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|the blog zone
travels in India over the winter, 2007-8
03. Mar 2008The right note to end on
Three days in a "coco house" on the beach in Goa wouldn't have been my choice for wrapping up the trip most years, but after Hampi I felt like some time by the coast again. A train from Hampi took me to Margao, my previous launchpad for stays in south Goa. Panjim was only two hours away, and it would have been easy to get to Morjim/Aswem that same evening, but I felt like seeing the Portuguese quarter of Fontainhas in Panjim again (after a gap of twenty years), and anyway, Panjim has some good riceplate restaurants.
The new Siolim bridge makes access to beaches across the Chapora river (Morjim, Aswem, Mandrem) rather easier than before. Of course, this cuts both ways; change is happening rapidly in this part of Goa (it seems driven by Russian property speculators), rather like the beachfront cluttering I've witnessed in south Goa since the late eighties. Nonetheless, Morjim made a pleasant and uncrowded change from beaches such as Agonda and Patnem in the south, and I found the Goan Cafe (one of the original two accommodation options on this beach) a friendly and peaceful spot.
Here's a view from my balcony in the early morning:
By chance, my visit coincided with the full moon and the period of low tide was bang in the middle of the day. This meant that walking beyond Aswem and Mandrem to Arambol was straightforward on the wide stretches of sand and low inflowing streams. Most of my time was in fact continuing the passion for walking that had begun in the nipping chills of Uttarakhand three months before, and gone on through Rathambhore and Hampi.
The heaped riceplates I'd devoured in Karnataka were now only a memory, and soon the baking sunshine and gentle swooshing of waves on white sands would also be alive as mere memories and virtual stacks of digital photographs.
18. Feb 2008
What's Hampi like, then?
The sacred site of Hampi was somewhere I went prepared to be come away from with disappointment. Well, how many travel recommendations have you followed and found them to be everything you were promised? That's right, most likely about two. In my case the Taj Mahal and Uttarakhand would be those two. Now I have another to put on the list – Hampi.
The approach to the site from Hospet was less than promising – a dreary road with heavy traffic, and at a railway crossing, there were two rather heavy, Nordic-looking male tourists who seemed to be helping their autorickshaw driver push it over the bumpy lines. My own autorickshaw driver provided a helpful commentary as we passed areas of cultivation: bananas over there, coconut trees, see the sugar cane growing in that field… I told him that I did know about things like banana and coconut trees already.
Hampi is breathtaking. The first view of the river, with the sacred ford and ghats leading down to it, is a memory I'll keep forever. I stayed on the other side of the river but made the boat crossing each day to explore. One day I came across the Virupaksha temple's elephant, Lakshmi, who I was told was just 20 years old. She had been having her daily bath at the river and her mahoot was riding her back up to the temple. For such a heavy animal, she trod the stone steps up from the riverside ghat with a lot of elegance and power.
There are many things to like about Hampi – the peace, the
serendipitous quality to your wanderings (to come across an unvisited ruin away
from the usual crop of popular sites was especially nice), the large number of
birds, even fellow travellers. At this time of year, the sun begins to
strengthen, but each day I found somewhere to sit in the shade and eat the
little picnic lunch I had brought with me:
At the top, the temple is small and unpretentious but attractive. The monkeys (I only saw Rhesus macaques) are somewhat combative, but didn't trouble me, even though two baby monkies eyed my sunglasses a few times, those same sunglasses which had been snatched expertly from my face in Shimla by Jakoo Hill monkeys a few years earlier. It's a superb viewpoint, especially if like everyone else you go to take photos on the rocky area painted liberally with signs warning "Entry forbidden. Restricted zone. No entry. Photography prohibited." This is India!
Back down at river level, a quick way back from the Hanuman temple – if you are staying on the Hampi bazaar side of the river – is to take a coracle from a crossing near the Agni temple. Bargaining is very much in order here, as you face a long walk to the regular boat crossing if you can't arrange a suitable price. The coracles look totally in keeping with the landscape.
Those fellow travellers gave me plenty of entertainment, of the type you might find in "travellers' centres" all over India. It's something about the clash of cultures when traditional meets Western, the pretension of being in a place with a lot of other pretentious people pretending we are all doing this for the first time anyone has ever tried it, and the bullshit babbled when in the company of those who don't criticise. Here are some young people performing yoga on the lawn of my guesthouse, oblivious to the ladies behind them taking a lunchbreak from thinning rice shoots in the paddy fields. Imagine it in motion – the Westerners are bumping their hips up and down, making "aah" sounds to match…
16. Feb 2008
Thereby hangs a tale…
'Tis but an hour ago since it was nine,
I wasn't exactly rotting from hour to hour while waiting in Hospet, but it was a tedious time to be on hold. The President of India was visiting Hampi and I'd timed my visit to coincide exactly with hers. No tourists allowed to stay overnight in Hampi. Well, how to use up the time I had to stay? The town itself ("charmless" according to my Rough Guide to India) can be explored in half a day, and there's only so much time I could spend in restaurants eating the admittedly excellent riceplate meals. Some context for the situation of the Tungabhada river came through my Sunday cycle outing to the Tungabhada reservoir and dam. By Monday, the decks were clear for visitors to stay in Hampi.
So about those tales… well, actually tails are what I want to talks about. The grey langur monkeys in Hampi impressed me – as they do every time I see such animals – with their graceful tails. Held in a gentle loop above their back when they walk, the tails are long, furry and constantly active, whether for balance or climbing (they can grip with them, and literally hang from a tail). In my photo, the baby's tail seems enormous compared to its body size.
Humans lost their tails many millions of years ago – but how would the world be if we still had them?
As a part of the body near to the genitalia and buttocks,
tails would probably be seen as shameful things to display uncovered, and no
doubt certain religions would want all human tails coiled up and strapped away
to hide their very existence. Those cultures which sanctioned the showing of
tails would probably also adorn them – tail covers would be big sellers in the
shops, and rapidly changing fashions in tail accessories would be a major
interest for many, and a source of vast revenue for some. It wouldn't matter at
all that the tails were practically useless for urban life (after all, what's
the use of hair on the head most of the time, yet it still attracts interest
with its potential for style and colour embellishments), but some breakaway
groups would embrace a return to tree-based life, where tails have a definite
advantage for climbing. No doubt tail aerobics and yoga would be available to
those wanting to develop prehensile tails. Martial arts combat matches using the
tails to fight with would be available on at least ten different cable TV
channels. I could even visualise tail transplants, enlargements and reductions
being offered, while medical tourists would flock to India as the centre of
surgical tail enhancement at affordable prices.
10. Feb 2008
Hey, Pratibha, your shoes are unlaced!
When the president of India looks in on Hampi, most of Hampi's residents are removed. This includes rhesus monkeys, famous for scampering around the rocky monuments, stray cows and all of the tourists staying in Hampi's sixty or so lodges. Shipped out, in the case of the monkeys, to large holding cages in nearby Hospet. Tourists had an only marginally less gruelling exclusion, as the evacuation of Hampi led to great pressure on hotels in Hospet.
Now, the ancient piled stones of this ruined city in South India are well known as a venue for Pakistani terrorist training camps, which explains why over two thousand police were moved to the area for Mizz Prez's visit. President Patil herself made a flying visit, literally, in an army helicopter, broke a coconut on a lingam and threw some flowers at grateful, pot-bellied priests.
None of these security steps is less than George Dubya would demand and expect, probably (in fact, in his case, throw in an aircraft carrier or two in the Indian ocean). Yet the sight of this grown woman and her husband, being helped on with their shoes after visiting a temple ground into me like an irritating beggar. The picture – carried by many Indian newspapers the day after her Hampi visit- seemed to touch a raw nerve with Indians as well, best expressed by this correspondent to the Deccan Herald:
I'd be really ignoring reality if I excluded travellers from the criticism of
those who take advantage of gratuitous comforts which piss all over the rights
of others. Think of just about anywhere in the southern region of India popular
with low-budget travellers. What do you see? That's right – horrible,
insect-like motorbikes, revving and spewing black fumes into the air of an
otherwise peaceful Goa back road/ Kovalam street/ Hampi laneway.
30. Jan 2008
Banana barrow boys in Margao
It's interesting to take a look in the warehouses scattered around Station Road in Margao, the main city in south Goa. Amongst the charcoal collection yards and spice houses are buildings dedicated to receiving the large numbers of bananas which are sold each day. I went in one and talked to the men working there. They showed me the large "arms" (my word, there must be a proper term for the long stems of hundreds of bananas), which weigh a good twenty kilos each:
The cost of one "arm" for me to buy? About thirty Euros. Sampling of the different types was compulsory. I'm not greatly taken with the Indian variety of banana, and buy them only when ill or when there's no other choice of eatable (I find them too slimy; the Carribean variety has a more delicate flavour to my palette, but I know plenty of travellers who love Indian bananas). However, I could easily tell the difference between the "good" and "best" quality fruits I was given to sample by the friendly men. This man has three different quality of bananas on his barrow – without a grounding in basic bananogenics, a traveller just arrived would think all were equal, and wonder why the bunch she's taken home for a snack were so acidic…
The men load their barrows each morning and push them to key intersections on the roads. Buyers come on motorbikes, or on foot and purchase ten or twenty bananas at a time. Each bunch is wrapped carefully in newspaper and (if you want) popped into a plastic carry-bag.
20. Jan 2008
Branson's clockwork dog crosses Atlantic floor
My strapline, coming as it does from British TV's 1994 The Day Today, could hardly go wrong. Those watching the unfolding story of British PM Gordon Brown's China visit will have been struck by the absolute lack of any critical words from him on human rights abuses in the country, the Tibet issue, or of the throttling of voices of dissent on the Internet and elsewhere. Brown's plans for ID cards in four years will move British democracy closer to the Chinese model, anyway. The appropriacy of the quote shone out at me when seeing the story as carried by BBC World TV. They dwelt lovingly and lengthily on the trade delegation travelling with sag-jawed Brown, foremost being the poster child of 80s and 90s Thatcherism, Richard Branson.
Less prominent in the news was the fact that some prime Malana went up in smoke in early January. The historic village of around 1000 people, some of whom claim direct lineage from Alexander's Macedonian army, was 60% destroyed by fire, with more than 150 houses gutted.
The cost of rebuilding has only included replacing the wooden houses with modern, concrete boxes, but even then it has been put in the region of 120 million rupees. The precious gold and silver ornaments and valuable idols dating back centuries are of course priceless
Joke: Why did it take the residents of
Malana 36 hours to extinguish the fire?
Those who say the fire spells the end of the famous "cream" production are probably scaremongering. If anything, financial ruin to Malana's villagers will mean the expansion of the area planted, even in the face of police actions which involved torching a lot of the crop in four successive years from 2003.
14. Jan 2008
The "foot
holiday" has begun!
Indian Railway station signage has its own unique grip on the use of English, of course, and my current favourite is Foot Over Bridge (FOB). This sounds to my ears less like a pedestrian footbridge than a unique way of using the feet. The bridge itself appears from the name to take on a slightly specialised function. Who ever heard of a "rail over bridge" or a "canal over bridge"? Most likely there are none, not even in Indian Railways gazetteers.
Yet we are invited as passengers to cross the lines with the foot over bridge, instead of a footbridge. Often – as it was on Sawai Madhopur station – the arrow points the way with a cryptic message so: "Platforms 2-5, F.O.B" Do there even exist FUBs (foot under bridges, pedestrian underpasses)? Perhaps, in unfamous parts of Orissa, there might even be found LOBs (leg over bridges), but I wouldn't go defrauding a bank to prove my point. In any event, Sawai Madhopur is such a compact station that you can cross platforms most times using the hole in the fence near the end of the last platform. Many locals I saw were doing this, giving a thumbs under down to the foot over bridge concept.
Feet need vacations too, of course, and after mine had been pummeled into shoes and stinky socks for six weeks – and the last stretch to Goa, when a missed train connection meant 48 hours in shoes without a break, they leapt for joy when peeled of coverings and able to walk on the naked, steaming sands in Goa. I really said to myself, "The foot holiday has begun!"
13. Jan 2008
Sir Ed
The name of Edmund Hillary first came to my ears during a community relations visit by the police to my school, when I was about nine years old. They showed a grainy, black-and-white film of his expedition with Vivian Fuchs (and how we all giggled at that name) across Antarctica to the South Pole. Even though we couldn't imagine what the ice continent would be like, the pictures of Snowcats crossing crevasses was inspirational.
A hotel room in the Australian Snowy Mountains' village of Adaminaby was the unlikely setting for my catching the film of Hillary's Ocean to Sky expedition. It was aptly timed; I was travelling to Asia and had a fascination for the sacred sites along the Ganges.
I keenly felt Sir Ed's comments about the "ecological slum" that the Khumbu valley had turned into since his first visit in 1951; I could only mourn the loss of "the dense forest around Tengboche, alive with colourful birds and nervous musk deer" on my 1980s and 90s treks to the region.
Now the great man is gone; he is sorely missed. Those who value mountainous places, the Sherpa people of Nepal, sustainable development and straightforward talking have lost someone who felt like a personal friend.
11. Jan 2008
this fogging delay all about?
That delay mention in the previous post led to the Golden Temple mail – taking me from Sawai Madhopur to the city of Mumbai – being four hours late arriving in Mumbai's Dadar station, where my connecting train to Goa had left over two hours earlier It was a gamble I played, as regular travellers to these parts will know that trains are often delayed at this time of year by thick fog hanging over the N Indian plains until midday. Nonetheless, I'd previously made the same connection without drama in January, 2006.
The station master in Mumbai Central endorsed my ticket with a stamp detailing the late arrival, something I knew was needed to obtain a refund on the onward ticket. I made my way by taxi through now walking-speed, stop-start traffic to Churchgate reservation office, where I explained what had happened to the kindly woman handling tourist reservations. I was prepared to invoke the Emergency Quota (which worked once for me in Kochi) in order to get a place on a train leaving the same day, but this wasn't needed. By shelling out about twenty Euros, I would get a berth on the 11pm departure to Margao, travelling in (for me) stylish 2AC (air-conditioned, two-tier) class.
Having this ticket also entitled me to use the "air-conditioned class" waiting room in CST station. I found the room a cut above the upper-class waiting room at New Delhi station (which I have blagged my way into countless times over the years), with a flatscreen TV on one wall, glass-topped tables, subdued lights and a decent bathroom. With twelve hours' leisure in downtown Mumbai at my disposal, I needed a friendly waiting room.
First a look and a sit in the "General Waiting Room," where
the entertainment came not from satellite TV, but two men slowly painting and
repainting the ceiling with what seemed to be very watery whitewash, arranging
the seating to avoid drips. This room had no AC but fresh air, which owing to
its location at the side of the station, wasn't at all stinky.
I liked the feel of this seaward edge of Mumbai, but it was certainly a different India to walk off an international flight into, compared to Delhi's Pahar Ganj district – the northern portals' backpacker centre. Mumbaikers I saw later in restaurants seemed more sophisticated and relaxed than their Delhi counterparts. Wealth wore on them with an enhancing effect and less like spoils grabbed hungrily.
08. Jan 2008
The tiger Sanctuary of Ranthambhore
Ranthambhore is Rajasthan's most popular destination for tiger watchers. Yet following my dawn patrol around the track in a 20-seater truck looking for large striped cats, it was renewing my relationship with the surrounding countryside the next day by bicycle and on foot that gave me more of the feel of the place. From Ranthambhore Fort, a vista of two lakes was tempting enough for a closer look.
My bicycle was actually roomboy Hamraj's shopping
cycle and featured fully functional brakes on the front only. I parked it before
the final climb to the fort. A handy guard post with soldier in attendance was
nearby; simply leaving the bike there for a few hours was less simple than it
could have been. What time was he leaving?
Ten forty eight! Now things in India run to the minute, especially in a relatively remote place like Ranthambhore. I explained as best I could to the man ("Is English problem," he said) that it was a pity he was leaving, but that it really was still acceptable if the bike were unguarded but parked away from the main road. There would still be significant deterrent effect from the proximity to a military guard post and in any case the bike was a rusted heap that I wouldn't go into cardiac arrest to find had been pushed into the lake upon my return.
It was settled. I locked the bike and walked.
Some views within and around the fort:
05. Jan 2008
Fresh, New Year
Rather like the rush for supermarket bread before a long weekend, it's back to normal supply in Kausani once the few days of holiday peak pass. Pressure from New Year's Eve celebrations had led to the better hotel rooms in the popular hill station being booked out when I'd arrived at the end of December, so I was forced to stay in less than ideal surroundings. I never book rooms in advance, and this was the penalty I paid.
the weather's cool - here it's freezing or slightly cooler in the early hours - I'm
always out of bed later than eight in the morning;
having the early sun shining through the window is the best alarm clock. However, patrons
of the hotel's outdoor breakfast area found they needed to be chomping their
onion omlettes and paratha before this. This area's floor was my ceiling, and
steel-legged chairs made a painful awakening as they were scraped and dropped on
the rough concrete, two metres above my head.
30. Dec 2007
It's a blast in Bageshwar
People kept telling me, "You should stay here for the Mela!" By this they meant the Uttarayani Mela, which would see lines of wetted bodies snaking down to the confluence of the river, probably humans numbering lakhs (hundreds of thousands). No, I'm just not that much into melas these days. Give me a high and whispering forest at midday in the warm wind, and you can keep your mass ablutions and Giardiasis.
Bageshwar made an interesting place to do a little walking around, and my first jaunt was to climb a nearby hill which gave a view down to the river and the hills over in the direction of Kausani, only around 20km away in a crow's-flight line:
I met two of the local women as I walked, they gathering wood
for cooking fires and browse for their buffaloes, me dithering about and peering
about for signs of a contouring path.
26. Dec 2007
Ridge barbers and rare barbarity
Ralph had arrived from a grey December in Wales for what I consider an unusual winter holiday. His time was to be a sandwich, in total just over two weeks. Around the filling was a thick crust which consisted of sitting around, getting stoned in the hills above Almora. The filling was three days in the high village of Munsyari, and a trek in the direction of Milam glacier.
Ralph was interesting, and you found yourself wanting to listen more and more carefully as he spoke in a gruff voice, always pitched at the limit of audibility. When he spoke his words, they were issued in the same way as sounds made through gargling with a cupful of cooked macaroni… We sat around talking over breakfast, waiting for the day to become warmed through, and for the mountains to glow fully in their garb.
One day, we walked down to Almora town together, on the road from Tara's restaurant to the beginning of the paved bazaar in town, which we both intended to visit for different reasons. We agreed that this stone-paved bazaar made Almora a special place for shopping – nobody bothered you, there was plenty of space, great views and a good variety of shops. However, I could never agree with Ralph's enthusiasm for having a blade shave at an Indian barbers shop. Getting a shave this morning had been Ralph's prime reason for a town trip. Shaving for me is an activity always closely related to severe wounding accidents: a nicked artery at the side of the nose, bleeding profusely, a fold of the lip sliced in mishap, that ear gash which left it attached only by ligaments. In Kausani later I even saw the high street barber leaning over his first customer of the morning with a sharpened blade bringing down the sunlight from the mountain tops. But wait – he was wearing a black leather jacket, unzipped, standing with one hand in his pocket. Nightmare pictures in monochrome follow many a dream on this theme…
My aim was to have a look around the market, get a new shirt and locate some Uttarakhand Rangolies (the originals are sand paintings – hard to carry home on an international flight; I was just looking for stick-on versions, particularly the stylised footprints which are symbols of the goddess Laxshmi).
22. Dec 2007
Some bugs about beds
None of the biological variety of bedbugs encountered yet, for which I am thankful, but my time in India so far has given me plenty of exposure to troublesome bed problems. Although not yet inflicted with a collapsing bed on this trip - as previously occurred twice in lodges in Nepal - noisy beds have followed me around Uttaranchal like a reputation for bad credit. The construction of the typical budget hotel bed fairly encourages noises, noises which the word creak doesn't begin to express. Thinnish plywood laid over as few as three cross-lattices, which flexes in the frame, rubbing stubby scratch-squeak edges on varnished frame wood.
An action as reduced as turning over in the sleeping bag releases a "nzeeek!" from the bed. If I sit up, release myself from the bag and swing my legs over the side of the bed to stand, it emits, "waaaag-kkk-nzeeeeg-kkk-weeeerg-zeeeeek!" One can only begin to fantasize what sounds would be produced by two heavily-pregnant women engaging in sex with an athletic dwarf. But only begin to fantasize, anything further would release those sonic alarms…
The beds' perennial undersize irritates me enormously, and bends my back and neck into ever more tight curves. The tallest man in the world was once a man from Rajasthan, I believe, yet Indian bed-builders are currently unable to cater to anyone over 1.8m. Being a good 15cm more than that means that I have to train a permanently embryonic posture. This also helps when entering low doorways (hey, but that's another grumble).
To avoid gantrying feet over the end of the bed, I mostly arrange to sleep
diagonally on double beds as a solution. This may or may not wreck any residual
Feng-Shui elements the room possesses, but this matters little. The
resulting stiff neck in a morning is much worse.
20. Dec 2007
From the midst of a golden winter
While oranges and lemons still cling to trees, the flat banana palms are
wilted and yellowed at the edges. You see frost on the ground in this part of
Uttarakhand most mornings now – thin dustings of cake-ice that stay until ten in
shaded areas in woodland and in people's gardens. Yet fickle conditions from the
sun's strength mean that locally-grown green peas and rock melons are in the
markets next to pumpkins and oranges. The ground is dry since the last monsoon
rains, but a few seasonal rainshowers keep it lightly sprinkled. There were two
of those a week ago.
27. Nov 2007
You lucky
packers – the easy guide
One year of packing to leave on this trip is pretty much like the last one. It has become fairly automatic, selecting what to include in my rucsac for a brief saunter around the northern hills followed by some time in the south during my three months in India. Such that packing is just about the final item on my "to do" list. But I will pass on some hints for anyone facing the packing process for the first time. These are in no way intended to supplant what's already in the ComPAQt FAQs elsewhere on this site – they are more like a sprinkling of afterthoughts to what I included on that page.
Obviously, once you've been there, you'll realise that nearly all of what you brought with you from home the first time could have been bought locally (in India, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Pakistan). So I'm saving my travelling clothes' purchase for somewhere like Khan Market in New Delhi, or maybe even further into the trip such as along the lanes of Almora's fabulous cobbled market. This means I arrive at the airport in fairly threadbare clothes on their last jaunt before being thrown into the rubbish or donated to a "rag-picker." You wouldn't want to chance lifting my bag, thinking there's a laptop inside! My toiletries, umbrella (if it's needed), medicines and pens also go into the "buy at destination" category. There are exceptions to this approach, though.
My nice new journal is better quality than any hardbound, plain paper book I have seen in an Indian stationers' shop, so I got this in Europe. There's a special lift it brings at the end of a day, writing my recollections and thoughts in the creamy pages of this fine, weighty and solid book while seated in some tiny restaurant – probably by candle light or torchlight, because the power failed before I left my hotel. It's a book which has to endure for many years of re-reading, so the seven Euros I spent on it (probably five times more than in India) I consider justified.
Talking of torchlight and power cuts… I learnt some time ago that a hand-held torch is pretty useless for most things. A headlamp is much more useful for finding your way along dark streets, cooking in a tent at night, reading or writing when all the hotel lights have extinguished in a "load-shedding" cut. A headlamp is more versatile and easier to carry than a hand-held torch. I use a very small Petzl white LED one, which runs on three AAA cells and has a battery life-time measured in days. I also take along spares for those AAAs, as the quality of these batteries is poor on the sub-continent.
I have never trusted locally bought sunscreen (and there have been stories of fiendish refilling of old tubes from leftovers in tourists' rooms in places like Goa, later sold as new in beachside shops), so packed a factor 25 tube of the patent goo from home.
Cold weather comfort (after dark in upland areas – I'm not planning any trekking for this trip) is important in quiet places where there is little to do after the evening meal except read and write. I am taking my new Merino wool underwear (a recent birthday present from a dear person) as insurance against evening chills when sitting around before bedtime where heating is either not provided or a bad idea (for example, only wood-burning heating in regions already suffering from deforestation is something I'd like to avoid). I had some of this style of underwear before (long-sleeved vest and long-johns) – and can testify to its effectiveness – but it was made from a polypropylene material which felt rather alien to the skin. The headtorch and underwear are shown below.
My favoured old walking boots are definitely in the bag, as is the wax waterproofing treatment to go with them. There's no way I would gamble on finding reliable memory cards for the camera at the right price, so I have a stack of these with me. They are so cheap right now, forty Euros gets any snap-oholic enough storage space for a couple of months, and in my case I also have SD card storage for an mp3 player, which can be wiped of music and used for photos as the trip progresses.
There's just over a week remaining in freezing Europe before I'm in Delhi. What a lucky little packer I am!


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Event: 'Twas the Night Before...2015
'Twas the Night Before... Hasbro Event (2015)
On October 7, 2015 fan media gathered at the Metropolitan Pavilion in New York City for Hasbro's annual pre-New York Comic-Con reveal. Since Hasbro no longer maintains a booth at Comic-Con this event serves as their way to get the word out to fans and media about upcoming products for the year. This year was easily one of the biggest in terms of "Transformers" reveals! This year focused on two segements, the continuation of "Robots in Disguise" and the "Generations" sub-line known as "Titans Return" (aka "Titan Wars"). Here's a break down of what I saw during this awesome event. To get your own look, check out my album from the event!
"Generations" Titans Return
The current "Combiner Wars" segment will be continuing into Spring of 2016. After that, the "Generations" line will transition to "Titans Return", which had earlier been called "Titan Wars" at Botcon 2015. There were three tables of figures from this line, here's a rundown of each:
Table One:
This table had Sky Reign, the combined form of Sky Lynx with the four upcoming Autobot limbs (including Smokescreen). Along with him was Skullcruncher (with Grax) and Nightbeat. Skullcruncher is a Deluxe Class figure with an amazing amount of detail. He comes with a blaster and tail weapon very much inspired by the G1 design. Grax transforms into his head and has knee and arm articulation. In beast mode, Skullcruncher has a cockpit in his back for Grax to sit in! Nightbeat is a Headmaster who comes with a small vehicle that seems to be inspired by the Drill Powerdasher from G1. Nightbeat can "pilot" this vehicle which in turn can transform into a weapon with a 5mm peg for larger figures. No word yet on whether Nightbeat will get a "proper" body.
It is interesting to note that the Hasbro team called all the Headmasters "Titan Masters", which they want to use as an all encompassing term for any type of 'Master figure in the line. For the sake of simplicity, I will continue to use the term "Headmaster" in this write up.
Table Two:
This table featured "Combiner Wars" Bruticus (with Shockwave attached), Voyager Class Galvatron, Deluxe Class Hardhead and Windblade from the SDCC set (she is not being re-released, she was just there because of her significance in the "Combiner Wars" story).
Voyager Class Galvatron is amazing. He looks like a perfect translation of the character from the movie to a more detailed and larger form that the character deserves. Galvatron transforms from his cannon mode to robot mode - but with a twist! This time out he is a Headmaster, partnered with "Nucleon". When you attach the head and open his chest panel, the "crown" swings up automatically over the head making for a dynamic transformation. Want another level of coolness? The Headmaster is designed to look like G1 Megatron. Don't read too much into this, it's more of a visual Easter Egg than anything else.
Hardhead is a thing of beauty. He looks just like the G1 character and toy - but choc full of more detail. His Headmaster is named Duros and he has a cockpit in vehicle mode. Even better? His large grey cannon has an additional cockpit to seat another Headmaster figure!
Table Three:
Table Three was perhaps the table with the most to offer (though the first two were pretty damn spectacular). This table featured Leader Class Blaster! It also featured several characters who transform into "Smartphones" (instead of cassettes) who could interact with Blaster as well as more Titanmaster (aka Headmaster) action. Accompanying these "Titans Return" figures was the Generation 2 themed Menasor figure in all its pastel glory.
Like his G1 counterpart, Blaster's chest pops open at the press of a button, but instead of cassettes, he now has "smartphones" that fit into his chest. The one included with the figure won't transform, but it can act as a vehicle for the smaller Headmaster figures. Other figures that can transform include Buzzsaw and Stripes (a relatively obscure Japanese character) who will transform from a smartphone to another mode (like a bird for Buzzsaw) and even vehicle forms (Stripes is technically a triple changer, going from smartphone to jet to beast). These figures will be sold at a "Legends" price point. I'm really excited about the possibilities here. Swap a few parts out and one that was a bird could be a flying Pterodactyl or a feline could be a canine! For those wondering, Rewind is indeed in my photos and he becomes a robot, smartphone and tank! He even has G1 inspired stickers on his back which look amazing. I would expect he will be given a new deco as Eject at some point down the line.
Blaster is an amazing piece of work. There's no other way to put it. Blaster is a Leader Class figure that transforms from a "boom box" to a robot and then a base! The Titanmaster/Headmaster figures all have small holes in their feet that connect to tiny pegs on Blaster in base mode. He features Micromaster-esque ramps that can actually connect to other bases released in the toy line. Indeed, one of his sticker details comes directly from a G1 Micromaster set!
In robot form, Blaster is a Headmaster. His Headmaster's name is Twincast (G1 reference FTW). While the Headmaster gimmick does still involve the Headmaster's head going into a slot, the head can turn side to side! You'd think that articulation would be sacrificed for the triple changing feature, but nope, Blaster features about 17 points of articulation (there could be more, I only got to do a quick count). The only "standard" point of articulation sacrificed is the waist.
It's easy to get lost in the awesomeness of the base and robot modes, but Blaster's "Boom Box" mode is a thing of beauty. It has big speakers on the sides, a "tape deck" in the center and a handle on top - all details inspired by the G1 version. There are some amazing small details on the back. If you look carefully, he has a port for headphones (which fit real headphones), a USB port and a power button! I love little details like this and Blaster does not disappoint.
Some of you might be wondering "Who is that purple and grey dude who looks kind of like Squeezeplay?". That is in fact a figure based on Squeezeplay but his name (due to trademark reasons) is now "Crash Bash". He will be sold at the same price point as Terri-Bull and Nightbeat, but instead of a vehicle the Headmaster connects to a beast with two beast modes!
A quick note on the Menasor - it looked amazing in person. I've seen photos of course, but seeing him there in all his purple, blue, yellow, red glory was so great. The G2 fan in me was completely tickled. I can't wait to get that set!
Robots in Disguise
"Robots in Disguise" will continue into a new season. While there hasn't been an official press release about it, the term "season two" was used more than once this evening, and the "Arctic" theme of many of the figures might hint at something in that season (not sure what). The most important reveal were new Warrior Class figures including Decepticons! The first year of "Robots in Disguise" figures were very much lacking in the "Decepticon" department, and now the designers have more than made up for it. Quillfire, Thunderhoof and Fracture were all newly revealed Warrior Class figures and Hasbro mentioned there were some figures not being shown there, so expect more Warrior Class figures coming our way!
I would like to extend my gratitude to Hasbro and Hunter PR for inviting me to this event. It's always great to talk to the minds behind these awesome toys and get to hang out with fellow fans. Remember fans, tomorrow is the "Generations" panel at New York Comic-Con and I will be there to cover it, so stay tuned for more "Transformers" news for what's coming in 2016!

subset: commoncrawl


text:
TWO AM rambles
April 24, 2009, 2:22 am
Filed under: Life, Miscellaneous | Tags: Eclipse, Grease, Yi-Jin
Filed under: Life, Miscellaneous | Tags: Eclipse, Grease, Yi-Jin
At 2am in the morning,
- still suffering from my terrible sleeping schedule (sleeping at 2-4a.m. and waking up at 12-2pm)
- brooding over upcoming exams (I don't end until May 6th, damn U of T)
- trying to be productive by cleaning up my desk
- being proud of my brother's Grease performance tonight at VPCI as Vince Fontaine!
- craving for a fish fillet sandwich from Wendy's but they don't have it anymore !
- counting down the number of days until May 6th
- watching my dog sleep and snore, it can get amusing
- wanting to do more nifty & crafty projects
- becoming less and less coherent
- sleep is kicking in, but not after some "Eclipse" reading (and no I am not a hardcore fan)


text:
recently, a male friend of mine (let's call him Ted) was talking to me about how he identified with the feminine, yet was feeling called to step into his masculinity. he's a straight guy in his late 20's who has been deemed "too nice" for much of his life.
I'm all for men embracing their masculinity. many of my male clients find that learning more about masculine energy has innumerable positive effects in their lives (the same as women embracing more of the feminine). what I reminded Ted of, and want to remind you of also, is that while the feminine is soft and beautiful, it can also be fierce and powerful. the thing is, Ted was always identifying with the softer, more submissive side of femininity, which rubbed his desire for greater masculinity wrong. this doesn't have to be an either/or decision.
consider Kali, the Hindu goddess of empowerment and death. she is ferocious and passionate; she is the gentle mother and the fierce warrior. she is destructive, but only in service of recreation and transformation.
here, she is depicted with four arms and a skirt of human arms around her waist. she wears a garland of human heads and stands over her dead husband, Lord Shiva. in many traditions, she is worshiped as the Divine Mother or the pure essence of the feminine. very different image, right?
we all have masculine and feminine energies within us—no matter if you are a man or woman, straight, gay, transgender, etc…
as Marianne Williamson teaches, for heterosexual men and women, our "major" sexual energy is that of our gender. that is, a woman's major is feminine and a man's is masculine. Matt James, president of Kona University, teaches that whenever there is a problem in life, there's most likely an imbalance of sexual energy. this is apparent nowhere more than in relationships. my relationship (and my life as a whole) works best when I am in my feminine and my partner is in his masculine.
the point is to embrace more of a holistic perspective of masculine and feminine energies—the strong, empowered feminine and the gentle, protective masculine. this will serve you far more than attempting to fit into the box of what pop culture personifies as masculine or feminine.


text:
Notice: On April 23, 2014, Statalist moved from an email list to a forum, based at statalist.org.
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Re: st: ado file help
daniel klein <firstname.lastname@example.com>
Re: st: ado file help
Tue, 14 Aug 2012 17:45:59 +0200
-syntax- does not look backwards, but offers a convenient way to check
whether what the user specifies are actually valid variable names in
the current dataset. That does not suck at all, once you understand
it. Feel free to specifiy -namelist- instead of -varlist- and do the
checking "by hand" later on, e.g.
pr dd
vers 12.1
syntax [namelist] , STARTdate(str) ENDdate(str) BROKERid(numeric)
<load the data>
if ("`namelist'" == "") loc namelist _all
cap unab varlist : `namelist'
if (_rc) {
<do whatever you want to do, if namelist contains invalid
variable names>
else {
<do whatever you want to do if namlist conatains all valid
variable names>
in this code, 2 variables are created namely var1 and var2. So, I want
to create a dataset using syntax options, which I did. I would also
like to have the flexibility of drawing graphs of the variables I want
( say for example tsline var1 or var2 or both) or list the
variables(say for example list var2 or var2 or both ) for that
matter. What really sucks is syntax's limitation to only look
backward. As I said, I could have syntax statement after creating
dataset( and I am sure that wouldn't be that hard) but for this
particular example, I need to define it before to create datasets on
first place.
Note: I am very careful to not use any abbreviation while posting ):
example for eg.
* For searches and help try:
* http://www.stata.com/help.cgi?search
* http://www.stata.com/support/statalist/faq
* http://www.ats.ucla.edu/stat/stata/


text:
Watch: Boeing's giant Echo Voyager UUV starts sea trials
Boeing's extra large unmanned undersea vehicle (XLUVV), the 51 foot (15 meter) long Echo Voyager, has started sea trials off the coast of Southern California, the company announced.
Boeing test engineers are checking the vehicle's communications, autonomy, propulsion, systems integration and the vehicle's battery operation with a mix of surface swims and shallow dives.
Initial testing was done in Boeing's Huntington Beach facility where Echo Voyager was tested in a large pool before being trucked to the Pacific.
According to Boeing, the 51-foot-long vehicle will not only be autonomous while underway, but it will also be launched and recovered without the support ships that normally assist UUVs.
The ocean testing is critical to Echo Voyager's success because under water autonomy has a higher level of difficulty, the company explained. Once Echo Voyager submerges for a long distance swim it is completely on its own.
"Unlike an aerial vehicle, or a satellite where you can communicate with it when it's in trouble, with subsea vehicles you can't do that because of the communication," said David Flowers, Boeing Program Manager of XLUUV Development. "So autonomy is that much more important. The vehicle has got to understand what to do if it gets in trouble, make rule-based decisions and act in a way that allows it to stay safe and complete its mission."
The vessel can be used for surface intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, as a weapon platform or a mine countermeasures vessel among other capabilities listed.
Boeing said this initial testing will continue leading up to Echo Voyager's first deep water long endurance run. Watch the video below to see Echo Voyager in open water.


text:
"The Ups and Downs of NYC"
Since growing up between two of the largest cities on the east coast, one being Philadelphia and the other New York, you would think I would be familiar or at the very least comfortable with them. Actually that is the furthest from the truth as I grew up in the pines of south jersey, so visiting anything with more than 2 stories was both illuminating and many times quite confusing. When traveling to the city of choice for this post, "NYC", I relied on the calm but monotonous one and a half hour ride on a train which would deposit me at Penn Station in Manhattan. This put me right in the center of where my quest to document 4 visits to this urban oasis would be fulfilled.
My first trip took me to lower Manhattan's financial district. The structures and how the light reflected on them truly fascinated me. Peering up and down the streets and trying to make a connection with my camera was a task that was made easier by one of my guides, meet-up planer/photographer Martin Joffe. He had made special arrangements to shoot inside the "Woolworth" building. When I stepped inside this place, I was immediately sent back in time, where money translated to some of the most opulent decor one could imagine. The juxtaposition of the old to more modern architecture, was eye-opening to say the least.
The next visit to NYC was to shoot in Chinatown and my guide would be street/portrait photographer DC Fahsbender. Imagine the street noise and traffic of a big city combined with the unknown elements of a different country. The signs, language and most of the people being of a different culture, brought my lens to a place, both old and new. While I walked up and down the narrow streets of the many shops, I felt swept along by a current of people. By inviting the culture of this place in, I was able to slow down and click away.
A little further over would take me to the East Village, with its mix of old and new, which was evident from its late 19th century architecture to the present. The hispanic flavor of this part of the city was apparent just by viewing the restaurants and hearing the rhythmic music that echoed down many of the small cross streets. My lens once again gravitated to the people, whether they were engaged in a pickup basketball game or played dominos on the sidewalk.
Last, but not least, would be my trip to the Williamsburg Bridge and its namesake on the other side. Walking across, while overlooking the traffic and parts of the city, was not a sight to be missed. The pace of the people riding bikes and driving over this bridge was perilous at times, unless you stayed on the right side of the yellow line. From the view up high, to the street art down below, this section of town had me using pan blurs and structural composition to express my take on a walk across a busy city bridge.
Upon looking back at my little adventures to the Big Apple, I would not have changed a thing. I met some wonderful people and had great knowledgeable guides to help point which way was uptown or downtown and… which way was home. Although I would not trade where I live, the experience of urban life certainly made my camera happy.
"Bringing an Asylum Back to Life"
When visiting a place that has any history I always try to find the back story and related articles that can shed light on the subject. Letchworth Village is one such place. It is located in Rockland County, NY which for me was about a 2 and a half hour drive from my South Jersey home. While driving, I ran through some facts about my destination in my mind so I could better visualize the place, and try to figure out how to document it when I arrived. Opened in 1911 as a state of the art facility for the mentally ill, it closed in 1996 amid documented abuse of the patients and staff. Like many of the facilities from this time, the word asylum was to offer sanctuary and protection for its patients, but over time this shelter became a house of horrors for many. For me, growing up and reading the after effects of these places, the word "asylum" took on a whole other dark and menacing connotation.
After finally arriving, I had wanted the day to be gloomy and overcast, so to set the mood and background to what I perceived my experience would be. A little disappointed, I was greeted with a beautiful sunrise and bright skies. The initial look and feel of the place was anything other than beautiful. The buildings and grounds showed the decay and overgrowth that I had expected. What was unexpected was the way the ivy created a brilliant backdrop of different shades of red, yellow and orange. This impact of color, along with the decay, let my mind travel in a different direction. Suddenly the colors complemented the decay and changed the mood from melancholy to a more uplifting outlook on this place. Exploring, by myself and with other photographers, the many buildings and fall colors became a driving force in helping me find the beauty that existed in the exterior of this so-called sanctuary. Finding refuge from the bright outside light in a huge 3 story power plant, I began to feel its dark side only to be startled by the almost heavenly, broken and dirt stained windows. Again and again the light and colors blurred the lines between the past and the present.
This dichotomy of decay, sunlight,fall colors and disturbing history brought an almost uplifting shift to my compositions. I can't thank Marty Joffee of AIP enough for making this available to us and also letting me shed a different light on the often horrendous side to the word "Asylum ". Depending on our perspective, we can dwell on the "what was" or, as I hope my photos will help you, choose to view the beauty of life and "what is".
" Sakura Festival "
Sakura, in Japanese culture, translates to 'Cherry Blossom'. This festival was scheduled to happen at a special park in Philadelphia. With my interest and curiosity tweaked, I decided to try and capture it through my lens.
drums beating in time
maidens twirling and frozen
slow meticulous
The atmosphere of a festival can be both intoxicating and informative, especially one from a different culture than what I grew up in. Suddenly all that is foreign, becomes a reality into which one can immerse their senses.
bright circular fans
smiles and rhythms flow with pride
a past brought to life
While walking from one end of the park to the other, trying to catch each event can become a challenge, but the subconscious snap of my mind and shutter revealed its own rewards.
luminescent ripples
the essence in a single pond
zen like images
The aura and satisfaction that a few hours away from home can bring to ones soul helped me develop a more trans-formative outlook on the world… lets pass it forward!!!
"Just Horsing Around"
Long ago, man domesticated and trained horses for both work and pleasure. Although in time, their use in today's economy has been diminished by machines, we still have the pleasure of viewing their grace and beauty in various sports. Along with their powerful size and fluid movement, one can't help but be drawn in by their soul-searching eyes. With that kind of compelling 'bait', this year I eagerly attended three different horse events: Jumping (Saugerties, NY), Polo (Brandywine, PA), Racing (Wilmington, DE).
First up, horse jumping…. I have never before been exposed to the immense size of these horses. The grace and power of being able to lift their weight and also a rider, seemed effortless. In order to prepare shooting the actual event, I used the warm up ring to time and find the right angles. The light in the competition ring was overhead and very challenging, as was finding the right position to try and keep out background clutter. The movement from one jump to the other was like anticipating a quiet storm. The approach was slow and calm but then a blast of power was emitted only to ease back into a methodical trot.
Next up the sport of Polo… not knowing the sport was the first hurdle, but the hardest was yet to come. I set out to find an engaging spectator, one whom I could ask questions. The questions just spilled out from this rookie… how do they score, which way does each team go, are their time limits etc? All were answered with a great sense of knowledge and pride by a duo I had accosted who were also proud parents to two of the riders. I found out the teams came from all over, even as far as Argentina, and when in the US they play in a circuit that takes them from the east to the west coast. My quest began when I tried to find the right combination of action and develop a personal connection. The easy part was the side to side, back and forth movement of the teams. The hard part, as usual in team sports, is to isolate the subject to get a unique connection with the sport and its participants.
Last, but not least was horse racing… not a betting man myself, I was befriended by one who does on a regular basis. I found out about the weight of jockeys and how it plays a part in what the horse carries. The horses also raced on dirt and an inside grass course. Getting a shot of the inside of the track took a lot of 'up, down and under' rail maneuvering. The riders, owners and horses seemed to have a connection when racing but when finished, I did not find a loving relationship or bond like in the previous venues. I believe this was in part due to the money being spent and the very high-strung nature of the horses. This was evident especially when they finished a race, as many horses just wanted to keep going. Timing was key to almost all shots here, as you would place yourself in one position for each race and compose frantically as they blew by.
An intimate connection to the horses was not achieved in these outings as I originally thought would happen. I believe this had to do with each being a viewer's sport while the deeper connection would exist with the people who raised and trained them. For me this heart-felt, soul-searching event would have to happen at a later time when my interaction with these noble animals would not just be play but on a more personal level. As I viewed my pictures, the competitive-nature of this magnificent animal is apparent, but if you look more closely… you can get the feeling he is just 'horsing around' with us.
Dance- "Life's Musical Instrument"
Dancing is something I only dream I could pull off, but when utilizing photography, it becomes a different story altogether. By combining inspiration from Lois Greenfield (dance photography), Frank Veronsky (portrait), Denise Ippolito (creative-motion) and some street cred from DC Fahsbender, this has become my second attempt at shooting dancers. To give you a small snippet of what this involves, I would like to break it down for you. The recipe… throw 6 professional dancers into a narrow but high ceiling bowl (room) is key, as they need room to breathe (jump). Next, set up lighting and camera… the camera is very old school, meaning you get only one click before you have to reset the shutter… this is where personal taste and timing come into play. Tether this camera to a computer with a screen to sample (view) the results. As you can see, there are a lot of ingredients that are needed, including the right combination of music, movement and intuition.
Magic seems to happen when you start to feel both the music and a dancer's interpretation. Timing, and an awareness of what will happen next, is what turns an almost shot into a perfect capture. This capture is what is very hard to connect with, as it only appears in milliseconds. If you could see my out-takes, you would fully understand how fleeting this is. The joy I get, is interacting with the dancers to create that moment. With no background in dance, I have to rely on my quick finger and an eye for composition.
When finished, I am able to open up the captures in my digital darkroom and discover what a dancer's movements have created. Their forms react to the environment, and with a leap, twist or spin, their human core emits a note that is just as perfect as when played on an instrument. That sound (moment) is caught and then processed to create my own composition. I hope my photographs help you both see and hear the beauty in LIFE's dance.
"Recreating Our History"
To be so dedicated to one thing can sometimes be isolating… unless, you are a re-enactor of a bye gone time. Whether it be a huge piece of history or just a small intimate moment, to the enthusiast it seems just like yesterday. Their wealth of knowledge can be just as transforming as their choice of costume.
I had the privilege of shooting a piece of history at Jockey Hollow in Morristown, NJ as part of the Adventures in Photography meet-up group led by Boris Hardouin-Deleuze. While very small in contrast to a Civil War event which spanned several miles and had hundreds of participants, this firsthand event was no less important to the enthusiastic volunteers. Set during the Revolutionary War, the location depicted a small encampment, complete with tents and the life that transpired around it. The venue and time of day forced me to compose in small snippets rather than the grand scheme so often envisioned in large-scale events. I also choose to edit and develop my captures with a similar recipe. This recipe came about from experimentation and my inner vision of what the event spoke to me as a photographer. Through the use of filters in NIK software, and finishing touches in Lightroom, I was able to apply this to each of my compositions. While true to my vision, the actual events from that time period might take on a more drab, less polished and even dated place in history. This manipulation… recreating a past event, fits my vision and passion for documenting what was seen with what I envision my path in photography to be about.
Embracing My Softer Side
Inspiration, whether it be stumbled upon, pushed toward or forced into, can be a powerful motivator. My ever-increasing thirst for improvement led me to discover a photographer named Mike Moats. I was instantly pulled in by his compositions, both found and created, which he called "Tiny Landscapes". His laid back approach inspired me to look closer when shooting an event in the field and at home.
The next step in my learning how to walk, through this type of photography, came more like a big push… or 'shove' towards what was actually in front of me all along. This enlightenment came when I was privileged to attend a solo showing by fellow photographer Pat Worley. Her creative eye on what could be done with flowers, light and most of all one's take on art, was electrifying, to say the least. Seeing prints blossom from the almost mystical to up close and personal, was the final nudge for me to explore what I had overlooked in the past.
I jumped in with both feet, and a couple of not so gentle hands, by taking a workshop with Denise Ippolito. Two things drew me to this choice… one being the venue, Longwood Gardens, which was a place I had never shot or even visited, and the second being Denise. I knew she had a strong vision of what she liked to create, but what took me by surprise was how impactful this vision would be on my photography. The many teachable moments and discussions she presented, were priceless, as it opened my mind and lens to endless compositions. Denise, Joe and Lou led by example and guidance throughout this venture for me into a secluded, but extensive living environment. Their familiarity with the place, was enriched by them also being outstanding creatives themselves, helped me to find not just the standard shot, but forced me to look further and to think outside of my self-imposed box. The true test of any teacher / leader is not just about their portfolio, but what they can share and inspire in others… Denise is a true teacher.
Having been tripped, pushed and forced to see what others already knew about flower photography… this softening of my 'edges' has truly reinforced my mantra of to always be willing to grow and learn, but most of all… create.


text:
Judge Dismisses SEPA Portion Of Lawsuit Over WDFW Wolf Removals
A Thurston County Superior Court judge today ruled against out-of-state environmentalist groups targeting Washington's protocols for lethally removing problem wolves.
The Center for Biological Diversity of Arizona and Cascadia Wildlands of Eugene said the guidelines adopted in 2017 should have been evaluated under the State Environmental Policy Act and before three kill orders were issued last year, but Judge John C. Skinder dismissed their two claims to that effect.
In court papers, WDFW argued that taking out livestock-attacking wolves falls "squarely within several SEPA categorical exemptions" and pointed to state Supreme Court case law, state statutes and administrative codes.
The agency said that the organizations were misreading the act to try to include its wolf-livestock protocols, which guide nonlethal and lethal responses to attacks on cattle, sheep and other domestic animals, as part of the SEPA process.
WDFW's wolf management plan did go through the environmental review before it was adopted in 2011, and the protocols are said to "flow from" that document.
Even as it represents another court victory against those chivvying WDFW over its predator management, wolf policy manager Donny Martorello was subdued early this afternoon in response to Judge Skinder's decision.
"Our preference is not to be in court. I'm not a fan of winners and losers. I prefer the Wolf Advisory Group's collaborative process," he stated. "I concur that the judge's decision was concurrent with case history, concurrent with state statute and Fish and Wildlife Commission rules, and I think it's the right decision."
The lawsuit was filed last fall by the two pro-wolf organizations after agency Director Kelly Susewind issued authorizations to kill members of three packs that were depredating cattle in Ferry and Stevens Counties.
WDFW, CBD and Cascadia Wildlands agreed to drop a third claim over a kill permit that had been extended to a Togo Pack range rancher.
A fourth claim, a merits hearing on whether removals violate the state's Administrative Procedure Act, has not yet been scheduled, according to Martorello.
Killing wolves is a hot topic in Washington as WDFW attempts to balance recovering the species with the impact the animals have on local ranchers and herds.
Earlier this fall, Governor Jay Inslee told the agency to "make changes in the gray wolf recovery program to further increase the reliance on non-lethal methods, and to significantly reduce the need for lethal removal of this species" in Ferry County's Kettle Range.
The agency is currently in a public scoping period for what's important to hunters and other residents as it begins planning for postrecovery management of wolves in Washington.


text:
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
It's Been Too Long...
I've been busy playing with some Sass Lass I've been hoarding for a while. I covered an album and made a couple of layouts. I just love their papers! So fun and colorful--maybe it's spring fever too...
10 comments:
- Vanessa said...
I love the 'ugly cake' layout! What a wonderful memory this will be for years to come!
- March 19, 2009 at 12:01 PM
- Ania said...
*sigh* you do fabby layer-stuff!! :D Miss you!!! Soo busy - hopefully will be able to slow down some soon and get back to more bloghopping & stuff!! Hope life is treating you well!! *hugs* :)
- March 19, 2009 at 3:58 PM
- phamil said...
LOVE that album!!! You are just totally creative! I've been looking at that line and just can't think of what to do with it!!! You could scrap with flour and sugar bags and make it look good!!!
- March 19, 2009 at 7:16 PM
- Linda B said...
oooh love the album!
- March 19, 2009 at 9:03 PM
- Janinek said...
Love what you have done with that Album cover. Was it one of those American Craft Albums?
- March 22, 2009 at 8:28 PM
- milkcan said...
That binder is *amazing*! I love it!
- March 23, 2009 at 11:02 AM
- Sasha Farina said...
how do you get so many textures.. amazing works!!
- March 24, 2009 at 7:30 AM
- Jeni Boisvert said...
Gorgeous Cari! Way to work the Sass! ;)
- March 26, 2009 at 12:07 PM
- domestic goddess said...
oh wow hun, lovethe magic you have worked on the sassafrass!!
I am with you on work, just started working as a TA for a special needs school and i have so little time to do stuff!!
- March 26, 2009 at 2:02 PM
- Nina said...
Oh I love that album!!
- March 26, 2009 at 6:00 PM


text: |To great dismay some listeners noticed that our songs are at the moment not listenable on Spotify. Our previous distributor stopped business and we only got wind of this when our tracks where pulled offline. We are working to get a new distributor and hope to get our music online again as soon as possible! In the meantime some of our music can be found on our YouTube channel, where you can for example enjoy the Loose Tonight videoclip. We'll be back as soon as possible!


text:
Are you looking for best LED TV under Rs. 30000? If yes, then you must have lots of questions in your mind like which is the best brand to buy. Now days, television is an important part of our home and life. No matter, what's your age is, you cannot control yourself from watching your favourite movie, serial, cartoons or news channel on TV. LED TV requires small space for installation; you can install them on a wall and you can able to watch your favourite movies and shows without getting strained to your eyes.
There are so many manufacturers and brands in market, so it's really difficult to choose the best LED TV for your home. Just like laptops, smartphones and other electronic products televisions are also updated and come with latest technology & features. In order to make your task easy, we have shortlisted below 5 best LED TV under Rs. 30000 that offers good quality view and interesting features.
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So, if you love action movies, online gaming and looking for a LED TV that capture fluid movement, there is no other TV best than Sony BRAVIA KLV -32R412D in price range of Rs. 30000.
LG is another big brand and competitor in market. It has very good reputation, performance in Television world. Its reputation based on high quality products with greater performance and excellent picture quality. This LG TV is 32 inch in size and features full HD resolution with Triple XD engine and if we'll talk about quality it is not behind any other brand. LG 32LF581B LED TV has unbelievable sound, spiky quality and amazing performance. This LED TV also has other features like WI-FI, Smart Share, Intel WiDi, HDMI and USB ports. So, overall this LED TV is worth for money and has all smart features in budget of Rs. 30000.
It is 40 inch full HD TV and one of the brilliant features selling product in the market. With stunning picture quality, it has efficient LED backlighting ensures good quality images on a big screen. It consumes less power than other TV's and comes with headphone connectivity option in the form of 3.5 mm port. This VU Television comes with Twin HDMI ports and includes VGA port also. You can also connect your computer with this smart featured LED TV. Vu 40D6575 character a specially intended color optimizer element which ensures that viewers are with no trouble able to tell apart colors. The power supply requirement for this LED TV is 74-watts.
4) Samsung 32k5100 LED TV
Samsung is a big brand in LED TV market. It is known for well quality LED TV with wide range of products. With Samsung 32k5100 LED TV Enjoy clear and crisp Full-HD picture quality with 200 PQI through vibrant images delivered throughout Wide Colour Enhancer technology. Digital spotless View technology analyse the quality of the signal input to get better your viewing experience and deliver bigger picture quality. You can Share your photos and videos with your loved ones on Joiiii's big screen. For this you need to download the Smart View app, connect it and its ready to create fun. Concerned about dust insects, humidity distressing you're TV, now leaves it. Samsung 32k5100 LED TV gives you the solution for all this. It also protects you from electrical blackouts, lightning and viruses from useless files.
5) Philips 40PFL3750
Philips 40PFL3750 has Full HD widescreen with 1920 x 1080p resolution. It is the highest resolution for the best quality of picture. This is futuristic TV to supports 1080p signals, including the most modern like Blu-ray and HD game consoles. The signal dispensation is far upgraded to support higher signal quality and picture resolution. Pixel plus HD offers the sole blend of vivid colours, natural detail, ultimate sharpness, and smooth natural motion of HD, multimedia content and standard TV signals for high definition displays. It has Single HDMI cable to connect both picture and audio signals with your devices to your TV. It has uncompressed signals, ensuring the highest quality from device to screen. Only Single remote control is sufficient with Philips Easylink, to control almost functions of TV, BluRay, set top box, DVD and home theatre system.


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Tugboat Launch – North Kingstown RI
Cambridge, ON
Completion Date: 2006
Total Project Value: Confidential
Relevant Project Features:
- Determined Safe Jacking Loads
- Determined Safe Transport Loads
- Prepared Jacking and Transport Technical Memorandum
RT Group, Inc. (RTG) was retained by MAMMOET to determine the safe jacking loads for the proposed loadout of the 1,600 ton ATB Tugboat the "Freeport". RTG also evaluated the safe transport loads for moving the Freeport on wheeled transporters across land and onto a floating barge.
RTG developed specific recommendations regarding the load distribution systems and the safe jacking loads that could be applied on the existing concrete pavement. RTG also provided recommendations for the Tugboat transporter arrangement, ramp arrangement, and the general transporter route.
RTG worked closely with MAMMOET during the evaluation of the safe jacking and transport loads, and developed plans that utilized MAMMOET's existing equipment and materials. RTG also prepared a Technical Memorandum for the Tugboat Owner, US Ship, and their Insurance Carrier, which was required before the loadout could begin.
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RTG has an engineering staff that is professionally registered in Rhode Island, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Ohio, Indiana, Wisconsin, New York, Louisiana and Vermont.


text: June 4th 2018. 04 Monday Jun 2018 Posted by Graham Jones in Headstones and monuments, Nature ≈ Leave a comment 1; Gargoyle at the Adam Black memorial. 2; Part of the catacombs structure. 3 & 4; Blue tit exiting nest entrance. 5 & 6; Bumblebee. Possibly a tree bumblebee. It is joined by a fly. Clicking on an image will show a larger version. This opens in a new tab/window. Share this:TwitterFacebookLike this:Like Loading... Related


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About Steering Column Services
Steering Column Services is a specialized steering column parts and repair company servicing the needs of vehicle owners, shops and mechanics worldwide with their parts and instructional needs for servicing steering columns.
Douglas Gan, owner / President of Steering Column Services and AISI is a skilled technician by trade with over 40 years of experience. He is ASE certified in 7 categories, trained by General Motors and Chrysler, and an accomplished businessman. He holds a degree in Mechanical Technology and is a veteran shop owner of 18 years. After selling three of his successful auto repair, collision and specilaized steering column/ airbag businesses he worked as a consultant for insurance companies adjusting and appraising auto damage. Since then and for the past 20 years he has been working with hundreds of shops and individuals in the automotive industry performing duties that include consulting, technical assistance, employment placement, repair diagnosis, actual hands-on repair, building design, operations management and mediation. Steering Column Services is currently located outside Albuquerque, NM (previously in Ivins, Utah and Rochester, N.Y.).
Steering Column Services is constantly expanding its website, parts inventory and internet presence to help better serve its customers with their needs.
Douglas Gan also created and produces Airbag Solutions®, an automotive airbag database available through internet subscription. Demand for Airbag Solutions® has been international and we are listed on the NHTSA website as an authorized airbag service installer. His expertise includes working directly with I_CAR and VeriFacts designing educational courses for airbag service and repair.
For parts orders, click "Order it Now" to view shipping choices & speeds
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Better health. This is a question with many different answers. Most of the time, people cannot answer this themselves. It takes deep thought, and often an outsider to help people recognize these barriers. Here are a few of the most common barriers to reaching your fitness potential:
Lack of support from family and friends
If you are looking to eat healthy and exercise more, you need a support system. Motivation is tough to come by when surrounded by people that eat junk food and do not exercise. Worse yet, they may even give you a hard time for going against their norm.
Solution: Join a group class or find a workout partner to help you stay on track towards better health when others attempt to derail you.
Lack of knowledge
Many people simply don't know they aren't living a healthy life. You can be skinny, yet still be fat. Having a bit of a belly is fairly normal. Functioning "fine" in life is not functioning optimally. It is imperative to learn about the benefits eating healthy and exercise. Understand your body better so you can begin making positive changes.
Solution: Why not contact a personal trainer? A little extra motivation goes a long way!
Fear of Failure
If you are horribly weak, severely overweight, or simply lose your breath quickly during physical activity, you may feel you cannot improve your fitness and reach better health. You have too much work to do and are unable to do what is needed.
Solution: This belief is completely false. Yes, getting in better shape will be difficult, and slow at times. Fortunately, small increases in fitness can have profound positive effects. According to WebMD, for some, a two percent decrease in body weight is enough to notice health benefits.
Past Failures
Past failures often hold people back from better health. Fad diets, bogus pieces of workout equipment, and programs claiming six minutes a day to weight loss are huge reasons for these past failures.
Solution: Seek out a trainer and/or dietician or nutritionist to give you useful information. Sleeping better, reduced pain, and looser clothes are all signs of progress, regardless of what the scale says. Focus on these changes to stay motivated.
False Beliefs About Exercise
You do not need to be athletic or spend a ton of time in the gym. Ladies, you will not bulk up lifting heavier weights. Walking for a half hour outside is enough to get the ball rolling.
Solution: In the gym, do what your body can safely handle while still being challenged.
This article was shared and edited with the author's written permission. It originally appeared on www.examiner.com.
Onefitstop is the leading software for boutique fitness studios. Request a demo today to learn more.


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We've created the perfect package — 20 minutes of uninterrupted bliss. Our tune-up massage.
This clothes-on treatment is ideal when time is scarce and you need a pick-me-up.
New to Massage? Give yourself 20 minutes to tune in to your body's needs, and tune out the stresses of the day. You will be happy that you did!


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Butler Group and Draka Comteq Announce Exclusive Cabling Solutions Partnership
The Butler Group is delighted to announce it has joined forces with Amsterdam-based, optical fibre technology specialist Draka Comteq to exclusively sell its broadcast cabling solutions products in Ireland. Draka Comteq is a global leader in optical fibre technology, cabling and connectivity solutions and network engineering services. This exclusive partnership with Draka Comteq reinforces the Butler Groups ongoing strategy to serve the fibre optic connectivity marketplace in Ireland at the most technologically advanced level.
Aidan Butler, Sales Director of the Components Divisions of the Butler Group commented; "Draka Comteq is a global specialist in advanced cable and network solutions and we are delighted to announce today that we have exclusive rights to sell their products in Ireland. He added: "Draka develop and manufacture cable solutions and build broadband networks to meet their customer's specific needs. This alliance with Draka, not only demonstrates the Butler Groups ability to align itself with market-leading suppliers around the world, but also our commitment to provide our customers with the best available products on the market. "
Aidan Butler continued: "Our goal is to deliver solutions, innovations and levels of reliability that meet or exceed our customers' expectations and we want to ensure that together Draka Comteq and the Butler Group is their ideal cable and network solutions partner." The Butler Group will supply Draka's high-quality data transmission and control cables for audio, video, camera, light and sound. The product family will include: Video 75 Ohms cables, Audio cables, Microphone cables, and special cable constructions.
The Butler Group was established in 1997 to provide Components, Test and Measurement and Engineering Solutions to the Electronics and Communications industry in Ireland and Internationally. The Group acquired Transtest Equipment Ltd in 2005 to provide on-site Calibration to INAB Accredited Standards, in compliance with the international standards ISO/IEC 17025:2005 2nd edition.
Draka Comteq is a € 2.5 billion (2006), publicly listed (Euronext) company with approximately 9,200 employees in countries worldwide and headquarters in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Draka Comteq, is dedicated to the development, production and sale of optical fibre, cable and communication infrastructure solutions. For optical fibre telecommunication cable, Draka Comteq is the market leader in Europe, number one in China, and number three in North America.
For further information click on Broadcast Cabling Solutions to see the full range of Draka Cabling products or please contact Aidan Butler or Jessica Perry on +353 1 6292620 or email email@example.com.


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I've been hearing about schools that are beginning to offer teachers courses in social intelligence. This makes good sense. Social neuroscience makes clear that the emotional tone of a classroom can be set to a large extent by the teacher. This means that teachers are able to help students get and stay in better brain states for learning (see chapter 19 of Social Intelligence for details).
The neural wiring between our thinking and emotional centers, neuroscience tells us, means our feelings can either enhance or inhibit the brain's ability to learn. And now the new field of social neuroscience has shown that while two people interact, their emotional centers impact each other, for better or for worse.
Taken together, these results have direct implications for creating educational approaches and social climates in schools that can boost students' ability to learn. The best results come when students, teachers, and school leaders each take steps to become more emotionally self-aware and socially intelligent, as I argued in my article "The Socially Intelligent Leader," in the September 2006, issue of Educational Leadership.
This could be best accomplished by creating training programs in social/emotional learning (or SEL) for teachers and school staff, like those now being offered for children (see CASEL.org for more info).
But I don't know who is offering such programs, or where. If anyone knows of courses or programs for teachers in SEL, please let me know.


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Google has finally started to make moves on their Mobile First Index. But what does this mean for your website? We explore what you should do to prepare.
What is Google's Mobile Index?
The Mobile Index First is a change in the way Google will rank the content on your website in search results.
Currently Google uses the desktop version of your website to know where to rank it in search results and applies that to search results on mobile devices. The new Mobile Index will look at the mobile version of your website and use that as its primary search index.
Why are Google doing this?
Google say they're making the change to be able to provide mobile users with better quality content and experience when searching for information on mobile versions of a website.
With some studies suggesting up to 55 percent of all traffic is coming from a mobile device, it makes perfect sense for Google to concentrate their attention on this.
How will it affect your website?
If your website isn't optimised for mobile, doesn't display the same content on desktop as mobile or doesn't function very well on mobile then you're likely to see changes in your search engine rankings on both mobile and desktop.
What can you do to prepare for it?
It's very important your website is responsive and ready to be Mobile Index First friendly. This requires optimisation and for older websites, major updating to the structure and layout of how your website works.
When is this change going to take place?
All we know is it will be soon. Google are known for not giving dates for any new releases or changes to their algorithms. Therefore, it's recommended your website is mobile friendly as soon as possible to help minimise any drop in search rankings.
How will you know it's happening?
Your SEO company should actively report on your search results positioning on the keywords you're looking to rank. Fluctuations are always expected when these types of changes go through, and your SEO company should be able to highlight these to you as well as proactively prepare your website.
Additionally, you may also notice less referrals or leads coming through via your website, a strong indication your rankings have changed.
Do you not have an SEO company looking after your website? Do you want to be Mobile First Index ready? Get in touch with Team Organic today and we'll get you set up and ready!


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Joining PB and KG again at Monte Bello on 10/19, the sky was clear. From down below it looked overcast. It would turn out somewhat chilly in the woods.
The guardian of the lot, Common Raven, perched at the entrance.
During the introduction, a Great Blue Heron flew over to the east. Golden-crowned Sparrows gave their three-note calls. The 12 participants got to watch a male Northern Harrier float over the grassland.
There was a new spider hole on the way down, and at the sag pond, another spider hole that hadn't been open this year. Spotted Towhee and Steller's Jay called.
It wasn't quite dark enough when we got to the dinner spot, but at half an hour after sunset, the Common Poorwill showed up. There was one bat spotted. Other owls called during the night: Great Horned, Barn, and Western Screech-owl.
Still early when we left our dinner spot, an owl wailed at the nature trail, possibly a Saw-whet. Coyotes yipped. We quickly found scorpions, and with the participants' help (a few had their own UV flashlights), found ~15 over the course of the night despite the cool temperatures. We stopped at the turret patch. The Edwards' Glassy-wings were still out, and a female landed on the ground. I picked it up gently, and it perched on my hand for a long time. From time to time, it would buzz its wings to warm its flight muscles.
Other sightings included a millipede, Scaphinotus beetle, and one wolf spider.
At this time of year, a lot of what we see after dark are arachnids. Sometimes they are particularly accommodating. We refound the wafer-lid trapdoor from our scouting hike.
Here is a slowed-down version:
One newt showed up in the water beneath one of the bridges. This time, there was no odor of decomposition on the way up the switchbacks. We got back to the top early, and did a little stargazing. I scouted the spider holes, and we tried to coax one out of a new hole, but it wanted to stay in. Since we had time, we went back down a short distance to a known hole, and that tarantula came out far enough to show most of its body.
We still got back to the lot about 15 minutes early.


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Clarence Seedorf to give Sulley Muntari trial with Deportivo La Coruna
Deportivo La Coruna says veteran Ghanaian midfielder Sulley Muntari will start a trial period with the Spanish club from Friday.
The 33-year-old Muntari will be evaluated by new coach Clarence Seedorf.
Muntari played alongside Seedorf at AC Milan and was also coached by the Netherlands great when he took over Milan in 2014.
Muntari attracted headlines last season after being initially banned for protesting racism in Italy. Muntari said he was treated like a "criminal" after being shown two yellow cards in a protest during a Serie A game while with Pescara.
Muntari's previous clubs include Udinese, Inter Milan, Portsmouth and Sunderland.
Deportivo are 18th in La Liga and nextplays Real Betis on Monday.
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CMS pays Medicare Advantage plans differentially based on Hierarchical Condition Category (HCCs).
This coding model uses demographics and diagnoses to predict future health care costs for Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan.
Each year, Medicare announces what the rates will be and indicates any coding changes in the HCC model. Between 2017 in 2018, there were no coding changes to the HCC model.
However, changes proposed in December 2017 and implemented in April 2018 include coding changes for:
- Chronic kidney disease
- Some mental health disorders
- Some substance abuse disorders
Many medical practices are part of an accountable care organization or have risk adjusted contracts with payers. Some of those contracts may use HCCs to estimate the acuity of the patient population. And, others will use proprietary systems.
This article describes the changes to V23 of HCC.
Chronic kidney disease (CKD)
In 2017, CKD Stage 3 N18.3, was not included in the CMS-HCC model. Only Stage 4, Stage 5 and ESRD were mapped to an HCC category.
In 2018, Stage 3 CKD N18.3 will be included in HCC 138, which is defined as "chronic kidney disease, moderate, stage 3." This includes both Stage 3a and 3b. Stage 3a is based on a glomerular filtration rate (GFR) of 45-59. Stage 3b is a GRF of 30-44.
Mental health disorders
In 2017, CMS-HCC included two categories in the risk calculation, HCC 57 Schizophrenia and HCC 58 Major Depressive, Bipolar, and Paranoid Disorders.
In 2018, CMS is including two additional categories in the payment model.
The first is HCC 59, Reactive and Unspecified Psychosis and the second is HCC 60 Personality Disorders. Conditions in HCC 59 are those that are related to schizophrenia but don't meet the full criteria for schizophrenia or other related disorders. HCC 60 consists of well-defined personality disorders.
The hierarchy is being reordered and renumbered.
|HCC 57 Schizophrenia
|HCC 57 Schizophrenia
|HCC 58 Major Depressive, Bipolar, and Paranoid Disorders
|HCC 58 Reactive and Unspecified Psychosis
|HCC 59 Reactive and Unspecified Psychosis
|HCC 59 Major Depressive, Bipolar, and Paranoid Disorders
|HCC 60 Personality Disorders
|HCC 60 Personality disorders
Substance abuse
In 2017, CMS-HCC recognized two categories related to substance abuse, HCC 54, Drug/Alcohol Psychosis and HCC 55 Drug/Alcohol Dependence. No values were assigned to HCC 56, Drug/Alcohol Abuse, Without Dependence.
In 2018, CMS will add additional diagnosis codes to HCC 55 and rename it Drug/Alcohol Dependence, or Abuse/Use with Complications. Additional diagnosis codes are being added to this category.
HCC 56 will be Drug Abuse, Uncomplicated, Except Alcohol and Cannabis and HCC 56 will be included in the CMS-HCC model.
The other two new HCCs, HCC 202 Drug Use, Uncomplicated and HCC 203 Alcohol Abuse and Cannabis Use/Abuse, Uncomplicated, Non-Psychoactive Substance Abuse, and Nicotine Dependence will be excluded from the model for payment.
As always, pay particular attention to specificity in the code selected for serious chronic diseases, particularly those with a manifestation or complication.
There are many additional articles on CodingIntel about HCC coding, including on demand webinars which members can access free of charge.
Additional resources
The CodingIntel Guide to Hierarchical Condition Categories provides a comprehensive list of HCC and Risk Adjusted Diagnosis Coding resources available on CodingIntel.
Get more tips and coding insights from coding expert Betsy Nicoletti.
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First off, I forgot to post my Quilty 365 blocks for last week, so I'll start with them:
Some of the fabrics came from my stash, and a few will show up in one of my later photos. These blocks are for Apr. 17-23.
Then, I spent a morning at a friend's house - a few of us gather there every second Monday morning to make cards. It's a hobby I've been enjoying for about 11 years.
I realized last week that I had completely run out of birthday cards, and I know that I'm going to need a few in the next week or two, so I managed to make these 2 (and a few others) that morning. Hubby and I have a wedding to attend in a few weeks, and what better wedding gift than a cuddle quilt? I had to go shopping for some of these lovely prints, and I may have to get one or two more lime greens. I'm not so sure that I'll be keeping the 2 grey and lime circle fabrics... The quilt is a quick sew - large blocks, separated by Kona Snow sashing and grey cornerstones.
And finally, I have done some more significant sewing - these are just a few of the 12 Scrappy Trip-Around-the-World quilt blocks I've assembled in the last 2 days.
Now I'm off to run some errands - the fabric shop is calling my name!
I'm linking up to Oh Scrap!


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Discover the Benefits of Composting!
Back to Earth Compost Crew has been a dream of mine for a number of years.
As a child my Nonna & Nonno and grandmother had gardens. I can recall my grandmother saving food scraps and burying them in her garden. This intrigued me. In my high school years I was one of the founding members of a group know as STEM or Save the Environment Man. Fast forward to when I had kids. I began to research products that were good for our babies and our environment.
It was during this time, that I felt that it was our responsibility as human beings to do our part, small or big, to keep our world clean. This is my labor of love for my kids and the generations to come.
I encourage you to take a look at your waste, food and other, and think of how it impacts the environment. It is upon this personal reflection that I decided to stand up and decide to make a change for my family and assist your family, work place or restaurant in making that change.
Happy Composting!
"I can do things you cannot, you can do things I cannot; together we can do great things." Mother Teresa
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Available services include:
Home doorstep pickup
Office pickup
Cafe/Coffee shop pickup
Restaurant pickup
Catered event pickup
Did you know that 30-40% of the United States Food supply goes to waste? And nearly half of it is household food that ends up in landfills. Our mission at Back to Earth Compost Crew is to keep that food waste out of landfills and incorporate it back into the soil in our communities.
Thank you for taking the time to learn about Back to Earth Compost Crew! We encourage all people to reduce, reuse and recycle. Join us on this action packed adventure. Sign up for educational articles, sales, and events.


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Homeowners--Get an instant valuation of your home--Anywhere in USA
Koloa Landing is a new luxury condominium complex on the ocean side of Poipu Road on Kauai's south shore. It's one of Kauai's few development projects that continued during the recent economic downturn. The project is being built in multiple phases and when all are complete, it is planned to have 19 four story residential buildings with 323 units. Phase I now nearing completion includes building 1 west wing, 2, 3, 6, and 9 comprising 85 units. Each has a fully-equipped kitchen, living area, lanai, and 2, 3, or 4 bedrooms. Interior size ranges are in the 1,000 to 3,000 square foot range (approximate). Units are fully furnished and are air conditioned. Upper levels are served by semi private elevators.
Published plans call for 4 lagoon style pools, hot tubs, water slide, pool side bar & grill, fitness center, day spa, sundry shop, and a 24 hour front desk. Concierge service is also be available. Phase I features a lagoon pool plus an adult pool.
Phase I was opened to the public on Tuesday, November 30, 2010. This has set a new standard of luxury for the Poipu area.
Having no affiliation with this project, Richard Dolbeare can provide you with updated, unbiased sales information, all without cost or obligation to you. It is very important to contact him or the buyer's agent of your choice before communicating with project personnel in order for the project to agree to work with and compensate your agent.
NOTICE: Listings are from the Maui Multiple List Service. Listing descriptions & photos have not been reviewed, approved, or endorsed by this REALTOR.
Buyers: Richard Dolbeare can provide buyers with updated, unbiased information, all without cost or obligation. For the advantages of free buyer representation, contact him (or the buyer's agent of your choice) as your important first step.
Owners: For owners who wish to sell, Richard will assist with the sale process, provide broad exposure of the property to potential buyers, and work with escrow in completion of the sale. For sellers, there is no fee until the sale is completed. Ask about his marketing plan.
Information is deemed reliable but has not been independently verified and is not guaranteed
***No sales were recorded prior to 2010***
Contact Richard Dolbeare, a Certified Residential Specialist, for additional sales information on these properties.
Information herein is deemed reliable at time of
publication but has not been independently
verified and is not guaranteed.
Richard T. Dolbeare, R(B), ABR, CRS, e-PRO, RSPS,
firstname.lastname@example.com | HI Lic. # RB-20941
eXp Realty, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Ste 400, Honolulu, HI 96813