" as policies with a limited set of services and/or high deductibles, sometimes called "catastrophic" policies. It defined "comprehensive" as having coverage equal to the current Medicare Part A and B benefit coverage with some level of Medicare supplemental coverage. In practice, this means that the private market insurance products that persons are actually buying would cover not just hospitalization and physicians services, but richer benefit packages including, almost invariably, prescription drugs. Eighty-eight percent of the insurance policies purchased by single individuals and 84 percent of the plans purchased by families were in the "comprehensive" category.
- These consumers buy plans
with modest deductibles.
According to the report, of the health maintenance organizations (HMOs) that these consumers purchased, 80 percent had no deductibles at all; of the preferred provider options (PPOs), 71 percent had deductibles of less than $1,000.
- In terms of value for
money, these consumers show a strong preference for less insurance
company management rather than more.
Seventy-five percent of the consumers showed a preference for PPOs, while only 16 percent picked HMOs. According to the report, "This would appear to contradict any assumption that policies in the individual market unduly restrict utilization of health services. Rather, it suggests that when confronted with the various tradeoffs and options, most consumers are willing to accept some, but not substantial restrictions, in exchange for lower premiums."
Economists call this rational economic behavior. Consumers of health insurance, contrary to what critics of consumer choice sometimes assume, are not stupid.
The recent eHealthInsurance analysis unveiled on June 21, 2001, is an unprecedented look into consumer behavior in the individual market. The data base is new, and the assumptions about consumer behavior in the individual market are not borne out by the consumer behavior recorded in this data base. Plans are more affordable than commonly assumed. Individuals are willing to make rational economic trade-offs, buy plans with modest deductibles, and pay more for more comprehensive coverage than "basic" coverage. Moreover, the affordability of such plans means that tax credit options will have a significant impact, reducing the cost of many of these plans significantly and thus making health insurance more widely available to families who need it.
Robert E. Moffit,
Ph.D., is Director of Domestic Policy Studies at The
Heritage Foundation.
1 It should be noted that the official Census Bureau numbers are probably an overestimate because of misreporting by Medicaid beneficiaries among other things. Nonetheless, the problem is serious and could get significantly worse.
2 See James Frogue, "A High Price for Patients: An Update on Government Health Care in Britain and Canada," Heritage Foundation Backgrounder No. 1398, September 26, 2000; see also Robert E. Moffit et al., "Perspectives on the European Health Care Systems: Some Lessons for America," Heritage Foundation Lecture No. 711, July 9, 2001.
3 See Robert E. Moffit, "Why Adopting The 'Common Ground' Health Care Proposal Would Be a Costly Mistake," Heritage Foundation Backgrounder No. 1445, June 1, 2001.
4 See, for example, Elisabeth Simantov et al., "Market Failure? Individual Insurance Markets for Older Americans," Health Affairs, Vol. 20, No.4 (July-August 2001).
5 See Mark Pauly and Bradley Herring, "Expanding Coverage Via Tax Credits: Trade-Offs and Outcomes," Health Affairs, Vol. 20, No. 1 (January-February 2001), p. 14.
6 Stuart M. Butler, "How Tax Credits for Families Would Supplement Employment-Based Coverage," Heritage Foundation Backgrounder No. 1420, March 16, 2001.
7 Stuart M. Butler, "Reforming the Tax Treatment of Health Care to Achieve Universal Coverage," in Elliot K. Wicks, ed., Covering America: Real Remedies for the Uninsured (Washington , D.C.: Economic and Social Research Institute, 2001), pp. 21-42.


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text: Things may not be this good for Samsung's components business. Analysts forecast that the company's component division, including Samsung SDI and Samsung Electro-Mechanics, will post disappointing earnings in Q2 2016. Samsung Electro-Mechanics is expected to post 21.7 billion won ($18.9 million) in operating income which will be a 49.4 percent decline from the previous quarter with total revenue coming in at 1.6 trillion won. Samsung SDI – the conglomerate's battery-making arm – had a lot of red on its balance sheet in the first quarter of this year with a 704 billion won operating loss. Analysts expect that Samsung SDI is going to post another operating loss in Q2 2016 with some suggesting that it could be as high as 38.2 billion won.


text:
Quantitative asset allocation
Gutmann uses two models for quantitative asset allocation based on Infanger's mathematical allocation model: the quantitative model and the hedging model. These models aim in particular at the optimisation of risk exposure and the definition of maximum setback potential. With these models, portfolios are spread across asset classes such as fixed income, equities (stocks), alternative investments and cash in accordance with defined selection factors.


text:
My emotions flicker like a tired eyelid. At the oddest moments, say in the middle of a soft cruise down a flat side street on my bike, my heart flips over. Just like that, sun behind a cloud, lights out. I'm sorry Nat. I wait for tears but they are just stuck.
Or there are the not-at-all-odd moments, like 3 in the morning, when I imagine the horror. Did someone hold him down and punch him, kick him? Was there actually a crack, a crunch as his ribs broke? Or was it some sudden, frightening fall, crash, face-down? Did he make a sound? He hasn't cried in maybe a decade — but did he then? And no one knew? No one picked him up? What did he do with his hurt?
Why didn't I know?
I guess on some level I did know that something was not right. (?) That stillness. That shutdown a year ago. The stiff arms.
Then, the more recent stuff. The inexplicable weight loss, digestion discomfort. Because of fractured ribs?
I am swept back in a terrible undertow of memory, to those earliest days as Nat's mom, feeling something was wrong with him, somehow, but not willing to fully believe it. Not willing to do the work of convincing my world, not able to stick with that story taking shape in my mind. My baby. I was so consumed by him, long walks pushing the stroller up and down the hills of Arlington, Mass. Talking and talking to him. He was my other half, he was me. That's how it has to be with a new baby, right?
But it's never really changed all that much. He is there, before my eyes, when I sleep, when I'm awake. When he's here, and sits down next to me willingly on the couch. He seems to look to me to understand things, to get things right. I don't know how much he looks within for those kinds of answers.
His apparent fragile dependency is the part that kills me, but that also makes my heart burst open like a hot red poppy. That dependency is so dear, and so scary. That crystalline clarity of need and trust. His ability to trust — maybe now that I think of it, that's his disability. That self-advocating we can do, but he can't.
And yet. Arid hope blows dusty across my consciousness at those odd moments and I wonder. Maybe that ability to trust is also his strength, and will be his way through it.
1 comment
Wouldn't that be wonderful if that ability to trust is also his strength and will help him through it ? He always did what he could…


text:
MOVIE SYNOPSIS [ General Audiences ] Lucho an oil worker divided between the hard work at the site and incomplete life in the city, is sunk in deep anguish that locks him in a vicious circle which will try out. You can watch Boca de Pozo online on TV cable or theaters with original audio in Spanish at different dates. This film premiered in theaters in 2014.
Rating: 5 by 7 users./
Runtime: 80 minutes
Pablo Cedrón, Livia Fernán, Paula Kohan, Ana Livingston and Nicolás Saavedra.
80-minute film (full movie) directed by Simón Franco.
The original audio of Boca de Pozo has dialogues in or Spanish, it was produced in Argentina.
It premiered in cinemas or television in 2014.
Screenplay written by Simón Franco, Salvador Roselli and Luis Zorraquin.
Diego De Garay.
Simón Franco, Miguel Angel Rocca, Daniel Pensa and Luis Zorraquin.
This film was produced and / or financed by Ajaf Cinema, Pensa & Rocca Producciones, Z F Cine and La Ofi-cine.
Composed by Nicolás Sorin and Diego de Garay.
Without commercial breaks, the full movie Boca de Pozo has a duration of 80 minutes; the official trailer can be watched in streaming on the Internet. You can watch this full movie free in English or Spanish in movie TV channels, renting the DVD or with VoD services (Video On Demand player, Hulu) and PPV (Pay Per View, Netflix).
See the page of this full movie, Boca de Pozo in FULLTV Movies.


text:
Day Camp Session I
DATES: Day Camp: June 12-15, 2017
Baseball Day Camp is open to any and all entrants who, by June of 2017, will be 6-11 years of age.
Day Camp will run from 8:30am - 2:30pm daily and will consist of fundamental instruction from the Fighting Irish players and staff. This is an excellent opportunity for the young athlete to fine tune his skills in a fun and exciting atmosphere.
The setting for the Notre Dame Baseball Camp is the nationally renowned campus of the University of Notre Dame, located on the outskirts of South Bend, Indiana, 90 miles east of Chicago on the Indiana Toll Road. Many of the nation's finest athletic facilities will be utilized during each camp session.
The on-field instructional camps will take place at beautiful Frank Eck Stadium. This facility seats 3,000 Irish fans, equipped with four outdoor batting cages, pitching machines, and Major League Clubhouse. There are four bullpen mounds and a bunting area. The cage area includes tee and soft toss areas. Adjacent to Eck Stadium is an Indoor Pitching/Hitting Facility, which houses four indoor cages (two of which have clay mounds), is fully equipped with artificial turf, and has a classroom inside for video breakdown.
The Notre Dame Baseball Staff, along with several outstanding coaches from the college and high school levels, will serve as instructors at camp. Members of the Fighting Irish baseball team will also serve in an instructor/counselor capacity.
Check-in times TBD.


text:
Heartwarming Story Emailed to Recaps
The old man sat in his gas station on a cold Christmas Eve. He hadn't been
anywhere in years since his wife had passed away. It was just another day to
He didn't hate Christmas, just couldn't find a reason to celebrate.
Hewas sitting there looking at the snow that had been falling for the last
hour and wondering what it was all about when the door opened and a homeless
man stepped through.
Instead of throwing the man out, Old George as he was known by his
customers, told the man to come and sit by the heater and warm up. "Thank
you, but I don't mean to intrude," said the stranger. "I see you're busy,
I'll just go."
"Not without something hot in your belly." George said.
He turned and opened a wide mouth Thermos and handed it to the stranger.
"It ain't much, but it's hot and tasty. Stew ... Made it myself. When you're
done, there's coffee and it's fresh."
Read More Link on Right
Just at that moment he heard the "ding" of the driveway bell. "Excuse me,
be right back," George said. There in the driveway was an old '53 Chevy.
Steam was rolling out of the front. The driver was panicked.
"Mister can you help me!" said the driver, with a deep Spanish accent. "My wife is with child and my car is broken." George opened the hood. It was bad. The block
looked cracked from the cold, the car was dead."You ain't going in this thing," George said as he turned away.
"But Mister, please help ..." The door of the office closed behind George
as he went inside. He went to the office wall and got the keys to his old
truck, and went back outside.
He walked around the building, opened the garage, started the truck and drove it around to where the couple was waiting. "Here, take my truck," he said. "She ain't the best thing you ever looked at, but she runs real good."
George helped put the woman in the truck and watched as it sped off into
the night. He turned and walked back inside the office. "Glad I gave 'em the
truck, their tires were shot too. That 'ol truck has brand new ." George
thought he was talking to the stranger, but the man had gone. The Thermos
was on the desk, empty, with a used coffee cup beside it. "Well, at least he
got something in his belly," George thought.
George went back outside to see if the old Chevy would start. It
cranked slowly, but it started. He pulled it into the garage where the
truck had been. He thought he would tinker with it for something to do.
Christmas Eve meant no customers.
He discovered the the block hadn't cracked, it was just the bottom hose on the radiator. "Well, shoot, I can fix this," he said to himself. So he put a new one on.
"Those tires ain't gonna get 'em through the winter either." He took the
snow treads off of his wife's old Lincoln. They were like new and he wasn't
going to drive the car anyway.
As he was working, he heard shots being fired. He ran outside and beside a
police car an officer lay on the cold ground. Bleeding from the left
shoulder, the officer moaned, "Please help me."
George helped the officer inside as he remembered the training he had
received in the Army as a medic. He knew the wound needed attention.
"Pressure to stop the bleeding," he thought.
The uniform company had been there that morning and had left clean shop towels. He used those and duct tape to bind the wound. "Hey, they say duct tape can fix anythin'," he said, trying to make the policeman feel at ease.
"Something for pain," George thought. All he had was the pills he used for
his back. "These ought to work." He put some water in a cup and gave the
policeman the pills. "You hang in there, I'm going to get you an ambulance."
The phone was dead. "Maybe I can get one of your buddies on that there
talk box out in your car." He went out only to find that a bullet had gone
into the dashboard destroying the two way radio.
He went back in to find the policeman sitting up. "Thanks," said the
officer. "You could have left me there. The guy that shot me is still in the
George sat down beside him, "I would never leave an injured man in the
Army and I ain't gonna leave you." George pulled back the bandage to check
for bleeding. "Looks worse than what it is. Bullet passed right through 'ya.
Good thing it missed the important stuff though. I think with time your
gonna be right as rain."
George got up and poured a cup of coffee. "How do you take it?" he asked.
"None for me," said the officer.
"Oh, yer gonna drink this. Best in the city. Too bad I ain't got no
donuts." The officer laughed and winced at the same time.
The front door of the office flew open. In burst a young man with a gun.
"Give me all your cash! Do it now!" the young man yelled. His hand was
shaking and George could tell that he had never done anything like this
"That's the guy that shot me!" exclaimed the officer.
"Son, why are you doing this?" asked George, "You need to put the cannon
away. Somebody else might get hurt."
The young man was confused. "Shut up old man, or I'll shoot you, too. Now
give me the cash!"
The cop was reaching for his gun. "Put that thing away," George said to
the cop, "we got one too many in here now."
He turned his attention to the young man. "Son, it's Christmas Eve. If you
need money, well then, here. It ain't much but it's all I got. Now put that
pea shooter away."
George pulled $150 out of his pocket and handed it to the young man,
reaching for the barrel of the gun at the same time. The young man released
his grip on the gun, fell to his knees and began to cry.
"I'm not very good at this am I? All I wanted was to buy something for my wife and son," he went on. "I've lost my job, my rent is due, my car got repossessed last
George handed the gun to the cop. "Son, we all get in a bit of squeeze now
and then. The road gets hard sometimes, but we make it through the best we
He got the young man to his feet, and sat him down on a chair across from
the cop. "Sometimes we do stupid things." George handed the young man a cup
of coffee.
"Bein' stupid is one of the things that makes us human. Comin' in
here with a gun ain't the answer. Now sit there and get warm and we'll sort
this thing out."
The young man had stopped crying. He looked over to the cop. "Sorry I shot
you. It just went off. I'm sorry officer."
"Shut up and drink your coffee " the cop said.
George could hear the sounds of sirens outside. A police car and an
ambulance skidded to a halt. Two cops came through the door, guns drawn.
"Chuck! You ok?" one of the cops asked the wounded officer.
"Not bad for a guy who took a bullet. How did you find me?"
"GPS locator in the car. Best thing since sliced bread. Who did this?" the
other cop asked as he approached the young man.
Chuck answered him, "I don't know. The guy ran off into the dark. Just
dropped his gun and ran."
George and the young man both looked puzzled at each other.
"That guy work here?" the wounded cop continued.
"Yep," George said, "just hired him this morning. Boy lost his job."
The paramedics came in and loaded Chuck onto the stretcher. The young man
leaned over the wounded cop and whispered, "Why?"
Chuck just said, "Merry Christmas boy ... and you too, George, and thanks
for everything."
"Well, looks like you got one doozy of a break there. That ought to solve
some of your problems."
George went into the back room and came out with a box. He pulled out a
ring box. "Here you go, something for the little woman. I don't think Martha
would mind. She said it would come in handy some day."
The young man looked inside to see the biggest diamond ring he ever saw.
"I can't take this," said the young man. "It means something to you."
"And now it means something to you," replied George. "I got my memories.
That's all I need."
George reached into the box again. An airplane, a car and a truck appeared
next. They were toys that the oil company had left for him to sell. "Here's
something for that little man of yours."
The young man began to cry again as he handed back the $150 that the old
man had handed him earlier.
"And what are you supposed to buy Christmas dinner with? You keep that
too," George said. "Now git home to your family."
The young man turned with tears streaming down his face. "I'll be here in
the morning for work, if that job offer is still good."
"Nope. I'm closed Christmas day," George said. "See ya the day after."
George turned around to find that the stranger had returned. "Where'd you
come from? I thought you left?"
"I have been here. I have always been here," said the stranger. "You say
you don't celebrate Christmas. Why?"
"Well, after my wife passed away, I just couldn't see what all the bother
was. Puttin' up a tree and all seemed a waste of a good pine tree. Bakin'
cookies like I used to with Martha just wasn't the same by myself and
besides I was gettin' a little chubby."
The stranger put his hand on George's shoulder. "But you do celebrate the
holiday, George. You gave me food and drink and warmed me when I was cold
and hungry. The woman with child will bear a son and he will become a great
The policeman you helped will go on to save 19 people from being killed by
terrorists. The young man who tried to rob you will make you a rich man and
not take any for himself. "That is the spirit of the season and you keep it
as good as any man."
George was taken aback by all this stranger had said. "And how do you know
all this?" asked the old man.
"Trust me, George. I have the inside track on this sort of thing. And when
your days are done you will be with Martha again."
The stranger moved toward the door. "If you will excuse me, George, I have
to go now. I have to go home where there is a big celebration planned."
George watched as the old leather jacket and the torn pants that the
stranger was wearing turned into a white robe. A golden light began to fill
the room.
"You see, George ... it's My birthday. Merry Christmas."
George fell to his knees and replied, "Happy Birthday, Lord Jesus"
12/18/2013 07:54:50 am
That was an awesome Christmas story! Thanks for posting it Recaps! Getting tissues.... lol!
12/18/2013 07:59:01 am
I really enjoyed this story - thank you very much. It helps to remind us of the true Christmas spirit. May we all soon be blessed and able to pay it forward!
12/18/2013 08:01:05 am
WOW Made me cry! Thank you for sharing! And Happy Birthday Jesus!
12/18/2013 08:02:48 am
Thank you. We need many more stories like this! Not about liars. There is beauty and miracles all around us, if we open our eyes to see! Merry Christmas.
Reason for the season!
12/18/2013 08:03:55 am
Thank you for such a beautiful heartwarming story! This brought tears to my eyes
12/18/2013 08:06:24 am
Wow great story thanks
12/18/2013 08:06:40 am
That is so beautiful.♡
12/18/2013 08:09:23 am
What a great story!
Tom Warren
12/18/2013 08:10:02 am
I never get tired of stories like this and always find myself smiling at the end.
12/18/2013 08:12:12 am
Thank you Recaps.
12/18/2013 08:14:44 am
We are so Blessed, why is everyone always complaining.
12/18/2013 08:19:57 am
Thank you for posting such a wondeful story! It brings a warm smile and the memories of times when the Lord has blessed our family! BTW, That is daily!
It is well!
12/18/2013 08:20:47 am
Wonderful story! Christ is the reason for the season...
12/18/2013 08:30:54 am
Thank you very much! It brought tears to me, too. It was quite a contrast to the posts bashing the gurus and everyone in the community who has BELIEVED! For me, I chose to believe, and it kept me going on a high for the past three months. We all knew it was a wild ride, but such a great group of people to share the ride with!
12/18/2013 08:34:35 am
Thank you for the story!!!!! With all the ups and downs of this venture we are in. I was talking to a person I got them into this and was telling her I didn't understand why god would let his people suffer like this!!!! So many helped us and went to god before this was able to come thru!!! So many people struggle to pay their bills, stress to feed their family and but just a few gifts!!!! Why would god let his people suffer????? I told her I still have belief but starting to lose the faith!!!!! Reading this made me feel god just talked to me!!!!! Thank you!!!!!
12/18/2013 08:36:35 am
This was a great story. It also should make us stop and remember the true meaning of Christmas. It's not about Dinar or how rich one is in monetary means, it's about our Lord and the life he has given us. With him, through him we are the richest any man could wish to be.
12/18/2013 08:37:46 am
Thanks, just what I needed-- see my wife (age 53) died 26 months ago, suddenly and very unexpected. I didn't do anything about neighbor gifts since then and wanted to do something this year. This is the 3rd Christmas without her and its awful. I think this story and some cookies will do just great (for myself and daughter too).
12/18/2013 08:40:23 am
I love hart filled stokes like that. To all A Merry Christmas and a
12/18/2013 08:58:23 am
The true spirit of Christmas, is never in the receiving, its always in the Spirit of giving, Merry Christmas to everyone
12/18/2013 08:59:19 am
THANKS!!! to who emailed this story to recaps
12/18/2013 09:05:43 am
Thanks so much. Yes it brought tears to my eyes too. We have the awesome opportunity to celebrate the birthday of Jesus with Him! It is was the real meaning of Christmas is all about. I will be so happy when we get our blessing so that we can really reach out and bless others the way God wants us too.
12/18/2013 09:07:37 am
That was beautiful, can't stop crying. Happy Birthday, Jesus.
12/18/2013 09:09:34 am
I needed that story!
12/18/2013 09:27:12 am
Dear Re-caps,
Rev. Nagi
12/18/2013 09:56:54 am
Someone should forward this to the Treasury...
shere anders
12/18/2013 10:13:11 am
Wow! This made me cry. All I have left of my my Mom is her big diamond. (Which she found on the sidewalk while takeing an elderly woman to the Dentist.)
12/18/2013 10:14:53 am
Loved that story! Awesome! Merry Christmas!
mike seay
12/18/2013 10:23:50 am
with tears down my face that is awsome merry christmas everone
12/18/2013 10:33:51 am
Thank you Recaps. I cried all the way through. I remember it from last year and I loved it just as much this year. It's what we need right now to remember what this season means to us. Merry Christmas to EVERYONE. God Bless
Mike Erwin
12/18/2013 10:42:33 am
This is the best story ive read
12/18/2013 10:59:07 am
Thanks Recaps! What a heart warming story. Like in the story, Jesus is always with us even when we do not think so, and He will make all things work together for His good :)
12/18/2013 11:01:34 am
wow, it really made me cry. That's putting things into perspective. What is really important? It's the lessons we learn and the people God puts in our lives and how we treat them. It's been such a hard ride this RV thing, but everything comes to an end, Let it be now! Thanks for sharing this evocative story.
12/18/2013 11:02:12 am
That was awesome! Very touching. Thanks for the up lift. It can be lonesome this time of year.
Sally Sanders
12/18/2013 11:47:51 am
Wet eyes in a couple three spots, just like the first time I read this...
12/18/2013 11:48:46 am
thank you for the most heart warming story and now I am off to get tissues and forward the message to my friends everywhere
kallya georgiades
12/18/2013 12:08:01 pm
A beautiful and very touching story. I can't stop the tears. Merry Christmas Recaps and God Bless everyone. This is to remind us that we are celebrating a very special Birthday and we should be thankful and grateful for what we have and also think of others who have less.
12/18/2013 12:20:56 pm
What a wonderful story! Thanks!
12/18/2013 12:53:44 pm
What a lovely message. The world would be a better place if we treated each other like this every day.
12/18/2013 01:07:17 pm
12/18/2013 01:15:50 pm
This story pops up every year, I guess we know who is responsible and we must stop and heed the message! Christmas will come and go with or without the RV, but Jesus always answers your prayers even in wonderful stories like this! Maybe we must go out and duplicate the message. Thank You So Much!
12/18/2013 01:27:06 pm
I could hardly write for the tears!!!!
12/18/2013 01:28:27 pm
Thanks for the story! My wife has M.S. and lost her job last Dec. My daughter has had some serious illness they cant figure out, and I have med issues myself. Finances are the worst I have ever experienced and we are about to lose everything. Needless to say I needed this story to help get my focus back on the right track.
12/18/2013 01:29:03 pm
Heard this story decades ago. It brought tears to my eyes then ]ust as it did tonight. Tears of joy. God Bless Us All and Merry Christmas!
12/18/2013 01:37:35 pm
Well done
Marge R
12/18/2013 02:55:21 pm
Praying for all of you who are going through difficult times and/or are struggling getting through the holidays without your loved ones. "Cast all your care upon Him...for He careth for you..."
Mary Wiley
12/18/2013 03:59:20 pm
That is a totally awesome story. I loved it. Made me cry. Thanks for sharing ! God Bless you !
12/18/2013 07:46:57 pm
Truly a story which has made it around the world many times and shall continue to do so because it makes us STOP and remind us that Christmas is the TIME TO prayerfully recall and celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ our Lord and savior who died for our sins so very long ago....... Thank you for sharing and once again will flow around the world! gmhj
12/19/2013 12:01:30 am
Lovely story wishing everybody out there a Very Happy Christmas and a peaceful New Year
12/19/2013 02:08:16 am
That was a most in inpiring story about true Christmas and what it means. Been a long time since hear it put to you like story. Peace and Glory to God for his day. Happy Birthday Jesus...!!!!!
Comments are closed.


text:
for the base im using OPI Jade Is the New Black, then i using a black nail polish with a fine brush to pake the hair and the stitch. then im using white nail polish to add the eyes :).
7 comments:
sheila....bagus banget, warna ijonya gak norak jadinya karna ada hiasan hitamnya. Hiks... aku jadi pengen nyoba hias-hias kuku gitu, gak cuman warna aja, tapi gatot gara-gara gak bisa gambarinnya dan kukuku kecil mungil gitu. hahhahahaha...ReplyDelete
- beachgalOctober 29, 2012 at 9:27 PM
I don't think this is a fail at all..I think you did great. I have these shades and I could do this and I cannot do much at all in nail art! In fact I need a new mani and it's finally time for me to do something for Halloween - I think it will be this!ReplyDelete
finally frankie in good mood :DReplyDelete
haha, i try to make him look happyReplyDelete
ah glad that you like my mani. this is quit simple actually. i believe you can do better than meReplyDelete
- memoiselle memoiselleNovember 3, 2012 at 9:45 AM
Hi Shella,ReplyDelete
You're very talented! Love the OPI shade you chose as a base.
hallo Merry, ini Shella bukan Sheila :).ReplyDelete
kuku kecil bisa kok asal designnya juga ga terlalu bear, di sesuaikan saja
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