text:
(A) toaster oven
(B) water pot
(C) ceramic saucer
(D) cut-off bottle containing melted bottle cap
(E) two friction-fit cut-off bottle containing nails.
(F) Altoids tin. Curiously strong. Curiously Useful.
(G) Stick
(H) Soda Bottle Caps, Red and Yellow
(I) Gasket from bottle cap
(J) remains of 2-liter bottle
(K) milk-bottle-cap
(L) Melted (K)
(M) Melted yellow cap
(N) Melted gaskets
(O) Melted red cap
(P) Melted bottle body
(Z) Leather utility gloves (not shown)
Um... Why? It's always sort of bugged me to have to throw away soda bottles, or at best, send them off in a recycling bin or ship them across state lines to a place where they'll trade them for a nickle. partly because it's a pain, but mostly because anything that I have that much of ought to be good for SOMETHING. So recently, my usual death-cult1 meeting having been canceled, I found myself staring at a trashcan full of empty bottles, and decided to experiment, to see whether any of the plastic involved could be melted down into a useable form, without special equipment.
Protocol: Separate out the assorted bits of plastic, chop up the big peices to manageble sizes, stick them in a small container, and bake in the oven for 3-4 minutes, starting at 250 degrees, and increasing in 25 degree increments until something useful happens. I also tried boiling the bits in water. Bottlecaps and liners soften enough to deform if you then squeeze them, but not enough to be useful. When the plastic starts to collapse and consolidate, mash it into a lump with a stick, try pressing the lump between two boards to see if it will take a shape, then quench the lump in water and see what you end up with.
If you examine your average soda bottle, you will discover that there are four kinds of plastic involved. The bottle itself, the label, the bottle cap, and, inside the bottle cap, a soft plastic gasket that may or may not come out easily. I peeled off the labels and threw them away, for three reasons: (1) there appear to be a lot of coloring agents, and that means ink or dies, and that generally means more than usually toxic fumes. (2) The label is so thin that I fear that it will burst into flames. (3) There's not enough bulk to be intersting anyway. Just for fun, I tried the soft blue plastic caps from a typical gallon water/milk jug, too.
Now, my toaster oven is not an exemplar of thermal precision, and one of the things I noticed is that the "temperatures" things melt at are typically about 24 degrees(F) higher if the thing has been running for 20 minutes or so. The numbers below are the settings AFTER the oven has heated itself. Anyway, these are the results I got:
|Clear soda-bottle
|Colored soda bottle caps
|Gasket material
|Polyethylene terphthalate (PET)
|Low Density Polyethelyne? (LDPE)
Better pictures:
Clear plastic bottle: This plastic outgasses before it starts melting. It's the only one of the four types that produced a smell strong enough to be bothersome, Probably that means it's doing something bad to the air. The plastic isn't clear when it's done, it winds up a frothy white, with carmelized brown streaks running through it. I dunno if the brown streaks are water contamination, leftover plastic/glue from where the label was stuck on, or what. The resulting mass is really sticky, and messy to work with, leaving long strands sort of like melted cheese between the plastic, whatever you're sticking it to, and whatever you're moving it with. It takes a really smooth finish when you press it against glass or ceramic, but the resulting plastic lump is hard, brittle, and tends to have sharp edges and points. It's usable, but dissappointing. Whatever you tru to make with it is likely to need some machining afterwards. The good news is, a big lump of this globbed onto a stick is really hot, so when you quench it in water, it first steams dramaticaly, and then, because the outside hardens first and then the inside, the lump screams as it cools. (Note to self, if my phone is capable of emailing a photo to me, it's probably capable of emailing a .WAV file or something) While I'm on the subject of noise: This plastic left a fair amount stuck to the ceramic saucer I melted it in. I subsequently switched to an altoids tin because I have more of those than disposable ceramic saucers, but the other plastics popped off the metal after they cooled, because I could flex the metal.
In general, I think that the clear plastic could better be used in a really small vacume-forming oven, or just cut up and used as is. (window-panes for dollhouses?) I use a lot of them with the tops cut of and friction fit-together as containers for nails, screws, etc. I go through a lot more soda bottles than peanut butter.
Later: I tried re-melting the clear plastic again, this time in the altoids container. This doesn't work worth a damn. It took forever, and I had to go all the way up to 475°F to get it to melt at all, and it hardened into a hot, gluey, immovable mass before I could transfer a blob anywhere, the high heat cooked the finish on the altoids tin, and I can't get the resulting blob of plastic out, even after cooling. I am incresingly convinced that re-melting PET in a home lab environment is more of a pain than it's worth.
Soda Bottle Caps: I was quite pleased with these. They don't smell as obnoxiously as the clear bottle-body, and they soften at a lower temperature. The resulting mass is stiff and sticky, but not anywhere near as sticky as the clear plastic. The lump stays in lump form without tacky strands, forms well, and peels off the tin easily when cool. This is the cheap-plastic-toy plastic of my childhood. Be warned, however, that if you use the bottlecaps without peeling the gaskets out first, you end up with streaks of slightly softer, translucent blue plastic boogers running through your resulting lump. This is not esthetically pleasing, but it doesn't seem to hurt anything.
I like this stuff, and am soon going to try press-molding it with a putty-knife.
Gasket material: This stuff softens at a lower temperature than the rest of the bottle cap, but doesn't start fuming at the temperatures required for the latter. YOu could use the same settings for both. Melted separately, the gasket material is stickier and a little harder to work with than the bottlecaps, but nowhere near as much so as the clear bottle material. It forms a translucent blue marbled material that's really quite pretty. It's soft as long as it's warm, but turns harder as it cools. (All the plastics end up harder and more brittle after re-melting)
This produces a useable plastic that's fun to look at, but I can't offhand think of anything particular that it's specially good for.
Milk Bottle Lids: This is stickier than soda-bottles, but less so than the gaskets. It forms well, and is opaque, and is a perfectly good lump of plastic. I don't like it as well as I do the soda-bottle lids, but I can't say why. Probably it's because the colors aren't as vivid.
Swiped the following table from Nasa:
Footnote:1: Really, there is no death cult. And anyone who say's there is,
isn't in it.
Page maintained by email@example.com
Last update: 13-Dec-05
Parent Page: www.goedjn.com/essays/index.html
Root page: www.goedjn.com


text:
Skip across the Atlantic on a four-night Paris vacation for $799 per person -- including a two-day museum pass or a show ticket to a classic Parisian cabaret.
At $300 off the self-packaging cost, this getaway includes:
Depart on select dates January-March. Other dates in 2012 are also on sale.
This package also covers one of these free extras for each traveler: a ticket to the Paradis Latin show (a classic French cabaret at a famous theater built by Gustave Eiffel in the 1880s) with 1/4 bottle Champagne or a two-day museum pass (giving travelers free admission and the ability to skip the lines at more than 60 museums and monuments in and around Paris -- including the Louvre Museum and Chateau de Versailles).
Note: Airport taxes are approximately $155 extra.
Please go to your email and confirm your subscription.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
'My best friend divorced me': Adele Parks
- From: bodyandsoul
- June 24, 2013
BESTSELLING author Adele Parks thought she and her best friend of 20 years were inseparable - until she was dumped.
When my oldest friend, Karen, turned 40 last May, I found myself wondering how she'd celebrate her landmark birthday: a fun party, a cosy dinner or an indulgent holiday? I don't know. Nor do I know if she's married, where she lives or even if she has children, because we haven't spoken to one another for nine years.
Karen and I became close friends age 11; I remember it as though it was yesterday. We were on a bus, heading to France, for a school trip. Pretty, wise and witty, I loved Karen with an instinctive, instant intensity that only pre-teen girls can muster. Years passed, we shared the obsession of inappropriate crushes, the joy, uncertainty and mortification of first kisses, first loves and first break-ups. We giggled, grew and dreamed together, deliberated our futures and crammed for our exams.
Have your say
- Skip to:
- Read comments
- Add comments
Amy of Melbourne Posted at 12:55 PM June 24, 2013
My best friend dumped me about a year after my wedding, claiming that marriage had "changed" me. She'd been maid of honour and given the speech at our reception. I couldn't believe that she was so willing to just give up and wasn't prepared to try and make the friendship work. Eight years later, I'm still not completely over it.
Comment 1 of 57
Paul Horn of Adelaide Posted at 12:58 PM June 24, 2013
Whoa how weird. So you simply breeze through your Divorce as if it matters not a tit and you grieve over some lefty friend you went to school with decades ago? The world of women is a strange place indeed. Funny how arts types always seem to live in trendy areas even though what they do is generally nothing less than perversion. No council tenement buildings or slum areas for our artistic brethren - only the best for them yet I can't understand for the life of me who would pay them for the crap they produce? Boy do we need war to expunge the pretentious, self indulged rights infested lefties form the face of the Earth!!
Comment 2 of 57
Chix Posted at 1:04 PM June 24, 2013
I share feelings that the writer wrote here, i am always a shy kid but in elementary i have a best friend, a girl who i though was fabolous and we are really close and cannot be apart. Then one day she starts to hang out with the other girl and abandont me. I dont why maybe because she grown up faster than i am. I feel abandoned, betrayed and very sad. This experience impacted my approach towards friendship in my whole life. I cannot trust girl friendsip nor i can be too close with other girl to be best friends anymore. My friendship until now is based on group of friends and not to one basis which i feel more comfortable of.
Comment 3 of 57
Penny Lane of Brisbane Posted at 1:38 PM June 24, 2013
@Paul Horn of Adelaide, what an unnecessarily aggressive reply...
Comment 4 of 57
joan Posted at 1:47 PM June 24, 2013
She should have had a few kids. Brother ,do that put you straight!!!!
Comment 5 of 57
Karma Posted at 1:54 PM June 24, 2013
My best friend of 20 some years has just dumped me. I had a baby 4 months ago & she came to the hospital for literally 5 mins & could not wait to get out of there. Have not seen her since! I was more of a friend to her than she was to me but i was in denial & have finally realized that she was user & only need me when she wanted something. So I'm saying goodbye to her in my mind & I hope karma bites her in the ---
Comment 6 of 57
Kerry of ACT Posted at 2:03 PM June 24, 2013
I don't make friends or trust people easily and when I moved away from my home town I made a friend at work. She became my best friend and we did lots of things together even though she was married. Her husband would pick us up after a night out and when I moved back home we visited each other all the time. She was even matron of honour at my wedding. However, she had been trying for a baby for years so when I unexpectedly fell pregnant I knew she would be upset. She pretty much just stopped speaking to me but I pushed her and sorted it out to some extent. Our friendship was never the same, always now feeling awkward, so I made the decision to let her go. I still think of her a lot and wish we were as close as we had been. As it turned out, she had a baby about 12 months after me and we now have 2 kids each about the same age. I think the saying is right, some times people are there for a reason, a season or life time. Sadly we don't always get to choose which one. She was my friend for a season, I'll never forget her and I'll always miss her.
Comment 7 of 57
K Posted at 2:17 PM June 24, 2013
I've had a similar "divorce" in the last few months, minus the letter. The girl I called my best friend didn't choose me as her bridesmaid for the SECOND time. Obviously, I must have valued her friendship more than she valued mine. After I realised that, I grieved for her, what I had epitomised as friendship and decided how I would proceed. It has been a good reality check for me and I have withdrawn the effort I would normally spend on her and invested it in the people who are actually my friends.
Comment 8 of 57
Observer of Sydney Posted at 2:28 PM June 24, 2013
I realised that the reason my friendships didn't last was that I was not willing to put 100% into them. I grew up around girls who were too into themselves. Obsessed with boys, when all I wanted to do was go to the movies and read books. They obsessed over their looks, whereas I just wanted to wear jeans and a t-shirt. I hated make-up and they couldn't be seen without it. I have now realised that I much prefer to either be with my partner (he's the only partner I've had) and my two kids, or by myself where I can read, knit or Crochet. no way do I miss having friends. They were a pain, except for one or two. I am not going to lose any sleep over it and just live my life one day at a time. I can honestly say that I am happy. This ex-friend of yours sounds sour and maybe, just maybe she's faked her friendship with you for many years. What a waste of space. Don't feel down, just enjoy what you have and maybe she will see this article and re-think what she said. But I doubt it.
Comment 9 of 57
Sabi Posted at 2:47 PM June 24, 2013
In answer to one of the other readers, just because friendship isn't considered as important as marriage, doesn't mean the hurt is any less. In some respects it hurts more because your friends are there with you through those moments. My best friend dumped me last year, and the pain hasn't lessened one bit. While I might have not gotten a letter, a full confrontation in a restaurant was definitely enough pain for me. I've known her my entire life, and sometimes you just don't have answers as to why the friendship ended; you can only look back and remember what you had.
Comment 10 of 57
Nate of Canada Posted at 2:52 PM June 24, 2013
Only women are so petty.
Comment 11 of 57
Angela of Perth Posted at 2:53 PM June 24, 2013
My best friend of over 20 years decided that my daughter and I playing some stupid Word game on our I-phones with her husband without her knowledge and approval (not deliberate) was akin to having an affair with him - she is still with him 3 years later but it cost our friendship. I still grieve for this 'friend' that I loved like a sister and will never understand the low self-esteem and insecurity she must have felt to treat our friendship as if it meant nothing!
Comment 12 of 57
Philosopher Posted at 2:54 PM June 24, 2013
After 45 years of marriage I am left in no doubt as to who my best friend is.
Comment 13 of 57
Jimmy of Sydney Posted at 3:11 PM June 24, 2013
Friends may come and go - close family is the key. Unfortunately in the author's instance with her divorce she didn't have that to fall back on - meaning her friendship was so more important.
Comment 14 of 57
Kel Posted at 3:14 PM June 24, 2013
Meh, my own sister has done it to me after 44 years. And someone I thought was a lifelong friend has been of no support to me during cancer treatment. I've learnt two things, that blood is not thicker than water, and that friends aren't forever, and some in fact are just fair weather friends. Luckily my best friend is my husband.
Comment 15 of 57
Tiger of Perth Posted at 3:17 PM June 24, 2013
Ive learnt never to trust a friend. In your mind they might be your best friend and in their mind they dont really care. Family is more important. You should always watch your back with friends. I still hang out and have fun with friends but I will never trust them.
Comment 16 of 57
Ash of VIC Posted at 3:23 PM June 24, 2013
My best friend dumped me to... the circumstances where different and a lot of hurtful things where said and none of them to my face she put everything in an email... I didnt think it was possible for a friend to hurt you so deeply but the pain I felt after that breakup was far greater then any romantic relationship breakdown. I still think about her from time to time but also believe that the end of our friend was for the best... she was controlling and she had a hold on me I didnt realise until she was gone... some friendships are meant to end...
Comment 17 of 57
Dean Livanos of West Ryde Posted at 3:28 PM June 24, 2013
I had a good friend for about a decade then when I had a tough patch he up and left. A real fair weather friend, he just stopped returning my emails, unfriended me from facebook and changed his phone number. Mind you this guy was my best man at my wedding. Now I think I am going better, I have better friends and my work is going well, however I wonder how my old friend is going these days?
Comment 18 of 57
The Hog of Melbourne Posted at 3:28 PM June 24, 2013
Paul Horn, I want to be YOUR friend. Everything I want to say summed up right there!
Comment 19 of 57
Weary of Sydney Posted at 3:28 PM June 24, 2013
It's good to be male. None of this makes any sense to me and it never will - cos it will never come up. Yep, good to be male.
Comment 20 of 57
Ayesha Posted at 3:31 PM June 24, 2013
Totally agree with the author! The breakup of friendships is no different to any other relationship breakdown and yet, somehow less expected. Some people have expectations of us and when we don't fit their vision, make it clear we no longer have a place in their lives. I have experienced this first hand with a school friendship and then with my only sibling. The experience of losing the friendship in my early 20s took me years to get over and just as many years to realise that it had in fact run it's course and like the writer, opened me up to appreciate the other deeply beautiful and precious friends in my life. While my other friends and I may not always agree and see eye to eye, we have learned to appreciate and support each other without false expectations of sameness and embrace the changes in each othersâ lives - something that my âbestâ friend and my sister were not able to do for me for their own reasons. Having the experience earlier with my friend has helped me better negotiate the breakdown of the relationship with my sister. For me, the important thing is not to become or remain embittered by the experience, but remember and appreciate what we had for the time we did.
Comment 21 of 57
Tazzi of clarinda Posted at 3:33 PM June 24, 2013
Friendships are temporary, women are mostly emotionally stupid this one a little extra. PS how many 75 year olds still have a child hood friend next to them? Not many.
Comment 22 of 57
Lady S of Sydney Posted at 3:33 PM June 24, 2013
My best friend dumped me when I got serious with my now husband. She said I didn't have time for her anymore. We'd been friends for years and were very close, almost like family, so I was dumbfounded. So many times I've almost tried to make amends, but I haven't actually reached out. I tried hard to keep the friendship alive when it was in final stages, but to no avail. Years on I still think about her.
Comment 23 of 57
Dumped Posted at 3:35 PM June 24, 2013
I wish I'd gotten a letter when this happened to me. I still don't know what happened. It must've been a combination of things or maybe I just wasn't needed anymore. It happened 6 years ago now and I'm still not over it.
Comment 24 of 57
brissy lass Posted at 3:40 PM June 24, 2013
I'm with Paul. Women should focus on their relationships with their husbands half as much as the ones with their "girl-friends" and they wouldn't need a divorce in the first place...Stop trying to have a relationship with all and sundry - it's so weird! One of the many things wrong with the "modern" society.
Comment 25 of 57
Maria of Australia Posted at 3:46 PM June 24, 2013
My best friend at university "left me" for her boyfriend who she moved in with and made it clear there was no room for me in her life any more (she also didn't like my partner, nor he her). Their subsequent breakup meant we did try again but different countries and too much baggage between us meant that it wasn't long before I assumed a closeness that no longer existed and was honest with her in a way that was inappropriate at that stage of our relationship. We're FaceBook acquaintances now. but my heart still grieves over the loss of that extraordinary friendship.
Comment 26 of 57
John Posted at 3:55 PM June 24, 2013
She "dumped" you, listing a reason as that you didn't get drunk with her? I'm sorry, that is deranged, pregnant or not. Real friends don't dump you and then spout that nonsense.
Comment 27 of 57
Felicity Posted at 3:55 PM June 24, 2013
My best friend and I had a falling out while we were away on an overseas holiday. It shattered me. I lost the person that I always turned to and valued more than anything. My son lost his godmother. Nearly 12months on and I still have photos on my walls but I guess one of these days I'll need to take them all down. So sad the way some friendships end.
Comment 28 of 57
Claudia of Qld Posted at 3:57 PM June 24, 2013
@Paul Horn of Adelaide, you are a moron. We need a war to expunge the pretentious, self indulged rights infested lefties? What a stupid thing to say. One could take your entire comment as pretentious and self indulged. No where did the author of the article state that she "breezed" through her divorce. You have no idea what she went through during that time. What she was highlighting was that while she felt like she had no close friends, due to the "breakup" of her friendship with Karen, she did in fact have a good support group around her. You seriously need to take your head out of your arse and think a bit before you start preaching your rubbish. Shows you up as nothing but a complete prat.
Comment 29 of 57
petey of morley of perth Posted at 3:57 PM June 24, 2013
i had a "friend" do this once. In reality they were never a friend in the first place, otherwise they would talk things out with you rather than act so erratically. Better off being friends with people who speak openly with you.
Comment 30 of 57
Dave of Brisbane Posted at 3:57 PM June 24, 2013
It's good to see that even other women don't understand women. I had a mate years ago who decided to stop talking to me for no good reason, but he didn't mind still talking to my girlfriend (now my wife) for some reason. I asked him to back off and he refused, so I got to punch him in the nose a couple of times. It's good being a dude sometimes :)
Comment 31 of 57
See The Light of Melbourne Posted at 3:59 PM June 24, 2013
Wow, 'Paul Horn of Adelaide', don't you feel sorry for yourself? Not as successful as you had hoped and taking it out on the world? What kind of insecurities and self-loathing do you have in order to feel like you can out and out attack people like that? You got some soul searching to do boy, because in the end, you are the ONLY one who has control over your life and how you see the world..
Comment 32 of 57
Jen of Australia Posted at 4:01 PM June 24, 2013
Really, Paul Horn? I mean, really?? Not bitter at all, are we? Must be powerful to be such an complete judge of character, all just from reading a 1000 word magazine piece by a writer you've never met. Yet you know her well enough from that to tell she lives in an "artsy" area, peddles perversion (must be subliminal, because I didn't detect any trace of that in her article, but clearly I'm not as perceptive as you!), and that she is a pretentious, self indulged lefty. Methinks you are just a plonker!
Comment 33 of 57
Lenesa of Qld Posted at 4:04 PM June 24, 2013
I too have been throught the break up of a friendship, only in my case, I was the breaker, not the breakee...my story - I had been friends with this woman for about 10 years. We used to joke that we'd stay friends forever because we both knew too much. She'd p*ss me off now and then, and I'm sure I did the same to her, but that's the way some friendships roll. Then my husband had a bad accident and we spent 5 weeks away from home while he recuperated. During that 5 weeks, I heard from her once and only because I rang her. I know people have funny ways of dealing with stuff, but I thought she'd at least phone to see how we were getting on. Long story short, when we came home, she was all about catching up and so I agreed. She showed up 30 mins late and then the talk was all about her, her druggo boyfriend, etc. So I decided to cut my losses right then and there. I realised I couldn't depend on her when I needed her, so that was it for me. I have seen her about town, have said hello but that's it. Sometimes I think about contacting her again, but I really can't open myself up for that kind of selfishness again. It's sad, but that's life.
Comment 34 of 57
T.mena of Melbourne Posted at 4:05 PM June 24, 2013
I too broke up with my girlfriend of nearly 30 years. Coincidently her name was also Karen. It was a nasty ending that I'd never want to go through again. We simply grew apart and after many years of feeling like I'd been carrying her always picking her up I just felt drained, she was a vampire and I finally realised that I had to let her go. I unfriended her via Facebook and after a few months she must've realised I was gone and that's when all hell broke.. She turned psychotic and just went mental on Facebook, her sisters and her friends were saying some horrible and cruel things about me. A mutual friend informed me about it and I responded the only way I could. I texted her and we just fought back and forth, it was an ugly and painful few hours but in the end I had to wish her well with her life and moved on.
Comment 35 of 57
leigh of parafield gardens Posted at 4:06 PM June 24, 2013
My best friend broke up from me, just after I had spent years supporting her thru a marriage of domestic violence, was there for her and assisted her in every way imaginable thru the divorce and family court crap, and then homelessness, when her landlord decided he wanted her out so they could demolish and redevelop the home they had lived in for years. I put her and her 6 children up for weeks as she tried in vain to find rental accom. The day she left, in a removal truck to the property they finally found, she did not even tell me the address, and when I tracked her down she said I was not her rescuer - but a friend, and she could not be a friend with me anymore as she now believed I considered her "a victim who needed rescuing". She decided she needed an equal friendship. I know she was traumatised, felt alone and let down, but to dump your only support friends because you feel humiliated by lifes circumstances, robbed her children of loyal established family friends, and devestated a loyal girlfriend for months and years to come. Some people dont deserve friends at all!!
Comment 36 of 57
Graham of Central coast Posted at 4:09 PM June 24, 2013
My wife broke up with her best friend, a bridesmaid at her wedding, they were inseparable for many years. It drove her crazy, literally. She had to spend a couple of weeks in an institution.
Comment 37 of 57
50something Posted at 4:10 PM June 24, 2013
Of course people change over the years! We can't stay tweens, then teens, then 20 something, then 30 something etc and still be doing the same things, have the same opinions. A true friend is someone who accepts your changes, accepts them as being part of growing up, older. Sure if you "change" for the worse and become a not very nice person, then that's a different story. But it's human nature, we are constantly changing. (When I was 21 I would have jumped out of a plane with a parachute no problem, now at 53, I almost soil myself at the though of going on a plane! We change......)
Comment 38 of 57
withheld Posted at 4:10 PM June 24, 2013
I'm about to dump my friend of at least 20 years. At least this article has confirmed that it will have the desired effect. This friend broke the code and dated I girl I was forced to break up with (by her parents). He then came out a few years later, so thanks for figuring out your sexuality by stomping on mine. Now after decade of being the person who initiates any catch up we have and having the last three changed at the last minute (one I was at the end of his street when he rang to pike), enough is enough. I've overlooked more than enough indiscretion to last a lifetime.
Comment 39 of 57
Jess Posted at 4:12 PM June 24, 2013
Great article.....I experienced something similar, my best friend from the first day of year seven all the way up to year 12 suddenly replaced me the year after school finished and just dropped me, I felt like my heart had been ripped out when I turned 18 she gave me a card that said all these wonderful things then she was gone.... we were know for being inseparable at school even now people ask me how she is assuming we are still the best of friends...and I still get the same shocked reaction when I tell them that we no longer see each other....though she has recently started to txt me on my birthday!? 9 years later....
Comment 40 of 57
Survivor of two world wars of europe Posted at 4:13 PM June 24, 2013
Paul, the whole world is going crazy. Its mostly a case of First world problems, and having too much time to do nothing. It is time for everyone to realise that we are entitled to nothing except slavery to our masters. Yes, a good war would probably hasten it all along. A few weeks without food on the shelves of the supermarket and maybe people could work out what is really important.
Comment 41 of 57
Unity of South Coast, NSW Posted at 4:15 PM June 24, 2013
As you grow up you expect to loose boyfriends but being dumped by your best friend is something no one ever warns you about and it hurts like hell.
Comment 42 of 57
Terribla Posted at 4:16 PM June 24, 2013
I was dumped by my best friend
Comment 43 of 57
Closure Posted at 4:16 PM June 24, 2013
Glad to hear there are others out there who have been through the same experience and to now know that I haven't been being overly sensitive about how hurt I was when it happened. Sometimes I agree with Weary of Sydney; life would be easier if you were a male because this stuff just doesn't seem to happen to them!
Comment 44 of 57
Gareth of Sydney Posted at 4:19 PM June 24, 2013
brissy lass, you sound wonderful. So refreshing to hear such rationality about relationships from a woman. I hope the man in your life is aware of how lucky he is.
Comment 45 of 57
Julia Dee Posted at 4:20 PM June 24, 2013
Yes, I know that situation only too well! My "best friend" of 18 years did pretty much the same thing! Other interests, other friends, a whole heap of inconsistent excuses! The truth of it is that some people have no capacity for honesty.
Comment 46 of 57
Carli of Australia Posted at 4:22 PM June 24, 2013
I had a best friend who I loved dearly. We would spend nearly every waking moment laughing and exploring and learning from one another. One day she just stopped speaking to me. To this day I do not know why. I grieved for that relationship for a long time and still dream about her regularly. Every time I see something that reminds me of her I feel hurt and, like Adele, strangely embarrassed. I felt as though I had been broken-up with like a clingy, pathetic ex-boyfriend. They say that people come into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime. I guess she was a season. I guess she was Autumn because I felt very cold afterwards...
Comment 47 of 57
andye of sydney Posted at 4:25 PM June 24, 2013
...and the "YOU KIDS GET OFF MY LAWN" award goes to @Paul Horn of Adelaide, who managed to respond to this article by calling for the eradication of all lefties. Best laugh I have had all day.
Comment 48 of 57
Michael of Eynesbury of Eynesbury Posted at 4:26 PM June 24, 2013
My best friend and I had a falling out over a petty issue nearly 10yrs ago and didn't speak to each other for more than 3yrs. It was a terrible time as we had been friends for over 35 years. We both realised after 3yrs that its ok to have a difference of opinion and we sat down and talked and sorted out every single issue between us. Our friendship is now stronger than ever and there is nothing we will not do to support each other. My message here really is that a "true" friend literally does not care about anything other than supporting their friends for whatever reason that support is needed. They are sounding boards, they are the ones than can tell us to "pull our heads in" they can call us idiots, and they can say they love us, simply because they are our best friends. I am a happily married everyday type of knockabout bloke, and the best thing I have ever said to my best mate is " Love ya champ".
Comment 49 of 57
Happy of Brisbane Posted at 4:26 PM June 24, 2013
Something similar happened to me in the lead up to a close friend's wedding. I sadly lost two friends when the bride & maid of honour confronted me under the guise of a 'catch up' and proceeded to list all the reasons I was a bad friend, then dumping me from the bridal party. At first I was crushed and began to question what sort of person I'd become. I just wanted their forgiveness and couldn't bear throwing away over 10yrs of shared history. My self-confidence had gone out the window and it took a long time to trust anyone again. After several months of counselling and support from friends & family I was able to realise I wasn't the problem. Like Adele, I know I'm not completely innocent, but I'm also not entirely to blame. Consequently, the bride & maid of honour parted ways before the wedding due to their own friendship turning sour. Many had predicted this would happen. It's important to remember that people come in & out of your life for a reason. I still grieve the loss of their friendship but I try not to resent them for their actions. It's important to let go and remember the good times.
Comment 50 of 57


text:
▪ Software
▪ New eBook Releases
▪ Bestselling eBooks
CATEGORIES | View all
▪ Romance
Suspense & Thrillers
Science Fiction
Mystery & Detectives
Biography & Memoir
Spiritual & Religion
View eBooks by author
Categories: Erotica/Gay-Lesbian Erotica
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press/Dreamspinner Press | Date published: 09/01/2009
Jonas Hunter is a high-class body for hire with a small, exclusive, mostly male client�le who pay big bucks for his undivided time and attention. Discretion is Jonas's middle name--he can play his role to the hilt for the client's benefit and at the same time disappear seamlessly into a crowd, safely anonymous. He's persuaded to take on a new client who is everything he despises in a man: the effeminate, tantrum-throwing, attention-seeking bad boy of Paris haute couture named Nicky Bryant. Nicky's shows are outrageous and always good for a front cover, and his appearance never fails to turn heads. But Jonas soon learns Nicky is a carefully maintained facade himself. As a fiery attraction grows, Jonas and Nicky have to find a way to walk the tightrope between their public and private personas. They'll need to learn to love and trust each other around the other people in their lives if they're going to share their hearts.


text:
A few months ago, I found emails to WS from a co-worker. I will say most of the stuff was coming from her end but in the past two weeks I found another email simply stating, "I miss you". He says its nothing. I want to believe that but can I?
Was served divorce papers on 10/30/12
D final 4/30/13
Still can't get rid of the feeling of impending doom in my gut though.
He would stay up all night writing her long emails telling her how great and special she was. She would then return all the loving word to him the next day.
He has given her up and now sees that he had his head up his ass for about a year.
[This message edited by Muff2do at 9:04 PM, September 24th (Wednesday)]
I know the pain you feel right now and how hard this can be.
The best book I read while having my life fall apart was Not Just Friends. It was the only place I was able to see for myself that I wasn't going nuts.
At that time I didn't know about this site. You will get a lot of support here.
I don't even know which one to worry about more. The 21 yo offered herself to him. He says he refused. The 44 yo spilled her heart to him and relied on him to support her in her troubles. Gag.
Did I mention 44 yo is on husband #5. Yeah, she's monogamous.
He has never read a book I've asked him to ever.
i know exactly where you are...
When HIS affair was uncovered last jan, it was like I was assigned a class! After reading 14 (yes, 14), books on affairs, low sex drive, you name it, my WH - despite promises - has never read a single one.
Like yours, my WH claimed only an EA. Never nailed him on the PA with that one, but appears to be having a PA with someone right now...
I have recently come to think that if I have to worry about this stuff that it is not worth it....
Good luck, I hope you are one of the lucky ones!
it's all about James Hunter, now ;)
And here's the 180 link:
Could we get a poll to see how many think their WS EAs were really PAs??
Did we ever have this poll?
Cause if so -- count me # 1.
(in fact he tried to take it PA and couldn't get it up.... HAHHAHHAHHAHA).
[This message edited by tormentedsoul at 11:02 AM, October 8th (Wednesday)]
The problem I have is that WH won't admit they even hugged. Does he think I don't know him? His whole family is huggy and I've seen him hugging platonic friends. How could he not have been this way in the EA?
The problem I have is that WH won't admit they even hugged. Does he think I don't know him? His whole family is huggy and I've seen him hugging platonic friends. How could he not have been this way in the EA?
I have the same problem. He didn't admit to anything,I had to find the proof and even then some of it he tried to lie.I don't get why they lie about such small details.Like mine lied about even calling her,turns out they spent hours on the phone.So if he will lie about phone calls,it makes sense that he would lie about the more intimate details...Do they really think that we are that clueless about things?
[This message edited by hurtandbroken at 11:36 PM, October 8th (Wednesday)]
It is amazing how a WS will cover the truth even if it's laying right out there for all to see and it is funny how we BS will walk around with eyes closed until one day it hits us right up side the head.
I sat and watched my FWW EA form right in front of me. When I started to question her new "friendship" I caught nothing but hell from her. So I trusted her the best I could just to keep the peace. Huge mistake on my part. The only thing I did was put off Dday and when Dday did come the explosion was of a major kind.
Seems that she had tried to take the EA to a PA but her timing was off so she and her EA buddy had made plans to take it to a PA. As it turns out her timing was real bad that day and by luck I figured it out and wrecked their plans by confronting the OP. I get the feeling she hates me for that but she should be thanking me for stopping her from whoring herself out to a no good out for just pussy jerk.
Now it's just a few months shy of 3 years since Dday and she is still in a coma. Marriage is better but more of a friendship and not what I desire at all. Put that together with all the fond memeries I have of her EA and you have a someone like me.
It is amazing how a WS will cover the truth even if it's laying right out there for all to see and it is funny how we BS will walk around with eyes closed until one day it hits us right up side the head.
That is so true.Even with my gut screaming at me,I still chose to believe him.Never again will I have such a foolish trust...Why do they still lie when you have proof of the truth?..It is all just so crazy to me.... I am sorry that your still going thur the effects of the affair...But I don't think the effects ever go away ,everything is forever changed.
I wrote a huge letter showing it all to him in black and white. I haven't sent it yet. Does it do any good?
Also, need some help. I know he will have his feelings hurt that I don't trust him. This letter will really hurt him. I have considered his feelings for 17 years. Even in the face of what WS do to us, how can we shut off our compassion toward them? My love for him is still as strong as ever.
I'd love some advice from those who have been dealing longer than I.


text:
Asafa Powell's B sample shows 'adverse analytical finding'
Asafa Powell is among five Jamaican athletes whose B samples have shown an "adverse analytical finding" after they failed drugs tests in June.
Former 100m world record holder Powell tested positive for oxilofrine at the Jamaican national trials.
Olympic medallist Sherone Simpson, discus throwers Allison Randall and Travis Smikle and a junior also failed tests at the trials.
The Jamaica Anti-Doping Commission said the B samples were tested in Canada.
The findings will now go before an independent body for further consideration prior to disciplinary hearings.
A Jamaica Anti-Doping Commission (Jadco) statement, released through the Jamaica Information Service, said it had "received results from the Wada-accredited [World Anti-Doping Agency-accredited] laboratory in Montreal, Canada".
Asafa Powell
- Age: 30
- Nationality: Jamaican
- Personal bests: 100m - 9.72 secs, 200m - 19.90 secs (world record, 9.74secs, 2007)
- Medals: Olympics: 4x100m relay - gold (2008); World Championships: 100m - bronze (2004,2008), 4x100m relay - gold (2009), silver (2007)
It said those results "confirmed the prohibited substances which were identified in the A sample analyses for the five athletes who were tested at the National Junior and Senior Championships in June 2013".
"All athletes have been notified and have acknowledged receipt of their Notification Letters of an Adverse Analytical Finding for a B Sample," it continued.
"Jadco has therefore referred these findings to the independent Jamaica Anti-Doping Disciplinary Panel for their consideration and establishment of the Hearing Panels."
Powell and Simpson's manager, Paul Doyle, has pointed the finger of blame for their failed tests at their trainer, Canadian Chris Xuereb, who only began working with the sprinters in May.
Xuereb denies responsibility and says he is being made a scapegoat.
Powell's initial failed drugs test became public on 14 July, the same day the United States' Tyson Gay, the fastest man in the world this year in the 100m, admitted he had also tested positive for a banned substance.


text:
We have over 12,000 students, from over 100 countries, within one of the safest campuses in the UK
97% of Lancaster students go into work or further study within six months of graduating
Research student
Lancaster University
Lancaster LA1 4WA
United Kingdom
E-mail: Show email
Research aims to contribute towards establishing social enterprise as a norm, and social impact as part of how we live and work. Research on new methods and models for transformational change, drawing from design to deal with the inherent complexity of a field that is positioned between business, government and the civil society.
Research output: Contribution to conference › Conference paper
Research output: Contribution to conference › Conference paper


text:
It's not uncommon these days to hear someone on the right side of the political spectrum refer to people on the left side as "America haters." It's a nice way to dismiss any criticism of the United States' policies or behaviors, and current administration in particular, because instead of addressing the criticism, one simply has to say, "They're just saying that because the hate America." Still, I think some people have come to genuinely believe that people on the left hate America, and aren't using the label as a rhetorical device designed to disarm one's opponent. To these people, the political landscape in the U.S. is composed of two villages, one populated by patriots, and the other by America haters. There doesn't seem to be any room in between, and a patriot seems to be defined as adopting a less than critical attitude towards one's country. For me, this raises interesting questions about what patriotism is, and as a psychologist, questions about the psychological makeup of a patriot. Since today's the 4th of July, it seems like a good time to talk about a litlte of what I've learned.
The first place I thought to look was the literature on motivated reasoning. There's been a lot of research lately, most of it not very good, attempting to connect political psychology to affect-driven reasoning. Despite the low quality of the research, it's pretty clear that, as in pretty much every other area of our lives, motivated reasoning affects our political views, along with the way we perceive the political views of others. One could probably come up with an explanation of patriotism, at least as it is defined in many circles on the right (as being in opposition to the America hating of the left), as a form of motivated cognition. But that wouldn't tell you much, other than that patriots are human. So I had to look elsewhere.
It turns out that the psychological literature on patriotism specifically is pretty small. There's some work inspired by Adorno, Brunswick, and Levinson's The Authoritarian Personality, but that work sees patriotism as largely associated with authoritarian personality types. Patriotism becomes a unidimensional and, quite frankly, irrational trait. This is the patriotism to which Samuel Johnson refers. After reading some of that literature, I wasn't convinced that it was the only type of patriotism. That would imply that the only form of national attachment is an irrational, authoritarian one, and while I generally don't consider myself a patriot, I know plenty of people who do for reasons that don't seem to be associated with authoritarian impulses. So I kept searching, and came across a paper by Sullivan et al. on the role of patriotism in the 1988 presidential election that presented research supporting my suspicion1. Here's a bit from the abstract:
[P]eople who understand patriotism symbolically, emotionally, or instinctively were susceptible to George Bush's rhetorical appeals to patriotism and the flag. Indeed, these appeals had a strong influence on their vote choice, in favor of Bush. Voters who understood patriotism in alternative ways, however, were not induced by the Bush campaign's rhetorical strategy into voting for Bush for president.
Here we have different concepts of patriotism: symbolic/emotional and other (the other types are not as well defined in the paper). Expanding on this distinction, Herbert Kelman2 has proposed two basic types of patriotism, sentimental and instrumental, along with three subtypes within the two basic types. This table presents his division of the types of patriotism (p. 174)
I know that's hard to see (cursed ScienceBlogs template and its size restrictions!), but for our purposes it will do to simply describe the two basic types of patriotism. Kelman defines sentimental patriotism as "perception of the group as representative of personal identity," and instrumental patriotism as "perception of the group as meeting personal needs an interests." While this division(and the subdivisions) doesn't seem wholly satisfactory, it does line up at least partially with the political landscape described above. People who perceive the nation as representative of their personal identity will be hostile to criticisms of the nation (particularly those that line up with the particular way in which they identify with the nation, as defined by the three subtypes), because they are by extension criticisms of those who identify with the nation, while individuals who perceive thenation as "meeting personal needs and interests" will be quick to criticize the nation when it fails to do so. It's not surprising, then, that some sentimental patriots perceive instrumental patriots as "America haters."
LIke I said, though, this division didn't feel wholly satisfactory to me, so I kept looking, and finally came across a paper by Schatz, Staub, and Lavine titled "On the Varieties of National Attachment: Blind Versus Constructive Patriotism"3. In the rest of this post, I'm going to describe the research presented therein.
Schatz et al. also divide patriotism into two main types: blind and constructive patriotism, and these two types seem to line up almost perfectly with the situation described in the opening paragraph. In this paragraph, they describe the two types:
[B]lind patriotism [is] a rigid and inflexible attachment to country, characterized by unquestioning postitive evaluation, staunch allegiance, and intolerance of criticsm. These factors comprise core elements lf Kelman's "sentimental attachment" to country. In contrast, constructive patriotism refers to an annatchment to country characterized by "critical loyalty, questioning and criticism of current group practices that are driven by a desire for positive change. Both orientations are "patriotic" in the core sense of positive identficiation with feelings of affective attachment to country. However, the blind patriot views national criticism and dissent as inherently disloyal, whereas the constructive patriot does not. Instead, the constructive patriot may criticize and even actively oppose the nation's actions because he or she believes they violate fundamental percepts or are contrary to long-term national interests. (p. 153)
In order to explore the differences between these two types of patriotism, they present a study in which 291 undergrads answered items designed to measure several different attitudes:
- Blind patriosm (12 items): "It is un-American to criticize this country." "I would support my country right or wrong."
- Contructive patriotism (7 items): "I express my love for America by supporting efforts at positive change." "I oppose some U.S. policies becaues I care about my country and want to improve it."
- National attachment (17 items): "I feel a sense of identification and attachment to the people of the United States."
- Nationalism (6 items): "In view of America's moral and material superiority, it is only right that we should have the biggest say in deciding United Nations policy." "It is important that the U.S. win international sporting competitions like the Olympics."
- Cultural contamination (3 items): "Widespread adoption in the U.S. of cultural practices from foreign countries would trouble me because it might change or water down American culture too much."
- Political efficacy (3 items): "I could change things in this country if I really tried."
- National vulnerability (10 items): "The United States would probably be attacked if it weakened its defenses."
- Political knowledge (6 items): A quiz of basic knowledge of U.S. politics (e.g., the term length of U.S. senators).
- Political information gathering: The number of hours per week spent gathering political information during the past month.
- Political activism: "The number of self-defined 'political activist' behaviors performed during the prior 6 months."
- Political identity and affiliation: Liberal orconservative and political party affiliation (Republican, Democrat, Independent).
The first thing to look at is whether the two types of patriotism correlated with national attachment. Since patriotism is national attachment, if they're both forms of patriotism, then they should both show large positive correlations. And they both did, though blind patriotism showed a significantly higher correlation with national attachment than constructive patriotism. So, they can both be considered patriotism. Furthermore, the two constructs are orthogonal (only 2% of their variance is shared). Blind patriotism was positively correlated (�;;;;; = statistically significant) with nationalism†, national vulnerability�;;;;;, and cultural contamination†, and negatively correlated with political efficacy, political knowledge, political information gathering�;;;;;, and political activism†. Constructive patriotism, on the other hand, was positively correlated with political efficacy�;;;;;, political knowledge, political information gathering†, and political activism�;;;;;, and negatively correlated with nationalism, national vulnerability, and cultural contamination†. Furthermore, blind patriotism was positively correlated with conservativism and self-identification as Republican, while constructive patriotism was not correlated with either political identity or political affiliation.
A second study confirmed these relationships, and also showed that blind patriotism was positively associated with a preference for symbolic (e.g., "Children should learn to say the Pledge of Allegiance in school," or "Renovation of a national monumen") over instrumental (e.g., ""Children should learn about our system of government in school," or "Renovation of a national highway") expressions of patriotism�;;;;;, while constructive patriotism was associated with a preference for instrumetnal over symbolic expressions. Furthermore, blind patriotism was associated with selectively exposing oneself to positive information about the United States†, while constructive patriots exposed themselves to both positive and negative information.
These two studies provide initial evidence that the two constructs, blind and constructive patriotism, capture two distinct types of patriotism. The associations of the two types of patriotism also help to explain why the "America hater" label has become so popular among some groups on the right. Blind patriotism, which is positively associated with conservativism and Republican political identification, is opposed to criticism of the country. It is also not surprising that blind patriotism has become more visible after the attacks of September 11, 2001 (note that the study was published in 1999), in that blind patriots perceive a higher level of national vulnerability, which could only have been exacerbated by the attacks on New York and Washington D.C., along with the political rhetoric of the "war on terror." The distinction between the two types of patriotism also helps to explain different attitudes towards immigration, as blind patriots are more worried about "cultural contimination" form foriegners, which is reflected in much of the conservative rhetoric on the recently revived issue of undocumented immigrants. Finally, the distinction also helps to explain differing attitudes towards symbolic issues like flag burning. Since blind patriots are more focused on symbolic behaviors than constructive patriots, it's not surprising that many see flag burning as an important political issue. It seems, then, that Schatz et al. have the makings of an empirically valid distinction between two types of patriotism.
1Sullivan, J.L., Fried, A., & Dietz, M.G. (1992). Patriotism, politics, and the presidential election of 1988. American Journal of Political Science, 36(1), 200-234.
2Kelman, H.C. (1997). Nationalism, patriotism, and national identity: Social-psychological dimensions. In D. Bar-Tal & E. Staub (Eds.), Patriotism In the Life of Individuals and Nations, pp. 165-189. Chicago: Nelson-Hall.
3Schatz, R.T., Staub, E., & Lavine, H. (1999). On the varieties of national attachment: Blind versus constructive patriotism. Political Psychology, 20(1), 151-174.


text: Rinleaders Gonsalez, Rivera (Photo: NJ Office of Attorney General) [ 36 Charged in Camden Heroin Ring By Associated Press January 11, 2013 CAMDEN — New Jersey law enforcement officials have charged 36 people in what prosecutors say was a major heroin distribution ring in Camden. Read More|Comment Category: TS net, TS nj Tags: gangs, NJ, operation billboard, police blotter Send to a friend! Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Pin it! Reddit This! Share on Tumblr!


text:
Possible More is Wrong with Anthony's Knee
It is likely that both Carmelo Anthony and Tyson Chandler will miss Sunday's game against the Clippers, but the larger concern is the continued health of Anthony. In a report from Frank Isola in the Daily News, an unnamed surgeon speculates that there could be a larger problem with the star's knee. Per the report:
A leading orthopedic surgeon who did not want to be identified says that fluid in the back of the knee is commonly referred to as a baker's cyst, and that it is rarely a condition you find in a patient "with a 100% normal knee.
"It means there is something going on with the knee," the doctor added. "The question is, where did the fluid come from? What is the source of the fluid? Something inside the knee produces that fluid, so what is going to stop the fluid from coming back."
The orthopedic surgeon, who has not examined Anthony, speculated that the Knicks' All-Star forward either has a partially torn meniscus or an arthritic knee. Anthony said last week that he does not have a meniscus injury, an injury that ended Lin's season in late March.
Brian DiMenna
I wrote last week about not feeling totally qualified to weigh in on the adequacy of the Knicks' medical care, and though that opinion still holds, this is certainly worrisome. Like tears and whiskey worrisome.
Any serious injury to Melo would be, you know, about the worst thing to befall mankind in the history of the cosmos.


text:
Avaya IP Office Additional Embedded Messaging (229423)
- 2 Ports
- IP500 V2 only
Essential Edition provides embedded messaging in which will not need the presence of a license. Release 6 and further will support Essential Edition by default with 2 ports of voicemail enabled on IP500 V2. This will be capable of expanding to 6 channels through licenses in steps of two.
Additional Embedded Messaging (2 Ports): IPO LIC R6 ESSNTL EDITION ADD 2 (229423)
Free Free UPS Ground shipping on orders of $500+. Within Continental U.S. (under $500 orders only $9.95)
A portion of each purchase will be donated to The Penrickton Center for Blind Children. For more information, visit penrickton.com
Have Telecom Items For Sale? Top Dollar Offered - Lightning Fast Bids Provided email@example.com


text: [ Newstalk 870 Congratulates Our Fred's Appliance Grill Winner! By John McKay August 28, 2012 Thanks to all the folks who stopped by our booth at the Benton Franklin Fair and signed up for a chance to win the giant grill from Fred's Appliance and $500 to Yolk's. Read More|Comment Category: Best of Tri-Cities, Events, Newsletter, Tri-Cities News Tags: Benton Franklin Fair, freds appliance, grill, KFLDAM, newstalk 870, yokes Send to a friend! Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Pin it! Reddit This! Share on Tumblr!


text:
As a matter of fact I received the highest award from literally every veteran's organization in America.
— Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America gave McCain a grade of D for his record of voting against veterans. (By contrast, Obama got a B+.)
– Disabled Veterans of America noted McCain's dismal 20 percent voting record on veterans' issues. (Obama had an 80 percent.)
– In a list of "Key Votes," Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA) notes McCain "Voted Against Us" 15 times and "Voted For Us" only 8. (Obama voted for VVA 12 times, and against only once.)


text:
The best thing about this site is the staff, especially the Guy who helped sort out the ridiculous Via Toll motorway charging system. I don't know...Read more
Angel House 2 is a very nice place to stay. Rooms are nicely decorated, price is reasonable (breakfast is included in it). You also have access to...Read more
Noble suites apartments are a perfect place to stay for few days - kitchennete is equipped in everything, apartments are spacious, everything that you...Read more
Angel House is very good place to spend few days. I was there last month, with my friends. We had a great time in Cracow. Angel House is located in...Read more
This was our first trip to Poland and we had a very happy time staying at Pod Zielonym. The hotel had a very relaxed feel about it and Antek, the...Read more


text:
Coming to a vacation near you: Amazon canoe rides, volcano hikes and zip lining through the rain forest. Embrace this epic seven-night Ecuador and Amazon eco-adventure for $1199 per person, including taxes. This saves $600 per person on competing packages.
With an expert guide leading the way, this package includes all of the following experiences:
This deal from Gate 1 Travel includes roundtrip airfare from the U.S. to Quito; seven nights in five exotic cities; an English-speaking tour guide throughout; all transportation, including airport transfers; 16 meals (seven breakfasts, four lunches, four dinners); and taxes.
Depart: Aug. 19; Sept. 2, 9, 16, 23; Oct. 5, 7, 12, 14, 19, 21, 26, 28; Nov. 2, 4, 9, 16, 18, 23, 30; Dec. 7, 9, 14
This trip is only priced for departures from Miami; travelers from other U.S. gateways can secure their own airfare to Miami or use the promo code to book Gate 1 Travel's comparable Eight-Day Classic Ecuador & Amazon Adventure.
Please go to your email and confirm your subscription.


text:
Advertisement:Close [X]
58% via 31 votes18
Poor babe has pussy ruined by her masters toys and piss
- 25,247
- February 21, 2014
Naughty Tinkerbell I will show you the most outrageous and sexy erotica. I have masses of shocking and disgraceful porn, beautifully displayed for your viewing pleasure. You've come to the right place to share in my outrageous desire for sexual satisfaction, click the banner now for NaughtyTinkerbell.com
Related content
Twitter follow @porntube
From Our Blog Blog RSS
We are happy to help.
Choose your size


text:
Amjith Ramanujam recently wrote a thread profiler in Python and it was rediculously simple. He works for New Relic, which is all about performance and expecially performance measuring.
Python comes with batteries included, so it also includes a C profiler that works pretty well. But it doesn't work nice for django because the output is so huge. If you use the GUI RunSnakeRun, it is more managable that way.
Additional problem with cProfile: it has about 100% overhead, so you can't run it in production (which they need).
You can do more targeted profiling. For instance in Django. The way a web framework processes requests is normally always in the same way. You can use that during profiling.
There are two important stages: interrupt and inquire.
There's some 3% overhead in the thread approach, so that's real good. They can switch it on for a type of request and it'll profile the next 100 requests of that type.
My name is Reinout van Rees and I work a lot with Python (programming language) and Django (website framework). I live in The Netherlands and I'm happily married to Annie van Rees-Kooiman.
Most of my website content is in my weblog. You can keep up to date by subscribing to the automatic feeds (for instance with Google reader):


text:
- 800.878.7323
List price:
Used Trade Paper
Ships in 1 to 3 days
More copies of this ISBN
This title in other editions
Other titles in the Vintage International series:
Family Mattersby Rohinton Mistry
Shortlisted for the 2002 Booker Prize
"Rohinton Mistry is not a household name, but it should be....[He] has long been recognized as one of the best Indian writers; he ought to be considered simply one of the best writers, Indian or otherwise, now alive....Mistry has a keenly developed feeling for the absurd: there is hardly a page in all of his fiction that isn't funny on one level or another....One of the strongest features of Mistry's novels — and the reason he is so reminiscent of the great nineteenth-century writers — is his use, sometimes audacious, of big metaphors. Family Matters and A Fine Balance are masterly in the way they imbue certain lives, or deaths, with meaning....Major writers differ from minor ones, even great minor ones, in their ability to handle the big questions: death, family, the passing of time, the inevitability of loss, God or the corresponding God-shape hole. Mistry handles all of them in an accomplished style all his own." Brooke Allen, The Atlantic Monthly (read the entire Atlantic review)
Synopses & Reviews
From Powells.com:
One of the most interesting book trends of the nineties was the emergence of a rich body of literature written in English by Indian authors — and from all corners of the globe: Arundhati Roy (India), Michael Ondaatje (Canada), Salman Rushdie (England), Jhumpa Lahiri (United States), etc. But my personal favorite is Rohinton Mistry (Canada), whose A Fine Balance (1995) is widely considered among the finest novels published during the past ten years. A tough act to follow, to be sure. So for his next novel, Mistry didn't try to recreate his earlier success. In fact, he wrote its opposite. Where the former was a vast panorama encompassing an entire subcontinent, Family Matters uses an intimate canvas to portray a single family. Where A Fine Balance earned Mistry comparison to Dickens, Family Matters, with its preoccupation with domestic matters, is more Austenian. But while it may play on a smaller stage, Family Matters is no less compelling than its predecessor, and that's saying something indeed. Martin, Powells.com
Publisher Comments:
Rohinton Mistrys enthralling novel is at once a domestic drama and an intently observed portrait of present-day Bombay in all its vitality and corruption. At the age of seventy-nine, Nariman Vakeel, already suffering from Parkinsons disease, breaks an ankle and finds himself wholly dependent on his family. His step-children, Coomy and Jal, have a spacious apartment (in the inaptly named Chateau Felicity), but are too squeamish and resentful to tend to his physical needs.
Nariman must now turn to his younger daughter, Roxana, her husband, Yezad, and their two sons, who share a small, crowded home. Their decision will test not only their material resources but, in surprising ways, all their tolerance, compassion, integrity, and faith. Sweeping and intimate, tragic and mirthful, Family Matters is a work of enormous emotional power.
"Warm, humane, tender and bittersweet....This beautifully paced, elegantly expressed novel is notable for the breadth of its vision as well as its immensely appealing characters and enticing plot." Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)
"Rohinton Mistry writes sweeping, realist family dramas that recall such 19th century writers as Tolstoy and Dickens....Mistry's newest novel, Family Matters, isn't as resonant or as powerful as A Fine Balance — few books are — but it's moving all the same, occasionally achieving an incandescent tenderness that never lapses into bathos....Mistry has an amazing way of setting up ordinary lives scarred by tragedy, then illuminating them with moments of merciful beauty. He writes simply, but by accumulating the small details of his characters' existence, he creates a visceral feel for their loves, humiliations and little victories....
"Mistry...solidifies his standing as one of the world's finest authors....Come to [this book] with the anticipation or foreboding you'd bring to a letter from home. You'll be rewarded luxuriously." The Seattle Times
"Mistry's prose is expansive, generous to its characters and ample in story....Frequently clear-eyed, courageous and deeply entertaining." The Oregonian
"Imagine a 19th-century realist sensibility probing the abiding mysteries of India in our time. Leo Tolstoy meets R. K. Narayan....Mistry?s compassion for [his] people is boundless." Newsday
"Almost Tolstoyan in registry and range....To say Mistry captures the textures of India well and creates larger-than-life characters is to note the least of his achievements." The Observer (London)
"Stealthily, even movingly, Mistry reveals small triumphs of humanity over distaste, minute shifts that signal leaps of compassion." The Guardian (UK)
"Mistry has created a meticulously evoked, deliberately paced portrait of decay and ruin....It is not a pretty picture, but Mistry makes it warmhearted and stirring all the same." Time Out New York
Set in Bombay in the mid-1990s, "Family Matters" tells a story of familial love and obligation, of personal and political corruption, of the demands of tradition and the possibilities for compassion.
About the Author
Rohinton Mistry was born in Bombay and now lives near Toronto. His first novel, Such a Long Journey, received, among other awards, the 1992 Commonwealth Writers Prize for Best Book of the Year. In 1995, A Fine Balance won the second annual Giller Prize and, in 1996, the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Fiction. Mistry is also the author of Swimming Lessons, a collection of short stories.
What Our Readers Are Saying
Add a comment for a chance to win!
Average customer rating based on 1 comment:
Product Details
Other books you might like
Related Subjects
Fiction and Poetry » Literature » A to Z


text:
The Open Championship International Final Qualifying Australasia - Round Two
Rohan Blizard of Australia plays a shot on the 1st hole during day... Nachrichtenfoto1. Loch,Australien,British Open,Golf,Kingston Heath Golf Club,Melbourne,Qualifizierungs-Runde,Sport,Sportbegriff,Tag,Trefferversuch,VertikalPhotographer Robert Prezioso/R&ACollection: R & A 2013 Robert Prezioso/R&AMELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - JANUARY 30: Rohan Blizard of Australia plays a shot on the 1st hole during day two of the British Open International Final Qualifying Australasia at Kingston Heath Golf Club on January 30, 2013 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Robert Prezioso/R&A/R&A via Getty Images)


text:
Nyt_RydaMember Since 13 May 2010
Offline Last Active Today, 07:01 AM
I have to approve the comments first before anyone can see them :P And its not a dog its a wolf :P Updated 04 Oct · 0 comments
About Me
Well, I'm an 19 year old guy living in South Africa
Since I was young, I was always interested in computers and knew that one day I would work in the I.T industry.
I remember the first real computer that was mine - a black Mecer PC with a Core 2 Duo E6300.
That is when I started overclocking .
I took the E6300 from its stock 1.86GHz up to around 3GHz using a mainstream XFX G31 motherboard and Gigabyte aftermarket cooler. After that, you could say that I was addicted
I'm busy studying for my BSc in Computer Science at University.
I hope to stay here for many many years and will always help if someone needs assistance
Community Stats
- Group Moderator
- Active Posts 4637
- Profile Views 45944
- Member Title Life is Strange...
- Age 20 years old
- Birthday September 22, 1995
Profile Information
South Africa


text:
Ken 2.0: Lost days in front of the TV are over
Ken's weight decreases along with the amount of time he spends in front of the TV. The final season of "Lost" came out on DVD last week. Ken no longer dreams of marathon sessions of watching the show swaddled on the couch in a blanket with junk-food treats within arm's reach.
I've been thinking about "Lost" this week — you know, that TV series about people trapped on a mysterious island after a plane crash.
My wife and I love that show, but I hate commercials, so from the start, we've put off watching each season until it's available on home video. The final season came out on DVD on Tuesday, and at my urging, my wife picked it up at Target. In the past, I looked forward to marathon viewing sessions. I'd pile the coffee table with sweet and salty snacks, wrap up in a blanket and settle into a comfy chair. Thanks to the remote, the only times I'd have to get up would be to swap DVDs or use the bathroom. I'd watch one episode after another, racing toward each season's conclusion. Eight or 10 hours might pass. That doesn't sound appealing to me anymore. At all. I want to watch the show, of course, but I don't want to sit there for countless hours, eating and drinking and getting fatter. Lately I've been doing my TV viewing on the treadmill at home. I hook my computer up to the treadmill's speakers and watch streaming videos on Netflix while I alternate walking and jogging.
Continue reading this story on the...
Staff Writer Ken Raymond began a yearlong weight loss and fitness journey on April 1.
Here are his stats: Age: 41 Height: About 6 feet 1 inch Beginning weight: 307 pounds Current weight: 273 pounds


text:
EXCLUSIVE TO NET-A-PORTER.COM. Heel measures approximately 100mm/ 4 inches. Embellished with a beautiful bouquet of leather and tulle flowers, Valentino's ivory mesh sandals are a romantic bridal choice. Make them the focal point of your look by wearing them with an understated white dress and compact clutch. Shown here with a Bottega Veneta clutch, Amanda Wakeley dress and a Tom Binns cuff.
Valentino sandals: ivory leather and mesh, heel measures approximately 100mm/ 4 inches, leather and tulle petal embellishment, peep toe. Lace-up open back.
Product code: 161267 - Need help? Contact us


text:
SXSW Interactive Dallas Community Meet Up Tonight, Jan 22nd!
SXSW Interactive is in Dallas today prepping for our pre-event Community Meet Up tonight! We'll be at The Grove at 501 Elm Street in Dallas from 6pm-8pm CST. Enjoy light refreshments on us and network with our SXSW Interactive staff and other Dallas-Fort Worth digital creatives.


text:
FREE PERSONALIZATION on ornaments
and FREE SHIPPING when you buy 5 or more!
Each Christmas Ornament Personalized with a Name or Special Greeting from you!
When you buy 5 or more items!Learn more >>
- Activities
- Advent Calendars
- African American / Ethnic
- Angel
- Anniversary, Wedding & Engagement
- Baby
- Birthstone
- College and University
- Diannes Gift Ideas
- Easter
- Expecting Moms/Couples
- Fairy Tales and Nursery Rhymes
- Fall and Halloween
- Family
- Food & Drink
- For Her
- For Him
- Glass Ball
- Glass Ornaments
- Graduation
- Grandparents
- Holiday Plaques
- Home
- Kids
- Made in America
- Made in Europe
- Memorial
- Music
- Occupations
- Patriotic
- Pets and Animals
- Picture Frames
- Piggy Banks
- Religious
- Santa & Snowman
- Snow Globes
- Space & Technology
- Sports
- Table Decorations
- Teachers and School
- Transportation
- Vacation and Travel
- Valentine
- Western
Review this product!
25 Years Silver Anniversary
Personalized Christmas Ornament$15.95
25 years of marriage is a reason for celebration! It is always nice to give a personal gift to celebrate a wedding anniversary. This personalized anniversary ornament is a wonderful way to commemorate being married 25 years. The number 25 is in silver, and there is room on the bride and groom for us to write the first names of the happy couple. We can also include their wedding date! This is a wonderful gift for children to give to their parents, or if you were a part of the bridal party 25 years ago, this is a fun way for you to remember their special day with them!
Material: Resin


text:
|Sheriff's K-9 Recovers Missing, Unconscious, Epileptic Child
Upon arrival, Detective Tahir Brown was advised that the female student who has a history of wandering away had gone missing.
K-9 "Mac", a tracking bloodhound and a three year veteran of the sheriff's department, obtained a scent from the girl's jacket which had been left behind in her classroom. "Mac" tracked west on
"Our canines are invaluable to our department and our community," Fontoura noted. "This incident could have resulted in tragedy if it were not for 'Mac' and his handler, Detective Brown."
The student was rushed to


text:
Free Beer & Hot Wings: Grown Man Gets Stuck In High Chair [Video]
This guy — a grown man — managed to slip into a high chair while trying to be funny at a party.
As if that didn't make his friends laugh enough, what happened next sure did. He got STUCK! His friends then tried to help him out while filming and laughing at this jackass.
When things just weren't working right and he couldn't get out of the high chair, he did what anyone would do: He took off his pants. But sure enough, that didn't help either, so he remained stuck. We're assuming forever.
Source: Free Beer & Hot Wings


text:
Welcome to Fullbars
We offer a full range of tablet and electronic repairs including iPad repairs, tablet repairs, cell phone screen replacements, screen repairs, and more! We offer our full services to Albuquerque, NM
We are a professional tablet and cell phone repairs service in Albuquerque, NM prepared to provide all customers with professional iPad repairs and restoration services! We always offer prompt and quality services to ensure the satisfaction of each and every customer. No job is ever to big or small for Fullbars Cell Phone & Tablet Repair in Albuquerque, NM ! From a simple iPod repair to a tablet screen replacement, we do it all!
Do you have a broken tablet or Shattered iPhone screen ? Don't hesitate to call the top cell phone repair service in Albuquerque, NM ! Fullbars Cell Phone & Tablet Repair in Albuquerque, NM always offers reasonable prices and prompt services! Don't throw away money on a new tablet! Call Fullbars Cell Phone & Tablet Repair in Albuquerque, NM today for quality tablet and iPad repair services!


text:
You may also like
Rate Dr. Dana Laridaen
Dr. Dana Laridaen's Ratings
Love seeing Dr. L! Been coming here for the last 4 months. Finally a doctor who understands what's going on with my body without telling me 'my body just needs more time to heal'. Dr. Laridaen has great bedside manner, doesn't rush you, has great hours, I just wish I would have found her 4 years ago when I first got injured! Can't say enough good things about this woman! She's truly talented and knows the human body. -Lulu
Was this rating useful? 0 [[ userState['ratings'][219583].votes_count ]]
Best in knowledge, bedside manner, and adjustment you can get.
Was this rating useful? 0 [[ userState['ratings'][219582].votes_count ]]
Hands down, the best chirp I CD e ever been too. Extremely knowledgeable, informative, amazing with her hands, great to look at, and perfect butt.
Was this rating useful? 0 [[ userState['ratings'][219581].votes_count ]]
She is amazing, awesome! I feel great after she is done with me.
Was this rating useful? 0 [[ userState['ratings'][219580].votes_count ]]
Top Hospitals in Los Angeles, CA
Top Urgent Care Centers in Los Angeles, CA
Find a Doctor by Specialty
Featured Articles
You may also like
Top Chiropractors
#1 of 579
#2 of 579
#3 of 579
#4 of 579
#5 of 579


text:
Need more information? We would love to hear from you! You can fill out this form, call us at 317.631.9642 (downtown) or at 317.802.1374 (NW side) or email us at firstname.lastname@example.com. Get directions to downtown or northside.
Invoke Studio's second studio, Invoke Wellness Center is located at 1315 W 86th Street (at the intersection of 86th & Ditch)! We have partnered with Dr. Marcus McCray, a respected Indy chiropractor, and Karen Wiltrout of Indy Sports Massage, to create a center that features wellness classes (including yoga, pilates & Bar Effect), as well as chiropractic services and massage.
Directed by Ahna Hoke E-RYT 500 this Yoga Alliance registered 200-hour program is designed to give you the fundamentals of teaching an Invoke vinyasa class. Whether you've dreamt of teaching yoga, or you're interested in deepening your own personal practice, this training will offer something for you. The program will include instruction from New York City-based Master Teacher Frank Mauro.


text:
Disclosure: The blog owner (that's me!) received a product(s) or promotional item from YouCopia to facilitate this review. I received no other compensation for this post and was under no obligation to post a positive review. The opinions contained herein, are my own and reflect my experience with the product(s). Your own may differ.
My spices are a mess! It seems that whenever anyone besides me, who, like Mary Poppins, is practically perfect in every way, uses a spice, it doesn't get returned to it's proper place. This results in a lot of frustration for me AND a lot of extra dollars being spent at the grocery store, replacing spices that I know I have but cannot find. Once, I actually found saffron threads in the back of the freezer! Go figure!
I'm not completely OCD about the placement of my spices, but I do like them a certain way and if they're not, it throws me off balance, somewhat. To others, it might make no sense, but to me, it does, and frankly, in my kitchen, THAT'S what counts. So there!
I was recently invited to review a wonderful new product by YouCopia – the Classic SpiceStack®. It holds 24 full sized spice bottles (or 48 half size) in a very compact 10.4 W x 8.8 H x 10.9 L inches. Designed to fit nearly any standard cupboard it comes with 96 (48 printed and 48 blank) removable labels making it easy to find what you need, when you need it.
My Classic SpiceStack® arrived fully assembled and all I needed to do was add the spices which is a very nice perk as you could say I'm a bit architecturally (I don't put things together well) challenged. No long list of instructions to follow..just stow and go. I like that!
The drawers slide easily and without sticking, displaying their contents in a convenient and readily accessible way. This feature is especially welcome when I'm at the stove and have only one hand free.
All in all, I find the Classic SpiceStack® to be an excellent product that makes my life in the kitchen much easier!
You can connect with YouCopia on Facebook and Twitter too or purchase your own Classic SpiceStack® online at fine retailers like Amazon.com or check the handy dandy product locator to find other outlets, as well.
The great folks at YouCopia have generously offered one of my readers a chance to win a Classic SpiceStack®, like the one I was sent. Thank you so much!
Just hop aboard the Rafflecopter to enter!


text:
To embed, copy and paste the code into your website or blog:
The Mississippi Supreme Court recently reversed a $1.1 million jury verdict of a widow of a former railroad worker. In Mississippi Valley Silica Company, Inc. v. Reeves, (Supreme Court of Mississippi, No. 2012-CA-01702-SCT, 2014 WL 1511304 (Miss. Apr. 17, 2014)), the plaintiff alleged that her husband, Robert Reeves, died of interstitial pulmonary fibrosis, or scarring of the lungs, caused by exposure to products containing silica. The Court held that the plaintiff's verdict cannot stand without direct evidence that the defendant sold silica sand to the decedent's employer or that the decedent was actually exposed to the product for any significant period of time.
From 1947 to 1991, decedent Robert Reeves worked as a brakeman, and later as a conductor, for the Illinois Central Railroad. As a brakeman, Reeves was required to keep his head out of the window of the train while it was in motion to look for problems down the line. The plaintiff alleged that, as a result, "his [Reeves'] face was exposed to 'a lot of sand, cinders and everything.'" Sand was evidently used for traction in breaking and to prevent train wheels from spinning when encountering steep grades. Reeves, who apparently did not wear respiratory protection, was allegedly exposed to dust and sand daily. He was also exposed to sandblasting.
In 2002, the decedent and others filed a multi-plaintiff case against numerous defendants, alleging that Reeves was afflicted with silicosis, a lung disease caused by exposure to crystalline silica. In 2006, the court dismissed the multi-plaintiff action without prejudice, holding that the plaintiffs were improperly joined and permitting the re-filing of separate lawsuits by individual plaintiffs. Reeves' widow timely re-filed her lawsuit in 2007, amending the complaint to seek wrongful death and survival damages from his death in 2010. Notably, the decedent had previously filed a lawsuit for asbestosis damages, although in the subject case, he was seeking damages due only to "the silica component of the mixed-dust disease."
At the May 2012 trial, the sole remaining defendant was Mississippi Valley Silica, Inc. (Valley). After the plaintiff presented her case, Valley filed a motion for directed verdict, which was denied. The jury found for the plaintiff, awarding economic damages in the amount of $149,464.40 and non-economic damages of $1.5 million, with Valley 15 percent at fault. In addition, the jury awarded punitive damages of $50,000, and the trial court awarded attorney fees of $257,701.50. Further, although Valley was found only 15 percent at fault, the trial court determined that the law in place in 2002, when the original multi-plaintiff action was filed, should apply. Accordingly, the statutory caps on punitive and non-economic damages enacted in 2004 were inapplicable, and Valley was jointly and severally liable for 50 percent of the judgment. Ultimately, the trial court determined that Valley owed the Reeves beneficiaries $824,732.20, plus $50,000 in punitive damages and $257,701.50 in attorney fees, for a total of $1,132,433.70.
Valley filed a motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict, which was denied by the trial judge. On direct appeal to the Mississippi Supreme Court, Valley argued that the evidence presented at trial was insufficient to support the jury's $1.1 million verdict. The Supreme Court agreed, finding that the plaintiff's evidence at trial, including the decedent's videotaped deposition and testimony by a former co-worker, did not establish that Illinois Central specifically used Valley silica sand for wheel traction or sandblasting, nor was Valley identified as the source of the silica sand that purportedly injured the decedent as a matter of law. While the plaintiff's industrial hygienist testified that the decedent was exposed to silica for more than 1500 hours during the course of his employment at Illinois Central, the plaintiff failed to present any reliable product identification of Valley. There was no evidence of any invoices and no witnesses could testify that Valley sand was used on Illinois Central train cars. Thus, the decedent's testimony that he had handled one bag of Valley sand in the 1970s, despite having worked for Illinois Central for over forty years, was insufficient to tie Valley to his silicosis. Accordingly, the Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the trial court and rendered judgment in favor of Valley.
The Mississippi Supreme Court's decision in Reeves is a promising holding for product manufacturers defending lawsuits for personal injuries where product identification and causation testimony is lacking.
See more »
DISCLAIMER: Because of the generality of this update, the information provided herein may not be applicable in all situations and should not be acted upon without specific legal advice based on particular situations.
© Sedgwick LLP
Your first step to building a free, personalized, morning email brief covering pertinent authors and topics on JD Supra:
Sign up to create your digest using LinkedIn*
Back to Top
Copyright ©


text:
Sony has been getting hacked and reprimanded by its customers, while enduring harsh criticism and snide remarks from rivals.
Basically, over the past two years, it has been keeping the data it has been entrusted with less safe than usual.
As it happens, a data breach is precisely what has come back to bite it now.
Back in 2011, the PlayStation network got hacked, which resulted in personal data and payment details for millions of customers being put at risk.
For that, the company has been ordered to pay £250,000 ($376,000 / 288,000) to a British regulator.
Sony initially appealed the decision, but more recently decided to withdraw that appeal and just pay the fine from the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).
"After careful consideration we are withdrawing our appeal," said a Sony spokesperson to V3, continuing, "This decision reflects our commitment to protect the confidentiality of our network security from disclosures in the course of the proceeding. We continue to disagree with the decision on the merits."


text:
As of Saturday, February 9, 2013
© Copyright 2015 Gwinnett Daily Post
More Photos
SUWANEE -- The formula for Norcross' boys was simple on Friday night -- win their regular season finale against Collins Hill and capture the regular season title.
As it turned out, it was anything but simple.
Using a pair of key defensive stands in the final 11.6 seconds, Norcross held on for dear life against the Eagles to come away with a 57-54 win.
The victory secured the top seed in the next week's Region 7-AAAAAA tournament, where the Blue Devils (19-6, 14-2) will play on Tuesday against the winner of Monday's play-in game with Mountain View and Habersham Central.
"A lot (of us coaches) felt that our region is the toughest one in the state," Norcross head coach Jesse McMillan said. "We've had five teams ranked in the top 10 during the year and there's not one team you can take for granted and tonight was big-time example of that.
"We started well tonight but Collins Hill had a game plan and stuck to it. They really bothered us with their zone and were able to get back in it. It was nearly a dead even game after that."
Norcross came out of the gates hot and took a 20-13 lead in the first quarter, led by a 13-point outburst from Andre Chatfield.
Chatfield, who led all players with 20 points, was zeroed in from long range early on, hitting three 3-pointers in the first, while a 3-pointer from Brandon Goodwin in the final second of the period put the Blue Devils up by seven.
However, that field goal by Goodwin would be the last Norcross would get in the first half as the Eagle defense held the Blue Devils to just four points in the second period, all of those coming on free throws.
That opened the door for Collins Hill, an opening the Eagles steadily pushed through with 16 points in the second.
Darius Joell led that charge with seven in the second, while four other Eagles contributed with points to help give Collins Hill a 29-24 halftime edge.
Whatever doldrums Norcross had in the second quarter went away in the third as Norcross outscored Collins Hill 23-14 to carry a 47-43 lead into the fourth quarter.
Khalen Pinkett, who was scoreless in the first half, provided the spark Norcross needed with nine of his 11 points in the third.
But Collins Hill wouldn't go away, reclaiming the lead at 49-47 when Eric Ambrosio scored off an inbounds pass with 3:43 left.
Norcross rallied for the next five points to go up 52-49, but Ambrosio struck again, this time with a 3-pointer with 1:45 left to tie the score at 52-52.
Lorenzo Carter put Norcross back up at 54-52 with a pair of free throws, ultimately giving Norcross the lead for good, but Collins Hill had two chances in the closing seconds to steal this one away.
With 11.6 seconds left and Norcross leading 56-54, the Eagles brought the ball up court when Goodwin, who finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds, stole a cross-court pass and was fouled on the ensuing layup with 3.5 seconds left.
Goodwin would hit one of two for a three-point lead.
After some confusion as to which team called timeout after Goodwin hit his free throw, Collins Hill had one more shot to tie, but the long pass down court was stolen again, this time by Chris Herndon, preserving the game and cementing the Blue Devils as the top seed.
"We have one or two wrinkles we can do defensively to hold for certain spots and tonight it paid off," McMillan said.
Collins Hill, which came into Friday's game with the fourth seed already locked up, was led by 19 points and six rebounds from Devin Mitchell.
Darius Joell followed with 11 points and five boards, while Ambrosio added eight points.
The Eagles will open the tournament against fifth-seed Mill Creek.
Norcross girls 68,
Collins Hill 45
Norcross finished the regular season with a 68-45 win over Collins Hill, leaving Norcross and North Gwinnett tied for first.
The region's top seed will be determined this morning via a coin flip, while Collins Hill will host Meadowcreek on Monday at 6:30 p.m. in the Region 7-AAAAAA tournament play-in game.
Shayla Cooper had a huge night for Norcross (21-4, 15-1) with 29 points and five rebounds, while Javonne Stanfield added 14 points and five assists. Norcross was without starter Diamond DeShields, who sat out in order to rest an injury for next week's region tournament.
Collins Hill (6-19, 2-14) was led by nine points from Sydney Brown. Nykeria Smith added seven points, while Madison McAfee finished with six points, four rebounds and three assists.
More like this story
- First-place Lions cash in at line to hold off Eagles ( January 18, 2013 )
- Norcross boys back on top of region with win over Lions ( February 16, 2013 )
- Collins Hill hangs on to oust Mill Creek ( February 13, 2013 )
- Norcross boys play their 'best' to rout Collins Hill ( February 15, 2013 )
- North gets just enough offense to beat Collins Hill ( February 5, 2013 )


text:
By Metaclassy, Lda.
Open iTunes to buy and download apps.
Byword is designed to make writing more enjoyable with Markdown on your iPhone and iPad.
# Key features of Byword
- Designed to make writing more enjoyable using Markdown
- Sync text documents across all your Mac, iPhone, iPad devices
- Take all documents offline to access them anytime
- Filter documents by searching all text (Find & Replace inside documents coming soon)
- Alternate dark theme for extra comfort in low-light situations
- The most complete Markdown support including footnotes, tables and cross-references
- Export Markdown documents to PDF and HTML documents
- Premium feature: Publish to WordPress, Tumblr, Blogger, Scriptogram and Evernote
# Optimized for iOS 8
- Document Providers
- Handoff
- iCloud Drive
# Blog publishing — Premium only[^1]
Publish to WordPress, Tumblr, Blogger, Scriptogram blogs and Evernote notebooks from Byword. Posting to your blog with Byword is as simples as:
1. Write something in Byword
2. Open Tools and select Publish
3. Confirm title, tags, categories, etc.
4. Publish
[^1]: Requires a one-time in-app purchase for all your iOS devices. Premium on Mac requires a separate one-time purchase.
# More features
- List continuations
- TextExpander snippet expansion
- Word and character counters with live update
- Extensive VoiceOver support for visual impaired users
- Spell and Grammar checking and Dictionary lookup
- Keyboard shortcuts for formatting and navigating between screens
Here are some ways to use Byword in your life:
- For posting to your blog without using clunky web interfaces and risking losing your work
- For research, meeting and class notes
- To write that important email without being distracted
- To capture ideas and notes and have them available in all devices
# Rich text warning
Byword for iOS only works with plain text formats. Supported file extensions are: txt, text, md, mmd, markdown, markdn, mdown, mkdn, markd and fountain.
# Support
We are proud to provide a super friendly customer support. If you need help and/or have suggestions, please contact us using the mediums below.
Twitter: http://twitter.com/bywordapp
Email: email@example.com
Web: http://bywordapp.com
What's New in Version 2.3.4
- Add support for TextExpander fill-ins
- Avoid multiple alerts when editing documents in Dropbox
- Fix duplicate folder when creating new folder in iCloud
- Fix incorrect capitalization when using third-party keyboards
- Other minor bug fixes
Customer Reviews
An amazing, simple, and clean markdown app!
I love Byword. The interface is clean and easy to use. Parses markdown beautifully while you type. It's so easy to read and feels so nice. I love it!
I don't write a whole lot of articles, but when I do write one, it takes me a while. So I like to take my work offline while I flesh out my thoughts. Markdown and Byword allow me to do that wonderfully. Then it syncs back to Dropbox where I can publish to Ghost blog.
*Feature request*: the only thing I would change is that there should be a Markdown cheat sheet. I sometimes forget some of the markdown syntax. It would be nice to get a quick cheat sheet right in the app instead of opening a browser. That way, I could truly be offline.
Used to be good - crappy now
Byword used to be great. I even bought the add-on. Lately, it's infrequently updated and when it is updated (like the latest update), it's more likely to not work as well as before.
In the latest update - external keyboard navigation (i.e. pressing things like COMMAND-down_arrow to go down to end of document) don't work. They used to work flawlessly but not anymore. Contacting the developer about this didn't help in any way. There was no response whereas before the developer responded right away.
The last straw is that the current version is unstable. I literally just lost 100 words I just wrote because Byword crashed.
In fact, I was searching for 'markdown editor' in the app store and Byword was the first selection and this prompted me to write a review.
It saddens me that things have gone downhill with Byword. It reflects poorly on the developer and it definitely discourages me from purchasing any new apps.
Message to the developer: If you're going to stop supporting an app, then have the balls to be upfront about it rather than take the app and your users on a slow ride to uselessness.
no problems
My Byword app lives on my 2nd generation iPad and does precisely what I require: opens to a blank page in a snap for note-taking outside of the office, saves and dates the notes even if I forget to name them, and makes it easy to email the notes to myself when the interview is over. I've never learned Markdown, though I still plan to, and have had little trouble doing what I need to do. It's always been stable. Nice app.
- $5.99
- Category: Productivity
- Updated: Apr 23, 2015
- Version: 2.3.4
- Size: 6.3 MB
- Language: English
- Seller: Metaclassy, Lda
- © Metaclassy, Lda.
Compatibility: Requires iOS 8.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
Top In-App Purchases
- Publishing$4.99