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Category Archives: Science
Sir Patrick Moore, R.I.P.
I want to add my small voice to those paying tribute to Sir Patrick Moore, who died yesterday. I won't speak about the amateur astronomer whose lunar maps were used by NASA in preparing for the moon landings. I haven't gone looking for videos of his xylophone playing. I won't comment on the allegations that he was a racist. Nor will I even make anything of the fact that he celebrated a particularly fine day of the year as his birthday.
I simply want to retell one story.
My father has been a member of the British Astronomical Association for all my life and longer. When I was a child, he took me to London one day to hear a lecture by Patrick Moore. It went above my head, but clearly inspired many adults and children who were present.
Afterwards, a long queue formed of people who wanted to ask Moore questions. I noticed how he took the children as seriously as the adults. Adults were not more important; they had to wait while he gave children's questions his full attention.
It is an example more churches need to emulate.
Guest Post: Andy Mellen, Facing A Different Future?
I can't recall ever hosting a guest post before, but this approach seemed both worthwhile and important. Andy Mellen is the co-author with Neil Hollow of 'No Oil in the Lamp', a Christian response to the Peak Oil crisis. About three years ago, I heard Sam Norton give a theological lecture on Peak Oil in Chelmsford, and his blog Elizaphanian is a useful source of informed comment on the problem. Because I had had my eyes opened by that experience, and because I am not myself a scientific specialist in this area, I was only too willing to host a piece on this subject.
Over to you, Andy:
Our ideas about the future tend to be conditioned by our experience of the past, so if you were born in a developed country sometime in the last sixty years, it's likely that you have experienced a rising standard of living, with increasing comfort and convenience. Yet we only need to look back a few generations to see how much has changed, and how much we take for granted: We flick a switch, assuming that electricity will be there to light up the bulb. We expect to be able to travel long distances quickly, in comfort and at reasonable cost. We think nothing of sitting down to a meal whose ingredients have been transported across the globe to our table. These things and many more besides have become basic expectations – and as Christians living within a modern, developed country, we share them. Whilst we may bow our heads and give thanks for God's provision at the start of a meal, in many other ways we take the conveniences of modern life for granted.
We might expect the future to look something like a continuation of the past, but what if that isn't possible? It takes an enormous amount of energy to make the modern world work. The average household is using more energy today than at any time in the past. Globally, use of oil, coal and gas has at least almost doubled since 1970. The unfortunate thing is, there aren't unlimited amounts of these commodities to fuel our lifestyles way into the future. In fact the most critical energy source – oil, which provides 90% of all transport, is already beginning to decline. So what does this mean? Well, it's complicated, but also surprisingly simple: The good news is that nobody is saying we are going to suddenly run out of oil. The bad news is that declining oil production will cause us a host of difficulties in the years ahead. Experts predict a two-stage process: firstly high energy prices (which we are already experiencing) and eventually actual physical shortages. High prices are already giving the global economy a headache, and straining the finances of households. Actual shortages would provide an enormous challenge for society, the economy, food supplies and much more. A smooth transition to green renewable energy is what some people are hoping for – others are looking to science for the answer – new forms of energy, maybe hydrogen? Unfortunately, no technology is in a position to do for us what oil does today.
So what can we do? Is it a case of waiting for the Prime Minister, the UN, or someone else to take action? So far, despite credible voices speaking up, very little attention is being paid to this problem at Government level. However, at the grass-roots, in communities across the UK and increasingly across the world, something very interesting and exciting is happening. It is something called Transition. You may not have heard of it unless it is happening in your area, but the Transition movement is fast becoming the most positive response to the problems of resource constraints and climate change. Although it may sound a bit wacky and alternative, the heart of Transition is a very simple idea: we need to move away from oil dependence and instead build resilience into our households, communities and the local economy. Just how this plays out is different in every community, but the places which have embraced the concept are already starting to reap the benefits in terms of a more vibrant local economy, stronger community and reduced energy use. So far, I know that many Christians are individually involved in these initiatives, though I have not heard of any church becoming directly linked to Transition. Yet many of the qualities of the Transition movement overlap with what we might call "kingdom values" – concerns we see in the Bible. Three spring immediately to mind: Stewardship of the earth (humankind is given responsibility for the earth in Genesis 1), the principle of justice is seen throughout the Bible, (and particularly in the writings of the prophets, from Amos to Zechariah) and the principle of simplicity as espoused by Jesus, (most tellingly in Luke 17: "A man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."). The church in the past has shied away from engagement with environmental issues for fear of contamination with "new age" philosophies. But it seems to me that the Transition movement offers an opportunity for Christians and the church to engage with something good, wholesome – and urgent.
Andy Mellen
(For much more detail on this whole area, see my book 'No Oil in the Lamp' published last month, or check out the 'No oil in the lamp' page on Facebook)
How To Remember Neil Armstrong
When Neil Armstrong, the first man to set foot on the Moon, died yesterday, I remembered being a nine-year-old boy in a primary school hall. The whole school was assembled to watch a small black-and-white television that had been perched on the stage for us all to watch recorded footage of the momentous event.
After Apollo 11, Armstrong was famously reclusive. Not for him the celebrity circuit. In one of his rarer excursions into public, he sued a barber for selling some of his hair.
And so it was fitting to read the Armstrong family statement. Their idea about how to remember the great man seems so fitting:
"For those who may ask what they can do to honour Neil, we have a simple request. Honour his example of service, accomplishment and modesty, and the next time you walk outside on a clear night and see the moon smiling down at you, think of Neil Armstrong and give him a wink."
O that others would seek a similar remembrance. 'Honour his example of service, accomplishment and modesty' indeed.
Evolution, Faith And Apostasy
Read this important lecture by Scot McKnight.
N T Wright Sings The Theology Of Creation And New Creation
It doesn't get better than this for me. A great theologian – N T Wright – putting theology to music. Here, he sings 'Genesis' – words that he and Francis Collins, of the Human Genome Project put to the Beatles' 'Yesterday'.
(Originally featured at The Rabbit Room.)
Over-35s And 'The Green Thing'
A blog post entitled 'Anyone over the age of 35 should read this, as I copied this from a friends status..' is trending on Facebook. (Ignore the grammatical error, it appears to be a Scandinavian writing in the foreign tongue of English.)
The gist is this: the author fails to bring some reusable shopping bags to the supermarket and is told off for this by the checkout cashier. The author apologises, not having had 'the green thing' when younger. The article then goes on to recount practices from past generations that are actually greener than today's habits: bottles were recycled for the deposit, they walked up stairs rather than took escalators, they washed and reused cotton nappies, a house had but one small television, they used more public transport for journeys and homes had fewer electrical sockets. Ergo, why should younger generations have a go at older ones on environmental issues?
All the examples quoted are true, and yes, they are greener. The problem is this: things were that way due to lesser economic wealth and greater thrift. Once more prosperity came along, then it carried with it technologies that created more convenient and allegedly labour-saving approaches and devices. When these appeared, they were – ahem – hoovered up.
Economics and technology create these opportunities and more. One of the major issues about sin is opportunity and availability. Moving beyond green issues, are more people prone to slip into pornography because it is more readily available on the Internet and with web browsers that offer 'private' or 'incognito' browsing modes?
And perhaps another observation worth making about this post is that is true but simplistic. Isn't that something that many of us have to watch? We want to keep things simple, which is laudable on one level, but we also don't want to think too hard – or we don't want others to make us think hard.
For The Beauty Of The Earth
Twenty amazing images of our planet from NASA, starting with this one:
On Being Wrong
What a wonderful talk by Kathryn Schulz from TED2011. Essentially, her reasons why we try to maintain we are right amount to various ugly forms of pride. And the Gospel says, that pride needs to be brought low in the humility of saying in confession to God, "I was wrong." Then, it is God who makes us right – in theological jargon, he 'justifies' us.
I would add to that an issue of fear: when we are afraid of how someone might react, we defensively entrench ourselves in our position of 'rightness', even when we know in our hearts we are wrong. So how liberating the Gospel is that we can confess our wrongness to a God of grace and mercy. It is the character of God that makes an admission of our wrong more possible.
Then note how right at the end of the talk she links her theme to the rediscovery of wonder. To quote her exact words:
if you really want to rediscover wonder, you need to step outside of that tiny, terrified space of rightness and look around at each other and look out at the vastness and complexity and mystery of the universe and be able to say, "Wow, I don't know. Maybe I'm wrong."
That's profound, isn't it? We don't get to a true sense of wonder through our own rightness. It involves acknowledging we are wrong – just as major scientific advances often happen not by incremental improvement on previous foundations, but on paradigm shifts from what was previously accepted. In Christian terms, it again goes hand in hand with accepting God's outlook on things.
Or am I wrong? 🙂
Jack Rutter
On Saturday, I had the privilege of conducting a memorial service for a church member who had recently died. His professional significance was such that an obituary will be appearing in The Guardian, probably next week. This text will soon be cross-posted on our church site, along with the audio of this tribute.
Jack was born within the sound of Bow Bells to Arthur and Amy Rutter. He had three younger sisters, Frances, Cecily (who died in 1989) and Noel. He grew up in Worcester Park and then Guildford, where he attended the Royal Grammar School.
From the Royal Grammar he went to Imperial College to study Botany. He graduated in 1938 and then began PhD research. With the advent of the war, he was called into a reserved occupation, where he studied how to increase crop yield to reduce British dependency on imported food. Alongside this, he joined the Home Guard, where he learned how to make Molotov Cocktails.
During the War, he travelled across the country – difficult journeys that often meant cycling. On one occasion he was at a wedding in Bristol where he met Betsy Stone, a nurse from Bridgwater, who was working at Bristol General Hospital. He was the first of Betsy's boyfriends to win her mother's approval! They married in 1944, and had three children: Margaret, Bill and John.
Jack completed his PhD and began lecturing at Imperial. Later, as we know, he would become Professor of Botany, until his retirement in 1979. His research centred on the hydrology of the Scots Pine, and his work would carry him from Forestry Commission land in this country to Rhodesia (as it was) and the island of Aldabra, 250 miles north of Madagascar. He also went on an academic exchange to Pakistan, and was able to take the family with him. While he was there, he had dysentery, only to be cured when a colleague made a goat stew and fed it to him. He and the family also explored up the Khyber Pass to the border with Afghanistan, where they met some 'interesting' tribesmen with guns.
He gave an illustrated talk about his work on Aldabra to a women's meeting here at the church. His knowledge of Botany also meant giving advice to the Queen on her gardens. Then more humbly he ran a garden stall at the church bazaar, assisted by Helen Baker and Robb Peters. He also contributed a Christmas tree to the church for many years, once digging up one from Pauline and Jim Holden's garden in Mayford. He helped Christine with the cultivation of a Mahonia plant that still flourishes as a bush in her garden. She is offering cuttings from it to anyone who would like one in Jack's memory.
Back home, the family lived in Brookwood and then in Knaphill, where their house had a one-acre garden. Jack mowed the grass, cut the hedges, took care of the thirty fruit trees and grew fruit and vegetables. Betsy produced the jam. Jack also made wine from the grapes on the vine. He was also a beekeeper and produced several jars of honey a year. Through Marilyn Meller's involvement in the Guides, he tested the one Guide who was brave enough to take on the beekeeper's badge.
For all Jack's professional foreign travel, family holidays were generally taken in England, and usually in locations that offered opportunities for good walking and visiting cultural locations as well as the seaside. So places such as Pembrokeshire, North Wales, Northumberland and the Yorkshire Dales featured.
Betsy was a nurse, and worked with Pauline Holden at the Health Visitors' Clinic at Pirbright Village Hall. When she became terminally ill, she was under no illusions about what would happen and set about teaching Jack housekeeping and cookery.
Betsy died in 1978, the year before Jack retired, and in his retirement these skills became useful, not only for himself but for others. He cooked for others, and invited people to stay with him in his home. He cared for a teenage girl who had been thrown out of home by her father and stepmother. He fed two or three street people, who sometimes used to stay for two or three days. He took in someone who had had a breakdown, even though he hardly knew the person at the time. He also took over one particular concern of Betsy's. She had always taken an interested in a lady in the village called Jean who had a son with special needs. The son went to live in a home and Betsy took her to visit him in Botley's Park Hospital, Chertsey, every Sunday afternoon. When Betsy died, Jack took over these duties until both son and mother died about ten years ago.
Jack was extremely active in church life here. I have just noted his particular care for people, but there are some other incidents to mention. He was a class leader, as we sometimes call them in the Methodist Church, or pastoral visitor. One family he visited was Marilyn Meller's. He visited her mother, Irene Elliot, in the farmhouse delivering the monthly magazine on a Thursday evening and would help her pack eggs into boxes ready for Marilyn's egg round the next day. He would visit Marilyn and Tom at White Lodge after he had had his lunch, and talk about farming with them. he took an interest in their family, including their two daughters.
On other Thursdays he attended the Thursday evening fellowship group. Members of the group enjoyed sharing with him, and valued the contributions he made to the discussions. He could recite poetry and biblical passages.
Then there is the Spice Girls story. For those of you who don't know, the Spice Girls recorded their earliest tracks in Knaphill. They used to have lunch breaks at the King's House Coffee Shop, which is run by four of the churches in the village. A film was made of their early days, and a scene was recreated in the King's House. Jack, who worked in there voluntarily, played the rôle of the waiter. He had to reel off a list of the available snacks – cheese sandwiches, ham rolls and so on. Finally, he had to deliver a line, the significance of which he did not understand:
"Tell me what you want, what you really, really want."
He took an interest in the church youth club, often turning up on a Saturday evening to chat with everyone and make sure that the heating was working.
Indeed, the heating was but one aspect of the church property for which he cared, but the boiler room was the location where one day a fairy godmother left him a bottle of his favourite Guinness. He also made a new wooden gate for the car park and put in posts to hold up the fence around the church building.
However, not all Jack's adventures with the church property went smoothly. Famously, he was one day climbing through the loft space to change some light bulbs when he accidentally put his foot through the ceiling. How he didn't fall right down, nobody knows. Later, though, he made an almost invisible repair.
Then there was the time when he once covered the church cleaning for Helen Chamberlain while she was on holiday. During that period, he and Robb Peters decided to sand the church floor. They only did half, due to the sandstorm they created, which took twelve weeks to settle.
Finally on the subject of church work, as well as his pastoral and property duties, Jack was also for a period of time the church treasurer in an age before computerised accounts. He scrupulously kept a contingency fund for emergencies, decades before the Methodist Church required all local churches to formulate a reserves policy.
In the last few years before Betsy died, she and Jack holidayed in the Western Isles of Scotland. He continued to do this after they died, until he was about 90. He planned his routes, travelled light and walked long distances, befriending many B & B owners on his travels. He also continued to travel abroad, visiting relatives in Canada several times and attending a wedding in India.
In 1994, he could see that one day he would not be able to cope with the large garden in Knaphill, and moved to his bungalow in Goldsworth Park. He remained fit, active and independent until around the age of 90. That was when those close to him started to notice a change in his mental powers. He gave up driving a few months before reaching 92.
Jack leaves six grandchildren: They are: Margaret & Adrians's children: Henry, Thomas and Emily;
Bill and Corrie's son, Philip; and John and Esther's children, Jennifer and Jack. He also leaves a great-grandson, Arthur, Henry and Cat's son.
But he also leaves behind many more friends, and so many others whose lives he touched by his love and through his great gifts and talents. No longer for Jack the confusion of these last two or three years, but the peaceful sleep of rest, and the resurrection to come into a new, healed body in which he can continue to serve Jesus Christ.
And who knows what talents a resurrected Jack Rutter will have in God's new creation?
You Can Make A Difference: Emily Cummins
Last night I had the privilege of hearing Emily Cummins speak at the Chelmer Valley High School awards evening. I must live in a bubble, because I had never heard of her, certainly not that she won the Barclay's Woman of the Year prize for 2009. And she's only 22.
Her speech was an extraordinary inspiration. She has been inventing gadgets since her youth, including a toothpaste dispenser for a grandfather with arthritis. But she is most famous for designing a fridge that does not need fossil fuels. It works on recycled dirty water. It began as an A-Level project, but she became so passionate about it that she delayed going to university for a year to take a gap year in southern Africa. She has given away her design in townships. She makes no money from it. Her satisfaction is in seeing people helped by her invention: children who can at last have fresh milk; adults whose medicines can finally be stored in refrigeration. She is negotiating with pharmaceutical companies about a commercial version of the fridge to help with the transportation of medicines.
She spoke about how she never had real confidence in herself, but how she has learned to have confidence in what she can do. Having presented prizes to some extremely talented students at the school, including one who achieved thirteen A* grades at GCSE and another who had five A grades at A-Level, she told everyone that she would never have attained those standards. She wasn't good across the board, but she had one particular talent, and nurtured it. She told the students they could make a difference, too, if they were passionate about using their talents for others.
I don't suppose for one minute she is a Christian. I imagine she might have spoken slightly differently about the self-confidence issue if she were. But I thought she was a tremendous example and challenge to the Church as well as the wider world. As I said, she has not sought to rake in the cash for herself. Her focus has been on the needs of others. I imagined missions organisations deploying her fridge. I imagined the pastoral task of challenging all our people to make a difference in the world with their gifts and talents. In particular, I imagined people starting to do that at a young age, and not being lied to in the church that they are too young to do something significant.
And I began to ask if I have made a difference in people's lives by using my gifts. Have you? We can. By the power of God surely there should be millions of Emily Cummins in the world, if our faith in Christ is real and radical.
Shouldn't there?


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"It was Just a Little Town"
There was a little town nearby;
it was close to nowhere,
and next to nothing.
I could just cry.
A place with wind and rain;
clouds and sky!
A place where people
live and die.
I used to live in that little town.
It was near to my heart;
close to my wildest dreams.
Clouding my thoughts.
A place with friends and enemies;
and close blood ties!
A place to grow\
and reach the sky.
We all lived in just such a town.
It bordered timelessness;
nearer hopelessness.
It broke my heart.
A place with wind and rain;
clouds and sky!
A place to live,
before we die.
Have a creative and imaginative day!
Hugging you

subset: commoncrawl


text: Don't let this Texan's sweet demeanor fool you, Hayley's intense Rides will push you to your limits. Originally from Houston, Hayley moved to LA to pursue acting. Shortly after, she found the House and has been a member of the team for over four years. Hayley believes that if you embrace a challenge that takes you outside your comfort zone, no matter how hard or scary the challenge is, you will be a better stronger individual because of it. And you will see and feel that in her class.


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Google today is celebrating the 100th birthday of Alan Turing, an English mathematician, logician, cryptanalyst, and computer scientist by replacing its usual Google logo and honouring the great computer genius with an impressive Turing Machine Google doodle.
The Turing machine, as described by Alan Turing in 1936, is a device that manipulates symbols on a strip of tape following to a set of rules. The machine scans the strip of tape by looking at some specific cues, which would then alter the state of the machine. The device is used not only to process the logic of any computer algorithm, but is also particularly used to conceptualize and explain the behavior of a CPU inside a computer.
The Google doodle that is featured on Google's home page replicates the Turing machine in a virtual manner. The virtual Turing machine challenges you to spell out Google in the binary code format. Head over to Google.com and see if you can solve the "puzzle" and get the combinations right.
The first five letters were quite easy to figure out, however, the last letter is far more difficult to get it right. After a lot of trial and error, I somehow managed to get its combinations correct in the sixth attempt. Each letter turns into its respective color (in logo), and at the end of it, the entire sequence is repeated from the beginning to end.
Alan Turing was born on June 23, 1912 in London, England. He is widely considered to be the father of computer science and artificial intelligence.
After the Second World War, Turing worked for the Government Code and Cypher School, where he created one of his first designs for a stored-program computer, the ACE. He then joined Max Newman's Computing Laboratory at Manchester University where he showed interest in mathematical biology.
In the year 1952, Turing was accused for homosexuality as homosexual acts were still illegal in the United Kingdom back then. He was sentenced to a year of treatment with female hormones (chemical castration). Two years later, on June 7 1954, Turing died of cyanide poisoning.
For the punishment Turing had faced, the British Prime Minister Gordon Brown apologized publicly on behalf the British Government in the year 2009.
Along with the Google Doodle, Allan Turing, is also being honoured with an award named after him in Manchester for people who help victims of homophobia. Another award that is named after Alan Turing – The Turing Award, is considered to be the highest distinction in computer science and is also referred to as the Nobel Prize of computing.
In case you have some difficulties in solving the doodle, here's a video with the solution:


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The Truth about Midnight Carbs and Top Weight Loss Tips to Avoid This
One of the greatest problems that ruin most individual's weight loss goals is midnight carbs or late night eating. Most individuals are completely fine following their weight loss diet plan for the most part of the day. You usually can control what you eat provided it is daylight. During this period, you are typically busy performing daily activities such as caring for your household or taking care of other responsibilities.
The problem comes during sundown when you are typically at home with only television to keep you company. Regardless of the cause, late night eating usually results in overeating, and this can lead to serious health hazards.
Consequences of Late Night Eating
- Can Lead to Weight Gain
If you are not able to control your food cravings and give in to late night eating, it can cause you to pack on the pounds. While this has not been scientifically proven, midnight carbs can lead to unnecessary weight gain. If you eat high calorie foods every day during sundown, you will certainly gain weight.
- Affects your Sleeping
You may have noticed that you never pick up something healthy, such as a fruit, to eat at sundown. Eating late at night is always about foods that contain high amounts of calories, such as ice cream, chocolate, pizza or cheese burger. Scientific investigations have revealed that consuming foods that are high in spices and caffeine makes sleeping difficult. The digestive system finds it hard to breakdown foods high in calories and this affects sound sleep indirectly.
Weight Loss Tips to Break Free From Late Night Eating
Now, bear in mind that the best way to get rid of excess body fat is to eat 3 square meals daily and avoid eating in-between meals. However, since this is easier said than done, here are a few tips to aid you overcome midnight carbs.
* Be determined not to eat anything after dinner or late during the day
* Satisfy your cravings for food with low calorie alternatives such as vegetables, fruits and herbal tea.
* Divert your attention to something else. For example, you can read a good book, relax within a hot bath or go out for a walk.
* Eat more protein rich foods during dinner. Recent scientific investigations indicate that protein rich foods can keep you feeling full for longer periods of time.
* Include more fiber in your everyday diet, particularly your dinner diet. Fiber rich foods such as berries, whole grains and beans will help keep hunger pangs at bay.
* Eat slowly and enjoy every bite. Eating at a slow pace gives your body time to get signals from your brain that you are full
* Eat a good breakfast everyday. If you skip breakfast, your chances of snacking impulsively on high calorie foods will increase.
Thus, there you have it – simple and helpful tips to break free from unhealthy midnight carbs. Always remember that to achieve your weight loss goals, you should eat 3 meals daily and avoid eating after dinner.


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Boho state of mind
Karishma Shahani appeared to be just as rooted in her choice of attire as her last presentation at LIFW(see it here). This new designer on the block has every bit of Indian essence ingrained in her aesthetics and every bit young that we are as a nation. Guess we too are inspired by the PM's speech on our 68th Independence Day.
As we look back, our last few posts have been bohemian inspired looks and wonder if it reflects the state of mind.
Karishma Shahani
Karishma pairs a white full sleeved scoop neck Jacket in ombre dyed shade of pink with a black maxi dress, a Tibetan beaded choker and versatile bright loafers.
Karishma Shahani
All set for a long day with an energy drink (almost seems like an accessory), the gold coin purse and the citrus colour covered phone add to the enigma of this boho girl.
Karishma Shahani
A Long gilet/jacket may seem like a non-essential, but we bet you'll be surprised by its versatility. Team it up with jeans, shorts or jeggings and it can instantly prep up a look, take it up a few notches.
On another exciting front, Lakme India Fashion Week - Winter Festive 2014 is about to commence and we shall do our best to bring you the best dressed. Follow us on Instagram to stay updated!


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Welcome to Compass Women!
About Compass Women
Compass Women offers many exciting opportunities for women of all ages to join us as we learn to trust in God and his word.
Check out the links below, and get involved with us today.
Don't forget to follow us on Instagram @compasswomen.
Get Involved
Starts Tuesday, March 3
Women & Faith will meet for two 5-week sessions to explore the foundational elements of what the Bible reveals about God, his word, sin, Jesus, salvation, sanctification, the Spirit, marriage, parenting, and the church. We plan to provide a place for beginners to think through and discuss basic Christian principles.
Saturday, May 9
Cost: $20
Hosting a Spring Tea table is a unique way to be involved in outreach for friends, family, neighbors, and co-workers. It's a great opportunity to reach our community with the love of Jesus to hear the gospel message, and show exceptional hospitality to our guests. Over 650 women attend this annual event and many are visiting our church for the first time. Our theme this year is, "In Pursuit of Wisdom," with our theme verse from Proverbs 8:32-36.
Unplanned Pregnancies
A Free Program for Mothers With Young Children
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Women & Faith Podcast - January 23, 2020
13 - Friendship (Part 2)
From Series: "Women & Faith Podcast"
Join Stephanie Schwartz, the Director of Women's Ministry at Compass Bible Church in Aliso Viejo, California, along with guests, as they casually discuss living as Christian women in light of a variety of practical topics. Email topic suggestions or questions to [email protected]
More From "Women & Faith Podcast"
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When Yvonne and myself sat down to brainstorm some aspects of both of our businesses we did not make the connection on advising about suppliers…. However, as a wedding planner,
One of the first things your bridal couple will ask will be "Can you recommend a florist, who is the best photographer, who do you use for cakes and catering?" Etc. etc. [Read more…]


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Lee Ellis
Lee Ellis
Lee Ellis is a British artist who paints expressive portraits and still lifes. His bold, textured works bring psychology and emotion to the fore, giving voice to the hidden secrets of his subjects. Lee's paintings are full of tortured distortions that capture the emotional angst of his figures -…Show more and we love the heavy brushstrokes and thick application of paint that the artist uses to achieve that effect.
Lee studied Graphic Design at Bristol's University of the West of England. Dissatisfied with the world of design, the artist began to experiment with abstract painting. Over the years he has honed his craft, developing a distinct and powerful style.
The artist has exhibited his work widely across the UK and has been featured in House and Garden Magazine.Show less
"The artist's expressive style is unusual and striking, forcing us to look at his subjects, whether human or inanimate objects, in a new light."
Katherine Mellor - Rise Art Curator
Artworks by Lee Ellis
Stay in Touch with Lee!
"Follow Lee to receive first access to new works for sale and the latest updates on events and activities."
Lee Ellis is featured in
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In the Studio
From Van Gogh to Mondrian, Five Artist Lookalikes
Inside Scoop
Not what you were looking for?
Find the perfect artwork using our filters or talk with one of our advisors to help you discover it.Browse for art


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18-year-old shot in head on bike dies
Shooter still sought by police
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – An 18-year-old man shot in the head while riding a bike last week has died.
Officers with the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office called at 1:40 a.m. Wednesday to Spires Avenue, near Fairfax Street in the Moncrief Park area, found Darryl Arnold with a gunshot wound.
Arnold was taken to UF Health Jacksonville in critical condition. Police said Tuesday he died.
Police are searching for the shooter.
A second person was with the teen when he was shot, but that person was not injured, according to police. Officers talked with him to determine what he knows and what he saw.
Anyone with any information about the shooting is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 866-845-TIPS or the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office at 904-630-0500.
Copyright 2013 by News4Jax.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


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Score Breakdown based on
12 Reviews
5 on May 24, 2014
We had perfect days in the two appartments from barud bed and breakfast. The best we ever had. It was pefect. Very kind Pnina, delicious breakfast. We enjoyed it very much. We hope to come back in the future. Elly van Barneveld with husband and other couple.
5 on April 22, 2013
We just stayed at Barud Gedera for 14 days and were very sorry to leave. It would be hard to adjust to being so spoiled by the fabulous food, stylish and immaculate accommodations, and warmth of her friendship and service to her guests. The breakfasts: in addition to the usual—and first-quality--eggs to order, full range of cheeses, fabulous salads, juices, French-press coffee, Pnina served a different homemade cake each day (cheesecake, apple crumble) and homemade jelly and even homemade cheese. Pnina has a flair for design evident everywhere in her home. We were a couple and we stayed in the the suite of rooms on the second floor. But all rooms are of equal quality and charm. Our room had an en suite full bathroom with a jacuzzi. The bathroom is stocked with anything you might have forgotten—shampoo, lotions, etc.. I would be thrilled to return to Barud Gedera anytime.. Thanks for the wonderfull days Pnina and Ehud. We will return next year. Avi and Corry Peery
5 on September 11, 2012
We stayed - a family of 5 - in Barud B&B for 8 days. The place was very convenient, pleasant and tastfully decorated that immediately we felt at home. The rooms are filled with a variety of objects and equipment you are sure to find anything you need or wish for. Breakfast is rich, varied and spoiling - a real joy. And then there is Pnina, who manages the place, who is a real gem. A charming, intelligent woman who will do her best to make your experience a great one. This is Israeli hospitality in its best. Thank you!
5 on August 27, 2012
We came from France and spent 5 nights at BARUD Gedera Zimmer.We wish to thank Pnina and her husband Ehud for being so charming and so welcoming. Pnina was very attentive but not intrusive (our two teenage girls could use the family's computer, we could also use the phone for Israel and abroad with no problems.) We were realy spoiled by Pnina with breakfasts that surprised us every morning by the variety and taste ( homemade labané, cheesecakes, differents salades, cheeses, fruits...) much better then a 5 stars hotel! The house is absolutely beautiful, very clean designed with much taste and very well equiped, very appreciable! Toda raba pnina, we would definitely return. Mikhal, Ivan and the girls.
5 on July 31, 2012
We just stayed at Barud Gedera for 10 days and were very sorry to leave. As I told Pnina, I knew it would be hard to adjust to being so spoiled by the fabulous food, stylish and immaculate accommodations, and warmth of her friendship and service to her guests. The breakfasts: in addition to the usual—and first-quality--eggs to order, full range of cheeses, fabulous salads, juices, French-press coffee, Pnina served a different homemade cake each day (cheesecake, apple crumble) and homemade jelly and even homemade cheese. And different beautiful plates and table settings each day. Pnina has a flair for design evident everywhere in her home. We were a couple with an adult child, so we stayed in the two bedrooms on the main floor (not the suite of rooms on the second floor). But all rooms are of equal quality and charm. Our room had an en suite full bathroom; our daughter's room across the hall was the "computer room," with a sleep sofa, with use of the half bath in the hall. The bathrooms are stocked with anything you might have forgotten—shampoo, lotions, etc. We had a shelf in the refrigerator, and Pnina leaves snacks and a teapot to make coffee or tea whenever you want. The epitome of our hosts' concern for their guests is that our daughter got a stomach virus and Pnina helped care for her, just as wholeheartedly as if she were a member of her family. I would be thrilled to return to Barud Gedera anytime.
5 on March 08, 2012
To Pnina ,It's been a very good time to us staying at your place. we discovered a very spaicle person and a very spaicle place that gave us the Quality time that we need, your kindess personlity was that gave us that. thanks a lot rof these moments Doron and Ruty Mor
5 on January 31, 2012
We went to celebret birthday at barud gedera/ it's realy amasing place and amasing people we had such a good time that we couldn"t go home all the details in barud site are more than true The rooms are so clean and fresh and we found a lot of things waitting for us that we had never saw in any hotel in the worled we also loved the owners who are so good and kind
5 on January 15, 2012
We are 6 friends who celebrated birthday in diffrent way at barud B&B Gedera as we enterd the house we felt some thing which gave us a feeling of home. it is so clean fresh and niceand wellcome we used also the saloon of the faimly to sit together . we invited the lovely owners to join us and enjoyed their sens of houmer . we slept in "well done" beds enjoied jaccuzi bath breakfast was another celebration we are waitting to come again
5 on January 14, 2012
As a couple that wanders around Europe and the US, we found a unique place to visit in Gedera, Israel which is called Barud. The house is situated in a quiet area, five minutes from the wonderful old quarter of Gedera. The house itself was built in a Tuscany atmosphere. The three room B&B is very large and comfortable with every facility you might imagine. The owners are very pleasant and will do everything to let you feel that you are at home. Breakfast is one of the best, and I do not exaggerate, we have never experienced and tasted such a good one. Whenever you can it is recommended to have a small or a long talk with the owners, sure you'll enjoy it. Ruthy and Giddy Bar-On, Netanya, Israel
5 on January 12, 2012
We came to stay in Barud Gedera for spending the night afte a relative's wedding. But we found the place and people very special and very warm. The rooms are very tasteful and the full breakfast was very tasty. we had breakfast in the family dining room, watching the garden outside. The unit includes three rooms and we were amazed at the cleanliness and immaculate note for every detail. The place is suitable for tourists who come to the Ashdod zone' in the middle part of Israel near the seashore, but it is close to other parts of Israel. We are still in touch with the owners, such is the effect of their warmth. We recommend this B&B to all our friends. Ilana and Itzik Tuizer, Arbel Hadas and Menashe Shmuel, Tiberias
5 on December 28, 2011
We wanted to recommend that the place is beautiful . The women of the house concern for all what we needed as well as all our special requests.The breakfast was very tasty . .The price is worth all tke money. we recommend of tkis place.fam. Braverman
4.6 on December 17, 2011
pnina make our vacation unforgetable. she is the pearls of the b&b( in hebrew her name mean pearl) it is mixture of goods- hospitality, food, place grate place for grate pople. we will be back


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The iPhone SE is billed as the most powerful four-inch phone ever. It's also been dubbed the cheapest iPhone ever. Both are bold claims. But they're not without foundation.
A successor to the similarly compact, now-discontinued iPhone 5c, the iPhone SE is a major improvement. And not just because it swaps the iPhone 5c's plastic exterior for a premium metal and aluminium construction.
Highlights include a 12-megapixel camera, with a LivePhotos feature that captures motion before and after your photo to help bring your snaps to life. And it records video in lush 4K too, which is four times the resolution of standard HD for clearer, crisper footage.
Like the more costly iPhone 6s, the iPhone SE is equipped with Apple Pay. That means you can use it to pay for goods and services by swiping it over a reader in shops and restaurants. To keep your details secure, it's also got what Apple calls a Touch ID home button. This means your iPhone se can only be unlocked by your fingerprint.
Powering the iPhone SE is the same powerful A9 processor as the iPhone 6s. The result is that it operates with a real sense of 'zip' and can handle the most advanced games and applications.
To take some of the strain when you're multi-tasking, there's an M9 motion-tracking co-processor on board too, which is what helps the onboard Health fitness app to accurately track the amount of steps you've taken and the distance you've run.
Other features include a more advanced version of Siri voice commands app that makes it easier to control your phone just by using your voice and a better front-facing camera for video calls in HD and superior selfies.
As with the entire iPhone range, the iPhone SE also offers the smartphone market's widest choice of apps and games. Powered by the iOS 9.3 version of Apple's operating system, this easy-to-use compact smartphone features the Night Shift app that limits exposure to blue light from your screen to help you sleep, as well as a more secure version of the Notes note-taking app.


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Rockhill Pharmacy will be your partner in certification.
We encourage customers to attend our monthly First Aid/CPR courses, and will even provide quarterly reminders about these opportunities.
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Other pharmacies may say they provide certification, but we are actively engaged in making sure our customers get this benefit. We partner with our customers, and that is the difference.
For more information, or to register for a certification class, contact email@example.com or call 816.285.5118. Our current schedule is listed on the Calendar of Events page of this website.


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By Dom Nozzi
January 6, 2009
I applaud the desire to provide for all forms of travel. This is particularly important in (what should be) a low-speed town center environment.
For a town center to be healthy for retail and all forms of travel, low-speed car travel is essential, and a "park once" environment must be created. Here, the pedestrian, not the bicyclist or car or transit, must be the design imperative. If we "get it right" for the pedestrian in the town center, every stakeholder tends to benefit: not just pedestrians, but bicyclists, transit, retail, residential, children, seniors, well-behaved motorists, the disabled and everyone else.
However, if we suboptimize bicycling, transit or cars to the detriment of other community objectives, the unintended consequence is that most everyone loses.
Too often, eager bicycling advocates loudly proclaim that a town center needs bike lanes and a removal of on-street car parking. But I believe that bike lanes and the removal of on-street parking in a town center serve to suboptimize bicycling — and I speak as a bicycle commuter.
How do we make the pedestrian the design imperative in a town center? Some of the more important tactics include reducing dimensions (such as street widths, building setbacks and the size of parking), increasing commercial and residential compactness, and obligating slow, attentive speeds by motorists.
Probably the most powerful, affordable way to achieve the above-mentioned tactics is on-street parking. Such parking effectively slows cars and obligates attentiveness by adding friction to the street. Such parking is also essential for healthy town center retail. And such parking sometimes dramatically improves pedestrian safety by reducing the street crossing distance.
In a town center, bike lanes tend to undercut each of those design objectives.
Shoup's "The High Cost of Free Parking" is perhaps the best book I've ever read in the field of planning/transportation (a must-read for all planners, designers and elected folks). In that book, Shoup identifies excessive parking as an enormous problem in nearly all American communities.
However, he points out that it is subsidized, underpriced OFF-STREET parking, required in excess by nearly all local governments, that is one of the most important problems in American cities. Shoup is a strong advocate of on-street parking (especially when it is properly priced and therefore efficiently used). I believe he would agree with me that for nearly all cities (even those with too much parking), an extremely important objective is to substantially INCREASE the amount of on-street parking and substantially reduce the amount of off-street parking. And that as much town center street frontage as possible be lined with on-street parking.
In a properly designed town center, car speeds are low enough that it is not only safe and pleasant for pedestrians and retailers and residences. Car speeds are also low enough to permit safe and pleasant sharing of the travel lane by bicyclists. And in a town center, for those bicyclists who are uncomfortable sharing even a slow-speed travel lane with cars, there tends to be nearby parallel lanes off the main street for the bicyclist.
Important downsides for removing town center on-street parking:
*Smaller retailers tend to suffer so much that empty storefronts result and retailers flee to more remote locations that are inconvenient/unsafe to walk or bicycle or bus to. In other words, bicyclists should be strong supporters of a healthy town center retail/residential environment, in part because it promotes a compact community with short travel distances.
*Unless travel lane width is dramatically reduced, bike lanes tend to add asphalt width to the main street. That can mean longer, more dangerous crossing distances for pedestrians, and higher speed and less attentive (and therefore more dangerous) car travel.
Again, town center designers must be careful not to suboptimize bicycle, transit or car travel in the town center, since doing so tends to be detrimental to the pedestrian, which is the town center design imperative. The irony for bicyclists calling for the removal of on-street parking in a town center is not only that it is detrimental to bicycling. On-street parking removal in a town center was (and still is) most loudly called for by the motorist lobby (which fought to increase town center street widths and car speeds beginning about 85 years ago).
And for the record, I am a strong advocate of in-street bicycle lanes on most all major streets in a city. I believe, however, that they tend to be incompatible with a low-speed, human-scaled ped-friendly town center.


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Ending a sexual abuse case in which Pope Francis intervened three years ago, a Spanish court on Tuesday cleared a parish priest in Granada who had been accused of molesting an altar boy.
The court found no evidence that the Rev. Román Martínez had sexually abused one of his former altar boys more than a decade ago.
An investigation began after David Ramírez Castillo wrote to Pope Francis in 2014, detailing the sexual abuse that he said he and others suffered repeatedly when they were teenagers at the hands of a group of priests led by Father Martínez.
Pope Francis phoned Mr. Ramírez Castillo and urged him to pursue his complaints. The pope also ordered a church investigation into the case, demanding complete transparency.
In an 81-page ruling, the court said it had exonerated Father Martínez not only because of the lack of evidence against him but also because the testimony of Mr. Ramírez Castillo included elements that were "completely implausible."
The court listed several events and details provided by Mr. Ramírez Castillo that could not be corroborated or proved false. For instance, there was no birthmark on Father Martínez's genitals, contrary to what Mr. Ramírez Castillo had claimed.
The priest's lawyer, Javier Muriel, said the verdict showed the case was based on lies. "It is easy to make an accusation of pedophilia, a crime that happens in privacy and in which the testimony of the victim is really the only proof," Mr. Muriel said.
Mr. Ramírez Castillo and his lawyer did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment. The case could still be appealed to the Spanish Supreme Court.
The archdiocese of Granada welcomed the ruling on Tuesday. In a statement, it noted "the suffering that this case has caused, within the diocese but in reality within the whole church."


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Had enough of neverending BLS inflation data manipulation? You may be in luck. Hot on the heels of the MIT Billion Prices Project (which we were delighted to see recently came back on line), there now is... PriceStats, potentially the most revolutionary concept to come to the fielf of econometrics, and thus fiscal and monetary policy in ages.
From the launch press release:
The BPP is proud to announce the launch of PriceStats, a start-up based in Cambridge MA with the mission of becoming a leading source of daily inflation statistics around the world.
PriceStats will allow the BPP to focus on research and continue innovating in the field of real-time price statistics. Our research team will have access to a greater amount of data than ever before, which will be collected, processed, and shared by PriceStats for use in our research initiatives and experimental indices. In addition, this arrangement will allow the BPP to continue publishing the daily US inflation and World inflation indices on a monthly basis.
PriceStats has partnered with State Street Global Markets to update daily inflation series in more than 40 countries through their client research portal, IR3. If you would like more information on how to access these series, please contact the PriceStats team at firstname.lastname@example.com.
PriceStats is a young company and the team is growing fast. If you are interested in technology and economics, and would like to join the team, please email firstname.lastname@example.com
We hope at least a year passes before the Federal Reserve decides to LBO PriceStats. Alternatively, the involvement of State Street while admirable, gives one pause to wonder if there will not be a sudden short stock recall causing a massive inflationary surge once the custodian company flexes its short squeeze muscles, so eloquently demonstrated back in March 2009 when the glimmers of the "profit and earnings ratio" rally was in desperate nee of a Citi group short squeeze.


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We are a small group of five families who are helping our children to direct their own learning (at least some of it) through a project-based approach. We set the topic – physics – but they are leading the way and mapping their own projects. Check out the previous posts – Week 1 and Week 2.
I needed to wait awhile before writing this post because my initial reaction to last week's class was a feeling of frustration. It seemed as if there wasn't much learning going on, but I knew that I needed to step back from my current feelings and let them digest so that I could see what really was happening.
There was learning. Lots of learning. It just didn't look like you would expect on week three. It looked a lot like week two, but with a little less enthusiasm. They were still experimenting – often with some of the same things that they made last week. I think that many of the parents (myself included) expected there to be a clear path of progress, rather than the messy trial and error that is reflected in the construction of knowledge.
Why do we adults expect learning to progress so quickly and thoroughly? Is it because we have less time? Is it because we feel the pressure to "get things done?" I know I do. A lot. I have to constantly remind myself that the learning my kids will do (on their own) will far outpace the direct instruction I give them…if only I can be very, very patient and wait for the breakthrough. Sometimes I can't give them the time needed to do that, but for a class like this, that's the whole point. We need to give them the time to goof around, play and think about their ideas – while still helping them to stay on track.
I think that's the key – making sure they stay on track. And, if we're being completely honest here – I think I failed a bit as a facilitating mentor this past week. I fell into the "parent" role and was chatting with my other parents. Oh, it is so nice to chat with other homeschooling parents from time to time. But, not during class. So, next week, we'll move into a more secluded area where we can focus and not be so distracted by other things. Well…I think that wraps up my personal "lessons learned" from this week, so it's onto the projects!
Catapult Building – group of three 9-year-old boys
Last week, these boys were building prototypes and despite a Google Hangout meeting later in the week, they were still undecided as to what path they wanted to take next. They decided to keep making prototypes and then to choose one to focus on and build out of wood. Yep. Wood.
These boys were enjoying playing with their catapult designs but were less likely to build new ones and seemed a bit lost with what their next step should be. They definitely wanted to try out some different designs, but none of them had done any research or found any other books or web sites. It was if they thought the ideas would just come to them via tinkering. It's not a bad way to construct knowledge, but it does take a lot longer and it is very easy to fall off the path of progress. I think this would have been less of an issue if we were in a dedicated space – full of books, computers and supplies.
That being said, I re-read their words to them about making a decision and they all decided to go with a design that RC had found online and made earlier in the week. Although his prototype didn't last the week (oh, 9-year-old boys), they had all seen it during the online chat and all agreed to move forward with that design.
Their decision for the following week is to each build the catapult using the instructions and figure out how to "scale" it up next week. Research required…which means I'm bringing my computer so they can figure it out in class.
The Gravity Girls, (ages eleven and barely eight)
These girls followed up with some more experiments on gravity and had some "failures" as well. I've been noticing that many of the problems we encounter comes from not having the proper materials on hand. Despite our best efforts to bring what they need, sometimes the materials don't work out and you need something similar, but not quite the same. This post on space makes a lot more sense now.
Regardless, the girls were reading, tinkering and taking good notes. They decided that next week they needed heavier weights and taller container for their experiments to work properly. They also need to remake the paper clown out of an index card because he was too big.
Catapult Building – group of two boys (ages 5 and 6)
These two continued to make a catapult out of tongue depressors, based on the picture on the front of this book. It was interesting to see them work out ways to adapt the design – what to use for the wood cylinders – dowels or pencils? They also realized that they needed the hand drill to drill holes to connect their non-sharpened pencils to the catapult. I asked how they were going to connect it to the sides and this was their answer, so we're going to let them have a go at it next week. This is all part of the process of learning – especially for five and six.
Windmills and Another Catapult
We have two other projects going on in class, but I didn't get great pictures of them, nor did I have a good chance to interact and help guide these two boys. N was steadily working on his windmill design and would have kept working if he hadn't run out of glue sticks.
E was not around last week, but had chosen to do catapults as well and had a blast making one and shooting off pom poms. As a 7-year-old, he is on the cusp of being perceived as "too old to just tinker," but still a little too young to be expected to create an elaborate presentation on his own. It might be a challenge in the coming weeks to help him go further with his project, but hopefully seeing the older boys will inspire him.
With so many kids doing different projects, I'm finding it difficult to effectively facilitate and be "the record-keeper" for each group. I really want to help the kids to follow their own path, but they are still kids and need guidance, reminders and written documentation to demonstrate their thought processes. We will be treading this line in the next few weeks as we try and help them to dig deeper with their learning and push themselves to discover new ideas.
To keep reading about self-directed physics, check out PBL – Windmill Presentation – Week 4.


text:
88% natural ingredients
Exfoliation – Smoothing Effect and Softness – Sensation of Freshness
Deep exfoliating scrub with olive stone grains, suitable for all skin types and ideal for resistant, oily and combination skin.
- Olive grains and salicylic acid cleanse pores in depth and exfoliate by removing dead cells and dirt from the surface.
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In the Face Scrub line, APIVITA has replaced water with organic green tea infusion for its antioxidant action.
Apply on cleansed, damp skin with gentle, circular massage movements, avoiding the eye area. Then rinse thoroughly.
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For external use only.
Deep Exfoliating Scrub with olive. A rich formulation with 88% natural ingredients.
|Olive seeds
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|Phthalates, PCM, NM
*Certified organic cultivation
Aqua** (Water**), Aqua (Water), Glyceryl Stearate, Polyethylene, Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate, PEG-100 Stearate, Glycerin, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Polysorbate 20, Olea Europaea (Olive) Seed Powder, Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Oil, Prunus Armeniaca (Apricot) Kernel Oil, Salicylic Acid, Sodium Phytate, Menthol*, Camellia Sinensis Leaf* Extract, Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Oil*, Pelargonium Graveolens Flower Oil*, Glucconolactone, Sodium Benzoate, Citric Acid, Sodium Chloride, Parfum (Fragrance), *, Hexyl Cinnamal, Linalool, Hydroxysohexyl 3-Cyclohexene Carboxaldehyde, Butylphenyl Methylpropional, Hydroxycitronellal, CI77891 (Titanium Dioxide)
*Certified organic cultivation
**Camelia Sinensis* Leaf Aqueous Infusion = Green tea water
Natural Infusion Base
APIVITA replaces water with natural organic infusions that give its products mainly antioxidant attributes. Given that most cosmetics' water content exceeds 70%, APIVITA products are antioxidant-rich in their base. The effectiveness of the infusions selected in each case is proven through scientific methods. The antioxidant action of the infusions is measured through the FRAP method, while their capacity to eliminate free radicals through the DPPH method. Organic green tea, which serves as the basis of many products, has been selected as it is rich in polyphenols, has a great antioxidant effect along with antiseptic, anti-irritant and anti-inflammatory attributes, all contributing in the rejuvenation and hydration of the skin. Over the past few years, APIVITA has been studying and using infusions from Greek medicinal herbs with well-proven, exceptional antioxidant effects, such as the organic Greek mountain tea.


text:
The Chicago White Sox gave Detroit an opening to tie for the AL Central lead when Gordon Beckham hit into a game-ending forceout with the potential tying run on second base Tuesday in a 4-3 loss to the last-place Cleveland Indians.
Down 4-0, the White Sox closed when A.J. Pierzynski and Dayan Viciedo hit consecutive fifth-inning home runs off Corey Kluber (2-4) and then pulled within a run when Paul Konerko homered off Chris Perez leading off the ninth.
Perez walked a pair of batters with two outs, and Beckham grounded to shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera, who threw to second baseman Jason Kipnis for the force.
Chicago Baseball
Chicago (82-72) has held sole possession of the division lead since Sept. 3. Detroit (81-72) hosted Kansas City on Tuesday night.
After Wednesday night's series finale, the White Sox host a four-game series against Tampa Bay and then close with three games in Cleveland.
Detroit finishes its four-game series against Kansas City on Thursday, then winds up with a pair of three-game series at Minnesota and the Royals.
Francisco Liriano (6-12) allowed all four runs and seven hits in 3 2-3 innings. He is 1-2 with a 6.30 ERA in his last seven appearances.
Kluber (2-4) gave up four hits in seven innings, retiring nine of his last 10 batters. Vinnie Pestano and Perez completed the six-hitter, with Perez gaining his 37th save in 41 chances.
Russ Canzler had three hits and homered for the second straight game, putting Cleveland ahead in the second.
Canzler doubled between a pair of walks as the Indians loaded the bases with one out in the fourth, and Thomas Neal barely beat out a potential double-play grounder as Carlos Santana scored. Upset by first base umpire Jerry Layne's call, Pierzynski jumped up and down at home plate.
Ezequiel Carrera and Shin-soo Choo followed with consecutive RBI singles that chased Liriano.


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Thoughts and opinions from a radical feminist that spent 4 years on the path to transition to a man, and is on her journey back.
Thursday, August 28, 2014
A Personal Note on Butch/Femme and my Thoughts
For the sake of not naming names, there are two rather prominent "Butch Lesbian" activists who have taken to publicly trashing me (one of them numerous times). It seems they enjoy brow-beating other women who do not narrowly conform to their ideas of gender, and yes, this is all gender, but for more on that, read the link below. To those women, sure, I don't fit into your little club, and I don't want to anyways. I will, however, find your antics juvenile, despite both of your ages, and will not hesitate to call bullshit when I see it.
I'm tired of brow-beating from fellow women on the topic. I'm just a fat dyke, and I express myself however the hell I want. So for the sake of expressing myself, here is an expression: gender norms are fucking asinine, and those who support gender norms and "othering" of breaking gender norms through endless meaningless labels are hilarious. That includes the labels of "Butch" and "Femme." When really, both of you are dykes, and both of you are women. Get over yourselves, your egos, and your vanity/gen(d)eral issues!
A friend of mine wrote a great piece on this topic, and my thoughts can also be summed up with it too. Definitely read it, it's worth thinking about. "Hate to Break it to You, but Butch and Femme is Also Gender"
3 comments:
I would say I agree. Gender roles (formerly called sex roles) are 100% made up and 100% designed to oppress women. I've never used either of those terms to describe myself because they seemed to be reinforcing stereotypes and I don't feel that I fit into either category that well.
However, mainstream does associate those terms with lesbians so it annoys the hell out of me when straight or bi women, or men start using those terms (or worse, calling themselves dykes.) Ugh.
Yes, I know we lesbians are super cool but if you're not a lesbian then cut the crap.
- November 2, 2014 at 10:48 AM
Thank you for this post, you really help put into words what I've felt about women such as Bev and Dirt for awhile now.
I've seen your videos, and I think you're a very brave woman. To go through de-transitioning without much support from a lesbian community and getting attacked from these women and other so-called 'radical feminists'. It must have been very hurtful.
If it's alright, I'm interested in having a conversation with you. Is that alright?
- November 21, 2016 at 12:52 AM
- Unknown said...
Hello Charlotte,
I just saw your comment and I apologize for not responding sooner. The holiday season has kept me quite busy! But I would certainly love to have a conversation with you. You can find me on Facebook and it's easy to get a hold of me on there. :)
- December 4, 2016 at 3:14 PM


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"I'm old enough to see behind me, but young enough to feel my soul..."
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Dreaming in color, living in black and white
Meanwhile, I've been having wildly vivid dreams lately. One of my very recurring dreams is that I'm golfing but I can never quite get the ball teed up just right. It's too close to me, then too far away, then it falls off the tee, and on and on. It's extremely frustrating.
So then I try and think what am I frustrated about. Life? Love? Writing? That Matchbox Twenty won't put out a new album? Probably the last one.
I have been thinking a bit about turning thirty-eight next month. And I have decided I'm going to go ahead and do it. I mean, when I considered the other options, the choice was pretty clear.
Seriously though, at first glance, thirty-eight seems so benign. Then I think about the whole thirty-nine-and-holding thing, and suddenly thirty-eight feels like the last year of... something. But I am fairly certain no one wants me to get into any sort of deep self-analysis on these feelings, least of all me.
Meanwhile, the wildly vivid dreams continue -- about golf, ex-girlfriends, even Family Feud, though not all in the same dream. In the Family Feud dream, the entire facade of the house across the street was one gigantic Family Feud board. And the guy who lives there was asking me survey questions. Unfortunately, Richard Dawson wasn't in the dream, so that was a little disappointing as you might expect.
A couple of nights ago I had a bit of a different golf dream. The Darryls and I were three holes from the end of our round when one of the course workers rode up on a golf cart and said all the carts had to be in immediately because they were going home for the evening. After much discussion, I finally convinced him to take my cart and my bag and just let me keep 3 or 4 clubs out so I could finish the round, and I would pick up my bag at his house later.
However, the Darryls had continued playing and were now a couple of holes ahead of me. And when I started trying to play again, I was back to the recurring dream situation and couldn't get my ball to stay on the tee.
OK, so they weren't very wild, but they were vivid, darn it! I'm open to interpretation. And interpretations. Other than I suck at golf and play way too much Family Feud online. I already know this.
I have surmised that my subconscious self is living the life my January conscious self can't. Well, note to subconscious Bone: Enjoy it while you can, buddy boy. February's coming, and conscious me will be back to normal, whatever that is.
I may even attempt to socialize with the other humans.
"Don't tell me how to be, 'cause I like some suffering. Don't ask me what I need. I'm just fine here finding me..."
18 comments:
Maybe January does that us. December is actually worse. One starts thinking the whole year has passed, what have I really achieved? But we achieve something or the other. We grow in experience, gain knowledge all that blah, blah, blah.ReplyDelete
The January comes. We are filled with enthusiasm and wish for things to move faster. But it does not happen. Everything in life has its own time, own pace.
If I take my own example, I was totally exhausted. Emotionally/Physically/Mentally. And my poetry died. Believe me, it died. I had no option but to bury it. Or cremate it, as we Hindus do.
And what happens? It resurrects out of nothing. I don't know how or from where.
Maybe, when we finally give up something, which we think has left us anyways, it comes back.
And age? Think like this, every day we are getting younger, not older. And it works. Truly it does. And Thirty Nine is new Eighteen. Go for it!
I think you should go volunteer at your local community theater. Then you would be too busy to think...and probably have very dreamless nights.ReplyDelete
and as someone who has been there done that 38 thing...age is only a number. Really, you are as young as you feel.
You can't even be depressed like a normal person. Have to do it funnyReplyDelete
I have many fave lines beginning with the Matchbox Twenty one which says more about me I guess
Look at this way. You get to see the Darryla, and be on Family Feud.
And 39 and holding is now 29 and holding, so you have another 15 years to feel very youthful (the new age math, not new age in the sense it's always almost used in but age)
I can tell you that i hate winter and it makes me depressed.ReplyDelete
however Im not having any of the good dreams like you.
damn it!
HOpefully spring will come early this year. maybe I should go and have a talk with that damn ground hog in advance. what cha think?
Just sayin
"baby, it's 3AM, you must be lonley..."ReplyDelete
Gautami - Maybe, when we finally give up something, which we think has left us anyways, it comes back.ReplyDelete
That's a good thought. There's probably a lot of truth to that.
But I'm never filled with enthusiasm in January. Well, except maybe when we got 8 inches of snow :)
Renee - As I was writing this I kept thinking of George opening up to Jerry.
George: "So that's it. All of my darkest fears, and everything I'm capable of. That's me."
Jerry: "Good luck with ALL that."
Well, I do feel pretty young. Wait, is "young" the same thing as "immature?"
Pia - You can't even be depressed like a normal person.
Oh, that is so true. lol
The Matchbox Twenty line was one of my faves, too. Am I allowed to have faves?
KittyCat - Please, do whatever you gotta do to make sure the groundhog sees his shadow. Or doesn't. I can never remember which means what.
DailyPanic - "I can't help but be scared of it all sometimes..."
Well, for someone who supposedly isn't doing anything, you definitely made the telling entertaining. I chuckled throughout this entire post, and must confess to loving the MB20 line, too.ReplyDelete
Aren't they supposed to be putting out a new album this year? Or is that just a recurring rumor?
I'm glad January is almost over for you. Me personally? I get excited when March hits (not a big vday fan). Soon! :)
If I started having reoccurring golf dreams, I would go see a shrink! Happy upcoming birthday, Bone.ReplyDelete
I'm a bit worried about your dream golf course making you come in so they could go home.ReplyDelete
You wait for me, pal.
In the next dream, you should get in a fight. That'll make for good fun!
- cooper1/28/2011 09:23:00 PM
I've been trying to decipher the Daryls dream, and have decided that it's best to leave well enough alone.ReplyDelete
39 is the new just the right age to date a 24 year old. ;)
TC - Well they were supposed to start working on it last year, according to Wikipedia, source of all information. But best I can tell from Twitter, they're just now getting started.ReplyDelete
Someone told me today that Daylight Savings Time is only 44 days away. Ah, longer days.
Sage - Eh, I'll give it five or ten years, see if I stop having them.
Cami - Yeah, there's no way that'd happen in consciousness. We've played so late before you couldn't even see the ball. And oddly enough, I seemed to play better in those conditions.
Cooper - That's pretty much the same conclusion I reach anytime I start to think about analyzing anything about my life.
Alright! So just one more year to go :)
38 isn't all that bad. Really I'm on the other side of 38 and it isn't bad at all.ReplyDelete
I like your family feud dream I wonder what that says about the relationship you have with your neighbor!
I think we should just skip right to March.
I agree with pia...even your winter doldrums are sparkling with humor! Like you, I hate that January drags so much. Here's to February -- cheers. :~)ReplyDelete
Someone should really invent an advent calendar for January, maybe with little motivational speeches behind the doors instead of chocolates. Sigh. Roll on February...ReplyDelete
Wow, you make my dream of drowning people in my back yard seem downright sane ;-)ReplyDelete
I heart you J-Dizzle, and I know you'll bounce back, you always do!
As for your upcoming birthday, glad you decided to go ahead with it. That was the decision I had to make with 30 too...I think we're choosing wisely!
This comment has been removed by the author.ReplyDelete
"And I have decided I'm going to go ahead and do it."ReplyDelete
Favorite line in your blog!
PennyCandy - I enjoy dreaming of Family Feud, as well. Not sure what it says, especially since it was my across-the-street neighbor, and not the next-door neighbors who have caused so many problems.ReplyDelete
Sweetest In The Gale - Here's to February, indeed. As I type this, we're already five days in :)
J Adamthwaite - Good idea. You could invent that :)
I was thinking maybe I should try and plan a mid-January trip each year. Maybe that would help.
Arlene - Drowning people in your backyard? LOL Um, good luck analyzing that one.
Terra - Thanks! As I said, in the end, it was an easy choice :)


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Hey Girl! Check out these new releases from July 31st-August 6th!
End Zone Love (Connecticut Kings Book 4) by Love Belvin
After losing an improbable opportunity at the Super Bowl, Trent Bailey still has something to prove. He's come out, not only as America's favorite redemption story, but also a married man; a marriage not yet known to the public. He's trusting more, finding his home more comfortable and befitting a Connecticut King.
Jade's a new woman now. Her insecurities are under control at Trent's side. No more violent fits around Trent's female admirers, she's understanding the fanfare attached to her husband's returning celebrity. She's found her place in the big world, and is content figuring out the rest.
The Baileys survived the red zone, that place where failure is unlikely, but still possible. But with old cast members resurfacing, can their secure love prove successful in this new position on the field?
"We're in the end zone, and I'm dragging everything I got to score." ~TB
Let's see if after the review, the ruling on the field still stands.
Forever Mine: The Westbrook Series by Tasha Wright
The seductive, suspense novel of the Westbrook Series Trilogy continues the sensual saga of Payson and Derrick that began in Forever Mines…
Haunted by dark secrets of the tormented, sexy, young CEO Derrick Westbrook, Payson Moss faces the demons from his past and hers as their relationship grows stronger.
Yearning for Derrick still controls her every waking thought, when he proposes a new arrangement, Payson has second thoughts, but cannot resist. They possess their sensual affair, and Payson learns more about her demanding, driven lovers harrowing past.
While Derrick handles his demons, Payson must control hers as well.
My past was just as violent as his, and I was just as broken. How could we work? It was too hard, and too painful…except when it is all so perfect.
For Your Love I Will Do Anything by Cherida Franklin
The virtuous Monroe sisters Peaches, Alex, and Shy, live in an upper class neighborhood and are well known for being impenetrable as well as untouchable. Not only are they known for being untouchable but also for their beauty. But little does everyone know, looks can be deceiving and being beautiful sometimes is not enough and can be a curse. With Peaches reigning over Alex and Shy all their lives keeping them safe and tight to her to protect them from Momma and from others finding out the secrets that they keep has made them not only harbor secrets from others but also from each other. Secrets of unrequited love, secret crushes and feelings of insufficiency and inadequacy in relationships which keeps them from having the love that they desire, even crave.
The famous Hart brothers Paul, Peter and Strong are fine and handsome to a fault but are also smart nerds underneath the facade they put on for everyone else, except for the confident Peter who knows what he wants but can't seem to pin Peaches down long enough to get it. Paul not knowing how to handle Alex and Strong unsure of how to approach Shy keeps them all second guessing each other. Will they ever get together? Will they continue dodging and dancing around each other, or will they all finally realize the true climax of love.
Dilemma of a Damsel: Part 1 by Monique Elise
On the surface, Jade James has it all: awesome career, impeccably good looks, and great friends. But as her twenties come to an end, she can't help but wonder if her success has come at a great sacrifice. Because no matter where she turns, she can't avoid the constant reminder that she still hasn't found a man. Once an unapologetic heartbreaker, Jade has had a change of heart and since embraced the idea of love and companionship. Her only challenge: she hasn't quite met anyone that rocks her world. A product of a troubled marriage, Jade refuses to settle for anything less than perfect. But will her desire for perfection end up costing her true love?
Meant to be Broken by Tajma Brown
Marcus Daniels had it all – professional basketball career, loving family, great fans, and a beautiful lady on his arm. All of that changed when he found his fiancée in bed with his teammate the night he won MVP of the NBA Finals. After sleeping his way through Miami, and maybe a few other cities in the U.S., he never thought about settling down again until he met her…
Valarie Michaels is a woman working in a male-dominated industry. In a field where everyone assumes that women use their sexuality to get ahead and women in power are constantly questioned, she is determined to make her work speak for itself and to never give anyone the opportunity to question how she worked her way up. She has two rules: never date her co-workers or any other man that works in the sports industry. In the six years since her professional career fully began she was never tempted to break that rule, until now…
The sexual chemistry is off the charts, but is the prospect of something more worth the opened wounds of heartbreak or a tarnished reputation? Can these two find what they didn't know was missing?
Mine by Default Mini-Series by Tina Martin
Elias (Eli) Leaumont – a New Orleans police officer, is secretly in love with the woman who saved his life. The woman who has been his best friend for four years, Natalie (Allie) Romain.
Natalie thinks the world of Elias. He's special to her and no one can get under her skin like he can. She loves him dearly as a friend and made it clear to him, years ago, that she would never date a cop. However, they spend so much time together, most people already think they are a couple.
Then there's the way Elias looks at her…
What Natalie doesn't know is, Elias considers her much more than just a friend. He considers her 'his'. But when he thinks she's interested in his brother, Solomon, his behavior becomes erratic and obsessive. And then there's the emotional and physical damage he sustained from being shot while on duty, four years ago.
More events from his traumatic past unravels in this six-book series, and Natalie finds out some horrible things she didn't know about him. Is he capable of murder? Is he capable of truly loving someone, or is he so messed up, that there's no hope left? Delve into the suspenseful, yet romantic, pages of the Mine-By Default Mini Series and see if true love really exists.
Includes ALL books in the series:
Book 1 – Been In Love With You
Book 2 – When Hearts Cry
Book 3 – You Belong To Me
Book 4 – When I Call You Mine
Book 5 – Who Do You Love?
Book 6 – Forever Mine
Greedy: A Novel by Shay Nolon
Raised to believe that her breathtaking looks warrant her a man who can give her everything, Azaria is ecstatic when her beau of six months proposes. Ready to a live a life beyond her wildest dreams, she's confused when Malik invites another man into their bed on their honeymoon. Not wantining to start her new marriage off by being a wife who isn't willing to please her man, she hesitantly agrees. Soon, she begins to notice other things that aren't adding up. Is her new husband just kinky, or is he hiding something more sinister than she could've ever imagined?
If I Believe (A Promises of God Novel Book 2) by Kim Cash Tate
Sometimes the biggest risk is daring to hope.
Cinda Ellis doesn't dare to dream. Life has dealt too many blows, and she's come to expect disappointment. But then a lifelong dream is realized—meeting her dad—and Cinda's life is finally turning . . . until reality crashes in once again. On the verge of despair, Cinda finds connection with a group of women from Living Hope Church—and an unlikely connection with one of Hollywood's hottest stars. Her life just might be turning again. But will she only suffer disappointment once more?
Alonzo Coles is living the life of his dreams. On the heels of his first Academy Award nomination, people are already buzzing about his next film. But his choices—from his career to his exploits with women—are starting to bother him. And he's reminded of a connection he'd made—to Jesus. His quest for answers—about who he is and what he's called to do—leads him to the pastor of Living Hope Church . . . and a woman unlike any he's encountered.
Treva Alexander is embracing her new season. A widow turned newlywed, she's enjoying new love in a new city, in her new role as pastor's wife. But she's suddenly challenged when God begins to shake things up. What will she do when her faith is tested like never before?
Faith Langston is on hiatus—from life. An unexpected pregnancy has made her a new mom at twenty. Now, instead of doing big things for God as she'd hoped—or at least working toward her degree—she's sidelined at home. And though she'd thought she and the baby's father would rekindle a relationship, she now wonders if she's even on his mind—or on God's mind. Has she forfeited the plans He had for her?
Surrender to Me (The Lawsons of Louisiana) by Donna Hill
No woman has ever caught him…until now
Rafe Lawson is driven by two things: his music and living a life away from the influence of his powerful senator father. The woman he meets at a high-profile family celebration won't change his playboy ways. Still, Rafe is intrigued by the stunning Secret Service agent who never mixes business and pleasure. He has no choice but to jet to DC and use his legendary Lawson power of seduction to win over Avery Richards.
The first female in her family to rise up the ranks of high-level government security, Avery is comfortable flying halfway across the world at a moment's notice. But her desire for the sax-playing heir to a political dynasty creates more tension than being on presidential detail. Their fathers are enemies who share a long, bitter history. When Avery falls for Rafe, her loyalty to her family is tested and Rafe's contentious feud with his father could cost them everything. They must now decide what's most important—the life they've always lived or the one they can possibly make together.
Just Say You Love Me by B. Love
Luana Berry's plate is full. Not only is she juggling two jobs and an internship, but she's doing so while maintaining a 3.8 GPA at the most expensive private school in Memphis, TN. Just a few months away from being the first college graduate in her family, Luana plans to continue her education and become a Lawyer. There's just one thing standing in the way of her dreams – her brother, Lucas Berry.
Jaxon Jeffries' plate is full. Not only does he have his own investment firm, but he's also on the city council and running for mayor. When his parents suggest that he take a wife to soften his image and show his loving, compassionate side to voters, Jaxon is against it – until he saves Lucas Berry in exchange for the chance to have his sister Luana.
With Lucas being the reason Luana had the opportunity to even attend college, she feels obligated to help her brother during his time of need. So much so that when the choice is his freedom or her singleness she agrees to stand by Jaxon's side as his wife.
Jaxon and Luana have one goal – to prove to the world that they love each other before election day. Neither desire real love, especially from each other, but the more time they spend together the more they realize love is no respecter of persons, time, deals and enemies made, or hearts that intend to be saved.
Secret Miami Nights (Millionaire Moguls) by Pamela Yaye
His passion is like no other
Everything has come easily to Ashton Rollins, the handsome, überwealthy heir to an aeronautics empire and president of the Millionaire Moguls. The only thing his riches can't do: help Ashton put a tragic accident behind him. Petite, sexy Haley Adams is the first woman to truly intrigue him since he lost his fiancée. Until a secret about that long-ago night resurfaces and threatens his picture-perfect world…
Haley's charity work is worlds away from Ashton's palatial home and jet-setting lifestyle. He's introducing her to fabulous vacations, exquisite cuisine—and a simmering seduction that leaves her craving more. As power struggles within the Moguls collide with family revelations, Ashton realizes that Haley's the one thing he can't bear to lose. But is she willing to stake everything on the enigmatic man behind the fantasy?
In the Market for Love by Joy Avery
Every passion has its price
The devastatingly attractive stranger who walks into Tender Hearts Memorial Hospital instantly raises red flags for Vivian Moore. The ER nurse's worst fears are confirmed when she discovers who he is: the real estate developer rumored to be snatching up many of the properties in her old neighborhood. And Vivian is sure his passionate pursuit is just a front for the prize Alonso Wright is really after—her beloved childhood home.
Alonso is committed to building a community-events center that will be a lasting monument to his grandfather's memory. The only thing keeping him from fulfilling his dream is the compassionate, guarded beauty who refuses to negotiate. If he fails, Alonso stands to lose a significant investment. But once he gives in to his desire for Vivian, he could lose something far more precious. As a hurricane batters the North Carolina coast, an unscrupulous business associate threatens to derail Alonso's future, which now means nothing without Vivian to share it with him…
The Pleasure of His Company (Miami Strong) by Lindsay Evans
A taste of paradise
For two weeks each year, Kingsley Diallo puts aside his responsibilities as CEO of a multibillion-dollar company and heads to Aruba. It's his chance to surf, unwind and enjoy the anonymity of just blending into a crowd. Then one day he sees Adah Palmer-Mitchell on the edge of the beach and wants to make a meaningful connection with her. Instinct tells him she's keeping a secret, but the stunning island setting and Adah's sensual beauty are an irresistible combination…
Disillusioned by romance, Adah agreed to an engagement to bolster her parents' business interests. Suddenly that love-free arrangement is a sacrifice she's not sure she can make. Handsome, charismatic and confident, Kingsley awakens her dormant desires, tantalizing her with the possibility of a passionate future. As their dangerous game of attraction escalates, can she choose between family loyalty…and the call of her heart?
If there are any new releases that we missed, feel free to send them our way and we will add them ASAP!