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United Kingdom
18 November 2017
"Lovely quiet place with stunning views."
Very friendly staff, great facilities, absoloutely stunning views all at a really competitive price.
Will be visiting again soon. 100%
The Quiet Site is a family-run site situated in a secluded position amongst the stunning fells that overlook Lake Ullswater.
This is a superbly maintained and very picturesque site, the facilities being housed mainly in old converted farm buildings.
There are many beautiful walks that you can start from right outside the Quiet Site and numerous activities and attractions a very short drive away.
The site is in an ideal position for touring both the North and South Lakes by car.
We are easily accessible from the M6, jct 40 and the charming market town of Penrith, both of which are only 7 miles away.
It's not surprising that 80% of our visitors have stayed with us before.
- Children welcome
- Ironing facilities
- Senior citizens reduced rates
- Disabled facilities
- Laundry facilities
- Electric shaver points
- Telephone (public)
- Television available
- Games room onsite
- Fishing
- Pony trekking/horse-riding
- Golf available (onsite or nearby)
- Children's outdoor play area
- Snooker/billiards/pool onsite
- Public house/Inn
- Dogs/pets accepted by arrangement
- Showers available
- Children's indoor play area
- Hairdryer
- Chemical toilet disposal facilities
- Dish washing facilities
- Drinking water
- Gas cylinder exchange or refill
- Heated shower block
- Lighting throughout park
- Drying facilities
- Parking space next to pitch
- Electric hookup
- Waste/water hookup
- Flush toilets (with lighting)
- Hot water
- Booking recommended in summer
Private bathrooms and camping pods. Children welcome from any age.
Self-Assessed Accessibility Details
- Parking space provided at the side of the pitch
- Surface of the pathway leading from the pitch to site facilities is:
- Solid ie tarmac / concrete etc?
- Grass
- Gravel
- The site is:
- Flat
Public Areas
- Level access (ie no steps or thresholds), or access by a ramp:
- To the shop
- To the shower block
- To outdoor facilities
- Toilet suitable for use by wheelchair users
- Washing facilities with:
- Separate shower units
- Bath with shower
- Bath
- Wet room
- Reception is well lit
- Guest information available in large print (14pt and over)


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1. Don't feed your inner critic. Your inner critic is fed by self doubt. The first step to gaining control of your inner critic is gaining self confidence. How? Focus on that which you are doing well. Keep track of word count, or keep track of grammar lessons that are learned. Anything that shows you are improving your skills, can stop the inner critic.
2. Don't buy into what others have said: Do not let the fact that your third grade teacher didn't think you could write continue to be a factor that keeps you from writing your novel, poem or song lyric. No matter how well meaning family and friends are in keeping it 'real,' keep your focus on what you can and will accomplish.
3. Prove your inner critic wrong: Your inner critic says you can't write, so write 25 words and prove the critic wrong. To prove your inner critic is wrong, take small steps and gradually increase. This is a great way to keep the critic in check until you can completely do away with him.
4. Believe in yourself: Affirmations are a great way to keep focus on the positive.
I am a talented writer.
I have a right to be a writer.
My writing is appreciated.
My writing has the ability to bless others.
I am capable.
If affirmations aren't your thing, then find a quote, object or thought that can be used to keep you moving forward.
5. Finally, don't give your inner critic power: You actually choose to listen to the words of your inner critic. So stop! Take back control and tell your inner critic to stop the talking.
Whatever tips or combination of tips work, keep writing. Eventually the critic will starve and no longer bother you at all.

subset: commoncrawl


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Collaborative Writing Benefits
Writing is such a wonderful expression for individuals to dabble in, to create emotion, to share emotion, to live in the imagination, and to initiate ideas. The understanding of how to write is required in life, whether it is in simple messages communicated via email, or if it is a necessary portion of someone's job description. Writing is a skill that must be learned through practice.
The collaborative writing approach in teaching can be used to an educator's benefit, since students can use their imaginations to create a story within parameters of an assignment. Students will start to explore story with their peers and be able to shape the details of a given assignment. Collaboration is a skill required in life as well, so combining several necessary skills for life into one assignment can be helpful. Students learn how to work together, how to initiate conversations with each other, how to take on certain roles within a group, and how to put together ideas for a final assignment or project.
Not every individual within a class is going to really appreciate working together within a group, but if students are teamed with individuals that they can all utilize their strengths the group dynamic will work well and students can walk away from the collaborative writing assignment with much success.
The collaborative writing approach can be used as a whole class to form a story with all of the week's spelling words or vocabulary words. The whole class can develop an alternate ending to a short story that was read aloud, or to a popular movie. These suggestions can help students get the hang of what they would need to do as a smaller group working collectively on a particular assignment. This modeling of sharing ideas can be overshadowed by the teacher and can help mediate if there are any troubles that come up.
Teaming both boys and girls within groups will also help spark ideas, since girls usually have a stronger desire to write, while boys generally have wild imaginations yet often struggle with putting down their ideas on paper.
In today's society, the media influences a great deal of collaborative writing, whether in the publishing world, in public forms, or on sites where individuals are all collaborating to write down their ideas.
The experiences of collaborative writing help enable students to understand their strengths and weaknesses, as well as work on these weaknesses with their peers. Leadership opportunities unfold, enabling students with strong leadership skills to step in. Students can learn a great deal about how to work with a variety of people in collaborative writing groups. If teachers start early, as students approach higher grades as well as college, students will be proficient in working with others in collaborative writing settings.
Collaborative writing as a whole will also enable students to strengthen their own individual writing skills. They will start to see their own writing style, what influences their writing, and what type of people they want to work with if they are going to collaborative write. These groups might even encourage a student to write more.
The benefits of utilizing collaborative writing groups in teaching are endless. Check out this site for another great collaborative lesson on writing plays.


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About 'Diabolica': The natural and unnatural world requires balance. As in life and death, light and shadow, above and below one cannot exist without the other. The hero is locked in a symbiotic dependency with its nemesis. Whether it is an angel, a soldier of justice where goodness is righteous or a demon, an agent of malice where destruction of morality reigns supreme both sides are ferociously absolute. These stories of the occult are as old as the theme itself. They are a complex telling of an age old battle. Angel and demon lore have long represented a conflict that have been raging since the dawn of man.
It is a conflict that continues to rage in all of us today.
Leilani Bustamante was born in Santa Rosa California and is a graduate of the Academy of Art University. She grew up between the suburban sprawl and rural Fort Bragg, where she draws inspiration from their simultaneous decay and growth. Her work often voices themes of mortality exploring elements of death, rebirth, beauty and spoil, the loveliness of the macabre and the mournful influence of osteological motifs. She currently resides in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Collections: Leilani Bustamante, Leilani Bustamante: Diabolica
Artist: Painting
Shipping costs will be added at checkout. For an exact quote, please use the 'Quote Shipping' option and we will invoice you separately. If you would like to arrange a free pickup, simply select the 'Gallery Pickup' option at checkout. For expedited rates or specific delivery requests, please contact the gallery.
We ship all orders out in a timely manner, and in the order that they are placed. You will receive a tracking number by email once the order has been dispatched.
As always, if you have any questions, feel free to contact us anytime via email (firstname.lastname@example.com) or by phone (415) 956-3303 during regular business hours.
Thank you!


text:
Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item:
Adult Age and Breeding Structure of a Hawaiian Drosophila silvestris (Diptera: Drosophilidae) Population Assessed via Female Reproductive Status
|Adobe PDF
Item Summary
|Adult Age and Breeding Structure of a Hawaiian Drosophila silvestris (Diptera: Drosophilidae) Population Assessed via Female Reproductive Status
|Craddock, Elysse M.
Dominey, Wallace
|Date Issued:
|Jul 1998
|University of Hawaii Press
|Craddock EM, Dominey W. 1998. Adult age and breeding structure of a Hawaiian Drosophila silvestris (Diptera: Drosophilidae) population assessed via female reproductive status. Pac Sci 52(3): 197-209.
|The Upper 'Ola'a Forest population of Drosophila silvestris, a
dipteran species endemic to the island of Hawai'i, was studied to investigate
adult age and breeding structure of this natural population. Analyses of insemination
status and ovarian developmental stage were carried out for both
laboratory-reared and field-collected females, including a sample of F1 individuals
that had been marked and released into the field population shortly
after adult eclosion. Marked females were recaptured from 7 days old to more
than 4 months after· release; this sample included representatives of all seven
ovarian developmental stages scored (from early previtellogenesis to fully
mature ovaries). The profile of female reproductive maturation in the field flies
was similar to that in laboratory-reared flies, except that developmental rates
were substantially slower and more variable in the natural population, largely
because of lower field temperatures. Using information on ages and ovarian
condition of the marked females, an independent population sample of wildcaught
adult females was estimated to include 28% young flies approximately
2 to 3 weeks old (ovaries previtellogenic), 37% maturing flies from 2 to 4 or
more weeks old (vitellogenic ovaries), and 35% reproductively mature flies from
1 to more than 4 months old. The unexpected excess of young flies in the adult
population up to 4 or 5 weeks old (65%) can be interpreted by several alternative
hypotheses (e.g., age-related dispersal, predation, location of suitable
breeding substrates, baiting effects), but further studies are required to confirm
whether this age pattern is typical. Earliest onset of female receptivity occurred
at mid vitellogenesis in both field and laboratory flies, with insemination
frequencies increasing as ovaries matured. It is surprising that field females
showed higher mating success at all competent ovarian stages than females
reared in the continuous presence of males. Further, all reproductively mature
field females, both marked and unmarked, were inseminated. In this species,
sexual selection acts primarily on males, with the lack of female mating failure
in the field providing no evidence of sexual selection among adult females.
|Appears in Collections:
Pacific Science Volume 52, Number 3, 1998
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Items in ScholarSpace are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.


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1 March 2011 Bridge Day - Henley
Organised by Jenny Ramsay of Hurley, Berks and Prue Morton of Goring on Thames, a bridge day was held at Shiplake Memorial Hall on 11 March. The day involved twenty five tables of bridge and an astonishing 1,890 pounds was raised for the Trust.
We would love to hear from you if you know of any soldier (whether current or past), family member or any project that might benefit from our help.


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a pickled pantry
January 16, 2011 § Leave a comment
I thought I would share some pics from my week of pickling. I have to say it was a bit exhausting and I'm going to have to learn to pace myself a bit with these projects.
I think the biggest highlights were:
1) Kimchi – I never knew how healthy it was and also how easy it is to make. It was by far the easiest and also the least expensive. It costs about $3 to make kimchi that will last you a few weeks. I'll be replacing potato chips with kimchi for a snack!
2) Learning how to carry on a few family traditions with making sauerkraut and also making the pickle recipe my grandparents used to love.
3) Holly helped me find an amazing Korean BBQ place in Aurora that we can now go to when we need our fix. Korean SAE Jong Kwan.
The downsides of the week:
1) I don't really enjoy canning. It's kind of labor intensive and given I'm above 5,000 feet you have to adjust timing which I feel like might cook the veggies too much. I did like hearing the satisfying "pop" of the cans that let me know at least there were sealed properly.
2) Getting all of the materials you need is a little cumbersome, so I felt like that took more time and money than I would have liked. I think I need to be more realistic about what I try to accomplish in a week.
I did learn a ton about various cultural and historical aspects of what is a somewhat simple dish. I also have a newfound respect for Martha Stewart (there, Casey, I said it). I'm glad that I can move onto other things now!
The sophisticated Japanese Tsukemono
January 15, 2011 § Leave a comment
Leave it to the Japanese to turn something as simple as the pickle into an art form. I suppose they have had a few centuries to master not only the taste but the presentation as well.
I had to do a little more research into this since I wasn't sure my standard pickling book would lead me in the right direction. There are so many different varieties of Tsukemono that you can make that involve different methods, supplies and ingredients, so I wanted to make sure to make the right thing.
Luckily my Tokyo-based friend, Go, sent me a great link to a guide for Nukamiso (in English). Nukamiso is a rice brand based mash in which you ferment just about any kind of small vegetable. As many families have pickling recipes that get passed down through the generations, the nukamiso fermentation mash itself is passed down and around (much in the same way as bread starter). As you can read in the guide, the author has 4 different kinds as part of his that are 25-50 years old from Kyoto and Tokyo!
There were a few challenges with taking on making a nukamiso mash. I would have loved to have gotten a bit of starter from someone but in asking around at different restaurants, it doesn't seem to be a common practice. I also was unable to obtain the traditional cedar container (pictured above), so instead had to use a Le Creuset pot. This isn't ideal because it doesn't breathe. I'm hoping when I finally get to Japan I'll be able to find one there! I guess the FDA is not a big fan of them here.
Finding the ingredients proved a lot easier. I mad another trip back to the Pacific Mercantile in Denver and Jolie patiently helped me pick out all of the right ingredients (all of which they had).
It will take a few weeks for the nukamiso to be ready for fermenting, but it will be nice to have around, especially in the Summer and Fall with garden vegetables.
In making this I also found a good book on Tsukemono that has a nukamiso recipe as well as other great Japanese pickle recipes.
The dill
January 13, 2011 § 4 Comments
The dill pickle is probably still my favorite and I lean a more towards the sour, vinegar variety than the salt brined deli ones.
I've tried out many of the delis in Boulder and haven't found one that lives up to a NY style deli, but I did make a trip into Denver to Deli Tech today which gets all of its key ingredients from the Carnegie Deli in NYC. It was a bit of a drive but worth a trip. The atmosphere was more 80s than traditional but the food was pretty good.
It was good inspiration for making some dill pickles. My grandparents got me started on them early and used to have jars around most of the time that a good friend of theirs would drop by. Along with homemade sauerkraut that is another tradition I'd like to keep going in my family. I tracked her down this week and she was nice enough to give me the recipe, so here are Connie Close's dill pickles:
½ TSP. GARLIC POWDER (i'll be substituting real garlic)
* i am also putting a jalapeno pepper in a couple of the jars for some heat.
Comfort food, get in my belly
January 12, 2011 § Leave a comment
I'm not sure any region in the country can claim comfort food like the South can. It's where I spent my formative years and it's probably responsible for why I'll never give up bacon and why my eyes sometimes glaze over when people talk about dieting.
I wouldn't say there have been a lot of things other regions have necessarily adopted from the South, but I've been happy to see that the fried pickle seems to be making its rounds in restaurants around the country. In fact, I'll be having some tonight over at Oak, a great new restaurant that recently opened in Boulder.
As I like to do with this blog, I thought I'd look into the origin of the fried pickle. According to wikipedia it was popularized by Bernell "Fatman" Austin at the Duchess Drive-In located in Atkins, Arkansas. That sounds about right to me!
Today I'm going to pickle and can another wonderful comfort food from my time in the South, pickled okra. In honor of my friend Adair, a Texan gal who is living the foreign service life in Athens Greece, I found a fun recipe from another prominent Texan, Lady Bird Johnson:
update: Adair has just passed along on FB that in Texas they also have pickled snow cones! I can't imagine what that must taste like but maybe in the Summer they're pretty good. Will have to try it out!
Kimchi: your new daily vitamin
January 11, 2011 § 1 Comment
Ok, so this is one area I was going to cheat on the local rule of my blog as I was supposed to be in LA for work, but my meeting got moved, so Boulder it is! What's the saying? Cheaters never win, winners never cheat? I did find a couple of good resources locally for Asian food supplies. In Denver, the Pacific Mercantile turned out to have what I needed and for produce I found fresh Napa cabbage at the Sunflower market (as well as all of my other pickling needs).
Unlike the lackluster campaign behind sauerkraut, the Koreans know a good thing when they have it and treat kimchi like a national treasure. In Seoul they even have a museum dedicated to kimchi to educate visitors about the almost 200 different varieties, from its history to the fermentation process to models of all the different varieties. They're so serious about it, that in 1996, they lobbied for an international standard that protected traditional kimchi, the crux of it being that the Japanese version wasn't really kimchi and therefore shouldn't be allowed to be called kimchi.
It's also worth mentioning its health benefits. Health magazine named it one of the 5 healthiest foods. I'm thinking seriously about eating this everyday. It is a high source of fiber, vitamins A, B and C, "healthy bacteria" called lactobacilli that aid in digestion. Many have done studies that indicate it may even prevent the growth of cancer.
I'll be making a basic kimchi recipe from the Joy of Pickling:
3 T + 1 t. pickling salt
6 cups water
2 lbs. Chinese cabbage (napa cabbage), cored and cut in 2 " squares
6 scallions, cut in 2 " lengths and slivered lengthwise
1 1/2 T minced fresh ginger
1 1/2 T minced garlic
2 T Korean ground dried hot pepper
1 t sugar
1) dissolve salt in the water. put the cabbage into a large bowl, crock or nonreactive pot and pour the brine over it. weight the cabbage with a plate. let the bowl stand at room temperature for 12 hours.
2) drain the cabbage, reserving the brine. mix the cabbage with the remaining ingredients, including the remaining 1 t. salt. pack the mixture into a 2 quart jar. cover the cabbage with some of the reserved brine, push a food grade plastic bag into the mouth of the jar and pour the remaining brine into the bag. seal the bag. let the kimchi ferment in a cool place (no higher than 68 degrees F) for 3 to 6 days, until it's as sour as you like.
3) remove the brine bag and cap the jar tightly. store in fridge where it will keep for months.
update: my friend Holly has let me know there's a great Korean restaurant in Aurora that we're going to check out thurs. Korean BBQ SAE Jong Kwan. Apparently Aurora is the place for Korean food.
embracing my inner Kraut
January 10, 2011 § 3 Comments
I mentioned in the last post that sauerkraut has been a New Year's day tradition from my Mom's side of the family.
I'm going to learn how to make the real stuff and hopefully keep the tradition going, maybe even improving upon it with fresh ingredients.
Sauerkraut, German for "sour herb" or "sour cabbage" is actually a pretty nutritional food as a result of the fermentation it undergoes. It's considered to be a great boost to the immune system and was once used by German sailors to prevent scurvy. British sailors often used lime, hence the origin of the nicknames "Limey" and "Kraut" to distinguish the two. It is thought by many that it is also has cancer fighting properties, is good for digestion and even fights off the avian flu!
During World War I in the US, American sauerkraut makers feared the American public would reject a German name, so many labeled their product as "Liberty Cabbage" (even lamer than "Freedom Fries"). Kraut became a derogatory word. That environment probably had a lot to do with the fact my grandmother never knew German beyond the nursery rhymes she'd sing to us. My Mom can even recall being teased as a kid in Pennsylvania for having a German last name. I'm glad at least some of the food traditions survived.
I wish I had a family recipe that my great grandparents might have made at one point, but I'm going to try a recipe from The Joy of Pickling. I also invested in a Gartopf fermenting crock pot, since I hope to keep this tradition going in my family.
Sauerkraut with juniper berries
5 lbs. trimmed and cored white head cabbage
3 T. pickling salt (using kosher salt)
1 T. whole juniper berries
1) quarter the cabbage heads and shred thinly (thickness of quarter) with a chef's knife.
2) Add 3 T salt and 1 T juniper berries and mix thoroughly with your hands. You can do this in the crock or in a bowl. Then pack the cabbage in the crock or in gallon jars. It's important to use the right materials, so check online for proper containers. After it's released some of the liquid, tamp it down firmly with your hands.
3) Weight it down so that it is contained in its own brine. The crock has it's own weights, or you can use a food grade plastic bag filled with brine to cover it. You can also cover it with a plate weighted down. Some cover with cabbage leaves, so if the brine gets scummy you can replace them easily. Cover with towel or other cloth and store in cool place (~60 degrees F).
4) Check to see if it is covered in brine after 24 hours. If not, dissolve 1 1/2 T pickling salt in 1 quart water and pour as much as needed to cover. Check every few days to see if any scum has formed and remove if it has.
5) Start tasting after 2 weeks until it reaches your taste. Will have a pale golden color and tart, full flavor
6) Once it's ready you can store it in the fridge, freeze it or can it depending on what you want to do with it.
I won't be able to taste it this week, but hopefully it will turn out well!
Pickles! a tasty winter treat
January 9, 2011 § 2 Comments
I'm hoping this project will be a nice trip down memory lane through my childhood in Pennsylvania to then growing up in the South, to traveling around India and finally to all of the great Asian food I was exposed to living in LA. The difference is this time I will be making the delicious pickled vegetables. Pickles are a nice way to break up the monotony of winter and liven the taste buds a bit.
My exposure to pickled vegetables started as a kid where every New Year's Day we would be subjected to eating sauerkraut, a leftover German tradition on my Mom's side of the family. I never liked the taste of it but my grandmother sweetened the deal by hiding a new penny in it to bring good luck to whoever dished it onto their plate. (My sister, Whitney was always the one to fish around for it.) We've resorted to the sauerkraut in jars throughout most of my life, but I'd like to learn to make it fresh.
My grandparents also always had jars of yummy dill pickles around that a friend of theirs would drop by with, the kind of thing that neighbors used to do for each other. I've gotten the recipe and am hoping to keep that tradition going. My local friends will be getting lots of benefits from this project throughout the year!
In the South, the predominant pickled vegetable I loved was pickled okra, especially the spicier, garlicky kind. I'll be cheating a bit as I'll be working in LA this week and will have a lot better produce at my disposal than what I can find in Boulder this time of year. This will be the first time I'll be bringing produce back in my suitcase vs new clothes!
Aside from the traditional American pickled vegetables, some that I've enjoyed the most have been those I've encountered through travels and living in LA. While Indian pickles and chutneys aren't my favorite, they are still worth a try. I'll be tasting them but not making them. Korean kimchi is something I could literally eat everyday. Japanese Tsukemono is not only delicious but gets the prize for being the most beautiful and colorful as well. I will be taking full advantage of the amazing Asian grocery stores in LA this week.
While I'm not picking the best time of year to be doing this, who cares, because that's the beauty of this project – I'm my own boss!
My sister-in-law introduced me to a great book which I'll be consulting called The Joy of Pickling (not the most original title but hopefully the sentiment holds true).
If anyone has any great family recipes, please pass them along. I would love to try them out! The plan is to taste at some of LA's great restaurants this week, gather materials there and then start pickling and canning when I'm back in Boulder.


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Articles Culture Environment Environmental History History Nature Uncategorized Urban Development Urban History
Transportation and The Industrial Nature of The Klondike Gold Rush in 1896-1899
The Klondike gold rush was an excellent example of a reciprocal relationship between human connections to nature and industrial culture. Though humans had to travel far to reach the Klondike, they could not be separated from the industrial context that they sprung from. And though their industrial network reformed the natural environment, nature continued to have a close relationship with humans in the Klondike region.


text: For self employed individuals, it can sometimes be difficult to qualify for a traditional mortgage. Lenders focus on several factors when making the decision to approve or decline a mortgage application, and reported income is one of the main criteria. When a self employed individual expenses business related items, they reduce their reported income, which, in turn, reduces the amount of tax they pay. One drawback of this process for the self employed is the result of a lower reported income that is given to a prospective lender, often causing mortgage applications to be declined.


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Every gamer has a face. It's how you wear yours that matters though, and in this case, one gamer wears his as his alias. Meet GameFaceZA, local gamer and the man behind the face. Or game. We're confused now…
Go ahead. Introduce yourself. Don't be shy.
Hi everyone. I'm GameFaceZA (Brad) I'm a 25y/o Multimedia designer based in JHB.
What's you platform of choice? Why?
I've always been a Console guy. Back in the day I couldn't afford to upgrade my PC for every new game that came out. So I found console gaming to be very convenient. Since the Xbox 360 I seem to have stuck with Xbox, Having the Xbox One now as my main console.
Can you remember the first time you 'gamed'?
Hell YEA! I was super young. We had a very old "TV Game" system. Not the NES or SNES, but those cheap flea market ones.
How long have you been gaming?
Most of my life I'd say – never competitively however.
When do you think you'll stop gaming?
NEVER!! Games are always expanding and breaking new ground. I don't think I could ever get bored of it.
Are you a serious gamer? Or do you enjoy a laugh?
Never been too serious. I'm very casual with it.
Singleplayer or multiplayer?
Growing up without internet I had to learn to love singleplayer. When I started working and paid for my own ADSL I have played a lot of multiplayer (COD, Battlefield, Dota, LOL) I have to say that I still prefer singleplayer.
Is playing online important to you?
Not too much. I have made friends on Xbox Live, but at the end of the day, I prefer offline. As I can just do my own thing.
Are you a member of a clan? Who are they and why?
I am not. Like I said, I haven't been very competitive so I never saw the point. I have been asked to join clans, but I'm not that interested right now.
Favourite game currently?
I have started Fallout 4 again (didn't finish it the first time playing it) – I absolutely love it.
Do you have any hobbies outside of gaming? What?
I used to play pro paintball in school. Now days I'm trying to get back into shape with running and biking. Other than that, work, YouTube and movie watching takes up most of my time.
You're stranded on a desert island and a genie grants you five items. Name them:
A game: Minecraft (don't laugh)
A CD: Metallica Black
A movie or TV series: Breaking Bad
An organic life form: My awesome girlfriend
Something edible or drinkable: A bucket of KFC chicken
What's the most embarrassing or worst game you've ever bought or received as a gift?
It would have to be Avatar the game. WOW… so bad.
If you were a game designer, describe your ultimate game design.
Open world, randomly generated, RPG, where you have to survive and thrive while fighting off creatures. Being able to farm, craft and build amazing structures to help you defend yourself. (I know that sounds like a lot of games out now, but that's what I love).
The zombie apocalypse has happened. You're facing down a ravenous zombie horde (which may or may not include members of ZG in bikinis). What weapon do you grab?
Sniper rifle. Camp off some tall building and just pick them off, one by one. [Really? You sound too please with the thought. – Undead Ed]
In the aforementioned zombie apocalypse you humans are all toast. Become a turncoat and assist the superior zombies or stay with the soon to be wiped out human resistance?
If you can't beat them, join them.
Thanks for taking the time to answer our silly questions. What game are you off to play now that you're done?
Most probably Fallout and Minecraft. Strange combination I know.
We welcome all gamers, clans and industry sorts regardless of age, sex, creed, platform or whether you're human or zombie. There's no discrimination around here, so feel free to contact us if you are keen to feature in this column in the future at email@example.com and we'll think about – after you've sent us a sample of your braaaaaaiiiiinnnnsss.


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Dear sir
My name is Edwin Willemse from Rotterdam and i am planning to live in Alicante very soon. I have a long experience on logistics and sales/purchasing
Currently i work in Rotterdam Holland at a Japanese tradingoffice. We buy and sell all kinds of carparts and take care for shipments from and to Japan Osaka.
Kindly please let me know if you habe any place for a German/english/dutch speaking logistics talent ?
If any possibility please send me an email and i will send you my CV
Thank you for your attention and looking forward on your reply
Edwin Willemse


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SOUNDS OF THE DOLOMITES | JULY 21/28th 2016 - NUMBER 1163
In July and August in the world's most beautiful and treasured mountains
The Sounds of the Dolomites will enjoy technical sponsorship from Montura. The concerts and the sportswear brand find an affinity with each other in their common desire to explore new spaces and new forms of expression that allow the juxtaposition and meeting of different levels of communication, as with the MonturaEditing projects. A friendship born of a shared experience on the path towards art and the mountains.


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QuickBooks Online Integration Overview
Learn the details of how the online Inventory System, seamlessly integrates with QuickBooks to provide a complete inventory management solution.
"Manually creating bills in QuickBooks Online is a common task. First, you or your warehouse staff receives the product. Second, you go into QuickBooks Online and manually create the bill. Pretty straight forward, but there's a better way, and it's called BarCloud.
BarCloud automates inventory tasks and the creation of bills in QuickBooks Online using barcode technology. Here's how:
First, scan your P.O. barcode using a barcode scanner, smartphone or tablet, scan your location, scan the SKU, and then enter the quantity you are receiving. Finally, tap the process button.
Your live inventory immediately shows what you received on your smart device, BarCloud, and QuickBooks. Here, you can see you now have 500. And in QuickBooks Online, you'll see the bill that BarCloud just created, and that the P.O. was closed.
With BarCloud, there's a lot more than that. The browser interface allows you to see your inventory levels by location, a history of your transactions, as well as an advanced mode if you are tracking batch items or serial items. It offers analytics, barcode label printing is built in, and BarCloud alerts you if you are getting low on inventory.
BarCloud is not a one size fits all solution. You easily control how you need BarCloud to work for you from the system configuration page. For example, you may not be using purchase order files, and they are not required in BarCloud. So you can easily turn them off. Plus, I can use a tablet to check inventory levels from wherever I am; that's BarCloud. To try out BarCloud today, click on the "try now" button for a trial."


text: Cecil Lee 150 Report post Posted May 30, 2018 A new freehold site by Tuan Sing on former commercial office spaced known as Hillview House. Address: 1 Jalan Remaja These photos were taken in May 2018, as I was doing a Feng Shui audit at a near-by bungalow home for an old client of mine:- Background: Century Mansion:- Directly opposite this development: Kewalram Hillview:- Please don't mistaken the former Hillview House with erh.. Hillview Mansion (the haunted one).... Appended by Cecil: Recently was told that it is now Mont Botanik Residence. PS. Don't be mistaken Hillview House for the notorious "Green House" called Hillview Mansion. The other two houses: Matilda house and The "Red House" situated at 191 Jalan Loyang Besar near Pasir Ris chalets:- These three are considered the most haunted places in Singapore. Sorry for the side-track. Anyway, Mont Botanik is a relatively safe distance away from the former haunted mansion at Hillview Mansion-:) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites


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Travel guides to European Destinations
Limassol, Cyprus
In the run up to the end of the old, millions of people all over the world will be looking for something to do or somewhere to go, in order to welcome in the New Year in style. Whether its buying tickets for a club in the city, hiring a country house for family and friends or shipping out to sandy shores for some sun and sangria, its always worth going that extra mile for the best New Years celebrations. If you're completely stuck for something to do however, and you don't fancy the company at your local watering hole, considering a brief trip to Cyprus could be the best thing you've ever done.
The climate won't be the hottest compared to the peak summer season, but we're guessing that it will still be warmer than where you currently are now. If you hate the New Year's crowds too, then you're going to love it in Cyprus; the end of the year is a very traditional and humble season, so cultural events and festivals are kept to a minimum.
Finally, what's better than waking up on New Year's day to a glass of Champagne, an amazing breakfast and a view of the ocean? Whether you'll be taking your loved one, a friend or you're planning a relaxing New Year on your own, the island of Cyprus is a great place to see. Take a look at some of the top attractions not to miss out on!
Get Lost
One of the best ways to see the real Cyprus is to get lost - literally. Wandering at will though the cobbled streets and traditional towns will introduce you to elements of the island that many tourists don't get to see with their packaged and all-inclusive holidays. As soon as you land on the island, many of the top attractions can be seen on billboards in the airport, or in leaflets in the back of taxis, but the humble villages that are home to some of the best wine in the Mediterranean aren't really advertised. Buy a map, rent a car, and drive wherever the road takes you; there' so much to see and do here that you'll find something to take your interest in no time.
The Tombs of the Kings
History can be enjoyed by all, whether it's on holiday or in your own country - and thankfully Cyprus is full of history! This ancient landscape has been the site of some of the biggest archaeological discoveries in Europe, and the Tombs of the Kings is a standout find. Not only is it a protected UNESCO World Heritage Site, but the Tombs are only a short drive outside of Pafos, one of the main places to stay on the island. The underground chambers of the tombs have been well preserved and date all the way back to the 3rd Century BC, and according to historians, the tombs were given its name by the local population because of their decoration and grandeur, and not because they were associated with royalty.


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Buying a big ticket item, from a car to business equipment, usually requires taking on debt, often for many years. As an alternative, you could lease the item you need. When you lease, you'll make monthly payments just as you would with long-term debt, but you'll make the payments only for the term of the lease. Depending on your financial situation, your tax picture and your goals, both long-term debt and leasing have advantages and disadvantages. Knowing your options will help you make the right decision for you.
Debt -- Advantages
When you take on debt, you build equity in the item you've financed. Eventually, when you've paid off the loan, you'll own the item. You're free to do with it as you please, whether you want to modify your truck to compete in off-road rallies or you want to remodel your office building. If you have a business, the interest on your debt payments is tax deductible as a business expense, and you can deduct depreciation on the item you're buying. If you decide to sell the item after you've had it a while, you keep any profit you make.
Leasing -- Advantages
With a lease, the person you're leasing from retains the title to the item. If you have a business, your lease payments represent a business expense. If you grow tired of the item, it doesn't have all the features you need or you want to upgrade to the latest and greatest model, you simply turn in the item and negotiate a new lease on a newer model that better meets your needs. If you get in a tight spot financially and can no longer afford payments for some leased items, you may turn them in and end the lease. Because the owner of the item knows it's coming back to them at the end of the lease, and the item will still have some value, lease payments are often lower than the payments would be if you financed the item and purchased it outright.
Debt -- Disadvantages
Financing a big ticket item can be a hassle. You'll need to prove your creditworthiness and your ability to make the payments. And once you commit to the debt, you're stuck with the payments unless you sell the item or default. Debt is a long-term liability on your financial statement. If you own a small business and you're trying to improve your credit rating to acquire new financing for your business, attract investors or qualify for certain jobs, having a lot of long-term liability can be a negative. Also, when you use long-term debt to buy an item, you're stuck with the item for a long time. With technology, this can be a problem. You could spend years paying for obsolete technology, unable to sell the item to recoup your costs because it's out of date.
Leasing -- Disadvantages
When you lease, you don't own the item. You don't get to depreciate items you use in your business on your taxes. If you cancel a lease early, you may have to pay a penalty. You don't build equity in anything you lease, such as an office building, and you don't have the right to sell the item at a profit. If you lease an item for a long time, you could end up paying more than if you had financed and paid it off.


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Painting a wall mural at home, can be done by practically any person, with some coaching and guidelines to really feel far more comfortable with it, just before starting the project. I left him to browse about and I could inform that he was really excited about his discovery and began taking photographs of things of interest. Most roof prism binoculars use either the Abbe-Koenig prism (named right after Ernst Karl Abbe and Albert Koenig and patented by Carl Zeiss in 1905) or the Schmidt-Pechan prism (invented in 1899) designs to erect the image and fold the optical path. This assists them to fine-tune their specifications and then our designs are made.
The demands arising from numerous quarters for the resignation of the incumbent govt ruled by Fianna Fail celebration like its own constituent Green Party and the Opposition Sin Feinn are mounting up with the passing of each and every day. Organized as a room-by-room tour, Sunnylands is notable for its substantial, complete web page-sized photographs, which go a long way to giving the reader a striking impression of the house's interiors. Like my decor I have narrowed my individual style down to fundamentals that all fairly a lot go collectively. No. No pricing data is out there on any solution that was sold as Home Interiors or Celebrating Home.
Due to the fact this occasion is all about ideas and inspiration for your home, we ask major creative experts to share their suggestions and their experiences with home owners in the specially constructed Style Theatre located in the heart of The Irish Occasions Home Interiors Fair. Roof-prisms styles also demand tighter tolerances for alignment of their optical elements (collimation). The last element I added, is the French pitch pots with candles and tiny pinecones.
I like the later victorian style much better when it was becoming arts and crafts, but you do such a fantastic job on all of your pages I seriously love the concepts and photos. This is one blog post that you will want to read with the aid of a pair of glasses, a magnifying glass, or the zoom function of your mouse, simply because the pictures, like the interiors they depict, are jam-packed with so considerably to see.
Contemporary lamps provide a vast versatility compared to other additional specified types with easy lines or soft curves that blend in nicely with any decor. In addition, Austin Home Interiors options its own Signature Furniture and Lighting designs together with our Custom Upholstery made to American requirements of high-quality and utilizing high-finish luxury fabrics from Belgium, USA, and Thailand.
I researched additional and Googled steampunk interiors that led to completed steampunk created rooms applying all kinds of gears, tubes, and gizmos of a variety of varieties, all from old steam engines and salvaged from closed factories. We also carry artwork, chandeliers, antiques, lighting, rustic pieces, floral arrangements, significant custom mirrors and our extremely own signature candles. There is no workplace for Home Interiors and no business quantity for Home Interior exists. Varied low-cost and productive home decor accessories can be bough home this festive season. Obtaining vast knowledge and expertise is the field of decors and interiors is our main strength.


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Controlled Release Technologies extended maintenance HVAC products are designed to promote continuously clean HVAC systems (drip pans, coils, ducts), reduce periodic maintenance expense, and maintain the optimum energy efficiency of your HVAC system. In addition to reduced labor and reduced energy costs, our complete line of HVAC products were created to maximize the Indoor Air Quality ( IAQ ) of your building and provide a better working environment.
The manufacturer of this item has mandated a minimum price at which we may advertise this product.Our price is too low to show. To see our discounted price please
Tel: (866) 433-6682, (281) 359-8538, Fax: (866) 433-6684, (281) 359-0084


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Tue-Sun: 12-2:30pm, 6-10:30pm
Closed Monday
Bukit Timah
3 Binjai Park
Singapore (589819) Map
Business Meetings, Casual Dining, Kid Friendly, Quiet Dinner
A Bukit Timah favourite for mouth-watering pastas and authentic pizzas, Capri Trattoria & Pizzeria is an Italian eatery we're certain everyone will love. Offering a warm and rustic ambiance, along with an authentic region-centric menu, it's one spot that's got traditional Italian eats in the bag! ...More
"Always harbouring a weakness for a Caprese, we of course started off with this. A spot-on serving size with melt-in-your-mouth buffalo mozzarella and juicy tomatoes." -City Nomads
Gamberi e Cappesante alle Erbe, Asparagi dello Chef, Carpaccio di Pesce, Insalata di Rucola, Scialatielli di Capri, Ravioli di Vitello, Risotto Gamberi e Porri, Trionfo di Mare, Calzone, Classic Tiramisu'
This restaurant was awarded the TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence in 2017 for its outstanding service and quality while maintaining as a favourite among reviewers on TripAdvisor, the world's largest travel site.
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Garden Primavera
I made several changes to the original recipe for this pasta and vegetable toss to better suit our family's tastes. With its pretty color and fresh flavor, the meatless main dish is a favorite at our house. —Ann Heinonen of Howell, Michigan
Total TimePrep/Total Time: 30 min.
Makes4 servings
- 8 ounces uncooked fettuccine
- 1 cup fresh broccoli florets
- 1 medium sweet red pepper, julienned
- 1 medium carrot, sliced
- 1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
- 1/4 cup sliced celery
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3/4 cup V8 juice
- 1/4 cup minced fresh basil
- 1 cup frozen peas, thawed
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- 2 tablespoons shredded Parmesan cheese
- Cook fettuccine according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large nonstick skillet, saute the broccoli, red pepper, carrot, mushrooms, celery and garlic in oil for 3 minutes. Add V8 juice and basil; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 3 minutes. Stir in the peas, salt and pepper; simmer 2 minutes longer or until peas are tender.
- Drain fettuccine; add to vegetable mixture and toss to coat. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
Nutrition Facts1-1/2 cups: 310 calories, 6g fat (1g saturated fat), 2mg cholesterol, 529mg sodium, 54g carbohydrate (0 sugars, 6g fiber), 12g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 3 starch, 2 vegetable, 1 fat.
Every product is independently selected by our editors. If you buy something through our links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
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Jul 16, 2014
May increase the amount of V8 next time; found it to be a little flavorless. Felt it was a healthy choice, though.
Aug 1, 2010
I needed about 1 1/4 cups of the V8 juice. The initial amount cooked off too quickly. Fresh and healthy dish that we would make again!
Apr 8, 2010
Using V8 is much better than canned tomatoes


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You can create a user in several different ways but a good place to start is to click on the "Sign in" link at the top right of the page.
Here you have several options:
1. Sign in with Google or Microsoft - If you use one of these services for work you can also use this for the Inspera Help Center. Sign in and you're good to go.
2. Sign up - a small link at the bottom of the box. Add your name and e-mail address and complete the process as you are instructed.
3. If you've been in contact with us by e-mail after 21.03.2019 your address might already be registered, and you can get a password by clicking on the Get password link at the bottom. Follow the instructions.
4 You can also submit a request without creating a user or signing in. If you haven't created a password before, you will get the opportunity to do so after the request is submitted. Any requests submitted with your e-mail address will be available in your list if you sign in.
Can I make changes to my user?
Yes. Click on your name at the top right and choose "My profile". There is an edit button on your profile, and through this you can edit your e-mail address.
You can also change your password.


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Press Releases
Goodlatte, Conyers and Judiciary Committee Members Introduce the USA Liberty Act
Washington, DC, October 6, 2017
Tags: Crime
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.), Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.), Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations Subcommittee Ranking Member Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas), and Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet Subcommittee Ranking Member Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) today introduced the USA Liberty Act (H.R. 3989). This bipartisan bill reforms and reauthorizes Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which is set to expire at the end of this year, to protect both national security and Americans' civil liberties.
The USA Liberty Act preserves the core purpose of Section 702: the collection of communications by targeting non-U.S. persons located outside the U.S. in order to identify and thwart terrorist plots against our nation and our citizens. The bill also creates a new framework of protections and transparency requirements to ensure that the government's use of Section 702 accords with principles enshrined in our Constitution that protect individual liberty. It provides new accountability measures to address the unmasking of U.S. persons' identities and new reporting requirements on the number of U.S. persons who have been swept up in Section 702 collection. The bill also enhances national security by increasing penalties for those who leak classified information and calling on the intelligence agencies to share information with each other and with our allies to combat terrorism.
Below are statements from Judiciary Committee leaders on the introduction of the USA Liberty Act.
Chairman Goodlatte: "The USA Liberty Act protects Americans' lives and their civil liberties. This bipartisan bill reauthorizes a critical national security tool that keeps Americans safe but also reforms it to protect Americans' constitutional rights. It contains more accountability, transparency, and oversight so that the American people have confidence that our cherished liberties continue to be protected as the intelligence community keeps us safe from foreign enemies wishing to harm our nation and citizens. The bill also contains a number of measures to further enhance national security so that our country remains free and safe. I thank the many members who have worked on this bill for months and look forward to bringing it up in the House Judiciary Committee soon."
Ranking Member Conyers: "Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act is essential to the intelligence community's gathering of foreign intelligence and detecting threats to the homeland. Its reauthorization should include reforms that bring this authority better in line with our sense of privacy and due process. Indeed, we believe that it will only be possible to reauthorize Section 702 with such reforms in place. The bipartisan USA Liberty Act is designed to accomplish this goal."
Crime Subcommittee Chairman Sensenbrenner: "The USA Liberty Act is carefully crafted, bipartisan legislation that represents the type of common sense compromise that we desperately need in this country. It balances privacy and security concerns by requiring greater oversight, transparency, and accountability of the government's surveillance powers while limiting the incidental collection of Americans' communications and requiring a court order to query data. It also puts in place a critical six-year sunset provision, allowing Congress to respond appropriately to the ever-changing threats facing our nation. This is smart, forward-leaning legislation that I urge my colleagues to get behind."
Crime Subcommittee Ranking Member Jackson Lee: "Collectively, what Democrats and Republicans have agreed on is a strategy that secures the homeland, while preserving cherished liberties that still make America the envy of the world."
IP Subcommittee Ranking Member Nadler: "The USA Liberty Act is an attempt to strike the appropriate balance, as we did in the USA Freedom Act, of giving our intelligence agencies the tools they need to keep us safe while making sure individual liberty and privacy rights are better protected. For the first time, the bill institutes a requirement for a warrant—based on probable cause—for criminal investigators to query the information obtained by the 702 program. In addition, this legislation significantly curbs the amount of incidental information that can be searched, and, most importantly, institutes critical operational norms for the 702 program that make it more accountable, more transparent, and ultimately more effective in striking the critical balance between national security needs and the individual's constitutional rights. I want to thank Chairman Goodlatte and Ranking Member Conyers for working in good faith on the USA Liberty Act, which goes a long way in reforming government surveillance under Section 702."
Background: FISA Section 702, which will expire on December 31, 2017, authorizes surveillance of the communications of non-U.S. persons located outside of the United States in order to protect national security. It reportedly contributes to a quarter of all National Security Agency surveillance and has been used on multiple occasions to detect and prevent horrific terrorist plots against our country. Although Congress designed this authority to target non-U.S. persons located outside of the United States, it is clear that Section 702 surveillance programs can and do incidentally collect information about U.S. persons when U.S. persons communicate with the foreign targets of Section 702 surveillance.
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Recent Posts
I had a strange experience the other day. An old friend (ok, really a past acquaintance) noticed that I "had a real job" and asked "So, you've given up the whole writing thing?"
I was completely flummoxed on how to respond. My emotionally irresponsible part wanted to get very huffy and explain that NO, I had not given up on "the whole writing thing!" I am hard at work on a four part series! I only took that job to pay for marketing!
But since it is very difficult to throw an adult temper tantrum via Facebook message, even with the happy little emoticons.
I took several deep breaths before responding. The cool logical part wanted to explain that as an indie author I have to wear many hats, including paying for all the services that a publishing house would provide such as cover art, editing, marketing, promotion, etc, etc, but then I realized that this individual would then probably ask "Well, then why don't you traditionally publish?" and that would have led to less logical conversations, and me chewing my finger off rather than resort to the temper tantrum it would almost certainly lead to.
I don't know if I am being oversensitive, if somehow my passion for writing has been jaded by a general lack of response, or if the whole industry is going through a down slope as traditional publishers have begun to learn to combat indie publishing by lowering their expected profits on e-books while more and more books are being produced at a seemingly never ending rate.... but it seems like everywhere I turn I am being inundated with the message that I will not be a successful writer.
I have other friends in the writer world who are going through similar experiences. They aren't getting picked up by traditional publishers, they aren't seeing a return on their investment of indie publishing, they feel like they are screaming at the masses and no one can see or hear them. And I have read their work. They are all very creative story tellers. They have done their due diligence. They have had their work edited. They have released polished stories.
And still I am seeing samples on Amazon of poorly worded, tragically edited, and cliche books hitting the top charts. What is going on here? Am I just so out of tune with my potential fan base? Are readers less concerned with the quality of writing? Do readers no longer pay for books unless they are from a "known" author, or from a traditional publisher? What do we authors need to do to entice you to read our books?
I appreciate my wonderful friends (mostly on Facebook) who are sharing my articles, but I would love to get some comments on this dilemma from the people who actually matter, readers. I cannot bear to read another LinkedIn article about how the Indie press is dead, or how readers are no longer interested in indie books, or how E-reader sales are up and the paperback is dying, or heaven forbid how the newer generations just don't READ. I am ready to go to the source.
Talk to me readers, tell me your thoughts in the comments below.
Until Next Time,
Keep Reading!


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With Summer upon us, the interior of your car is going to heat up. Nothing's worse that getting in your car when it's been sitting in the sun and burning your bottom or hands on the hot surfaces. Admit it, you know it's happened a million times. You've probably thought about getting a sun shade to put in your windshield, but wondered, does it really do the job? We can tell you for sure that a Kraco Sun Shade definitely reduces the temperature of all of the surfaces in your car. Check out this YouTube video and you'll see a real world, real time test showing that a sun shade will make a difference, lowering the temperatures of the surfaces in your car – steering wheel, dashboard and seats – significantly more than a car without a sun shade.
Now that you've seen for yourself that a Kraco Sun Shade will really help you keep your cool this summer, you'll need to decide which one is right for you. With choices that range from Universal Fit Accordion Shades to Magic Shades that fold into a convenient pouch, there's a style and fashionable design that will suit your personality and look great in your car.
Kraco also has a line of retractable roller shades designed just for kids, that will keep your little ones out of the sun while you are driving. They are easy to apply with suction cups and provide see though visibility to reduce glare and come in fun kid's designs like Puppy Love, Balloons and Clouds, Giraffe and Hoot Owl to name a few. They're also available in Cling Shades and Sun Cutter Side Shades.
For adults, Kraco has Sun Cutter™ side and rear shades that easily attach with suction cups for a complete glare reduction package. Now passengers in the back seat can be comfortable even when the sun is shining directly on them. They're made from a see-through mesh and pop open and fold down easily for use and storage.
So, keep your cool this summer with a Sun Shade from Kraco. You'll feel the difference the minute you step into your car. You'll find them at your local auto supply or mass merchant retailer.


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"Diet" drinks are often promoted as a healthy alternative to sugary sodas and juices. With little to no calories, many consumers (myself included) turn to these beverages to satisfy cravings without adding a lot of calories to their diets. Still, these artificially sweetened beverages are loaded with chemicals that are just as bad (if not worse) for people than their sugary counterparts.
The Danish study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, looked at nearly 60,000 women who reported on their diet, including how many soft drinks they consumed each day beginning at around 25 weeks of pregnancy. About 5 percent of the women in the study delivered their babies before 37 weeks. Women who had at least one serving of diet soda a day while they were pregnant were 38 percent more likely to deliver pre-term than women who drank no diet soda at all. Women who had at least four diet sodas a day were nearly 80 percent more likely to deliver preterm. The association was the same for normal-weight and overweight women.
The Calorie Control Council, a lobbying group for companies that make and distribute low-calorie foods, released a statement calling the study "misleading".
"This study may unduly alarm pregnant women. While this study is counter to the weight of the scientific evidence demonstrating that low-calorie sweeteners are safe for use in pregnancy, research has shown that overweight and obesity can negatively affect pregnancy outcomes," Beth Hubrich, a dietitian with the council, said in the statement. "Further, low-calorie sweeteners can help pregnant women enjoy the taste of sweets without excess calories, leaving room for nutritious foods and beverages without excess weight gain — something that has been shown to be harmful to both the mother and developing baby."


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Disney Wigs
Disney characters are always very popular costumes for adults and children alike. Many Disney characters are deeply ingrained in popular culture and are instantly recognizable by everyone. One of their defining characteristics is their iconic hair styles. Anyone who wants to dress up like a classic Disney character can ensure a perfect look by including a Disney wig as part of their costume.
Disney's Descendants 2: Evie Child Wig
Reg. $27.90You Save $5.00Sold Out
Disney wigs aren't limited to just the princesses. The Wizard of Oz series has official Disney wigs for Dorothy and Glinda. The Alice in Wonderland line also features licensed Disney wigs, including wigs for Alice and the Mad Hatter. Men aren't left out. Jack Sparrow, from Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean movies, has an iconic hair style. The Jack Sparrow wig, with its long beaded braids, can make a pirate costume perfect.


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One of four Regional Centers formed under NICCR, which replaces the National Institute on Global Environmental Change established by Congress in 1989, Penn State's center will include research applicable to the region from Maine to Virginia and as far west as West Virginia. Heading the new Center will be Dr. Kenneth Davis, associate professor of meteorology, with Dr. David Eissenstat, professor of woody plant physiology as associate director.
The other three centers' principal investigators are Southeastern, Robert Jackson, Duke University; Midwestern, Kurt Pregitzer, Michigan Technological University and Western, Bruce Hungate, Northern Arizona University. Dr. Jeff Amthor, DOE, will manage NICCR. The DOE Regional Centers will distribute about $8 million over the next five years through a system of peer review proposals. Each Center will distribute just under $2 million to institutions proposing research that meets the DOE's goals. No institution will receive more than 25 percent of the monies and the host institutions are eligible to compete for the peer reviewed grants. "We intend to support both observational research and manipulative experiments," says Davis.
Some of the DOE highest priorities include experimentally investigating the effects of warming, altered precipitation, elevated carbon dioxide concentration, elevated ozone on terrestrial ecosystems, developing and evaluating models to predict the effects of climate change on regional terrestrial ecosystems and analyzing observations of the exchange of carbon and energy between ecosystems and the atmosphere to improve global climate and carbon cycle models.
While these guidelines apply to all four regions, each region has different ecosystems, population patterns, energy requirements and climate regimes. Within each region, a variety of different landscapes and environments exist.
"Each region has its own special circumstances and problems," says Davis. "The Northeast has a high population density, high concentrations of ozone and large amounts of urbanization, urban forests and abandoned agricultural land. The Northeast is also more susceptible to changes in North Atlantic weather patterns. "
The Centers are looking for research that anticipates what will happen under various climate change scenarios and how the ecosystems will respond to and influence climate change.
"One idea that might focus our research would be to create a transect from the Chesapeake Bay to the Appalachian Ridge and observe the ecosystems in a multitude of ways," says Davis. "Researchers could add small scale manipulations within that transect, for example, making an experimental field or forest wetter or dryer to anticipate how that system might respond to future climate change."
Close observation and manipulation of this kind aims to show, for example, how the physiology of plants responds to increases in carbon dioxide and how carbon dioxide levels react to changes in the ecosystem. The continuous give and take of climate change and environmental change create a complicated feedback that reacts to such things as increase ozone, temperature, carbon dioxide and changes in forests, grassland and urbanization.
"The projects funded by NICCR will help support our ability to create a variety of computer models that couple ecosystems to climate," says Davis. "This will help us determine, how the Earth system will evolve in response to our nation's energy use in the coming decades."


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Let's head out to Hollywood to play tourists! Whether us locals like to admit it or not, our city runs on the tourism industry and we are thankful for it. There are endless possibilities of things to do and see. We are always discovering new things in our very own city right here in Los Angeles. Even the locals have to play tourists sometime in the City of Angels. If you have a day free and want to explore the world famous Hollywood Blvd strip, here are 5 stops that will be worth visiting within a short amount of time.
Address: 6838 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90028
2. TCL Chinese Theatre / Formerly known as Grauman's Chinese Theatre - The TCL Chinese Theatre is in the heart of it all. This iconic theatre is the site for many imprint festivals, movie premiers, and film festivals. The TCL Chinese Theatre IMAX screen experience is unparalleled, boasting to be the world's largest IMAX auditorium. Step into the foot steps of a Hollywood legend, literally!
Hours: Open 24 hours
4. Shake Shack - I am so happy that there's a Shake Shack in Los Angeles now! This should be your stop for a lunch break. This popular east coast burger joint has been all the rage and there's one finally on Hollywood Blvd. The burger patties are made with 100% all natural, no hormones or antibiotics, Angus beef. Don't worry, they serve chicken burger and hot dogs as well if you don't feel like having a burger. I'm definitely all about quality over quantity and this place delivers just that! Since it was my first time at Shake Shack, I stuck to the most basic burger, the Shack Burger (so flavorful!), and went nuts with the crinkle fries. I'm all for bacon, cheese, and BBQ sauce on my fries! What really stuck out to me when I arrived there was how you can build your own shake and they serve beer and wine. The options at Shake Shack are deliciously fantastic! Bonus: They have treats for dogs!
Hours: Monday-Sunday: 11:00am-11:00p
5. Amoeba Music - Amoeba Music is named the 'World's Largest Independent Record Store.' Just a short walk away from the main Hollywood strip, this eclectic two-story record shop is a music lover's dream come true! The store sell used records, Cds, Dvds, books, and fun music themed gifts. It's the perfect place to hunt for rare or used records and find quirky souvenirs to take back home. Stop by and get lost for a while before getting back out to the craziness of Hollywood.
Hours: Monday-Saturday: 10:30am-11:00pm Sunday: 11:00am-10:30pm
Parking Tip: The parking situation in Hollywood can be tricky since there are so many and they are all competitively priced. I would suggest picking a parking lot or parking structure that's closest to your point of interest. Don't forget to bring cash just in case some parking lots are cash only. Parking can range from $10-$25. From there, explore the area by foot! The places that are on this list are all walkable and there are sure to be many interesting discoveries along the way.


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According to the SBA, 1/3 of new businesses fail within 2 years, and half don't make it past their 5th year.
The success of your business ultimately depends on your marketing ability.
But many business owners find the vast and complex world of marketing daunting... technologically challenging... confusing... overwhelming.
MyTools™ simplifies it... and makes it fun.
MyTools™ web-based marketing app...
Grow your business with your Growth Funnel...
And build up a solid Pillar of Marketing Success...
Get your marketing on track... be that business that out-performs the rest.
MyTools is currently in limited release. We will be opening up more slots soon. Be one of the next lucky businesses to get invited in:
"I developed MyTools to give my clients a better understanding of their marketing, and to help get them into the driver's seat when it comes to improving website traffic, capturing leads, and converting those leads into paying customers. MyTools guides you through the process of establishing and maintaining reliable and predictable marketing systems that will stabilize and grow your business."
Peter Havranek - Founder and CEO, magIMPACT
Log in to MyTools regularly
Log in to MyTools regularly (at least once a week, and ideally daily) and check your marketing Overview screen. You will see at a glance the current state of your marketing.
Check your Growth Funnel
On the Overview screen, check your Growth Funnel and note which levels of the funnel could use improvement. This funnel shows which areas are growing and which are declining. You can detect and correct a slump long before it happens.
Detect areas that need improvement
Click on the level in your Growth Funnel that needs the most attention, and then click the "Analyze Your..." button at the bottom of the pop-up window. This will take you to the Analyze screen, where you can view detailed analytics related to that level of the Growth Funnel.
Get a clear view of what's happening
On the Analyze screen, look over the analytics and read the information next to each analytic to get an idea of what can be done to improve your results. From this you can work out a plan of attack for improving whatever needs improving.
Discover workable solutions
Visit the Strategize screen and explore the resources, tools and checklist items to help you create a plan for successfully improving the area you're wanting to handle. Use the "Assign" buttons to assign resources, tools, and checklist items to yourself and/or your staff for implementation.
Discuss your strategic plans
Discuss your ideas and plans with your staff or with your magIMPACT Success Manager using the Note Board in the sidebar on the Strategize screen. Ask questions, get feedback, and get team agreement on the exact plan you want to execute.
Implement successful strategies
Work on your To-Do List on the Execute screen to implement your plan. If you need assistance with executing your plan, contact your magIMPACT Success Manager using the "Talk to Us" messaging system on the Work Area tab.
Monitor your results... and grow!
After implementing your marketing plan, analyze your results on the Overview and Analyze screens. Repeat the above steps and create additional plans to continue improving your results... and growing your business!
Don't miss out... get in control of your marketing!
MyTools is currently in limited release. We will be opening up more slots soon.
© 2018 magIMPACT. All rights reserved.


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Bed Bug Treatment Preparation
This information, Bed Bug Treatment Preparation, is to assist in preparing your room for a bed bug treatment.
It is vital that the rooms are prepared to the best of your ability. If there are certain things you cannot do then that is fine but as much as possible that can be done will ensure a successful bed bug treatment for you.
Firstly, hoover all floors in the room around all sides of the beds too. Empty Hoover after.
Bedside units should be emptied, these will need to be treated. Any items inside should be checked.
All bedding removed from the bed and this will either need to go straight into the washing machine on 60c or a bag tied up waiting to be washed. NOTE: Do not carry bedding around the house. Put it in a bag first in case any bed bugs fall from it.
Empty chest of draws and wardrobes in the infected room. These will be treated too. Clothing to be bagged up. If signs of bed bugs in the furniture then all clothing will need to be washed.
Secondly, no pets to be in the treated rooms.
Unplug and switch off sockets to things like phone chargers.
No personal items to be left laying about, laptops, games and phones.
This bed bug treatment preparation is a guide. You have to consider things such as not moving infested items around your property. Not leaving bedding from the bedroom with bed bugs just sitting on the floor as if it has a bed bug on it the whole treatment could be a waste of time. Anything that cannot be washed like clothing can should be placed into an empty bath or in the sun on the lawn and shaken off or wiped down and inspected.
If there is more information you require that is not listed here on the bed bug treatment preparation guide try the Room Preparation post or contact me by phone or email and i will assist further
Thanks for reading and contact me for more help on bed bug control treatments.


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Janssen, Pierre Jules César(redirected from Janssen, Pierre Jules Cesar)
Janssen, Pierre Jules César(pyĕr zhül sāzär` zhäNsĕn`), 1824–1907, French astronomer. In 1857–58, in Peru, he worked on the determination of the magnetic equator; in the Azores (1867) he examined magnetic and topographical conditions; and in Japan (1874) and in Algeria (1882) he observed the transit of Venus. Janssen accompanied various solar eclipse expeditions, notably that to Guntur, India, in 1868, where he devised a new method of studying the solar prominences spectroscopically and discovered, almost simultaneously with J. N. Lockyer, the chemical constitution of the prominences. He was active in the establishment of the astrophysical observatory of Meudon in Paris and in 1876 became its director. There he gathered an important series of solar photographs included in his Atlas de photographies solaires (1904). He later became director of the observatory on Mont Blanc.
Janssen, Pierre Jules César
Born Feb. 22, 1824, in Paris; died Dec. 23, 1907, in Meudon. French astronomer. Member of the Paris Academy of Sciences (1873) and of the Royal Society of London (1875). One of the founders of the spectral analysis of celestial bodies.
In 1868 and independently of J. N. Lockyer, Janssen invented the spectral method of observing solar prominences on the limb of the sun's disk during periods when the sun was not in eclpse.


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Wake up to the sound of the ocean in this beachside family sanctuary of peace and tranquillity nestled in the sand dunes of Currimundi Beach. Superbly renovated and surrounded by lush tropical gardens this spacious beach house sleeps 10 comfortably.
Wake up to the sound of the ocean in this beachside family sanctuary of peace and tranquillity nestled in the sand dunes of Currimundi Beach amid lush tropical surrounds. Superbly renovated and spacious beach house that sleeps 10 comfortably.
It will be hard to resist the temptation to forget the unpacking and instead grab a cold drink, head straight to your expansive timber deck and find your favourite spot. Enjoy the rumble of the ocean and the cool sea breezes all amidst the lush tropical surrounds. The lawn leads directly to the white sand of the beautiful pristine stretch of Currimundi Beach. Enjoy the vista of the Coral Sea surf lapping the shore and feel the sand between your toes. Now you are truly on holiday!
The relaxing lounging and dining areas all flow out to the inviting garden deck where you will surely be enjoying family dinners and drinks around the 12 seat banquet table complete with glorious rainforest backdrop.
This level has 4 bedrooms with enough room to accommodate eight guests. The bedding configuration is 2 x Queen Bedrooms and 2 bedrooms featuring twin beds in each. The main bathroom and separate toilet also services this area.
Downstairs provides a completely separate lounge room and 8 seater dining area. This zone is complete with a spacious bedroom (2 x single beds) and a second bathroom and toilet, which provides a privacy solution or a perfect teenage retreat. The laundry is complete with a washing machine and dryer plus a full size clothesline in the garage.
This superbly renovated beach house caters for all, from the large extended family to the executive couple wanting the luxury of privacy and space. The hub of the house is located in the upstairs level, where the entertainer's kitchen comes complete with quality appliances including dishwasher, microwave and a large fridge freezer.There is also a second fridge in the garage for extra stocks. Each of the two lounge areas has a full size LCD TV and a CD, radio and DVD player. They also feature comfy lounges to sink into and enjoy the downtime with a movie or a good book. This beautifully furnished property is decorated with an array of original artworks and with its warm, welcoming timber finishes creates your intimate beach home away from home.
Bedroom Configuration:
Bedroom 1: L2: 1 x Queen Bed
Bedroom 2: L2: 1 x Queen Bed
Bedroom 3: L2: 2 x Single Beds
Bedroom 4: L2: 2 x Single Beds
Bedroom 5: L1: 2 x Single Beds
Bathroom 1: U/S: Shower/ /Vanity and Separate Toilet
Bathroom 2: D/S: Shower / Vanity and Toilet
Front Deck with Al fresco Dining for 12 with Tropical backdrop.
Plasma TV, DVD Player and Stereo in both upstairs and downstairs Living Spaces
Second Fridge in Garage
Full oven and electric cooktop
Washing Machine and Dryer
Secure Garaging for 2+ Cars
Check in at 3pm
Check out at 10am
Minimum stay of 3 nights during low and mid season
Minimum stay of 7 nights during peak season (Christmas and New Year)
Linen and towels supplied. BYO beach towels.
Additional mid-stay cleans can be arranged
A $1,000 bond applies to all stays
Please note that a "No Party Policy" applies to this property.
Please read these booking terms as they incorporate the basis upon which bookings are accepted. Payment of booking constitutes the guest's acceptance of these Terms & Conditions.
Gorman & Gray Holidays (Gray & Gorman Pty Ltd) acts as the agent of the owner of the property and accepts reservations in that capacity in accordance with these Terms & Conditions.
1.The owner/agent will make every effort to ensure the property is available as booked. However, the owners reserve the right to make alterations to bookings due to unforeseen circumstances. Should this occur, we shall endeavour to transfer the booking to another suitable property or refund the monies paid.
2.Whilst every care is taken with description and representation of the property, should the property be booked sight unseen and not up to the guest's expectation, no refund will be issued.
3.The owner/agent will not make financial compensation to guests for any; equipment failure or electrical or appliance failure during the guest's stay, however every effort will be made to have the problem resolved as soon as possible.
4.The guest agrees to supply Gorman & Gray Holidays with the names and ages of all guests who will be residing at or visiting the property during your booking. The number of guests residing at the property must never exceed the number of guests confirmed on the booking form. There are no exceptions without written approval by the agent. The security bond may be forfeited in full if unauthorised person/s are found to be staying at the property. Guests must provide a contact mobile number where they can be reached for the duration of their stay.
5.All guests must be over 18 years of age unless accompanied by an adult. Please note: no schoolies, hens or bucks nights.
6.There is a 3 night minimum stay at this property with the exceptions: Christmas season which has a 7 night minimum stay applicable with the exception that there are not 7 nights free in a row. There is also a 5 night minimum stay policy over Easter.
7.All properties are Non Smoking.
8.After hours call out fees shall attract a $100 charge.
9.Should a technician be called out where no fault is found, the guest shall be liable for the cost of such call out.
10.All guests will abide by the regulations as set out in the Body Corporate By-Laws and House Rules displayed within the property.
Until payment is received the guest's booking is not confirmed. No access to the property will be granted until full payment and the security bond has been received.
Cancellation Policy
1. All cancellations must be advised in writing.
2. Up to 30 days prior to arrival: Should a guest cancel their booking a 50% of total cost of stay shall be retained. Any additional funds shall be refunded (merchant fees or third party commission fees excluded). If we are able to successfully re-let the property for the entire period all funds shall be refunded less a $250 administration fee, merchant fees and third party booking commission.
3. Less than 30 days prior to arrival: All funds shall be retained unless we are able to successfully re-let the property for the entire period. Note a $250 administration fee plus merchant fees and third party booking fees shall be retained.
4. No refunds shall be given for late arrivals or early departures.
5. Note: We highly recommend you invest in travel insurance.
Arrival and Departure Times
Check in time is 3pm with a departure time of 10am.
1.Whilst Gorman & Gray Holidays are happy to try and work in with guest's requests, consideration of departing guests and housekeeping requirements will dictate whether or not this is possible.
2.Please note that there are no early check-ins or late check-outs during busy and peak periods.
3.The agent shall meet guests at the property (or our office) to hand over keys to the property.
Security Bond
1. No access shall be provided to the property without a security bond of $1,000 being paid.
2.Any excessive cleaning charges, above the normal level of cleaning due to the property being left in an unacceptable state; or, recovery of payments for any additional services required to be performed to bring the property back into the state and condition it was prior to your entry to the property shall be claimed from the bond.
3.Guests will inform us immediately of any damages relating to the property and/or its contents. The guest is responsible for any damages, breakages, theft or loss during their stay.
4.The security deposit will only be used in full or in part depending on recovery of any incidental items as soon as practical after inspection of the property. Guests will be informed any incidental costs as soon as practicable. Where the security deposit is insufficient to cover the total of any such incidental costs the guest will be liable for the additional costs and the guest agrees to pay the additional balance from the nominated credit card or as soon as practical after being advised of such costs.
5.The owner/agent takes no responsibility for the guest's personal property and Gorman & Gray Holidays recommends that guests arrange their own travel insurance.
6.The guest shall provide credit card details to Gorman & Gray Holidays to pay for any additional hire items.
No Party Policy
This home is located in a quiet residential neighbourhood and as such a strict no party policy applies. We ask you to keep noise to a minimum after 10.00pm for the safety, comfort and privacy of neighbours. Failure to do this can result in eviction and loss of Bond. If in the event of our security company being called out due to a noise complaint the guest will be liable for all fees from the security company.
Linen and Servicing
1.Doonas, Quilts, Pillows, Linen and Towels are included in the guest's stay.
2.Guests are advised to bring their own beach towels. Alternatively beach towels can be hired.
3.Many of our properties do not have hairdryers so it is recommended that guests bring their own.
4.This property will not be serviced during a guest's stay unless requested at the expense of the guest.
5. Additional cleans and linen can be arranged at the expense of the guest.
Self Catering
All our properties are self-catering. A starter pack including tea, coffee, milk, dishwashing detergent, dishwasher tablets, laundry powder and toilet paper is provided for the convenience of guest's upon arrival.
Pets must be approved in writing from the owner/agent.
Television/Stereo System
Please do not tamper with the TV systems as these are professionally managed and maintained and are not to be altered by guests. Guests will be liable for any additional maintenance costs should the settings be tampered with.
1.The property should be left in a similar state as its condition upon arrival. The standard clean does not include washing dishes, emptying the dishwasher and fridge, rubbish removal or cleaning BBQs.
2.Failure to clean the BBQ will result in a $70 cleaning charge.
3.The property must be secured and all windows shut on departure, lights and fans turned off and doors locked upon departure.
4.Arrangements regarding key return shall be conveyed upon check-in.
Limitation and Liability
We do our best to ensure your booking arrangements are satisfactory, however we do not accept any liability whatsoever for any injury, damage, loss, delay, additional expenses or inconvenience caused directly or indirectly by any events which are beyond our control including, but not limited to, incidents at the property, civil disturbance, fire, floods acts of government or any other authorities, accident to or failure of machinery and equipment, maintenance requirements or industrial action.
If any guest breaches any of these terms and conditions we reserve the right at our complete discretion and using reasonable judgement to terminate your booking and evict you from the property immediately. In such an event you will forfeit any future night stays and the security bond. We will not be liable to refund you for forfeited nights.
Interaction with Guests
Guests will be personally greeted upon arrival and given a tour of the property (during business hours). For arrivals outside of business hours, please contact Gorman & Gray Holidays to make arrangements. Gorman & Gray Holidays are available throughout the guest's stay to assist with any further requirements.
Please click on the Book Now Button on the right and enter your holiday dates to see a price for your stay.
A 3 night minimum stay applies for most bookings
7 night minimum stay applies over the Christmas Peak period
5 night minimum stay applies over the Easter Peak period
For your added security, this property is managed in Australia and we will never ask you to make payments to an overseas bank account.
Bethany - 14 May 2018
"Great location and lovely service. We had three couples with small kids and the space worked great! Having the beach and the lake just around the corner was perfect for the kids."
20 Apr - 23 Apr 2017 *****
The Beach House - Absolute Beach Frontage
We have a great break with the family. It's a fabulous location as it's only a few minutes walk to the beach!
Had a wonderful stay in this house. There were a few of us and not at any stage of our stay did we feel crowded. So lovely to get away and stay in such an awesome house. Pity we could not have stayed longer. Would highly recommend a stay to anyone looking to get away and relax for a few days.
Iwa - October
My family and I stayed at the beach house and loved every minute the house had everything we could have needed and a great location. the property was clean and well maintained. we will be making a return to enjoy this great beach house
Bonita - March 2016


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Moe And Bart
Location: Moe's Tavern
This was supposed to go up on Monday, but I got locked out of the site due to trickery! WEB TRICKERY! It's all figured out now, but I'm very frustrated and I had to change my password and stuff. Anyway, I'm off to Toronto Sketchfest for the weekend, and will try my bestest to have something posted on Monday, but nooooooo promises! Back in a week for sure!


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Test-Drive of the Famous Lincoln Blackwood
Earlier we have presented some details about the Lincoln Blackwood model, thus now we want to present the information from the test-drive of this model. Lincoln Blackwood debuted in 1999 at the Los Angeles Auto show.
Blackwood can locate in the cab up to four people, however we tried riding with five and there were enough space, only that it is not allowed. All in all, under the documents, that is the truck for four persons. Interior color is black with leather-covered seats by the firm Connolly. The interior color can be changed, but the standard pack is black. In addition, the interior is decorated with astonishing gray inputs of "wood" (have you ever seen a tree gray?). Front driver and passenger seats have personal heaters. Like all the "American" in the cabin Blackwood has enough storage space for all sorts of things and small things, plus the front and rear seats have comfortable consoles, equipped with cup holders and storage spaces, for example, for any documents. Naturally, air conditioning, and a CD-changer is included
Blackwood is the closest competitor to Cadillac Escalade EXT. Although EXT has a full drive, Blackwood looks more attractive.


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The Volcker Rule will stifle job creation at a critical time for the economy because it impairs liquidity, reduces access to credit, restricts trading for banks with a special impact on community banks, and, most damningly, means small and start up businesses – the key job creators – receive less access to critical capital.
That was the overall tone of testimony heard by the House Committee on Financial Services on Wednesday from key bankers, traders, and industry associations — the first in a series of hearings on how Volcker affects job creators.
The Dodd-Frank Act's Volcker Rule prohibits U.S. bank holding companies and their affiliates from engaging in "proprietary trading" and from sponsoring hedge funds and private equity funds.
The Volcker Rule, hailed by supporters as a victory for regulators and by detractors as a victory for $1,000-an-hour Wall Street attorneys, jacks up compliance costs in the financial sector, leads to higher fees for consumers, and puts the American businesses at a competitive disadvantage, witnesses testified.
The idea, supporters say, is to prevent speculative, excessively risky activity by insured depository institutions.
But the reality, business leaders say, is that drawing a line between proprietary trading and permissible market-making activity is difficult to the point of impossible, which makes the rule destructive to capital and financial markets.
"SIFMA and our members still believe the Volcker Rule is a policy response in search of a problem and we remind the Committee that no other country has adopted anything at all similar to the Volcker Rule," said Kenneth Bentsen, president and CEO of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) and a former congressman from Texas. "At the level where the regulation impacts real businesses and investors in the real economy, time and experience have shown that it is, in fact, exceedingly complex."
"Those who have grappled with the Volcker Rule at any level deeper than that of a media sound bite know that balancing the statutory mandate to both prohibit and permit certain activities and investments in a way that does not harm the capital markets and the businesses, governments and investors who rely on those markets, is a very serious business and horribly complex," Bentsen said.
Bentsen told the committee that there is a strong likelihood that significant issues may arise in the coming weeks or months that are simply not on the radar screen today.
"Failure to address this could result in more compliance burdens that would undermine activities beneficial to the economy such as market making and hedging," Bentsen said.
Dave Robertson, a partner with Treasury Strategies, Inc., told the committee that the rule will have impact far beyond the financial sector, hurting small businesses and start-ups by strangling the economy.
Like most of the witnesses testifying, Robertson said provisions of the Volcker rule and its intended protections are necessary, but the law as written and interpreted is harmful.
"These concerns are very serious and very real, and the Volcker Rule's impact will resonate throughout our economy," Robertson told the committee Wednesday. "As the banking sector becomes less able to provide American businesses both liquidity and access to credit, American businesses will be compelled to reserve more idle cash, and tap more volatile and expensive forms of credit. These costs will ultimately be borne by ordinary Americans in the form of more expensive products, fewer jobs and decreased dividends."
Already some legislators have pushed to modify Volcker. House Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit Subcommittee Chairman Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., and HFSC Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) introduced in December a bill to fix a provision in the Volcker Rule that harms community banks.
"For more than three years, those who support the Dodd-Frank Act assured community banks they would not be harmed by the Volcker regulations. Then, in the dark of night, suddenly Washington regulators at the last minute changed the rules and included these products in the Volcker regulations with no time for public comment or review," Hensarling said. "That's unfair and it will do nothing but undermine the ability of small businesses that create jobs and other bank customers to receive loans from their financial institutions."
On Dec. 10, 2013, the final Volcker Rule was approved by Washington regulators. While most community and regional banks are not engaged in activities covered by the Volcker Rule, many made investments in the past in the debt tranches of collateralized debt obligations (CDOs) backed by trust preferred securities (TruPS) in order to have access to additional forms of capital.
"Community banks were reassured that the Volcker Rule wouldn't affect them, as they pose no conceivable systemic risk, but they have quickly found out otherwise as affected institutions face millions of dollars in losses that will undermine their ability to serve their customers and communities. ABA has been working diligently to find a solution to this matter through regulatory or legal channels and we will continue to do so," noted Frank Keating, President and CEO of the American Bankers Association.
Congresswoman Maxine Waters, D-Calif., a committee member, however, said that the Volcker Rule is critical for ensuring taxpayer dollars are no longer used to protect banks from risky trading losses.
"(Volcker) will protect the U.S. economy from suffering another debilitating financial crisis and will ensure taxpayers are never again asked to rescue failed financial firms," she said during the hearing.