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This article or section needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of article quality.
|Biographical Information
|Other names
|Son of Barahir, Camlost, Beren Erchamion, Lord of Tol Galen
|F.A. 432, in Dorthonion
|c. F.A. 466, in the Hunting of the Wolf, final death in F.A. 503
|Physical Description
|Hair color
|Eye color
|Spear and Angrist
|Images of Beren
Early HistoryBarahir and Emeldir. He was a Man of the royal House of Bëor of Dorthonion. The Dagor Bragollach ("Battle of Sudden Flame") befell during his youth, bringing about the ruin of his land. The young Beren lived with his father and ten loyal followers in the highlands of Dorthonion, and the twelve of them performed many acts of bravery, to the great frustration of Morgoth, the Dark Lord of Angband. After the betrayal and death of the Outlaws of Dorthonion due to the treachery of Gorlim the Unhappy, Beren swore an oath to revenge his father on Morgoth, "but wept not, for his heart was ice". He recovered the Ring of Barahir from the Orcs, and lived on as an outlaw, whose feats of daring were renown throughout the free world. Eventually was forced to abandon the land of his birth and the grave of his father by Sauron and Draugluin. He crossed into Doriath, where he saw and fell in love with Lúthien, princess of the Sindar and daughter of Thingol and Melian when he saw her dancing.
Quest for the Silmaril
Thingol refused to give Lúthien's hand in marriage. He charged Beren that he would allow the marriage to take place only if he brought back a Silmaril from the Iron Crown of Morgoth. The task was intended to be impossible, but Beren and Lúthien, with the aid of Finrod of Nargothrond and Huan the Great Hound (both of whom died protecting Beren), braved many perils (even besting Sauron, Morgoth's most powerful lieutenant) to fulfill the Quest for the Silmaril. At the last they entered Angband and stole a Silmaril. However, as they escaped from Angband, the great wolf Carcharoth, whom Morgoth had personally bred, awoke. Beren held out the Silmaril, hoping that its radiance would avert the beast, but he was mistaken. Carcharoth bit off his hand swallowed it and the Silmaril (thus Beren was called Erchamion, "One-handed"), and proceeded to run rampant through Doriath. Lúthien and the unconscious Beren were rescued by the Eagles of Manwë. Beren participated in the hunting of Carcharoth, where the beast was slain and the Silmaril recovered; the quest was accomplished, but in the process Beren was mortally wounded.
Lúthien's love for Beren was so strong that, hearing of his death, she laid down and died. Her soul went to the Halls of Mandos, where she managed to move Mandos so that he granted her a wish. Both she and Beren were restored to life, but both of them would die the death of Men, and go beyond the walls of Arda to a place unknown.
Later History
Thus Beren and Lúthien lived again, and dwelt on Tol Galen in the middle of the River Adurant in Ossiriand. There they stayed apart from other mortals; Beren was involved with the events of the First Age only one further time, when he waylaid a group of Dwarves who had destroyed Doriath and stolen the Nauglamír (and the Silmaril with it).
Lúthien bore Beren a son, named Dior, Thingol's heir, considered to be one of the fairest beings to ever live, for in him flowed the blood of Men, the blood of Elves, and the blood of the Ainur. Through his descendants, the blood of Beren and of Lúthien was preserved among the Eldar and the Edain.
At last Beren and Lúthien died together on Tol Galen.
The name of Beren's sword was Dagmor.
The story of Beren and Lúthien, though mentioned only briefly in The Lord of the Rings, was a central part of the legendarium. Tolkien once referred to it as "the kernel of the mythology" (The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, 165). He went on to say that it "arose from a small woodland glade filled with 'hemlocks'", which he visited while serving in the Humber Garrison in 1918 (during World War I).
In the earliest versions of the legendarium (see: The Book of Lost Tales), Beren was a Gnome (a Noldo), son of Egnor (which might have been an early name for Aegnor).
Tolkien seemed to be somehow connected to this character, and parallels can be drawn with his relationship with Edith Bratt. Furthermore it is possible that Beren (meaning 'brave') is a reference to the original meaning of his Germanic surname (Toll kühn) of similar meaning. It is said that, like the story of Luththien dancing in the woods before Beren, that one day while Tolkien and his wife were on a picnic in the woods she danced for him, thus creating another parallel to Beren and Luthien.
Tolkien was buried in Wolvercote Cemetery (North Oxford) and this name appears on the stone:
- JOHN RONALD REUEL TOLKIEN Beren 1892 – 1973
The name of Lúthien also appears on the stone:
- EDITH MARY TOLKIEN Lúthien 1889 – 1971
Bregor | ______|_______ | | | | Bregolas Barahir = Emeldir | | _______|______ | | | | | | | Baragund Belegund BEREN = Lúthien | | | | | | Morwen = Húrin Rían = Huor Dior = Nimloth | | | ______|_______ | __|____________ | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Túrin Lalaith Nienor Tuor = Idril | | | | | | | | | | | Eärendil = Elwing Eluréd Elurín | __________________|________________ | | | | Elros Elrond = Celebrían | | ________|________ ______|_______ | | | | | | | | | | Kings of Lords of | | | Númenor Andúnië | | | | | | | | | | | Elendil | | | | | | | _______|_______ | | | | | | | | | | | | | Kings of Kings of | | | Gondor Arnor | | | | | | | | | | | Chieftains of | | | the Dúnedain | | | | | | | | | | | Aragorn II = Arwen Elladan Elrohir | ____________|_______ | | | | Eldarion numerous daughters | | Kings of the Reunited Kingdom
|Preceded by:
|5th Lord of Ladros
|Followed by:
none (abandoned)
|Barahir's Outlaw Band
|Barahir · Beren · Gildor · Belegund · Baragund · Gorlim · Urthel · Dagnir · Ragnor · Radhruin · Dairuin · Arthad · Hathaldir


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Instapaper is joining Pinterest
Instapaper has announced that it's joining the Pinterest family. Read below
Today, we're incredibly excited to announce that Instapaper is joining Pinterest. In the three years since betaworks acquired Instapaper from Marco Arment, we've completely rewritten our backend, overhauled our mobile and web clients, improved parsing and search, and introduced tons of great features like highlights, text-to-speech, and speed reading to the product.
All of these features and developments revolved around the core mission of Instapaper, which is allowing our users to discover, save, and experience interesting web content. In that respect, there is a lot of overlap between Pinterest and Instapaper. Joining Pinterest provides us with the additional resources and experience necessary to achieve that shared mission on a much larger scale.
For you, the Instapaper end user and customer, nothing changes. The Instapaper team will be moving from betaworks in New York City to Pinterest's headquarters in San Francisco, and we'll continue to make Instapaper a great place to save and read articles.
Lastly, and most importantly, we want to thank all of our readers for your support throughout the years. Whether you supported us back when Marco built and ran Instapaper, from the betaworks acquisition, or just found out about us recently, we truly appreciate your continued support and look forward to bringing you the same great product at Pinterest.

subset: commoncrawl


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Reliques of Old London, 85. Click on image to enlarge it. Text and formatting by George P. Landow. [You may use this image without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you (1) credit the Boston Public Library and the Internet Archive and (2) link your document to this URL in a web document or cite it in a print one.]. T. R. Way. Signed and dated 1899. Lithograph. Source:
Commentary by H. B. Wheatley from Reliques of Old London
THIS fine old mansion, which is an ornament to the othennse conmonplace suburb of Tooting, appears to have been built in 1622. We may assume this from that date appearing on an inscribe stone now in the garden, but which once formed a part of the house.
It has not always borne the name of Fairfield House, but was called at one time the "White House." Some fifty years or more ago the house was occupied as a boy's school and was known as Dr. Lord's Academy. Dr. Lord added to the house for the purposes of his school. The freehold of the house, with its large garden behind, was lately bought by the Chelsea Vestry for the purpose of a suburban workhouse to relieve the pressure on their Chelsea workhouse. There is a large panelled entrance hall and a grand staircase. Both the front and the back doors are surmounted by a splendid canopy, the one over the front door being shown in the drawing. [81]
The entrance gate is also worthy of special notice.
Way, T. R., and H. B. Wheatley. Reliques of Old London upon the Banks of the Thames and in the Subburbs South of the River. London: George Bell and Sons, 1909. [title page] Internet Archive version of a copy in the Boston Public Library. Web. 22 April 2012.
23 April 2012


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When does Site Backup create backups of my site in Plesk hosting?
Note: Site Backup hasn't been sold as a new product since January 2018. For our new backup solution, see What is Website Backup?
Your website automatically gets backed up every day using Site Backup. You can view its scheduled time in your Site Backup dashboard.
- From the Plesk home page, on the far right, click Site Backup.
You can view the time before the backup begins in the Next Backup column. Your site is backed up at the same time every day.
Note: Performing a manual backup does not affect your next scheduled backup.


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Showing events near Kinmylies from Tue 18th Jun 2019 onwards.
Showing events: 1-15
Kinmylies events, clubs, gigs and what's onAbove is a selection of events in Kinmylies near Inverness. If you're looking for more events, why not view our events in Inverness guide. Planning a big weekend in Kinmylies? Check out our Restaurants in Kinmylies or Hotels in Kinmylies
Your Inverness event not listed?
Got an event that's not listed or need to update your events details? Add your event free of charge, using our Promotion Centre.
Prices shown above may include 'On the door' prices as well as online prices available through Skiddle. Prices may be subject to booking fees and handling charges and may increase over time. Information is entered by event organisers and may be subject to change, please see event page for latest information.
Popular venues in Kinmylies
These venues are particularly popular on Skiddle right now, click to find out their upcoming events:
Loch Ness Aldourie Castle Grounds · Eden Court · Caledonian Thistle FC · St. Andrew's Cathedral · Vogue · Inverness Madhatters · Bar On Taylor's St
View an A-Z list of venues in Inverness
Top image: "Inverness City Centre and River Ness Scotland" by conner395 is licensed under Attribution License
Bottom image: "Inverness Castle from Ness Bridge Scotland" by conner395 is licensed under Attribution License


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For the first time in A Year Without Rent, I took zero pictures. Yes, zero. You'll see 2 pictures in this post. Someone else took them.
But why? One word: rain. Well, that and darkness.
For the 3rd day of THE STAGG DO, we move to night shoots, and naturally we don't have nearly enough lights for what we need to do. Basically we've got to light the woods and a field with a 2k and 6 redheads, which are 800W each. Add to that the fact that we've got a limited number of extension cords, and basically that means that my day involves trying to figure out just how to maximize our lines so that we can power lights wherever DP Richy Reay needs them.
The extension cords are in drums that have power strips in the middle with either three or four plugs. So those kind of operate as hubs from which we can branch off of. So Ben Moseley and I have a multi-pronged approach where we try and get a hub as far out in the field as possible from the barns, which are roughly 50 meters away from the nearest place we'd put a light.
Each barn has its own circuit, only I have no idea how much power each of them can handle. They're older buildings, so the suspicion is that there's only one circuit per barn (there's two barns close enough). And there's the math. You want to divide the lights more or less evenly between the two barns.
Then, just when we get them all set up, it starts to rain. First it's just a drizzle, but it's enough to be worrisome.
Was it supposed to rain? I don't know. I can't use my cell phone in the UK.
The one thing I know about British electricity is that it runs at 240V, as opposed to the U.S., where it's 120V. That's a lot. You don't want to run into that if you don't have to, and we've got it running pretty much all over the place. And it's raining. I don't need to tell you how dangerous that is.
This is why we have Runners and PAs.
We've got garbage bags and we've got tape, so I give it to the runners and 1st AC James Grieves (on load from Richy) and have them cover all of our connections. Keep them dry. Keep them safe. Simple, right?
Five minutes later, I'm about to grab the barrel connectors on the 2k when I notice that the garbage bag isn't covering the barrels--at all. It's sort of taped above the barrels, sort of, in a half-assed attempt to look like it should work. Richy is standing a few feet away, so I call him over.
He curses and rolls his eyes as I yell for Jonathan, the runner who yesterday came up so clutch with the burlap sandbags. This won't work, I tell him. At all. We need to be able to keep the connections dry, so no water will get in there. None. Zero. I tell him I'll fix this one and then I'm going to start checking the other connections. If they aren't safe, then I'm going to start cursing at him like he's never been cursed at before. He's going to learn some new words. Go. Now.
Then Richy and I give them some extra time. Later in the evening, we're going to have to move a couple of lights and cables across a small stream and the biggest question of the day is how to do that safely and as quickly as possible. I've got a chart I made out the day before and we take a few minutes to talk about how we're going to do that and where exactly he wants the lights.
[That's my actual chart, sketched on the back of a call sheet. Yet another reason why you want to give your crew a physical call sheet whenever possible.]
Our AD Jennifer Hegarty is pretty concerned about the move across water. We've been talking about it for most of the shoot. My goal is to not only do it safely, but turn it around fast enough that it doesn't cost the already way behind production any time.
Easier said than done as 5 of our 7 lights are already working and we're using all of out stingers.
The conversation takes maybe 5 minutes, which I figure gives the runners enough time to have fixed the safety issue, or at least the safety issue at the spot closest to where I'm standing (because, really, that's the fair place to start looking). Richy and I walk over. What they've essentially done is taken some plastic, placed it over the face of one of these, and secured it with gaff tape in the shape of an "X".
Not exactly what we were looking for.
Richy calls over James, the director. He takes one look at it and, well, expresses his displeasure and pretty much gives me carte blanche to yell at them.
"You know, it's not even worth doing the film if people are going to get hurt," he says.
I yell for Jonathan. By now everyone has an idea of what's going on. And I let him have it with a string of profanities surrounded by the question, "are you trying to get someone killed?" He tries to make a joke out of it, which is a really bad idea, so I yell some more.
He's not happy. He shouldn't be.
Am I being unreasonable? Maybe. But the thing is that no matter how collaborative a film project is, there's a chain of command that operates much like the military. When the Gaffer tells a Runner or Production Assistant to do something (twice), then that damn well should be done better than you think it needs to be, especially when it's been made clear that the question isn't of quality but of safety. A film set can be a dangerous place. There's a lot of ways someone can get hurt. Even so, if you're a Production Assistant on a film, it doesn't even matter why someone is telling you to do something. You do it. If you think it's a dumb request, by all means ask for the reasoning and if the person isn't a total asshole (or isn't completely swamped), they'll tell you why.
Our reasoning here is pretty simple: IT'S FUCKING RAINING.
It's 240V of electricity. I have no insurance and I'm in Europe. I really don't want to get electrocuted.
The final solution is to place the drums inside a garbage bag and seal that up with gaff tape, which is a pretty obvious call, really. And maybe I should have suggested that from the beginning, but I thought the task at hand wasn't very difficult to figure out, so I'll take some blame for that. But not all of it.
Once we've got everything safe, Ben Moseley and I start working on setting the lights for the turnaround across the river. The river is probably 20 feet or so down a pretty steep banking behind the 2k. It's really small and, let's face it, not big enough to fish, but that's what the script calls for, so that's what we'll do. We have 2 lights not in play and a couple of gels, but not green ones like we need, so we go back to our grade school color lessons and start mixing and matching what blues and yellows we have to create shades of green.
Having done that, we set the lights. One goes across the river in the woods, more or less directly behind the 2k. It's about 30 meters in a straight shot, but we can't do it in a straight shot. We want to keep the wires out of the water (obviously), so we've set up a c-stand at the edge of the banking. Earlier in the evening, I put a glow stick on a tree branch across the river, and another one where the light would go. The theory is to string a rope from the c-stand to the tree branch and affix the wires to that, thus keeping it well above the water (and also high enough that no one accidentally runs into it in the dark). The other light goes on the side of the river we're currently on, but is down an even steeper banking where you have to hold onto tree branches to keep from falling. That's much easier and as soon as Richy let's us kill a light in the scene they're currently shooting, we'll grab that cable and run it down the banking.
The 2k is gelled blue and operates as our moon, so ideally all we'll need to do is spin it around. During lunch I've added a power strip to the barrel connectors by the 2k, so that we can more easily run power off it without overloading it. Earlier in the evening, we tripped the power, thus realizing that our circuits could handle 3000W each.
They finish the scene in the field well behind schedule. Knowing that James is going to have to rehearse the actors, I make a point of telling him that we'll be set up before he's ready. So, like, don't send them away.
I'm pretty sure he doesn't believe me. I probably wouldn't believe me either.
The second they're done, Ben and I kill the light, rip open the bags around the drums and run over to the river. It doesn't go as smoothly as we'd like when the rope gets all tangled up and we have to improv but we get it across the river. We're all ready to go when the bulb goes out in the redhead we just lit.
Besides that, we get it turned around in under 5 minutes. James has briefly sent the actors away, but brings them back to rehearse as Ben changes out the bulb. And it's a good thing because they finish the scene as the sun comes up.
As for the Electric Company? Well the powers that be decide they should probably wrap up everything. Ben and I bring in the lights and then share wrap beers with Richy while they collect all the cables and trash in the field.
They aren't too happy with that either. I don't blame them.
Filmmaker Lucas McNelly is spending a year on the road, volunteering on indie film projects around the country, documenting the process and the exploring the idea of a mobile creative professional. You can see more from A Year Without Rent at the webpage. His feature-length debut is now available to rent on VOD. Follow him on Twitter: @lmcnelly.
10 October 2011
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Welcome to theknitknacks.co.uk
I sell knitting kits for most of my knitting patterns. The knitting kits come in brown boxes with a photo of the item on the front of them. The boxes contain a knitting pattern with a grid (if applicable for a motif) and sufficient lengths of yarns to make your chosen item. The kits are a cost effective way to make an item as you do not need to purchase whole balls of wool for the multi coloured items. Alternative colour ways are offered for many of the kits but if you have a particular preference please let me know and I will do my best to accommodate your requirements. The kits are an excellent project for beginners to those who are confident knitters.
Each of the knitting kits come complete with a knitting/crochet pattern with clear instructions about making your chosen article and sufficient wool to make the item.
Visit The KnitKnacks Blog
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Tea Cosies with Roses Knitting Kit-The People's Friend Offer
Wensleydale Versatile Jumper
Fair Isle Unisex Hat Knitting Kit
Dotty Cafetiere Cover with Cosy Galore Book
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Wagner College is a host institution for President Obama's Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders, the flagship program of the Young African Leaders Initiative. On Tuesday, July 8, Wagner's Washington Fellows visited Lifestyles for the Disabled, a nonprofit organization on Staten Island, to see how the NPO operates. New York 1 reporter Amanda Farinacci produced this story on the visit, which was first aired that evening:
New York 1's Amanda Farinacci reported:
It's just after lunch at the Lifestyles Cafe, and there's plenty to do.
"I clean the coffee station up. I work behind the counter," said Chris Bungay, a program participant at Lifestyles for the Disabled.
Lifestyles for the Disabled is a not-for-profit that runs the cafeteria and helps those with developmental disabilities learn how to live and work in the community.
The NPO is one of Staten Island's most successful, and it is playing host to a group of 25 African leaders participating in the Young African Leadership Initiative.
YALI, as it's known, is an Obama administration initiative designed to help support Africa's economic, social and political development. For six weeks, the fellows, who all have experience in not-for-profits in their native countries, will be living and learning at Wagner College.
"What we've really been doing is trying to teach them about the nonprofit sector here in the United States, the rules and regulations along those lines, but also show them some of our best practices," said David Gordon, a professor at Wagner College.
Romy Titus runs an NPO in South Africa that cares for children born to incarcerated mothers. She said she'll try to implement much of what she's learned at her own organization back home.
"My brain has been bubbling with all sorts of ideas," Titus said. "I definitely know how I want to strengthen it."
YALI fellows NY1 spoke with said what was most striking was how warmly they were received by the Lifestyle participants.
"Everyone was happy, and they were waiting for us," said Moffat Louis of Botswana. "So I thought, 'These guys are exposed, and we need to get many people with disabilities to be exposed and to know that this is normal.' "
Louis works with people with developmental disabilities in his native Botswana and said they aren't given many opportunities to socialize. After his visit to Lifestyles, he said that's something he hopes to change.


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U.S. Nationals
1999 Reports
U.S. Open Wrap-Up
There are three ways to qualify for the U.S. Open. The first is placing highly at your regional championships (top 8 for most regions, top 2 for Alaska and Hawaii). The second is to qualify based on the strength of your past performances - via high DCI ranking or Pro Tour points. Then there are the Meatgrinders.
Five U.S. Open tournaments are held throughout the day before Nationals. Two players earn an invitation in each of the single elimination events. It isn't easy to think up a more difficult tournament. Over 100 players compete in each one, it is a single elimination event and even if you do qualify, better hope you are well-rested enough to compete the next day.
Still, people love these tournaments. Many stay up all night, playing in the very first U.S. Open which takes place at midnight, then go on to play in as many of the other Opens as they can enter. Typically a 6-0 record is necessary to make the finals (at which point the two players need not play it out, first and second place get identical prizes).
Opens are the testing grounds for the new type 2 decks. Many of the players qualified for the Nationals watch this event closely to see which deck types are doing well. Some feel no need to even playtest before the Nationals - Meatgrinder technology should be good enough to stand its grounds, they reason.
Metagame shifts wildly during the Opens. Players learn of the popular deck types and build something to combat them, and that goes on until the very last Open.
This year seems to have proven that the same old strategies, perhaps supported by some new cards, are on top of the game. Living Death, suicide black, monored, white weenie and monoblue were among the strategies successful enough to qualify players for Nationals.
For the most part deck lists speak for themselves. If Opens are any indication, we now have a healthy type 2 environment where a variety of decks can do well. Much anticipated Yawgmoth Bargain decks were hardly present at the Open, and those that were there lost pretty early. Another combo deck played revolved around Iridescent Drake/Altar of Dementia/Abduction infinite combo was also present and also did not do exceptionally well.
Several well-known players managed to fight their way through the 'Grinders. Jamie Parke of Team Sped and John Shuler known for his Internet writings both qualified in the midnight tournament. Bill Macey of Senor Stompy fame navigated a white-green 'Moa-Boa' deck to victory. Finally, David Williams played a Death variant that is rumoured to have been designed by Brian Schneider in the last open and managed to qualify at 4 am, only hours before he would have to get up and play in Nationals.
Among Destiny cards the two biggest hits are Powder Keg and Masticore. While Masticore was relatively obvious, few people managed to predict just how much impact this card would have on deck construction. Most players missed out on the power of Powder Keg entirely. This card quickly rose from $2 to $8 among dealers and traders here at Origins.
Tomorrow's type 2 portion of Nationals may be somewhat different from the opens. There will certainly be more Bargain decks present and one can expect a lot more refined "tech". Still, if Opens are any indication we can look forward to the balanced and fun environment in this most popular Magic format.
© 1995-2003 Wizards of the Coast, Inc., a subsidiary of Hasbro, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Wizards is headquartered in Renton, Washington, PO Box 707, Renton, WA 98057.


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Jacob Shumate went 2-for-3 with three RBIs and three pitchers combined to toss a two-hitter as host North Brunswick defeated South Lenoir 13-0 in five innings in the opening round of the NCHSAA state 2A baseball playoffs on Friday.
Trint Turner had a hit and Noah Stroud had a hit for the Blue Devils (11-10), who gave up nine runs in the first inning.
Starter Wyatt Janning was saddled with the loss. He gave up seven runs, one earned, on four hits with two walks in just 2/3 of an inning.
South Lenoir sent just two over the minimum to the plate.
The Scorpions (13-10) advance to face Providence Grove, a 5-0 winner over Farmville Central, in a second round game next week.
Other area playoff scores: 1A � Dixon 3, Ayden-Grifton 1, 10 inn.; North Duplin 4, Jones Senior 0 (played on Thursday).
STATEN HAS 2 TOP 4 FINISHES IN GIRLS 1A STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS: Jones Senior�s Markiara Staten had a pair of top-four finishes in Friday�s NCHSAA state 1A track and field championships at N.C. A&T. Staten finished fourth in the 100-meter dash with a time of 12.84 seconds, and was third in the long jump with a jump of 16-feet, 7.5-inches.
Other area athletes who participated in the girls championships were: Kebori Gorham, Ayden-Grifton, eighth, 300-meter hurdles, 49.76 seconds and did not place, 100-meter dash (was 12th in prelims at 13.56 seconds); Alexsia Best, Ayden-Grifton, 100-meter hurdles, did not finish (was third in prelims at 16.40 seconds); Ayden-Grifton�s 4-by-100-meter relay team (Gorham, Shambria Hines, Tylasia Moye, Best), 12th, 54.14 seconds.
HEATH FINISHES SIXTH IN STATE 300-METER HURDLES: Ayden-Grifton�s Maurice Heath finished sixth in the 300-meter hurdles with a time of 42.27 seconds in the NCHSAA 1A boys state track and field championships at N.C. A&T.
Other area athletes who participated in the boys championships were: Alex Lopez, Ayden-Grifton, 10th, shot put, 43-feet, 11.5-inches; Rodney Nelson, 15th, triple jump, 37-feet, 10-inches; Glen White, Jones Senior, eighth, 200-meter dash, 23.38 seconds and did not place, 100-meter dash (was ninth in prelims at 11.52 seconds); Ayden-Grifton�s 4-by-200-meter relay team (Rashaad Edwards, Nelson, Ray�Quawn Dixon, Giddel Waters), 14th, 1:37.91.
GC�S TAYLOR ELIMINATED: Greene Central�s Robby Taylor was defeated by Garrett Lakey of Wilkes Central in the first round of the NCHSAA 2A singles championships at the Cary Tennis Center on Friday.
Lakey won in straight sets, 6-4 and 6-3.
PARROTT ACADEMY 11, MERRY HILL LAWRENCE ACADEMY 0, 5 INN.: At Parrott, the Patriots wrapped up regular season play on Thursday with a win.
Darci Basden went 2-for-3 with a double and drove in three runs, Savannah Hill was 2-for-3 with two RBIs, Sarah Riley was 2-for-3 with two RBIs and Caroline Casey was 3-for-3 with an RBI. Brianna Casey earned the win with two perfect innings and two strikeouts. Three Parrott pitchers combined to one-hit Lawrence.
The Patriots (14-5) will open the NCISAA 3A state playoffs at home at 1 p.m. today against Cary Academy.
Thursday�s area playoff scores: 1A � Chocowinity Southside 10, Jones Senior 0; Pender 4, Ayden-Grifton 3; 2A � North Johnston 10, Greene Central 0.


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|175 to Russia
A blog from a Zen living enthusiast. I am into Meditation, Reiki, Yoga and Natural Therapies.
Life moments are to be treated like a treasure. After all, life is indeed a treasure!
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Wednesday, 11 October 2017
PostCrossing Sent to Russia
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Hummus Pasta Salad
By: Candace
All of the food posted here are Vegan; prepared and photographed by me, Candace (unless otherwise noted). I'm a go with the flow kind of cook, so I don't do a lot of measuring and all that. I come up with ideas myself or look for inspiration in cookbooks and then put my own style into them. Under each photograph you'll find a list of ingredients. Thanks for viewing! If you want to share one of your homemade Vegan meals on the site; send photo & ingredients list to: email@example.com


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Event to be held Jan. 11
The second annual �Stars Dance for the Arts� is set for Jan. 11 in downtown Kinston.
The Community Council for the Arts is hosting the event, which mirrors the popular ABC reality show �Dancing with the Stars.�
Eight local couples will vie for the title while promoting the art of ballroom dance. All proceeds will be used to support a variety of community programs and activities sponsored by the local arts council.
Voting is available now on the website www.dancekcca.com and at the Arts Center for $10 per vote. You may vote for your favorite couple as often as you like. Online voting will end at midnight, Jan. 10. Voting online also allows you to monitor the votes for each couple and access to the latest breaking news leading up to the final event.
Tickets are available for purchase at the Arts Council. Each ticket is $50 and includes event entry, heavy hors d�oeuvres, and one voting ballot the night of the event. Various levels of sponsorships are available that include a range of amenities at each level. Contact the Arts Center at 252-527-2517 for more information.
Local �stars� participating this year include Bill Connoly and Kelly Taylor, Michael McNulty and Ashley Anderson, Brantley Briley and Sarah Crowe, Rick Vernon and Vickie Robinson, Tony Sears and Kim Manning, Drew Barker and Lindsay King, Steve Jefferson and Cherita Lytle and Carl Younger and Anna Whitlow.
More profiles from the other dancers will be featured in The Free Press in the month before the competition.
Vickie Robinson, a second-year participate, is native of Duplin County, a graduate of East Duplin High School and Mount Olive College where she earned a bachelor�s degree in English communications. She was employed at Mount Olive College for 17 years where she was director of young alumni relations before transitioning to bookkeeper of the family business and devoting more time to her family.
Married to husband Michael Dean Robinson, owner of M.D. Robinson Farms, they have two daughters, Ansley Elizabeth, 6, and Ashlynn Sophia, 2. Residing in Kinston with the family basset hound, Sadie, the family attends Pleasant Hill Christian Church. A busy mom, Robinson is passionate about her family and savors quality time with Mike, the girls, her extended family and her many friends.
Active in her church and community, Robinson has spent eleven years on the board of directors of the Community Council for the Arts where she currently serves as board chairman. She is past president and member-at-large for the Duplin County Partnership for Career Planning. Among her hobbies and interests are spending time at the beach with her family, boating and Bunco.
Vickie loves all kinds of dance and had 12 years of dance training as a child. She will be dancing the jitterbug with partner Rick Vernon.
Rick Vernon, a retired minister, is a native of Kinston and a 1971 graduate of Kinston High School. He attended Barton College and worked with Kraft Foods for 16 years before studying for the ministry. He completed studies at Lexington Theological Seminary in 2005.
Rick is married to wife Jane with whom he has two sons, Ryan and Will. Together they have three grandchildren. Rick is a member of 902 Church where son Ryan serves as pastor. Rick is a past master Mason with the Richard Caswell Lodge and was previously a member of the local Kinston Rotary and Ruritan clubs.
Among his hobbies, Rick enjoys singing and entertaining. For 16 years, he has been host of Down East Today, a morning TV show with Tutt Media Group. He states that is he �passionate� about bringing joy to others. His greatest joy in life is his �relationship with God, his wife and family.�
Cherita Lytle is a native of Morganton who now lives in Greenville. She graduated from East Carolina University in 2002 with a bachelor of fine arts degree in dance education. Dancing since age 3, she began to seriously train in ballet, jazz and tap dance during her middle school years. While at ECU, she performed with the ECU dance team serving as its coach in 2003-2004. Following graduation, she was a remedial and substitute teacher with the Pitt County Schools.
Lytle has performed for 11 years with the Eastern North Carolina Dance Foundation�s pre-professional dance company, the Dance Collective. She currently serves as studio manager and instructor at Greenville Civic Ballet and as a dance instructor at The Oakwood School in Greenville. She continues to develop her dancing skills by attending conferences and classes throughout the country. Those include the Dance Teacher�s Web Conference and Expo, the Boardway Dance Center (New York), Gus Giordano Summer Workshops (New York), the Boulder Jazz Dance Conference (Colorado), and UNC School of the Arts Dance Festival (Winston Salem). She has choreographed and judged various competitions and pageants throughout eastern North Carolina.
When not involved with dancing, Lytle enjoys �hanging out� with her five-year old daughter, Elise Noel, her �greatest joy in life.� She also enjoys traveling and watching reality television.
Dancing with partner Steve Jefferson, they will perform the Paso Doble to �Espana Cani.�
Steve Jefferson, a native of Kinston, graduated from Grainger High School before earning a bachelor of science degree from North Carolina State University in 1965. He was previously employed in textile sales with Jefferson Marketing Company in Pennsylvania and New York. Following retirement, he returned to Kinston in 2004 where he now resides with wife Mary Jo. Together they have three children and six grandchildren. The couple are members of First Presbyterian Church.
Jefferson considers himself to be a �professional volunteer.� Since relocating to Kinston, he has emerged himself into the local community through his involvement with numerous organizations. He served as chairman and campaign chair of the Lenoir-Greene United Way, president of the Kinston Rotary Club, treasurer of the Community Council for the Arts and president of the Grainger-Hill Performing Arts Center. He also serves as a board member for the Salvation Army and The Gate. In his spare time, he enjoys reading and playing golf.
Jefferson says his greatest joys in life are his wife and family and he is �passionate� about the Wolfpack and Kinston.


text:
:dir argument
Major Section: EVENTS
Example Form: (add-include-book-dir :smith "/u/smith/") ; For (include-book "foo" :dir :smith), prepend "/u/smith/" to "foo".where
General Form: (add-include-book-dir kwd dir)
kwd is a
keywordp and
dir is the absolute pathname
(see pathname) of a directory. The effect of this event is to modify the
meaning of the
:dir keyword argument of
include-book as indicated
by the examples above, namely by associating the indicated directory with
the indicated keyword for purposes of the
argument. See delete-include-book-dir for how to undo this effect.
Caveat: The keyword
:system cannot be redefined. It will always point to
the absolute pathname of the distributed books directory, which by default is
immediately under the directory where the ACL2 executable was originally
built (see include-book, in particular the discussion there of ``books
Note: This is an event! It does not print the usual event summary but nevertheless changes the ACL2 logical world and is so recorded.
This macro generates a call
(table acl2-defaults-table :include-book-dir-alist ...)
and hence is
local to any books and
encapsulate events
in which is occurs. See acl2-defaults-table.


text: Female playwrights frustrated by the small number of plays in production and written by women for the 2008-9 season are holding a meeting tonight to air their grievances with representatives of leading theaters. Playwrights Sarah Schulman and Julia Jordan say that plays by men are being produced in Off Broadway theaters at 4 times the rate of plays by women. The problem is even worse on Broadway, where not a single play currently running was written by a woman. "I personally don't think playwriting is a gene on a Y chromosome," says playwright Theresa Rebeck. "Many of our male peers find the debate intolerable. Men in the community seem to think that everything is fine." [NY Times]


text:
U.S. Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission
College Refused to Hire 64-Year-Old as Assistant Professor, Federal Agency Charges
NEW YORK – Marymount Manhattan College refused to hire a choreography instructor for a tenure-track assistant professorship because of her age, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today. Marymount is a private liberal arts college in New York City.
According to the EEOC's suit, Marymount initially selected a 64-year-old choreography instructor and two other applicants as finalists for an assistant professorship in dance composition. After determining that the 64-year-old was the leading candidate, the EEOC said, Marymount's search committee expanded its search to include a less qualified, 37-year-old applicant as a fourth finalist because it considered her to be "at the right moment of her life for commitment to a full-time position." The suit charges that Marymount passed over the 64-year-old applicant and instead hired the 37-year-old applicant because of age.
Age discrimination against employees and job applicants who are age 40 or older is a violation of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). The EEOC filed suit in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York (Civil Action No. 12-cv-2388 (JPO) after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process. The suit was assigned to U.S. District Judge J. Paul Oetken.
"Our suit charges that age was the deciding factor in this case," said EEOC trial attorney Justin Mulaire. "Under the law, age has no place in hiring decisions — and tenure-track positions in academia are no exception."
Elizabeth Grossman, the regional attorney of the EEOC's New York District Office, said, "Older workers have the right to be evaluated based on their abilities and not based on their age. The EEOC is committed to combating bias against older workers in all phases of employment and in all types of employment settings."
The EEOC enforces federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. Further information about the EEOC is available on the agency's web site at www.eeoc.gov.


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MEMPHIS – Mid-South cotton producers and consultants are urged to reserve a seat at either of two special workshops aimed at increasing their awareness of best management practices.
The National Cotton Council-coordinated workshops will be held in Mississippi at the Ameristar Casino (Magnolia Room) in Vicksburg on March 17 and at Sam's Town Casino (Delta Room) in Tunica on March 18. Both advanced training workshops, which are free to attendees, will run from 9:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. with lunch provided. Bayer CropScience is providing support.
The workshops will focus on "The First Forty Days, ™" early season best management practices -- with in-depth discussion of variety selection and arthropod/weed/nematode management led by University Extension specialists and researchers.
Continuing education units will be offered to attendees.
"These workshops are designed to help cotton growers, consultants and others involved in on-farm decision-making increase the efficiency and cost effectiveness of cotton production systems," said Bill Robertson, the Council's manager, Agronomy, Soils & Physiology. "Seating will be limited so we encourage early reservations."
To reserve a seat, each attendee must RSVP by emailing to firstname.lastname@example.com their name, email address, phone number and workshop location they will be attending. Those who respond by March 13 will be eligible for a door prize drawing at each location, but must be present to win.
For more information, email Bill Robertson at firstname.lastname@example.com.


text:
This Genuine Factory Glass & Hardware fits your 1990 GMC G3500 Rally V8 5.7 Liter GAS engine. The Original Equipment Manufacturer or OEM part number is 14002729. We also offer a wide variety of other parts for your GMC G3500.
PartProtection offers an array of benefits to both the consumer and the new car dealership, and finally allows Original Equipment auto parts to be sold with extended coverages, in the consumer friendly fashion that Americans have become accustomed to when purchasing consumer electronics, home appliances, equipment from Home Depot, and even houses. For the consumer, PartProtection provides:


text: "Still, there's a general sense that the drugs of choice for writers now are more often little blue pills than big brown bottles," writes Adam Gopnik, adding "(You can take the pill, and then send the kids to school.)" So those little blue pills would be, uh... Viagra? Valium? Please don't let it be Viagra.


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A lawyer who dodged £650 of train fares has been struck off the roll.
Between July 2017 and October 2017, NQ solicitor Adam Kemeny avoided paying £650 in fares to commute from his home in east London to Morrisons Solicitors in Redhill, Surrey. Kemeny realised that he could leave the station by a rear exit without "tapping out" with his Oyster card and skip the cost of around £11 for the journey. He also dodged paying some of his return fares which cost around £6.
A ticket inspector stopped Kemeny in October 2017. When he examined the history of the lightly-used Oyster card, the inspector realised that the Kemeny had failed to tap out on a regular basis. Following an investigation, Govia, the rail company, calculated that £650 in outstanding fares were owed. Kemeny paid a settlement sum to Govia and reported himself to the Solicitors Regulation Authority. He was fired from his job as a Corporate Solicitor at Morrisons Solicitors.
Kemeny appeared at a hearing before the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal in December 2018. He said that he was "deeply ashamed" and "remorseful" for his "total lapse in judgment". In mitigation Kemeny stated that "the non-payment was committed at a time of great financial hardship". However, the Tribunal found that he was earning £38,000 a year and, on review of Kemeny's bank accounts concluded that the lawyer "was clearly not short of cash" during the three month period of his fare-dodging.
The tribunal found Kemeny had acted dishonestly, struck him off the roll, and ordered that he pay £3,000 in costs.
Kemeny is not the first lawyer to be busted skipping through a barrier.
Neither Kemeny or Morrisons Solicitors responded to a request for comment.
Absolutely appropriate to strike off someone who is essentially no different from a common thief. I assume those sympathetic posters above are not members of the profession. Indeed it was good he was struck off early before he could mature into one of those involved in "more nefarious activities".


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Boulia has an unique collection of fossils from the Cretaceous Era when Boulia was part of the inland Eromanga Sea. The fossils are the real thing and some show explicit detail such as teeth. Many Ichthyosaurs and Plesiosaurs have been found in Boulia as well as a unique species of turtle named for the finders, John and Richard Suter called Bouliachelys suteri. See these exciting fossils and many others at the display in the grounds of the Stone-House situated in Pituri Street, Boulia.
Note: Information on listed products and services are provided by the operator and were correct at the time of publishing. Rates are indicative based on the minimum and maximum available prices of products and services. Please visit the operator's website for further information. All prices quoted are in Australian dollars (AUD).


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Lots of slots, little luck in La. casinos
It's not the Las Vegas strip, but the casino district in Shreveport and Bossier City, La., is coming into its own, with seven 24-hour casinos within a few miles of each other and plenty of flashing lights, to boot.
Late, late night was just right when the hubs and I caught the gambling bug and decided to go casino crawling. We noticed one new addition since our last visit down Interstate 20: Margaritaville Resort Casino, which opened in June.
But our adventures (or rather misadventures) in money squandering began at Boomtown Casino & Hotel (www.boomtownbossier.com). With a budget and a plan to stick together and conquer, we headed straight to one of the slot machine floors. There were lots of slots of various denominations from which to choose, as well as other games. Boomtown has more than 1,100 slots and video poker machines, so we decided to pace ourselves. That gave us time to indulge in a couple of free cocktails before collecting our meager winnings and moseying along.
The best thing about gambling after midnight in Shreveport-Bossier is that crowds are relatively sparse, so there's no competing for the "hot slots." If table games are your poison, you'll find they're also not bustling in the wee hours some weeknights. Boomtown offers more than 30 table games. Take your pick from blackjack, craps, mini-baccarat, three-card poker and high-limit table games.
The worst thing about our visit was the lack of anything to do besides gaming. At most of the places we popped in, the gift shops and most of the restaurants were closed, and there was no live entertainment.
Our second stop was Diamond Jacks Casino and Resort (www.diamondjacks.com), which, as the others, touts some of the "loosest slots in town." For us, not so much, but we sure had fun trying.
In addition to games, Diamond Jacks has three restaurants and offers special promotions to keep gamers interested. There's also hot-ticket entertainment lined up through December, including Gretchen Wilson, Kellie Pickler and Michael Bolton, but nada during our Thursday visit. I guess timing is everything.
From there, we took in the Horseshoe Casino (www.horseshoe.com), home to a 24-story luxury tower hotel, and Sam's Town Hotel & Casino (www.samstown shreveport.com), which offers four restaurants, more than 1,100 slot machines and 30 fast-action table games. A few slot plays later, we were too spent to try out Sam's Town's neighbor, the El Dorado Resort Casino (www.eldorado shreveport.com), and the newest kid on the block, Margaritaville Resort Casino (www.margaritavillebossier city.com), which boasts more than 1,300 slots and 46 table games in a tropical atmosphere. We'll go there first the next time we're in the area.
We also opted out of visiting Harrah's Louisiana Downs (www.ladowns.com), which is known for its live and simulcast thoroughbred racing but also operates a 24-hour casino with more than 1,400 slots.
At least the Horseshoe's beautiful Old World-style lobby and specialty shops were treats to behold on our outing of little excitement. Not that we blame the casinos. It just wasn't our night.
On the plus side, parking was never a problem.


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BERKELEY — Changes are in store for a pair of Telegraph Avenue properties, each involving longtime businesses, that are now on the market.
The iconic Caffe Mediterraneum — synonymous with the Telegraph Avenue Bohemian scene and birthplace of the cafe latte — is for sale.
But, building owner and current cafe operator Craig Becker said that if he has his way the café's character and tone, and even its renowned coffee, will stay.
The business, also known as Café Med, has been at 2475 Telegraph Ave. about four blocks from the UC Berkeley campus, since 1957, and Becker said it is not closing.
The block on which the cafe sits also includes the former Tienda Ho clothing store (now vacant,) part of a corner parcel at Telegraph Avenue and Dwight Way that is also on the market.
Tenants of that corner lot include Shakespeare & Co. Books, which has occupied that site since 1964; and Maxi Hair Care in business in its spot for four decades.
The corner property itself has not been on the market for 95 years, according to Gordon Commercial Real Estate Services in Berkeley, which is handling the sale.
The Telegraph Avenue commercial district has had its struggles and changes in recent years and Becker said the area is not for everybody. But he added he is staying on as the cafe building's owner.
Becker said he is looking for someone to lease the spot who can provide strong management and do some remodeling.
The cafe space has been put up for lease with a purchase opportunity, with the transaction also being handled through Gordon Commercial Real Estate Services.
Becker said he has some control over who the next operator will be, and noted it is important to him that the character, tradition and history of the business be respected and maintained.
"We want to continue the tradition of the place," he said. "We'd like to get someone who can do that and also do some work here. It needs some physical improvements and a remodel."
Listed last month, the cafe has drawn some interest so far, but Becker said prospective lessees have "not been the right fit."
The two-floor Café Med, with its familiar blue-and-white awning, has witnessed much over the decades, such as the Free Speech Movement, Beat Generation poets, and the creation of People's Park just around the corner on Dwight.
Open daily until midnight, it draws scores of students, artists and others.
On hand recently was street poet and city poet laureate Julia Vinograd selling her latest Zeitgeist Press book called "Night."
Patrons often snag the window table where Dustin Hoffman appeared in a scene in the "The Graduate" filmed in 1967.
Becker said it's true the Café Med invented the cafe latte.
As the story goes, 1950s customers were not used to strong Italian cappuccino drinks.
So, co-owner Lino Meiorin would add more and more milk to make them more appealing, according to the cafe website.
"Finally he thought of putting a larger drink on the menu with the same amount of espresso but more steamed milk, and calling it a caffe latte," according to the website.
Becker, who has owned the building and operated the cafe for the last eight years, said one of his chief interests has been to maintain the latte legacy and serve great coffee.
He said he's done a lot of upkeep on the property himself, including some repairs and remodeling, upgrading coffee drinks and not allowing homeless people to store their items on the premises.
To maintain the downstairs as a spot for socializing, Becker said he installed numerous electrical outlets in the mezzanine to encourage computer users to camp out in the second-floor space.
Meanwhile, tenants of the corner lot at Dwight Way and Telegraph said they are awaiting word of their fate.
An official with Gordon Commercial Real Estate Service, which is representing the property, said he could not comment or answer questions at this time.
The company's website indicated the property contains four businesses: Shakespeare & Co. Books, Maxi Hair Care, Gypsy Trader, and the former Tienda Ho, which has been vacant for more than two years.
Berkeley Architectural and Heritage Association member John English said that at one time the corner boasted Hasletine's Corner Grocery, and Roger Barber Shop.
The property has been owned by a trust controlled by Frances and John Kessler, and Barbara Stern, according to the Alameda County Assessor's Office which listed an Auburn address for the trust.
Ellie Javid, longtime operator of Maxi Hair Care, and Jon Wobber of Shakespeare & Co. Books, both said they hope to continue operating in their Telegraph Avenue stores.
"I've been here 19 years. I feel like I grew up here," Javid said.


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Crash-Test Smartphones: Apple's iPhone 5 vs. Samsung's Galaxy S III
Samsung may have been found guilty of patent infringement when it comes to smartphone design, but the Korean electronics company hasn't copied Apple in terms of durability.
That's if you trust SquareTrade, the electronics warranty company that likes to perform entertaining — but still, er, hard-hitting — crash tests with popular gadgets.
In its latest video, SquareTrade puts Apple's new iPhone 5 and Samsung's Galaxy S III smartphone to the test, dropping each phone on paved roads, dunking them in a swimming pool and banging TV remotes against the phones.
In June, the company pitted Apple's iPhone 4S against the Galaxy S III, which you can view here, if your Friday is going really slowly.
But first, check out the new video below:


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the church in the 21st century center
The C21 Center serves as a resource for the Catholic Church. From our events and conferences to webcasts and publications, we hope that you will utilize our resources and find interest in our four focal issues.
The C21 Center promotes many events, lectures, conferences, and symposia throughout the semester. They are generally free and open to the public except where indicated, and mostly all take place on the Boston College campus.
Click here for Visitor Parking information and Directions to the Boston College campus.
If you have missed an event, all C21 Center events are taped and posted on our C21 Videos Webcast page and Podcast page.
Through the School of Theology and Ministry our affiliate program STM Online offers companion online courses and workshops for spiritual renewal and ongoing faith formation.


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Tell your friends about Skrill and we'll pay you for it. For a whole year we'll put 10% of the fees they generate from paying or sending money into your Skrill account. There are two ways to share Skrill with your friends:
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text:
As ACTA 1.0 Lies Dying, Are G8 Countries Already Working On ACTA 2.0?
from the never-gonna-give-you-up dept
As we recently reported, ACTA has been dealt a serious blow by the EU Rapporteur's recommendation that the European Parliament should reject the treaty. In a fascinating leaked document (pdf) obtained by EDRI, it seems that even the G8 countries have accepted that ACTA is probably dead -- and have started working on a successor.
Although the short (three-page) document appears to have avoided ACTA's mistake of mixing two totally different issues -- physical counterfeits and digital copying -- and concentrates on the former, there are still major ramifications for the online world, as EDRI points out:
The Internet section, while avoiding the issue of policing of digital copying, is partially copied and pasted from the White House annual report on IPR Enforcement.
Moreover, like ACTA, the initiative is also a thinly-veiled attempt to implant the US's approach in countries around the world:
The G8 document seeks to export the entire US policy on the role of intermediaries in the trade in physical counterfeits. In particular, it seeks to make American companies into a form of global non-judicial police force / government, with responsibilities ranging from "educating" citizens to policing and, ultimately, punishing companies and citizens on the basis of allegations.
The main way the new plan hopes to do that is through "voluntary cooperative efforts", of the kind employed by ACTA, SOPA and the planned six-strikes scheme in the US, which handily avoids the need for new legislation:
Promoting voluntary cooperative efforts to tackle the proliferation of illegal Internet pharmacies. G8 countries could pledge to facilitate voluntary cooperative efforts among businesses in the pharmaceutical supply chain to stem the flow of counterfeit medicines. The voluntary industry actions could include options ranging from the financial (e.g. blocking credit card payments), to the physical (e.g., shippers refusing transportation), to the virtual (e.g., taking appropriate action against unlawful websites).
The other interesting feature of the leaked "non-paper", as it calls itself, is the way that the Internet is being demonized for its involvement with the increased flow of fake medicines:
Reports of counterfeit drugs being found in U.S. supply chains are now a frequent occurrence. These drugs pose grave threats to public health. Increased access to the Internet, coupled with new methods of manufacturing and distributing illegal pharmaceuticals have created new challenges to safeguarding the legitimate supply chain.
It's hard not to see this as a further attempt to paint the Internet as a dangerous, lawless place that needs "taming" because of the "grave threats to public health". I suppose it's a change from asking us to think of the children.
Follow me @glynmoody on Twitter or identi.ca, and on Google+


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Real Madrid head coach Santiago Solari has told his players to forget about the FIFA Club World Cup after seeing them crush minnows Melilla to secure a seventh win in eight games.
Marco Asensio and Isco struck twice each and defender Javi Sanchez and teenager Vinicius Junior also found the back of the net as the LaLiga aristocrats routed Segundo Division B Melilla 6-1 at the Bernabeu Stadium to run out 10-1 aggregate winners in their Copa del Rey last-32 tie.
However, Solari moved swiftly to keep feet firmly on the ground with league games against Huesca and Rayo Vallecano to come either side of CSKA Moscow's Champions League trip to Madrid before he and his players head for the United Arab Emirates later this month.
He said in his post-match press conference: "There's no time to think about it – we are not even sure who is in. The final of the Libertadores is being played here on Sunday.
"We are just looking at the next game, so we are still far away. There are many matches before that. There are three, two in LaLiga which are vital for us, and the other one comes in the Champions League.
"After that, we will have time to think about the Club World Cup. It's a competition that I am passionate about, I think it's brilliant."
In the meantime, Solari will prepare for Sunday's league visit to Huesca having seen his side complete a regulation second-leg victory over Melilla despite the likes of Thibaut Courtois, Sergio Ramos, Luka Modric, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema not even making the matchday squad.
Asensio struck twice in three minutes and Sanchez added a third in a flurry of activity just before the break.
Skipper Isco helped himself to two goals either side of Vinicius Junior's effort after the restart with Yacine Qasmi's late penalty providing a measure of consolation for the visitors.
Solari said: "Today's game was beneficial. It allows us to see how many quality, committed players we have. They put in a solid display and showed real spark up top.
"It doesn't matter what division our opposition are playing in. They're top of their group in Segunda B. Scoring 10 goals in two games isn't easy and I'm thrilled for everyone who was involved today."
Asensio's contribution will have done him little harm after starting the previous two games on the bench, and Solari is delighted to have competition for places.
He said: "Everyone thinks they should start, otherwise they would not be here. We need 11 players and a part of my job is to choose the ones that play."


text:
Mandisa Thomas is a co-founder and current President of the Black
Nonbelievers of Atlanta. Although never formally indoctrinated into belief, Mandisa was heavily exposed to Christianity, Black
Nationalism and a bit of Islam. As a child she loved reading, and enjoyed
various tales of Gods from different cultures, including Greek and Ghanaian.
"Through reading these stories and being taught about other cultures at an
early age, I quickly noticed that there were similarities and differences
between those deities and the God of the Christian Bible. I couldn't help but wonder
what made this God so special that he warrants such prevalence in today's
society." she recalls. She has been a guest on programs including The Critical Eye, Ask
an Atheist and the Black Freethinkers blogtalk radio show (of which she is now
a co-host with Kimberly Veal of the Black Non-Believers of Chicago).
BS: What led you to create the Black
Non-Believers of Atlanta group? What are
some of the initiatives the group has undertaken and what has been the response
of the local community?
Mandisa: Benjamin Burchall and I founded
Black Nonbelievers of Atlanta to reach other African Americans who are either
questioning their religious beliefs, or whom are nonbelievers that are still in
the closet. Because religion is so prevalent in the lives of many in our
communities, we understood how difficult it could be to express an opposing
view. We also realized that there are serious consequences for many that do so,
(including ostracism from many social circles) and we knew that there needed to
be a support system created. The initiatives we've taken include conducting
General Meetings once a month, sponsoring a Recovering from Religion support
group, and participating in community cleanup projects.
BS: Atlanta seems to be a relative hub of
black non-theist activity. Why do you think that is? Continue reading "Black Non-Believers of Atlanta: Interview with Mandisa L. Thomas"


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TWENTY!! Goddamn right. The Top Drone list could no longer be contained by the traditional 10. I'm not doing 20 because there was just too much awesome drone this year. While that's true, it's also true every year. No, I'm doing it because there were so few standout albums. Everything was so fucking awesome it's like everyone juiced their skills but were all stopped by a glass ceiling or something. I mean my Top 5 are almost interchangeable. Well, not really, but sort of.
So, as usual, this list is about my personal favorite droners. Nothing objective going on. And, like AGB in general, I tend to favor the under-represented. And I don't usually allow reissues, but I had to bend the rules a bit for no other reason than that one reissue is so, so fucking good and I didn't know it was a reissue until I started making this list.
And you know I only write about the highest quality shit. So anything that was posted this year and tagged as Drone is basically just as good as everything you'll see on this list. So browse that genre if you're still jonesing for some more drone.
Onto the list!
Read the rest of this entry »


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* Sharpest rejection by Iran of U.S. aid for mutual Iraqi ally
* ISIL militants capture second Syria-Iraq border post
* Kerry calls for more inclusive leadership in Baghdad
* Towns along Euphrates open supply route for militants (Adds clashes in Syria, ISIL using U.S.-made Humvees, Jordanian border)
By Kamal Namaa
ANBAR, Iraq, June 22 (Reuters) - Iran's supreme leader accused the United States on Sunday of trying to retake control of Iraq by exploiting sectarian rivalries, as Sunni insurgents drove toward Baghdad from new strongholds along the Syrian border.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's condemnation of U.S. action came three days after President Barack Obama offered to send 300 military advisers to help the Iraqi government. Khamenei may want to block any U.S. choice of a new prime minister after grumbling in Washington about Shi'ite premier Nuri al-Maliki.
The supreme leader did not mention the Iranian president's recent suggestion of cooperation with Shi'ite Tehran's old U.S. adversary in defence of their mutual ally in Baghdad.
On Sunday, militants overran a second frontier post on the Syrian border, extending two weeks of swift territorial gains as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) pursues the goal of its own power base, a "caliphate" straddling both countries that has raised alarm across the Middle East and in the West.
"We are strongly opposed to U.S. and other intervention in Iraq," IRNA news agency quoted Khamenei as saying. "We don't approve of it as we believe the Iraqi government, nation and religious authorities are capable of ending the sedition."
Some Iraqi observers interpreted his remarks as a warning not to try to pick its own replacement for Maliki, whom many in the West and Iraq hold responsible for the crisis. In eight years in power, he has alienated many in the Sunni minority that dominated the country under ousted dictator Saddam Hussein.
Khamenei has not made clear how far Iran itself will back Maliki to hold on to his job once parliament reconvenes following an election in which Maliki's bloc won the most seats.
Speaking in Cairo, Secretary of State John Kerry said the United States wanted Iraqis to find a leadership that would represent all the country's communities - though he echoed Obama in saying it would not pick or choose those leaders: "The United States would like the Iraqi people to find leadership that is prepared to represent all of the people of Iraq, that is prepared to be inclusive and share power," Kerry said.
The Iranian and the U.S. governments had seemed open to collaboration against ISIL, which is also fighting the Iranian-backed president of Syria, whom Washington wants to see removed.
"American authorities are trying to portray this as a sectarian war, but what is happening in Iraq is not a war between Shi'ites and Sunnis," said Khamenei, who has the last word in the Islamic Republic's Shi'ite clerical administration.
Accusing Washington of using Sunni Islamists and loyalists of Saddam's Baath party, he added: "The U.S. is seeking an Iraq under its hegemony and ruled by its stooges." During Iran's long war with Saddam in the 1980s, Iraq enjoyed quiet U.S. support.
Tehran and Washington have been shocked by the lightning offensive, spearheaded by ISIL but also involving Sunni tribes and Saddam loyalists. It has seen swathes of northern and western Iraq fall, including the major city of Mosul on June 10.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani criticised oil-rich Sunni Gulf states that he said were funding "terrorists" - a reference to the likes of Saudi Arabia and Qatar which have backed Sunni rebels against Syria's Iranian-backed leader Bashar al-Assad.
"We emphatically tell those Islamic states and all others funding terrorists with their petrodollars that these terrorist savages you have set on other people's lives will come to haunt you," IRNA quoted Rouhani as saying on Sunday.
ISIL thrust east from a newly captured Iraqi-Syrian border post on Sunday, taking three towns in Iraq's western Anbar province after seizing the frontier crossing near the town of Qaim on Saturday, witnesses and security sources said.
They seized a second, al-Waleed, on Sunday.
The gains have helped ISIL secure supply lines to Syria, where it has exploited the chaos of the uprising against Assad to seize territory. It is considered the most powerful force among armed groups who seized Falluja, just west of Baghdad, and took parts of Anbar's capital Ramadi at the start of the year.
The fall of Qaim represented another step towards the realisation of ISIL's military goals, erasing a frontier drawn by colonial powers carving up the Ottoman empire a century ago.
ISIL's gains on Sunday included the towns of Rawa and Ana along the Euphrates river east of Qaim, as well as the town of Rutba further south on the main highway from Jordan to Baghdad. Jordan said traffic had stopped arriving from Iraq.
An Iraqi military intelligence official said Iraqi troops had withdrawn from Rawa and Ana after ISIL militants attacked the settlements late on Saturday. "Troops withdrew from Rawa, Ana and Rutba this morning and ISIL moved quickly to completely control these towns," the official said.
"They took Ana and Rawa this morning without a fight."
Military spokesman Major-General Qassim al-Moussawi said the withdrawal from the towns was intended to ensure "command and control" and to allow troops to regroup and retake the areas.
The towns are on a strategic supply route between ISIL's positions in northwestern Iraq and eastern Syria, where the group has taken a string of towns and strategic positions from rival Sunni forces fighting Assad over the past few days.
The last major Syrian town not in ISIL's hands in the region, the border town of Albukamal, is controlled by the Nusra Front, al Qaeda's branch in Syria which has clashed with ISIL.
A monitoring group said on Sunday that ISIL fighters in northern Syria had for the first time been seen using U.S.-made Humvee all-terrain vehicles seized from the Iraqi army.
Disowned by al Qaeda in February after defying the global leadership to pursue its own goals in Syria, ISIL has pushed south down the Tigris valley since capturing Mosul with barely a fight, occupying towns and taking large amounts of weaponry from the collapsing, U.S.-trained Iraqi army.
Overnight, ISIL fighters attacked the town of al-Alam, north of Tikrit, according to witnesses and police in the town. The attackers were repelled by security forces and tribal fighters, they said, adding that two ISIL fighters had been killed.
State television reported that "anti-terrorism forces" in coordination with the air force had killed 40 ISIL members and destroyed five vehicles in Tikrit, Saddam's home town.
There was a lull in fighting at Iraq's largest refinery, Baiji, near Tikrit, on Sunday. The site had been a battlefield since Wednesday as Sunni fighters launched an assault on the plant. Militants entered the large compound but were repelled by Iraqi military units. The fighters now surround the compound.
A black column of smoke rose from the site Sunday. Refinery officials said it was caused by a controlled burning of waste.
At least 17 soldiers and volunteers were killed in overnight clashes with ISIL militants in the Saied Ghareeb area near Dujail, 50 km (30 miles) north of Baghdad, army and medical sources said. Near the city of Ramadi, west of the capital, a suicide bomber and a car bomb killed six people at a funeral for an army officer killed the previous day.
Relations between diverse Sunni fighting groups have not been entirely smooth. On Sunday morning, clashes raged for a third day between ISIL and Sunni tribes backed by the Naqshbandi Army, a group led by former army officers and Baathists, around Hawija, local security sources and tribal leaders said.
More than 10 people were killed in clashes in the area, southwest of Kirkuk, the sources said. On Friday, ISIL and Naqshbandi fighters began fighting each other in Hawija. Iraqi and Western officials have argued that ISIL and other Sunni factions may turn on each other after capturing territory.
The fighting has threatened to tear the country apart for good, reducing Iraq to separate Sunni, Shi'ite and ethnic Kurdish regions. It has highlighted divisions among regional powers, notably between Iran and Saudi Arabia.
Iraq's Kurds have meanwhile expanded their territory beyond their autonomous region in the northeast, notably taking over the long-prized oil city of Kirkuk. Two Kurdish militiamen were killed by a roadside bomb there on Sunday, a police source said.
The government has mobilised Shi'ite militias and other volunteers to fight on the frontlines and defend the capital - thousands of fighters in military fatigues marched in a Shi'ite slum of the capital Baghdad on Saturday. (Additional reporting by a correspondent in Tikrit, Ahmed Rasheed and Raheem Salman in Baghdad and Mehrdad Balali in Dubai; Writing by Alexander Dziadosz and Ned Parker; Editing by Alastair Macdonald)
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.


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Horsham Plumbers and Heating Engineers (RH12)
Leakless Plumbing and Heating are local plumbers and heating engineers operating in Horsham and throughout West Sussex offering services ranging from fixing dripping taps, finding and repairing leaks, new boiler installations, full central heating systems to complete bathroom installations.
Emergency Plumbing
Do you require an emergency plumber in Horsham? We can help, so give us a call on 01444 810637 to speak to a member of out team now.
In times of an emergency, you need reliable professional help in order to minimise risk to yourself and damage to your property. Leakless Plumbing & Heating are able to provide you with quick response emergency plumbers in Horsham (plus surrounding areas in West Sussex) 24-hours a day, 365 days a year.
General Plumbing Services
Plumbing is more than just pipes! It's the sink that you wash your hands in, the bath that you relax in and the fixtures that you just can't live without. The plumbing, water appliances and fixtures in your home should not be overlooked.
We offer all levels of plumbing in Horsham – no job is too small. From changing tap washers right through to installing bathrooms, showers and central heating, whether in a domestic property or commercial premises.
Gas and Heating Services
If you need to find a qualified and legitimate central heating engineer or gas fitter in Horsham, then you can rely on us. Our Gas Safe registered heating engineers are both experienced and fully insured. We are specialists in boiler repair and replacement and can supply and fit new high efficiency boilers.
Our heating engineers have diagnosed faults and repaired all make of boilers old and new, so there is little that we have yet to come across.
Drainage Services
From CCTV Surveys to high pressure water drain jetting to unblocking sinks and toilets, we provide a full range of drainage services to commercial and domestic customers in Horsham.
Our reliable and trustworthy engineers are fully trained and will arrive fully equipped to deal with any king of blockage.
We have experience of all types of boilers and appliances, including:
Plus many others!


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Transform your photos into one-of-a-kind, hand painted masterpieces!
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Our ceramic coffee mugs are available in two sizes: 11 oz. and 15 oz. Each mug is dishwasher and microwave safe.
11 oz.
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June 12th, 2019
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June 11th, 2019
Northern Cardinal sitting in a dogwood tree in my backyard.
Travis is a family man that originally hails from rural Alabama where his love of nature was an inspiration for what would one day lead to his true passion of photography. He enjoys hunting and fishing with friends and family, but his fascination primarily centers around birds. Early on as a child, he drew birds focusing quite meticulously on their details. Being aware of this fascination, his third grade teacher presented him with a book about birds as an award for perfect attendance that year. Travis carried this book around with him in his back pocket until it literally fell apart. In an attempt to share his love of birds and wildlife with others, what started out as a hobby, quickly became a true passion which is evident in his...
Our return policy is very simple:
If you're not happy with a purchase that you made on FineArtAmerica.com, for any reason, you can return it to us within 30 days of the order date. As soon as it arrives, we'll issue a full refund for the entire purchase price. Please note - Fine Art America does not reimburse the outgoing or return shipping charges unless the return is due to a defect in quality.
Fine Art America sells thousands of pieces of artwork each month - all with a 100% money-back guarantee. We take great pride in the fact that hundreds of thousands of artists have chosen Fine Art America to fulfill their orders, and we look forward to helping you select your next piece!
All coffee mugs ship from our production facility within 1 - 2 business days of your order.


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Marketing Solutions
Aurora Website Solutions
Aurora and funeralOne
Barely fifteen years ago, the only folks who saw your front door were those who drove by and those who visited for appointments and services. Today, there is no limit to the number of people who can cross your funeral home's path. The Internet has made it possible for families to visit your funeral home and discover what you have to offer without ever entering your facilities. What's more, families expect you to have a web presence. When you don't, they look elsewhere to find what they need.
When a prospective family searches for funeral service providers and finds your website, first impressions determine how well you will connect with them. They will be more likely to engage if your content uses words that speak directly to what they care about. Show them how you can help celebrate the life lived and create healing experiences for the family and friends of their loved one.
What are families looking for?
Families that visit funeral home websites are typically interested in one of three things:
1. Pre-planning choices
2. Their loved one has just passed away. What do they do now?
3. Their friend or loved one has passed away and they want to see the obituary.
Aurora and funeralOne can help you fully develop each of these portions of your website. When an individual or family is seeking a service, it is important to provide them with the details they need without requiring a lot of clicking around to find them. The web designers at funeralOne are experienced and will work with you to optimize the effectiveness of your site content and visual design.
Each funeralOne website comes equipped with other practical tools and resources, including embedded Google maps, forms that can be emailed, photo slideshows and merchandise catalogs. Google metrics are also already available on each site.
You will have access to an easy-to-use editor, where you can make changes to your website content from anywhere. Add new pages and photos, edit existing content and manage submissions without having to call Aurora or funeralOne.
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An elaborate 18-arm bronze chandelier provides light for the President's Room of the U.S. Capitol Building.
Bronze chandelier with allegorical statuettes
President's Room
U.S. Capitol
Hanging in the center of the President's Room is an elaborate 18-arm bronze chandelier embellished with allegorical statuettes mingled with figures of George Washington and Benjamin Franklin. It was made by Cornelius & Baker in 1864 and cost $900. All other gas-burning chandeliers were removed from the U.S. Capitol Building following the gas explosion in 1898, but this one survived by being electrified.
The President's Room (modern day S-216) was intended to provide convenience for the chief executive when visiting the Capitol. In 1859-1860, Constantino Brumidi decorated the President's Room with allegorical and historical figures on the ceiling while the walls were painted with portraits of George Washington and members of his first cabinet. Presidents used the room to sign legislation into law at the close of each session of Congress. This practice ended in 1933 with the passage of the 20th amendment, which established different ending dates for presidential and congressional terms of office. Although occasionally used by presidents, the room today is utilized primarily by senators for interviews and press conferences.


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Justin Bieber, Drake + More Nominated for 2012 Juno Awards
Two of Canada's biggest musical exports, Justin Bieber and Drake, are once again among the leading nominees for the 2012 Juno Awards, which celebrate the best music created by artists from our neighbor to the north.
Bieber, who took home the Juno Fan Choice Award and Best Pop Album last year, is a contender for the Fan Choice Award again and for Album of the Year for his holiday album 'Under the Mistletoe.' Drake, who hosted the ceremony in 2011, is up for four trophies this time around, including Fan Choice, Best Rap Recording, Artist of the Year, and Album of the Year for 'Take Care.'
Matching up against Bieber and Drake in the highly-competitive Album of the Year category will be Michael Buble's 'Christmas,' Avril Lavigne's 'Goodbye Lullaby,' and Nickelback's 'Here and Now.'
The lone award for non-Canadians, Best International Album, pits Adele against Lady Gaga, LMFAO, Rihanna and Coldplay. Other top nominees among the Junos' 41 categories are Feist, deadmau5, Martin Solveig, Duck Sauce, and last year's big winners, Arcade Fire.
The 2012 Juno Awards take place on April Fools' Day in Ottawa. This year's host is none other than former 'Star Trek' captain and sometimes-singer William Shatner.


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UN Update April 2019"Come, learn as we learn and collaborate with the United …Read More »
UN Update January 2019.Happy 2019 from the NGO Office, New York. We pray …Read More »
Members and co-workers are responding to today's needs in diverse ministries: education, pastoral & spiritual programmes.
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Education is a critical need in our world today and continues to be a major focus of IBVM ministries in schools, colleges, universities and informal settings
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Justice, Peace
Integrity of Creation
Justice, human rights and social needs must be at the heart of all ministries and so justice, peace and integrity of creation must be nurtured as part of the IBVM identity, being, formation and living.
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Mary Ward International
Mary Ward International (MWI) works in every province and region to support the life and mission of the Institute throughout the world
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Today on my way to Kernersville, I saw a sign for Possum Stew. Oh, yes I did!
I have a friend who always said beware of cities that end in "ville". Now I think I know what she means.
We only had 27 Trick or Treaters. I counted. I used to run out of candy. Kind of sad. The kids in the neighborhood all grew up.
My husband is half a world away in China on a marathon business trip. It's going to be a long 3 weeks.
And no, I have no desire to go with him to China someday. No offense but it does not appeal to me at all.
I still have 3 tomatoes left from my garden.
My new Wii Fit Plus is slowly becoming my friend. We got off to a rocky start.
My new kitchen dining table has a knot in the wood in the center of the table. It's not something I can't live with it but hope the company I purchased it from does the right thing and gives me a new table top.
Teenagers sleep a lot.
So do Golden Retrievers.
Saw the Orthodontist this week and I am now sporting a sassy pair of rubber bands. Oh, the indignities of being an adult with braces.
Eating a lot of soup. And drinking smoothies.
I miss eating nuts.
I wish Panera would bring out their Forest Mushroom Soup. I have been waiting patiently.
I've never been to NYC before. Think I'd like to go there one day.
Boursin cheese is now coming in a new package. I don't like it as much.
The idea of pulling out all the Christmas decorations makes me tired just thinking about it.
The geraniums on my front porch are beautiful right now. Sadly, their days are numbered.
Daylight Savings Time really throws me off.
The CD Player in my car has locked up with 6 of my favorite CDs in it and I can't get them out.
Have you seen the new Anthropologie Catalog? It's kind of disturbing. Has the look of a creepy dream.


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|Faceted tiger eye cabochon.
|"Present Ring".
|I love this color!
|"Pillow Ring".
|"Dandelion Ring".
|Faceted tiger eye cabochon.
|"Present Ring".
|I love this color!
|"Pillow Ring".
|"Dandelion Ring".
They look beautiful, and I like the names too. The "present" ring is my favorite. Well done!
I adore the Pillow ring!!!
Thanks for visiting my blog & for the follow..I am following back!
You are having a nice blog,
It would be nice if you will increase your blog pics size, you have space on your page! a big picture always looks good..
I hope you will not mind my suggestion :)
feel free to suggest me anything too :)
You are so talented! I'm a great fan of your work, and I think the names are perfect! :)
I love those with the jewel on top! Very cute. Thanks for stopping by my blog the other day :)
What interesting little rings. :) I love beading too (I have a craft blog as well: Naturally Me Creations and plan to start selling some of my beaded jewellery. :D
I don't really do bead stitching much as i haven't quite got the hang of it yet, i do other types of beading. The "present" ring seems quite cute, i like the colour. :)
Love those fancy bead rings! Very cool. They'd go great for with the perfect outfit around the holidays. I'm following you back. Have a wonderful day.
You are very talented, these are stunning. They shimmer and shine all by themselves. I love purple and teal, but I think my favorite is the pillow ring. Well done.
Your ring creations are beautiful. I'm followin you back. Thanks for visiting my blog and introducing me to yours.
Those rings are gorgeous!Thanks for commenting on my Blog and I am happy to follow back :D
Cute rings!
Thanks for following my blog - I'm your newest follower :)
For the cheeseburger soup, you can substitute Velveeta cheese with shredded cheddar cheese!
Nice job on the rings, I'm a longtime beader and have taught many years. Laura Cottage and Broome
Your rings are beautifully created, unique and gorgeous! Your makeovers are outstanding, so unique and beautifully done! Head of the class for you! Love each and every piece. I have joined your followers list and invite you to join my followers list; as well,I hope you will grab a blog button. Hugs, Gayle
Wow! Your rings are gorgeous! The purple is my favorite, too! Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment! Blessings,
What cute rings and yes I do like the names you gave them!
I like that you name them
the pillow ring is my favorite
Love love love!
Your rings are so gorgeous! The present and pillow rings are just beautiful! How long does it take you to make them? Thanks for commenting on my Pennsylvania Dutch turkey stuffing recipe. Have a great week!
I love the pillow ring. Great job!
Pretty baubles there! I love little colorful trinkets like that.
Your ring are beautiful! I can't believe how fast your blog has grown!
How do you do it?
not only are rings beautiful but the perfect project for a teenage girl when they start uttering the b word I'm bored.
Would luv for my readers to see this awesome idea, will you please join our weekly party at
have a great crafting weekend!
LOVE your color choices!
With all the blog parties out there, and at one of the busiest times of the year, it means an awful lot that you take the time to share your talent on "A Little Birdie Told Me…" Tuesdays at Rook No. 17!


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Well, the 2014 All-Stars have been announced, and as expected, no baseball fan is happy. There are several notable players that were absent from the rosters for one reason or another, and while the bulk of these guys will end up making it (either through injuries or the Final Vote campaign), they shouldn't have even had to wait this far – they should already be All-Stars.
I think that these eight players were the most egregious snubs this year. Hopefully, we'll see all of them at Target Field next Tuesday anyway, even if they didn't hear their names called on Sunday night.
Brian Dozier. I think it's a crime that Dozier won't be playing in the All-Star Game at Target Field, his home park. Dozier has had an incredible season thusfar in 2014, despite a paltry .234 batting average. Dozier has smashed 16 homers and stolen 15 bases while walking at a double digit clip, pushing his overall stat line to .234/.342/.416. You can talk about how great it would be to see Justin Morneau return to Minneapolis in the Midsummer Classic, but what about Minnesota's current breakout star getting some love, especially considering the other Twins in the game are a reliever (Glen Perkins) and a catcher (Kurt Suzuki) that only joined the team this offseason and could be dealt leading into the trade deadline?
Corey Kluber. It's a damn shame that Kluber pitches in the same division as Max Scherzer and Chris Sale (more on him later), because he really deserves some more attention. Kluber snapped up the "ace" mantle abandoned by Ubaldo Jimenez when he left the Indians this past winter, and he's been an absolute monster since. This year, Kluber has struck out 137 while walking only 30 in 125 2/3 innings, pitching to a more than respectable 2.86 ERA in the process. The only pitchers more valuable than Kluber in the American League this season have been Felix Hernandez and Jon Lester. But hey, let's leave him off the team because no one in Cleveland will care. What a joke.
Anthony Rendon. Rendon is very quietly proving himself to be one hell of a catalyst for the Nationals this year. Playing at both second and third this season, Rendon has hit .282/.340/.483 with a dozen homers. If you think of him as a second baseman now that Ryan Zimmerman and Bryce Harper are back in Washington's lineup, no second basemen in baseball has had a better year than him. If you think of him as a third baseman, where he got the bulk of his playing time earlier in the year, he's merely been the fourth-best hitter. Brewers fans did an awesome job stuffing the ballot box for the oft-injured Aramis Ramirez, and an undeserving David Wright or Pablo Sandoval would have won the fan vote had Ramirez fell short. It's a shame that that numbers crunch forced one of Rendon, Matt Carpenter, or Todd Frazier out of the game, but here we are.
Garrett Richards. I think Richards got a little extra motivation when he was informed earlier on Sunday that he wasn't be an All-Star – all he did to the Astros yesterday afternoon was strike out 11 while walking one and allowing one run in 7 1/3 innings. I think Richards actually suffers being in this Angels rotation – Tyler Skaggs and Hector Santiago were acquired as part of Anaheim's big offseason move this past winter, and the duo of C.J. Wilson and Jered Weaver are making buckets of money. Richards falls under the radar, and he's better than all of them – his 2.71 ERA is solid, and he's struck out more than a better per inning this year while getting ground balls at a near-50% clip. For a team that's been as good as the Angels this year, it's a shame that their only All-Star was Mike Trout.
Anthony Rizzo. Rizzo is one of the few things about the 2014 Chicago Cubs that isn't a joke, along with departed teammates Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel and All-Star Starlin Castro. Rizzo is having by far his best season ever in 2014, smashing 17 homers while hitting a sterling .276/.384/.487. Both Paul Goldschmidt and Freddie Freeman are deserving All-Stars, but it sure would have been nice if the National League brought Rizzo along as their third first baseman instead of going with just those two.
Chris Sale. This one baffles my mind, and the only possible explanation is that players forgot about Sale while he was on the DL earlier this year. In 13 starts this season, Sale has struck out 96 hitters, walked 16, and has a 2.16 ERA. Even though he has five starts fewer than the best pitchers in the league, Sale is still a top ten pitcher (if not better) in the AL, and he's somehow not going to be in Minnesota. Hopefully, he'll dominate the Final Vote and make the trek north to Target Field.
Kyle Seager. Before Robinson Cano got all the headlines among Mariners hitters in Seattle, there was Kyle Seager. And what Seager has done so far in 2014 is better than what he did in his excellent 2012 and 2013 campaigns. Seager has already hit 13 homers this season, and his 3.3 fWAR is a top 15 mark among all hitters in baseball. Both Josh Donaldson and Adrian Beltre deserved to be All-Stars, but so did Seager. Also, Seager isn't some sort of flash in the pan like you see so often with some All-Stars each year – this is his third-straight three-win season in Seattle, and he's hit 20 homers in each of the first two campaigns. For my money, not only is Seager's snub egregious, he's one of the most underrated players in all of baseball.
UPDATE: Seager has replaced the injured Edwin Encarnacion on the roster. There's one!
.@Mariners third baseman Kyle Seager will replace Edwin Encarnacion on the American League's #ASG roster.
— #FinalVote (@MLB) July 7, 2014
Stephen Strasburg. And then, there's the fallen star in Washington. As baseball fans, I know we get jaded from time to time. Strasburg has a 3.53 ERA this year, and after the 2012 shutdown fiasco, there's this perception that he's just not that great. But what if I told you that in 2014, Strasburg has the best strikeout to walk rate of his career, is on pace to finish with the highest fWAR of his career, and is still averaging 94 on his fastball? Yeah, he's not the same guy that would touch 100 multiple times a game anymore, but Strasburg doesn't *need* to do that – he's dominant without the need to pump gas over the plate on every pitch. Maybe, just maybe, we should realize that he's just as good (if not better) this way as he was as a fireballing stud prospect. Guess what? He's still one of the best pitchers in baseball, and he's still an All-Star.