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It's amazing how an academic project can bear lasting fruit.
Early this century, as a master's degree student in York University's dance department, multi-talented Indigenous artist Santee Smith designed a plan for an international Indigenous dance festival, but she didn't leave it on paper.
As a lead-up to a World Dance Alliance global assembly at York in July 2006, Smith decided to put her plan into action. She curated and produced the three-day Living Ritual: World Indigenous Dance Festival.
Smith always intended to convene another festival but, with her own career as a performer and artistic director of Kaha:wi Dance Theatre consuming much of her energy, the project "got put on the back burner."
Read more:
Powerful stories told through dance at North American Indigenous Games
Santee Smith climbs a dance mountain in NeoIndigenA
Santee Smith's Susuriwka — willow bridge gets North American premiere
Now, more than a decade later, Smith, 46, is about to present her second Living Ritual event, this time at Harbourfront Centre's prestigious Fleck Dance Theatre. It will be significantly different from that pioneering 2006 festival, in ways that reflect the expansion of Smith's artistic interests and a continually expanding international network of Indigenous performers.
Smith is sticking with Living Ritual as the banner title.
"For Indigenous peoples, ritual is a way of life," Smith explains, "but today, performance practices are more integrated. I don't want to silo out disciplines by labelling the festival simply as dance, with all the preconceived notions that implies. For the 2006 festival, I programmed mostly traditional, community-based groups. Now I'm focusing on contemporary and experimental work; no pow wow or hoop dances this time."
Although movement-based work will be much in evidence, Smith is giving the event a more broadly embracing name: International Indigenous Performing Arts Festival.
The all-day activities, which open on Tuesday with a traditional outdoor Onkwehon:we Edge of the Woods Welcome Ceremony, include keynote speeches — more enticingly called "provocation addresses" — followed by panel discussions; "embodied sharing" master classes and performative lectures. Each evening there will be three different public performances featuring artists from as far away as Australia and as close to home as Toronto, with Smith performing her acclaimed, much-toured solo NeoIndigenA.
The festival will highlight commonalities, as well as differences, across geographically or politically separated Indigenous cultures. National borders are of scant relevance to the peoples whose ancestors inhabited Turtle Island long before Europeans "discovered" North America.
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Smith emphasizes that today's Indigenous artists are highly individual. "We're all rooted in our world views — societal, spiritual, philosophical — and share a belief that art and performance are an integral part our daily lives, but we're far from being homogenous."
Shared experience, as well as a meeting of traditions, is epitomized by Material Witness, a work that addresses violence against Aboriginal women. It's co-produced and performed by Nipissing First Nation arts collective Aanmitaagzi and New York's Spiderwoman Theater. Sid Bobb, who is the co-founder and artistic director of Aanmitaagzi with Penny Couchie, describes it as an "internation collaboration."
Bobb has high praise for Smith and festival executive producer Cynthia Lickers-Sage.
"Making an event like this happen is a really steep wall to climb," Bobb says.
He's particularly excited by the prospect of sharing Material Witness with his Indigenous peers. Bobb is also looking forward to frank and open discussion about issues affecting the progress of Indigenous artists at a time when the historic subjection of Canada's First Nations and their place in contemporary society has come into sharper focus because of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the Canada 150 anniversary.
"This is a chance for meaningful engagement," he says.
Like her fellow Indigenous artists, Smith subscribes to a traditional cosmology that unites past, present and future, enriched by a respect for all living things and the physical environment they inhabit. She does not view this as opposed to modernity, but rather as a way to move forward without losing touch with past wisdom.
A notable example of this approach will be the local premiere of Kiviuq Returns, performed in Inuktitut by the Nunavut-based Qaggiq Performing Arts Collective. This recent production combines music, dance, acting and elder storytelling to recount the epic travels of Kiviuq, a legendary Inuit wanderer from ancient times, through colonization and into a promisingly brighter future.
"It's all about passing on knowledge in exciting and transformative ways," Smith says. "The festival places artists at the centre, from which springs forth conversation, understanding and connection. For anyone interested in understanding more about the Indigenous experience, Living Ritual will offer unique insight."
Living Ritual is at Harbourfront Centre's Fleck Dance Theatre, 207 Queens Quay W., July 25 to 27. See kahawidance.org for information. Go to harbourfrontcentre.com or call 416-973-4000 for tickets.


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- Telecommunications Giant Vodafone Leaves the Libra Association
- Group of Central Banks Assesses Developing Central Bank Digital Currencies
- South Korea Might Impose 20 Percent Tax on Cryptocurrency Profits
- Report: Terrorists Increasingly Use Crypto to Raise Funds Anonymously
- Canadian Securities Administrators Subject Crypto Exchanges to Securities Laws
The Apple Card's Customer Agreement Prohibits Cryptocurrency Purchases
According to a customer agreement released last month, purchase of cryptocurrencies through The Apple Card will not be permitted. The credit card service is a collaboration between Apple and Goldman Sachs. The customer agreement was published on Goldman Sachs website on August 2.
The new credit card service in collaboration with the banking giant Goldman Sachs is part of Apple's new initiative to launch projects that can help bring in revenue through service offerings. The efforts to diversify Apple's revenue streams come after a 12% decline in Apple's iPhone sales.
The drop in revenue generated through smartphones sales has long been predicted. Apple's heavy reliance on iPhone smartphones has caused the company to take a step back and reevaluate its preferences moving forward.
Goldman's partnership with Apple is a step towards customer-facing business that the company has been keen to establish. The customer agreement terms cryptocurrency to be 'Cash Advance or Cash Equivalents.'
The customer agreement states:
"'Cash Advance and Cash Equivalents' means any cash advance and other cash-like transaction, including purchases of cash equivalents such as travelers checks, foreign currency, or cryptocurrency; money orders; peer to peer transfers, wire transfers or similar cash-like transactions; lottery tickets, casino gaming chips (whether physical or digital), or race track wagers or similar betting transactions."
The agreement goes on to establish that transactions that include these 'Cash Advance and Cash Equivalents' are forbidden through the Apple Card.
Banks and Crypto: It's Complicated
Apple and Goldman Sachs are just the latest in a long list of banks and institutions that continue to put up a fight against the broader adoption of cryptocurrencies and blockchain. One major concern of banks that causes them to attempt stopping cryptocurrency purchases is the digital assets' volatile prices. Banks fear that a sudden and sharp decline in cryptocurrency prices could cause customers to fall into debts that they cannot repay.
It is important to mention that another leviathan from the banking industry, JPMorgan Chase, is currently facing a class action lawsuit that directly addresses this issue. The lawsuit would be integral in deciding whether cryptocurrencies fall under the same category as other cash advances. A number of motions to dismiss by JPMorgan have been denied as the judge believes that the prosecutors' interpretation that cryptocurrencies do not fall into the same category is plausible.
It will be interesting to see how Apple and Goldman Sach's policy might be affected if JPMorgan would lose the class action suit.

subset: commoncrawl


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Joined on this episode by Dylan Elder, the Founder and CEO of Monster Roster, a powerful algorithm-driven platform that helps you make the right picks in sports betting (it was the first company admitted to the Philadelphia 76ers Innovation Lab). Rick and Dylan talk the new one-and-done rule and NBA, MLB or NFL trending topics.
Legal sports wagering is taking off across the country and there are many topics to discuss. One-and-done remains a point of discussion, and Dylan talks about the good, the bad, and the ugly sides to letting prospects enter straight from high school; whether abolishing the rule makes sense; and how lowering the age limit will fundamentally change the game.
Dylan founded Monster Roster at the perfect time as more and more states propose bills for sports betting legalization. Dylan's algorithm has the highest ROI compared to other props and betting sites. Monster Roster was the first company admitted to the Sixers Innovation Lab, and while working side by side with actual players, Dylan developed a tool to draft the ultimate fantasy leagues and now that has moved to the sports betting arena.
Dylan is Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Monster Roster, a DFS and sports betting pick recommendation subscription service with a total ROI of 347% within the past year. He founded Monster Roster in 2015 at the age of 18. In Monster Roster's first year of business, Elder generated $100,000 in revenue while in high school and then later while in college.
Elder expressed the entrepreneurial spirit at a young age. When he was 10 years old he would write fantasy football guides in exchange for free video games from his father's office. Years later as a freshman and sophomore in high school, Elder converted those guides into a sports fantasy blog. Elder regularly drafted fantasy lineups for his friends to test out on FanDuel/DraftKings.
In June 2016, Elder entered Monster Roster at the biannual Fantasy Sports Trade Association Conference Elevator Pitch competition, reserved for up-and-coming fantasy businesses, and placed second out of 16 contestants. Following the elevator pitch contest, Elder was introduced to the Philadelphia 76ers Innovation Lab Crafted by Kimball. After applying, Elder underwent a series of interviews and meetings with Sixers Innovation Lab CEO Seth Berger. Monster Roster was admitted as the first company into the Sixers Innovation Lab. Elder started the program on August 22, 2016.
He developed the daily fantasy aspect of Monster Roster in the Sixers Innovation Lab for two years under the guidance of Seth and Sixers executives. With the legalization of sports betting in June of 2018, Monster Roster pivoted its product and algorithm to offer sports betting picks for spreads, money lines, over/unders, and prop bets. Monster Roster left the Innovation Lab in October of 2018 to continue to grow the sports betting aspect of the business.
Elder attended Georgetown University. After completing his freshman year at Georgetown, Elder postponed school to pursue his dream of developing and growing Monster Roster. Elder intends to return to school.
A fascinating discussion with Dylan, hope you enjoy!


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Also known as: FAI, hip impingement, CAM lesion of hip, pincer lesion of hip
Femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) occurs from excessive contact between the proximal femur (hip) and acetabulum (hip socket).
What causes femoroacetabular impingement?
This can be caused by an abnormality of the proximal femur, acetabulum or both.
What are the symptoms of femoroacetabular impingement?
Common symptoms of femoroacetabular impingement include pain in the groin or thigh with sitting, walking or running.
What are femoroacetabular impingement care options?
Modification of activities and physical therapy can help decrease the pain associated with femoroacetabular impingement. If these treatments are not successful, open or arthroscopic surgery may be performed to normalize the anatomy of the hip joint.
Reviewed by: Kevin S Horowitz, MD
This page was last updated on: June 21, 2019 02:25 AM


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Ozzy Osbourne admits he doesn't "go out and watch new bands" but he's gotten a glimpse of Lady GaGa to have decided that he likes the "vibe she puts out" when it comes to her performances.
In fact Ozzy says that GaGa's "craziness" and eccentricity remind him of another star from his own generation, saying that her act reminds him of what "Elton John used to do years ago." In contrast Ozzy's seen enough of the talent show contestants who paint themselves as "vocal acrobats" in an attempt to rip off Mariah Carey.
The rich and famous were treated to a gothic spectacular and a duet from Elton John and Lady Gaga, at this year's White Tie and Tiara.
The rich and famous were treated to a gothic spectacular which combined elements of a Victorian asylum with futuristic fantasy at Sir Elton John's White Tie & Tiara Ball on June 24, 2010. The evening, hosted by the singer and his partner, David Furnish, at their home in Old Windsor, raised more than Ł5.6 million for the Elton John AIDS Foundation.
A 1996 Bentley Continental T Coupé, which was first owned by music legend Sir Elton John, was one of the highlights at Bonhams' Rolls-Royce, Bentley Motor Cars & Automobilia sale in Leicestershire on Saturday, June 19, 2010.
Sold for Ł58,700, the car has only 25,000 miles on the odometer. Overall, the sale made Ł822,957 in total with an 82% sale rate.
Elton John is set to release two new albums with the first being a double live CD called 'At The Verona Arena' which will be released on August 2, 2010.
Fotos by Peter Bucek.
Following is the complete set list of the Kosice show on June 22, 2010:
The little-show-that-could couldn't make it on Broadway after all. The producers of the original play "Next Fall" said on June 22, 2010 that the production would close at the Helen Hayes Theater on July 4, 2010, after 26 previews and 132 regular performances.
"Next Fall" cost about $2 million to mount, and one of its lead producers, Richard Willis, said that the show will close at a total loss to its producers and investors.
This year's White Tie and Tiara Ball, which takes place on June 24, 2010 and will be held – as always – at the home of Elton and David, will feature an extraordinarily special auction item. Audi, which has been one of the Ball's key supporters over many years, is donating an A1 car that has been made into a work of art by Britain's foremost contemporary artist, Damien Hirst.
The unique Audi A1 has been spin painted by the artist in his studio in Gloucestershire, and is fully driveable and road legal. "This is one of the most exciting auction items we have ever had for White Tie" said Elton, pictured with partner David Furnish in front of the Hirst Audi. David adds "Audi has been a wonderful partner with us, and this year they have really produced something fantastic. I am sure it will be a huge hit with our guests". As part of the same Lot, the car will be auctioned with a 6ft diameter canvas spin painting, which Hirst completed at the same time.
"Love Lies Bleeding" will tour in 2011 after getting a go-ahead from Elton John.
Elton John has given the thumbs-up to a tour of "Love Lies Bleeding", the Alberta Ballet production based on his life and music. The ambitious work choreographed by Alberta Ballet artistic director Jean Grand-Maître premiered May 6, 2010 in Calgary.
The Williams Lake Pipe Band has embarked on a unique fund-raising campaign to buy kilts for the whole group, which has now grown to 17 members, says John Visentin.
The band is selling raffle tickets to an Elton John concert on July 16, 2010 in Prince George to raise money for kilts -- the first prize is two concert tickets and a night's accommodation.
Some 50,000 Israeli fans welcomed Elton John at a one-off concert on June 17, 2010 amid relief the pop icon performed after a string of artists cancelled gigs in the Jewish state.
Israel faced a wave of recent cancellations after a deadly May 31, 2010 Israeli naval raid on a foreign aid flotilla that left nine activists dead. Israel's Channel One television hailed Elton as a "single righteous artist in a sea of boycotters," after he arrived for the show.
What have the Pope and Senator John McCain got in common? Both of them mistook Ł1 notes sent to them to be signed for a collector as a donation towards their causes and kept them.
But the collector was a lot more successful with other public figures and his varied collection of Ł1 notes signed by world leaders, sporting champions and stars of stage and screen is set to go under the hammer at a Dorset auction house at the end of June 2010.
Add Elton John to those who were not expecting him to get an invite to Rush Limbaugh's wedding.
"To put it in Elton's exact words, when he got the invitation, he was 'a little surprised,' " David Furnish told PEOPLE on June 13, 2010 at the Tony Awards in New York. "And then, when it turned out to be a genuinely sincere invitation … Elton said, 'Life is about building bridges, not walls.' "
Elton's stepfather, Fred Farebrother died Friday, June 11, 2010 after a long illness.
No further information is available at this time.
Charges against an anti-abortion activist who picketed outside Elton John's Buckhead condominium with a sign that said "Elton John Must Die" were dismissed on June 14, 2010.
Neal Horsley was charged with terroristic threats, criminal defamation and using the Internet to disseminate threats. The judge said on June 14, 2010 that Horsley's actions didn't warrant criminal charges, WSB-TV reported.
Elton John secretly spent the night in Sofia before the day of his concert on Locomotive Stadium on June 13, 2010.
Reportedly, the star's private plane took off from Bucharest right after the end of his concert there on June 12, 2010 and landed in Sofia in the wee hours of the morning of June 13, 2010. Two police cars escorted Elton and his band in a tour of night Sofia.
Fotos by Peter Bucek.
Following is the complete set list of the Prague show on June 10, 2010:
Rush Limbaugh and Elton John's relationship started with problems. Heart problems, that is.
According to conservative talk radio host Mark Levin, a guest at Limbaugh's wedding last weekend, Limbaugh and Elton were staying at the same hotel in Hawaii when Limbaugh had his heart attack scare earlier in 2010. Elton checked up on Limbaugh to see how he was doing, and from there, a friendship formed.
When the 52-year-old Guy Babylon of Agoura died last September of a heart attack, Elton John proclaimed him "one of the most brilliant musicians I ever knew, a true genius."
Guy had been Elton's keyboardist and arranger for 21 years, performing on such albums as "Sleeping With the Past," "The Lion King," "Made in England, "Peachtree Road," and "The Captain and the Kid," as well as Elton's Broadway musicals "Billy Elliot," "Vampire Lestat" and "Aida," for which Guy won a Grammy Award for producing Best Musical Show Album of 2000.
The Public Council on Morality asks organizers of Elton John's concert in Minsk to provide it with records of the singer's previous performances.
Interfax news agency learnt this from the Council head Mikalai Charhinets. He noted that the Public Council on Morality had watched records of previous Rammstein's gigs before the band's concert in Minsk on March 7, 2010. "It was awful what we saw about Rammstein. We did the right thing by raising this question. As a result, the organizers asked Rammstein not to afford the things they did in other places," he said.
Fotos by Peter Bucek.
Following is the complete set list of the Budapest show on June 8, 2010:
With all the speculation about why Elton performed at Rush Limbaugh's wedding on June 5, 2010, it was interesting to come across Mediaite reporting obervations from an actual guest, Megyn Kelly of Fox News.
"Tolerance and respect were on display at the wedding," Kelly said, pointing out that the hosts on "The View" didn't behave the same way June 7, 2010 morning when they kaffeeklatsched about Elton's decision. Among other things, "The View" gals made the point that Elton is married, which in fact he is not.
Rush Limbaugh's wedding guests weren't the only people treated to a private Elton John concert over the weekend.
A day after playing the Palm Beach festivities, Elton played a private show in New York for American Express Centurion cardmembers - aka the black card - at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall.
In the spirit of your fight against Aids, free Monjeza and Chimbalanga – an open letter from Elton John to the president of Malawi.
Dear President Mutharika
Elton John told the Scissor Sisters that their proposed third album wasn't up to scratch, causing the band to rewrite and record the entire album.
The initial follow up to 2006's 'Ta-Dah' was played to Elton by the band's guitarist, reports The Sunday Times. "We had a whole album of material but we just weren't sure we believed in it," says frontman Jake Shears.
Elton John doesn't like digital music because you can't hold it.
He and David have an airy apartment in Los Angeles, which they have decorated in a 70s theme. Although most of their home adheres to the decade, they do have some modern touches. David forced Elton to invest in a digital library of his favourite records and films, something which the singer was initially unsure of.
Conservative talk radio king Rush Limbaugh is getting married for a fourth time and Elton John will sing at the reception.
The Palm Beach Post reports that the 59-year-old Limbaugh is getting married on June 5, 2010 to 33-year-old Kathryn Rogers in a Hawaiian-themed affair. About 400 people are expected to attend at the swank Breakers Hotel.
More beauty news from Jo Malone London! They're re-launching one of their most memorable summer fragrances. White Tie & Tiara first launched in 2008 (designed exclusively to support the Elton John AIDS Foundation).
The World of Jo Malone™ introduces White Tie & Tiara, a limited edition fragrance designed exclusively to support the Elton John AIDS Foundation. White Tie & Tiara is inspired by the beautiful 'White Scented Garden' at Sir Elton John and David Furnish's Windsor home, and is named after the White Tie and Tiara Ball, held every June in the grounds.
Elton and David always write to each other every Saturday, in honour of the day they met 16 years ago.
Elton and David - who he married four years ago after 12 years together - insist on sending one another a note every weekend, regardless of where they are in the world. David said: "Elton and I write to each other every Saturday wherever we are in the world. We met on a Saturday, so it's like a weekly anniversary card. The note always sits on the side of the bed wherever I am."
Julian Winter has thanked Elton John for providing Watford fans with one of the "most memorable nights" seen at Vicarage Road.
Watford's honorary life president entertained almost 20,000 fans for more than two hours on May 29, 2010 as he went through his impressive repertoire of hits. The club's former chairman offered to host the concert to raise money for player acquisitions this summer.
Following is the complete set list of the Warsaw show on May 30, 2010.
Lady Gaga was stunned after meeting her heroes Madonna and Elton John - because the superstars were much nicer than her pop contemporaries.
The singer struggled to adjust to life in the spotlight at the start of her career but she credits Madonna and Elton with inspiring her to accept fame. And the "Just Dance" hitmaker admits she's continually surprised by how nice the music industry "legends" are.


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Henryetta high school students continued a nearly 200-year-old tradition of making gingerbread houses.
The students were competing in a series of contests this past week, shaping the traditional holiday project into a number of different styles and shapes.
Once completed, the houses were put on display for fellow students to see and cast their ballots.
Winning the best overall vote was the house built by Kayla Gray and Pepper Logan.
The team of Bailee Davis and D.J. Harrison received the best use of materials title.
Zane Wheeler, Markie Purdue and CHeyanne Bullard joined forces to take home the best construction title.
The most original title went to Taylor Graffman and Makayla Baxter.
he tradition of making decorated gingerbread houses started in Germany in the early 1800s. According to certain researchers, the first gingerbread houses were the result of the well-known Grimm's fairy tale "Hansel and Gretel" in which the two children abandoned in the forest found an edible house made of bread with sugar decorations.
Recently the record for world's largest gingerbread house was broken. The previous record was set by the Mall of America in 2006. The new winning gingerbread house, spanning nearly 40,000 cubic feet, was erected at Traditions Golf Club in Bryan, Texas. The house required a building permit and was built much like a traditional house. 4,000 gingerbread bricks were used during its construction. To put that in perspective, a recipe for a house this size would include 1,800 pounds of butter and 1,080 ounces of ground ginger.
Winning gingerbread houses:


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Come out this Saturday for an evening full of fun activities for the whole family!
High gas prices have you feeling low? Miss your last fill-up and now you're stuck with the latest jump in gas prices? Want to be notified of increases in gas prices, direct to your cell phone? Thorntons now offers this very feature.
Thorntons Inc. recently donated $1 million to support expansion and renovation of landmark museum site.


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Advantages of Purchasing Fish pond supplies Online
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The Best Advice About I've Ever Written
Advantages of Purchasing Fish pond supplies Online


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Christmas is almost here: for many of us the holidays are approaching, only a few work days are left, and Italian families are arranging the last preparations to be ready for the festive gatherings. What you probably don't know is that there are many ways to celebrate Christmas in Italy: go through this article to discover more about it.
Italy is divided between those who give more importance to the Christmas Eve dinner (12/24) and those to the Christmas lunch (12/25): on average, in the Center and in the South of Italy the Eve is celebrated, in the North Italy the Christmas day. The Eve dinner is strictly based on fish because December 24th - according to the Catholic religion - it is considered "day of low fat", like the fridays of Lent.
The typical dishes of Christmas in Italy are many and they vary from region to region. We never miss an elaborate first course, usually filled pasta or risotto, and then we usually have different versions of boiled meat with various sauces, or fine fish such as tuna or salmon, with vegetables as a side dish.
At the end of the meal, on the Italian table of Christmas there is no shortage of dried fruit and typical desserts such as panettone, pandoro and torrone. At this point, the children normally open the gifts and start playing together, while the adults take advantage of the special day to indulge in chatter and laughter, sipping together a fine liqueur.
If you want to experience the magical atmosphere of Italian Christmas at your home, there are plenty of gourmet products on PepeGusto... And remember: shipments are guaranteed by December 20th, so hurry up while you're still in time!


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April 15, 2019 - April 17, 2019
New Hall, National Agricultural Exhibition Center, Beijing, China
We are excited to be exhibiting at COTTM 2019. Meet us in at stand 235 to learn how we are helping travel companies transform payment processes to suppliers across the globe.
Entering it's 15th year, COTTM is China's leading outbound travel exhibition. It is one of the Chinese travel industry's most important platforms and the only business-to-business event focusing purely on China's growing outbound market.
In 2018 the trade show was attended by 4,000 Chinese trade buyers from leading outbound tour operators and agents.


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Mixing martial arts, music, and dance, students will be introduced to the historical and cultural elements of Capoeira. This program is designed to help students develop and build self-confidence, teamwork, and social skills through a mix of fun and challenging activities. Students will learn about the slave trade and its effects on the development of this art form while learning a vocabulary of fun and exciting movements to perform in a roda (circle) at the end of the workshop or residency.
The Capoeira
Program Artist(s)
- Frank Polk
Program Details
Art Form(s)Dance
CurriculumSocial Studies, Character Education, Social-Emotional
Grade Level(s)5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Program Available As:
- In-School Workshops
- After or Out of School Workshops
- Residency


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بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
How Islam as an Ideology will Eradicate Racism
Islam is the only ideology capable of eradicating racism. To understand how, we first need to define what racism is and recognize what lies at its basis.
Racism according to The New Oxford American Dictionary is explained with the following two definitions:
1) Prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one's own race is superior.
2) The belief that all members of each race possess characteristics or abilities specific to that race, especially so as to distinguish it as inferior or superior to another race or races.
Connected to racism are the superficial bonds between people based upon tribalism, patriotism and nationalism. They are bonds based on family, clan or tribal ties. All three bonds are based upon shallow ideas, which in essence are divisive and promote segregation.
Nationalism is born when the predominant thought is to achieve domination. It started within the family unit, where one member achieved leadership in the affairs of the family. Once this was achieved, the individual extended his leadership to the wider family. Later this leadership was achieved within the community, which eventually resulted in tribes competing with each other. All believing that one's family, tribe or country is inherently superior to all others and all trying to achieve domination and the privileges which comes with having the authority.
And so nations were born, formed by the very fruits of nationalism. And now, even though most secular liberal societies claim to object any form of racism to the extent that most, if not all have included the concept of equality within their constitution, their very foundation was built upon the concept of nationalism, the belief that their country is superior to all others. It is a concept which is promoted within these societies, through its various means; (e.g. "independence day, national anthems"). All this results in societies struggling to reconcile the promotion of nationalism and the resulting 'xenophobia' and racism that accompanies it. This is inevitable so, as every nation will have its own interests; and the interests of one will collide with the interests of the other resulting in continuing discord, disunity and strife in the world e.g. colonialism, apartheid, slavery, influx of refugees and war.
Before the coming of Islam, the structure of Arabian society was also of a tribal structure. Islam gave the world a new bond between people, a bond which transcends all other bonds, an ideological bond based on the Islamic Aqeedah.
(يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ إِنَّا خَلَقْنَاكُم مِّن ذَكَرٍ وَأُنثَىٰ وَجَعَلْنَاكُمْ شُعُوبًا وَقَبَائِلَ لِتَعَارَفُوا إِنَّ أَكْرَمَكُمْ عِندَ اللَّهِ أَتْقَاكُمْ إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَلِيمٌ خَبِيرٌ)
"O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you." [The Quran 49:13]
Its message was that all people are the descendants of 'Adam and Hawwa' and share this honour equally. The only difference between them is in the religion that revolves around their obedience to Allah the Exalted and their following of His Messenger and that 'you earn honour with Allah the Exalted on account of Taqwa, not family lineage.' (Ibn Kathir)
Islam commanded loyalty to the Islamic creed inviting all people to believe in the Almighty Allah Creator of all humankind. Ties in Islam were therefore based on the Aqeedah of Laa ilaha Ila Allah and not on race, colour or region.
On many occasions the prophet would emphasise how rotten nationalism is, in his word and actions.
«لَيْسَ مِنَّا مَنْ دَعَا إِلَى عَصَبِيَّةٍ، وَلَيْسَ مِنَّا مَنْ قَاتَلَ عَلَى عَصَبِيَّةٍ، وَلَيْسَ مِنَّا مَنْ مَاتَ عَلَى عَصَبِيَّةٍ»
"He is not one of us who calls of 'asabiyyah (Nationalism) or who fights for 'asabiyyah or who dies for 'asabiyyah." (Abu Dawud)
In his (a.s.) last sermon, the Prophet (saw) declared:
«أيها الناس، إن ربكم واحد، وإن أباكم واحد، كلكم لآدم، وآدم من تراب، إن أكرمكم عند الله أتقاكم، ليس لعربي فضل على أعجمي إلا بالتقوى»
"O people! You are all to Adam and Adam was made of dust. No Arab is to be preferred over a non-Arab except by virtue of his piety." And in another He (saw) said:
«إِنَّ اللَّهَ لا يَنْظُرُ إِلَى صُوَرِكُمْ وَأَمْوَالِكُمْ وَلَكِنْ يَنْظُرُ إِلَى قُلُوبِكُمْ وَأَعْمَالِكُم»
"Allah does not look at your images or your colors but He looks at your hearts (intentions) and your deeds." And in another He (saw) said:
«أَحَبُّ النَّاسِ إِلَى اللَّهِ أَنْفَعُهُمْ لِلنَّاسِ» "Creatures are the dependants of Allah and the closest among them to Allah are indeed the most useful to His dependants."
One important story which shows the actions of Muhammed (saw) is the story of Abu Darr; one of the Sahaba's called Bilal 'son of the black woman', the Prophet (a.s.) got angry and told him: «إِنَّكَ امْرُؤٌ فِيكَ جَاهِلِيَّةٌ» "You are a man who has ignorance in him." Abu Dharr felt such a great remorse that he put his cheek on the ground and asked Bilal to tread on his other cheek if he'd like to.
When the enemies of Islam saw the great strength of the Muslim Ummah through their Ideological bond, they conspired to reinstall their own inferior bond of nationalism. Arab and Turkish nationalism was re-introduced to the Muslim Ummah. This eventually lead to the destruction of the Khilafah after which the Islamic state was divided in to nations. The current tyrannical regimes in the Muslim world will emphasize and amplify nationalism and patriotism within their own area of control, in order to keep their own position of authority, this is also the reason why racism has returned to these lands.
In conclusion history has taught us that it's not possible to bond people together based on the superficial bond of nationalism without the interest of the one group colliding with that of the other group. So even if secular liberal nations would attempt to eliminate racism the bond holding these societies together is nationalism, a precursor of racism.
On the other hand Islam offers an different bond, a bond which transforms people from the abyss of Nationalism to the elevation of an ideological bond. It will be a society built upon Taqwa, free of racism. Our history bears witness to this unparalleled success. A state which in its basis in founded upon the correct bond and where Muslims will be educated about the rotten fruits of nationalism. Racism wont only be prevented through the judiciary but also through a high sense of moral obligation that society feels towards stamping these kind of uncivilised actions at the root.
Written for the Central Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir by
Yasmin Malik
Member of the Central Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir


text:
The Great Spirit spoke again to the Kiowa:
"I have told you about the Buffalo and how he will sustain you. But I must warn you. If the Buffalo disappears, then the Kiowa will fade into the sunset.
"Never again will the Kiowa be a great nation."
And the buffalo did disappear. Why? Because of the greed, stupidity, and general senselessness of people.
First, the "west" was open for settlement to the white immigrants and vast tracts of land were available. But the Indians were in the way.


text:
How Google Took Over the Classroom
The tech giant is transforming public education with low-cost laptops and free apps. But schools may be giving Google more than they are getting. Use it as marketing tool; Google takes over Microsoft's role in public schools
New York Times, May 13, 2017URL: http://getab.li/10b1
Being reviewed
Submitted by Anonymous
May 13, 2017
Reviewed by Heather Hodel
May 29, 2017
We are considering the content you've suggested for a summary, and we'll inform you once that summary goes online. Please note that we secure rights for everything we summarize – this may take a while.
Sometimes, we decide against a summary later, because we prefer another, similar publication, or because the rights owners don't want us to summarize their content. We thank you for your understanding if that should be the case with your suggestion.
Summarized and online
Activated by Heather Hodel
September 4, 2017


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Wednesday, March 31
The Halo Reach Sandbox
Game Informer once again has been given a scoop interview with the Bungie Kids in a discussion about the Halo Reach sand box. By 'sand box' it is meant the weapons and other items that a Spartan or Elite can carry... bring it on then!
Here's some exceprts:
How many of the weapons, armor abilities, levels, and other features will be available to play in the upcoming public beta, in comparison with the final retail build several months later?
The public beta is going to include a huge chunk of Reach sandbox goodness. I think players will actually be surprised at how much is there, but in order to maintain the core game experience and get useful feedback, we needed to include a well-rounded offering. Suffice it to say there will still be surprises waiting in the final game this fall.
We hear there are some new weapons that will be available during the beta. Can you walk us through those?
One new weapon we've yet to really talk about is the focus rifle. This is the Covenant really long-range "reach out and burn your face off" sniper-slot weapon. We didn't want to make just another sniper rifle, but we did want to fulfill that type of role so we made the focus rifle that utilizes a slightly different, "tracking" skillset. It's not an instant kill weapon, it does significant damage, but you need to hold it on your opponent for approximately one and a half seconds to kill them. It's more about long range suppression than instant death, but it still falls into the category of pseudo "power weapon" so it won't be all over the map or included in load-outs.
Tuesday, March 30
My Chris Butcher Airport Interview!
1 April 2010
Wow. Just wow.
I was at Wellington Airport this week for work when I ran into Chris Butcher. He's New Zealand's gift to the Halo Universe. A genius at networking code or some thing, Chris was back in NZ for a quick holiday with his family before the final Halo Reach crunch began.
I approached him in my work suit, said hello and he thought I was I some kind of airport official. Confusion resolved, I asked him for an autograph and a lil surprised, he obliged.
I asked him about how Reach was going and he told me a few things which are a bit of a news scoop to be honest!
Then he found a cabbie with his name on a placard and left me with a piece of paper signed, See Ya Round, Sucker!
Wow. Just wow.
I was at Wellington Airport this week for work when I ran into Chris Butcher. He's New Zealand's gift to the Halo Universe. A genius at networking code or some thing, Chris was back in NZ for a quick holiday with his family before the final Halo Reach crunch began.
I approached him in my work suit, said hello and he thought I was I some kind of airport official. Confusion resolved, I asked him for an autograph and a lil surprised, he obliged.
I asked him about how Reach was going and he told me a few things which are a bit of a news scoop to be honest!
- If you get all the Reach Game Achievement Points, instead of a Katana sword, you get a flaming head like Bungie employees had in Halo 3 matchmaking.
- Recon will be available from the get go if you unlocked it in Halo 3.
- Campaign wise, there will be a level which has a Flood incident that needs containment. This really surprised me as hereto, there has been no mention of the Flood being on Reach.
Then he found a cabbie with his name on a placard and left me with a piece of paper signed, See Ya Round, Sucker!
Halo Art for Art's Sake
HBO alerted the world to this awesome shot. I think it's awesomeness speaks for itself:
Image Source Art by Pan_test01
Image Source Art by Pan_test01
Monday, March 29
How many head shots does it take to kill a fully shielded Spartan with the Designated Marksmen Rifle?
How many head shots does it take to kill a fully shielded Spartan with the Designated Marksmen Rifle (DMR) ?
According to Sage, 5. 4 to bring down shields. 1 for the head.
Also the Magnum fires the same ammuniciation as the DMR...
More details in the new Bungie Pod Cast.
Sunday, March 28
A special consideration of Halo 3:ODST has been placed on HBO - Written by 'Shake Appeal' its a telling read that pays homage to the story and context of ODST. It also made me realise I should find all the Sadie's Story elements as there was a sweet pay off in game...
Here's the final conclusion:
When evaluating Halo 3: ODST, we should remember that it's the first of Bungie's Halo titles to feature a map. It is the first game that has needed one. After all, the navigation of New Mombasa is central not only to the gameplay, but to a story in which we are searching for beacons, for our lost squad mates, for a safe route out of an occupied city.
There is a refreshingly new unity between the aspirations of Bungie's designers and the actual experience of playing their game. In this and several other crucial respects, ODST offers us storytelling that is far more successful than that of the predecessors, and even showcases Bungie's newfound ability to weave game and world.
In light of this, the disappointments are slight: the members of the squad often struggle to defy their set archetypes (and much of their dialogue is trite), while the same environmental problems of sterility and repetition are just as present in ODST as in the trilogy proper. Here, however, they serve in part to reinforce the player's singular experience of New Mombasa; and while there still exists a gulf between the purported extinction of a galactic "humanity" and the game we end up playing, it feels narrower than before: not every player will take the time to reveal all of 'Sadie's Story', but even the most casual will likely stumble upon a few logs, and hear real people recorded therein - speaking, pleading, crying.
Best of all, Bungie have lovingly sketched a cast of characters whom we can remember fondly not just for their combat banter, but for their closeness, their consistency, and - briefly, in flashes - their human feeling. When you consider that ODST was a one-year project from a small team, its flaws become less glaring, and the promise of Halo: Reach, their next full-blooded game, becomes considerable. We should leave New Mombasa, as the Rookie does, looking up.
Full post: Nine Levels
Saturday, March 27
Ms Valentine's Megacon 2010 Cortana Costume
There's a million reasons to love the Halo series of games. Elites, sniper rifle sprees and impossible odds are pretty popular reasons. None, however compare to the beauty of everybody's favourite AI, Cortana.
People want to be her, and people want to dress like her. Ms Valentine is one of that talented group and has pulled off a pretty great Cortana costume which she debuted at the Megacon 2010.
Check out more pix at HBO
Friday, March 26
Jimmy Jangles vists the Weta Cave
Keen Halo fans might know it as the place where the props and production was happening for the as yet unmade Halo Movie. They are more well known for making a series of movies some people call Lord of the Rings. In Wellington, we just call them 'that film Peter made' a while back....
Weta Cave is a shop for people to go and buy trinkets and sculptures and books on the various movies that Weta Work shop has contributed to - and they have some Halo product for sale.
Visitors to the Cave get to see a 20 minute short of the goings on at Weta Workshop - there's heaps of Halo stuff in there as they did a lot of preproduction work for the canned movie. Still, there's some hope a Halo film will get made...
Here's some poor quality iphone pictures of what's on offer that I took during my visit this afternoon.
|Arby and the Chief
|Various Spartan Helemets
|Chief v. Flood
|Brute Spiker from the Halo film production
|Prop from the Blomkamp Shorts
|Jimmy Jangles and new friend Lurtz
Thursday, March 25
How invested in Halo Reach will you get?
This game Better be good.
How invested in Halo Reach will you get?
Hopefuly not so invested that you can't meet your balloon payment and renege on your obligations leading to a sub prime mortgage market collapse but more so invested that Bungie will assimilate you and take over the world....
"Player Investment is more reflective of the amount of time someone's dedicated to Halo: Reach and not necessarily their skill set. Someone can have a high Player Investment ranking and be a terrible player. But since Trueskill is tracking that data in the background, away from users, it will still match players appropriately. So, don't worry: terrible Halo: Reach players will be matched with other equally-awful Halo: Reach players."
That was from a G4TV article which released a whole deal of info on this concept.
Challenges bring rewards. Undertaking the challenge is your 'investment'. Better the risks (degree of difficulty in the challenge) the better the reward.
"Challenges come in two forms -- daily and weekly -- and are Bungie-developed obstacles that provide short to medium-length goals to be achieved solo (Like Han but with more quotes) or with groups. As Bungie expects most gamers will tackle Challenges after spending a chunk of time with Halo: Reach, many Challenges will have a notable difficulty curve." Challenges include killing 150 enemies in any mode in Reach, winning three games in multiplayer in a row etc.
As far as I can figure out, once you get credits in the bank, you are able to use them to heavily customise your Spartan. Bungie notes that this customisation is carried through the cut scenes as one advances through the Reach campaign.
"Bungie wanted Halo: Reach's story to be more about the player's role in the battle, rather than simply assuming control of Master Chief and guiding his actions. Your customized Spartan is even included in the cut-scenes."
Tuesday, March 23
Spartans wear their underwear on the inside
|Spartans wear their underwear on the inside
Looking at the Jet Pack, the new armour ability for Halo Reach, I'm wondering how 'in the real world' if it would actually work... it looks like the physics are all wrong.. where's the stabilisers? Wouldn't the Spartan burn their legs? On take off wouldn't the body get pushed forward at an unuseable angle? How will the Jet Pack be able to carry a Spartan armed with a fully laden rocket launcher?
Oh sorry did I just go too fan boy for you?
Save your Halo Reach games to a USB drive
|The USB goes in under my armpart!
Here's the word from Joystick
"USB Mass Storage Device Support on Xbox 360" will soon be a reality. The document, authored by a senior software development engineer at Microsoft, states that due to "increased market penetration of high-capacity, high throughput USB mass storage devices, a 2010 Xbox 360 system update" will allow consumers to save and load game data from USB devices. The update is purportedly coming in Spring 2010."
Apparently you will be able to use 16 gig worth of storage per USB device – even if say it has 32 gigs. So if your 20 gig XBox hard drive is full of Nine in Nails and the new Hole album, feel free to save Halo Reach to your formatted USB stick!
Extra for experts: In case you didn't know you can save the full game to your disk drive to allow for faster load times and better audio etc.
Monday, March 22
This Bird You Cannot Change?
Angelo Guibone's custom Master Chief Zaku crossover
Master Chief Joins the Gundam Metaverse, gets cool new armour.
And you thought the Halo: Legends Spartans were bad ass. Check out the results of one Angelo Guibone's transmogrifcation of the Master Chief into 'Master Chief Zaku'. Which is apparently a cross over of Gundam and Halo...
Gundam? Zuku? Yeah, I had to ask too. The MS-06 Zaku II is a mobile suit from the Mobile Suit Gundam metaverse. Gundam itself is a Japanese Anime series which features giant Robots. My guess is it inspired Transformers.....
Check out these pictures of the new Chief Armour:
Saturday, March 20
Final Proof Master Chief is not in Reach
Final Proof Master Chief is not in Reach!!
As championed by Keith5Morris who appears to be more of a Kratos rather than 117 fan!
As championed by Keith5Morris who appears to be more of a Kratos rather than 117 fan!
Friday, March 19
Clans to Return in Reach?
Shacknews has followed up on yesterday's news about Arena and Active Rosters in Halo Reach with an interview with some Bungie staffers. Here's a taste:
Talking about Active Roster...
Luke Timmins: If you remember from Halo 2, there was a really easy way to get to my friends list. In Halo 2, it's right there. My friends and what they're doing. When Halo 3 came out, we had this big thing about trying to integrate with the Xbox 360 Guide. We had a lot of deep-thinking after that and decided we really wanted [Halo 2's system] back. We want easy access to friends. We want to see what they're doing and who they're partied up with.
[In Halo 3], we lost something there.
The active roster really is the tip of the spear for getting people this quick access to "what are my friends doing?" Oh, they're in a game? How much time is remaining? What's the score?
Lars Bakken: Active Roster is, by definition, always on. When you log into Reach at the Main Menu, the whole right half of the screen is going to be your Active Roster. You're going to see what all your friends are doing in real-time in Reach. No going to the Guide. You click the left stick to the right and you are in the Active Roster.
It has all the information what all your friends are doing, whether they're partied up or not, who they're partied up with, what gametype they're in whether they're searching in matchmaking [or in a lobby]. That is fed to you, real-time, in the menu at all times. It's always there.
Luke Timmins: We actually made a substantial investment in engineering tech in our user-interface architecture. We basically rebuit huge swaths of the UI [and players] will be really impressed by the quality of the UI. It's sexy as hell and our UI guys have done an amazing job. The most important button - if there's one button that matters - in the Active Roster, it's the "join" button.
This brings us to the next-big thing that we have wanted this since Halo 2. We couldn't get it in to Halo 2 or Halo 3, but Reach will have: Queued Join. We built this sytem where you can queue a join to a friend that's not in an immediately joinable state (in the middle of matchmaking or watching a film). When he becomes available, it will automatically put you guys together in a lobby.
Here's the full article. I am so looking forward to Queue Join!
Thursday, March 18
The Planes are Circling?
So much focus on the Beta has been amazing and we've made some major improvements to the engine and many across multiplayer. So, now we're beginning the shift toward focus on the campaign again. I'm super excited about giving some love to the huge number of new campaign features that have been waiting patiently for the Beta dust to settle.
Even in the absence of getting 100% engineering support, our next full campaign playtest is nearly ready to be hammered on at the labs. It is already in a state of major improvement over our last playtest, which was just a few weeks ago. This is the most fun part of a project – when all the planes circling around in development space begin landing.
News on Multiplayer: Active Roster and Arena
News on Multiplayer: Active Roster and Arena
Shack News has got the inside running on some new features of Halo Reach's multiplayer. It sounds like Bungie have raised the bar once more. Shack news reports on the following new features.
New Features:
Active Roster - This is a throwback to Halo 2. When you boot up Reach, right at the main menu or lobby, you'll see a list of what your Xbox Live friends are doing within Reach. You'll get detailed information about any friends playing Reach including who they are partied with, what game they are in (plus score and remaining time), and more.
Basically, Bungie wants to make it so that you do not have to utilize the Xbox Live Guide to find out what your buddies are doing in Reach.
Active Roster - This is a throwback to Halo 2. When you boot up Reach, right at the main menu or lobby, you'll see a list of what your Xbox Live friends are doing within Reach. You'll get detailed information about any friends playing Reach including who they are partied with, what game they are in (plus score and remaining time), and more.
Basically, Bungie wants to make it so that you do not have to utilize the Xbox Live Guide to find out what your buddies are doing in Reach.
Sweet, good common sense approach to finding your mates.
In Halo 3, it was difficult to join friends that were already playing in a match. You had to wait until they were finished. If you started a game while you waited, they would then have to wait for you. Instead of going back and forth, Reach will support queue-joining. Simply put, Reach will automatically join up as soon as your friends are joinable.
Wednesday, March 17
Top Ten Things I don't Want to See or Hear in Reach
To celebrate the 201st post on Halo Reach Game News, here's what I don't want to hear or see in Reach.
Top Ten Things I don't Want to See or Hear in Reach
• A Brute peeing in a corridor - I'm 32, not 12 Bungie.
• Soldiers with Australian accents – why not some Kiwi?!
• Poorly drawn faces on major characters.
• Complaints about the Sniper rifle being slowed down - it's called balance people!
• An ambiguous ending – Halo 2 cliff-hanger ending any one?
• A legendary ending cut scene that is also ambiguous - none of this, is that a Forerunner planet? Why is the Marathon logo there? Crap. To paraphrase Tom Cruise, I want answers!
• Unrealistic Gamer Achievement Points. I'm fearing a GOW2 'Seriously?' quest to kill a 7 gabillion corny keg grunts. Or at least achievements that require 4 people with Iron skull on. Fuck that Bungie, fuck that.
• References to other games, culture nods or whatever. Keep it in the Universe! (Easter eggs allowed of course!)
• "We fell in love playing Reach multiplayer and he proposed during a game!" style stories. Dammit Dude, focus on the game, not the player!
• Last but not least, I don't ever want to hear a 13 year whine "You stole my kill!"
Whaddaya reckon cobber? Wann-another shrimp off the barbie? Did ya see the League last night? Flip!
Extra for Experts: Here's the 200th post about something Joe Staten was seen wearing....
Tuesday, March 16
So what does Joe know about Aerospace?
Regular Halo Reach Game News readers may remember last week's post about Bungie's Aerospace Trademark application which sought to register a new logo. We wondered what it represented. Behold the logo:
The plot thickens! A keen eyed Halo fan has spied Bungie Big Wig, Joe Staten wearing a top with the Aerospace logo blatantly postioned on his breast (he he I said breast!):
On it's own, this logo display this doesn't mean much - but look for more bread crumbs from Bungie in the future as to what this actually refers to. I'd pick, however, nothing official will be announced about Bungie's future plans until the best-game-ever-to-be-made-but-not-yet-released is actually released.
The plot thickens! A keen eyed Halo fan has spied Bungie Big Wig, Joe Staten wearing a top with the Aerospace logo blatantly postioned on his breast (he he I said breast!):
On it's own, this logo display this doesn't mean much - but look for more bread crumbs from Bungie in the future as to what this actually refers to. I'd pick, however, nothing official will be announced about Bungie's future plans until the best-game-ever-to-be-made-but-not-yet-released is actually released.
Monday, March 15
Mistress Chief, Madi at SXSW Cosplay Costume
|Mistress Chief, Madi at SXSW Screenburn.
Revisiting Halo: Combat Evolved
Revisiting Halo: Combat Evolved
So after not playing it for at least 2 years, I've been chomping through the game that started it all, Halo: Combat Evolved. All the talk from Bungie about how they looked back at this game to take all its magical elements and put them into the Halo: Reach game, piqued my interest to tear me away from Mass Effect long enough to play the entire campaign through on Heroic mode.
Halo: Combat Evolved was released in late 2010, so that's nearly 10 years ago. It's platform was the original Xbox and it became the flagship game of what quickly became the Xbox Empire. Does it stack up still?
You start the game as a recently thawed Spartan facing an attack from the Covenant. In terms of space time context, the Planet Reach has fallen and your ship is fleeing the Covenant forces. Fighting through the Elite and Grunt invaders, you escape the doomed Pillar of Autumn and land on the Halo ring you suddenly found in space. Woot! Woot!
The escape is still a brilliant start to the game. It offers some pretty awesome action and also sets the game up quite neatly. As a player you feel you are in a space ship being attacked by aliens. The Captain Keyes and your AI companion urge you along, giving you a strong sense of urgency. Cortana (and the game's most excellent music) will keep this urgency up the entire game. It's an early sign of how great a game Halo was.
Aside from the fun game play, great music and bad ass elites, the true hero of Halo is the story. When I first played it, it was familiar in a sci fi kind of way but it was original. It was a chapter in a giant space opera that had spanned 1000s of years. It could simply have been called Halo: Epic.
In the second and third levels of the game, the Master Chief and Cortana gather human survivors and rescue Captain Keyes, who is imprisoned on the Covenant ship Truth and Reconciliation. The insertion to rescue the Captain is a favourite level of mine. It's the first time you get to use a sniper rifle and it;s one of the best. It's also a muthucka ucking up your shiittee on Lengendary mode.
Once rescued, Keyes orders the Master Chief to beat the Covenant to Halo's control center and to discover its purpose.The Master Chief and Cortana travel to a map room called the Silent Cartographer, which leads them to the control room.There, Cortana enters the systems and, discovering something urgent, suddenly sends the Master Chief to find Captain Keyes, while she stays behind. While searching for his commander, the Master Chief learns that the Covenant have accidentally released the Flood, a parasitic alien race capable of spreading itself by overwhelming and infesting other sentient life-forms. Flood should actually be spelt D-O-O-M!
And thus we get to the point of the Halo installation itself. Halo was a weapon to destroy the flood. Every thing about the game changed from that point on. Human kind was now at war with two separate groups - the Covenant and the Flood. In their ignorance about the Forerunner technologies (albeit a chosen ignorance as was revealed in the novel Contact Harvest) the Covenant had let loose hell itself. Luckily the Chief was Hell's Janitor himself and took the Flood on with many a brutal shotgun blast to the head.
While fighting the Flood, the Covenant, and Guilty Spark's Sentinels, the Master Chief and Cortana attempt to destroy Halo before 343 Guilty Spark activates it. Cortana discovers that the best way to destroy Halo is to cause the crashed Pillar of Autumn to self-destruct.
The game play comes full circle as the Chief and Cortana return to the ship where we started the game. This time instead of Elites we battle a hoard of the Flood who by now are completely desperate to prevent the destruction of Halo so they may live and restart their take over of the galaxy.
The Master Chief manually causes the Pillar of Autumn's fusion reactors to begin to melt down thus setting up a thrilling finale of 'The Maw'. In a race against the clock the Chief has to get off the Halo. Running a gauntlet of Flood in a Warthog to catch up to a pick up point - For me, this is one of the most memorable parts of Combat Evolved (another being the music on the Silent Cartographer level). There's a neat little trick which EVERYONE fell for the first time they did the level which makes it even more classic and more fun. A replay of the game ending still holds up in this current era of 'massive game finishes'. So much so Halo 3, mimicked this ending, bring a nice conclusion to the Halo series.
So while the game's graphics may look a little tired to modern day games such as Call of Duty and Mass Effect or even the new Final Fantasy, the game play still holds up. It's well paced, and has many neat combat scenarios to keep the player well entertained. At times the game can be infuriating - Floods with rocket launchers and annoying fire from Banshee ships can impede your progress, but getting through them proves the game's worth. I'm almost tempted to suggest that Bungie should have remade Halo: Combat Evolved instead of Reach but as the story has already been told, I'll sit and patiently play through the rest of the Halo series until Reach is safely in my Xbox 360's disk drive.
Bioshiock 2 DLC already on disk - what about Reach?
There's been a few grizzle grumps about the first load of Down Loadable Content for Bioshock 2 via the Xbox Live Marketplace and PlayStation Networks as accordingly to rumours circulating the web - the DLC is already on the game disc and is unlocked by downloading a small file.
People appear to be grumpy they are playing unlock content that is already on the disk.
The 'Sinclair Solutions' DLC increases the multiplayer ranking to level 50, brings two new playable characters, Louie McGraff and Oscar Calraca, 20 new trials, a third upgrade for each weapon and five new masks. It has been reported that buyers have noticed that the DLC file download is only 24K for PC versions of the game and 108K for the Xbox 360 version.
So, dear reader what do you think about it? Do you think this is a case of the publisher 2K trying to get gamers to pay for something that they have already paid for or do you think it's entirely valid for developers to do this sort of thing? I'm in the later camp – it's simply an efficient way of providing a mechanism to allow the game to be developed as effectively as possible. The game was sold as Bioshock to the buyer on as 'as is' basis with no expectations given other than you would get the game. NE thing else is an optional extra. The means you get it is irrelevant.
Indeed Bioshock's producers 2K have actually responded publically:
"The way our engine and game structure works is that people need to have the exact same content for people to play together. One of the challenges with post launch content for MP is that it can split the player base, and we want to avoid that whenever possible. For this content, creating the DLC package the way we did allowed for us to not split the player base - so whether you purchase the new content or not, you can still play with your friends," said 2K community manager Elizabet Tobey.
Responding to the grizzle grumps upset at paying to unlock content already on the disk, Ms Tobey said "I know some of you have strong beliefs about DLC, and I'm not here to sway your opinion or convince you to buy our stuff – if you like what we're offering, I hope you get it and enjoy it. If it's not your speed, enjoy BioShock 2 as we released it"
Why am I talking about this on a Reach blog? Well, do you think Bungie might be up to using ideas of a similar ilk? Extra 'perks' like the Sprint and Jet Packs for example. The coding for say an extension to a sniper rifle's siting or extra armour permutations could already be included on the Reach disk.
I some how doubt Bungie could pull that off for the Multiplayer maps, but who knows?
What do you think about havign to play to unlock content you already have?
Sunday, March 14
Emerald City Comic Convention 2010 Pictures / Cosplay
Emerald City Comic Convention 2010 Pictures / Cosplay
Where? March 13th & 14th, 2010 Washington State Convention Center :: Seattle, WA
These days it's almost mandatory to dress up when you go to a convention. Check out some of the costumes from the Emerald City Comic Convention where the Halo Universe was in full swing.
|Want some Candy?
|Beam me up, Soldier!
|Image Sauce: I am ODST
Willow Wickedness
|Cheif and ODST
Blood, sweat and tears going into Campaign...
Noble Actual was updated by Joe Tung with an update on the progress of the Multiplayer Beta which is internally known as the Delta and the 'home stretch' (!) of the Reach campaign testing known as the Alpha... confused?
"Meanwhile the internal Alpha continues apace. A few thousand folks from all over the world are playing games and generating loads of great bugs and feedback on everything from Assassinations to the Arena. Needless to say, there's a lot going on at the studio. And that's just the multiplayer side of the house! There's a proportionate amount of blood, sweat and tears going into Campaign as we enter the home stretch. More on that next time."
"Meanwhile the internal Alpha continues apace. A few thousand folks from all over the world are playing games and generating loads of great bugs and feedback on everything from Assassinations to the Arena. Needless to say, there's a lot going on at the studio. And that's just the multiplayer side of the house! There's a proportionate amount of blood, sweat and tears going into Campaign as we enter the home stretch. More on that next time."
Grunts R Us has new digs!
Check out the Grunts R Us website, they've flashed themselves up a bit. Must have a new to get ready for the Reach beta eh?
You may have noticed Halo Reach Game News got new digs too...
You may have noticed Halo Reach Game News got new digs too...
Saturday, March 13
Halo Reach sounds off...
I've already done 4 posts today and a couple more in draft so I'm simply gonna steal this one about the effort that goes into making the sound for Halo Reach. Hat tip to Grunts R Us and IGN!
Bungie takes their sound design very seriously. Today at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco Jay Weinland the Senior Audio Lead at Bungie talked about their sound tool and the difficulty of managing hundreds of sound events in their games. The talk was quick and to the point with a brief insight into one of the ways Bungie has approached game design on Xbox 360. To set the stage Weinland threw out a few statistics about the number of audio events currently in the latest Halo project.
At any given time in a game there can be 195 different surface types, 22 audio events, 1789 crates (movable objects), about 24 bipeds (characters), and 165 projectiles. These elements combine for what Weinland admitted is an unknown number of audio events. And that's why their tool is so important.
The tool works on an Actor vs. Actee principal, which mean that both an object and the environment can create a sound when they interact. Then, the tool can tag which sounds play when two objects touch. For example, when a Warthog crushes a large, heavily armored Covenant soldier you can tag the sound of crunching metal. Weinland mentioned that new to the design process for Halo Reach, animators can tag objects for specific sounds during the design phase, and that information is pulled into the audio tool. He also referenced the sound of a "sprinting" biped, which he said we might be experiencing soon.
Weinland also showed a screenshot of an audio level, a bare bones environment in Halo that contains different colored areas indicating separate surface types. That way, it's possible to quickly test audio interactions in the environment.
During the question and answer section Weinland was asked if they've ever run into memory problems. He answered by saying that Bungie had early on made the "acceptable decision" to make heavy use of the hard drive. They figured that most people playing Halo would own a hard drive and thus the "Non-hard drive case of Halo audio is not as good as Halo audio with the hard drive."
That's a nifty feature to be able to utilise the assets of the Xbox 360 in that fashion. I've heard laptops and PCs can do that trick, so it seems a natural application of the theory.
Friday, March 12
Frag this!
What's blue and sticky?
The Weekly Bungie update is up and it has this great tid bit of information about frag grenades in Reach:
Urk writes to the Faithful:
"And since we're talking about lobbing grenades, I should note that the team has added a pretty slick new mechanism to the fragmentation fold. Now when you lob a pineapple towards some unsuspecting schmuck camping around the corner, you'll notice the Bouchon assembly has a small, orange tracer attached to it. Not only can you pick up incoming frags much easier with a quick glance, if you look carefully, you'll also notice that the tracer is actually emitting light that has an effect upon the surrounding environment. So, even if you happen to have your audio system muted, you'll still be able to pick up on grenades that prime near your position.
Pretty nifty, eh? There's more. Should you happen to have your surround sound kicking at full capacity, you'll be privy to the second layer of changes made to the fragmentation grenade. Just before the nade gets ready to blow, you'll hear a brief metallic clink that lets you know you need to get clear. Of course, if it's a loud clink, you're probably about to take the full brunt of the blast, but hey, at least you'll know what killed you when you take the finishing shot from some fool's Magnum. No more, "What!? He only shot me once!" It'll be nice and clear what did the majority of the dirty deed."
Cool, it reminds me kind of like Call of Duty 3....
Here's some Reach Water
The Weekly update gave us a snippet about frag grenades and sneak peak of Reach footage... of water! See how the wild river flows! You could have set Moses himself down that water! Aquaman could live there...
What's a grognok? and other questions
Some Halo questions for you, with possible answers linked...
- What's a grognok? And why is it being trademarked by Bungie?
- What's with this Bungie Aerospace trademark?
- Would you like a Halo tattoo like this? How about any of these Halo tattoos?
- Why has the Marathon logo suddenly subject to a trademark application when it's been around for eons?
- Do you still Believe?
- Did you listen to the latest Bungie pod cast?
- Care to recap the glorious Halo map that is Sandtrap?
- Here's some proof that Halo Reach has sharks. With fricken lazer beams! In a mutated sea bass kind of way...ones that eat men lost at sea.
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Brexit is a topic that is always in the news and it can get irritating to hear about it so much. The reason it's in the news so often, though, is because it has such a huge impact on people's lives. It can impact everything, even unexpected things such as the cost of your home improvements.
Indeed, if you're planning to renovate your property it's worth thinking ahead to make sure that you get the best price.
Whether you voted leave or remain, one thing cannot be argued. Brexit is not going to cause a sudden 'end of the world' scenario on the 29th March 2019. It will have a gradual impact on a lot of industries, though. Indeed, that impact has already started to be felt in the home improvement industry.
Will Home Improvements Get More Expensive After Brexit?
Unfortunately, there's no easy answer to this one. The impact of the referendum has already started to put some strain on the labour market.
According to some research by the Office for National Statistics, the difference between the number of EU citizens that entered the UK and the number that left, fell to 87,000 for the year leading up to March. That is the lowest level since the year leading up to December 2012. The shift is apparently a two-factor issue. Fewer people are coming to the UK from the EU, and more people are leaving.
Net migration from the countries known as the A8 countries – the ones that joined the EU in 2004, is now negative for the first time, with 45,000 arrivals, and 47,000 people leaving. This matters because many of those workers were filling important roles in the construction industry.
Companies that make windows and doors have done a lot of recruiting from A8 countries, and as fewer people come into the country from those areas, it becomes harder for them to find skilled workers. Employment costs are increasing, at a time when there is already a smaller talent pool of workers because more people are in employment. The ONS reports that wages had increased by 3.1 percent for the three months leading up to August, compared to the same time period last year. This is the biggest average wage increase since the economic issues of 2008.
When wages go up, prices also tend to increase. It's hard to know for sure whether the wage growth was caused by Brexit. Another factor could be that the value of the pound is falling.
What Do Home Improvement Costs Look Like Long Term?
"It's hard to predict what will happen with home improvement costs, or anything else, in the long term," says a home extension expert at Lewis Visuals. The Construction Industry Training Board published a Green Paper that suggested that Brexit may have a creeping influence on the construction sector. It also shows that a third of builders were concerned about their future ability to recruit suitably skilled employees. Around 37% of those who work in construction right now were not born in the UK. Builders are under pressure in other ways, too. The cost of building materials has increased by 3 to 4% over the last year, and those costs are eventually going to be passed on to the homeowners.
Why Invest in Home Improvements Today
If you want energy efficient windows and doors, or other home improvements, then it is a good idea to make the purchase now. Right now, we know that the cost of those improvements is affordable, and you will start enjoying the savings that those things bring sooner if you invest in them sooner. Let's take a look at the energy markets.
Home heating costs are already on the rise. British Gas announced plans for a four percent increase in energy costs, and that means that the average bill is going to increase by £44 a year. It's likely that costs will continue to rise over time. If you can use less energy then that will buffer you against those increasing costs. Getting energy efficient windows and doors is a good way to protect yourself from increasing energy bills and make your home a more comfortable place to spend time in. It makes sense to do it now while costs are reasonable.


text: The new platform, code-named Napa is said to perform 68 percent faster while consuming 28 percent less power. It features a twin core for multi-tasking without slowing down. Sounds like it will the chip to watch for in future Tablet PCs, But it also sounds like it will not be 64-bit, for which Windows Vista is supposed to be optimized. No telling what impact that might make, especially with AMD promising a 64-bit mobile processor.


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Telford Homes launches final properties at The Liberty Building
The immediate crust of development shooting up around the Canary Wharf estate delivers housing on its doorstep. But look past the blockbuster towers of Madison, Wardian, Landmark Pinnacle and South Quay Plaza and
The immediate crust of development shooting up around the Canary Wharf estate delivers housing on its doorstep.
But look past the blockbuster towers of Madison, Wardian, Landmark Pinnacle and South Quay Plaza and the Isle Of Dogs is rich in schemes offering more reasonably priced properties still within walking distance.
Take The Liberty Building by Telford Homes, for example, where a final collection of 35 apartments has just gone on sale.
About 15 minutes from the Wharf on foot, it's located opposite Crossharbour DLR for connections to Bank and Lewisham, with properties in the brick-clad building starting at £785,000.
Telford group sales and marketing director David Campbell said: "Investment and regeneration in Limeharbour is transforming the area into not only an investor hotspot, but a desirable place to live and work.
"We are delighted that The Liberty Building is helping to lead the way, providing high quality homes for buyers wanting the best of both worlds, a high specification property close to an iconic riverside location and a growing community on its doorstep."
Replete with the usual residents' gym and 24-hour concierge service, the development has two and three-bedroom homes available, all with balcony space, as well as a 2,658sq ft three-bed penthouse arranged over the 24th and 25th floors.
Having toured the recently launched show homes, while the larger family properties benefit from a straightforward, logical layout, it's the two-beds that steal the show.
Much larger than average and with expansive open-plan living areas, they come with all the clout of the luxury market without the eye-watering price point.
It's an image strengthened by the interior finishes, which include high gloss lacquered kitchen cabinets by Urban Myth, stone worktops and integrated Siemens appliances
The first properties in the development are expected to be complete in December 2018.
Go to telfordhomes.london/microsites/liberty-building or call 020 3930 2469 for more information.


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It is only in recent human history that land has been enclosed and the rights of use given to a few people, as opposed to a whole community. Alanna Hartzok points out that individual equality, even in a democracy, cannot exist without equal rights to the abundance of the earth. She presents solutions that have been successful in Pennsylvania and elsewhere, including restructuring taxes so that land value, a communal asset, is taxed instead of wages or buildings.
Alanna Hartzok's life work is embodied in a vision of economic democracy and environmental sustainability. On October 27, 2001, Ms. Hartzok presented her paper on "Democracy, Earth Rights and the Next Economy" at the Twenty-First Annual E. F. Schumacher Lectures, Amherst College, Amherst, Massachusetts. You may read the full text at:
Here is the audio recording of her lecture, complete with a moving introduction by the moderator:
Down loadable audio formats.


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Soundarya Rajinikanth's car hits auto
A car driven by Soundarya Rajinikanth hit an autorickshaw at Alwarpet in Chennai, injuring auto driver Mani.
According to sources, Mani sustained minor injuries and Soundarya's brother-in-law Dhanush spoke to him over phone and pacified him.
On Monday, Soundarya and Dhanush, among others, attended a joint function of Power Pandi and VIP-2 teams.
"#PowerPandi #Vip2 teams together … !! Loving life. Loving our job !!!" she posted on Twitter, along with a photograph.
Soundarya is a graphic designer, producer and director who primarily works in the Tamil film industry. She is the founder and owner of Ocher Picture Productions.
Soundarya began her career in films as a graphic designer. For those starring her father Rajinikanth, she designed the title sequences. She became a noted film producer through Goa (2010). She made her début as a director in the film Kochadaiyaan. At present, she is directing VIP-2.


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Owen praises Vale's team spirit
Defender Gareth Owen has told the Sentinel that the "spirit with the players at Vale is really good" after six new arrivals boosted Micky Adams' squad.
Owen told the newspaper: "The spirit with the players at Vale is really good and the new guys have joined in well," he added.
"You need to have players who are good for the dressing room. The spirit was decimated with all of the things that happened at the end of last season, so we needed to rebuild it and we're doing that.
"The new boys are helping to create a good healthy atmosphere and it's going great. Everyone has mucked in and no-one has come in with a big-time attitude.
"They've all given as much as they can give in pre-season training so far and I've been impressed."


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Photo: Swarms of children and parents sit on the floor of the main hall of the museum and build structures out of newspaper, cardboard, and tape.
Molly Ellison. Here's a song to describe myself: Never Say Never

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After hundreds of hours of training, Thursday was a day of ceremony and tradition for the 31 graduates of the Washington State Patrol's 110th Trooper Basic Training Class.
The Washington State Patrol welcomed 31 new troopers on Thursday in graduation ceremonies held at the Capitol rotunda in Olympia. The graduates of the 110th Trooper Basic Training Class are from 24 cities across the state and they completed more than 1,000 hours of training, according to the State Patrol. On average, 4 to 6 percent of applicants complete the process. The Washington State Patrol was founded in 1921 and started with six troopers. Today, there are about 1,100 commissioned personnel.


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Hatbox Ghost is a Rare figure part of the Haunted Mansion collection.
Transform while you Hop
Hatbox Ghost has a floating top hat, a cane, a tuxedo-type shirt and a coat. He also has a lantern with his head inside
Behavior During Gameplay
Occasionally, Hatbox ghost's head will go from on his neck to in his lantern.
How to Unlock
To Unlock Hatbox Ghost, you must complete a certain number of quests in the Haunted Mansion weekend challenge
Community content is available under CC-BY-SA unless otherwise noted.


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I was sitting with my dad, feeling great about my life and everything that was happening, and he was like, 'You know, you're getting a little weird.' I was totally devastated. But it turned out to be basically the best thing that ever happened to me.
ACTRESS GWYNETH PALTROW on how her late father Bruce brought her back to earth after her 1999 Oscar win
If you see somebody who's not behaving like any other human you've known, that means something. They need an appointment with a psychiatrist. They need a diagnosis and they need a prescription.
FORMER LATE-NIGHT HOST DAVID LETTERMAN on US presidential nominee Donald Trump
And they said it wouldn't last. Ah, we proved them wrong!
ACTOR GEORGE CLOONEY joking about his recent second wedding anniversary with his wife Amal


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22 June 2005
Mmm, Bacon
And now I crave some, but my best chance of getting any is to dream about it. So here's to lucid dreaming!
2 comments:
Mmmm... bacon... I actually haven't been able to eat bacon since a friend's wedding in Atlanta last October. The hotel where we all stayed had horrid ventilation, and, when they prepared a couple of pans of bacon for their buffet breakfast each day, the smell not only clung to the air, but crawled up into all the guest rooms.ReplyDelete
We all smelled like a pound of Hormel pork products. This made things very awkward for the Jewish wedding party. All the women were dousing themselves with perfume before they headed out to the synagogue, as they felt the rabbi wouldn't be thrilled if they showed up smelling like bacon fat.
I was merely a cafeteria Catholic guest, but smelling like bacon for two days kinda put me off for a while.
Eventually, I'll ride that pony again, though. Sometimes bacon is soooo tasty. Horrible for you, but soooo tasty.
That's pretty amusing, I suppose because it was so wrong for the occasion.ReplyDelete
I have mild allergies to lots of perfumes, flowers, and such so smelling like bacon doesn't sound that bad to me. Just so long as it was well done.
Smelling like grease I consider an entirely different matter. I remember being along for the ride to pick up my brother when he worked at McDonald's in high school- he absolutely reeked of grease; it was nauseating.


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In the Saddle with RMS By Kimberly, Texas Gal, Born and Raised • October 3, 2017
I remember it like it was yesterday.
My freshman dorm room
Beep... Beep... Beep...goes the alarm.
"Ugh!" I silently roll over and glance at the clock. It's 3 a.m. I breathe deep and smile. My mind flashes back to 22 years ago, when I was a college freshman in Texas. It's a very vivid memory. I remember lying in bed visualizing my dressage test. By the way, "dressage" is just a fancy way of describing a specific type of horseback riding that requires much discipline from both the rider and the horse. I take another breath and remember the very important rules of English riding. My trainer liked to call it DAWNS: sit Deep in saddle, Always sit back, Weight in stirrups, Never break contact, and Stay with your horse movement.
I bounded out of bed. I was nervous but excited. I grabbed my riding garment bag and headed to the show. I was ready. It was show time.
Shortly after that, I was diagnosed with relapsing MS. I decided to take a break from competing for a while to focus on my overall health, but through it all, I never lost my sense of commitment or my determination.
22 years later
This time when the alarm goes off, I do a slower stretch. I don't bound out of bed. There is no bounding without coffee. I smile to myself. It's been a while since I've competed at a recognized horse show and in a few hours, I'll do so again.
As I sip my coffee, I look back on this past year. After spending five years watching my daughter compete, and copious amounts of time at the barn, I decided it was my turn. I was going to "get back in the saddle."
How did I do it?
Well after a couple of lessons, the fire I once had came back to me. Soon, my confidence had built up enough that my trainer thought it would be a good idea for me to compete. My daughter was competing in the same show, and while she was competing at a higher level, I participated in the activities in the show that I could do. So after looking over the options with my trainer and my very delighted 9-year-old, we decided that I could easily do flat classes (which are walk, trot, and canter) and I could do the lowest level dressage test. I was elated.
Then for the next two months, I practiced both of my patterns for dressage. I made sure my circles were the right diameter. I practiced keeping my horse round, and making sure I stayed within my dressage arena. After I felt comfortable, I moved on to get ready for competing in the Hunter classes—which are judged by my horse's performance, grace, and manners. I took time to really work on my seat position, my horse's gait in trot and canter, my leg and heel position, and made sure I was on the correct lead in the arena. Finally, I worked on my transitions between walk, trot, and canter. I needed everything to be smooth when I passed the judges table.
Getting in the zone
We loaded everything into the trailer, the night before, so, all I needed to do was rouse my daughter, eat breakfast, and head to the barn to load up the horses. It was time to head to the show area for competition.
When we arrive, I need to get my horse off the trailer, groomed, tacked, lunged, and warmed up. This is all done under the watchful eyes of nine 17-year-old young ladies who ride at the same barn I do, and who were competing as well. Let me tell you, it is a humbling experience to have so much support. Humbling.
Finally, it's time to put on my show coat and my number and walk my horse to the arena. I wait patiently and they call my name. "Now entering the arena, number 287: Kimberly— on Wendekate". It is time. It is my time. I take a deep breath. I remember my DAWNS and I enter the arena.
I completed all of my classes. The horse show was done. I walked up to the judging table and gathered my score sheets. I took a minute to contemplate whether or not the score is important. In the end, curiosity won. When I took a good look at my score sheets. I exhaled and smiled. I placed 4th. My daughter gave me a hug. She was so proud of me.
The biggest win of all
My daughter watched me reconnect with an old passion. She saw that I never gave up even when I fell, and yes, I did fall. She saw me cave in and get a cooling vest, so that I could continue practicing in the Texas heat. Most importantly, she saw my determination, my willingness to learn, and she saw her momma smile through it all. So I am encouraging each and every one of you to find your passion no matter how big or small, and smile—because that's the real win!
Now aside from my daughter's encouragement and support, there were a lot of other takeaways for me during the competition and in those two months leading up to it. I learned a lot about myself. One: I am not as young as I used to be. I need a lot more walk-and-water breaks when I practice. Two: there is no such thing as "soft sand" in the dressage arena. When you fall, it hurts. Yes, I side-eyed my daughter as she was giggling that at least "Momma fell where the sand is soft." Three: horseback-riding pants need to come with spandex. Yup, they really do. Lastly, I realized that no matter what happened, no matter if I placed or didn't, I was grateful that I was able to share this experience with my daughter.
So think about it. What are you determined to do? And what can you do to make it happen? I'd love to hear it, so feel free to post in the comment section below!
Related Posts
Stay Hopeful and Keep Moving While Living with RMS
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As I was saying in my previous post, sharing my relapsing MS story is important to me. When I was diagnosed, my options were
Hello World: Me and My Summer Memories
By Kimberly, Texas Gal, Born and Raised, December 2, 2016
What's been going on this year, you ask? Well, the past few months have been a whirlwind, but I must say the summer was definitely
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Add a little holiday adventure when you try Croatia sailing
Bored with Benidorm? Fed up with France? Sometimes what was once a much loved or familiar holiday destination can become a little tiring, especially if you're travelling to the same destination – even the same hotel – year in year out. But if you don?t fancy leaving Europe, then there are some hidden gems to be discovered.
For example, have you ever considered Croatia? This ancient country is becoming increasingly popular with holidaymakers for its beauty and charm, as well as its thriving cities such as Dubrovnik and Split. If you go to Croatia sailing it is one of the best ways to see more of the country and really spice up your holiday.
There is no chance of becoming bored as you travel along this magnificent coastline. Life on board the boat is peaceful and relaxing – and let's explode the myth that sailing is just for millionaires. It is much more affordable than you might think. You can set the pace of the holiday, discovering new destinations every day. If you are with a group, it is an excellent way of making sure everyone has the type of holiday they enjoy whether it be sunbathing, exploring, watersports or nightlife. Croatia really does have something to offer to everyone… so it' s time to set your sights a little further.


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Balayage? Bronde? Bellissima!
Get Balayage Highlights in New Orleans & Baton Rouge As the temps change and your summer ombré starts to need a cooler-weather refresh, consider a look that'll be spotted around catwalks and fashion spreads for the next few seasons. Balayage highlights and/or the universally flattering "bronde" hair shade (brown + blonde) both require little maintenance,…READ MORE


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The second year of the Las Vegas Raiders includes the potential for a work stoppage, a likelihood that gained context Thursday as NFL Players Association officials discussed some of their preparations for 2021.
Search results for:
Sean McVay speaks without a space bar between sentences, his clauses crammed together like vehicles on a Los Angeles interstate.
Analysts at the NFL Network think Mike Mayock's talent for evaluating players will make him a successful general manager and able to work with Raiders coach Jon Gruden.
For a ninth time, Bill Belichick will on Sunday stroll the sidelines as head coach of a Patriots team playing in a season's final game. For the first time, he will share the moment with his two sons as part of the staff.
A quest by two New Orleans Saints ticketholders to force a full or partial do-over of this year's NFC championship game because of a blown "no-call" by game officials was rejected Thursday by a federal judge.
A seventh-grade girl from New Hampshire who was bullied for playing quarterback on a youth football team is going to the Super Bowl courtesy of the New England Patriots.
The wiseguys especially love LA getting 3 points flat, which means bettors can wager $110 to win $100 on the favorite or underdog.
Larry Fitzgerald, Drew Brees and Travis Kelce are among NFL stars rewarding military veterans with trips to the Super Bowl.
Rhode Island was one of six states that legalized betting on sporting events last year after the U.S. Supreme Court allowed it, ending the effective sports gambling monopoly that Nevada had enjoyed for decades. It is the only state in New England that allows sports betting, making it a focal point for Patriots fans from around the Northeast.
Here's a look at five Super Bowl ads that flopped, despite months of planning and great expense.