"Better" is a song recorded by American country music singer Maggie Rose. It was released in February 2013 as the second single from her first studio album, Cut to Impress.  The song was written by Candy Cameron, Deanna Bryant and Dave Berg.

Content
"Better" is a song about a heartbroken woman who has experienced a loss in her life, which leads her to consume alcohol and seek affection from others as a way to help forget her troubles, because "[she] just want[s] to feel better." Rose described it by saying that "the song tells a story of someone who resorts to things they might not be necessarily proud of, but that's how they're temporarily alleviating their guilt or their sadness."

Critical reception
Billy Dukes of Taste of Country rated the single 3 stars out of 5, saying that "It's real. A little more detail about the failed romance or some mention of what went wrong might fill in some of the spaces and allow Rose to deliver a more inspired performance. Instead, 'Better' is mostly a story of a woman and her drink, which can only get you so far." Matt Bjorke of Roughstock wrote in his review of the album that it "showcases Rose's soft and tender side - perhaps the most on this album."

Music video
The music video for "Better" was directed by Yeah Yeah and premiered on CMT on May 30, 2013. It begins with Rose at a cemetery laying a bouquet of flowers on someone's grave, before the song starts. Rose is then shown performing the song from various places in a dimly-lit house and an empty church. At the bridge of the song, she opens the front door of the house to let the light in before appearing outside in the sun, while also being joined by people in the church. The house scenes were filmed at the estate of William Nichol who served as the mayor of Nashville from 1835 to 1837.

Chart performance

Year-end charts

References

2013 singles
Maggie Rose songs
Song recordings produced by Blake Chancey
Song recordings produced by James Stroud
Songs written by Dave Berg (songwriter)
2013 songs
Songs written by Deanna Bryant

Better (Maggie Rose song)


Sammy Reeson (born 5 January 1963) is a British former boxer who was the first to hold both the British and European cruiserweight titles and went on to fight for the WBC world title.

Career
From Battersea, London, Reeson began his professional career in 1983 and won his first twelve fights before winning his first title, the Southern Area light heavyweight title that he won in January 1985 with a 6th round stoppage of Trevor Cattouse. In October 1985 he fought Stewart Lithgo for the newly introduced British cruiserweight title, winning on points over 12 rounds. He maintained his 100-percent win record until May 1986 when he was stopped in the 4th round by Louis Pergaud.

In April 1987 he met Manfred Jassmann for the chance to become the first EBU cruiserweight champion; Reeson became European champion on a unanimous decision. He successfully defended the title in November that year, beating Luigi Ricci via a 7th-round knockout.

In May 1989 he met Puerto Rican Carlos de León for the WBC cruiserweight title vacated by Evander Holyfield; De Leon stopped Reeson in the 9th round after knocking him down twice — only the second defeat of Reeson's 26-fight career. This proved to be Reeson's final fight.

References

Steve Bunce Radio Show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYS5rKls8X4
Sammy talks about his life after boxing and why he retired after being stopped in the 9th round of his World Title fight against Carlos De Leon in 1989.  He turned to collecting scrap metal for a living and dropped out of the boxing world completely.  In 2011, after an accident at work, he had his leg amputated from the knee.

External links
Career record at boxrec.com

1963 births
Living people
Cruiserweight boxers
Light-heavyweight boxers
English male boxers
Sportspeople from Battersea
Boxers from Greater London

Sammy Reeson


Dichloromethane (DCM, methylene chloride, or methylene bichloride) is an organochlorine compound with the formula . This colorless, volatile liquid with a chloroform-like, sweet odor is widely used as a solvent. Although it is not miscible with water, it is slightly polar, and miscible with many organic solvents.

Occurrence
Natural sources of dichloromethane include oceanic sources, macroalgae, wetlands, and volcanoes.  However, the majority of dichloromethane in the environment is the result of industrial emissions.

Production
DCM is produced by treating either chloromethane or methane with chlorine gas at 400–500 °C. At these temperatures, both methane and chloromethane undergo a series of reactions producing progressively more chlorinated products.  In this way, an estimated 400,000 tons were produced in the US, Europe, and Japan in 1993.

The output of these processes is a mixture of chloromethane, dichloromethane, chloroform, and carbon tetrachloride as well as hydrogen chloride as a byproduct. These compounds are separated by distillation.

DCM was first prepared in 1839 by the French chemist Henri Victor Regnault (1810–1878), who isolated it from a mixture of chloromethane and chlorine that had been exposed to sunlight.

Uses
DCM's volatility and ability to dissolve a wide range of organic compounds makes it a useful solvent for many chemical processes.  In the food industry, it is used to decaffeinate coffee and tea as well as to prepare extracts of hops and other flavourings. Its volatility has led to its use as an aerosol spray propellant and as a blowing agent for polyurethane foams.

Hydrogen bonding
Methylene chloride is a Lewis acid that can hydrogen bond to electron donors.  It is classified as a hard acid and is included in the ECW model.  It is a solvent that has been used in many thermodynamic studies of donor-acceptor bonding. The donor hydrogen-bonding corrections of methylene chloride in these thermodynamic studies has been reported.

Specialized uses

The chemical compound's low boiling point allows the chemical to function in a heat engine that can extract mechanical energy from small temperature differences. An example of a DCM heat engine is the drinking bird. The toy works at room temperature. It is also used as the fluid in jukebox displays and holiday bubble lights that have a colored bubbling tube above a lamp as a source of heat and a small amount of rock salt to provide thermal mass and a nucleation site for the phase changing solvent.

DCM chemically welds certain plastics. For example, it is used to seal the casing of electric meters. Often sold as a main component of plastic welding adhesives, it is also used extensively by model building hobbyists for joining plastic components together. It is commonly referred to as "Di-clo."

It is used in the garment printing industry for removal of heat-sealed garment transfers.

DCM is used in the material testing field of civil engineering; specifically it is used during the testing of bituminous materials as a solvent to separate the binder from the aggregate of an asphalt or macadam to allow the testing of the materials.

Dichloromethane extract of Asparagopsis taxiformis, a seaweed fodder for cattle, has been found to reduce their methane emissions by 79%.

It is used as the principal component of various paint and lacquer strippers.

Chemical reactions
Dichloromethane is widely used as a solvent in part because it is relatively inert.  It does participate in reactions with certain strong nucleophiles however. Tert-butyllithium deprotonates DCM:

Methyllithium reacts with methylene chloride to give chlorocarbene (CHCl).

Dichloromethane reacts with certain amines under ambient temperature and pressure. Tertiary amines can react with DCM to form quaternary chloromethyl chloride salts via the Menshutkin reaction. Secondary amines can react with DCM to yield an equilibrium of iminium chlorides and chloromethyl chlorides, which can react with a second equivalent of the secondary amine to form aminals. Under increased temperature and pressure, pyridines including DMAP can react with DCM to form methylene bispyridinium dichlorides. Additionally, HOBT and related reagents used in peptide coupling can react with DCM in the presence of triethylamine, forming acetals. As DCM is a common solvent in organic chemistry laboratories, measures must be taken to avoid its reaction with sensitive compounds.

Toxicity
Even though DCM is the least toxic of the simple chlorohydrocarbons, it has serious health risks. Its high volatility makes it an acute inhalation hazard. It can also be absorbed through the skin.
Symptoms of acute overexposure to dichloromethane via inhalation include difficulty concentrating, dizziness, fatigue, nausea, headaches, numbness, weakness, and irritation of the upper respiratory tract and eyes. More severe consequences can include suffocation, loss of consciousness, coma, and death.

DCM is also metabolized by the body to carbon monoxide potentially leading to carbon monoxide poisoning. Acute exposure by inhalation has resulted in optic neuropathy and hepatitis. Prolonged skin contact can result in DCM dissolving some of the fatty tissues in skin, resulting in skin irritation or chemical burns.

It may be carcinogenic, as it has been linked to cancer of the lungs, liver, and pancreas in laboratory animals. Other animal studies showed breast cancer and salivary gland cancer. Research is not yet clear as to what levels may be carcinogenic. DCM crosses the placenta but fetal toxicity in women who are exposed to it during pregnancy has not been proven. In animal experiments, it was fetotoxic at doses that were maternally toxic but no teratogenic effects were seen.

In people with pre-existing heart problems, exposure to DCM can cause abnormal heart rhythms and/or heart attacks, sometimes without any other symptoms of overexposure. People with existing liver, nervous system, or skin problems may worsen after exposure to methylene chloride.

Regulation
In many countries, products containing DCM must carry labels warning of its health risks. Concerns about its health effects have led to a search for alternatives in many of its applications.

In the European Union, the Scientific Committee on Occupational Exposure Limit Values (SCOEL) recommends an occupational exposure limit for DCM of 100 ppm (8-hour time-weighted average) and a short-term exposure limit of 200 ppm for a 15 minute period. The European Parliament voted in 2009 to ban the use of DCM in paint-strippers for consumers and many professionals, with the ban taking effect in December 2010.

In February 2013, the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health warned that at least 14 bathtub refinishers have died since 2000 from DCM exposure. These workers had been working alone, in poorly ventilated bathrooms, with inadequate or no respiratory protection, and no training about the hazards of DCM. OSHA has since then issued a DCM standard.

On March 15, 2019, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a final rule to prohibit the manufacture (including importing and exporting), processing, and distribution of DCM in all paint removers for consumer use, effective in 180 days. However, it does not affect other products containing DCM, including many consumer products not intended for paint removal.

On April 20, 2023, the EPA proposed a widespread ban on the production of DCM with some exceptions for military and industrial uses.

Environmental effects

Ozone

Dichloromethane is not classified as an ozone-depleting substance by the Montreal Protocol.  The US Clean Air Act does not regulate dichloromethane as an ozone depleter.  Recent research shows that dichloromethane and other halogenated very short-lived substances (VSLSs), despite their short atmospheric lifetimes of less than 0.5 year, can contribute to stratospheric ozone depletion, particularly if emitted in regions where rapid transport to the stratosphere occurs.  Atmospheric abundances of dichloromethane have been increasing in recent years.

Ozone concentrations measured at the midlatitudes from the ground up through the stratosphere from 1998 to 2016 have declined by 2.2 Dobson units, just under 1%. The reasons for this decline are unclear, but one unverified hypothesis is the presence of short-lived substances such as dichloromethane in the lower atmosphere.

See also
Chloromethane
Trichloromethane
Tetrachloromethane
List of organic compounds
Carbon monoxide-releasing molecules

References

External links

 National Pollutant Inventory – Dichloromethane Fact Sheet
 Dichloromethane at National Toxicology Program
 IARC Summaries & Evaluations Vol. 71 (1999)
 Canadian Environmental Protection Act Priority Substances List Assessment Report
Organic Compounds Database
Sustainable uses and Industry recommendations

Chloroalkanes
Halomethanes
Aerosol propellants
Hazardous air pollutants
Refrigerants
Halogenated solvents
IARC Group 2A carcinogens
Fetotoxicants
Testicular toxicants
Halogen-containing natural products
GABAA receptor positive allosteric modulators
Sweet-smelling chemicals
Ozone depletion

Dichloromethane


Folsom site or Wild Horse Arroyo, designated by the Smithsonian trinomial 29CX1, is a major archaeological site about  west of Folsom, New Mexico.  It is the type site for the Folsom tradition, a Paleo-Indian cultural sequence dating to between 11000 BC and 10000 BC. The Folsom site was excavated in 1926 and found to have been a marsh-side kill site or camp where 32 bison had been killed using distinctive tools, known as Folsom points.  This site is significant because it was the first time that artifacts indisputably made by humans were found directly associated with faunal remains from an extinct form of bison from the Late Pleistocene. The information culled from this site was the first of a set of discoveries that would allow archaeologists to revise their estimations for the time of arrival of Native Americans on the North American continent.

Discovery

The site was found in 1908 by George McJunkin, an ex-slave cowboy and ranch foreman. While riding across the Crowfoot Ranch following the very severe rainstorm of August 27, which had devastated the nearby town of Folsom, he noticed and investigated a number of large bones where flash flooding from that storm had cut deeply into the bed of Wild Horse Arroyo. McJunkin was a self-educated man, with enough interest in geology and archaeology to recognize that the bones were not modern bison, and had been too deeply buried to be recent. For several years he tried to interest field archaeologists to visit the site, with little success. In 1918, he and Ivan Shoemaker, the teenage son of the Crowfoot Ranch's owner, dug bones and a fluted lance point out of the arroyo bank, and sent them to the Denver Museum of Natural History. The museum sent paleontologist Harold Cook to the Crowfoot the following spring, and he and McJunkin did some exploratory digging.

Excavation

In 1926, archaeologist Jesse Figgins from the Denver Museum (now the Denver Museum of Nature and Science) and Harold Cook arrived at the site to begin excavations.  Figgins discovered a light, fluted projectile point buried between two of the bison's ribs, thus establishing a clear association of the point with the species of bison that had been extinct for approximately 10,000 years.  Instead of extracting the projectile point from the bones, he instead cut around the bones and the embedded projectile point, removing the entire sample without disturbing the associated point.

Figgins returned to the Denver Museum of Natural History with the point and bones for further study.  The original Folsom point, still embedded in the matrix between the two bison ribs, can be seen on display at the very end of the Prehistoric Journey exhibit at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.

Controversy

During the first quarter of the 20th century, a bitter debate raged in the archaeology and physical anthropology communities about recent discoveries suggesting that humans had arrived in the Americas several thousand years earlier than had previously been thought possible. Most notably Ales Hrdlicka, curator of the U.S. National Museum, remained adamant in his belief that humans could not have arrived until about 1000 years BCE. Findings of stone tools together with ancient animal remains were dismissed as, at best, mixing due to erosion or burrowing animals, or worse as careless excavation techniques, or even fraudulent "salting" of artifacts among the bones. Any archaeologist bold enough to challenge the conventional view risked damage to his reputation and career, without indisputable proof. The site in Wild Horse Arroyo provided this opportunity.

Present Day

The site was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1961.

See also

Lindenmeier site, another National Historic Landmark site that was a Folsom culture campsite, in northern Colorado.
Cooper Bison Kill Site, another Folsom culture kill site in Oklahoma
Jones-Miller Bison Kill Site a Folsom culture kill site in northeastern Colorado
National Register of Historic Places listings in Colfax County, New Mexico
List of National Historic Landmarks in New Mexico

References
Adovasio, J.M. and David Pedler. "The Peopling of North America." North American Archaeology. Blackwell Publishing, 2005. p. 45.

Archaeological type sites
Paleo-Indian archaeological sites in the United States
Archaeological sites in New Mexico
Archaeological sites on the National Register of Historic Places in New Mexico
National Register of Historic Places in Colfax County, New Mexico
National Historic Landmarks in New Mexico
History of Colfax County, New Mexico
Geography of Colfax County, New Mexico
Bison hunting
1908 archaeological discoveries
1926 archaeological discoveries

Folsom site


"I'll Just Take It Out in Love" is a love song by George Jones.  It rose to #11 when it was released by Epic Records in 1978. I was written by Bob McDill.  The song, which celebrates domestic tranquility, could not have been more different from what Jones was experiencing in his personal life at the time; the singer was penniless, addicted to alcohol and cocaine, and quickly earning a reputation as the most undependable live performer in show business.  However, despite how much he abused himself, his vocal abilities remained stellar.  In 2006 he explained to Billboard magazine, "I would say 90% of the time I would be in pretty damn good shape when I went into the studio. I did have a little sense, not a whole lot. But I would still have to have a little build-up of courage, three or four drinks [throughout] the session time. I don't know, it seemed to mellow you out and relax you a little more, and you would even feel your songs better."

Chart performance

References

1978 singles
George Jones songs

I'll Just Take It Out in Love


Transit Scenic Tours is an Australian coach company in Sydney.

History
In August 1955, Messers Appleby and Nelson purchased route 129 Rockdale to Tempe Bus Depot. In May 1963, route 120 Stanmore to Lilyfield was purchased, followed in August 1965 by route 227 Sydenham to Stanmore. On 6 December 1965, all three route were combined as route 129 Rockdale to Rozelle. The operation initially traded as Appleby & Nelson, later being renamed Tempe Bus Service.

In November 1987, the route was renumbered 450. On 1 October 1988, it was sold to Arrow Coaches and later passed to Sydney Buses' Tempe depot becoming part of route 425. At the same time, route 449 Sydenham station to Petersham station via Marrickville Metro Shopping Centre was introduced, it ceased on 25 January 1990.

A coach charter business was also operated under the Transit Scenic Tours banner. After the disposal of the route service, this continued. Some coaches were signwritten for Nelson's Coaches. From 1988 until August 1993, a service was operated between the domestic and international terminals at Sydney Airport under contract to Ansett Australia under the Intershuttle brand.

Fleet
As at October 2016, the fleet consisted of 14 buses and coaches. Fleet livery was originally white and orange. This was replaced by a blue and white livery. In 1990, a new livery of white with yellow signwriting was introduced.

Depot
From its inception, Transit Scenic Tours operated out of a depot in Marsh Street, Arncliffe. After it was compulsorily acquired to make way for the M5 South Western Motorway, a depot was established in Homebush Bay, later moving to Bankstown.

References

Bus companies of New South Wales
Bus transport in Sydney
Transport companies established in 1955
Australian companies established in 1955

Transit Scenic Tours


The China Center of Adoption Affairs (CCAA) was established on June 24, 1996 by China's Ministry of Civil Affairs. The CCAA is responsible for the welfare of children in the care of Child Welfare Institutes (orphanages), domestic adoption, and international adoption.

Administrative structure
Located in Beijing, the CCAA has one office that is divided into the following eight departments with specific administrative responsibilities: Administrative Office; Adopter's Eligibility Review Department; Child's Inter-Country Placement Department; Domestic Adoption Department; Child-Raising Department; Archives Management Department; Information and Technology Department; Finance Department; and General Affairs Department.

Nurture of children in Social Welfare Institutions
The CCAA has announced four concrete missions with regard to its role in overseeing the welfare of children in social welfare institutions.  The first mission is to conduct studies and make recommendations concerning child-raising programs in such institutions.  Second, the CCAA aims to promulgate standards to be implemented in social welfare institutions.  The third mission is to manage the training of care-providers.  Fourth, the CCAA seeks to implement advanced methods and programs in child-rearing.

Domestic adoptions
The CCAA also has four missions with regard to the handling of domestic adoptions.  First, the CCAA is to conduct studies aimed at furthering the development of its domestic adoption program.  The second mission is to develop and implement regulations for domestic adoption.  The third mission is to develop a consulting service for the program, and the fourth mission is to coordinate and develop an inter-province domestic adoption service.

Intercountry adoptions
China ratified the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption on September 16, 2005.  Pursuant to Article 6 of the convention, the CCAA is the Central Authority responsible for all inter-country adoptions in China.  As such, the CCAA has the overall responsibility for the inter-country adoption of Chinese children.  Chinese law governs the adoptability of Chinese children, regardless of the country where potential adopters reside.  Pursuant to Article 4 of the Adoption Law of the People's Republic of China (Adoption Law), the following children under the age of 14 qualify for adoption: orphans; children who have been abandoned by their parents; and children whose parents are unable to care for them due to "unusual difficulties."

Adoptions must be fully completed in China, as it is not possible under Chinese law to obtain guardianship over a child for later adoption in a foreign country.  Adoptive parents must travel to China to finalize the adoption of a child.  In the event only one parent is able to travel to China to finalize the adoption, the spouse who travels to China must bring a notarized power of attorney for the other spouse.

Eight missions of the CCAA
The CCAA claims to have eight concrete missions with regard to intercountry adoptions.  First, the CCAA receives and reviews applications and certifying documentation from foreign persons wishing to adopt.  Second, the CCAA also receives certifying documentation from persons placing children out for adoption.  Pursuant to Article 5 of the Adoption Law, the following individuals are entitled to place children out for adoption: guardians of an orphan; social welfare institutions; and parents who are unable to care for their children.  The third mission of the CCAA is to locate and assign children who are available for adoption under the Adoption Law.  Fourth, the CCAA is to follow up with the life and growth of adopted children in foreign countries.  The CCAA's fifth mission is to assist other departments of the Chinese government that are involved in the adoption of Chinese children.  Such departments include Child Welfare Institutes, provincial Notarial Offices responsible for issuance of the final adoption certificate, and the Public Security Bureau responsible for issuing Chinese passports and exit permits for adopted children.  The sixth mission is to archive all documentation for each party involved in a child's adoption, including the application for adoption, certifying documents, and materials concerning the life of the child in his or her new home.  Seventh, the CCAA is to conduct any liaison, counseling, or coordination work involved with inter-country adoptions.  The final stated mission of the CCAA is to handle any other matters regarding the intercountry adoption process that has not been delegated to another office or authority.

Required documentation
The CCAA requires prospective adopters to submit the following application documents: adoption application; birth certificate; marital status certificate; certificates of profession, property and income; health examination certificate; home study report; certificate of child adoption approval by the competent department of the prospective adopters' country of residence; copy of applicants' passports; and two full-face photographs of each adopter, as well as several other photographs reflecting the family's life in their home country.

In addition to the application documents, prospective adopters are also required to submit the following certifying documentation: notarized medical certificate completed by a physician for each prospective adopter; notarized medical certificate of infertility if applicable to the prospective adoptive couple; a certificate of good conduct from a local or national law enforcement department, which needs to either be notarized or bear the department's official seal; notarized and authenticated verification of employment and salary; two notarized and authenticated letters of reference; a certified home study prepared by a CCAA-licensed adoption agency; notarized and authenticated bank statements; notarized and authenticated power of attorney if only one spouse travels to China to finalize the adoption; family letter of intent to adopt; and copies of any forms required by the prospective adopters' home countries.

All materials submitted to the CCAA must have a certified Mandarin Chinese translation, and the material must include a notarized statement by the translator attesting to the validity of the translation.  The CCAA will have the documents translated for a $200 (U.S.) fee.

Adoption process
The U.S. Department of State has outlined the following procedures for intercountry adoption of Chinese children.  The process starts when a CCAA-licensed adoption agency sends a complete application packet, including all required documentation, directly to the CCAA.  In addition to all documentation required by the CCAA, the application packet should include a cover letter and any preferences with regard to the child's age, sex, physical/mental condition, or Chinese region of origin.  Once received, the CCAA reviews the application packet and requests that the prospective adopters submit any omitted documents or authorizations.

If the CCAA approves the application, it will then match an available child with the prospective adopters and will send the prospective adopters information about the child, commonly called a "referral," which includes photographs and the child's health records.  If the prospective adopters have additional questions after receiving the information, they may contact the CCAA either directly or through their adoption agency.

Within 45 days after the CCAA sent the referral, the prospective adopters must notify the CCAA, via their adoption agency, whether or not they have chosen to accept the referral.  If the prospective adopters reject the referral, they must provide a justified explanation to the CCAA; otherwise, the CCAA may withdraw their application for Chinese adoption.  If the prospective parents accept a referral, the CCAA will send them an approval notice (Notice of Coming to China for Adoption).

After the prospective adopters receive the approval notice form the CCAA, they may then travel to China to finalize the adoption process.  Although the CCAA is located in Beijing, prospective adopters will not be required to travel to Beijing during the adoption process.  Instead, the location of the child to be adopted determines which city the prospective adopters travel to.  Prior to the arrival of the prospective adopters, the CCAA will have forwarded a copy of the adoption approval notice to the Child Welfare Institutes, the Civil Affairs officials, and the Notarial Offices in the locality where the child to be adopted resides.

In order to finalize the adoption, the prospective adopters must first meet with the adoption registry office.  Prospective adopters are sometimes required to meet with the local Notarial Office as well.  Prior to the completion of the adoption, the prospective adopters may request to see the child in person.  Any additional questions about the child must be resolved prior to finalization of the adoption.

After interviewing with the various Chinese government offices, the prospective adopters must pay a fixed donation of between $3000 and $5000 (U.S.) to the Child Welfare Institute where the child was cared for prior to the adoption.  The prospective adopters will then be required to sign agreements with the Child Welfare Institute, register the adoption at the provincial Civil Affairs Bureau, and pay all of the remaining required fees.

After the local Notarial Office approves the adoption, that Office will notarize a certificate of adoption, a birth certificate, and either a death certificate for the child's biological parents or a statement of abandonment from the Welfare Institute.  The child is officially adopted on the day of the notarization, after which the adopters are fully and legally responsible for the child.

Once the adoption has been finalized, the Child Welfare Institute must obtain a Chinese passport and exit permit from the Public Security Bureau in that jurisdiction.

Revised intercountry adoption requirements
The CCAA has promulgated the following new intercountry adoption requirements, set to take effect on May 1, 2007.
Prospective adopters must be married for at least two years prior to the adoption, with marriage defined as being between a man and a woman.  If either the husband or wife has been divorced in the past, the prospective adopters must be married for at least five years prior to the adoption.  If either the husband or wife has been divorced more than twice, the couple is precluded from adopting a Chinese child.
Single persons will no longer be eligible to adopt Chinese children, although they were previously allowed to by the CCAA.  In fact, approximately one-third of all children adopted from China in the past were adopted by single parents.  This restriction is due, in part, to the belief that the child will be without a parent if the single adopter dies.  Chinese law has always precluded homosexual individuals or couples from adopting children.
Both the husband and wife must be at least 30 years of age, and both must be under the age of 50.  If a couple is adopting a special needs child, neither spouse can be older than 55 years of age.
The age restriction is meant to lessen the chances that a child will lose a parent before turning 18 years of age, or that a child will be burdened with the responsibility of providing for elderly parents.
Both the husband and wife must be physically and mentally fit, and must not have any of the following conditions:
AIDS;
Mental handicap;
Infectious disease that is actively contagious;
Blindness in one or both eyes or wearing an ocular prosthetic;
Hearing impairment in both ears or the loss of language function; those adopting children with hearing or language function loss are exempt if they have the same conditions;
Non-function or dysfunction of limbs or trunk caused by impairment, incomplete limb, paralysis or deformation;
Severe facial deformation;
Severe diseases that require long-term treatment and that affect life expectancy, including malignant tumors, lupus erythematosus, nephrosis, epilepsy, etc.;
Major organ transplant within the past ten years;
Schizophrenia;
On medication for more than two years for severe mental disorders, such as clinical depression, mania, or anxiety disorder;
Body mass index (BMI) greater than 40.
One spouse must have stable employment.  The family's annual income must be $10,000 per household member (including children), and the family's assets must total at least $80,000.  The requisite family income excludes welfare income, pensions, unemployment insurance, government subsidies, etc.;
Each spouse must be a high school graduate, or have vocational training equivalent to that of a high school graduate;
A couple must have fewer than five children in the family under 18 years of age, and the youngest child should be at least 1 year of age.  Families adopting special needs children will be exempt.
Neither spouse may have a criminal record, as well as any of the following histories:
Domestic violence, sex abuse, child abandonment or child abuse (even absent an arrest or conviction for such behavior);
Use of narcotics, like opium, morphine, marijuana, cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, etc., or any medication for mental illness that has addictive qualities;
Alcohol abuse.  If prospective adopters do have histories of alcohol abuse, they must show that they have been sober for at least ten years.
Prospective adopters must understand the responsibilities of adoption, the expectation to provide a warm family environment for the orphaned child, and must be able to provide for the proper development of the child.  Prospective adopters must also have an understanding of intercountry adoption, and must be prepared for potential risks associated with intercountry adoption, such as potential diseases, developmental delays, post-placement maladjustment, etc.;
In their adoption application letter, the prospective adopters must clearly indicate that they are willing to allow post-placement follow-ups and to provide post-placement reports as required by the CCAA;
The fixed number of years or age requirements that prospective adopters must meet, as will be indicated in their adoption application letter, shall be dated from the day when the adoption application documents are logged in at the CCAA.

The new CCAA requirements are in response to an increase of adoption applications that have been submitted by prospective adopters.  The requirements are also due, in part, to a decrease in the number of available children for adoption.  The decrease in available children has been attributed to increased wealth of Chinese citizens, such that they are able to pay the "social compensation fee" to have more than one child under China's one-child policy.

The CCAA claims that the rationale for the new requirements is to protect the best interests of children, as well as to shorten the waiting time for the most qualified applicants.

In the case of single applicants: Only single women may apply. The minimum age for single applicants is 30 at the time of application. There can be no more than 45 years difference between the child and applicant. There can be no more than two children under the age of 18 in the home and the youngest child must be older than 5 at the time of application. The minimum net worth of single applicants is $100,000 with an annual income of $10,000 per family member (including the prospective adoptee), plus an additional $10,000. There are additional requirements for single females who live with a male partner. Contact the China program for more information.  This is from the Holt International China adoption page Aug. 2016

Adoption to the United States
The United States is ranked as the number one destination for children adopted abroad, and since 2000, U.S. residents have adopted more children from China than any other country.

China first allowed adoptions to the United States in 1991, when 61 children were issued immigrant visas.  Between 1991 and 2005, the number of American adoptions of Chinese children had increased tremendously, with a total of 62,906 children have been adopted by U.S. residents during that time.  However, in recent years, largely as a result of adoption scandals, the number of American adoptions of Chinese children declined from a high of 7,906, in 2005, to 2,587, in 2011.  According to U.S. State Department statistics, the number of immigrant visas issued to Chinese orphans per year is as follows:
FY 2013: 2,306
FY 2012: 2,696
FY 2011: 2,587
FY 2010: 3,401
FY 2009: 3,000
FY 2008: 3,909
FY 2007: 5,453
FY 2006: 6,493
FY 2005: 7,906
FY 2004: 7,044
FY 2003: 6,859
FY 2002: 6,119
FY 2001: 4,681
FY 2000: 5,053
FY 1999: 4,101
FY 1998: 4,206
FY 1997: 3,597
FY 1996: 3,333
FY 1995: 2,130
FY 1994: 787
FY 1993: 330
FY 1992: 206
FY 1991: 61

Adoption to other countries
As of September 30, 2005, China has agreements with the following 16 nations for inter-country adoption: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore.

After the United States, Spain is the country that adopts the most children from China.  In 2005, over 2,700 children were adopted by Spanish families. Like the United States, families in Australia, Canada, and Spain adopt more children from China than from any other country.

See also

References

External links

Adoption-related organizations
Government agencies of China
Adoption law
Child-related organizations in China
Adoption in China

China Center of Adoption Affairs


Charlie & Boots is a 2009 Australian film starring Paul Hogan and Shane Jacobson. It had the best opening weekend for any Australian film in 2009 when it was released on Father's Day (1 September 2009). The film features many small towns in country Australia. It also has a cameo by Reg Evans, who died in the 2009 Victorian bushfires before the film was released, and the film is dedicated to the victims of the fires.

Plot
Shane Jacobson plays Boots who takes his father (Paul Hogan) on a trip to fish on the northernmost tip of Australia because of something his father told him when he was a kid. Although he probably wasn't serious and can't remember it Boots decides to carry it out. They travel on a road trip from Victoria to the Cape York Peninsula in a Holden Kingswood, passing through towns like Tamworth. The film starts with the death of Gracie, Boots' mother and Charlie's wife. After Gracie's death, Boots goes to visit Charlie on the family farm, finding him locked away in the house in the dark, curtains drawn. Boots looks at a calendar on the wall with a picture of Cape York and remembers his father promising to take him fishing off the northernmost tip of Australia. As the trip starts out, Boots and Charlie seem tense, but as the days pass they begin to rekindle their father-son relationship.

Their journey involves visiting different towns, hang-outs in different restaurants, and visiting famous attractions. On their way, they start to reconcile and express their emotions about the recent death of Gracie, Charlie's wife and Boots's mother, and the drama unfolding around the death of Ben, Boots' son, by drowning.

They even help a young 16-year-old girl named Jess by allowing her to escape her boyfriend Tristan and aid her in her dream to go to the famous country city of Tamworth. The trio manage to arrive in the town, and Jess plays one of her songs in the famous large hall, after passing a manager. They push a car they thought was owned by a Tristan out of a car park at night and end up damaging it. They fly in a small aircraft with a pilot (Roy Billing). From the craft, they see the Great Barrier Reef. The pilot continuously hits the altitude meter, making Boots feel nervous. They are dropped off by the pilot and they both wave goodbye as it leaves. In the end, Charlie and Boots both make it to their destination, Cape York, the northernmost tip of Australia. They take their fishing rods and quote a few sentences they traveled with on their journey. As the credits roll, we learn that Jess has been discovered by a music industry manager and has made a single about an obnoxious boyfriend. At the end of the credits, we see a brief clip of Charlie and Boots traveling over the Sydney Harbour Bridge. They look up from their car in awe, causing Boots to marvel at how big the bridge is. Charlie quips "Yeah... imagine having to paint (it)" – a dig at Hogan's pre-fame occupation as a worker on it.

Cast

 Paul Hogan as Charlie McFarland
 Alan Powell as Rodeo Clown
 Morgan Griffin as Jess
 Shane Jacobson as Boots McFarland
 Deborah Kennedy as Miles Waitress
 Reg Evans as Mac
 Roy Billing as Roly
 Alec Wilson as Rodeo Worker 1
 Val Lehman as Edna (Bowling Lady Driver) (billed as Valerie Lehman)
 Lisa N Edwards as Graeme's Wife
 Di Smith as Strawberry Lady (as Diane Smith)
 Anne Phelan as Female Truckie
 Bec Asha as Gunbar Waitress (billed as Rebecca Asha)
 Danny Baldwin as Bucking Horse Rider
 Beverley Dunn as Val
 Andy Pappas as Shearer 2
 Michael Morley as Young Cowboy Rodeo
 Sam Elia as Motorbike Cop
 Scott Harrison as Graeme
 Stewart Faichney as Truck Driver
 Anthony Hammer as Tristan
 Richard Payten as Toilet Guy
 Eloise Grace as Masseuse
 Charlotte Victoria as Granddaughter
 Deb Fryers as Massage Girl 1
 Patrick O'Meara as Rodeo Worker 2
 Fiona MacGregor as Toowoomba Waitress 1
 Patricia Wood as Bowling Lady
 Tanya Cinelli as Toowoomba Waitress 2
 Baxter James Thomson as Ben
 John Nutting as himself
 Anthony Sargeant as Country Band
 Robert McGluggage as Funeral Guest
 Joe Faulkner as Cowboy
 Ann Hurst as Bowling Lady
 John Leonard as Radio DJ
 Christopher Gaudion as Bull Rider
 Rob Mills as Rodeo Announcer
 Catherine Thomson as Therese
 Barbara MacMillan as Marge
 Korey Greehaigh as Troublemakers
 Adam Knowles as Rodeo Clown
 Bernie Hoefnagels as Motel Owner
 Steve Lack as Traveller
 Shelley Minson as Country Band
 Brodie Greenhalgh as Troublemakers
 Laline Engman as Massage Girl 2
 Cory Ford as Bull Rider
 Dallas Powell as Bucking Horse Rider
 Christopher Bruce as Grandson
 T.J. Alcaniz as Not Mexican Waiter
 Mary Fanello as Vendor Lady
 Matt Scullion as Country Band Singer
 Susan McGrath as Neighbour
 Peggy Thompson as Grace
 Brett Tomlin as Country Band
 Marisa Jones as Jogger
 Raheel Abid as Petrol Station Attendant
 Anne Herd as Line Dancer
 Shelley Moser as Leilani
 Dallas Olsen as Shearer 1
 Troy Furley as Holden Museum Guide
 Lesley Hurst as Bowling Lady
 Ross Stockham as Bull Rider
 Helen Hoefnagels as Breakfast Lady
 Heidi Williams as Woman with Tray
 Lawrie Minson as Country Band
 Brett Lobsey as Country Band
 Jean Hyde as Line Dancer

Music
 Jack, single by songwriter Lianna Rose

Production
Filming took place in Warrnambool, Horsham, Echuca, Hay, Tamworth, Tenterfield, Emerald and the Cape York Peninsula.

Reception
The film received generally positive reviews with 58% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes from 12 reviews as of July 2019. It was called a "likeable family comedy" by Sandra Hall of The Sydney Morning Herald and "a superbly relaxed and good-natured film" by Evan Williams of The Australian.

References

External links

2000s road movies
2009 films
Australian road movies
Films set in Australia
Films scored by Dale Cornelius
2000s English-language films
Screen Australia films
Transmission Films films

Charlie & Boots


The Bangladesh Nazrul Sena (Bangladesh Nazrul Army) is an NGO, public service organization working for the education, health and upliftment of children, adolescents and young adults in Bangladesh. It is named after famous Bengali poet, writer and musician Kazi Nazrul Islam, whose philosophy has inspired the purpose and mission of the organization.

Foundation
The Bangladesh Nazrul Sena was founded in 1964 in Bangladesh (then East Pakistan). Its activities were curtailed during the Bangladesh Liberation War and the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, but began rapidly growing following the independence of Bangladesh. It was inspired by the philosophy of Kazi Nazrul Islam, who is regarded as the "national poet" of Bangladesh. The organization seeks to combat child abuse, injustice and discrimination of children and young people based on socio-economic background, religion, poverty, birth, sex, health and handicaps.

Activities
Governed by a central committee of trustees and board members, the Bangladesh Nazrul Sena has 35 branches and chapters across Bangladesh, through which it sponsors initiatives and programmes for healthcare and education for Bangladeshi youth. It works with public schools, kindergarten schools and orphanages to provide care and support for the development of children and young adults. The organization also supports many volunteer activities and programmes.

Nazrul Sena School
The organization has also established the Nazrul Sena School, which is a well-known kindergarten school in Mymensingh. It was established in 1990, and is directly monitored by Bangladesh Nazrul Sena. G. E. M. Faruque, a key official of the organization, is the founder and the current principal of the school. Nazrul Sena school has more than 200 students, 18 full-time teachers and 5 other staff members. Students of the school are always busy with their education and also involved in cultural activities like music, dance, drawing, sports, debating, speech and other social activities. The school started education using multimedia computer software for the first time in Myemsingh and amongst the first in Bangladesh. Every year the school arranges picnics, study tours, annual sports, cultural competitions, annual prize-giving ceremony. Every year, the students organize a Multimedia Computer Show. In the fair, the students exhibit how much they learn from computer multimedia software.

References
Bangladesh Nazrul Sena
Nazrul Sena School
Nazrul Sena in Facebook
Kazi Nazrul Islam

Organizations established in 1964
Education in Bangladesh
Youth organisations based in Bangladesh
1964 establishments in East Pakistan

Bangladesh Nazrul Sena


The 2011 NCAA Women's Division I Swimming and Diving Championships were contested at the 30th annual NCAA-sanctioned swim meet to determine the team and individual national champions of Division I women's collegiate swimming and diving in the United States.

This year's events were hosted by the University of Texas at the Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center in Austin, Texas.

California captured this year's team title, finishing 29.5 points ahead of Georgia. It was the Golden Bears' second team title and second title in three seasons.

Team standings
Note: Top 10 only
(H) = Hosts
(DC) = Defending champions
Full results

See also
List of college swimming and diving teams

References

NCAA Division I Swimming And Diving Championships
NCAA Division I Swimming And Diving Championships
NCAA Division I Women's Swimming and Diving Championships
Women's sports in Texas

2011 NCAA Division I Women's Swimming and Diving Championships


The S4 Ehécatl is an unmanned aerial vehicle developed and manufactured by Hydra Technologies of Mexico which, except for its infrared thermal sensor system, is the first of its type to be completely designed and manufactured in Mexico. It is named after Ehecatl, the Aztec god of the wind.

Overview
A prototype of the airplane was presented in the Paris Air Show at Le Bourget on June 19, 2007.  In August 2007 at Washington D.C., a full-scale model was exhibited at the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) symposium, an aeronautics exposition with over 275 exhibitors.  At the conclusion of the AUSVI symposium Hydra Technologies became the first non-U.S. recipient of the AUSVI's 'Al Aube Outstanding Contributor Award' for the development of the S4 Ehécatl UAS (Unmanned Aerial System).

In 2008, Hydra Technologies received the Leonardo da Vinci award, given by the International Aeronautics Congress of Mexico (CIAM for its Spanish abbreviation) for the development of the S4 Ehácatl, as well as the E1 Gavilán.

On August 3, 2008, the State of Jalisco and Coecytjal presented Hydra with an award in the 29th Annual National Convention of the National Chamber of Electronics, Telecommunications and Informatics Industry (CANIETI), for its contribution to the informatics, microelectronics and communications industries in Mexico.

Description
The S4 Ehécatl is an aerial unmanned surveillance system whose development began in 2002. Its principal market is directed towards providing security and surveillance capabilities in support of the Armed Forces, as well as civilian protection in hazardous situations. Because of its small size and unmanned nature, it can enter dangerous zones without being detected.

Apart from a U.S.-made FLIR infrared thermal sensor system, all of the S4 Ehécatl's componentry and avionics are designed, developed and manufactured in Mexico by the firm Hydra Technologies. The S4 Ehécatl has an electronic system that is designed to provide up to eight hours of autonomous flight, in either daytime or nighttime conditions. The craft is controlled from a mobile central facility installed in a specially equipped three-man ground vehicle.

The surveillance capabilities of the UAV was suggested as an option to survey of the border problems between the U.S. and Mexico. The project developing the craft is a joint effort of the Mexican Federal Government, the Financial Sector, and Mexican academic and scientific institutions like CONACYT, the National Polytechnic Institute (IPN), the Autonomous University of Guadalajara and the Western Institute of Technology and Higher Education (ITESO).

Specifications

Operators
 Used by various government agencies and police organizations.

Gallery

References

External links

 Hydra Technologies de Mexico company website.

2000s Mexican military reconnaissance aircraft
Unmanned aerial vehicles of Mexico
Ehecatl
Twin-boom aircraft
Twin-engined push-pull aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 2006
High-wing aircraft

Hydra Technologies Ehécatl


An ice cream float or ice cream soda, also known as a spider in Australia and New Zealand, is a chilled beverage that consists of ice cream in either a soft drink or a mixture of flavored syrup and carbonated water.

When root beer and vanilla ice cream are used together to make the beverage, it is typically referred to as a root beer float (United States and Canada). A close variation is the coke float, using cola instead of root beer.

History
The ice cream float was invented by Robert McCay Green in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1874 during the Franklin Institute's semicentennial celebration. The traditional story is that, on a particularly hot day, Green ran out of ice for the flavored drinks he was selling and instead used vanilla ice cream from a neighboring vendor, inventing a new drink. The combination of mixing the two, though, seems to date to earlier, with the first known mention of one in the 1828 novel The Great Levroney.

His own account, published in Soda Fountain magazine in 1910, states that while operating a soda fountain at the celebration, he wanted to create a new treat to attract customers away from another vendor who had a larger, fancier soda fountain. After some experimentation, he decided to combine ice cream and flavored soda. During the celebration, he sold vanilla ice cream with soda and a choice of 16 flavored syrups. The new treat was a sensation and soon other soda fountains began selling ice cream floats.  Green's will instructed that "Originator of the Ice Cream Soda" was to be engraved on his tombstone.

There are at least three other claimants for the invention of the root beer float: Fred Sanders, Philip Mohr, and George Guy, one of Robert Green's own employees. Guy claimed to have absentmindedly mixed ice cream and soda in 1872, much to his customers' delight.

Regional names

In Australia and New Zealand, an ice cream float is known as a "spider" because once the carbonation hits the ice cream it forms a spider web-like reaction. It is traditionally made using either lime or pink cream soda.

In the UK and Ireland, it is usually referred to as an "ice-cream float" or simply a "float", as "coke" is often used generically to refer to any cola in the United Kingdom, and "soda" is usually taken to mean soda water, sweetened carbonated drinks instead being collectively called "soft drinks", "(fizzy) pop" or "fizzy juice".

In Mexico, it is known as "helado flotante" ("floating ice cream") or "flotante". In El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Costa Rica and Colombia it is called vaca negra (black cow), while in Puerto Rico it is referred to as a "black out".

In the United States, an "ice cream soda" typically refers to the drink containing soda water, syrup, and ice cream, whereas a "float" is generally ice cream in a soft drink (usually root beer).

Variations

Variations of ice cream floats are as countless as the varieties of drinks and the flavors of ice cream, but some have become more prominent than others. Some of the most popular are described below:

Chocolate ice cream soda
This ice cream soda starts with approximately 1 oz of chocolate syrup, then several scoops of chocolate ice cream in a tall glass. Unflavored carbonated water is added until the glass is filled and the resulting foam rises above the top of the glass. The final touch is a topping of whipped cream and usually, a maraschino cherry. This variation of ice cream soda was available at local soda fountains and nationally, at Dairy Queen stores for many years.

A similar soda made with chocolate syrup but vanilla ice cream is sometimes called a "black and white" ice cream soda.

Strawberry ice cream soda
This drink is prepared similarly to a chocolate ice cream soda, but with strawberry syrup and strawberry (or vanilla) ice cream used instead.

Root beer float

Also known as a "black cow" or "brown cow", the root beer float is traditionally made with vanilla ice cream and root beer, but it can also be made with other ice cream flavors. Frank J. Wisner, owner of Colorado's Cripple Creek Brewing, is credited with creating the first root beer float on August 19, 1893. The similarly flavored soft drink birch beer may also be used instead of root beer.

In the United States and Canada, the chain A&W Restaurants are well known for their root beer floats. The definition of a black cow varies by region. For instance, in some localities, a "root beer float" has strictly vanilla ice cream; a float made with root beer and chocolate ice cream is a "chocolate cow" or a "brown cow". In some places a "black cow" or a "brown cow" was made with cola instead of root beer.

In 2008, the Dr Pepper Snapple Group introduced its Float beverage line. This includes A&W Root Beer, A&W Cream Soda and Sunkist flavors which attempt to simulate the taste of their respective ice cream float flavors in a creamy, bottled drink.

Coke float

A coke float can be made with any cola, such as Coca-Cola or Pepsi, and vanilla ice-cream.

Boston cooler

Today, a Boston cooler is typically composed of Vernors ginger ale and vanilla ice cream.

The first reference to a Boston cooler appears in the St. Louis Post Dispatch where a New York bartender claimed to have coined the phrase for a summer cocktail of sarsaparilla and ginger ale. In the 1910s, the term was applied in soda fountains and ice cream parlors to a scoop of ice cream served in a melon half. The name was also applied to a number of different ice-cream float combinations, including root beer, though ginger ale became the most common soft drink component.

By the 1880s a version of the Boston cooler was being served in Detroit by Sanders Confectionery, made with Sanders' ice cream and Vernors. Originally, a drink called a Vernors Cream was served as a shot or two of sweet cream poured into a glass of Vernors. Later, vanilla ice cream was substituted for the cream and blended like a milkshake. The local myth, that it was named after Detroit's Boston Boulevard, is belied by the fact that Boston Boulevard did not exist at the time.

It remains a popular summer drink in the Detroit area.

Snow White
A Snow White is made with 7 Up or Sprite and vanilla ice cream. The origin of this variation is unknown, but it is found in some Asian eateries.

Purple cow
In the context of ice cream soda, a purple cow is vanilla ice cream in purple grape soda. The Purple Cow, a restaurant chain in the southern United States, features this and similar beverages. In a more general context, a purple cow may refer to a non-carbonated grape juice and vanilla ice cream combination. Grapico, a brand of grape soda bottled in Birmingham, Alabama, is ubiquitously linked to ice cream floats in that state.

Sherbet cooler
The American Friendly's chain had a variation known as a "sherbet cooler," which was a combination of orange or watermelon sherbet, vanilla syrup and seltzer water. (At present, it is billed as a "slammer.")

Vaca-preta
At least in Brazil and Portugal, a non-alcoholic ice cream soda made by combining vanilla or chocolate ice cream and Coca-Cola is known as vaca-preta ("black cow").

Vaca amarela ou vaca dourada
In Brazil, a vaca amarela or yellow cow or vaca dourada or golden cow is an ice cream soda combination of vanilla ice cream and orange or guaraná soda.

Helado flotante
In Mexico the most popular version is made with cola and lemon sorbet.

Orange float
An orange float or orange whip consists of vanilla ice cream and orange soft drinks.

Beer float

A beer float is made of Guinness stout, chocolate ice cream, and espresso. Although the Shakin' Jesse version is blended into more of a milkshake consistency, most restaurant bars can make the beer float version. When making at home, the beer and espresso should be very cold so as to not melt the ice cream.

Nectar soda
This variant is popular in New Orleans and parts of Ohio, made with a syrup consisting of equal parts almond and vanilla syrups mixed with sweetened condensed milk and a touch of red food coloring to produce a pink, opalescent syrup base for the soda.

Melon cream soda

Cream soda with melon flavor (クリームソーダ) is a common drink in Japan. Melon soda (メロンソーダ) is served with ice and a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.

See also
 Affogato
 Cream soda—a fully carbonated soft drink based on the flavour of a classic soda
Dirty soda
 Egg cream—a similar beverage made with milk instead of ice cream
 List of brand name soft drink products
 List of soft drink flavors

References

Sources
 Funderburg, Anne Cooper. "Sundae Best: A History of Soda Fountains" (2002) University of Wisconsin Popular Press. .
 Gay, Cheri Y. (2001). Detroit Then and Now, p. 5. Thunder Bay Press. .
 Bulanda, George; Bak, Richard; and Ciavola, Michelle. The Way It Was: Glimpses of Detroit's History from the Pages of Hour Detroit Magazine, p. 8. Momentum Books. .
 Houston, Kay. "Of soda fountains and ice cream parlors." (February 11, 1996) The Detroit News.
 Alissa Ozols (2008) San Francisco.

External links

1874 introductions
American inventions
Food and drink introduced in the 19th century
Soft drinks
Ice cream drinks
American drinks

Ice cream float


The Roman Catholic Diocese of Chiang Mai (Dioecesis Chiangmaiensis, Thai: สังฆมณฑลเชียงใหม่) in northern Thailand is a suffragan diocese of the archdiocese of Bangkok. Bishop Francis Xavier Vira Arpondratana was appointed leader of the Diocese of Chiang Mai.

The Chiang Mai Diocese is composed of four provinces in the northern region of Thailand: Chiang Mai, Mae Hong Son, Lamphun, and Lampang (except Ngao District). The  diocese covers a land area of 48,013 square kilometers with a total population of 5,709,443. As of 2014, there are 68,975 Catholics with 15,080 Catechumens. There are 47 parishes with 519 minor churches or village chapels, eight schools run by religious institutes, seven diocesan schools and 760 Catholic villages. There are 94 priests, 16 religious brothers, 158 religious sisters and 819 lay catechists who work in the diocese.

History
The history of the diocese dates back to the time when Siam granted its people the freedom to choose and practice their own religious faith. The followers of various religions were then allowed the freedom to go around and spread their own religious beliefs.

The mission to the northern region of the country started when Bishop Jean-Baptiste Pallegoix instructed Fr. Jean-Baptiste Granjean and Fr. Jean-Baptiste Vachal of the Society of Foreign Missions of Paris (Société des Missions étrangères de Paris or M.E.P.) to take a trip to Chiang Mai for the first time on 5 December 1843.  It took them 45 days to reach Chiang Mai on 18 January 1844. At first, they received a warm welcome from the city chieftain but afterwards, the chief grew more unwelcoming. As a result, the two religious fathers abandoned their mission and return to Bangkok.

In 1913, Bishop Rene Perros revived the proposal to establish a center for evangelization in the northern region. In January 1914 he gave this assignment to Fr. Jean-Baptiste Fouillat and Fr. Joseph Broizat, who traveled to Chiang Mai. After exploring the possibilities of performing missionary activities in the area, they wrote to the bishop that the situation in Chiang Mai looked auspicious. They later bought a six hectare piece of land in the southern part of the city near the Ping River.

Bishop Rene Perros' dream was to build a catholic mission in the north. In 1930, Bishop Perros brought Father George Mirabel to the mission together with a Thai priest, Father Nicholas Bunkerd Kitbamrung (who is now recognized as Blessed Nicholas Bunkerd Kitbamrung, Martyr by the Roman Catholic Church), to start the work of evangelization in Chiang Mai. They reached Chiang Mai on 18 January 1931 and stayed with the Desousa family. Their work spread the Catholic faith. Missionary activities in other provinces also started to bear fruit in the 1930s.

The 1950s and 1960s were decades of progress in spreading the Catholic faith. Various congregations initiated missionary activities. A number of Catholic schools and churches were built while parishes and areas of apostolate and pastoral work were defined.

On 17 November 1959, the northern region mission was erected as the Apostolic Prefecture of Chiang Mai with Bishop Lucien Lacoste as its first bishop and head of the local church. The Apostolic Prefecture of Chiang Mai was elevated into a diocese on 18 December 1965.

After the resignation of Bishop Lucien Lacoste on 14 September 1975, Bishop Robert Rattana Bamrungtrakul was installed as the head of the Diocese of Chiang Mai. Bishop Joseph Sangval Surasarang was installed in the office as the head of the diocese on 25 January 1987.

At present, the entire Diocese of Chiang Mai is under the leadership of His Excellency Bishop Francis Xavier Vira Arpondratana, who received his episcopal ordination on 1 May 2009.

Until 2018 Chiang Mai Diocese included eight provinces: Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Lamphun, Lampang, Phayao, Phrae, Nan, and Mae Hong Son.  Of a total population of 5.7 million, the number of Catholics has grown to 68,975 along with 15,080 catechumens who are preparing themselves to receive the sacrament of baptism. Ninety-four priests, 16 religious brothers, 153 nuns and 151 catechists are at work in the diocese.

Over the years, 518 chapels were built in the diocese's 47 parishes. Serving as the seat of the Catholic missions in the northern region of Thailand, the entire diocese covers a total land area of 85,852 square kilometers covering all eight Northern provinces: Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Nan, Phayao, Phrae, Mae Hong Son, Lampang and Lamphun.

In 25 April 2018 from the territory of the diocese was spring off the new circumscription, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Chiang Rai.

Cathedral

The principal church of the diocese is the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart (; Asana Wihan Phra HaRueThai; location ) in Chiang Mai. The current church, already the third cathedral building of the diocese, was inaugurated on 30 October 1999. The first Sacred Heart church was built in 1931. Shortly before the elevation to a diocese, a new, and larger, church was inaugurated on 28 February 1965.

The Sacred Heart College and the kindergarten school that surround the church building were added later in 2475 BE (1932 CE). Originally there were 40 students, now there are over 4,000. In the last few years an English program has been created. This currently has just over 100 students. Each class is small, around 16 students or so, and has two teachers: a native Thai-speaking teacher and a native English-speaking teacher. Whilst Sacred Heart College is a private school, its prices are controlled by the government and are lower than international private schools in the area. Students range from pre-school to university age.

Bishops
Francis Xavier Vira Arpondratana: 1 May 2009 – present
Joseph Surasarang: 6 January 1987 - 10 February 2009 (resigned)
Robert Ratna Bamrungtrakul: 28 April 1975 - 17 October 1986 (resigned)
1959-1975 the prefecture and later diocese was administered by Bf. Lucien Bernard Lacoste, Bishop of Dali.

See also
Roman Catholicism in Thailand

References

External links
Chiang Mai Diocese
catholic-hierarchy.org

Chiang Mai
Chiang Mai
Christian organizations established in 1959

Roman Catholic Diocese of Chiang Mai


Abraham Lincoln, also released under the title D. W. Griffith's "Abraham Lincoln", is a 1930 pre-Code American biographical film about Abraham Lincoln directed by D. W. Griffith.  It stars Walter Huston as Lincoln and Una Merkel, in her second speaking role, as Ann Rutledge. The script was co-written by Stephen Vincent Benét, author of the Civil War prose poem John Brown's Body (1928), and Gerrit Lloyd. This was the first of only two sound films made by Griffith.

The film entered the public domain in 1958 when the initial copyright expired. The copyright holders did not elect to extend it for a second 28-year term.

Synopsis
The first act of the film covers Lincoln's early life as a storekeeper and rail-splitter in New Salem and his early romance with Ann Rutledge, and his early years as a lawyer and his courtship and marriage to Mary Todd in Springfield, Illinois. The majority of the film deals with Lincoln's presidency during the American Civil War and culminates with Lee's surrender and Lincoln's assassination at Ford's Theatre.

Cast
Characters in the order of their appearance:

Reception
The film received positive reviews from contemporary critics. Mordaunt Hall of The New York Times called it "quite a worthy pictorial offering with a genuinely fine and inspiring performance by Walter Huston in the role of the martyred President" and later put it on his year-end list of the ten best films of 1930.

"More than an outstanding classic of sound pictures, Abraham Lincoln eclipses the most conservative illusion of a modernized Birth of a Nation", wrote Variety in a rave review. "It is a startlingly superlative accomplishment; one rejuvenating a greatest Griffith. In characterization and detail perfection it is such as to be almost unbelievable." Film Daily called it a "distinguished and human narrative" and wrote that Huston's performance "may be listed as one of the 10 best of the year – or any talker year."

John Mosher of The New Yorker wrote that it was "by and large.....a pretty high-grade picture." Despite these accolades, however, the film's box office performance was uneven.

Historical accuracy
The film covers some little-known aspects of Lincoln's early life, such as his romance with Ann Rutledge, his depression and feared suicidal tendencies after her death, and his unexplained ending of his engagement with Mary Todd. However, the film surmises that the cause was because of his unresolved feelings over Ann Rutledge, and it adds a dramatic scene in which Lincoln stands Mary up on their scheduled wedding day. In reality, Lincoln ended the engagement before the wedding day. He later had regrets about his decision and returned to ask Mary's hand in marriage, and they were married, as happens in the film.

While the early scenes of Lincoln's life are remarkably accurate, many of the later scenes contain historical inaccuracies. The Lincoln-Douglas debates, in addition to the historically accurate topic of the extension of slavery, are turned into an argument about secession. Lincoln was an underdog for the Republican Presidential nomination in 1860, but the film suggests that he was the sole nominee as a result of the Lincoln-Douglas debates.

The outbreak of the Civil War seems to be the Union firing on Charleston, South Carolina from Fort Sumter rather than the other way around. Also, early in hostilities, General Winfield Scott is depicted as being overconfident of a quick victory and something of a buffoon, but in reality, he was one of the voices in the minority claiming the war would be long, costly, and bloody.

In the film, Lincoln receives a report from the Secret Service that some Copperheads in the North have issued threats against him. However, in reality, the Secret Service was not created until two months after Lincoln's death.

Finally, in the film's climax, Lincoln delivers a conflation of the words of the Gettysburg Address and Second Inaugural Address at Ford's Theatre on April 14, 1865, moments before his assassination. This movie was Griffith's second portrayal of Lincoln's assassination, and the first was in The Birth of a Nation.

Preservation status
Abraham Lincoln is part of the David Wark Griffith collection at the Museum of Modern Art, and it was donated as a gift from screenwriter-producer Paul Killiam, a collector of silent movies. Funding for the preservation of this film was provided by The Lillian Gish Trust for Film Preservation, The Film Foundation, and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.

Legacy
More recent assessments of Abraham Lincoln have been less effusive in their praise of the film, finding that Abraham Lincoln has not aged well. In 1978, the film was included as one of the choices in the book The Fifty Worst Films of All Time, criticizing the film's historical inaccuracies, instances of clumsy dialogue and Merkel's melodramatic acting style. Glenn Erickson, reviewing the DVD in 2012, wrote that it "comes off as an interesting curio. Its earnest simplicity seems more dated than ever, despite the fine performance of Walter Huston in the lead role."

Film historian Melvyn Stokes found that Abraham Lincolns episodic structure "came at the cost of dramatic tension" and suggested that the film's disappointing box-office performance was due to its having "nothing of major importance and relevance to say about its subject to moviegoers of Depression-era America."  Abraham Lincoln was the first sound film about the Civil War which veterans of that war could view.

See also
 D. W. Griffith filmography

References

External links

1930 films
1930s biographical drama films
1930s historical drama films
1930s English-language films
American black-and-white films
American biographical drama films
American historical drama films
Films about Abraham Lincoln
Fictional depictions of Abraham Lincoln in film
American Civil War films
Cultural depictions of Ulysses S. Grant
Cultural depictions of Robert E. Lee
Cultural depictions of John Wilkes Booth
Films directed by D. W. Griffith
Films set in the 19th century
United Artists films
Articles containing video clips
1930s American films

Abraham Lincoln (1930 film)


Alexander Caldwell McClurg (September 9, 1832 – April 15, 1901) was an American bookseller and military adviser from Pennsylvania. He was raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where his father owned a prosperous foundry. Graduating from Miami University, McClurg briefly studied law before moving to Chicago, Illinois, to join a bookselling house. During the Civil War, McClurg served as a captain with the 88th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment. After his advisory skills were noticed by General Alexander McDowell McCook, McClurg spent the rest of the war as an adviser to various generals. His most prominent position was as Chief of Staff and Adjunct General to Major General Jefferson C. Davis and the XIV Corps. After the war, McClurg returned to his bookselling house as a junior partner. McClurg eventually became senior partner and the house became known as A. C. McClurg & Co.

Biography

Early life
Alexander Caldwell McClurg was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on September 9, 1832, but was raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His father, Alex McClurg, built the Fort Pitt Foundry in Pittsburgh. McClurg graduated from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. He then studied law under Walter H. Lowrie, the Chief Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. However, McClurg's declining health caused him to stop the pursuit of law and he instead turned to mercantile pursuits. He moved to Chicago, Illinois, in 1859 and joined the book-house of S. C. Griggs & Co., the leading house in the city.

Civil War
Upon the outbreak of the Civil War, McClurg enlisted as a private in Company D of the 16th Regiment Illinois State Militia. However, the regiment was deemed unnecessary and it was disbanded after a few months. McClurg briefly returned to S. C. Griggs & Co. before enlisting after a second call for troops. McClurg helped to raise a regiment called the Crosby Guards, which were merged into the 88th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment, also known as the Second Chicago Board of Trade Regiment. McClurg was named a captain under Col. Francis Trowbridge Sherman. Within a month, the regiment saw action at the Battle of Perryville.

When the regiment arrived at Nashville, Tennessee, McClurg was named a judge advocate of a general court martial. When Major General Alexander McDowell McCook noticed McClurg's skill in the proceedings, he named McClurg his acting assistant adjutant general. McClurg assisted with planning the Tullahoma Campaign. Following a command reorganization following the Battle of Chickamauga, McClurg was reassigned to the staffs of Philip Sheridan, George Henry Thomas, and Absalom Baird. Baird named McClurg his adjutant general, assisting with the Chattanooga Campaign.

On April 14, 1864, he was named adjutant general to John M. Palmer, assisting with the Atlanta Campaign. After Palmer resigned his post, Major General Jefferson C. Davis requested the services of McClurg as adjutant general and Chief of Staff of XIV Corps and promoted to lieutenant colonel. With the war winding down, Major General George Stoneman offered McClurg a similar position with the Army of the Tennessee, but McClurg refused. On September 18, 1865, he was breveted brigadier general.

Bookselling
Although General Davis petitioned McClurg to join the regular army, he instead returned to S. C. Griggs & Co. as a junior partner. The firm became known as Jansen, McClurg & Co. in 1872 after Griggs lost his assets in the Great Chicago Fire the year before. In 1874, McClurg founded the 1st Regiment of the Illinois National Guard, leading it for three years. In 1887, McClurg became senior partner and the company was renamed A. C. McClurg & Co. President Grover Cleveland named McClurg examiner at United States Military Academy. Later that year, he received an honorary Master of the Arts degree from Yale University. The A. C. McClurg & Co. was destroyed in an 1899 fire, but McClurg financed its reconstruction. The new structure, designed by Holabird & Roche, is now recognized as a historic place. At the time of his death, A. C. McClurg & Co. was the largest book and stationery house in the West and was among the largest in the country.

Personal life

McClurg married Eleanor Wheeler, the niece of first Mayor of Chicago William B. Ogden, in 1877. They had two children, though one died in infancy. McClurg served terms as president of the Chicago Literary Club and the Commercial Club of Chicago. He served as vice president of the Chicago Historical Society and the University Club of Chicago. He was one of the first thirteen trustees of the Newberry Library in Chicago. McClurg co-founded the American Publishers Association and served as its first vice president shortly before his death. He died in Saint Augustine, Florida, on April 15, 1901, and was buried in Graceland Cemetery in Chicago.

References

1832 births
1901 deaths
Burials at Graceland Cemetery (Chicago)
Miami University alumni
Businesspeople from Philadelphia
People of Illinois in the American Civil War
People of Pennsylvania in the American Civil War
Union Army officers
19th-century American businesspeople

Alexander C. McClurg


Galilea Montijo (born Martha Galilea Montijo Torres on June 5, 1973) is a Mexican actress, comedian, model, and TV presenter. She currently hosts Hoy, a morning show of Televisa that airs on Mondays through Fridays in Mexico (on Las Estrellas) and in the United States (on Univision). Montijo hosted the talent-reality show Pequeños Gigantes, which was a success in Mexico and in the United States (again shown by Univision) in its 1st and 2nd editions (2011 and 2012 respectively). In 2014, she hosted "Va Por Ti" - a co-production of Univision and Televisa that first aired on Univision, beating the competition in the ratings. In 2015, she hosts "Me Pongo De Pie" which will air in Mexico and the United States.

Career
Montijo started her career after winning La Chica TV in 1993. She has participated in several telenovelas.  From 2001 to 2005, Galilea hosted the show VidaTV. In 2002, she participated in the reality show Big Brother VIP and won. In 2005, she also participated in the second season of Bailando por un Sueño. In 2006, Montijo starred in the Mexican telenovela La Verdad Oculta, opposite Gabriel Soto.

Personal life
In November 2020 she announced that she had tested positive for COVID-19 and had to cancel a number of professional engagements.

Filmography

Telenovelas
 Hasta que el dinero nos separe (2010) as herself (special episode)
 La Verdad Oculta (2006) as Gabriela Guillén de Genovés / Martha Saldívar de Guzmán
 El precio de tu amor (2000) as Valeria Ríos
 Tres mujeres (1999) as Maricruz Ruiz
 Tú y yo (1996) as Resignación
 Azul (1996) as Mara
 El premio mayor (1995) as Lilí

Television programs
 Fantástico Amor (1999)
 Vida TV (2001-2005) Host
 Big Brother VIP (2002) Contestant, winner.
 Hospital el paisa (2004)
 Bailando por un sueño (2005) Contestant, fourth place.
 La Hora de la Papa (2007) Host
 Buscando a Timbiriche, La Nueva Banda (2007) Host
 Cuanto Quieres Perder? (2008) Host
 Hazme reír y serás millonario (2009) Contestant, third place.
 Hoy (2008–present) Host
 Pequeños Gigantes (Mexican TV series) (2011) Host
 El Gran Show de los Peques (2011) Host
 Pequenos Gigantes 2 (Mexican TV series) (2012) Host
 Lo Que Mas Quieres (Mexican TV Reality Show) (2013) Judge of Emotions
 Va Por Ti(co-production of Univision and Televisa) (2014) Host
 Me Pongo De Pie (2015) Host
 Teleton Mexico (2011–Present) Host, on Televisa El Canal De Las Estrellas
 Teleton USA (2012–Present) Host, on Univision
 Teleton Mexoamerica (2007-2008) Host, on Galavision
 Hoy (1999, 2004–2007, 2008-)

Series
 Mujeres Asesinas (2009) as Lorena Garrido (Episode: "Las Garrido, codiciosas")
 Los simuladores (2009) as herself (two episodes)
 Los simuladores (2008) Host
 Cásate conmigo, mi amor (2013) En El Protagónico, personaje de Valeria

Films
Perras (2011) as adult Frida
La Muerte de un Cardenal (1993)

References

External links
 Official site

1973 births
Living people
Mexican telenovela actresses
Mexican television actresses
Mexican film actresses
20th-century Mexican actresses
Mexican female models
21st-century Mexican actresses
Mexican television talk show hosts
Mexican television presenters
Mexican women comedians
Actresses from Guadalajara, Jalisco
Big Brother (franchise) winners
People from Guadalajara, Jalisco
Mexican women television presenters

Galilea Montijo


Cup cheese is a soft, spreadable cheese rooted in Pennsylvania Dutch culinary history. Its heritage dates back to the immigration of the Mennonites and Amish to Pennsylvania in the late 17th century. A variation of the German cheese "Kochkäse", it is a specialty food labeled as cup cheese because it is sold in a cup.

Cup Cheese is described in James A. Michener's novel Centennial in 1974:

'You ever tasted my mother's cup cheese?  Best in Lancaster.'

Taking a corner of his black bread, he spread it copiously with a yellowish viscous substance that one would not normally identify as cheese; it was more like a very thick, very cold molasses, and it had a horrific smell.  Rebecca was not fond of cup cheese; it was a taste that men seemed to prefer.

'Poppa likes cup cheese,' she said with a neutral look on her pretty face.

'You don't? Levi asked.

'Too smelly.'

'That's the good part.'  He put the piece of bread to his nose, inhaling deeply.  He knew of few things in the world he liked better than the smell of his mother's cup cheese.  By some old accident the German farmers of Lancaster County had devised a simple way of making a cheese that smelled stronger than limburger and tasted better.  He ate her piece, his own, what was left and then licked the container."

See also
 List of spreads

References

American cheeses
Cuisine of the Pennsylvania Dutch

Cup cheese


Bandra (/bæːndra/; station code: B for Suburban services and BA for Indian Railways) is a railway station on the Western Line and Harbour Line of the Mumbai Suburban Railway network. It serves the Bandra suburban area and the commercial area of Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC). Bandra Terminus is near to Bandra railway station and serves interstate traffic on the Western Railway.

The station is a Grade-I heritage structure. The other 4 railway stations on Mumbai's heritage list include Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Western Railways Headquarters Building (Churchgate), Byculla railway station and Reay Road railway station.

All fast and slow commuter trains have a halt at this station. Bandra is also directly connected to Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus through Harbour Line via . BEST buses are also available from Bandra Terminus bus stand or Bandra (West) bus stand; both being very close to the railway station. Auto rickshaws are also available.

History

Three buildings were completed in February 1867 for the BB&CI railway at Bandora. They were to accommodate the slaughterhouse designed by the then Municipal Engineer, Russel Aitkens. There were two buildings to store mutton, and one for storing beef. These were located nearly 100 yards South-West of Bandra station.  The slaughter houses were shifted from Bori Bunder (near the Bori Bunder station) since they offended passengers. Bombay's first Municipal Commissioner Arthur Crawford, relocated these to Bandra. A meat train was commenced by the BB&CI railway, but it was discontinued in January 1879. In 1888, it had two platforms.
The main building adjoining the platform no.1 was too completed that year.

Bandora station (today's Bandra station) is mentioned as one of the stations where the first Regular Suburban rail service (commenced on 12 April 1867) halted.

After GIP Railway (today's Central Railway) closed its Mahim Branch (see Mahim Railway station), a joint railway service started between GIPR's Bori Bunder station and Bandora station. There is an interesting anecdote about this service, as reported by The Bombay Gazette of 14 June 1867. The story went that the timings of this joint service interfered with GIPR's own Callian Train (Callian was the old name for Kalyan). The traffic managers of both rail companies agreed upon 9 a.m as the time of departure for that joint train from Bandora. However, later the GIPR traffic manager changed the timings of their Callian train to 15 minutes earlier, the result being, both the trains met at Dadur (Dadar). This led to dispute and whistle of both trains with one another for the right of way at the Parell junction (Parel). The points man would then either allow the Bandora train, or the Callian train first. The Callian train would stop at every station, meaning that when it was allowed first, the Bandora train would also be stopped at some station before (as the writer reported humorously, in the "pleasant" steaming weather), delaying it by 12-15 min by the time it reached its destination. On the other hand, it would arrive 3-5 minutes earlier when let first. This would happen five days a week. The writer said that the issue lay with the GIPR that timed the Callian train within two minutes of the other train. He wrote that this would be seen as simply a case of rivalry and jealousy among both companies by the public. He ended with suggesting that simply pushing the timings of the Callian train back by 5 minutes would remedy the situation.

By 1873, out of the 24 locals that ran daily, 8 halted at Bandra. By 1892, there were 27 Bandra locals, and by 1900, there were 29 Bandra locals.

After the remodeling schemes of Borivali and Virar stations, attention was given for a hump shunting yard at Bandra, due to the inadequacy of goods accommodations at Dadar Junction, Carnac Bridge Goods yard, and Grant Rd goods yard. After the opening of the Mahim link between BB&CI and Bombay port trust railway, the location of the yard was finally determined, and it was set up in 1916.

Tracks were Quadrupled between Mahim and Bandra in late 1910s. The section was opened for Goods traffic in May 1917, and for Passenger traffic in October 1920.
A BB&CI magazine from December 1923 (from which the above information was procured) states that remodeling schemes for the remaining terminal stations i.e., Bandra and Andheri, were under preparation at that time.

Gallery

References

Railway stations in India opened in 1869
Bandra
Railway stations in Mumbai Suburban district
Mumbai Suburban Railway stations
Mumbai WR railway division

Bandra railway station


The Bristol Belle (G-AVTL) was the name given to the first modern hot air balloon in Britain. The balloon was created from an idea developed by members of the Bristol Gliding Club in the UK. Following developments by Ed Yost in the United States, members of the Bristol Gliding Club decided to create their own hot air balloon.  Bill Malpas (chairman of the project), Mark Westwood, Giles Bulmer of the Bulmer cider making family and Don Cameron were the four project creators.

Three other members, Charles Meisl, a Czechoslovakian citizen, Tom Sage, a press photographer from London and Malcolm Brighton subsequently joined the group. Malcolm Brighton had built a number of balloons and became the main builder for the project.

In the summer of 1966, the team went to Dunstable Air Day and saw a number of attempts at a hot air balloon flight by other teams. One, built by teacher Mr. Turner and students at Bolton Technical School, succeeded with a tethered flight before breaking free unintentionally and taking its pilot some distance before the pilot escaped unhurt, but with the balloon draped over a power line. The committee of the air day prohibited any further balloon take offs that day.

In 1967, the Bristol Belle balloon was complete. Wing Commander Gerry Turnbull from RAF Weston-on-the-Green, an experienced gas-balloon pilot, was to teach the team how to fly. Space heating blowers known as Jetairs were used to inflate the balloon. The balloon initially failed after the first few attempts at inflation, splitting with three distinct tears. Westwood and Cameron set about working on correcting this in the design, and with the assistance of GQ Parachutes in Woking, had the ballon repaired and correctly manufactured to cope with the stresses.

The first flight of the Bristol Belle took place on 9 July 1967 from RAF Weston-on-the-Green, and was covered by the Daily Telegraph and other media. The balloon took part in some famous flights including one from HMS Ark Royal, where it was piloted by Lt Terry Adams, accompanied by Lt Howard Draper both of 849 Squadron, B Flight. This early morning launch carried mail to Malta while the Ark Royal was steaming off the southern coast of the island on 29 November 1970.

References

External links
 Pictures of the Malta delivery

Individual balloons (aircraft)

Bristol Belle


Bryan Shelton White (born February 17, 1974) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Signed to Asylum Records in 1994 at age 20, White released his self-titled debut album that year. Both it and its follow-up, 1996's Between Now and Forever, were certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, and 1997's The Right Place was certified gold. His fourth album, 1999's How Lucky I Am, produced two top 40 singles, with the song "God Gave Me You" eventually becoming a big hit in the Philippines.

White has charted 17 singles on the Billboard country charts, of which four reached number one: "Someone Else's Star" in 1995, "Rebecca Lynn" and "So Much for Pretending" in 1996, and "Sittin' on Go" in 1997. "So Much for Pretending" was the most successful of these songs, spending two weeks at number one.

Early life
White was born in Lawton, Oklahoma, in 1974, and raised in Oklahoma City. Raised by a musical family, White began playing the drums at age 5 through the instruction of his father. He also played in his mother's pop band and his father's country band as a teenager, and was encouraged to take up singing after his mother heard him sing during a sound check.

After moving to Nashville White sold T-shirts for the band Pearl River, in which his friend Derek George played guitar. The band regularly let White onstage to perform a song during their concerts. He also befriended two record producers: Billy Joe Walker, Jr. (who is also a session guitarist, songwriter, and Jazz musician) and Kyle Lehning, the latter of whom helped him sign a contract with Asylum Records in 1994.

Recording career

Bryan White
White released his debut single "Eugene You Genius" in late 1994. Although it failed to reach Top 40 on the Hot Country Songs charts, his debut album was released under the production of Lehning and Walker. The next single, "Look at Me Now", peaked at number 24, followed by the consecutive number 1 hits "Someone Else's Star" and "Rebecca Lynn". The success of these latter two singles helped Bryan White achieve a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of one million copies. The album included two songs which would later be singles for other artists in 1997: "Nothin' Less Than Love" (recorded by The Buffalo Club) and "Going, Going, Gone" (recorded by Neal McCoy). Also in 1995, Sawyer Brown charted in the Top Five with "I Don't Believe in Goodbye", a song which White co-wrote with Scotty Emerick and Sawyer Brown lead singer Mark Miller. In 1996, White earned the Country Music Association's Horizon Award and the Academy of Country Music's Top New Male Vocalist award.

A review in the St. Petersburg Times said that the label "erred by releasing a novelty song as his first single" but added "the rest of Bryan White's debut album makes it clear that he has talent polish and promise." Tom Lanham of New Country magazine thought that the album showed promise despite White's age, while comparing his vocal delivery favorably to that of Vince Gill.

Between Now and Forever
White's second album, Between Now and Forever, was released in early 1996. Its lead-off, "I'm Not Supposed to Love You Anymore", reached number 1 on the country charts, followed by the number 1 "So Much for Pretending", the number 15 "That's Another Song", and his sixth number one hit, 1997's "Sittin' on Go". Like his debut album, Between Now and Forever was certified platinum. That same year, Diamond Rio charted in the Top 5 with "Imagine That", which White co-wrote with Derek George and John Tirro.

The Right Place
The Right Place followed in 1997. Its title track, "Love Is the Right Place", was a Top 5 hit, although later singles proved less successful. "One Small Miracle" peaked at 15, and "Bad Day to Let You Go" peaked in at 30 in 1998. The album earned a gold certification. Also in 1998, White contributed background vocals and made a guest appearance on Shania Twain's Top Ten country and pop hit "From This Moment On" released on Shania's 1997 album Come On Over, there are several edits of the song, both country and pop. The final single from The Right Place, "Tree of Hearts", failed to make Top 40. White followed up the album with a Christmas EP entitled Dreaming of Christmas. He also co-wrote Lila McCann's "You're Gone" with friend Steve Wariner and sang background vocals on the song with Steve Wariner and Vince Gill. Also in 1998, he was one of several artists to participate in a charity single entitled "One Heart at a Time".

How Lucky I Am and Greatest Hits
A fourth album for Asylum, How Lucky I Am, followed in 1999. Session guitarist and producer Dann Huff produced half of the album, and White co-produced the rest with Derek George. Both of its singles ("You're Still Beautiful To Me" and "God Gave Me You") were top 30 singles. White's label Asylum closed its Nashville division soon afterward. He then signed with Warner Bros. Records. WB issued a Greatest Hits album in 2000 on Warner Bros. Records. This album included the number 56 single "How Long".

White's 1999/2000 single "God Gave Me You" from the album How Lucky I Am became a massive hit in the Philippines 16 years after it was released due to its use of the AlDub love-team phenomenon which was vocally dubbed by Alden Richards and Maine Mendoza on the Kalyeserye segment of the noontime TV variety show Eat Bulaga!. The success of this song prompted White to visit the Philippines for the first time to perform a concert at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on December 1, 2015. White also performed the song on Eat Bulaga! and Sunday PinaSaya. He also visited the Catmon community in Manila with Food for the Hungry.

2000s
Being so young in the 1990s and thrust into stardom so fast, White found that the industry's pressures ended up taking their toll. As White has stated, "I found myself being defined by my career and success and being pushed farther away from who I really was meant to be". With his fourth album being less commercially successful, he began doubting himself and his voice which landed him in a deep depression, forcing him to take some time off until 2005, when he began work on another album. A second Christmas EP, My Christmas Project, followed in 2006.

A new album, Dustbowl Dreams, was released on September 28, 2009.  White released a new single from that album, "The Little Things", in July 2009. White said, "It was a record that I had to make. It's my most personal to date. "Dustbowl Dreams" was for my healing.."

2012 New Music Project
On September 24, 2012, White launched a Kickstarter project for a new record which he planned to create without the help of a record label. On October 24, 2012, the Kickstarter project funding period closed. White raised $34,889 in total. On March 20, 2013, White announced to his Kickstarter backers that the album would at least include the following songs: "Another Day In The Sun," "Amen," "Born To Be Somebody," "Call Me Crazy," "Another Man's Shoes," and "What I Already Know." On June 17, 2013, in an update to his financial backers, White announced that the album would be called Shine.

Personal life
White is married to actress Erika Page White, and together they have two sons, Justin and Jackson. White's father was killed on October 5, 2016 in a car accident in Snyder, Oklahoma.

Discography

 Bryan White (1994)
 Between Now and Forever (1996)
 The Right Place (1997)
 How Lucky I Am (1999)
 Greatest Hits (2000)
 Dustbowl Dreams (2009)
 Shine (2014)

References

External links
 Official Bryan White Site

1974 births
Living people
American country drummers
American country singer-songwriters
American male singer-songwriters
Singer-songwriters from Oklahoma
People from Lawton, Oklahoma
Asylum Records artists
Warner Records artists
20th-century American drummers
American male drummers
21st-century American singer-songwriters
Country musicians from Oklahoma
21st-century American drummers
20th-century American male musicians
21st-century American male singers

Bryan White