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When you bring home a new baby, everything in your life changes. From your daily routine to your deepest held values, your whole world is turned on its head.
However, while couples spend the months during pregnancy learning what to expect in their new roles as parents, many couples are not prepared for how their new addition can impact their role as partners. In the months after giving birth, many couples experience difficulties in their sex life.
It's not always easy to make time to be intimate and when there is time, hormonal changes in the new mother can cause her to experience a greatly reduced libido. While all of these things are totally normal, the realities of sex after childbirth can cause significant strain on the relationship of the new parents -- especially if they don't know what to be prepared for.
With that in mind, we reached out to doctors. sexologists, and relationship experts to get the scoop on everything that new parents need to know about sex after childbirth. Here's what they had to say:
It might not sound like the most romantic idea, but many new parents find that strategically planning time for sex is the best way to ensure that it actually happens. As Dr. Jane Greer, New York-based marriage and sex therapist and author of What About Me? Stop Selfishness From Ruining Your Relationship explains, "If you're looking to make time for sex after childbirth, you're going to need to plan it out. Otherwise, the time will get consumed by all of the new responsibilities."
The key is to be flexible and schedule sex for the times of the day when you are most likely to have a free moment. "Maybe this means paying attention to when the baby is napping or between their feeding times during the night," suggests Dr. Greer. "Tailor the time you're going to be intimate around your baby's timing, as opposed to sticking to your past sexual schedule."
New parents may need to be willing to sacrifice a little of the spontaneity in their sex life however, a lack of spontaneity doesn't have to mean that your sex life isn't romantic. Patricia Johnson and Mark Michaels co-authors of several books on sex and relationships including Partners in Passion explain, "By planning your encounters, you are treating your sex as something important and worthy of your attention. Far from being unromantic, having un-spontaneous sex is actually a way of maintaining and deepening intimacy, of showing, in perhaps the clearest possible way, how much you care for each other and how much you value your connection."
When you have a new baby at home, suddenly everything about your day is dictated by the needs of your new addition. When it comes to sex after childbirth, it's easy for new parents to get into a routine where their intimate connection isn't a priority. Sometimes the best way to shake things up is to spend a night away as a couple.
Johnson and Michaels explain, "Couples are more likely to have sex when they are away from home, whether they have children or not, but if you do have children, it's even more important to take a break." However, if you're worried about being away from your new little one, you don't have to go for long. "This does not have to be an extended vacation," Johnson and Michaels continue, "If money's tight, try to leave the baby with a friend or relative and go camping, or shop around for an inexpensive overnight or weekend getaway."
Having a baby causes a woman's body to undergo a lot of changes in a short period of time, which can leave a woman feeling a little uncomfortable in her own skin. Certified sexologist and relationship expert Dr. Megan Stubbs says, "Some new moms may be self conscious on how their body looks post birth and that is perfectly normal." What's important is that her partner be sensitive to how she might be feeling and acts accordingly.
Remember to be thoughtful with the words you use during this time of transition. "Partners can make their significant others feel more at ease by complimenting them and telling them not to feel ashamed of their body," Dr. Megan continues. "Be sure these comments come from a place of honesty because most people are about to discern insincerity."
The key is to have patience. When it comes to sex after pregnancy, it might take a woman a little while to feel at home in her body again. However, showing a little kindness can go a long way in helping her come around. "If you make the space for the new mom to feel comfortable and loved, she will open up and build back her confidence more quickly," says Dr. Megan.
It's important to keep in mind that just because you both might be feeling ready to get busy again soon after childbirth, a woman's body needs time to catch up. Sexologist and Intimacy Expert, Dr. Kat Smith, "It is necessary to allow your body to recover from giving birth, especially where a Caesarean or C-section is performed. The average time is about 4 to 6 weeks with approval from your doctor and longer with a C-section."
Beyond just the pain associated with healing after childbirth, Dr. Kat says that women can experience other kinds of discomfort such as breast tenderness and changes in the body that makes sex after childbirth feel different. "All these concern diminish with time, says Dr. Kat. "After the soreness heals and your body recovers, sex should be satisfying again. However if things persist, see your doctor."
As many as 83% of women experience some sort of sexual difficulty in the three months after pregnancy. One the most common issues women have when it comes to sex after pregnancy is vaginal dryness. For women who are dealing with a dry vagina, sex can be uncomfortable or even painful.
However, a dry vagina doesn't have to hold you back from resuming your sex life. Using a quality lube during intercourse can alleviate the discomfort of a dry vagina so you can enjoy sex with your partner. We can even send you a free sample and a coupon for $1.00 off of a full-size bottle of ASTROGLIDE.
The truth is that, after having a baby, many couples experience serious disruptions in their sex life that can't be fixed with scheduling and date nights alone. If you find yourself in that camp, don't panic. You're not alone, and there are lots of things you can do to nurture and protect your relationship through this difficult transitional time.
Sheri Winston, CNM, RN, LMT, a wholistic sexuality teacher and former nurse-midwife, believes that a lot of the stress felt by couples in this situation could be avoided through better education.
"Care providers should warn pregnant couples of what they might be facing beforehand instead of acting like it's a secret," she explains. "The reality is that ¾ of women experience greatly reduced or no libido after giving birth -- and that's totally normal. Couples who don't know this ahead of time tend to think that there's something wrong with their relationship which causes strain on both of them."
The good news for couples is that eventually a woman's libido will come back, however it might take longer than they expect.
"For some women, this period of reduced libido can last up to three years, depending on a number of factors including whether she is breastfeeding and what kind of birth control she is on," explains Winston. Knowing this, couples need to plan for ways to stay connected until the woman is ready. So what can couples in this situation do?
While this might seem like an obvious first step, for many couples talking about their lack of a sex after childbirth can feel like a daunting subject to broach. "Oftentimes, the partners of women who just gave birth are feeling unattended to because the baby is getting all the attention, and they might feel bad about saying that's how they feel," Winston explains. "Likewise, the new mother is feeling exhausted and she might be wishing that her partner would just deal with it, but realizes that saying so would sound harsh."
Although these conversations might not be the most comfortable to have at first, Winston emphasizes that these feelings are totally normal and that it's critical that couples give themselves the chance to talk about how they're feeling about sex after childbirth. "Have conversations about what's going on to share feelings that come up," she says. "It's important for partners to be able to acknowledge that's how they feel so that resentments don't build up between them."
While hormonal and physiological factors play a major role in a woman's loss of libido after childbirth, stress and exhaustion can also be significant contributing factors. Caring for a new baby is big job and it's natural for women to feel drained and overwhelmed. If that's the case, couples need to work together to find ways to give the new mom a break.
"The more the woman feels supported the more likely she is to want to connect to her partner physically," Winston explains. "Partners of women who've just given birth need to understand that foreplay now involves doing the dishes and cooking dinner or taking the baby out and letting her take a bath. The more her well is filled up the more she's going to have to give back to her partner."
In her teaching Winston uses a framework that recognizes four different types of touch languages: nurturing, therapeutic, sensual, and sexual. She emphasizes to couples that it is important for them to get good at speaking all four, especially when their sexual dynamics aren't working.
"Nurturing touch is being held or rocked in a comforting way and therapeutic touch can refer to things like foot rubs and back massages," explains Winston. "Couples can provide both of these kinds of touch to each other to help relieve stress and to build their connection."
"Sensual touch is touch that delights and wakens the senses," says Winston. "While any kind of touch can help a woman feel more open to connecting sexually with her partner, sensual touch is the best way to turn someone on who has a reduced libido." However, Winston stressed that it's important that there be no sexual pressure attached to these other kinds of touch because this only makes it more difficult for the woman to get aroused and it can lead to resentment.
Winston says that it's important for couples to understand that it's possible to have sexual encounters where one partner isn't turned on and having orgasms. "Women can hold their partner while he or she self-pleasures, saying loving or sexy things in their ear, and maybe even joining in to assist in their pleasure," explains Winston. "This provides a very different experience for her partner than leaving them to deal with it on their own."
It's important that, like with the other kind of touch, there's no expectation that the woman has to do anything except for lovingly support her partner in their erotic experience. "Most partners have never watched each other masturbate," says Winston. "It can be a very intimate and connected experience. Also when there's no pressure on the woman to be sexual she might even end up getting turned on and getting more involved."
Winston also encourages new couples to seek extra support as they grow their families. "Human beings did not evolve to be in a nuclear family," she explains. "We evolved as a tribal species. In tribal species, everyone is there for a new mother. She's not isolated and she is being taken care of."
This sense of isolation can be so hard on new mothers, but it's a very common thing for new mothers to experience. "In our culture most new moms are on their own and feeling isolated, dealing with more stress and demand on their time than they can manage," says Winston. "The more of a tribe you can create the more support you'll have when the going gets tough."
What do you think of our tips for couples about sex after pregnancy? Is there any advice that you'd like to add? Let us know by tweeting @ASTROGLIDE.
For more sex and relationship tips, read 15 reasons you should keep the spark alive, and check out our article on how to keep your marriage hot.
Images are for illustrative purposes only.


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Rustic Blueberry Tart
This rustic blueberry tart brings in the just the right amount of blue for your 4th of July. This is an easy tart recipe with fresh blueberries wrapped in a simple, buttery crust.
Blueberries shine in this simple, delicious tart. The dough comes together quickly and is rolled out on a piece of parchment paper to keep it from sticking to the counter.... Read More
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subset: commoncrawl


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Condoms with QR codes enable smartphone check-ins
(CBS News) Think social media couldn't get any more personal? Planned Parenthood has introduced new QR-coded condoms that take social sharing to another level.
PICTURES - Unsafe sex? Poll shows where young people do it most
As part of National Condom Week (Feb. 14 - Feb. 21), Planned Parenthood of the Great Northwest distributed 55,000 condoms throughout western Washington. The condom packaging contained QR codes, barcodes that can be scanned by smart phones which direct users to a mobile website. What site did the QR codes take users to? www.WhereDidYouWearIt.com, a geo-location service website that allows users to "check-in" their safe sex activity.
The site is intended to promote healthy sexuality and encourage millennials, chief social media users, to "be proud to wear protection," Planned Parenthood said in a written statement.
"Condoms are an essential tool in preventing unintended pregnancy and stopping the spread of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including HIV," Nathan Engebretson, new media coordinator for Planned Parenthood Great Northwest, said in the statement. "We hope the site promotes discussions within relationships about condoms and helps to remove perceived stigmas that some people may have about condom use. Where Did You Wear It attempts to create some fun around making responsible decisions," he said.
The check-in map can be searched by gender, orientation, approximate age and location, among other filters. But Planned Parenthood said it wouldn't invade privacy for these private moments.
"We intentionally made it so you couldn't zoom in superclose," Engerbretson told CNET. "We really wanted to give people an option so they could see their check-in reflected on the map but at the same time give them some privacy."
Just because a person is using a condom doesn't mean they're practicing safe sex, according to a recent study by the Kinsey Institute. The study found many people don't know how to use condoms correctly, with common errors including not using condoms throughout sex, not leaving space or squeezing air from the tip of the condom, putting condoms on upside down, not using water-based lubricants, and incorrect withdrawal.
According to study author Dr. Richard Crosby, public health professor at the University of Kentucky, encouraging condom use and accessibility is important, but so is the need to improve clinic-based counseling and public education efforts.
According to Planned Parenthood, one in two sexually active persons will get a sexually transmitted disease by age 25 - and most won't know it. Every year, there are approximately 15 million new cases of STDs.
The CDC has more information on condoms.


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Millers Westbourne Strength
Martin Miller's Westbourne Strength is distilled with obsessive attention to detail, using only traditional botanicals. Traditional maceration techniques are used and it is then shipped to Iceland to be blended with pure Icelandic spring water. It's higher ABV gives it a more robust and pronounced spicy flavour.
- Type: Gin Super Premium
- Country: England
- Brand name: Millers Gin
- Bottle size: 70cl
- Code: 15506
- Abv: 45.2%


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Sometimes campus food is good, but sometimes it's nice to get away from the buzz of the dining hall and go to a place that's more homey. In that case, your best bet would be to find a good diner, which fortunately, college towns seem to be ripe with. But which diners are worth going off campus for? I rounded up five that you can count on for your morning cup of coffee and some breakfast comfort foods to go with.
With a breakfast menu that's thorough enough to cover all of your bases, Nick's has something for everyone. Whether you're a fan of the classic buttermilk pancakes, or want to try their "Fat Cat" skillet, you're bound to find a dish that you love. As for the staff? The folks at Nick's told Fresh U: "Other than our large made from scratch dishes, with fresh sourced ingredients, we'd say the number one reason our customers keep coming back is our friendly team. We love interacting with our customers, getting to know them and their families and making them part of our own Nick's family! Without them, we wouldn't definitely be where we are today!"
If you're looking for a classic menu, J's Homestyle Cooking is your place. With authentic, homestyle dishes, J's will give you that taste of home that you've been craving. Both the customers and owner Janice Powers agree that, "....our main strategic advantage is the home-like feel that the restaurant and our food give to everyone. The college students at UNI love our large portion sizes, and the older folks come in for our homestyle recipes. You know, there aren't many places that you can go anymore that make food from scratch, like grandma did. We make all of our desserts from basic ingredients with no preservatives and people love the way they taste; they taste real, not processed."
The Market Diner is a traditional style diner with a comfortable atmosphere and friendly faces. If you need some mid-semester cheer and good food, this is place to go. Their team and their customers agree that, "What makes The Market Diner so special is our character. It's easy for a restaurant to say their food is better, their prices are cheaper, or any other typical response. However, we care about our customers. For students from SU, Lemoyne, ESM, OCC or any other school in our area, we care about them. We hope to feed them, not gouge them with our price, and get to know them and help their experience away from home feel better and more comfortable. We treat our customers like family and this what we feel makes us special."
If you go to college near Athens, Union Street Diner is a place you surely won't want to miss. It is beloved for it's homey atmosphere and late hours. Fresh U contributing writer Annie Herr described it as, "the quintessential college town diner. It has 24/7 breakfast, wifi and pancakes that are literally bigger than the plates they're served on. I'm only a freshman and I've already been there twice late at night until morning for emergency pancakes to get me through studying for an exam."
Maybe you want to eat at a tried-and-true, classic diner. If that's the case, Henry's is your place! With slogans such as "Good food fast and breakfast all day," Henry's is sure to fulfill your craving for an old-fashioned diner. "Henry's is very unique. When you walk into the dining room, it's like taking a step back in time," owner, Naomi Maglaris says, "All of our orders are taken the old fashioned way, by hand, and the uniforms add to the retro atmosphere."
Whether you're looking for a newer place or a classic staple, diners are the hubs of comfort food. So the next time you need a detox from the dining hall, check out one of these places.
Lead Image Credit: waferboard via Flickr Creative Commons


text: The Stand Up Paddle Board or "Sups" as it is called originated, but the Kauai Sup Rental took it on as their own and developed it in the '60's. They began with it to instruct large groups of learners and the higher stance gave them a better viewpoint, and gave them the control they needed, not only over the learner groups, but also to sight the pending swells way out the back. The Stand Up Paddle Board used a single paddle with a long handle that was used to great effect to propel them forward, and not much has changed today.


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Blog » Screen Readers
Table cell header calculation for AT
Summary This post describes how table cell headers for screen-readers are calculated. TH with SCOPE=ROW or SCOPE=COL is unambiguous and widely supported TD with SCOPE is non-conforming in HTML 5, and is ignored as a header on some browsers (works in Apple WebKit, but ignored in Chromium WebKit). On tables with headers in the top row, or first column, TH without SCOPE usually works. TD HEADERS is problematic because it assumes a single list of headers for each cell, but accessibility APIs expose row and column headers as separate properties On any other table, TH without SCOPE produces wildly varying results.


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"Birth of the Mardween"
(c) 2012
by Jordan S. Bassior
IntroductionShort for "Martian Bedouin," the Mardween are an Arab-derived culture of Sunni Muslim religious fanatics who emigrated to Mars in the late 21st and early 22nd centuries to practice their Wahabbist cult with strictures increasingly-illegal on Earth, including extreme patriarchy, honor-killings and the enslavement of non-Mardween. The Mardween were implacable enemies of Western Civilization in general and of the American Mandate in particular: in truth they deeply hated all life and civilization other than their own. In the end they became merely a force for chaos and destruction, a taint on Mars and Mankind.
The First Martian Hegira
The culture was founded by Ahmed Jabril ("The Founder") Farouk who on January 15th, 2089 led the first Hegira to landfall on Mars, with the intent of eventually dominating Mars by demographic expansion. Farouk's followers first setled around northern oases, and were tolerated by the other Martian settlements as long as they refrained from raiding them. There, they built conventional domed outposts and shallow subterranean settlements, architecturally-similar to (if a bit better-fortified than) those constructed by the other Martian cultures. In these early days, these Muslim colonists were still sufficiently weak -- and sane -- to avoid provoking a war of ethnocide from the other settlements: indeed they participated in the 2097 declaration of the Martian Confederation, and fought for the Confederation against both the abortive 2150-51 attack by Lee III and the successful invasion in 2154-55 under Lee IV.
The Second Martian Hegira
When the American Mandate finally conquered Mars, in 2155, Farouk's eldest son and successor, Abdullah ("The Grim") led the most fanatical of his followers south of the equator into the deep deserts, in what was called the Second Hegira. There, they at first attempted to build normal colonies, though well-concealed from the American authorities, in the hopes that risings would sweep the American presence from Mars, allowing them to return to the Founder's plan. Part of Abdullah's strategy was to refrain from raiding as much as possibe, and to conduct such raids only by indirect and deniable means, so that the blame might be put upon "bandits."
In 2169, however, an astute investigator for the American Forces Military Police successfully proved to the satisfaction of General Sutton that Farouk's Wahabbists were actually behind the raids. US forces descended upon Abdullah Farouk's capital of Sira by near-total surprise and captured the colony, finding ample evidence of Wahabbist misdeeds, including slaves taken from other Martian settlements, and stores missing from military convoys and depots. Abdullah the Grim was slain in the fighting, but intelligence captured from his computers and some of his other followers allowed Sutton to roll up and occupy the Wahabbist settlements.
Here, the Mandate missed a major opportunity, because Sutton did not have the authority to disperse the Wahabbist civilians and hence end their culture. Some of the most fanatical Wahabbists were able to escape into the unsettled deserts, where they set up heavily-stealthed subterranean encampments and made only the most minimal contacts with civilization, even Muslim civilization. The populace in the Muslim settlements, both northern and southern, strongly sympathized with these fanatics -- for the first time called "Martian Bedouin" -- and young hotheads frequently ran off to join them.
When Sutton tried a partial dispersal in 2171, through mass arrests in the most egregiously-rebellious settlements, to cut off supplies to the Bedouin, he aroused political opposition amongst liberals back home, who argued that he was unfairly persecuting a rich and unique culture that merely wanted to be left alone to their traditional way of life. The new Commander Nicole Lee, fifth of her dynasty and one who imagined herself to be highly enlightened in the European mode, repudiated Sutton's actions, released his prisoners, and sent Sutton back to Earth, to take control of the continental defense of Antarctica.
In 2176, the shocking pornographic broadcasts made by Nicole Lee, as part of America's Quadricententennial Celebration, outraged many people throughout the Solar System, and in particular its Muslim population. The terrorist atom-bombing of Washington DC was seen by many religious fanatics of all stripes as a sign that Armageddon was upon the Universe. On Earth, there was widespread Muslim rioting. On Mars, these events both offended the Muslims, and heartened them when they saw Nicole Lee's incompetent and cowardly reaction to the attack on Washington DC, which included a pointless persecution of the Changists (a group hated by orthodox Muslims and blamed by Lee V for the attack) -- in an effort to avoid having to confront mainstream Islam.
In 2177, Lee V made matters worse by dispatching her favorite LaRousse, whom she had made a Marshal in the American Forces, to Mars to serve as Governor. Marshal LaRousse was despised by much of the American military because of his inept response to the Muslim attacks of 2176, and the appointment was a deliberate attempt to remove him temporarily from the Terrestrial scene so that he might be returned at a future date, his sins overlaid by more recent blunders by other high officials.
LaRousse was a very poor choice for a Governor. To begin with, he viewed his appointment primarily as a golden opportunity to line his own pocket through bribery, graft and outright extortion. The wise policies of the late Commander Lee IV had led to a Martian economic boom, with the combination of superior Martian technical skill and access to the huge Terrestrial and Lunarian markets proving immensely profitable for Martian commerce. To LaRousse, these thriving enterprises were so many geese to be plucked -- or even slaughtered -- for his own benefit.
So highly-skilled Martians, in control of a sizable and modern industrial infrastructure, who had been reconciled by Lee IV to American administration on the proviso that their economic growth was encouraged, were now being plundered by the disgraced favorite of Lee V, and plundered so ruthlessly that they were thrown into recession. The Martians had been free a scant 22 years earlier -- just one generation past -- and they were far from tamed to the point that they would submit meekly to such treatment.
Formal delegations were rebuffed with scorn. Public demonstrations were dispersed with lethal force. Angered, and mourning the death of some of their own youth, the Martian political leadership readily accepted arms smuggled in from the League of Europa -- and supplemented them with many more munitions forged in Martian factories. Survivors of the original wars of 2150 and 2154-55 provided leadership; the new generation was already old enough to provide ample recruits.
The rebellion against LaRousse erupted in 2178, just two yearsafter the appointment of that venal Governor. Among the Martians joining in the rising included the Muslims, which was ironic because LaRousse's malfeasances included an almost complete suspension of patrol and law enforcement activity against the Muslim settlements (he preferred to use his forces to intimidate the wealthier non-Muslim towns, the better to fleece them). LaRousse was so plainly a despicable, licentious coward that all this attempt at appeasement produced was utter scorn on the part of even the more moderate Muslims, let alone the fierce Bedouin of the South.
In the encounter, LaRousse's forces -- led by political favorites and supplies stripped by embezzlement -- proved woefully below the normal Mandatial standard, and far less able than were the Martian rebels. In a mere month the rebels seized control of the whole planet and its orbital facilities; only the forts on Deimos remained in American hands, and these were so besieged that the commanding officer at Deimos, Brigadier Leonard Oswald Ferrell (a more competent nephew of that Terrence Ferrell famously ambushed at Blackrock in 2121) was barely able to keep enough lasers and casters working to prevent a precision bombardment of his works.
With this victory the Bedouin -- led by Hakim ("The Cruel") Farouk, younger brother of the slain Abdullah, ran wild. They were just sufficiently sane to avoid attacking their fellow rebels, but they did make prisoner various American and other foreign personnel, both military and civilian, and upon them visited the most horrible abuses. Many were mutilated and enslaved; others simply slain, with or without slow torture. Some of the worst atrocities were actually comcast to Earth, by way of defiance.
These actions horrified not merely the Mandate but also all sane men throughout the Solar System -- including most of the Martian rebels. When Morton Blythe Stanek formed the Second Martian Confederation, it was with great reluctance that the Muslims were represented, and it was generally understood by the other Martians that the Muslims were to be kept away from any real decision-making powers -- which politically-weakened the revolutionary regime.
Marshal LaRousse survived the defeat of the Mandatial forces by fleeing Mars -- not for Deimos, which he judged doomed -- but for Luna. Faced with political embarassment and strategic disaster, Lee V brought General Sutton back from his Antarctic obscurity, made him a Marshal, and put him in command of the American Martian Expeditionary Force, tasked with recovering Mars for the Mandate, and suppressing the rebellion.
Sutton swept swiftly to Mars, taking the calculated risk of leading with a strong force of assault carriers, strike cruisers, destroyers and fast tenders, while the main body of battlefleet lagged behind. Consequently, he was able to arrive in early 2179, before the Martians had sufficiently fortified Phobos, and though his light forces took losses from the enemy defenses, his torpedoes battered and then his marines captured the inner Martian moon, allowing Ferrell to reopen the port on Deimos and opening the port on Phobos to the American transports.
Now with strong superiority in Martian orbital space, Sutton brought up his battleships and bombarded the Martian surface defenses into uselessness, gaining complete orbital supremacy. Massing his forces rapidly but with precision, he bombarded local defenses around Bradbury and effected a landing at that port, seizing and strongly garrisoning a wide worldhead. He was able to hold it against desperate Martian counterattacks, within which could be landed further reinforcements. The Martian ability to concentrate against his landing was limited by orbital interdiction fire, and Sutton's own ability to make raids and even secondary landings as required elsewhere on the planet.
As for the Second Martian Confederation, following the fall of Bradbury its political disintegration was rapid. Sutton was almost as canny a diplomat as he was a general officer, and he knew Mars well enough to grasp where lay the political faultlines. He covertly treated with all the major Martian factions, even the Muslims, and offered all pardons and good treatment should they submit to the American Mandate. As one after another settlement and faction surrendered even before his troops rolled up to their gates, he was as good as his word toward most of the factions -- but not the Southern Wahabbists. The Martian Bedouin, of course, kept on fighting -- though after Hakim the Cruel died in an American raid on October 26th 2179, they fought as independent bands, clans and families rather than as a united force.
Sutton had seen firsthand the barbarity of their culture in his 2169-71 campaign, and was well aware of the Bedouin atrocities of 2178. After he had firmly garrisoned all Martian settlements -- especially those of the Muslims -- he conducted a thorough investigation into all actions committed by the Martian Muslims from 2171 on which would be considered criminal even in most Outie polities, such as rape, slavery, torture and the murder of prisoners. All the while he recomcast the original atrocities, with tantalizing leaks from his investigations to outrage not only the population of the Mandate but also the reconquered Martians. The final straw -- for the Martians -- was when he produced evidence showing that such abuses had also been committed against other Martians who had somehow fallen afoul of Muslim ire.
With this revelation, he sprung the trap. The Martian Muslims were assigned almost all blame for both the revolt and its atrocities. The other Martians gladly agreed with this notion. Virtually every Muslim who had been an officer, official or even combatant in 2178-79 was convicted of war crimes. Sentences ranged from death to mental enslavement to long prison terms. Every child belonging to their families was judged to be in an unfit environment and put in fosterage. The Muslim colonies themselves were confiscated in reparations for the atrocities and their lands and other assets put up for sale; their populations forcibly evicted and dispersed among other settlements, both on Mars and elsewhere.
The Third Martian Hegira
As one would expect, the most fanatical of the surviving Muslim Martians refused to accept this grim edict. With the death of Farouk the Cruel, they had no overall leader, but the surviving Sheiks were able to organize escapes of families with considerable amounts of war-surplus equipment into the deep Southern deserts, far from even the old Wahabbist settlements. There, the Mars-Bedouin were determined to make a stand for their religion, for their culture, and for their way of life -- including raids against and the enslavement of the unbelievers.
At first, of course, they were hiding far more than raiding. American Forces pursued them, but desultorily -- as long as they stayed away from convoys and settlements, and did not make their presence obvious, the Americans were too busy rebuilding Mars to be able to devote the tremendous effort needed to find and neutralie every single Mars-Bedouin holdout.
Marshal Sutton would have liked to get them all, of course, but in 2180, less than one year after he had completed his conquest of Mars, the Second Great Muslim revolt erupted on Earth. With significant portions of Earth itself under rebel Muslim control, Sutton could not keep most of his forces: they were shipped back to the Terrrestrial System to support Marshal Hispano's Arabian campaigns. While Sutton did not wholly abandon the field to the Mars-Bedouin, even in the deepest deserts of the south, all he could do was to guard scattered outposts, escort convoys, and carry out the occasional search-and-destroy operation -- usually in reaction to a Bedouin raid.
It was during this period that Sutton's troops -- often overstretched, tired, and increasingly-cynical about the prospects for long-term victory against such an elusive foe, began to call the Martian Bedouin simply the "Mardween" -- and the culture received the name under which it would be finally known to history.


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Audio Mastering Studio
Sound processing applications for iPad and iPhone with professional grade quality
Monday, February 9, 2015
Recording, mixing and mastering - Excellent article!
Recording, mixing and mastering - 10 top resources for the iOS musician - or a 101-style reading list.
MusicAppBlog: http://www.musicappblog.com/resources-ios-music
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Seward Takes Vegas by Storm
Brock Kappelmann - September 16, 2017 6:50 am
LAS VEGAS, Nev. – The No. 9 Seward County volleyball team entered Friday's tournament unchallenged without a matchup against a Top 20 foe to their record. That changed when the Lady Saints took on No. 8 Snow College and New Mexico Military Institute, who received votes in the latest national polls. The Lady Saints left the building unscathed Friday, keeping their perfect record intact, defeating Snow 3-1 (24-26, 25-22, 25-21, 25-23) and NMMI 3-0 (25-19, 25-19, 25-19).
Match 1 Recap: No. 9 Seward vs. No. 8 Snow
For much of the match, the two teams battled, both showcasing why they are ranked in the Top 10. Through the first 30 points of the first set, neither team could gain an advantage. With the set tied 15-15, Snow won five of six points, going up 20-15. The Badgers extended their lead to 24-20, before the Lady Saints went on a run to tie it 24-24. After two straight Briana Domino kills, the scoreboard read 26-25 in favor of Seward, but the set was inexplicably called, giving the Badgers a 26-24 win in set one.
In the second set, once again neither team could gain an advantage. Tied 12-12 midway through the set, a Luz Sierra kill jumpstarted a Lady Saint run. Seward won four of the next six points. Sierra came away with two kills and a block in the run. The Badgers fought back into the set, cutting the lead to one at 21-20. Three Viviane Viana kills helped the Lady Saints put Snow away in the set two, 25-22.
With the match tied 1-1, the two teams came out swinging, alternating points until the score was 8-8. Snow scored eight of the next eleven points to take a sizable 16-11 lead midway through the set. This time it was Giovanna Tapigliani who jumpstarted a Lady Saints run. The run allowed the Lady Saint to capture set two after scoring 15 of the final 20 points, giving Seward the win 25-21.
Only one set away from upsetting the No. 8 team in the country, the Lady Saints began on a mission. Errors by Snow and four kills by Seward, including two by Viana, helped the Lady Saints gain an early 6-4 advantage. Mariana Nascimento recorded a kill, starting another Seward run, winning five of the next six points. With the Lady Saints gaining momentum and up 14-8, it looked like the match would soon be over. That thought quickly disappeared though, as the Badgers tied it up 19-19. The teams traded points until two Domino kills sealed the set, 25-23, and the match 3-1.
The Lady Saints ended the upset of No. 8 Snow with 58 kills. Viviane Viana was the star of the match, ending with 21 kills, her second 20 kill performance of the season. Nascimento (11 kills) and Tapigliani (14 kills) also hit double digit kills for the match, with the latter connecting on a team high .344. As has been the case all season long, Giovanna Kuntze paced the match, finishing with 54 assists. This was her third match on the season with at least 50 assists.
Defensively, the Lady Saints finished with five players recording double-digit digs. Along with Viana, Domino (12 digs), Tapigliani (12 digs), Kuntze (17 digs), and Nathiellen Machado (18) all reached double-digits. Sierra finished with six blocks, the seventh match with at least five blocks, and third straight match with six blocks.
Match 2 Recap: No. 9 Seward vs. New Mexico Military Institute
Following a quick 30-minute break, the Lady Saints started back up against NMMI. The Lady Saints started set one with some lag after a hard fought first game, falling behind early 6-3. A Nascimento kill kicked the Lady Saints into gear, winning six straight points, giving the Lady Saints a three-point edge early in the first set.
The Broncos fought back into the set, eventually tying it 14-14. From there on out, it was all Seward. The Lady Saints scored 11 of the next 16 points, including two straight Domino service aces, to take set one 25-19.
Beginning to show their strength, the Lady Saints started set two by going up 4-1. Viana, Tapigliani, and Sierra all got in on the action, recording a kill a piece in the early run. The three-point lead slowly built over the course of the set, with Seward coming out on top 25-19 following a Tapigliani kill.
Looking to close out day one with a sweep, the Lady Saints started the third set hot, going up 9-6 following a Kuntze kill. Nascimento also got in on the action, recording two kills of her own during the stretch. The lead grew to 20-15 before the Broncos started battling back. A few errors by the Lady Saints helped the Broncos come within one point at 20-19. The Following five points all belonged to the Lady Saints, however, finishing the third set with the same score as the first two, 25-19. The set earned the Lady Saints the victory and the sweep.
Nascimento began showing why she was First Team All-Region a year ago, hitting .667 with 13 kills in the win over NMMI. Tapigliani finished one kill behind Nascimento with 12. Coming in below her average, Kuntze finished the match with 27 assists.
Machado led the Lady Saints on defense, picking up 14 digs and received 15 attacks with no errors. Sierra finished the match with two blocks, ending her six-kill match streak.
The Lady Saints play again tomorrow when they take on No. 10 Salt Lake at 11 a.m. and No. 14 Utah State Eastern at 3:00 pm.
For more information on the Seward County volleyball team, visit SewardSaints.com.
Ian Applegate


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Potential MRI Hazards
Download Potential MRI Hazards as a .doc file (26 KB)
Technological advances in MRI (higher static fields, faster gradients, stronger RF transmitters) have occurred rapidly, and many questions regarding the safety of these developments remain unanswered. This document provides an introduction to some of the safety concerns associated with MR research and related pages address the practical implications of these safety issues:
Static Magnetic Field
Projectiles - The most immediate danger associated with a magnetic environment is the attraction between the magnet and ferromagnetic objects. Ferromagnetic objects can become airborne projectiles when placed in a strong magnetic field. The strength of the field increases superlinearly as you approach the bore, and even hand-held objects can be jerked free very suddenly as the holder moves closer. Small objects, such as paper clips and hairpins, have a terminal velocity of 60 mph when pulled into a 3T magnet. In addition to the possibility of severely injuring someone, it is not good for the magnet to be bombarded with difficult to remove small metallic 'missiles'. Remember, even when you are not scanning, the magnet is ALWAYS ON! NEVER bring any metal objects into the scanner rooms.
Metal in the Body - Metallic objects in the body can also have dangerous effects when placed in a magnetic field. Ferromagnetic metal implants or fragments may twist or move, causing internal injury and/or DEATH. Even non-ferromagnetic metal (including metal on clothing) can heat up during scanning, and cause burns or discomfort. Many of the DBIC's subject screening criteria are aimed at avoiding these hazards. In addition, metal in or near the body (such as dental implants) can produce artifacts, which adversely affect image quality.
Gradient Magnetic Fields
Nerve Stimulation - Another concern in MR Imaging is related, not to the strength of the static magnetic field, but to the transient application of magnetic field gradients that can induce current in conductive materials, including biological tissue. The induced current is greater in peripheral tissue because the amplitude of the gradient is highest farther away from the magnet's isocenter. Mild skin sensations and involuntary muscle contractions, which are thought to be the result of direct neural stimulation, have been reported during echo-planar imaging (EPI). This can usually be alleviated by simply repositioning the subject in the scanner.
Acoustic Noise - Another potentially hazardous effect related to gradient magnetic fields is the acoustic noise produced as current is passed through the gradient coils during image acquisition. For anatomical imaging, the noise is mostly of low frequency and has a "buzzing or rumbling" sound; for EPI, the noise can be of very high frequency (600-1400 Hz) and sounds like a loud "pinging". Generally, the higher gradients used with higher magnetic fields and with EPI produce more intense noise. Prolonged exposure to this noise will damage the unprotected ear. All subjects should therefore wear hearing protection, in the form of earplugs AND headphones, during scanning (both are recommended for 3T).
***NOTE*** It is the responsibility of the investigator to see that the subject wears hearing protection.
Radiofrequency (RF)
Tissue Heating - An RF pulse (a short burst of an electromagnetic wave originating from the RF coils) is used in MRI to "excite" protons by an exchange of energy. This absorption of RF energy can potentially cause heating of the tissue. Absorption of RF power by the tissue is described in terms of Specific Absorption Rate (SAR), which is expressed in Watts/kg. (In the US, the recommended SAR level for head imaging is 3.2 Watts/kg.) SAR in MRI is a function of many variables including pulse sequence and coil parameters and the subject's weight. However, the actual increase in tissue temperature caused by exposure to RF radiation is dependent on the subjects' thermoregulatory system. This is why when using the 3T magnet we do not allow the use of blankets or restrictive (such as large sweaters) clothing. The subject must be able to dissipate heat properly.
Electrical Burns - RF fields can cause burns by producing electrical currents in conductive loops. When using equipment such as surface coils, EEG leads, and response cables the investigator must be extremely careful not to allow the wire or cable to form a conductive loop with itself or with the subject.
Additional Information
If a subject or patient has any medical devices, you must get clearance from Terry Sackett
For more information regarding MRI safety, please go to MRIsafety.com


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Very happy with my new web-site, and with a new way to get in contact with people from Bellydance community, all over the world.
Very soon I will organize the BLOG divided in portuguese posts and english posts - so I make sure I can communicate 100% with the girls in Brazil.
I hope you enjoy it, and please do not hesitate to contact me ... ;)


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by Stephan Collishaw Read profile
Published 1st March 2017
Fifteen year old Yael is on the run. The Jewish girl seeks shelter from the Germans on the farm of the village outcast. Aleksei is mute and solitary, but as the brutal winter advances, he reluctantly takes her in and a delicate relationship develops.
As her feelings towards Aleksei change, the war intrudes and Yael is forced to join a Jewish partisan group fighting in the woods.
Torn apart and fighting for her life, The Song of the Stork is Yael's story of love, hope and survival. It is the story of one woman finding a voice as the voices around her are extinguished.
'At once tightly written and suspenseful, Collishaw's historical novel is a darkly compassionate fable of human endurance in absolute extremity.' Stevie Davies
'An elegantly crafted, beautifully written novel about love, survival and hope against all the odds – The Song of the Stork is a reading experience to savour.' William Ryan
'The subtle melody of The Song of the Stork caught my soul with its first notes and didn't leave me until the very last ones. Stephan Collishaw takes your hand and leads you into a world of tragic beauty, inspiring strength and delicate kindness in the midst of horror and through this journey he reminds you of the sound of hope.' Aiste Dirziute
'The Song of The Stork is a harrowing novel about a Jewish girl abandoned in World War 2 and forced to fend for herself in a landscape crawling with sexual ambiguity and brutal violence. It's a dark jewel that holds up for examination the proximity of terror and savagery to innocence and love. Yet The Song of The Stork is as much about the future as the past. Stephan Collishaw warns us how the times we live in might end up: with an oafish peasantry drunk on Brexit chasing children through the woods, just because their parents voted Remain.' Guy Kennaway
'…a masterly work of condensed fiction that synthesises the art of a great writer with the knowledge of a keen researcher who has become immersed in the first-hand sources of the period… A beautiful book that will go down as one of the classics of the literature of the anti-Nazi partisans in the forests around Vilna during the Holocaust.' Dovid Katz
'It is a refreshing read that is full of so much love and hope… I really loved this book, and is one that I have already been recommending.' The Reading Lodge
'There are many beautiful moments in the story, acts of kindness and small mercies that show human nature at its best… he gets under the skin of his characters and brings them fully to life on the page.' One more page blog
'Distinctive, memorable and poignant… An extraordinary read. Truly extraordinary.' Little Bookness Lane blog
'The triumph of good over evil is embodied within Yael.' Rich Reviews
'I found Stephen Collishaw's novel timely, focussed, beautifully written, inspiring and educational… Yael's story is an alternative to the stories we have been told about the second World War… An important work of literature.' Mari Ellis Dunning
'The Song of the Stork is an optimistic coming-of-age story of love and survival amid the horrors of the Second World War.' Annegoodwin.weebly.com
'I like how this book is written, it's like Yael is telling her story only to you, her painful but emotional adventure, where she will discover love, friendship and loneliness…' Varietats blog
'The Song of the Stork is a beautifully written and poignant novel about a young girl in Poland during the Second World War… a beautifully written and moving read about an awful period in history, which is in fact troublingly relevant in the current political climate.' A View From the Balcony blog
'Collishaw has done a fine job of balancing historical reality with the license of fiction, the grim facts of the holocaust with the poignancy of love, and through all it, he manages to offer a sense of optimism.' Words and Leaves blog
'This book is beautifully, hauntingly written… Haunting, moving and harrowing, The Song of the Stork shows both the worst and the best of humanity in this powerful novel.' Portobello Book Blog
'The prose is sparse and understated and it reminded me at times of The Secret Diary of Anne Frank, which hints at the barbaric events going on in the world without ever displaying them in all their technicolour horror… The writing is hauntingly beautiful and poetic.' Bloglovin
'The Song of the Stork is an outstanding read… a terrifying portrait of what humanity has been and what we might still become… I think that, in a world of noise, The Song of the Stork is quiet perfection.' Linda's Book Bag blog
'What an intense book. As if WW2 wasn't intense enough, Stephan Collishaw caught the pain, fear and hope that jews had back then… I can highly recommend this book if you're looking for something true-to-history.' Butterfly in The Sky blog
'The Song of the Stork is one of those gentle books that works its quiet way into the pathways of the mind. There is a calm exactitude to the writing… If you are looking for a novel of poignancy and provocation, The Song of the Stork is for you.' Rebekah Lattin- Rawstrone blog
'This novel is a gem of beauty. There's something quite special about it, in the style of it, in the aesthetic of it all… It felt like watching a Monet painting, to me… Extremely detailed, very fluid, beautifully crafted.' Books are here for you
'The Song of the Stork is the complete package as far as beautiful books go… The prose is dark and intense and my fear for what could happen to the characters I quickly cared for had me refusing to put the book down.' Book Drunk blog
'For me, The Song of the Stork was a promising read with the bare bones of the storyline showcasing the author's intellect in regards to a devastating and memorable situation.' The Writing Garnet blog


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July 13th
Emmy's 9th Birthday!!!!
Oh my Baby Emmy! Where did she go? Her favorite things are reading, writing, receiving letters and writing letters to her cousins, drawing, sewing, anything crafty, being with friends, riding her bike, and playing soccer! She is an amazing helper, especially with Annie and is almost always a better mom than I am.
For her birthday party, she and her very best friends went to Wild Flower Studios to paint. It was a fabulous party!
After the party, most of the girls came back to our house to continue playing.
Josh and I gave Emmy her own sewing machine. She was pretty excited about it.


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Jean Cobb has been with the agency since 1990. With over 25 years of experience on both the agency and client side of the advertising/public relations/communications industry, she brings a unique blend of perspectives to the marketing communications business.
Jean's focus is on developing branding and integrated marketing communication activities for clients, such as YKK AP, Masterpiece Lighting, and Chamberlin Edmonds, among others.
An Atlanta native, Jean graduated from the Henry W. Grady College of Journalism at the University of Georgia with a degree in journalism. She is also a graduate of the School of Bank Marketing at the University of Colorado. Prior to joining Freebairn and Company, Jean was the Director of Advertising for RepublicBank in Texas.
Connect with Jean Cobb on linkedIn.


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View the full Music Education Team Workshop Schedule HERE!
Read more about our Music Education Workshop Artists HERE!
Inclusive Community Drum Circle with Sara Devine of Expressive Therapies
Rhythm: in our heartbeat, our walking gait, and our speaking rate, rhythm flows throughout all of us! Join our recreational community drum circle that is bound to relieve stress, create energy, cause laughter and be an opportunity for families and friends to have a great time connecting with each other and those around you! A drum circle brings people together in a unique rhythmic experience that transcends barriers through its spontaneous, fun, and creative style. All ages and abilities are encouraged to join us – we have adaptive instruments if needed and we have an instrument for everyone to be able to participate in the fun! We will provide a variety of percussion instruments, but feel free to bring your own if you desire!
Grace's Sidewalk Symphony
Children will participate in (and create) a sidewalk chalk musical composition. Flashcards, with notes, will be distributed throughout the day. Each interested child will be instructed to color the same note from the card onto the sidewalk musical staff in any way they wish. At the end of their work, they will receive a copy of The Musical Adventures of Grace storybook and coloring sheet that they can have more fun with at home.
The Great Mile 5 Sing Along
A yearly tradition on the Conservatory Green! Led by the great guitarist, banjo player, and singer Jim Heiks, and accompanied by a talented group of musicians and voices from the Lawrence Academy Girl Choir and New Voices, come and join us in a multi-generational sing along! We all have songs we've known our entire lives that bring us back to a place of peace and joy! Let us sing together! Song booklets provided!
pBone Funzone
One of the family-favorite workshops from Mile 4! Anyone can learn to play trombone in less than 30 minutes. No experience necessary. Some pTrumpets will also be available. Everyone is invited to play at the following Brass Band Funk Jam.
Mini-Mile of Music
Songs, dancing and music games for our little ones ages 0-3, part of The Building For Kids FREE Day!
Ballet Workshop with Makaroff Youth Ballet
Participate in a traditional ballet class with live piano accompaniment! You will hear Liam Mayo, our skilled pianist, play his original compositions as the dancers from Makaroff Youth Ballet demonstrate the artistry and athleticism of ballet. Then, we welcome you to participate in a ballet class with Liam at the piano. Workshop will take place at Makaroff School of Ballet's studio, located below the green awning on Walnut Street across from the Fox Cities P.A.C.
There will be two sessions, one for ages 4-7 and another for ages 8-14. SCHEDULE: Friday, August 4 – 1:00 pm (ages 4-7) and 2:00 pm (ages 8-14).
Stories That Sing
Watch, listen and interact with our lively storytellers as they bring our picture books to life with song, dance and a ton of fun! For kids ages 4-7. Saturday's Stories That Sing will be a part of The Building For Kids FREE Day!
Brazilian Samba Drumming
Come and groove with us in this powerful, aural drumming tradition from Brazil! No drumming experience necessary! Learn about and play the different "voices of the bateria" – or samba band – that combine to stir the soul and make you want to move!
One of these workshops will cater to Teens and Adults who want to go a little deeper into playing Samba grooves. This workshop will allow participants to learn more about the drums and their purpose in the band, work on a drum pattern, learn calls and responses, and really feel connected and locked-in with the other players. No experience necessary, so come on out and feel the power of a Samba Bateria!
Balinese Gamelan
Music-making as a community at its best, this bronze gong and xylophone orchestra has a part for everyone! Experience the joyful and mesmerizing sound of Balinese instruments
Fiddle Workshop with Tim McIlree
Bring your ax and learn some old time, bluegrass, and folk tunes! For intermediate and advanced violin players, we will guide you through improvisational fiddle techniques, building both the player and music creator in you!
Ghanaian Drumming and Dancing
Come and dance and drum with us in a powerful, highly rhythmic style from Ghana! You will learn dances called Gahu and Tokoe, that move in response to the Ewe drum language. The best part of this is that it is exhilarating and fun!
Gumboot dance evolved from a form of communication used by the South African miners, using their rain boots, hands, and legs. This communication grew into a dance form that became competitive among mining companies. Come and learn some steps to this rhythmically powerful and meaningful dance form!
Didjeridu Workshop with Brian Pertl
I bet you never knew how GOOD a termite hollowed log could sound? Well, it sounds amazing! Brian Pertl, Dean of the Lawrence Conservatory of Music, will take you through beginning didjeridu techniques not termite hollowed logs but plastic tubes to get you droning. Learn about the most amazing didj techniques the Aboriginal Australians have used for eons to create a powerful, rhythmic, and mystical sound. Instruments provided!
Deep Listening Walk
Start your day by exploring the most important musical instrument of all — your ears! In this session we will open our ears to all of the sonic wonders around us. We will listen to the world as if a composer wrote the music specifically for us to hear. Bring your open ears and mind.
Acoustic Guitar Workshop
Bring your guitar and work with Ilan Blanck on your strumming and picking skills. This workshop will be focused on advanced beginners or above.
Jazz Band Jam
Come join the Jazz Band Jam! Bring your instrument (all are welcome) and have fun learning jazz tunes by ear, reading easy classic big band charts, and improvising in a group setting. Play just a couple of tunes or stay and play the entire hour. All students and adults are welcome – drum kit, bass, piano and a guitar amp will be set up and ready for rhythm section players interested in participating. Open to Middle school students through adults who play an instrument.
Funk Band Jam
You remember that sax, trumpet, or trombone you used to play in high school? Grab your instrument and be a part of this super funky second line New Orleans style Funk Jam Band. Learn grooves by ear and funk it up. This was a huge hit last year and will be even better this time around! Beginners to George Clinton welcome!
Hip Hop with Corey Torres
Hip Hop artist, Corey Torres will help you discover your inner poet as you write your own rhymes and set them to hip hop beats. One of our biggest hits from Mile 5! In the words of Hip Hop artist Jose Corey Torres, a.k.a Knowledge, "Come vibe and connect with the art of writing hip hop music." We all have the eye of an artist, but not all get a chance to experience it. This will be a judgement-free workshop open to ALL. By the time you leave this session, you will be well on your way to composing your own Hip Hop tune! Corey will be giving two separate workshops at Mile 5 venue Lou's Brews to accommodate multiple age levels!
Ukulele Workshop
The sounds of Hawaii in Appleton! If you have your own instrument, bring it! There will also be some ukes available at the workshop.
Come explore the thrilling sounds of Mexico's Mariachi Band. The unique combination of guitars, violins, trumpets, and voice is a defining feature of the music of Western Mexico. Now is your chance to explore this vibrant tradition first hand!
Afro-Cuban Drumming and Singing
With its roots in the complex rhythms of West Africa and melodic influences coming from Spain, Afro-Cuban traditions are exciting, vibrant and will make you want to sing and dance. So what are you waiting for?


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You are here: Manchester Confidential › Entertainment & Sport › Events & Listings.
Gordo went to the Yang Sing re-launch last week. Walking into the bar at Obsidian to meet Angela Brown, the Argent gaffer, he was confronted by the sight of a gaggle of food critics; Ray King, with Trudy, along with Mr. and Mrs Neil Sowerby and even Jonathan Schofield showed up with his delightful missus, a first for most of us. We all got very drunk later. Naughty.
The Yang Sing have refurbished and they asked us all to get on black tie for a '1930s' Shanghai theme. We were treated to mountains of dim sum, along with as much champagne and, in Gordo's case, beer, as we could force down our throats. Gordo particularly liked the hot cheesy balls, until he bit into a particularly hot one, scalded his lip and finished up with yellow cheese stains all down his dress shirt. Very irritating.
They had a dragon that was dancing around the place, disappointingly it wasn't real as Gordo could see bloke's legs sticking out from underneath, a kind of up market Chinese panto horse.
Good luck to owners Gerry and Harry, Manchester Confidential has had two great reports in about the food since the evening. Let us know what you guys think. To see the library of photos for the evening, look below. Don't expect to see photos of Gerry and Harry, that would have taken the use of brainpower from our erstwhile photographer, David 'Peter Pan' Lake.
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Depends on the arse.Read more
As usual mancon make no reference at all to the Irish Festival again .Read more
Double whammy of good markets too - Levenshulme have a food and drink only market on Saturday and…Read more
There are no excuses for arse-kissing.Read more
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Source: Ethan Sacks / New York Daily News
A contingent of "Breaking Bad" viewers, upset by an ill-timed cable outage during Sunday night's episode, apparently behaved like a pack of meth addicts.
After Cablevision customers in parts of Southern Connecticut endured the outage, the Fairfield Police Department received a flurry of calls on the 911 line meant for emergencies of the more serious kind.
"We are receiving numerous 911 calls regarding the [Cablevision] outage," a representative wrote on the department's Facebook page in a post flagged by The Associated Press but later taken down. "This is neither an emergency or a police related concern. Please direct your inquiries to Cablevision."
The rep also warned that "misuse of the 911 system may result in arrest."
To read this article in its entirety visit the New York Daily News.


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Getty Images
Florio mentioned the other day that Jon Gruden had been conspicuously quiet about reports that he could return to coaching in 2012. Now Gruden has come forward to say that he intends to remain in the broadcast booth.
"I love my job and I'll be back at ESPN with the guys," Gruden told the Tampa Tribune. "I'm not going anywhere."
Regarding the report that Gruden could join A.J. Smith as a coach-G.M. team in St. Louis next season, Gruden said that's not happening.
"I enjoy being with our ESPN team," Gruden said. "I'm staying put."
There's still plenty of time for the 48-year-old Gruden to get the itch to coach again and leave Monday Night Football behind, but for now, he insists that he won't be back on the sidelines.


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Awareness Run
83 Miles - 8 Schools - 1 Purpose
Meals 'til Monday provides weekend, kid-friendly meals to elementary school children in Elida, Franklin (Delphos), Spencerville, Wapak, Cridersville, Perry, Allen East, and Bath. On June 1, 2013, you will have the opportunity to participate in the first relay in the Lima area connecting each of these schools to one another. This will NOT be a race, but an Awareness Run. Here are the details:
- Awareness Relay Run links the 8 current Meals 'til Monday partner schools.
- The relay begins June 1, 2013 at 6:00 am sharp.
- Starting at Elida, runners travel to Franklin (Delphos), Spencerville, Wapak, Cridersville, Perry, Allen East, Bath, and back to Elida. MAP
- Teams can be up to 8 persons (one for each leg of the run) and as small as 1 (some people are like that).
- One person from each team needs to run from one school to the next, thus linking the mTm schools. (shortest mileage around 8 – longest around 15)
- We will be holding a 9-10 minute mile pace and running as a group. It will be a long day at 13-15 hours.
- Sheriff/Police escort to protect runners. This is not a race. The runners of each section are to stay together.
- Food/drinks provided at each school for the runners finishing their leg and for those getting ready to start the next. Additional food provided at the end of the race, back at Elida Elementary to celebrate our accomplishments.
- No water stations. You will need to either carry your own or work with other team members to get any "on course" supplies.
- Cost will be $160.00 per team. This is paid at the time of sign up by the "Team Captain". Sign up will be through Active.
- Individual team members can log into Active, after the "Team Captain" creates a team, and sign up under their correct team name. There is no fee once the team is created.
- All registrations must be recieved by May 1, 2013. REGISTRATION IS NOW CLOSED.
- The "Team Captain" will be responsible to confirm his/her team members names/info is correct by May 1, 2013. This is needed for both logistics and to get your team correct shirt sizes.
- Your $160.00 gets you food/drink at each school (exchange), a sweet shirt, invited to celebrate with us when it is over, and the opportunity to run around Allen and Auglaize Counties escorted (chased) by local sheriff. (How cool is that?)
- All teams are invited to join us in celebrating your team's accomplishment back at Elida at the end of the race. Food and drinks will be provided.
- Please check out the FAQ Page to sort out other details. Any unanswered questions? Feel free to contact firstname.lastname@example.com.
All participants will need to provide a signed copy of the following waiver. This type of info will need to be collected by the Team Captain and given to mTm prior to the start of this event.
I acknowledge participation in a road race is a potentially hazardous activity and may result in various types of injury. I will not run in the June 1, 2013 Meals 'til Monday Awareness Run unless I am medically able. I assume all risks associated with this race, including but not limited to falls, contact with other runners, illness, and effects of the weather. I acknowledge and accept the risks of injury associated with participation in and transportation to and from this event. If I should suffer injury or illness, I authorize the officials of the race to use their discretion to have me transported to a medical facility, and I take full financial and legal responsibility for this action, whether such injury or illness arises out of the negligence of the event sponsor, the participants, or otherwise. I grant permission to Meals 'til Monday use any photographs, videotapes, or any other record of this event for legitimate purposes of the event or their organization. Knowing this, I am participating in this event at my own risk.


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#BEDM Day 25: Something Somebody Said
Something someone told you about yourself that you'll never forget
There are two things vying in my mind for this entry, and both make me smile.
The first happened well over a decade ago, when I was just a slip of a boy. Serving on a till, a customer told me, completely apropos of nothing, that I had a lovely smile and that when I smiled I looked like Hugh Grant (this was when Hugh Grant was attractive and famous and presumably not banging slappers). And I guess I do a bit, when my face is thin.
The second was also a very long time ago and was spoken by my manager at the time. When comparing me to a colleague, he said "the difference between you two is that they make a massive fuss and look really busy but don't actually achieve a lot, whereas you're more or less the other way around." This is possibly the piece of feedback I am most proud of in my entire career.


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Ivanka Trump's Dos and Don'ts of Warm-Weather Office Dressing
In a professional environment, your appearance communicates volumes. When I started my fashion collection, I did so in order to give the modern professional woman a brand that would consistently deliver on work-appropriate pieces that were also sophisticated and chic. I don't believe you have to sacrifice your sense of style in order to succeed in the business world, but I do believe there are certain rules to follow to ensure that how you dress is working in your favour, and not against it. Especially now, in the hottest time of the year, it's essential to maintain an air of professionalism while keeping your cool.
When the temperature spikes, so does the A/C in just about every office in Manhattan. Pack a summer-weight cardigan or blazer to layer over your ensemble. I'm partial to this lightweight tweed jacket from my own collection. The black-and-white tweed is offset with faux-leather trim, meaning it will work well now and will also be a great transitional piece for fall.
Spaghetti straps simply aren't appropriate for the workplace. Choose pieces with a thick strap, or bring a jacket or cardigan to wear over your top.
I love a breezy jumpsuit or dress throughout the summer. Avoid anything too clingy or separates that need to be tucked in to each other. One piece of clothing is always better than two. This day dress from Club Monaco features an easy A-line silhouette, which is deceptively comfortable while still looking chic.
Topshop Belted Tailored Jumpsuit ($140)
Club Monaco Cariole Silk Dress ($279)
They may be cute—and you may have killer legs—but there is a time and a place for short shorts, and your office is not it.
It's not glamorous, but it's reality: Your feet will swell in the heat. On the truly blistering days, opt for a feminine flat with a great print or texture.
Ivanka Trump Chic3 Flats ($100)
I love a great strappy sandal, but a flip-flop crosses the line, and is too casual for a professional environment.
Silk, cotton, and linen are all excellent choices for the warmer months. They're lightweight and breathable, which is a major bonus when it's hot and humid. This trench dress from AYR ensures your shoulders stay covered without causing you to overheat, courtesy of the linen.
Sweat stains, unexpectedly sheer fabrics, and errant bra straps are all common woes this time of year. When my team shot the Ivanka Trump brand campaign this summer in Miami, our stylist was a wealth of information when it came to fashion emergencies. We interviewed her for an incredibly enlightening post on IvankaTrump.com—check it out.
An accessory that won't add any weight? A great mani/pedi. I tend to go to the nail salon on Sunday evenings with my daughter. She's partial to hot pink. Depending on the dress code in your office, you may want to abstain from a bright colour on your fingernails, but a soft pink is always appropriate—and a bold shade peeking out from a pair of peep-toe shoes can be fun.
Isaac Mizrahi Nail Lacquer ($10)
Chipped polish and open-toe shoes are a bad combination. It looks sloppy and it can be distracting. When your polish starts to chip, remove it altogether.
Want more expert office-dressing tips? Submit your questions below!
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- Office
- Work
- Style Tips


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The Next Step…
The following are some explanations of the necessary steps to take upon the death of a loved one. It is information that can be very helpful in preparing for the time immediately after death when things are most stressful and confusing.
Death in a medical facility When death occurs at a hospital or nursing home, the medical staff will assist you with necessary legal requirements and paperwork. Notify the medical staff that Bakersfield Funeral Home will be handling the arrangements.
Anticipated death at home Notify hospice care that Bakersfield Funeral Home will be handling the arrangements. The hospice will then take care of all necessary legal requirements. Many families choose to make pre-arrangements with us so that they are not overwhelmed at the time of death.
Unanticipated death at home or elsewhere Immediately call 911. Emergency medical personnel will determine the appropriate steps to be taken.
Death out of state If the death occurs outside of California, call Bakersfield Funeral Home and we will coordinate with a local funeral director at the place of death.
Funeral Arrangements To assure that the arrangements are made accurately and expediently, schedule an appointment to make arrangements with the funeral director. Bring the following information of the decedent:
- Social Security Number
- Date of Birth
- Place of Birth
- Father's Name
- Mother's Name and her Maiden Name
- Veteran's Discharge Papers (DD214)
- Cemetery Deed
- Clothing – all normal items including undergarments
- Glasses
- Dentures
- Jewelry & personal items - these items can either be brought on the day of the arrangement, or on the day of the visitation.
Our funeral directors will need to obtain detailed vital information for completing the death certificate.
Certified copies of the death certificate are legal documents and are issued by the State of California. Photocopies are not considered legal documents. After the original certificate has been signed by the physician or medical examiner and all vital information completed by our funeral home, it is then filed with the Kern County Health Department.
Death certificates in California are $21.00 per certified copy.
During the funeral arrangement, we will ask you how many certified copies of the death certificate are needed. As part of our services, we will obtain certified copies on your behalf. Death Certificates can take up to two weeks from the date of burial or cremation. You may need a certified copy for the following:
- Each Life Insurance Company
- Motor Vehicles
- Pension, IRA or other retirement benefits
- Probate of Will
- Each bank where accounts were maintained
- Final Tax Return
- Stocks and Bonds
- Your own files
- Real Property
We are willing to send a courtesy notification to Social Security upon request. Once you receive the Death Certificate you can contact them to see if you are entitled to any benefits.
Upon death, call (661) 871-8080. Bakersfield Funeral Home offers immediate and comprehensive services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. When we receive your call, our professional staff will immediately start the process required for cremation to take place. The following is a standard outline of the completed process.
- Family, friends or pertinent authority calls Bakersfield Funeral Home.
- Bakersfield Funeral Home removes the deceased from the home, hospital or other place of death and a unique ID is attached to the deceased.
- The deceased is placed in a refrigerated holding facility until the time of cremation.
- Bakersfield Funeral Home prepares the death certificate, disposition permit, and other necessary records and consults with the family or responsible party.
- Family or friends contact Bakersfield Funeral Home to make financial arrangements, unless there was a paid Pre-Arrangement Plan in place.
- Bakersfield Funeral Home obtains the cause of death from the doctor or medical examiner and files it with the Kern County Health Department.
- The ID'd decedent is placed in a cremation container and is transferred by our staff to our on-site crematory.
- Cremation takes place under the direction of our licensed, professional crematory staff and usually takes place three to five days after death.
- All recoverable cremated remains are processed and placed in either a temporary or permanent urn and returned to the family.
Ten Freedoms for Creating a Meaningful Funeral
Meaningful funerals do not just happen. They are well-thought-out rituals that, at least for a day or two, demand your focus and your time. But the planning may feel less burdensome if you keep in mind that the energy you expend now to create a personalized, inclusive ceremony will help you, your family and other mourners embark on healthy, healing grief journeys.
The following list is intended to empower you to create a funeral that will be meaningful to you and your family and friends.
You have the right to make use of ritual.The funeral ritual does more than acknowledge the death of someone loved. It helps provide you with the support of caring people. It is a way for you and others who loved the person who died to say, "We mourn this death and we need each other during this painful time." If others tell you that rituals such as these are silly or unnecessary, don't listen.
You have the freedom to plan a funeral that will meet the unique needs of your family.While you may find comfort and meaning in traditional funeral ceremonies, you also have the right to create a ceremony that reflects the unique personality of your family and the person who died. Do not be afraid to add personal touches to even traditional funerals.
You have the freedom to ask friends and family members to be involved in the funeral.For many, funerals are most meaningful when they involve a variety of people who loved the person who died. You might ask others to give a reading, deliver the eulogy, play music or even help plan the funeral.
You have the freedom to view the body before and during the funeral.While viewing the body is not appropriate for all cultures and faiths, many people find it helps them acknowledge the reality of the death. It also provides a way to say goodbye to the person who died. There are many benefits to viewings and open casket ceremonies; don't let others tell you this practice is morbid or wrong.
You have the freedom to embrace your pain during the funeral.The funeral may be one of the most painful but also the most cathartic moments of your life. Allow yourself to embrace your pain and to express it openly. Do not be ashamed to cry. Find listeners who will accept your feelings no matter what they are.
You have the freedom to plan a funeral that will reflect your spirituality.If faith is a part of your life, the funeral is an ideal time for you to uphold and find comfort in that faith. Those with more secular spiritual orientations also have the freedom to plan a ceremony that meets their needs.
You have the freedom to search for meaning before, during and after the funeral.When someone loved dies, you may find yourself questioning your faith and the very meaning of life and death. This is natural and in no way wrong. Don't let others dismiss your search for meaning with clichéd responses such as, "It was God's will" or "Think of what you still have to be thankful for."
You have the freedom to make use of memory during the funeral.Memories are one of the best legacies that exist after the death of someone loved. You will always remember. Ask your funeral officiant to include memories from many different people in the eulogy. Create a "memory board" or a "memory table." Ask those attending the funeral to share their most special memory of the person who died with you.
You have the freedom to be tolerant of your physical and emotional limits.Especially in the days immediately following the death, your feelings of loss and sadness will probably leave you feeling fatigued. Respect what your body and mind are telling you. Get daily rest. Eat balanced meals.
You have the freedom to move toward your grief and heal.While the funeral is an event, your grief is not. Reconciling your grief will not happen quickly. Be patient and tolerant with yourself and avoid people who are impatient and intolerant with you, before, during and after the funeral. Neither you nor those around you must forget that the death of someone loved changes your life forever.
Copyright 2007, Center for Loss and Life Transition
Cemeteries in Bakersfield, CA
Historic Union Cemetery
(661) 324-9648


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Dr. Krishna, quality internal medicine & experience you can count on...
Caring for you & your family.
With a professional team to support all your healthcare needs.
With special attention on nutrition & preventative medicine.
Welcome to Dr. Krishna's website!
We hope you will find that the information provided here is useful to you.
If you don't see what you need, please give us a call at 713.988.6774.
Dr. Krishna's Philosophy
My internal medicine practice employs a wide variety of safe & effective methods used to screen, diagnose, treat & prevent health problems. I believe in treating all patients with respect and dignity. By carefully listening to you, I am able to provide the best possible care and help improve your overall well-being.
I can treat various ailments that include, but are not limited to, hypertension, diabetes & high cholesterol.
It is important for individuals to maintain a healthy lifestyle. It is equally important that patients take responsibility and interest in their physical and mental health.


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What is Pickleball?
It's a raquet sport that combines elements of badminton, tennis, and table tennis. 2, 3, or 4 players use solid paddles made of wood or composite materials to hit a whiffle ball, over the net. Open Gym games are played to 11 and doubles are encouraged but not required. Teams rotate in after each game. Winner stays (max of 2 games) and then rotate out. Paddles and balls are provided.


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|Collage week 22
Saturday, May 31, 2014
Patterns in Pink
This week, my collage is a little different. I used a selection of hand made papers from my scrap box and combined them with rubber stamping, pen and ink, and a bird cut from letterpress makeready (makeready is the process that gets an image ready to print. I use paper over and over again to get the color and position of the letterpress plates in the correct spot and the patterns and textures that occur can be very interesting). I'm offering this collage as a print in my Etsy shop.
Posted by Two Hand Design
Labels: 52 weeks of Collage, Art Seiden, artwork, bird, collage, original collage, pattern, rubber stamp, two hand design
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Students will learn how to make a clown drawing with pastel, paint or markers.
Students will gain experience in handling a brush and paint.
By repeating simple shapes, students will create pattern.
Students will demonstrate awareness of emotion by creating "sad" and "happy" faces.
What You Need:
- Black construction paper
- White crayon
- Easel brushes
- White tempera paint
- Oil pastels
- Colored glitter
What You Do:
Day One
- Each student receives a 12×15 sheet of black construction paper, and a white crayon.
- On your paper (taped to the black board) show students how to draw a large circle in the middle of the paper using a white crayon.
- Next, show them how to draw the shoulders from the bottom of the face, to the bottom corners of their paper.
- Collect all the white crayons.
- Give each student a brush and white tempera paint. Have them paint the entire face and shoulders white.
Day Two
- Give each group of students a book of oil pastels. If you don't have oil pastel, color crayons will work.
- On the board, discuss and draw different shapes for the class, such as circles, triangles, ovals. squares, etc.
- With your clown picture taped to the board, demonstrate with a black oil pastel how to use shapes to create the features and clothing details.
- Some things to discuss and demonstrate are emotions, what does a happy face or sad face look like, and repeating shapes to create pattern.
- Emphasis should be put on drawing nice sized shapes that will be simple to color in. No tiny details!
- After the faces and patterns have been outlined, let students color them in. Limit the students to three colors on the clowns clothing.
As each student completed coloring their clown, they brought the picture up to my desk to apply glue lines. I then sprinkled colored glitter on the glue. Make sure that the students sign their name with a black marker on the white areas of the clown.
Main Image: Kids Artists
Recommended Books/Products:
by Brigitte Baumbusch, George Rodrigue
A whole new concept in children's book publishing, The Art for Children series helps kids discover the world of visual art in a fun, intuitive manner. Using a wealth of images from around the globe and across the centuries, these eye-catching, attention-grabbing books encourage children to appreciate art in a way that is natural and absorbing.
I Can Draw Faces
by Gill Speirs, Katherine E. Speirs, Harry J. Sievers
This bestselling series teaches young artists that by putting basic shapes together, they can create fascinating creatures of the deep and human faces of all kinds and shapes.
You Can Draw: Amazing Faces
by Kim Gamble
Diagrams, illustrations, photos, and step-by-step explanations encourage readers to draw heads and faces in this art how-to book. Best for older students.
Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain
by Betty Edwards
Translated into thirteen languages, Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain is the world's most widely used drawing-instruction guide. People from just about every walk of life–artists, students, corporate executives, architects, real estate agents, designers, engineers–have applied its revolutionary approach to problem solving.


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May 7, 2016
RISCO LightSYS security alarm system – manuals, videos. How to arm/ disarm the system
The system is VERY BADLY DOCUMENTED. There is no plain English manual that explains how it is to be armed/ disarmed.
I accidentally armed it and there was no way to disarm it. Finally, had to get advice on how to disengage its battery.
verdict: USELESS SYSTEM
My copy of manuals should these disappear from the internet.
Download & Support
User Codes
To perform many of the LightSYS functions, a security code (often called a user code) must be input. LightSYS can support up to 16 different user codes. User codes may have variable lengths of up to six digits.
Your LightSYS was given a grand master code of 1-2-3-4 during manufacturing. RISCO advises that you modify this code to one that is unique and personalized as herein described, unless your alarm company has already done so.
Setting / Changing User Codes
The user assigned the grand master authority level can change all user codes but cannot view the digits in the user code fields. Users with other authority levels can only change their own codes. The system must be unset in order to set or change user codes.
To set/change a user code:
1. Press and enter your code followed by .
2. Using the arrow keys, scroll to the option Codes/Tags and press .
3. Scroll to Define and press .
4. Select the user index number and press .
5. Select Edit Code and press .
6. Enter the new code followed by . If successful, a single confirmation beep is sounded; if not, three quick error beeps are sounded
7. Repeat the above steps for additional codes until you have completed your list
In the LightSYS system, the User Index number range is from 00 to 15. (00=Grand master)


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Product Vendor: ALO Product Collections: All Products - discountable, ALO, BirthdaySALE
ALO W Reflection Tank
Regular price
Product Details
Self reflection never looked better. Because you deserve unconditional support from sun salutation to sundown, the Reflection Tank is constructed to offer the best in style and function you need for practice.
- Subtle V-neckline flaunts that neck, Chest and shoulders you've practiced hard for
- Hidden inside bra features removable pads for additional coverage and smoothing
- Cross back exposed plush elastic band for a strappy, snappy rear view
- 4 way stretch medium weight Nylon Spandex: 87% Nylon, 13% Spandex
- Moisture-wicking properties draw sweat away from the body
- Anti-bacterial technology prevents the growth of odor causing microbes
Product Reviews


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V Card
Don't worry about long lines and cover charges when trying to experience a prime nightlife experience; receive the best of Las Vegas' nightlife with an easy-to-use card. V Card: The Vegas Nightlife Pass gets you VIP access to some of the hottest venues on the Las Vegas Strip.
Suite Number: 360
Category: Shows
Phone: 702.260.7200
website: V Card


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O in short: MP3Producer copies audio CD tracks from multiple CD-ROMs and encodes them to WAV MP3 OGG Vorbis WMA. Supports FreeDB(CDDB) ID3v1 2 tags M3U/PLS playlist and all bitrates. Built-in CD player and volume normalizer. French Interface & Help.
See above information and user's reviews about MP3Producer FR A handy tool to grab CD tracks to WAV MP3 OGG WMA with FreeDB support.
See also other good software tools: Audio and Music: Audio and Music:Converters


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Campgrounds are available within Forsyth.
Forsyth, MT is the county seat for the county of Rosebud, a small city with a population of 1,944, taken in the 2000 census. The tourist information centre for Custer Country is on Front Street and provides interesting tourist activities pertinent to the history and geography of the region. Custer Country comprises many small towns, in addition to Montana's biggest centre, Billings.
A local character from the early 20th century was jeweller Walter Dean Jr. who ran a jewellery and drugstore business in the town for forty years, and served as an agent for Eastman Kodak. His photographs were famous are credited with assisting in the development of the area.


text: Emilie Monfort celebrates 5 years with the Badenoch & Clark team! Angela Taylor 18/05/2016 15:00 Tags: Our Offices Another milestone for the Badenoch & Clark team! On 2nd May, Emilie Monfort, celebrated her 5 year work anniversary. Emilie joined the team in 2011 and is now a senior consultant in the successful Banking & Financial Services team. Share this Page on


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FHA & Investor
Claims Management
Mortgage loan investors and servicers rely upon DIMONT's expertise in collateral valuation and insurance recoveries for scalable, compliant solutions that reduce the risk of losses in the collateral liquidation process. We engage with you to analyze, design and execute specialty outsourced solutions that minimize corporate advances; increase government, MI and GSE reimbursements; reduce post-default resolution operating expenses.
Investor & Agency Claims Management
Our government, MI and investor claims management service helps mortgage loan servicers reduce the risk of incomplete reimbursements, while minimizing exposure to expensive, frustrating claims-related processes. We help mortgage servicers with a variety of loan loss guaranty claims, including: o FHA Part A, Part B, Supplemental and HECM Reverse Claims o HUD SFLS Claims (Single Family Loan Sale Program) o FHA Loss Mitigation claims o Mortgage Insurance Claims o USDA o VA o Private Investor Claims
Component Loan Administration Services
Our collateral valuation and technology-enabled processing expertise allow us to provide independent reviews of client processes to develop solutions that enhance effectiveness in collateral loss avoidance while reducing operational costs. Some examples of our work with investor and servicing clients includes: o Borrower-filed Claim Monitoring & Loss Draft Management o Loss Analysis and Reconciliation o Investor Notification Letters and Expense Reimbursement Processing o GSE Guideline Compliance Reviews and Reporting


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While sitting at home and flipping through channels, I watched the latest Microsoft's commercial about holographic technology. I started browsing online and did some research about the technology, and I thought "Wow, they did it!" Holograms have been around for many years, however, a selected group of visionaries and technology leaders of Microsoft were the first create a standalone helmet that gives an illusion of a world you can just imagine. On January 22, 2015; Microsoft unveiled 'HoloLens' which will basically combine the digital with the physical world. Using advance processors and augmented reality built on Windows 10, HoloLens will allow wearers enhance real world scenarios in 3D.
Official Video
This is a big deal, I started thinking, and how can holograms fit into our world, what are its pros and cons? Think about it, with simple gestures we can unleash our creativity and if used wisely, this will create a big impact in science and education. Holograms can just make learning more fun. Students will experience an unimaginable level of engagement, as teachers will finally be able to replace chalkboards with modern projection screens to bring virtual guest speakers to the classroom using Telepresence Technology. Teleprecense is a form of robotic control that provides the participation of distant people. Students from all over the world will benefit from lessons delivered by teachers remotely. In addition, scientists are and will be able to continue exploring other planets from the comfort of their offices. One example of this is how NASA teamed up with Microsoft to control Curiosity and explore Mars.
All this is amazing news, for the pharmaceutical world, this would bring a tremendous help to surgeons who try to demonstrate a medical procedure to medical students. So then I think, what can be negative about HoloLens? So far, nothing, but there is more to come, HoloLens is now available for developers and organizations only, therefore this technology is still being carefully reviewed in order to work the way it promises. I am personally excited about the technology; the price range from $3000 to 5000, definitely worth it when we think about the contribution it will bring to science and education.


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Private Blood Tests in WARRINGTON
Over 500 blood profiles available in Warrington
Welcome to Blue Horizon Medicals
You have no items in your shopping cart.
Requesting a Private Blood Test in Warrington is now possible thanks to the new pathology passport initiative through Blue Horizon Medicals in Warrington Spire Clinic.
Warrington Fir Tree Close, Stretton, Warrington, Cheshire, WA4 4LU - As soon as you have placed your order for a private blood test in Warrington you should phone 0800 0988 077 to book an appointment Opening times for phlebotomy appointments are from 09.00am-08.00pm Monday to Friday and 08.30-12.00pm on Saturdays.
The serum cortisol is high. This may be of no concern, as cortisol references are usually quoted as 9 am levels (and may be raised later in the day…
With a larger population, longer life expectancy and unstable income from the government, the NHS has long been struggling with funding.
A good check upReview by Raj (Posted on December 18, 2015)"As a Teacher in Bristol I don't have much time to look after myself so this was a really good buy. Nuffield staff very friendly and everyone helpful over the phone and by email."RecommendedReview by John Perkins (Posted on November 16, 2015)"At 54 years of age this test was like an MOT for me, recommended."


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A lot of people make new years' resolutions to lose weight, work-out more often, read more, etc… But, what about some resolutions that might bring about some relational change? Those resolutions are rarely discussed, but may be more vital to a healthy relational environment.
Today I ran into a friend/acquaintance filled me in on some distance/frustration/angst within his home and marriage. After his transparent sharing he went practical, "Do you have ideas on what I should do?"
Mending wounded relationships is NOT simple and bandaides are rarely effective, but there are some simple, practical, and transforming actions that can be taken to change a tone/vibe/environment within your home and marriage.
Try these 5 actions for a week and see if the temperature in your home doesn't change a little. Plus, even if your relational temperature is "fine," these ideas may make it even better.
1. Leave the phone in the car: when you come home from work it's too simple to get lost in texting, checking, and reading from the phone. You won't be distracted when the phone left in the car. More time to focus on real people.
2. Shut the laptop: It's too easy to come home and "get lost" in the computer that's always on and calling your attention (blogs, email, Quicken, etc…). Turn it off and see if you can turn on some dialogue and/or focus on others.
3. Show up on time: If you tell your spouse that you'll be home by 6pm… get home. Not 6:30…not even 6:05. If you make a commitment to a loved one, honor it. It's amazing what simple actions will communicate about love and respect.
4. Turn it off ½ the time: I'm not asking you to become Amish and ditch all TV, I'm suggesting you cut your viewing time in half. Instead of the easy default of turning on the TV, cut it in half and spend that extra time engaged with others.
5. Leave a short note: Emphasis on "short"… I'm not suggesting 2 pages, typed out, double-spaced. What if you left your spouse and/or child a short note every day for a week? Short words of affection and encouragement can be powerful. And, if it's not a regular practice, these notes will become treasures.
Yes, some relationships need BIG changes (intervention, counseling, accountability, etc…), but some relationships can be dramatically altered by some very SMALL and doable actions.
Don't wait for the spouse/child to start… you start.
Question: What else requires a small effort that communicates a big deal? Share it here.