text:
Getech, the geoscience services business specialising in the provision of data, studies and services to the oil, gas and mining exploration sectors, provides a trading update.
The Directors anticipate that the Company will return trading figures for the year to 31 July 2015 which show a very significant year on year improvement. The current estimate, which is subject to review and audit, is profit before tax of £2.0m (2014: £1.0m) on income of £8.5m (2014: £6.6m), representing a 100% increase in profit before tax and a 29% increase in income. This result would be slightly below current market expectations.
The Directors regard this as a strong performance given the current market conditions, which include the rapid fall and volatility in the oil price, and an extended period of retrenchment and redundancies throughout the oil and gas market globally.
Getech Group Plc.
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Piida Diida Clothing Designer
Kaycee BlairModel Female Orlando, Florida, US
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About Me*Agency Represented*
Currently booking print, promotional, television, hosting and commercial work, but am willing to accept offers in other areas.
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Have you worked with Kaycee Blair? Add Credits for Kaycee Blair! >>
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
Bourjois Khol&Contour
Bourjois Khol&Contour Reviews
like it!!I have a few colors in them. They are soft, easy to apply, easy to blend. It kind of dissapeared a bit afer a few hours specially the light colors. The light blue one doesn't stay on for more than 4 hours, so I have to reapply. The darker colors were okay. — 6 years, 1 month agoParo | 32 reviews
gooe eyelinerpretty good eyeliner mine lasted all day didnt come off until i took it off. — 6 years, 1 month agosandyc | 64 reviews
Does what it is meant to do!Love the kohl and contour line... have it in black and it never fails. Rich pigment not wax and I use it on top of my liquid gel liner to fill in spaces.You can smudge it perfectly if you need to. — 6 years, 7 months agorobinseggblue | 47 reviews
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My Reasons for Reporting This


text:
Monday Morning:
RFB: Hey… whats up?
RBM: Good good…
RFB: So how was the weekend?
RBM: Same… what else? Yours?
RFB: Same… what else?
RFB: Chiteej…!!! Whats up?
Chiteej: Whats up peepals?
RFB: Abbe I had awesome omelette at Mocha.
Chiteej: Abbe German Bakery ja bey! Kya mast cheese omelette milta hai bey!
RFB: Shady place hai bey…
Chiteej: Woh pata nahin bey, lekin omelette mast hota hai.
Tuesday Morning:
Cisco 7941: Tu nu nu Tu nu nu
RFB: Hey Bunty
Bunty: Hey RFB
RFB: Hey hey…
Hey hey hey!! (Grrrrr…)
Tuesday Afternoon:
RFB: Lunch?
Lara: Aaj Tuesday hai!
Wednesday Morning:
Chiteej: Abbe mera cappuccino maar liya kisi ne!!
RFB: Usne maara hoga, waise humein tere cappuccino mein interest nahin hai! Mera Bru mast hai!
Njoshi2: Abbe Activa laya hai kya?
RFB: Baarish ho rahi hai bey!
A'jee-K'wale: How are you!!
Wednesday Evening:
Rosh: Its Wednesday evening…
RFB: Yeh I know, but I can't help it. I will still try
Wednesday Night:
RFB: Simple pleasures
S(t)ree: Abbe, can I take it for a day?
RFB: Sure
Wednesday Late Night:
RFB: Hows it going?
S(t)ree: Marathe!!!!! Kya mast mausam hai. Barish ho rahi hai!!
RFB: Bahar toh ho rahi hai… but…?
Thursday Morning:
RBM: Abbe frust ho gayi!
RFB: Kyun?
RBM: Bassss!
Thursday Evening:
Njoshi2: Do you wanna lose?
RFB: Chal!
A'jee-K'wale: Crack!
Thursday Night:
Bunty: Abbe chal Aurora Towers chalte hain raat ko.
RFB: Nahin yaar, Kothrud jana hai.
Bunty: Kothrud?
RBM: Pashan!!
Friday Morning:
RFB: Hey whats up?
RBM: Its Friday!
RFB: Yeh, it will be Monday soon!
Friday Afternoon:
RFB: Hows it going?
S(t)ree: Good good!
RFB: Gatcha!!!!!!!
A'jee-K'wale: Hey Marathe!
RFB: Hey!!
A'jee-K'wale: Are you going to Bombay?
RFB: Abbe tu ja bey!
A'jee-K'wale: \m/
Friday Evening:
RFB: Bhaiyya.. Kondhwa
5071: Haan sir 10 mins mein aa jao
Chow-chow: Kya bey Friday night ko seedha Kondhwa?
RFB: Haan yaar…
How are we…!!!!


text:
Long Doubles Aren't Long Enough
Long Doubles Aren't Long Enough
Jul 30, 2012 at 10:08pm UTC
Teaching myself C++ by doing various exercises from around the 'Net, and I came across Project Euler. Awesome site, but I'm stumped on even where to begin on a couple of the problems.
I'm absolutely NOT looking for actual code, just a general idea of if my idea will even work.
The problem is to find the first ten digits of the sum of an arbitraily large number of 50 digit numbers.
Mind, if it was a simple matter of rounding, then fine, whatever, run with a bunch of long ints, or long doubles, but this site, they want exact values.
I THINK, but only think mind, that I can maybe do this as a form of string arrays, but that's where my brain breaks down. I know a string can be any length I want to make it, so long as my PC has enough memory to hold it all, so that fixes the length of the number problem, but then how in the world do I do math with string literals?
Is this even a valid line of thought, or am I barking up the wrong tree entire?
Jul 30, 2012 at 10:22pm UTC
A lot of Project Euler problems expect you to be able to work with big integers. Since C++ doesn't support them natively, it would be worth your time to learn how to use GNU MP (through its C++ interface:
) or some other similar library.
Last edited on
Jul 30, 2012 at 10:23pm UTC
Jul 31, 2012 at 2:12am UTC
Have you tried a long long? ; )
Jul 31, 2012 at 2:28am UTC
then how in the world do I do math with string literals?
Like you do it in elementary school.
A lot of Project Euler problems expect you to be able to work with big integers
This is not one of them.
Jul 31, 2012 at 2:46am UTC
@Cubbi Not the most... open structures in the world. If I was a bit more versed, I might be able to use it easily, and then love it. As it is, I have NO idea what to do with it.
@IceThatJaw unsigned long long is maxed out at 18,446,744,073,709,551,615, or 20 digits, less than half the needed resolution. Really, only about 19 digits, since the top digit is effectively binary.
Might work for the second idea I have, split the long-@*%$ number up into five groups of numbers of 10 digits, add the right most group together, take the newly generated however long digit number, cut the last ten digits off the back (since they are no longer needed, after all), add the front end numbers into the next group, repeat until I have the final front ten digits.
@ne555 I know I can do some "math" with strings, say by coding, "Hello " + "world!", and end up with a single string "Hello world!". By that logic, "222" + "333" isn't going to be "555", it'll be "222333". Am I wrong? If I'm right, then I can't actually do real math with the string literals, I have to convert them back into integers, floats, whatever. See above for that possible idea chain.
Last edited on
Jul 31, 2012 at 2:48am UTC
Jul 31, 2012 at 3:20am UTC
Yep, to do math with strings you will have to convert them to doubles using atof or a stringstream. Sounds like a nightmare to me.
I am familiar with Euler himself but not these problems. It seems like they are suited for 128-bit machines. lol
Jul 31, 2012 at 3:59am UTC
If you want to work with digits only, why don't you use an array? I like working with cstrings because you can input a string into a variable easily, and you can easily convert a character to an integer...
For instance, if you want to practice the addition algorithm we learned in school and never told it was called an algorithm until university, then you could use arrays for simplicity...
Last edited on
Jul 31, 2012 at 4:03am UTC
Aug 1, 2012 at 7:34pm UTC
@ToniAz I had thought about that, maybe a multi-dimensional array, then I realized it wouldn't work the way I would want after the 1's digit. There are 100 numbers to process through, so theoretically even if I had an array like int myArray[100][50] (100 elements for the hundred numbers, 50 elements for the digits) by the time I finished adding up just the 1's column I could easily have a tens displacement of 99. Then the 10's added up could easily be over a 1000 hundreds, and it only gets bigger as I run each additional digit.
I thank you all for the assist, and I'f I have any further issues, I know where to ask. Thanks again!
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text:
The repression comes not from the Koran, the women argue, but from the human interpretation of it, in the form of Islamic law, which has ossified over the centuries while their globalized lives have galloped ahead. So they are going back to the original text, arguing that its emphasis on justice makes the case for equality.
"Feminist Islamic scholarship is trying to unearth the facts that were there," Ms. Mir-Hosseini told a room of eager activists Sunday. "We can't be afraid to look at legal tradition critically."
She referred to the work of Muslim intellectuals, like Nasr Abu Zayd of Egypt and Abdolkarim Soroush of Iran, reformers who argue that the Koran must be read in a historical context, and that laws derived from it can change with the times. Their ideas are controversial, and both are in exile in the West.
All The Best Deals On The Internet Today
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Your Morning Dooley
"Well," said Mr. Dooley, "I dinnaw jus' what to think iv it. Me own idee is that war is not a matther iv prayers so much as a matther iv punchin'; an' th' on'y place a prayer book stops a bullet is in th' story books."
-- Finley Peter Dunne, 1899.
More from Esquire:


text:
Essential fatty acids help prevent dull fur, dry skin and unkempt appearances. Vegetable oils (e.g., soybean oil) and animal fats (e.g., chicken fat and fish oil) are good sources of fatty acids. Linoleic acid, an important omega-6 fatty acid, helps increase the softness of cats' fur and provides a barrier to lock in skin moisture.
Zinc is another fundamental element involved in healthy skin and fur. Zinc helps increase skin hydration and cell replication. Meat and whole grain cereals are rich, natural sources of zinc. It also exists in mineral salts, such as zinc sulfate and zinc oxide.
Look for the following ingredients to help support your cat's skin and fur health:
Along with other key ingredients, NUTRO™ Cat Food is rich in natural oils for soft, shiny fur.
The Waltham Centre for Pet Nutrition
Four distinct textures. Nine real animal proteins. 33 delicious formulas.
Get tips for grooming and bathing cats to keep them looking their best.
Our great-tasting, natural ingredients provide complete nutrition and health benefits.


text:
Ask a Mechanic Online and Get Answers to Your Car Questions
With this 95 Chrysler cycling the key to get codes you count the slow flashes then the fast like this. _____ _____ _ _ this would be 22. 12 starts the codes and 55 is the last. If what you counted is a 22 code that would be a problem with the coolant sensor, the circuit and or the cooling system. Is the vehicle running hot , what is the gauge reading. Running hot could cause the vehicle to lose power. These vehicle are known for fan problems.
Good luck Mike
I just read over what I wrote last time and gave you the wrong code. It seems by the way it is typed I should have said code 21 (1, 2, 2, 1, 5, 5. ). Sorry. I have seen o2 sensor cause codes to flash and run funny. The car is old enough , I would recommend trying the upstream 02 sensor, the down stream hardly ever go.


text: Merrill Farm Resort Hotel rating Quick Specs Commissions 10.0%Rates $82-$169Year Built 1885Year Renovated 1991 View Large Interactive Map Address 428 White Mountain Hwy, Route 16North Conway, NH 03860 Web http://www.merrillfarmresort.com Phone + 1 603-447-3866 Fax + 1 603-447-3867 Toll-free 800-445-1017 Email email@example.com OverviewMeeting SpecsPhotos & videos Description New England-style Inn with main house dating from 1800; additional facilities added in 1989.Year Built: 1885Year Renovated: 1991Check in Time: 3:00 PMCheck out Time: 11:00 AMNumber of Floors: 3Total Number of Rooms: 64Rates: $82Commissions: Room Only 10.0% GDS Hotel Reservation CodesAmadeus GDS: YX MHTMFRGalileo/Apollo GDS: YX 00887Sabre GDS: YX 072561WorldSpan GDS: YX MHTMF Merrill Farm Resort Location & Neighborhood65 miles from Portland, ME. Route-16. Beach, Tourist. Merrill Farm Resort Rates & PoliciesMerrill Farm Resort rates are Daily in USDStandard: $82 Suite: $158-$169 (USD) Credit Cards Are AcceptedReservations must be guaranteed with a credit cardMeals: Continental PlanCancellation Policy: 1 week prior to the day of arrivalHotel Discounts offered: Corporate discountGovernment/ Military discountAARP discountTravel AgentsAirline Personnel Nearby AirportsIntl Jetport (47 miles southeast)Lebanon Mncpl (65 miles southwest)Augusta State (68.75 miles northeast)More Airports » Merrill Farm Resort Room AmenitiesMerrill Farm Resort amenities are in All rooms unless noted otherwiseAir ConditioningBalcony/Terrace (some)Coffeemaker (some)Daily Maid ServiceFireplace (working) (some)Kitchen/Kitchenette (some)Microwave Oven (some)Free NewspaperRooms for Non-smokersTelephoneRefrigeratorCable/Satellite TelevisionTelevisionDVD/VCR (some)Internet Access (Wireless) Guest ServicesComplimentary CoffeeLaundry RoomMulti-lingual StaffFree Onsite ParkingCommon Area Internet Access (Wireless) Security ServicesSmoke Alarm in RoomsSprinkler in Rooms Pet ServicesAdditional Fee for Pets DiningApplebees On-Site RecreationBeachFishingHealth ClubHot TubPool (Outdoor Pool)Nearby RecreationGolf CourseHorseback RidingShopping Mall/AreaSnow SkiingTennis (Indoor Tennis, Outdoor Tennis)Water Skiing Merrill Farm Resort Meeting Rooms & Events2 Meeting Rooms holding 75 people.Function RoomLocation: LowerFlooring: CarpetCapacity: Theater- 80, Classroom- 80, U-Shape- 15, Reception- 80, Banquet- 80 Merrill Farm Resort Business ServicesA-V EquipmentCopierFaxMeeting Room Internet Access (Wireless) Merrill Farm Resort Images, Videos, & Virtual Tours Photos & Videos Merrill Farm Resort ExteriorMerrill Farm Resort ExteriorMerrill Farm Resort ExteriorMerrill Farm Resort LobbyMerrill Farm Resort RoomMerrill Farm Resort RoomMerrill Farm Resort MeetingMerrill Farm Resort RestaurantMerrill Farm Resort OtherMerrill Farm Resort Other Images Powered by VFM Leonardo Nearby North Conway Hotels More Nearby Hotels Attitash Grand Summit Hotel1785 Inn & RestaurantEastern Slope Inn ResortNorth Conway Grand HotelOld Field House Country LodgeRed Jacket Mountain View ResortResidence Inn North ConwayStonehurst ManorThe New England Inn & ResortThe Snowville InnWhite Mountain Hotel and ResortAttitash Mountain Village ResortChase House at Mill FallsDana Place InnEagle Mountain HouseNestlenook Farm on the RiverOmni Bretton Arms InnThe Lodge at Bretton WoodsChristmas Farm Inn & Spa Hoteliers! Is your listing up to date? With over 130,000 hotels in our database, no other source compares to our depth of information. Click here to review and be sure the travel professional knows your hotel's latest details.


text:
Dec. 12, 2013, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government President Nathan Mehrens today issued the following statement criticizing the speed with which the budget deal is being rushed through the House of Representatives:
"In order to prevent anybody from even having an opportunity to analyze and comment on this budget deal, it is being rushed through the House in a day. This is how Nancy Pelosi ran the House, and Republicans swore up and down they would be different. How good does that promise look now?
"The Republican Pledge to America has again been broken. You get 72 hours to read a bill before it's voted on? No. They're going to cut $100 billion? Since 2010, outlays are only down by $3 billion, and that is only thanks to the sequester. Now, this budget deal will increase spending by $57 billion over the next two years, canceling roughly a third of the sequester in 2014 and 2015. It allows funding for Obamacare to continue. These are the types of policies Republicans opposed while in the minority. This continued breach of faith with those who entrusted them with power is wrong.
"At least going into the 2014 elections, the American people should not be deluded into believing that anyone who votes for this bill truly is seeking to cut the size and scope of government. Without this central promise, it is hard to imagine what incumbent Republicans have to offer in November besides a vague warning that it could have been worse.
"There will be those who point to the fact that government spending in real terms has been reduced since 2010 by about $3 billion. This good news is now being negated by a compromise enthusiastically embraced by Senate Democrats and President Obama, which now sets the stage for more of the sequester to be rolled back down the road.
"Is it any wonder why a president determined to grow government would herald the Ryan compromise that reverses a three year trend of cutting the size of government? Taxpayers would have been better off with a basic continuing resolution that changed nothing."
To view online: http://getliberty.org/budget-deal-rushed-through-house-in-a-day-72-hour-pledge-to-america-broken/
"The Ryan budget fraud is even worse after you read it," by ALG senior editor Robert Romano, Dec. 12, 2013, at http://netrightdaily.com/2013/12/ryan-budget-fraud-even-worse-read/
Americans for Limited Government is a non-partisan, nationwide network committed to advancing free market reforms, private property rights and core American liberties. For more information on ALG please visit our website at www.GetLiberty.org.


text:
Colt 1911 Rail Gun Gets Selected As The USMC M45 CQBP
Colt Defense LLC recently bagged a big contract from the US Marine Corps (USMC). The US$22.5 million 5-year contract mandates Colt to supply the USMC with around 12,000 M45 Close Quarter Battle Pistols (CQBP) and their corresponding spares and support. The MARSOC M45 CQBP comes the Colt 1911 line which of course, is already a legendary pistol on its own right, and is already 100 years old. The USMC has been a long time user of 1911 pistols with the MEU (SOC) pistols also being based on it.
The MARSOC M45 CQBP is the official designation of the Colt 1911 Rail Gun, which is a redesign of the Colt M1911 with a lower M1913 Picatinny Rail to easily mount tactical lights or laser sights. Here are the full features of the Colt 1911 Rail Gun:
- Novak Low Mount Carry Sights with Dots
- Enhanced Hammer
- Extended Ambidextrous Safety Lock
- Colt Upswept Beavertail Grip Safety
- 3-Hole Aluminum Trigger
- Lowered and Flared Ejection Port
- M1913 Picatinny Rail
- National Match® Barrel
- Front and Rear Slide Serrations
There are three models of the Colt 1911 Rail Gun and with the M45 CQBP, the 3-hole aluminum trigger seemed to have been replaced with a trigger without the holes. According to Military Times' report, the clincher may have been the new dual recoil system developed by Colt:
Piggybacking on a few things we previously reported about the winning pistol, we've learned Colt developed a dual recoil system for the CQBP that's based on the recoil system found in their 10mm models. The modification was made to reduce stresses on the frame and slide and enable the pistol to complete the Corps' required shooting schedule. Sources tell us the pistol had to survive a 20,000 round shooting schedule. The .45 caliber pistol also has a series 80 firing pin safety, is entirely Cerakoted tan and has a lanyard loop and night sights.
The updated MARSOC Pistol still follows the tradition of the USMC of having the 1911 pistol in use by its marines. Nothing really to fault about the 1911 as it's one of the most reliable pistols in history, and its stopping power with the .45 caliber is unquestioned. Well, for us at Popular Airsoft, being 1911 fans, it's now time to wait for an airsoft version of the M45 CQBP. Press release of the contract below:
Colt Defense LLC Announces Award of Marine Corps M45 Close Quarter Battle Pistol (CQBP) Contract
WEST HARTFORD, Conn.. Colt Defense LLC has been awarded an Indefinite-Delivery/Indefinite-Quantity contract by the U. S. Marine Corps for up to 12,000 M45 Close Quarter Battle Pistols, plus spares and logistical support. The new CQBP is a direct descendant of the iconic Colt M1911 adopted by the U. S. military in 1911 and carried as the primary sidearm through all the major conflicts of the 20th century.
The CQBP contract is for a five year period and has a potential value of up to $22.5 million. The CQBP expands on a long history of MARCORSYSCOM re-building original Government-issue 1911s, primarily for use by Force Recon and MARSOC units.
"This is a truly gratifying contract award," said Gerry Dinkel, President & CEO of Colt Defense, "to have the 1911 selected again for U. S. Forces 101 years after its initial introduction is just an incredible testament to the timeless design and effectiveness of the Colt 1911. Colt Defense looks forward to another great partnership with the Marine Corps as we renew industry production of the military 1911."
The initial Delivery Order on the contract is for 4036 CQBP, plus spares. Deliveries will begin later this year.
About Colt Defense LLC
Colt Defense LLC, together with its Colt Canada Corporation subsidiary, is one of the world's leading designers, developers and manufacturers of small arms weapons systems for individual soldiers and law enforcement personnel. The Company's portfolio of products and services addresses military and law enforcement requirements around the world. Colt Defense LLC has supplied small arms weapons systems to the United States Government and other governments for more than 160 years. Colt Canada Corporation is the Canadian government's Center of Excellence for small arms and is the Canadian military's sole supplier of the C7 rifle and C8 carbine. The Company maintains manufacturing facilities in West Hartford, Connecticut and Kitchener, Ontario. More information on Colt Defense LLC is available at www.colt.com and www.coltcanada.com.
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Item Description
Fingertip Protection For Musicians
Rock-Tips helps build calluses in addition to protecting sore and damaged fingertips. Rock-Tips is a specially formulated, non-toxic application for use in protecting sensitive fingertips while playing a guitar, bass or other stringed instrument. When applied to your fingertips, Rock-Tips creates a thin, protective membrane that is extremely tough, allowing you to play longer and build your natural guitar calluses up faster.
Rock-Tips is a new approach to the age-old problem of dealing with painful fingertips while developing calluses for beginning musicians. In addition, Rock-Tips can repair torn or damaged calluses in more experienced players, as well as protect fingertip calluses from moisture and other damaging elements.
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Pros:It works.
Cons:It's expensive for tiny bottle of crazy glue!


text:
Stealing The Market: How The Great Brokerage Firms With Help From Sec, Stole The Stock Mkt From Inves
The US stock markets were designed to handle a large volume of small orders for individuals who paid brokers well to do their business. Today they process a small volume of large orders from institutional investors, most of whom pay their brokers only a few cents a share. The community of brokers gets even by trading against its customers, often secretly or through hidden nominees, while the institutions are seeking new settings for trading without informing their brokers. And the SEC has proved unwilling or unable to step in and police these off-the-floor activities. We are well on the road to losing the honest and open markets that have contributed so much to our prosperity. This insidious phenomenon - the growing tendency of brokers to trade against their customers - affects the investor. "Stealing the Market" chronicles the history and implications of these disturbing changes, which burst into public consciousness in summer 1991 with the revelations of Salomon Brothers' abuse of its customers in the U.S. bond market. The author, one of this country's most knowledgeable financial journalists, introduces a fascinating cast of characters, from Leo Melamed, born in a Polish shtel, who as head of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange made some people very rich by inventing a cadre of arbitrage traders, to William J. Casey. former spymaster, who as chairman of the SEC engineered the end of fixed broker commissions. Here is a close look at the world of finance as it existed before and after the computer era - and a sober analysis of what we may have lost, financially and otherwise.
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Like wine and cheese, skiing and soaking go together. But that pairing demands a lodge that provides more than a token hot tub where skiers cram shoulder to shoulder. In British Columbia, Panorama Mountain Village serves up skiing and soaking in big proportions.
Located in the Purcell Mountains, Panorama Mountain Village yields big views of the Canadian Rockies from its summit. One run – View of 1,000 Peaks — gets its name from that. Intermediates can find a fun playland in the Founders Ridge and Sun Bowl glades while experts can challenge themselves in the Extreme Dream Zone and Taynton Bowl.
In the Upper Village, Panorama Springs Lodge overlooks the tubing hill, beginner area, Mile One Quad, and large hot pools. While the hot pools are accessible by visitors staying in other lodging on the mountain, those staying in the Panorama Springs Lodge have the advantage of hopping to the pools in a suit and towel rather than bundling up for a long walk outside.
The lodge features studios and one- or two-bedroom condos. Built with skiers in mind, it also includes ski storage, underground parking, and quick access to and from the slopes via the Red Carpet and Mile One Quad.
Huge hot pools serve to soothe sore muscles after skiing. The two large pools have more than 300 square feet of soaker space with plenty of room to sprawl out with views of the rugged Purcells.
Skiers and snowboarders can get deals to stay at the Panorama Springs Lodge. One family ski package that starts at $299 per night bundles up a five-night stay with lift tickets, lodging, hot pooling, tubing, tobogganing, and a $200 gift card. For Family Day weekend, a package includes four nights of lodging, lift tickets, hot pool access, and a pizza party starting at $333 per night.
Other ski and stay packages add on heli-skiing: A one-day heli package starts at $400 per person per night while a three-day heli package begins at $810 per person.
To find more information about lodging deals at Panorama Mountain Village, call 800-663-2929 or look here.
Panorama, BC
Jan 13, 2013 - Apr 7, 2013
for families
starts at $299 per night


text:
1ST Princess Cruise: Ruby Princess Cruise Review by MsB1254
Overall Member Rating
1ST Princess Cruise
Destination: Western Caribbean
Embarkation: Fort Lauderdale (Port Everglades)
Embarkation - We stayed at the Courtyard by Marriott Ft. Lauderdale and Cruise Port on Friday night and paid $130 on priceline. This worked out nicely for us. We grabbed a taxi from the airport and were able to check in at 3:00 pm. We were within walking distance to a seafood restaurant for dinner. The next morning we took the complimentary 10:00 am shuttle to the cruise port. We arrived at 10:30 am and were in group #1 to board the ship. The called our number at 11:45 and checkin was a breeze and straight on the ship and our room was ready. I started dialing the dine line to try to sign up for the chef's table. At first the calls did not go thru to a live person but after More several attempts on the alternative dining option I was able to reach someone and she was able to take my request. I asked what the chances were and she said I was the first to be put on the list. I had a confirmed first seating on my paperwork before boarding but my ship card listed us as having anytime dining which I did not want. I had to see the maitre'd who was available at 3:00 pm. I waited about 45 minutes and was able to get our seating changed back to 1st seating right before the muster drill started. A lady I talked to while waiting said she had gotten through to request the chef's table at 1:00 pm to be told they were not taking any more requests. I later learned there had been over 300 requests.
Day 1 - At sea - We saw the welcome aboard show and enjoyed it and also tried our hand at the slots in the casino - sorry to say did not win much.
day 2 - Ocho Rios - We took the ship's excursion to Dunn's River Falls and the Shaw Garden tour. The tour was fun and well organized. I think Princess does a top notch job in getting people on and off the ship smoothly.
Day 3 - Grand Cayman - The ship excursion today was the two person mini boats to see the stingrays and snorkeling. Enjoyed our guide and holding the stingrays.
Chef's Table - Quite an experience and one I would highly recommend - The food and service was great with everyone going out of their way to make the experience wonderful and definitely worth the $75 per person price.
Day 4 - Cozumel - The weather was cold & drizzling rain but our excursion went as planned. Today was a two person dune buggy into the jungle to see caverns and an underground cave. Wear old clothes as you will get dirty - today it was mud but lots of fun.
Day 5 - At Sea - Thank goodness - We need a day to relax.
We did not try any of the other dining options. We did eat fish and chips in the Wheelhouse Bar for lunch one day and really enjoyed it. Overall I would have to say the food on this was not all that good. If fact overall all it was my least favorite - under Carnival, RCI, and Disney and the buffet in the Horizon Court was nothing to be impressed by either. Don't get me wrong we found things to eat and did not go hungry - just nothing special. The food was also inconsistent - my partner's lobster was great and mine was inedible for instance. Definitely did not ruin our cruise and the wait staff was more than happy to bring more if you requested.
I enjoying trying different cruise lines. This was my first Princess cruise and would definitely use them again but am not a converted Princess only cruiser. I probably will try NCL and Celebrity next just to see what they are like.
Disembarkation - We had a late flight out so we did the Everglades and Airboat ride and Flamingo Garden tour that finished at the airport. Got to the dining room to wait at 8:10 am and were off the boat about 8:30. Again Princess does a great job with this.
Other notes - I enjoyed the MUTS and saw Momma Mia even though it was windy and chilly. If you would like a link to my Shutterfly Pictures and have an questions you can E-mail me a email@example.com and just put Ruby Princess in your subject line. Overall a great trip and can't wait for the next one - planning already. Less
Published 01/22/09
Cabin review: ADE725
Wonderful cabin. Did not mind the aft location at all. Very quiet and loved the fully covered balcony. The room size was great and liked the separate little closet area and full bathtub.
Read Cruise Critic's Ruby Princess Review >>
Carnival; never again
Very fun and comfortable
First and last Carnival cruise
An amazing experience, don't l...
Great Cruise
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Plastic wrap in the food
We loved this ship and had a g...
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Freudian Slip (psychology)
From Uncyclopedia, the content-free encyclopedia
"Well, You know what a Freudian slip is? It's when you think one thing and say your mother."
A Freudian ship, er, make that a Freudian slip is when a person wishes to slay, er say something, but his or her repressed and angst-ridden sub-conscious mind makes them say something udderly, er utterly different, often filled with awkward convent, er content.
edit How Freudian Slips arise
Freudian slips usually happen when you're thinking of other things - make that other things than you're actually stalking abou-, we mean talking about. It is a commonly accepted theory that Freudian slips reveal the actual intention of the peeper, er...speaker much better than what he or she intended to say.
Sometimes, usual unintentional slips are considered as Freudian slips, even if they don't occur because of absent-mindedness of the spanker, we mean speaker.
cunt can happen that the speaker notices he said something wang, er wrong, but often neither he or she does, nor does the audience. When people usually do notice, tits all right because well bred people will over look an honest mistake.
edit Psychology
Freud claims that any slip will reveal the deeper thoughts of the speaker on in-depth Analist. This process, however, can require a lot of time and unexperienced analsysts will often fail in trying to decode it.
Of course, this always presumes a subconscious or preconscious intention. Again, the knowledge about the psychological background of Freudian strips requires further investigations.
edit Excellent examples of a Freudian Slip are:
To a female: I really like your boobs.
- The man was probably thinking of saying "I really like your poodle", but "boobs" popped up in the copulation as the man wants to have sex with the female. Wait, did I just say "copulation"? I meant conversation.... CONVERSATION!
To your teacher: Yeah, it's totally true. I got it off Uncyclopedia.
- You were probably thinking of saying "Yeah, it's totally true, I got this from those bastards at Wikipedia", but "Uncyclopedia" popped up in the sentence, since you know that Wikipedia is always wrong and full of flies.
About someone to someone: He's such a gay chap.
- Now, this is a bit more complicated. First of all, it's British, second of all, the Freudian Slip does not come out in the uttered sentence itself. But I cannot be bothered so I won't explain this. But, FYI, the slip is quite obvious here, obviously.
You to your wife: I bought a prostitute yesterday.
- Now, this is a classic. You want to lie to your wife and say "whore", but the truth slips out and you say "prostitute". This slip is usually followed by sex on the woman's part, but sadly, the sex won't be with you.
To A Friend in costume: I didn't recognize you with your clothes on!
- This obviously reveals that the speaker generally sees you naked. Perhaps he/she has just accidentally disclosed an intimate relationship, or perhapse the speaker fantasizes about you.


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Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP Encourages Investors Who Suffered Substantial Losses Investing in Hyperdynamics Corporation to Contact the Firm
Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP, a leading national securities law firm, is investigating potential securities fraud at Hyperdynamics Corporation ("Hyperdynamics" or the "Company") (NYSE: HDY).
The investigation focuses on whether the Company and its executives violated federal securities laws by failing to disclose that: (1) Hyperdynamics was from suffering numerous cost overruns and delays; (2) the Company had far greater exposure to liquidity concerns than it had previously disclosed; and (3) based on the foregoing, defendants lacked a reasonable basis for their positive statements about the Company's drilling operations or the prospective value of the Company's Gulf of Guinea oil and gas concessions.
Take Action
If you purchased Hyperdynamics securities between February 17, 2011 and February 15, 2012 and would like to discuss your legal rights, visit www.faruqilaw.com/HDY. You can also contact us by calling Richard Gonnello or Francis McConville toll free at 877-247-4292 or at 212-983-9330 or by sending an e-mail to email@example.com or email@example.com. Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP also encourages anyone with information regarding Hyperdynamics' conduct to contact the firm, including whistleblowers, former employees, shareholders and others.
Richard W. Gonnello
Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP
685 Third Avenue 26th Floor
New York, NY 10017
Tel: (212) 983-9330
If you have information regarding this case that you would like to make available, please click here to contact us about our investigation.


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We never make demands upon our readers. But—patronizing our advertisers does help us considerably.
Friday, January 25
Women's Division of Federation for the Support of Jewish Philanthropic Societies of New York City, Hotel Savoy-Plaza, 7 East Fifty-eighth street, 11 a. m. "Psychology and Its Goal," Dr. Alfred Adler.
New York Academy of Medicine. Fifth avenue and 103rd street, 4:30 p. m. Address by Emanuel Libman.
League for Political Education, Town Hall, 123 West Forty-third street, 11 a. m. "The Barretts of Wimpole Street," William Lyon Phelps.
Jewish Community House of Bensonhurst, Bay Parkway and Seventy-ninth street, 8:30 p. m. "The Problems of American Jewry," Jacob Fishman.
Young Israel of Rugby, Yeshivath Rabbi Meyer Simcha Ha-Cohen Synagogue, East Fifty-third street and Church avenue. Brooklyn, evening. "The Message on Mount Sinai and Its Application to Modern Society," Rabbi Hershkowitz.
Young Men's Hebrew Association, Ninety-second street and Lexington avenue, 3:15 p. m. "Jewish Colonization in Modern Times," Rabbi Henry M. Rosenthal.
Luncheon and bridge, sponsored by the Ladies Hebrew Benevolent Society, Hotel Granada, Brooklyn. 1 p. m.
Young Israel of Manhattan. Mogen Abraham Synagogue. 87 Attorney street, evening. "Is Orthodox Judaism a Handicap in This Age of Modernism," Isaac Rosengarten.
Young Israel of Brighton, 189 Neptune avenue, Brooklyn. 8:30 p. m. "Maimonides," Aaron Deckter.
Jewish Women's Hour, Station WBNX, 1:30 p. m.
Ninth Street Temple, 401 Ninth street, Brooklyn. 8:30 p. m. "Communism and Religion," Rabbi B. Leon Hurwitz.
Saturday. January 26
Temple Rodeph Sholom, 7 West Eighty-third street. 8:30 p. m.: second annual concert and ball. Participants: Queena Mario, Josef Lhevinne.
Young Israel of Manhattan. 229 East Broadway, 7:30 p. m. "Palestine Night" program.
The Talk of the Town Club. 119 West Fifty-seventh street. 8 p. m. "Ten Days in Russia," Mrs. Alma Ehrich.
Young Folks League of Sinat Congregation of the Bronx. 951 Stebbins avenue, evening. Presentation of three one-act plays, followed by dancing.
Broadcast by Dr. Stephen S. Wise. "The Child Labor Amendment and Social Justice;" Station WABC, 5:30 p. m.
Brooklyn Jewish Center, 667 Eastern Parkway, evening. Dutch supper and bridge sponsored by the Sisterhood of the Brooklyn Jewish Center.
Reception in honor of Vladimir Jabotinsky and others. Under the auspices of the League for Jewish National Labor in Palestine.
We never make demands upon our readers. But—patronizing our advertisers does help us considerably.


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Maple Grove earns the No. 1 seed in Class 6A, Section 5 football when the eight respective coaches gathered early Oct. 18 to seed the postseason tournament.
Osseo ended up with the second seed, followed in order by Champlin Park, Brainerd, Blaine, Centennial, Anoka and Coon Rapids. "We absolutely got jobbed, and you can put that in the paper," said a disappointed Osseo coach Derrin Lamker. "Maple Grove had no business being the top seed, but they got it. People just could not look past the forfeits, and that is fine. We are moving forward."
Attempting to stake a case for the No. 1 seed, Maple Grove coach Matt Lombardi noted his team's five-game winning streak, and subsequent Northwest Suburban Conference championship. He also mentioned before that his team lost a close game to Osseo without injured senior receiver Jake Wieneke, who has emerged as the most dominant offensive player in the conference.
Maple Grove wrapped up the NWSC's North Division title Oct. 17, winning 17-12 at Champlin Park 17-12 to finish 8-0 in the conference standings, and 7-1 to just about everybody else.
Osseo was responsible for that lone dent, but it was erased after news broke of the Orioles dressing an ineligible player in each of their first two games this fall. That meant instead of two victories, the Orioles were forced to forfeit each of those first two games, including their 26-20 Week 2 victory at Maple Grove. The Orioles lost their first game on the field 14-7 to the top team in Class 5A Totino-Grace Oct. 17, leaving them with a 7-1 on the field record and a 5-3 mark with the forfeits.
Oh, to be a fly on the wall in that seeding meeting.
"It was interesting," said Champlin Park head coach Mike Korton, a former football standout at Osseo. "Really, it could have gone either way. They both had an argument for the No. 1 seed, and I completely understood both. But I don't know if it matters. You have to beat everybody anyways."
In the case of these eight teams, everybody includes the five Lake Conference powers, four of which could cross over from Section 6 to play the four remaining Section 5 teams in the Nov. 2 semifinals.
That is just one of a handful of changes the coaches are experiencing in preparing for the new, seven-class playoff format.
The most intriguing transition is how the teams deal with moving from the usual Tuesday start of the postseason to Friday.
The other major difference this year is a lack of a section championship setting. Only 32 teams are competing in Class 6A, meaning after the first week, the 16 remaining clubs will play in a semifinal round that will set up the eight-team state tournament. How that state tournament is shaped will also undergo a huge change this year. Teams will compete in their respective section for the quarterfinals, but the semifinals cross over into another section.
For the teams in Section 5, that comes with a serious challenge. Edina, Wayzata, Eden Prairie, Hopkins and Minnetonka are the top-five seeds in Section 6.
Four are expected to advance, which will set up a semifinal round Nov. 2 that — if the higher seeded teams win out — would include Eden Prairie playing at Osseo, Champlin Park going to Wayzata, Brainerd visiting Edina, and Hopkins heading to Maple Grove.
"None of us will be looking that far ahead, I know that much for sure," Lamker said. "All we can worry about is who we play next. We could care less about anything else."
Anoka (3-5) will play at Osseo (5-3) at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 26. The other three Section 5 quarterfinals that night have Centennial (3-5) visiting Champlin Park (5-3), Blaine (5-3) heading to Brainerd (6-2), and Coon Rapids (0-8) playing at Maple Grove (8-0).
In Section 6, Edina (7-1) will host Armstrong (1-7). Wayzata (6-1) plays Minneapolis South (4-4), Eden Prairie (6-2) gets Shakopee (4-4) and Hopkins (5-3) hosts Minnetonka (3-5).
"This is when it gets fun," said Lombardi. "This is what you work all year for, so why not go out and try to play a little longer. Like everybody else, that is what we will worry about. We'd like to keep practicing for a few more weeks."


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I am on B-12 injections for a deficiency and CFS. 6 days ago, I self-injected into my hip. My hip is now very sore. I did it in the upper quad, not low.
I have noted that sometimes the injection site is sore for up to a week and a half afterwards. I am getting frustrated and ready to stop the shots. This is the worst pain I have felt since I started this 6 weeks ago.
The site is not warm or red or anything indicating an abscess. I can't get an appointment with my doctor until weds. Tylenol isn't helping. I note that after I get up and move, the pain lessens in intensity. It is worst when I first stand and put weight on my leg. Without these injections, I do not function, but now I am petrified to get another one, even by the nurse.
Any suggestions? I am putting warm compresses on my tush for now.READ MORE


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Villa Mar I Mar
Cala d'Or Area, Majorca, Balearic Islands
Villa Mar I Mar: Map
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Villa Mar I Mar Introduction
Bright, modern and situated near the centre of the small resort of Cala Egos near Cala d'Or, the Mar I Mar is a super choice for families and groups seeking a classic beach holiday. Compact in size, this well equipped and good quality two-storey villa offers all the holiday essentials and is 500 metres from Cala Egos beach, so you can head off for days on the sands without needing a car.
The interior of the villa is sunny and airy, with a sociable and comfortable open-plan sitting-dining room linking to a sleek American-style kitchen fitted with all the modern conveniences. Patio doors from the living area open onto an elevated terrace overlooking the front garden and around the rectangular pool, there are small lawns ideal for stretching out in the sunshine. Stairs from the kitchen lead to the first floor, which incorporates a second sitting area with a sofa bed, together with another terrace and a balcony off the fourth bedroom. Handy for all resort amenities, the Mar I Mar is also ideally located for enjoying the attractions of the local area, including the spectacular nearby Caves of Drach. Cala d'Or, with its marina, beaches, boat trips and waterside restaurants is also easy to reach by foot or car.
- Self Catering
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• 1 twin bedroom • 1 double bedroom • 2 single bedrooms • 2 shower rooms • 1 bathroom • First cot FREE, 2nd cot (charge, payable locally) • Private swimming pool: 8 x 3 metres • Satellite TV (limited English channels) • FREE WiFi acces • DVD player • Washing machine • Microwave • Air-conditioning (limited hours) • Barbecue
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Article Tools
Recent Dunmore News
- Colleagues recall former judge and U.S. attorney's dedication to justice
- Lackawanna judge dies at 91
- Dunmore bank company declares stock split
- Landfill officials, foes react to Throop council's opposition to expansion
- Dunmore solicitor defends, explains role in sewer sale
- Throop Borough Council opposes Keystone landfill expansion
- Tiddlywinks Boutique expands to storefront, offers tea room
Pope Francis appointed a Dunmore native to bishop of a diocese in Mississippi on Thursday.
The Rev. Joseph R. Kopacz, most recently a pastor of the Most Holy Trinity Parish in Mount Pocono, will be ordained and installed on Feb. 6 at noon in the Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle Catholic Church in Jackson, Miss. As the 11th bishop of the Diocese of Jackson in Mississippi, he will succeed Bishop Joseph Nunzio Latino, who - at 75 - reached the age of retirement for bishops in the Catholic Church.
"In appointing him as bishop, the Holy Father has not only recognized Father Kopacz's many gifts and deep faith, but has also honored all of the faithful of the Diocese of Scranton by calling forth one of our own," Bishop Joseph C. Bambera said in a statement.
Ordained as a priest of the Diocese of Scranton at St. Peter's Cathedral in 1977, Bishop-elect Kopacz served as an assistant pastor at parishes in Monroe, Bradford and Luzerne counties until 1986.
He was named pastor at St. Michael's in Jessup in 1989 and served there until 1995, when he was appointed pastor of Nativity of Our Lord Parish in Scranton.
He will inherit a diocese that is the largest, by land area, east of the Mississippi River, but one of the smallest in terms of adherents, with 48,000 Catholics, the Associated Press reported. It covers the state's 65 northernmost counties and includes to 75 parishes and 24 missions.
Contact the writer: email@example.com, @miorfinoTT on Twitter


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Caring Currents
Alzheimer's Meds: Time for a Reality Check?
Last updated: Apr 05, 2008
Who doesn't wish for a pill to make Alzheimer's go away ? Unfortunately recent headlines underscore that, for now, caregivers need to focus their energy on learning how to prevent and manage symptoms through behavioral therapies.
A quick recap:
* " Medication worsens Alzheimer's ." A UK study has found that antipsychotic drugs such as Melleril and Risperdal used to treat hallucinations, aggression, and agitation in dementia patients -- usually in nursing homes -- offer no benefit, especially over the long term, and worse, often cause a decline in speaking ability.
* " Only modest evidence of clinically meaningful benefit. " That's how two major medical groups -- the American College of Physicians and the American College of Family Physicians -- summed up their joint study into the five dementia-specific drugs used to treat memory loss and cognition, such as Aricept and Namenda, last month. Basically the meds studied were deemed pretty much alike and of little use for the average patient (though doctors should assess each patient individually as some do show improvement).
* " The drug industry has bet heavily on one theory of the disease. What if that theory is wrong? " Even the busy drug pipeline has an iffy forecast, according to this Forbes overview , which points out that the drug industry is betting heavily on targeting amyloid clumps in the brain, though it's not yet certain that these are the cause of dementia. Hopefully this research will help us (or our kids to help us) but it's unlikely to make a practical difference in the very near future.
Behavioral therapies aren't "once a day" and can't make the burden of dementia care go away. But they can help enormously. The Dementia Caregiver's Toolbox , for example, just shared new info about adjusting light levels at home to ease sundowning. I know my own caregiving life turned around once I learned the power of nonverbal communication with Alzheimer's, like touch to signal my presence or hand signals to reinforce my message. One could even argue that such tips can change a life more than a pill.
Image by Flickr user noricum , used under the Creative Commons attribution license.
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The British may have created the world's first postage stamp, but it was one of their Australian colonies that initiated stamped pre-payment for delivery of letters.
NSW Governor Sir George Gipps, unimpeded by a doubting parliament, acted on his own by announcing in November 1838 that letters embossed with a 1.5-penny stamp would be delivered free.
Eighteen months later, British postal authorities issued the famous Penny Black for official use there.
The innovation was a boon for the then 300-year-old Royal Mail and its much younger colonial cousins, in the business for only 30 years.
And despite the technological advances in the 175 years since, we're still sticking postage stamps on letters.
The trouble for both the Royal Mail and Australia Post is that we are doing it less and less.
Digital technology has reduced the demand for letters, placing significant financial pressure on a service required by governments to deliver mail to any domestic location for a fixed price.
Letter volumes in Australia reached a peak in 2007-2008 with 4.6 billion items, but in the five years since they have fallen by more than a billion. You have to go back to 1994-1995 for volumes so low.
In the UK, the number of letters sent daily fell from 82 million in 2004 to 58 million in 2013.
It's a global trend, with letter volumes falling even faster in Europe, Scandinavia, South Korea, the United States and New Zealand.
The parcel business, on the other hand, is going through the roof on the back of online spending.
But unlike the letter business, Royal Mail and Australia Post run their parcel operations in a competitive marketplace. And unlike the letter business, parcel delivery is very profitable - provided you keep up with the competition.
Parcels generated $355 million profit in the last financial year for Australia Post, compared with its regulated mail business which reported losses of $218.4 million.
To remain competitive in parcels, postal services need capital to invest in new technology and on delivery logistics such as parcel lockers.
The Cameron government's reluctance to provide Royal Mail with capital led to its partial privatisation late last year.
In Australia, there are renewed calls to consider a similar path.
Graeme Samuel, a former chairman of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, has no doubts about what should be done with Australia Post.
"Of course it should be privatised, and of course it will be subject to the mother of all scare campaigns," he said this week.
His comments followed those of his successor Rod Sims who, while not naming Australia Post specifically, said remaining government assets should be sold to improve productivity.
Its former chairman David Mortimer concedes the postal service's letter business will suffer increasing losses unless radical change is accepted by the community.
The Cameron government tried to bridge the gap separating radical change and initial community concerns about privatisation.
It set a 90 per cent limit on private holdings in Royal Mail with at least 10 per cent to be held by its employees.
It also quarantined the post office network from privatisation, keeping it in a government-owned holding company that itself retains a 38 per cent share of Royal Mail.
Which is just as well, because the British government appears to have undersold its multibillion dollar asset.
Royal Mail shares are fetching nearly 70 per cent more than their float price, short-changing the government by about $1 billion. Fortunately, its own stake is now worth a lot more.
Analysts estimate that Australia Post could return the government as much as $4 billion in a sell-off. But Treasury would also lose the annual income stream that comes from owning it.
In the five years up to 2012-13, the cumulative dividend amounted to $881 million, not as much as the $1.5 billion the government received in the five-year period before that.
The decline in letter volumes, combined with the rising cost of maintaining a huge network of post offices and agencies, threatens not only to reduce dividends to government but also to inhibit Australia Post's ability to grow the profitable parts of its business.
To offset losses in its letters business, it wants the government to allow the cost of a basic stamp to increase from 60 cents to 70 cents in 2014.
It also wants approval to offer a wider range of trusted services - especially Centrelink transactions - and for an easing of limits on its commercial freedoms.
It's not hard to see why Australia Post needs more revenue for its letter service.
While volumes are declining, it has to fund a statutory universal obligation that requires it to be reasonably accessible to all Australians on an equitable basis, wherever they reside or carry on business.
It also needs to ensure that performance standards reasonably meet the social, industrial and commercial needs of the community.
In metropolitan areas, that means a daily week-day delivery service to every home and business; in remote rural areas, it means a weekly roadside delivery at the least.
To do that it needs 4400 retail outlets, including about 2500 in rural and remote areas, and 2446 roadside contractors.
Australia Post argues that the cost of postage has not kept pace with inflation, creating a 20-cent gap between the price of a stamp and the consumer price index.
Despite its public ownership, the organisation, under its CEO Ahmed Fahour - a former banker - has been able to invest heavily in its logistics network and digital platforms.
It has bought Qantas out of the StarTrack express freight joint venture and is at the leading edge of the digital environment, introducing 24/7 parcel lockers and trials of digital mailbox services. It has also outsourced many of its post offices to private licensees, an arrangement that is being scrutinised by a Senate inquiry.
But Australia Post believes that various interpretations of its enabling legislation have caused the shelving of potential commercial opportunities complementary to its core business.
At the same time, other international postal organisations, freed from government-imposed limitations and obligations, have been able to grow substantial commercial businesses.
The Royal Mail experience is being watched closely in Australia, especially in light of various government reviews now under way into competition policy, the financial services system and a commission of audit.
Graeme Samuel concedes that privatising Australia Post is not something that can be "thrust down the electorate's throat".
"We will hear about how it will remove services from the bush, but if people look at the arguments rationally, they just don't stack up."
Another former ACCC commissioner, Stephen King, believes that the national broadband network eventually will make letters redundant.
And presumably the postage stamp as well.


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MILWAUKEE (Mar. 5)
Organizations of German World War veterans, sympathetic with Hitlerism, are growing rapidly in Milwaukee.
A Stahlhelm (Steel Helmets) chapter has just been organized, made up of men who fought not only on the German front lines, but who batted the Spartacists in the 1919 revolution, the Rhineland separatists and the communists, during the period preceding Hitler's capture of power. This group is working closely with the Deutsche Ehren Legion (German Legion of Honor), a kind of a catch-all group taking in any ex-German soldier with Fascist leanings and any American, too, who may in some way have befriended Germany. Heinz Von Nobel of Milwaukee, described as a German officer during the War, heads both organizations. The two groups are to hold a joint "kamradschaft" (social) evening on March 10 in the Cafe Chanticleer. Thus far all their affairs marked by display of Nazi flags and singing of Nazi songs, have been held in secret.
Milwaukee is now also the home of a Verein Der Deutschen Weltkriegs Veteranen (Order of German World War Veterans), which claims to be neutral on the question of Fascism and to have members of all shades of opinion.


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Former College of Law student, Serene Allen, from Watford has scooped two of the major law student awards in the country.
Serene, 23, has won both the Roger Leyland Prize, awarded by leading international law firm Herbert Smith Freehills, and the Nigel Asquith Prize, which is awarded by top law firm Morgan Cole.
The Roger Leyland Prize is awarded annually in memory of Roger Leyland, a former partner at Herbert Smith who chaired The College of Law's ethnic minority subcommittee.
It recognises the highest overall mark achieved by a black or Asian student on the College's Legal Practice Course (LPC).
The Nigel Asquith Prize is for the student who obtains the highest overall mark in the Business Law part of the LPC.
All those intending to become solicitors must pass the LPC before they can proceed to the next stage of practice.
Serene was a student at the College's London Bloomsbury centre until July 2012 and scored an overall average of 86 per cent in the LPC and 97 per cent in the Business Law exam.
She grew up in Watford and was educated at Parmiter's School. From there she went on to The London School of Economics and Political Science graduating in 2011 with a 2:1 class honours degree in Law.
Serene said: "I am thrilled to have won these two awards. I am especially pleased to have won an award relating to Business Law, as it is an area I find particularly interesting. I look forward to the future and the rest of my career in law."
Serene started her training contract to become a solicitor in September at leading regional law firm Matthew Arnold & Baldwin LLP based in Watford and London.
The College of Law is Britain's largest legal training organisation for both student solicitors and barristers and attracts some of the country's most able students. It has centres in London, Guildford, Birmingham, Bristol, Manchester, Chester and York.


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As people around the world generally gain access to more food, their diets also are becoming more similar. And scientists express concern that a decline in dietary diversity could lead to increasing health problems. A report on the study, titled "Increasing homogeneity in global food supplies and the implications for food security," is published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The authors note that crops such as wheat, rice, corn, potatoes and soybeans have increasingly become the standards within the global food supply. Wheat is a major staple in 97 percent of countries and rice in 91 percent, while soybeans are gaining as a global staple food, as a significant portion of diets in 74 percent of countries.
Adoption of these crops, in many cases, comes at the expense of local or regional foods that historically played important nutritional roles for people around the world. The authors note that crops such as sorghum, millets, rye, sweet potato, cassava, yam and others have become less prominent in global diets.
Quoted in a news release, lead author Colin Khoury, a scientist at the Colombia-based International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), says "More people are consuming more calories, protein and fat, and they rely increasingly on a short list of major food crops, like wheat, maize and soybean, along with meat and dairy products, for most of their food. These foods are critical for combating world hunger, but relying on a global diet of such limited diversity obligates us to bolster the nutritional quality of the major crops, as consumption of other nutritious grains and vegetables declines."
The researchers also express concern that increasing homogeneity in food production could make agriculture more vulnerable to threats such as drought, insect pests and diseases, which could be exacerbated by climate change.
Several factors have led to adoption of more Western-style diets around the world, according to the report. These include urbanization, trade liberalization, mechanized agriculture, extensive commodity transport systems, multinational food industries, food quality and safety standardization, mass media, labor changes, smaller family sizes, supermarkets, fast food, processed foods and human migration.
The research abstract and full article are available online from the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.


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Andres Nocioni received interest from several NBA teams last summer and said he could revisit a possible return.
Nocioni averaged 10.5 points and 4.5 rebounds in eight NBA seasons, most notably with the Chicago Bulls and the last of which in 2011-12 with the Philadelphia 76ers. He has since played overseas.
"Europe is a great, great place to play basketball," Nocioni said. "I came back here because I sat on the bench a lot in Philly and that was frustrating for me because all my life I have played. But my situation has changed a little bit. I don't need to play as many minutes. I'm too old.
"So maybe I go to the NBA and try to enjoy a good organization and try to help young guys and the team to win games. I think about playing more like a veteran helping with fewer minutes and more experience. But I have no decision now. I'm not thinking long-term."


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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 6/5/2013 (1567 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
Calder contenders
Florida Panthers centre Jonathan Huberdeau, Montreal Canadiens right-wing Brendan Gallagher and Chicago Blackhawks right-wing Brandon Saad are the three finalists for the Calder trophy as the NHL's top rookie.
Acting awards
'Those are two Canadian guys that are supposed to be playing the game with integrity'
-- Canucks' Kevin Bieksa, trashing Sharks Logan Couture and Joe Thornton for 'selling' penalties.


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William Butler will share his experience in combining his music career and helping others through social activities.
Arcade Fire frontman William Butler is heading back to university to give a lecture to students. The rocker will appear at Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois on November 2 to give a talk about how he has merged his musical career with social activism, according to student website NorthByNorthwestern.com.
Butler, who majored in poetry and creative writing, and his bandmates have raised $1 million to help earthquake-ravaged Haiti. Asha Toulmin, a student fellow with the university's Center for Civic Engagement, says, "He's a really unique and interesting individual because he's taken a field like music that a lot of people don't necessarily associate with social activism..."


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Author Tags: Fiction
In 2014, the much-nominated M.A.C. (Marion) Farrant received the $5,000 City of Victoria Butler Prize for her fiction collection, The World Afloat: Miniatures.
Farrants work had been nominated for many awards including The Butler Prize, the Commonwealth Writers Prize, the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize, the VanCity Book Prize, the National Magazine Awards, the Gemini Awards and two Jessie Richardson Theatre Awards for her play My Turquoise Years.
Born in Sydney, Australia, M.A.C. Farrant of North Saanich is the author of mostly satirical and philosophical short fiction [see list below], as well as the novel-length memoir, My Turquoise Years, a book of essays/humour, The Secret Lives of Litterbugs, and the stage adaptation of her memoir, My Turquoise Years, which premiered April 4- May 4, 2013 at the Arts Club Theatres Granville Island Stage in Vancouver.
Her stories have been described as absurdist skewerings of family life. [See John Moore's review of The World Afloat: Miniatures -- provided below] Her work has been dramatized for television and appears frequently on CBC Radio. She has published in magazines such as Adbusters and Geist. Her many anthology contributions include And Other Stories (Ed. George Bowering, Talonbooks, 2001) and a commissioned piece on the work of Leon Rooke, (Exile Editions, 2003). She has been the West Coast organizer of the annual Canadian small press ReLit Awards, Co-Organizer, with Pauline Holdstock, of the Sidney Reading Series, 1994-2003, 2005-2007, and a faculty member at UVics Creative Writing Department, the Banff Centre, the Victoria School of Writing, and was Writer-in-Residence at Macquarrie University in Sydney Australia. Also a former social worker, she has since become a full-time writer.
Farrant's memoir My Turquoise Years mainly focusses upon her family life when she was living in Cordova Bay in Victoria. It became the basis for her stage play, My Turquoise Years, a comic coming-of-age story set in 1960, a time of postwar optimism. In the stageplay, the narrator is fourteen. Plastic reigned and the colour turquoise was the height of chic. Marion, raised by Aunt Elsie, has grown up hearing tales of her glamorous, globe-trotting mother, Nancy. Just as Marion is blossoming into womanhood, Nancy suddenly announces a visit to Canada, throwing everyone into a tizzy.
The Days: Forecasts, Warnings, Advice (Talonbooks 2016) is an absurdist guidebook made up of 90 short stories collected into three sections that delve into the mundanity of life as well as what makes it special day after day. Farrant captures the ordinary moment in an average day and brings overwhelming truths to the readers attention.
Sick Pigeon (Thistledown Press, 1991)
Raw Material (Arsenal Pulp Press, 1993)
Altered Statements (Arsenal Pulp Press, 1995)
Word of Mouth (Thistledown Press, 1996)
Whats True, Darling (Polestar Books 1997)
Girls Around The House (Polestar Books, 1999)
Darwin Alone In The Universe (Talonbooks, 2003)
My Turquoise Years (Greystone/Douglas & McIntyre, 2004)
The Breakdown So Far (Talonbooks, 2007)
The Secret Lives of Litterbugs And Other (True) Stories (Key Porter, 2009)
Down the Road to Eternity: New & Selected Fiction (Talonbooks, 2009)
The Strange Truth About Us a novel of absence (Talonbooks, 2011) 978-0-088922-668-5 $16.95
The World Afloat: Miniatures (Talon 2014) $12.95 978-0-88922-838-2
The Days: Forecasts, Warnings, Advice (Talon 2016). $14.95 978-1-77201-007-7
Raw Material (Berkeley Horse/1989)
childless (Berkeley Horse/91)
Poor Norman (Berkeley Horse/93)
MAC (Prose & Contexts/94)
Three (Prose & Contexts/96)
Diana Ross In Wax (Prose & Contexts/97)
Gifts (Hawthorne/Reference West/99)
The Art Tree (Far Field Press/01)
"Rob's Guns & Ammo" (from "Sick Pigeon" made into a 30 minute feature by Bravo! Television, 1995. Replayed many times.) Nominated for a Gemini Award for the actress Liisa Repo-Martel who played the lead role.
Grain Magazine Writing Contest, 1st prize for We Keep The Party Going, Saskatoon, Sask., April/02
BC Alternative Writing & Design Contest, 1st Prize for Darwin Alone In The Universe (fiction), Jan/02
Canada Council Grant to Creative Writers: 1994, 1998, 2001, 2003
British Columbia Arts Council: 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998
British Columbia Arts Council: Travel Grant (Australia), 1998
Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs & International Trade: Travel Grant (Australia), 1998
1996 Gemini Awards: Nominated for Robs Guns & Ammo, Best Actress in a Short Dramatic Program
VanCity Womens Book Prize: 1994, Nominated for Raw Material (Arsenal, 1993)
Toronto Star Fiction Contest: 1994, Runner-up, The Best Time
Literary Writes V11, Fed of BC Writers: 1993, Refusal
Commonwealth Writers Prize: 1992, shortlisted for Sick Pigeon (Thistledown, 1991)
B.C. Book Prizes: 1992, shortlisted for Sick Pigeon (Thistledown, 1991)
- ReLit Awards, Host & organizer, West Coast event, June 28, 2003
- Judge, Fiction, 3Rd Annual Alternative Writing & Design Contest, Ripple Effect Press, Vancouver, B.C. January 2003
- Bowen Island Arts Festival, August 2002, Fiction workshop & reading
- Juror/(Fiction)/Organizer/MC, ReLit Awards, West Coast Event, June 2002
- Victoria School of Writing, Co-Judge (with Susan Mayse), Postcard Fiction Contest, May 2002
- Victoria School of Writing, Spring fiction course, April 2002
- Judge, Canadian Authors Association, Fiction Contest, Nov/Dec 2001
- Victoria School of Writing, Fall fiction course, October 2001
- Organizer/MC, ReLit Awards, West Coast Event (Pat Bay) June 16/01
- Victoria School of Writing, July 16-20, 2001, Faculty, Short Fiction
- Sidney Reading Series, 1994/95, 1995/96, 1996/97, 1997/98, 1998/99, 1999/2000, 2000/2001-- Co -Host & organizer with Pauline Holdstock, sponsored by the Sidney & North Saanich Community Arts Council & the Canada Council
- Reader/Judge, 1999 TWUC Short Fiction Contest
- Judge, Prism International Literary Magazine, University of British Columbia, Short Fiction Contest, Spring 1998
- Judge, Monday Magazine Fiction Contest, Victoria B.C. May 1997
- Correspondant, "Geist" magazine, Vancouver B.C. 1996 -
- Reader/Judge, 1995 TWUC Literary contest for emerging writers
- Consultant (representing TWUC), Ministry of Education, Language Arts English K - 12, Curriculum Review, Vancouver B.C. December 9, l994
- Jury, BC Cultural Fund Scholarship, Dept. Tourism and Culture, July l993 (with Linda Rogers & Michael Kenyon)
[BCBW 2016] "Fiction"
Darwin Alone in the Universe (Talon $17.95)
Exploring fictions relationship to the corporate construction of reality, these stories show literature is an antidote to the medias stranglehold on imagination. Sounds heavy, but Farrants writing is known for its playfulness. 0-88922-471-4
[Spring 2003 BCBW]
Girls Around the House (Polestar $18.95)
Self-declared anthropologist of the absurd, M.A.C. Farrant is author of the award-winning Whats True, Darling and co-producer of the Sidney Reading Series. Her alter-ego Marion in Girls Around the House (Polestar $18.95) is a fiction writer in a smallish town on a large-ish island. In these stories shes a reluctant Mother Hubbard to a bingo-playing mother-in-law who lives in the basement like an ancient mysterious troll and three randy teenagers who have only one question in life: Wheres the party? Marions husband forms a Spouses of Writers Support Group and dreams of escape to a shed in the woods. When shes not writing haiku, former-hippie Marion embarks on monthly condom runs for her brood or cooks a book while composing supper. Domesticity wrestles creativityand wins. 1-896095-93-3
The Congress of Human Wonders (Polestar $16.95)
"The Care and Cultivation of Boring Relatives" is among the survival tips proferred by M.A.C. Farrant in The Congress of Human Wonders (Polestar $16.95), a collection of stories and advice.
1 896095 28 3
The Breakdown So Far
promotional copy
The Jonathan Swift of the bingo hall and elder-care, the Alexander Pope of pet-care and the dinner parties of the liberal intelligentsia, Marion Farrant continues her assault on the unaccountably disaffected and disillusioned of the Western world with The Breakdown So Far, her eighth volume of extremely short stories for those of us who seem to have lost both our way and our attention span. Unsparing in her critique of the New Age syncretism the mall culture has substituted for authentic emotion and belief, our adoption of Buddhism appears in her work as a rationalization for our ubiquitous materialism of the soul, Zen as our guiltless doctrine of neglect.
Yet as in all such relentlessly dystopian social parodies, there resides behind each of these brief entertainments a stifled scream for help, a trapped yearning for genuine human contact and sympathy, an arrested existential lust for meaning. Where has our sense of order, propriety, history and community gone? Farrant's stories beg to wonderstories that span the stylistic range of personal journal, objective reportage, fiction, fantasy and writers workshop exercise? In order to answer these questions, Farrants new stories meticulously trace the breakdown of our language by ridding it of everything unnecessary and excessive: the breakdown of the post- Kierkegaard, post-Sartre existential position through its extension into the absurd; the breakdown of sense and sensibility through its alienation from perception; and the breakdown of discourse in literary craft, the social occasion and the commoditization of the individual and its attendant merchandizing of desire. Each of these stories is a new instance of the authors ongoing attempt at understanding language ironicallythrough itselfa willingness to let the deadly serious be as playful as it wants to be, a courageous shedding of what Tom Robbins called the tyranny of the dull mind.
-- Talonbooks, 2007
Down the Road to Eternity: New and Selected Fiction
from Sheila Munro
Down the Road to Eternity: New and Selected Fiction by M.A.C. Farrant (Talonbooks $19.95)
A self-proclaimed archaeologist of the absurd, M.A.C.(Marion) Farrant of Sidney is perhaps Canadas most ascerbic and intelligent humourist. Farrants stories are not fiction in any conventional sense. Dont expect to find much character development, or conflict, or plot (in other words, realism) on her pages.
Down the Road to Eternity: New and Selected Stories is a fantastic trip through twenty years of metaphorical and metaphysical imaginings.
Most of the stories are short, some no longer than a page. Other selections are essays, vignettes, stream-of-consciousness musings and internal monologues.
Throughout it is the authors wild imagination, her willingness to break the rules, that is on display, that creates the fireworks.
It seems Farrant can (and does) write convincingly on just about any subject, finding humour (and pathos) in the most unlikely places.
Where else would you find a conversation between Barbie and her younger sister Skipper, a funeral for a budgie who has committed suicide, or a man serving as material for his wifes fiction who lives in a cage?
Farrants stories can be wickedly funny, but they are rarely clever for the sake of being clever (okay the description of the nativity scene made out of luncheon meat may be an exception).
Generally, though, there is a seriousness, an awareness of uncomfortable truths anchoring the metaphorical flights, and of course this is what the absurd is all about: finding a way to talk about things we cant talk about any other way.
Farrant is a trapeze artist of the imagination, swinging over the existential void.
We meet a hermit who digs himself a trench as a bulwark against a postmodern age, a man suffering from EDT (end times trauma), street poets facing extinction, and a husband who wont get off the couch until the polar ice cap stops melting.
The selections from Farrants earliest collection, Sick Pigeon, though still fanciful, read more like conventional stories than her later ones, with their tales of the lonely and the dispossessed.
One story is about a nineteen-year-old welfare mother with seventeen cats who barricades the door against the social workers. They are always asking, How does it feel, Sybilla, to be on welfare? Oh terrific. No, really Sybilla, how does it really make you feel?
In her second collection, Raw Material, Farrant unleashes her genius for the absurd. Her writing becomes more daring, more zany.
In The Comma Threat, a woman is giving away commas. I gave some to my aunt to decorate her curtains; she flung handfuls of them against the drapes hoping for a Jackson Pollock effect. When all the commas are gone, the piece turns into one long run-on sentence.
Bright Gymnasium of Fun is an absurd riff on the people who make laugh tracks. Who are these people? Who pays them? Without them, how would we know what is funny?
One of the funniest stories, The Heartspeak Wellness Retreat, spoofs the pseudo-profundity of New Age beliefs. The characters include a couple who consult a book called Instant Feng Shui. They decide they must bomb their house to get rid of bad karma.
Farrant frequently invokes the names of the great masters of literature and art, musing on the works of Blake, Borges, Nabokov, Chekhov, and Georgia OKeefe, among others. Sometimes she writes stories about actual writers, one involves eating beans with Leonard Cohen and another recounts Dorothy Parkers rounds of cocktail parties at the Algonquin Hotel.
My favorite of the stories in this vein is Alice & Stein, a mini-biography of the literary icon Gertrude Stein and her life partner Alice B. Toklas.
Stein, who is busy building platforms for herself from which to make her pronouncements on art, is juxtaposed with her amanuensis (Alice) who sweeps floors and types manuscripts, but nonetheless manages to have her own white wine with breakfast period. The reader is left wondering whose life has been better, the one who creates, or the lover who loves.
The selections from the most recent work, North Pole, tend to be more philosophical as the mature artist contemplates the diminishing days, struggles to define what writing should be, and considers the surreal prospect of the nursing home.
But shot through the darkness are explosions of light: small epiphanies, unexpected revelations, quiet affirmations.
There are times when the experience of living in this world is rapturous. And there are times when it curls us crying in our beds. Between these extremes we tell each other what we know...
A new collection of Farrants personal essays on family life, The Secret Lives of Litter Bugs (Key Porter Books $17.95) was also published earlier this year. These complement her coming-of-age memoir, My Turquoise Years, published in 2004.
-- review by Sheila Munro, a freelance writer in Powell River.
My Turquoise Years at Arts Club
Press Release (2013)
VANCOUVER, BC Memoir of a Canadian girlhood. Based on M.A.C. Farrants memoir of her fourteenth summer, My Turquoise Years is a comic coming-of-age story set in 1960, a time of postwar optimism, when plastic reigned and the colour turquoise was the height of chic. Marion, raised by Aunt Elsie in sleepy Cordova Bay, has grown up hearing tales of her glamorous, globe-trotting mother, Nancy. Just as Marion is blossoming into womanhood, Nancy suddenly announces a visit to Canada, throwing everyone into a tizzy.
Farrants book was first brought to our attention by Nicola Cavendish, who, after reading it on CBCs Between the Covers, thought it would make a lovely play. She was right, said Rachel Ditor, the plays director and dramaturg. Part nostalgic look at daily life in 1960, My Turquoise Years is also a reminder of the social constraints of the nuclear family back then. What makes the play contemporary, though, is its affirmation that family is more than biology; its who you choose to share your home with. That life is up for invention.
Farrant, born in 1947 in Sydney, Australia, but resident of Vancouver Island since 1953, is the author of thirteen books, predominately short and humorous fiction. Once described as Canadas most acerbic and intelligent humourist, she weaves dry observation and absurdity with a knowing eloquence. An alumna of Simon Fraser University and the University of Victoria, Farrant is a full-time writer. She is a contributor to Adbusters and Geist, a frequent book reviewer for TheVancouver Sun and The Globe and Mail, and organizer of the Sidney Reading Series. Nominated for multiple literary awards, Farrant has received several writing grants at the national and provincial levels. Her work has been anthologized widely, and adapted for radio, television, and now, for the first time, the stage.
By M.A.C. Farrant. Starring Peter Anderson, Georgina Beaty, Bridget Esler, David Marr, Wendy Noel, Dawn Petten, Mike Rinaldi. Director and Dramaturg Rachel Ditor. Set Designer Alison Green. Costume Designer Christine Reimer. Lighting Designer Adrian Muir. Sound Designer Mike Rinaldi. Stage Manager Ingrid Turk. Assistant Stage Manager April Starr Land
The Arts Club Theatre Company, now in its 49th season, is the largest not-for-profit organization of its kind in Western Canada. Led by Artistic Managing Director Bill Millerd and Executive Director Howard R. Jang, it offers professional theatre at three venuesthe Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage, Granville Island Stage, and Revue Stageas well as on tour throughout the province.
The World Afloat Miniatures by M.A.C. Farrant (Talonbooks $12.95)
Review (2014)
from John Moore
Like everything else on this planet, fiction faces a simple choice; evolve or become extinct.
M.A.C. Farrant continues to make it clear she has no intention of walking with the dinosaurs.
With her new collection of surreal miniatures, The World Afloat, Farrant reappears to remind us that CanLit still has a few bats in the attic.
While university creative writing departments from coast to coast are no doubt preparing a new generation of authors to follow in the footsteps of the Nobel Prize-winning Alice Munro, Farrants The World Afloat is tuned to an FM wave-band in which brevity is the soul of writ, perhaps because contemporary narrative fiction has to compete with texts composed on cell phones.
A perceptive Globe & Mail reviewer once called Farrant the bizarro Alice Munro, a particularly apt description of the narrative style of her collection, Darwin Alone in the Universe (Talonbooks, 2003).
While many of those stories superficially resembled traditional short stories in length and opening lines, we quickly found ourselves sucked through the looking-glass by a seductively subversive parody of conventional narrative that is disrupted by filmic jump-cuts and tectonic clashes of inner and outer reality. The cumulative effect leaves us feeling like patrons trapped in a fire-bombed cabaret where the comedy duo of Franz Kafka and Groucho Marx are working the smoldering stage because the show must go on.
The miniatures of The World Afloat are briefer, and as wild as colourful birthday helium balloons released into a hurricane; small points of cheerful light whirled in a dark and violent wind.
In painting, Rene Magritte and Giorgio de Chirico represent the extremes of surrealist artMagrittes playful, cheerful juxtapositions in which defiance of gravity, floating, is a recurrent theme, versus de Chiricos dark and deserted distorted cityscapes, anchored by unspeakable anxieties. These are the emotional poles of our inner lives, our dreams, and its clear which side of the table Farrant hovers weightlessly above, tipping a signature bowler hat.
Necessarily surreal because of their extreme brevity, stories like those in The World Afloat used to be called postcard storiesthough nobody younger than your grandmother actually sends postcards anymore. Its not a new concept; Franz Kafka and Ernest Hemingway both struggled to write very short stories because they recognized that such stories demand not only more from the writer; they force readers to slow down, go back, re-read, and make sure they havent missed not just something, but everythingthe literary equivalent of Slow Food.
Nobel Prize-wining Japanese author Yasunari Kawabata wrote numerous (what he called) palm of the hand stories, some of which were attempts to condense his already notably brief novels into a few terse paragraphs. In 1987, Quebec writer Gilles Archambault won the Governor Generals Award for French language fiction for Lobsedante obese, (published in English as In a Minor Key by Oberon Books in 1990), a classic of the genre probably little-known to most English readers other than, possibly, M.A.C. Farrant.
Since the early 1990s, these kinds of stories have been called flash fictions and published extensively on websites. Most of them are not memorable in the conventional sense. There are no ironic, dramatic plot twists in the manner of Maugham or de Maupassant. Like poems, or recalled fragments of dreams, these kinds of stories are meant to resonate, rather than reveal, to stir up the mental sludge, flush out the septic tank of the subconscious, to make us feel more truly aware and alive.
M.A.C. Farrant has made a careera dozen books thus far, and countingof literary subversion. Its a dirty job, but somebody has to don the rubber gloves and apron and put an edge on the knife if fictional narrative is to be more than a self-indulgent hobby for egoists or a domesticated cash cow for cynical hacks whod rather be writing film scripts. 978-0889228382
John Moore reviews fiction from Garibaldi Highlands.


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LEGAL action is being taken by Warrington Borough Council against the company who built a wall of tyres near to the Kingsway Bridge.
Council officers issued a deadline for the removal of the 'eyesore' by January 17 but the heap of tyres has yet to be taken down.
Residents were left outraged by the 'unsightly stack' that was constructed without planning permission.
Clr Kevin Bennett (Fairfield and Howley - LAB) said: "It was shock to see the monstrosity shoot up overnight. I do not know how he thinks he will get away with it and he won't."
A spokesman said: "The council considers that the tyres cause material harm to the amenity and condition of the land, therefore, legal action will be taken including the serving of an enforcement notice.
"Officers are also investigating the erection of unauthorised advertisements on the site, and the council may also take separate enforcement action in respect of any unauthorised advertisements on the site.
"The council treats any such unauthorised developments very seriously and the public can be reassured that we will do what we can within the laws available to us, taking formal action through the courts if necessary, to resolve this type of situation."
Clr Tony Higgins (Fairfield and Howley - LAB) said it was a pity that the council had been forced take legal proceedings but the owner of the land left the council no choice.
Clr Higgins added: "The tyres are blighting the area. The message from the public is clear - they do not want it.
"These people live here and see it day in day out. The owner should be listening to what the people want.
"The best way to resolve this matter would be for the owner of the land to take the tyres down. He is not doing himself any favours."
Mayor of Warrington, Clr Peter Carey said the tyres were a 'public nuisance and safety hazard'.
He added: "This is the right course of action as the owner have refused to take notice of the council and the public outcry."


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