text:
We are delighted – Saab's future is now secure. From today we will be concentrating all of our efforts into reviving Saab and transforming it into a sustainable and profitable company with the confidence to be bold. We will reinforce the emotional experience between Saab drivers and their cars and we will focus on Saab's historical strengths in the fields of independent thinking, aircraft heritage, ecological performance and motorsport.
Through this acquisition we add approximately 15 euros per share in equity and 60 euros of assets. With a well funded business plan in place we are looking forward to working with Saab's management on the realization of that plan and bringing exciting new products to our customers. Real Saabs, Saab Saabs.
Spyker CEO Victor Muller celebrates the official transfer of ownership of Saab [full release in PDF format here]. GM's release can be found here.
Tagged as Brand Sale, Branding, GM, Saab, Spyker, Victor Muller
19 Comments on "Spyker Confirms Saab Sale Closure..."
stroker49February 23rd, 2010 at 11:58 am
I still don't belive in this. The deal is done when the money is on GMs account. Preferably ALL the money.
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BoffFebruary 23rd, 2010 at 12:06 pm
I struggle to see how this arrangement will work, given the staggering costs involved in developing and marketing automobiles, not to mention the aversion of too many consumers to anything "different". But I wish them well…my own recipe would be to combine traditional Saab design cues (the new 9-5 being a great start) with seriously huffing turbo engines and AWD drivetrains.
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Mirko ReinhardtFebruary 24th, 2010 at 3:29 am
While I agree that the 9-5 has it's good elements, a Saab absolutely has no business of being a sedan. The first thing they need to do is giving it a proper hatch.
And no more V6 engines.
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February 23rd, 2010 at 12:23 pm
Good luck with that Victor.
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runeFebruary 23rd, 2010 at 4:57 pm
Why so negative?
In your other reply you ask "what has changed?".
Well, the old 9-5 was more than 12 years old. GM cancelled a new 9-5 at least once (I'm thinking of the model co-developed with Subaru).
This year Saab have the following new models: 9-3X (introduced last fall), 9-5 (production starts within a month or two) and the 9-4X (within the end of the year?). The NG 9-3 is said to be ready for testing soon (MY2012?).
For the first time in a very long time, Saab has a modern and fresh lineup.
May I also point out that the old generation 9-5 ranked at the very top of folksam.se's overview of safe cars all through the previous decade. Only last year was it joined by some other cars. The NG 9-5 is even safer. (http://www.folksam.se/dpublic/a0346.nsf/vLookUpFiles/R6546.pdf/$FILE/R6546.pdf) The 9-3 had a similar
Even though my old 9000 CS 2.3T is at least 20% safer than the average car (not bad for a 25 year old design… It rates as good as newer German cars), I only bought it while awaiting the new 9-5.
Safety combined with good driver's comfort and _good_ acceleration between 80-120 kph plus ridculously good winter capabilities, make Saabs an interesting and good choice.
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WheatridgerFebruary 23rd, 2010 at 5:49 pm
I appreciate your appreciation of great SAABs like the 9000. They were living proof that a fast car can be a safe car, and a roomy car, and a versatile car. They weren't perfect, as evidenced by the large number of SAAB-only repair shops they supported, but they were something special.. more special than the ones that followed, I think. It's a slightly better world when SAAB is still making cars.
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getacargetacheckFebruary 23rd, 2010 at 12:27 pm
So, GM is getting $74M in cash plus $326M in (soon to be worthless) shares of the new Saab-Spyker company? Obviously, GM has not washed its hands of Saab. It will produce the 9-4 for Saab, and the 9-5 is full of GM's latest technology. Still, the new cars will prove sales-proof. After this little venture fails (perhaps taking Spyker down too) GM will be left holding the bag and responsibility for further liabilities. It'll be like Delphi and Visteon all over. A death of a thousand cuts. GM should have bitten the bullet and closed Saab down even if it cost more near-term.
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February 23rd, 2010 at 1:03 pm
Agreed. There's nothing about Saab now that was different from before that will have anyone clamoring into their showrooms. It's a vegetable that hasn't had the plug pulled quite yet.
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LokkiFebruary 23rd, 2010 at 12:32 pm
So is now a good time or a bad time to mosey down to the local SAAB dealer looking for a bargain?
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midelectricFebruary 23rd, 2010 at 12:59 pm
Hi cojones are as big as that A-pillar.
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saabista63February 23rd, 2010 at 2:31 pm
I love to read all these "I don't believe this!"-statements.
You sure didn't!
Now it has happened!
But there will always be some people to go on with the sermon: SAAB should be killed! Pull the plug!
I hope that they don't get tired of it in the long run.
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Porsche986February 23rd, 2010 at 2:39 pm
Congrats to Saab for surviving. I, for one, am glad it worked out.
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ottFebruary 23rd, 2010 at 3:29 pm
I for one would rather have Saturn or Pontiac back.
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February 24th, 2010 at 5:48 am
Really?! Out of curiosity why?
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mpresleyFebruary 23rd, 2010 at 5:20 pm
We will reinforce the emotional experience between Saab drivers and their cars…
Does this mean even more torque steer?
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February 23rd, 2010 at 6:28 pm
Sorry to break the news to you, but Saab torque steer jokes are so 2007. :)
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mpresleyFebruary 23rd, 2010 at 7:45 pm
Damn, and I thought I was on a roll! Does that mean they fixed the problem in '08?
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February 24th, 2010 at 11:08 am
They introduced XWD for MY08.
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MungoozFebruary 23rd, 2010 at 8:04 pm
I've never seen a purple SAAB and I hope I never see one,
But let me tell you anyhow, I'd rather see than build one.
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text:
48 Years Ago: The Beatles Release 'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'
It is the Mona Lisa of rock albums, the one that elevated pop music to fine art. No album has been more scrutinized, analyzed, evaluated, parsed, written about and enjoyed.
It is, of course, the Beatles' masterpiece, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
Growing up in the '70s, visiting a friend's house meant listening to various permutations of John Denver, Neil Diamond and the Monkees, not to mention what ever Top 40 junk your friend was into that week. A play date could be pretty musically grim.
The good news, though, was that every kid had a copy of Sgt. Pepper in his stacks. The album was old reliable, the soundtrack to countless Hot Wheels races and Evel Knievel Stunt Cycle mishaps.
When Sgt. Pepper turned 20 years old on June 1, 1987, I was 20, too. I remember staring at the CD long box, marveling at the album's longevity: How in the world did it remain so popular now that the two of us were so impossibly old?
Now here we are, another 28 years gone and the Beatles' masterpiece still regularly tops the "greatest all-time albums" lists. Occasionally, it is bumped by its greatest influence, the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds, but nearly 50 years on the general consensus remains that Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is a towering achievement.
So what the heck am I, a lowly music writer, going to tell you that you don't already know? What can I possibly say that academics, critics and the people who were there haven't already said?
Absolutely nothing, so I'm not even going to try. Instead, I'm going to pony up a few tidbits that you may not know about Sgt. Pepper. Or maybe you do, I don't know. Listen, the only thing I'm sure about is that it's my turn to wind up the Evel Knievel Stunt Cycle, so move over.
1. The album cover depicts a funeral scene.
The Beatles retired the whole "lovable mop tops" bit after their 1966 tour, and what better way to say goodbye than with a funeral? Note that "Beatles" is spelled out in funerary flowers in the photograph and "Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band" appears on the bass drum — the new band is saying so long to the old band.
Bonus fact: The actual photo shoot only took three hours.
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2. Beatles manager Brian Epstein hated the now famous album cover.
Maybe he was still reeling from the "butcher cover" incident a year earlier; regardless, Epstein went so far as to suggest that the album be shipped in a plain brown wrapper.
3. The back cover includes the band's first printed reference to Apple.
Apple Records didn't make its debut until December 1967, but the back sleeve of Sgt. Pepper gives joint credit for the cover to "M C Productions and The Apple."
4. Each band member wears his MBE on the front cover.
The Beatles were the first rock band to be honored by the Queen as "Members of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire," or MBEs. This was a political move by British Prime Minister Harold Wilson to appeal to the nation's youth, but it opened the door to the endless sea of Sir Rock Stars that we see today.
5. The album's first single doesn't even appear on the album.
The band spent 105 hours recording the double A-side single, "Penny Lane/Strawberry Fields Forever." Released in February 1967, it stalled on the U.K. charts at No. 2, provoking much speculation in the press that the Beatles were done. That's right: Hitting No. 2 meant they were washed up — talk about first world problems.
Manager Brian Epstein exerted pressure not to include the two classic tracks on the album — a decision with which producer George Martin allegedly disagreed and later regretted.
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6. Paul and Linda became "Paul and Linda" at the album's launch party.
Well, sort of. The two actually met four days earlier, but if you think in terms of two people crossing the threshold separating platonic friendliness and amorous interest, this is the night it happened.
7. "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" really was based on a drawing by John's son, Julian.
This remains the Sgt. Pepper fact that we all refuse to believe, so it's worth restating here: One of John Lennon's most psychedelic songs is not titled after LSD. Little Julian, all of four years old at the time, came home from preschool with a drawing of his friend, Lucy O'Donnell. When his father asked him to explain his work, the boy described it as "Lucy, in the sky, with diamonds."
The drawing still exists, and O'Donnell didn't know that she was the subject of a Beatles classic until she was 13 years old.
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8. "She's Leaving Home" was based on a real person, too.
Paul McCartney wrote this track after reading an article about a 17-year-old girl named Melanie Coe who ran away from home. Maca made up his own story loosely based on a quote from Coe's father: "I cannot imagine why she should run away. She has everything here."
Remarkably, he got the real life story fairly right. Ms. Coe is quoted in Steve Turner's The Beatles: A Hard Day's Write as saying:
The amazing thing about the song was how much it got right about my life. It quoted the parents as saying 'we gave her everything money could buy,' which was true in my case. I had two diamond rings, a mink coat, hand-made clothes in silk and cashmere and even my own car….
Bonus fact: Melanie Coe actually met the Beatles almost four years earlier after winning a mime competition on the television show Ready Steady Go!
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9. "With a Little Help From My Friends" started life as "Bad Finger Boogie."
That in itself isn't a particularly interesting bit of a trivia, but here's where it makes an interesting footnote: A couple of years later the Beatles signed a band named the Iveys to Apple Records, and Lennon suggested that they change their name to Badfinger.
If the following track sounds Beatles-esque to you, there's a reason: Paul McCartney wrote it.
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10. Paul wrote "When I'm Sixty-Four" when he was 15, released it when his father was 64.
The song dates to the Quarry Men days, the band that would evolve into the Beatles. McCartney used it as a time filler when the band lost power or had other technical issues during those early gigs.
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11. "Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!" was based on a Victorian circus poster.
Lennon picked up an old circus poster in an antique shop and hung it in his music room. The poster, printed in 1843, announces that "Pablo Fanque's Circus Royal" will hold the "Grandest Night of the Season….Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite." It notes that the Hendersons will be there, too.
These were all real people who were quite famous in the circus world of their time, but with a little reworking Lennon turned them into a song that he referred to as "so cosmically beautiful … like a painting, a pure [watercolor]."
Copies of the poster are readily available on the internet.
Bonus fact: Pablo Fanque (real name: William Darby) was the first black circus proprietor in England.
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12. "Good Morning Good Morning" took both its chorus and title from a Corn Flakes commercial.
Here's yet another example of Lennon elevating the mundane to art.
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13. "A Day in the Life" marks the first time that separate Lennon and McCartney songs were welded together.
The Beatles (including producer George Martin) were wonderfully innovative, making the most of everything. During the Revolver sessions two unfinished Lennon songs were merged together to create "She Said She Said." As brilliant as that track is, this collage approach didn't reach its zenith until the Sgt. Pepper sessions.
Paul's song fragment happened to fit perfectly after what during the song's construction was 24 empty bars counted aloud by road manager Mal Evans. At the end of the "empty" section, Evans set off an alarm clock to note where the band would eventually come back in, and wouldn't you know it — Maca's "Woke up / got out of bed" verse fit as if the whole thing was planned.
Bonus fact: All four Beatles did not simultaneously play an E-major chord at the climax of the song. John, Paul, and Ringo did, but road manager Evans is the fourth player, not George.
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With Sgt. Pepper, did the Beatles want to "turn you on," as Lennon sings in "A Day in the Life"? Absolutely. In 1968, McCartney said that "what we want to do is turn you on to the truth rather than on to pot."
The album turned us on to so much more than that. For many of us the Peter Blake album cover was our introduction to pop art, and the many faces in the cover photo led to hours of poring through encyclopedias for more information. The notion of a cohesive concept tying an album together didn't originate with the Beatles, but the overwhelming majority of listeners were introduced to the idea of a concept album via Sgt. Pepper.
Songs made from everyday things, found sounds turned into music, the realization that a band was at some level four guys playing characters — Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band turned us on to all of that and more on June 1, 1967 … and every day for the last 48 years.

subset: commoncrawl


text: Michael Alan Dorman <firstname.lastname@example.com> said: > I'll go further and say that I think that any approach that does not > include as one of its goals the ability to work with totally virgin source > archives is a total waste of time because it doesn't buy us enough to ^^^^^^^^ > justify the work. > > So if we start from the assumption that we will have a separate, totally > unmodified source .tar.gz, that means we will have at a minimum two files. If we're starting with the assumption that we're working with the actual upstream source archives, as opposed to a source archive possibly created by having the upstream archive unpacked and repacked without modification, we're not justified in asssuming that we have a .tar.gz upstream archive to work with. At least one, perhaps several, of my packages come as .zip files from upstream. At one time, I had (and may still have) packages which came packaged from upstream as sharfiles. > So, what can we have that other file to be? If we concede that the upstream sources might be unpacked and then repacked without modification, it's not a big step to say that they're not repacked into a vanilla .tar.gz file but instead into some other format -- probably a .<whatever> archive which contains the upstream sources as a .tar.gz file, debianizing diffs as a .diff.gz file, and probably some other items as well. So, we don't have to have an "other" file. > I would propose that it be a script (humanly readable, though it doesn't > have to be the prettiest thing around) that knows how to create a > directory, unpack the virgin sources into that directory, and then patch > the sources from patches included in its body. This script might be in the archive instead of the .diff.gz file, or in addition to it, or might be a new debain tool expected to be already present on the system, or ... > Seems to me that this doesn't have to be particularly hard, so I must be > missing something, right? It's like driving from my location in the Seattle suburbs to the Space Needle. It's not difficult, but there's a lot of ways it could be done and some particular way needs to be chosen.


text:
And Orlando would be wrongThis quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote
They can beat us and anyone else when their 3 is dropping... If not... They are toast...
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And Orlando would be wrong
They can beat us and anyone else when their 3 is dropping... If not... They are toast...
I still don't fear Orlando in a 7-game series. Between their dependency on 3's, Vogel's ability to make adjustments, and the way we generally play our game, I just think we come away with the 4 W's we need. Not sure on how many games that will take, but nonetheless.
I'm flabbergasted that anyone would consider Darren Collison and the twenty-somethingth pick in a draft more valuable than Steve Nash.
I just think DC and a 1st. are more valuable then Steve Nash for 25 games.
There's no guarantee that he'd want to stay here as a free angent next year and even if he did it may very likely be his last year. I don't want to give away a young player and a pick for any player under those circumstances when they can be had for nothing this summer.
That's why it needs to be something like this:
DC, first, Pends
Nash & Lopez
First time in a long time, I've been happy with the team that was constructed, and now they struggle. I blame the coach.
I would trade for Nash if this was a "normal" regular season but with the condensed schedule with little practice time available & little chance to rest Nash I would only pull the trigger if I thought he might be around for at least one more season.
I'd love to have Nash next year but the only way I want us doing it now is as a salary dump or after a buyout which the Suns should do for him if he isn't traded by the deadline.
On a side note, Lopez taken 15th. in the 2008 draft, Hibbert taken 17th. in the same draft. Maybe we do owe the Suns one.
I would love to have Nash here, but I see no reason to overpay for him, especially given his age and contract status.
Offer Price, both of our 2012 picks, and cap space. That gives Phoenix three young players and cap space to rebuild with, which is what they'll be doing if they trade Nash.
Sports Illustrated @SInow
Details Phoenix Suns guard @The_Real_Nash turns 38 today. Still leads the NBA by averaging 10 assists per game. #Nashty
I'll disagree just a little. He was an inconsistent player scoring and defensively until the 99-2000 season. I think that's when he had his best season with the Pacers. He hit over 40% behind the 3-point line that season and became less of a sieve on defense. That changed everything.
However, Travis Best would often close games out in the fourth quarter because he was a much better defender and scorer.
I used to say that Mark and Travis equalled one really good point guard.
How do I insert an image from the Internet? I'm in the camp that wants both Kaman AND Nash THIS season. I keep thinking about a bangers-and-mash t-shirt with Chris & Steve's faces embedded. (Okay, so Kaman's not a true banger; work with me!) Maybe Claddagh would be a sponsor?
"I think if he is and we pass on Leaf we'd be some dumb mother ****ers."
- Larry Bird to Kevin Pritchard before their pick on Draft Day
Last edited by naptownmenace; 02-07-2012 at 03:56 PM.
Yeah I don't know about that.


text:
Contact InformationWilliam Rawn Associates, Architects, Inc.
William Rawn Associates, Architects, Inc, 10 Post Office Square, Suite 1010,
Boston, MA 02109
Other InformationEntity Status: Active
Type of Entity: Stock
Entity Creation Date: Feb 13, 2009
Days in Business: 3142 days
Company Description
William Rawn Associates, Architects, Inc. is located in Boston, Massachusetts and is listed as an active Stock. William Rawn Associates, Architects, Inc. was started on Feb 13, 2009 which was 3142 days ago.
EmployeesRobert E. Cowden Iii clerk:
William L. Rawn Iii treasurer:
William L. Rawn Iii president:
Registered AgentSecretary Of The State
30 Trinity Street,
Hartford, CT 06106-0470
Edit ProfileEdited: 12/1/2011
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text:
One of the rooms that usually gets most overwhelmed with "stuff" in the house is the kitchen. Looking for some easy storage solutions that won't break your budget? Here are some ideas featured over at Curbly:
- Magnetic Wall-Mounted Spice Rack: this great hack saves space and looks amazing. Once you get your spices in small canning jars, you can label them to easily find what you need.
- Pegboard Storage: in a small space, this pegboard can be an aesthetically pleasing and functional way to store pots, pans and other miscellaneous kitchen utensils.
- Tiered Shelves: instead of just stuffing things away in cabinets, never to be found again, try this easy project for better organization in your kitchen cabinets.
Take a look at more easy and creative ideas over at Curbly's roundup, DIY Kitchen Storage.


text:
God of War: Chains of Olympus
Review by FinalFantasy84
"I recommend getting this even if you haven't played the other 2"
First off, I should state that I came into this game never playing the other two on PS2, so the main complaints that I saw from other reviewers ("not as good as the other two") don't generally apply. Now, on to the review.
Graphics 10/10 -
Amazing for a PSP game. At times I forgot I was playing a PSP game. There are occasionally minor bouts of slowdown, but those are rare. This game easily approaches (and surpasses early PS2) quality visuals. Arguably the best PSP visuals to date, although Crisis Core comes close.
Sound 8/10 -
The music, while fitting, I found was very generic. The voice acting was also fitting, but again, nothing really outstanding (except for Kratos). The voices can very quickly get on your nerves however, as it is mostly 300 style shouty dialog. Also, my pet peeve in gaming shows up in this: grunting every time the character jumps. Seriously, go out and grunt every time you jump. It gets very annoying very quickly.
Storyline 7/10 -
Without spoiling too much, I will say I enjoyed the storyline. The entire deal with Kratos's fate was very intriguing, but other than that it's nothing very emotionally gripping. Just a typical story that you can see in many other RPGs, with Gods toying around with the fates of man. Although I imagine this story is expanded on in the other 2 God of Wars, this one still makes perfect sense without having played the others, and I commend the developers on that.
Gameplay - 8/10 -
The meat of the game. The combat system is very well thought out, and somehow works despite what they had to cram on the PSP's controls. There's also real-time weapon change. On a PSP game. Take that Genji 2. The puzzles, if you can call them that, consist mostly of typical block pushing. Those became very weary as time went on, as Kratos would always move painfully slow with a box (or a body for that matter). My least favorite part of the game, however, were the timed action sequences. Ever since Resident Evil 4, I've hated them.
Overall -
A good game, and definitely a recommendation from me. It's an all-around great game, with incredible visuals, decent storyline, good soundtrack, and an amazing combat system. The game has its definite flaws, but when you cram what's essentially a PS2 game onto the PSP, it's inevitable.
Reviewer's Rating: 4.0 - Great
Originally Posted: 07/18/08
Game Release: God of War: Chains of Olympus (Limited Edition PSP Bundle) (US, 06/03/08)
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ROOSEVELT QUOTES LINCOLN'S LETTERS; The Colonel Shows That Another Great Man Also Was Wary of Arming His Enemies.
Col. Theodore Roosevelt, forced more into the open as a result of the collapse of the La Follette boom than at any time since his friends have been grooming him for the 1912 Republican nomination, fell back upon Abraham Lincoln yesterday as an excuse for not making a declaration as to his stand at this time. He quoted the martyred President to prove that his present policy of silence is the best one for him.
February 08, 1912
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THE ANTINOUS OF THE BELYIDERE. Nothing can exceed the beauty and just proportions of this statue. The balance and living posture of the figure, the expression of repose and elegance diffused over the whole; the fine form and simple attitude, are all most exquisite. The head is small, compressed, and beautifully oval; the shoulders large, without any affectation of manly strength, but gracefully youthful,the breast wide, but not coarse; and the whole trunk without that insipid flatness in feature, sometimes caricatured by the ancients, and from which even the Apollo is hardly exempt. The thighs fully round, and polished, the legs long, the patella high, as it should be in the limb which is in action, and pointed so as to give a beautiful conic form to the thigh, which only balances the figure, and is quiescent. The andes are exquisitely formed, with much elegance and precision, and free from strained anatomy. In its entire state this statue must have been fine indeed, and so preserved, would have challenged a place among the most precious works of antiquity. Both arms are wanting, which cruelly spoils the fine symmetry, and greatly injures the just equilibrium of the figure. Among other restorations of the Antinous Belvidere, or Mercury, (the destruction of his attributes throwing an uncertainty on the distinctive appellation,) the foot on which the figure rests, is so ill set on, as to produce a conspicuous deformity. You suspect something of this while looking in front, but are shocked with it, when the statue is viewed in profile; and the whole of this arises from a little thickening of the cement on one side. We are told that Dominichino made the just proportions of this statue his constant study, forming from its general contour and aspect his notions of the beau ideal. Yet, although I much admire the symmetrical justice of composition in the whole, there is, in my opinion, a stillness of expression, and a something of formality in the immovable sweetness of the countenance, unvaried by the slightest approach to motion, which gives a tameness certainly destructive to the perfection of beauty.
The exquisite polish of this precious morceau adds infinitely to its beauty. This fine finish, and consequent lustre of marble, producing a quality of softened light and shade, bearing, in statuary, a character analogous to colour in painting, is indispensable where the artist's chief aim is directed to the display of beauty in person or countenance.
The MELEAGER of the Vatican affords a remarkable proof of the justice of this observation, the general effect of this celebrated statue being much injured by an absence of this distinguishing feature in the art.
The Meleager resembles the Antinous; but, upon the whole, with some few exceptions, is inferior. The countenance is animated, the eye intelligent, the mouth just opening, the features and expression beautiful, and the action and turn of the head implying reflection, in all of which points he surpasses his rival, whose fine features are fixed and motionless. The animation of the countenance is also well seconded by the action of the body, which may be defined as a gentle sustaining action. The forms are full, round, and manly, the drapery good, and cast, like that of the Antinous, round the arm, but being joined by the boar's head for support, it is an undoubted Meleager. Yet are the beauties of the design, and fine proportions of this heroic statue, counter-acted more than could be imagined, by want of finish, as well as by the absence of beauty in the marble it-self, which is not only full of blemishes, but rude and coarse in its surface. The consequences of all this are a flatness and apparent weight and heaviness in the figure, singularly inimical to grace and beauty. As there is no polish, the middle of the thigh, the patella, the shin-bone, the breast, the top of the shoulder, the cheek, the chin, are wanting in relief. It is not unworthy the attention of the artist to note the effect resulting from the careful polishing of all the parts I have just mentioned, which I think he will find producing a character true to nature, and giving them their finest forms.
A beautiful recumbent figure. The charm and delicacy of the female forms are not in any degree injured by the colossal size of the statue, which requires only to be viewed at a distance, and that not great, to discover the exquisite grace, and fine proportion, for which it is so eminently distinguished. The figure lies in a reclining posture, supported on one shoulder, the left arm bending round meets the head, which rests on the back of the hand, the fingers and wrist slightly bending under the weight, while the right arm, forming a curve over the head, hangs down behind, as if gently sunk into rest. The throat swells beautifully; the bosom is well delineated, and exquisitely formed, but yet with modesty, and shaded by the interposing drapery, which is gracefully gathered below, by the zone that encircles the finely-turned waist, and falls down the side in rich natural folds, describing the outline of the body. The bending forms, the full, yet delicately rounded limbs, lie in quiescent deep repose, finely expressing the gentle helpless yielding to sleep. Where the thigh begins, the artist, with wonderful skill, has contrived to cross the bands that confine the drapery, so artificially as to conceal the bulkiness of the haunch, a part of the female form in which it would seem beauty and necessity had some contention. From this rich crossing of the bands, the thighs and limbs come out and lie large, long, and full; but with all the delicacy of posture, and feminine flexibility, true to dignity and grace. The head is adorned with thick plaited hair, which forms a circle round the forehead, while a thin transparent veil falls over, gathered in a mass under the sustaining arm. The features are beautifully feminine, yet full, finely representing all the loveliness of womanhood, and a little oblique as indicating deep and tranquil sleep. Although the drapery covers the whole figure in large rich folds, the female form is exhibited with a distinctness, a grace, and charm, which, so much does female beauty gain by modesty and purity of aspect, far surpasses the effect on my mind produced even by the finest nude Venus; feelings which gain strength while contemplating this statue, so lovely in the confiding, beautiful innocence of sleep, of gentle breathing sleep.
They call this statue a Cleopatra, a Dido but I cannot approve of converting so general, so fine a form, worthy of a grand poetical design, into a portrait. Let the lady sleep in peace. I am sure it is such a sweet and gentle slumber as the dissolute Cleopatra, or infuriated Dido, never knew. Combined with the above-mentioned distinguished beauties, there is in this statue so fine a character of refined female modesty and tranquil repose, that, as a picture and a poetical representation of sleep, nothing can excel it. The dying Gladiator is perhaps the finest nude, and this assuredly the finest draped figure that exists.
THE DYING GLADIATOR.–A most beautiful and precious work, and of peculiar interest, as bringing so forcibly into evidence the power which the art of statuary may possess, of touching the heart. I have gone daily to view this fine statue, and still behold it with renewed feelings of admiration and sadness. There is a curling up of the lips, as if the languor and sickness of expiring nature had confused the sensations, and convulsed the features, and that almost suggests the idea of paleness. He has fallen, he raises himself upon his right hand, not for vengeance,not to resume his now useless weapon,not to appeal to the people. No he looks not beyond himself, he feels that the wound is mortal; he raises himself for a moment on his yet powerful arm, to try his strength; but his limbs have the trailing, bending form of dying languor; he looks down upon his now useless weapon, and blood-stained shield; he is wounded, his limbs have failed, he has staggered and fallen down, and has raised himself for a moment to fall down again and die. It is a most tragical and touching representation, and no one can meditate upon it without the most melancholy feelings. Of all proofs, this is the surest of the effect produced by art. He was a slave, he had no family, no friends, he was bought with money, and trained and devoted to death. It is then all the singleness of death and despair that you are to feel. No picture of tragic effort is presented, it is one impression, and if any artist has ever given that one impression, it is the author of the Dying Gladiator. The design is, in this sense, finer than anything in statuary I have ever seen, and given with wonderful simplicity. It is a statue, which, like those of Michael Angelo, should be placed in a vault, or darkened chamber, for the impression it makes is that of melancholy. Although not colossal, the proportions are beyond life, perhaps seven feet, and yet from its symmetry it does not appear larger than life. The forms are full, round, and manly, the visage mournful, the lip yielding to the effect of pain, the eye deepened by despair, the skin of the forehead a little wrinkled, the hair clotted in thick sharp pointed locks, as if from the sweat of fight and exhausted strength. The body large, the shoulders square, the balance well preserved by the hand on which he rests, the limbs finely rounded, a full fleshy skin covers all the body, the joints alone are slender and fine. No affectation of anatomy here, not a muscle to be distinguished, yet the general forms perfect as if they were expressed. The only anatomical feature discernible is that of full and turgid veins, yet not ostentatiously obtruded, but seen slightly along the front of the arms and andes, giving, like the clotted hair, proof of violent exertion. The forms of the Dying Gladiator are not ideal, or exquisite, like the Apollo; it is all nature, all feeling. In short, in this beautiful and touching production, for powerful effect and mournful expressions, the languid posture, the whole form of the bleeding and dying gladiator is executed with all the modesty of nature; never came there from the hands of the artist a truer or more pathetic representation.
This natural and melancholy picture is like a ballad chanted in its own simple melody, which makes a truer impression on the heart than the highest strain of epic song, or heroic conception of the artist.
The singular art of the artist is particularly to be discerned in the extended leg; by a less skilful hand this posture might have appeared constrained; but here, true to nature, the limbs are seen gently yielding, bending from languor, the knee sinking from weakness, and the thigh and ancle joint pushed out to support it. The gouts of blood are large and flat, hardly attracting attention,. and do not spoil the figure. If the attitude had been studied, and the posture represented as an appeal to the passions, or if he had been made to die as gladiators were then taught to die, for effect, the statue would have been spoiled; had he been raised so as to look up in a beseeching attitude to the people, or to the victor, it would have been but a poor and common statue. The marble is beautiful, not too glaring, a fine cream colour, equable and pleasing. The statue is entire, with the exception of the toes of both feet, restored, it is believed, by Michael Angelo. The collar and rope are signs of his station. The gladiators were generally slaves; disobedient servants being frequently sold to the Lanista, whose practice it was, after instructing them in the art, to hire them out for fight. The highest reward which could be received by a gladiator was obtaining freedom, and a release from being called upon to fight in public. They were then styled the Rudiarii.
ZENO IN THE STANZA DEI FILOSOFI.A beautiful half draped statue, in which a character of youthful old age is finely preserved, presenting, with exquisite skill, the spare but hale body, the flowing beard, and keen piercing eye, with the simplicity and coarseness of drapery appropriate to a philosopher rested on the pleasure of the spectators. If the prowess and courage displayed by him who was overcome had given satisfaction, and gained their suffrage, the thumb of each hand was held up in token of mercy, a contrary motion proclaiming condemnation and death.
CUPID AND PSYCHE.-Two beautiful small figures, exquisitely grouped. The contour, the form and limbs finely rounded, the whole expression full of nature, presenting all those fascinating, and almost indefinable graces, developed in the first burst of youthful loveliness. There are few statues, even among the finest, which have not their favourite aspect; but the composition of this piece is such, the balance and proportions so admirably preserved, that it may be viewed from every direction with undiminished effect.
THE ANTINOUS.-The fine proportions and elegant forms of this most exquisite statue are rendered still more striking from the splendour of its beautiful marble: With models such as this, and other precious remains of ancient sculpture, it seems wonderful that John of Bologna, and other great artists, should have fallen into the error of so constantly seeking to display their know-ledge of anatomy; frequently injuring their finest productions, by forcing the features of that science into notice. Because the moderns, among their other philosophical discoveries, found that the human body was composed of bones, muscles, tendons, and ligaments, is the statuary called upon perpetually to remind us of this circumstance? Why was it so beautifully clothed with skin, but to hide the interior mechanism, and render the form attractive? Anatomy is useful as a corrector, but no more. Its influence ought only to be felt; and to render it available, the artist must be well practised in general effect; like perspective, it is a good rule to assist the eye, in what a good eye could do without a guide. In the Antinous, the anatomist would look in vain to detect even the slightest mistake or misconception; yet such is the simplicity of the whole composition, so fine and undulating the forms, that a trifling error would appear as a gross fault. Every part is equally perfect; the bend of the head and declining of the neck most graceful; the shoulders manly, and large without clumsiness; the belly long and flat, yet not disfigured by leanness; the swell of the broad chest under the arm admirable, the limbs finely tapered, the ease and play of the disengaged leg wonderful, having a serpentine curve arising from an accurate observance of the gentle bendings of the knee, the half turning of the ancle, and elastic yielding natural to the relaxed state in that position from the many joints of those parts.
The distinctive and characteristic features of these four last mentioned statues afford a fine illustration of the observations I have just offered. The soft infantine beauty in the Cupid and Psyche, the nobler and grander forms of Antinous, the manly and strengthened limbs of maturer life in the Gladiator, with the slender rigidity of age in Zeno, are all finely delineated, and totally exempt from any straining after anatomical precision. The forms are simple, pure, natural, and free from every affectation of science. I have hardly ever seen in the statues of the ancients, and certainly never in their finest works, the Antinous, the Apollo, the Gladiator, &c. a muscle caricatured. I think I can easily perceive that even the great Michael Angelo himself was not exempt from entertaining too great a fondness for a doctrine, new, as applied to statuary, and in his zeal to render it effective, we sometimes find him, in pursuit of his object, while aiming at expression, only producing coarseness. Something of this may be traced in his celebrated Mose, in San Pietro in Vincolo. It is a noble work, and one in which the artist evidently meant to display his acquaintance with anatomy; but in searching too curiously after science, the grand general result has partly escaped him, the outline having many conspicuous defects. Nor is the general detail faultless. The right arm, full, muscular, and nervous, is fine, especially in the anatomy, and well proportioned to the size of the figure, but seems too large, contrasted with the left, which is mean, scraggy, and altogether in a different tone of composition, as also defective in the very art in which he sought to shine, having mistaken the origins of the pronator, and of the biceps. The attitude and sitting posture is well managed, and fine; but the limbs are set rather too much at right angles, which greatly injures the grace and flow of line. In the attempt to give a heroic character to the figure, the artist has made it too colossal. The drapery also is too voluminous; and the largeness of the limbs and length of the body hardly correspond with the size of the head; while the expression of the countenance, which was meant to be grand, serious, and imposing, has a cast of fierceness, not in keeping with the repose of the quiescent posture, or characteristic mildness, imputed to the great Jewish lawgiver. The beard is fine, and beautifully flowing; but, if it might be said in speaking of the work of so great an artist, it is a little caricatured. The effect, upon the whole, is grand and imposing, and it is perhaps adventurous to have criticised so freely a work held in such high estimation; but my object is, simply to give notices of such points as, perhaps, the course of my studies may have enabled me to detect with a precision that might escape a less practised eye.
The Church of San Pietro, in Vincolo, in which the Mose is found, is, in my mind, the finest in Rome, because presenting the most simple, yet superb, forms of architecture. One grand central nave, lined on each side with Tuscan columns of the finest fluted marble, opens upon a great semicircle, in which stands the high altar and here, in a spacious, noble architectural arch, this magnificent statue sits. The four figures filling up the space in the vast circle, and which were finished by one of the pupils of this great master, are all simple, well executed, and the general effect very fine.
VENUS FROM THE BATH.-A demi-colossal statue, of nearly seven feet and a half. It is extremely difficult to represent a delicate form in such gigantic proportions; but this is fine, and bears throughout a character of modesty singularly pleasing. The whole figure is feminine, simple, noble, and full of graceful bendings, the fulness of the person giving roundness to undulating forms, which in a more spare figure would have been angular. It is singular how often in the proportions of a Venus we find loveliness and richness of contour sacrificed to an exaggerated lengthy slenderness, with an unmeaning thinness of back and loins, unnatural to the female form. In the two extremes, namely, that of delicate beauty in the Venus, and supernatural power in the Hercules, how frequently does the representation of the first degenerate into simpering prettiness, while the other is swelled into monstrous forms of coarse brutal strength ! The fulness and fleshiness of skin in this figure of the 'Venus from the Bath' gives a plump and ripe, although delicate, roundness to the arms, where they rise from the back, and in the junction of the patella muscle with the arm, above the breast, as also the roundness of abdomen and groin, which I have never observed equalled in any other statue. The vase of perfumes, with the drapery thrown across, is a rich and a fine accompaniment to the general effect of this piece.


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Strider Video: A Retrospective
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Excited by the new Strider game but don't really have a reference for the character other than his appearances in the Marvel vs. Capcom series? Then this retrospective video is for you!
This video from CapcomUnity gives us a look at the man behind the myth and lets us brush up on our gaming history. Strider Hiryu got his start in the arcades in 1989. The game featured frenetic hack-and-slash action in a cybernetic, post-apocalyptic world. If that doesn't sound like something straight out of the late '80s and early '90s, then we don't know what does.
Strider would eventually make it onto the Nintendo Entertainment System with a more fleshed out story that took advantage of the home console format. In 1990, a sequel called Strider II was released, but we wouldn't see another game in the series until 1999, when a different Strider 2 would debut on the PlayStation.
Now, about 15 years later, Strider will make his triumphant return to the spotlight in his own game on the PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360 and Xbox One. We only have to wait until Feb. 18 to start flipping around and slicing up dudes with our Cyphers, so watch the retrospective video above to pass the time.


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Colts 24 Titans 20
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Colts 24 Titans 20
Smothered Chicken!
My biggest worry is CJ going off on this game like he did last week. It is one thing to beat up on a the slower type running backs like Richardson, but the smaller shifty backs have always gave our defense nightmares.
I expect another close game with our division rival especially since it will be in Tennessee, but I think we still pull it off.
Titans: 24
Titans 24 Colts 10
No, he has said repeatedly that he's going to bet against "his own team" all season. He's pretty awesome. What's funny is he's been wrong 3 times already.
There are two types of quarterbacks in the league: Those whom over time, the league figures out ... and those who figure out the league.
No, he believes the Colts will only win around 3 games the next 10 years. So looks like we're not seeing any wins anytime soon....
Super Bowl XLI Champions
2000 Eastern Conference Champions
I think if the O-line is the same for the third week in a row then we can run the ball and open up a whole mess of options in play action. Titans 17 Colts 24
Colts 24
Titans 17
Titans 77
Colts 0
Titan's QB's combine for 1200 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Chris Johnson runs wild all over the Colts but they hold him scoreless.
Luck throws for -17 yards, sacked 16 times and throws 21 INT
Smothered Chicken!
Titans 37 Colts 2 . Andrew Luck will break about 3 bones. Jim Irsay lies. RG3 is black *****.
Titans 2, Colts 0
Every player on defense has the game of his life. Johnson fumbles six times. The Colts come up with a rare interception.
The Titans get their points after Linkenbach gets penalized for holding in the end zone. This is Andrew Luck's fault because he held onto the ball for too long, whereas Peyton Manning's quick release would have prevented the penalty from even occurring.
The Colts register only 2 yards rushing. This is Luck's fault for handing the ball off improperly and because a bad running game is a byproduct of him throwing so much.
Luck finishes the day 0/22 passing after his receivers drop everything thrown at them. This is Luck's fault because his passes weren't perfectly thrown. Luck gets benched and after the game the Colts desire a superstar. Knowing RG3 is off the board, they inquire about Tony Romo. Jerry Jones mentions a better completion percentage as the Cowboys' reason for saying no to the deal.
Fully coming to grips with the fact that Luck is a bust and seven games is more than enough evidence to realize it, the Colts send 5 years worth of draft picks to the Broncos in exchange for Peyton Manning. OlBlu is so happy he loses control of his RV and drives off a cliff.
I'd love to see the Colts notch their first road win but Tennessee's played pretty well in the last 2 games and I think Chris Johnson emulates Shonn Greene and runs all over a still banged up Colts D. Luck gets 2 passing TDs to break his streak but the Colts fall 31-24.
Titans 24
Colts 20
Road game. Too many injuries. Going to be difficult for us to pull out.
I do like the direction our offensive line is going, now that they've finally played 2 games together. Hopefully Reitz can come back.
Don't ask Marvin Harrison what he did during the bye week. "Batman never told where the Bat Cave is," he explained.
Colts- 30
Titans- 28
It's going to be interesting to see how we do on the road against a mediocre team. We've only played two road games so far. The first was against an elite team in Chicago and the second was against a solid team in the Jets who were trying to save their season. Those were two very hostile environments for a young team to play in and it's not surprising that we were waxed in both games. We should have a better chance against Tennessee, but I ultimately don't see it. Titans 27, Colts 17.
Getting that first road win will be huge for this team. By now it's pretty obvious that we are going to have a chance to win virtually every game at home. On the flip side, we might only win one or two road games this season. It will be nice to get that first win, whenever it comes.
Titans 24
Colts 20
Im not so confident about us on the road, CJ2K looks revived and will probably run all over us.
Flash in a pan. I bet he runs for less than 50 yards that game.
Colts will shut down Johnson. They shut down Richardson
Smothered Chicken!
Richardson was hurt.


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Last edited by Arielflies; 04-29-2011 at 08:40 PM.
"Tons of surprises, but it wouldn't be 'American Idol' without it, would it?" Cowell told MTV News. "At the end of the day, I could go out and find 12 great singers, but that's kind of boring. The fact that there's people there who shouldn't be there makes it 'American Idol.' "
What did you guys think of Crystal last night? I was rather shocked.
I agree with whoever said putting Scotty there just felt cheap. Did they think that anybody other than maybe Scotty's fans would buy that? It would have been far more dramatic to have Haley/Casey/Jacob up there, what with the romantic angle and since H & J have consistently been in the B3. I suspect that was the real B3 this week.
Casey...Casey...Casey. I'm going to miss you, brother. No, he wasn't the greatest singer, but he was one of the most entertaining. His performances were compelling since you didn't know how he'd change up a song. Now that he's gone, my support goes to James, who also has charisma. Everybody else, especially Scotty, I simply find boring.
No real shock with Casey's elimination, since he was more of an entertainer than a singer. I was surprised, though, that he went before Haley and Jacob. I thought he would make it to F4.
Maggie: "While she takes care of the men with the guns, why don't you sit down and I'll make you a nice, hot cup of tea?"
Pan Am stewardesses: prepared for anything!
Last edited by ibot2much; 04-29-2011 at 05:08 PM.
I'm not quite sure what you mean by "grown a lot." Why should she change who she is, any more than Adam Lambert or Casey? If that's how she wants to sing, then I admire her for it. She looked like she was having a great time and that's all that counts. I personally loved her performance and plan to buy her album.
And no, I never thought she would be as popular as Adam Lambert. She is too quirky and independent. I simply thought she was better than Lee last year and deserved to win far more. Honestly, I don't see Idol producing another Kelly/Carrie/Adam again. Even if Scotty wins, he'll appeal more to older women who like old country. Carrie has been phenomenally successful because she crossed the pop/country divide like Shania.
Maggie: "While she takes care of the men with the guns, why don't you sit down and I'll make you a nice, hot cup of tea?"
Pan Am stewardesses: prepared for anything!
Some celebs don't dress for a performance at all. I get that. Toby Keith was on DWTS last week and his shirt looked like he found it balled up in the corner of his garage. VERY disrepectful IMO, but I love Toby Keith and understand that's who he is. He sang great though.
Last edited by Arielflies; 04-29-2011 at 08:42 PM.
If you have men who will exclude any of God's creatures from the shelter of compassion and pity you will have men who will deal likewise with their fellow men. - St. Francis of Assisi


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Bill Boyarsky: State budget crisis calls for action
If there was ever a time for Jewish parents to fight for Los Angeles public schools, this is it.
Legislators can't agree on Gov. Jerry Brown's plan to have a special election to extend taxes scheduled to expire this year. "If we don't get these tax extensions, it's a dire emergency," said Steve Zimmer, the Los Angeles school board member who represents the Westside and the West San Fernando Valley. Layoff notices have already been sent to more than 7,000 Los Angeles Unified School District teachers. If the voters don't approve the tax extensions, those notices will, for the most part, be translated into firings.
This would be a devastating blow to Jewish families who have been engaged for many months in a campaign to persuade parents to send their kids to public schools. They have hosted parental meetings in their homes, arranged for school visits and formed support groups, all in the interest of persuading skeptical mothers and fathers that their children can receive a high-quality education in Los Angeles public schools and that these schools are safe.
Now, with the budget crisis, parents impressed by faculty during school visits might one day learn those teachers have been fired.
"Reinvesting in public schools, particularly on the Westside and the West Valley, is still a fragile choice, still a leap of faith," Zimmer told me. "People are positive, but it is fragile. So when you add the [budget] uncertainty, it makes the situation more precarious."
Some people aren't sitting back and taking it.
At the Westside's Temple Isaiah, a center for the back-to-public school movement, Rabbi Dara Frimmer told me congregants are learning the complex politics of the Sacramento budget mess and what will happen if Gov. Brown's proposed tax extensions are not approved.
At the same time, they are examining the Los Angeles school district budget. This is a great idea. Get some smart accountants, tough lawyers and sophisticated political activists to take that budget apart. When it is time to cut, we shouldn't accept the word of the school board or administrators at face value.
Although she is concerned about the cuts, Rabbi Frimmer said, "this only intensifies our commitment to public education — not just Jewish middle-class parents but all parents."
At Hamilton High School, students, inspired by the young people of Egypt and Tunisia, used Facebook and e-mail to create a protest network after hearing of the layoff notices, which would hit their school hard. Among the many targeted cuts that would affect the school, major district-wide cuts are focusing on music programs, and Hamilton's renowned Music Academy falls into that category. Students began work on a Friday and by Monday had 600 students at a rally and had persuaded — with about 100 e-mails — Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez to visit the campus. He wrote a terrific, supportive column. Continuing to work through the week, they organized a bigger rally outside the school on South Robertson Boulevard last Friday morning.
This is another great idea. The L. A. school district is traditionally afraid of student activism, and administrators, fearful of getting in trouble, tend to put it down, but, as others have found, it's hard to put down a social network.
Still, political organizing hasn't been easy, as this Hamilton dad wrote me:
"Several kids, including our son, were designated to speak to the school board on Tuesday. They were told to be there at 9 a.m. to 'sign in.' They were there by 8:20, signed in and were told to return at noon for the 1 p.m. meeting. They did as they were told. Sometime after they got back, they were told that they hadn't filled out the necessary forms — forms that no one had mentioned to them before. As a result, they wouldn't be allowed to speak. They missed a day of school, didn't get to speak, but … they learned a lesson (although I'm not quite sure what it is) about dealing with the district bureaucracy."
If the kids have the guts for a worthy fight, the adult Jewish community should, too.
Sure, it's easy to ignore Sacramento. The budget crisis is confusing, ugly and messy. It's more fun to rub shoulders with the glitterati at a presidential fundraiser or hear some well-known journalist or book author at another Westside political or cultural event for donors. No doubt about it, it's more interesting to talk about Israel, Egypt or maybe even the Afghanistan war than to immerse yourselves in the tortuous details of the Sacramento legislative mill.
But we all have to turn our attention to Sacramento with e-mails, faxes and phone calls. If these lawmakers, terrified of losing, get enough static from constituents, they'll listen. Republicans should tell those stubborn GOP legislators to drop their opposition to letting the people vote on taxes. Democrats can tell liberal legislators to ignore large contributions from public employee unions who are against the governor's plan. They don't understand, as Los Angeles Times columnist George Skelton wrote, that Brown "is just the type to turn on everyone if negotiations blow up. He'd probably propose an all-cuts budget that would cripple schools, eliminate many thousands of teacher jobs …"
Skelton knows Brown well. So do I. And it's clear that time is running out for our public schools. As Jews, who value education more than most, it's our obligation to take the lead in saving them.
Bill Boyarsky is a columnist for The Jewish Journal, Truthdig and LA Observed, and the author of "Inventing L.A.: The Chandlers and Their Times" (Angel City Press).


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Veeru Potla, who made films like �Bindaas� and �Ragada� is busy with his third venture starring Manchu Vishnu. After successful �Denikaina Ready�, Vishnu is very enthusiastic about this project. �Doosukeltha� is the confirmed title for this latest project. The team is planning to release the first look of the film on Telugu new year Ugadi.
The movie shooting is progressing at brisk pace in and around Hyderabad. Andhala Rakshasi fame Lavanya is pairing up with Vishnu in this movie. This project will be produced by Vishnu himself on his 24 frames factory banner. Mohan Babu will be presenting it. More details on this project later.


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Maybe the Euros have the right idea
I mean, except for the stores, restaurants, and movies, business is simply not happening. It's the time between Christmas and New Years and everyone is putting off everything until after the New Year's Holiday. Why do we come in to work anyway?
I walked down the hall and people are sitting in offices drinking coffee and chatting, about everything but work. Phones aren't ringing. Faxes are quiet (well who sends faxes anyway). I can't even find news about parking to bring forth some hot ideas for the blog. Andy is the smart one; he took the next couple of days off and is out seeing friends and checking out schools for daughter, Shing. She will be entering Kindergarten next fall and e wants to be sure it's the best. Boy, when I went to school you just went down the street and started classes. Now parents shop for schools and ensure their kids are in the best.
If I still worked from home, I would take the dog for a long walk, pick up my latest copy of Nero Wolfe, and call it a done day.
In the UK, the world shuts down from about December 15 to January 6. People are off. Nothing is happening. They formalize the holiday. Here we just punt.
Its 9:30 – Is it time to go home yet? Did I bring Nero with me?
2 Responses to Maybe the Euros have the right idea
yes you can go home
As the boss, you could do something about this:
1. Allow pets at work (with reasonable rules). Maybe you could all go for walks together.
2. Give everyone as much time off in December as you choose.


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Measures of fit in principal component and canonical variate analyses
Treating principal component analysis (PCA) and canonical variate analysis (CVA) as methods for approximating tables, we develop measures, collectively termed predictivity, that assess the quality of fit independently for each variable and for all dimensionalities. We illustrate their use with data from aircraft development, the African timber industry and copper froth measurements from the mining industry. Similar measures are described for assessing the predictivity associated with the individual samples (in the case of PCA and CVA) or group means (in the case of CVA). For these measures to be meaningful, certain essential orthogonality conditions must hold that are shown to be satisfied by predictivity.
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Volume (Year): 35 (2008)
Issue (Month): 9 ()
Pages: 947-965
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Corsair 600T White Computer Case Unboxing & First Look Linus Tech Tips
www.ncix.com If you want a case that looks like a stormtrooper, then look no further. This takes the 600T and takes it one more step by adding sharp contrasting colours and an optional additional side panel!
Video Rating: 4 / 5


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Skip to comments.GOP governors reject ObamaCare health exchange partnerships
Posted on 02/17/2013 4:39:08 PM PST by sheikdetailfeather
As the final deadline for creating state health insurance exchanges passed Friday, New Jersey, Tennessee and Florida said they would not work with the federal government on establishing insurance markets required under ObamaCare.
Exchanges are online markets required under the federal health care law where consumers will be able to buy individual private policies and apply for government subsidies to help pay their premiums.
In his announcement Friday, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said his administration is committed to complying with ObamaCare, but "only in a manner that is the most effective and efficient for the residents of New Jersey, and the businesses that will carry the costs of this new program."
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
As a Florida resident an not sure which way Scott was going to come down on this...so far so good!
and AMEN
Unfortunately this won't work long term. There are significant penalties built in Obamacare. This will only slow it down.
Gov. Chris "I-love-Obama" Christie is another GOPe sellout who is not representative of true conservatism.
It will be interesting to see how far zero will go to ram this down our throats.
It swill be more interesting to see how many things conservatives fail to do to actually stand up to zero and his thugocracy.
Gov. Chris "I-love-Obama" Christie is another GOPe sellout who is not representative of true conservatism.
It will be interesting to see how far zero will go to ram this down our throats.
It will be more interesting to see how many things conservatives fail to do to actually stand up to zero and his thugocracy.
States that opt out will have significantly fewer penalties and therefore a significant economic competitive edge.
At the least, I hope the results of this settles in for a while to help change some minds toward throwing the whole mess in the trash.
How many states does that make?
How many states does that make?
This will only slow it down."
Maybe so, but some people in the earlier plans are already discovering that there are very limited funds readily available to pay their claims and doctors are asking them to pay up front. Received two calls from people last week asking how this could happen because they were assured that the federal government would cover all the fees. Not many to be sure but slowly but surely......
Residents of states which opt-out will be hit with penalties. Providers of states which opt-out will be hit with reduced re-imbursements.
This is about the only thing left to try but I don't expect it to work long term.
The only sure thing with this is that we're all screwed.
IIRC, employers in opt-out states will not be hit with penalties.
This is a biggie, competitively, to attracting business.
Then tell the blankety-blank Obama "consumers" in your state TO BUY THEIR OWN BLANKETY-BLANK INSURANCE!"
Story at link says 26 have turned down the feds, 23 have signed on, and Utah is still in negotiations.
Legislators would be be 'encouraged' by special interest groups to make sure that families are 'protected' by assuring they have sufficient coverage. This probably would include requiring that all policies cover prescription drugs, even if some folks don't want that, and which would cause the prices to skyrocket.
Can the 26 State Governors file a Majority CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT against the Oppressive Federal Obama'care' Law?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.


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CAMP PENDLETON -- Continuing drug-related violence in Tijuana and the Baja Peninsula has led to an extension of an order that makes it a lot harder for local Marines and sailors to sojourn over the border for a little fiesta time.
The directive from Lt. Gen. Samuel Helland mandates that any troops who want to visit Mexico must first obtain written permission from a lieutenant colonel or above and complete several other tasks.
The policy, first put in place on Christmas Eve, has been extended indefinitely by Helland, who commands about 40,000 Marines and sailors from Camp Pendleton's I Marine Expeditionary Force.
"This is a prudent step in addressing the real threat to our personnel by ensuring a baseline level of oversight for any travel into the area," the policy states.
Expeditionary force spokesman Mike Alvarez said Wednesday that Mexican officials should not interpret the policy as an insult.
"We are not pitting ourselves against Mexico," Alvarez said. "The sole intent is to look out for the safety and well-being of our Marines and sailors."
Alvarez said requiring a lieutenant colonel or above to sign a "liberty chit" to visit Mexico will "probably do a lot toward reducing the list of Marines going down there."
The policy followed discussions between the U.S. Marine Corps and law enforcement agencies, Alvarez said.
Any Marine or sailor who wants to visit Mexico must first complete anti-terrorism training.
Troops who get the OK to cross the border must be at least 18 and follow "the buddy system," which requires them to travel with at least one other person who is 18 or older.
They also must carry the telephone numbers of the American Consulate in Tijuana, the border Shore Patrol and their unit command.
And before they go, they must register online with the office of the American Consulate.
For those with homes or close relatives in Mexico, the policy is a little more lenient, allowing travel for up to 30 days.
Commanders are required to keep a roster of all their troops visiting Mexico as well as those who have a residence or next of kin in the country. Anyone violating the policy is subject to unspecified punishment, the order states.
At Miramar Marine Corps Air Station, spokesman Maj. Jay Delarosa said the policy also applies to those stationed at that northeastern San Diego base.
A spokesman for the Consulate General of Mexico in San Diego, Alberto Diaz, was unaware of the policy and had no immediate comment.
The Marine Corps has long cautioned its troops about visits to Tijuana and easy access to alcohol and prostitutes. After a series of incidents in 2001, it imposed a rule similar to Helland's but not nearly as onerous. The 2001 rule simply required that junior Marines get approval from their superior officers.
At least 5,300 people died in drug violence in Mexico in 2008, authorities there have reported.
Several hundred were killed last year in Tijuana, a city of about 1.3 million, and so far this year at least 12 homicides believed tied to the drug wars have been reported. No U.S. service members have been slain.
The local Marine Corps restrictions on travel to Mexico come in the wake of a military report that lists Mexico as one of the countries in the world that could see its government collapse.
"In terms of worst-case scenarios … two large and important states bear consideration for rapid and sudden collapse: Pakistan and Mexico," says the report from Joint Forces Command, a Virginia-based military planning and coordination center headed by Marine Gen. James Mattis.
"The Mexican possibility may seem less likely, but the government, its politicians, police and judicial infrastructure are all under sustained assault and pressure by criminal gangs and drug cartels."
Contact staff writer Mark Walker at (760) 740-3529 or firstname.lastname@example.com .


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Swallowfield is a village and civil parish in Berkshire, England, about 5 miles (8 km) south of Reading, and 1 mile (1.6 km) north of the county boundary with Hampshire. In the 2001 UK census it had a population of 1,961.
The civil parish of Swallowfield also includes the villages of Riseley and Farley Hill. Since the nationwide reorganization of local administration in 1974 it has been within the Borough of Wokingham.
Swallowfield Park is a stately home situated in an estate half a mile north east of the village. The current mansion has been converted into exclusive apartments.
Swallowfield was originally a chapelry in the parish of Shinfield and located on the boundary between the Reading Hundred and the Charlton Hundred and in the Wokingham Poor Law Union. The parish was located in the Wokingham Rural District 1894-1974, and since that date in the Wokingham District (1974-1998) and the Wokingham unitary authority (since 1998).
Research Tips
Online Historical References
Nineteenth Century Local Administration
English Jurisdictions is a webpage provided by FamilySearch which analyses every ecclesiastical parish in England at the year 1851. It provides, with the aid of outline maps, the date at which parish records and bishops transcripts begin, non-conformist denominations with a chapel within the parish, the names of the jurisdictions in charge: county, civil registration district, probate court, diocese, rural deanery, poor law union, hundred, church province; and links to FamilySearch historical records, FamilySearch Catalog and the FamilySearch Wiki. Two limitations: only England, and at the year 1851.
During the 19th century two bodies, the Poor Law Union and the Sanitary District, had responsibility for governmental functions at a level immediately above that covered by the civil parish. In 1894 these were replace by Rural and Urban Districts. These were elected bodies, responsible for setting local property assessments and taxes as well as for carrying out their specified duties. Thses districts continued in operation until 1974. Urban districts for larger municipalities were called "Municipal Boroughs" and had additional powers and obligations.
Poor Law Unions, established nationally in 1834, combined parishes together for the purpose of providing relief for the needy who had no family support. This led to the building of '"union poorhouses" or "workhouses" funded by all the parishes in the union. The geographical boundaries established for the individual Poor Law Unions were employed again when Registration Districts were formed three years later. In 1875 Sanitary Districts were formed to provide services such as clean water supply, sewage systems, street cleaning, and the clearance of slum housing. These also tended to follow the same geographical boundaries, although there were local alterations caused by changes in population distribution.


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Critical Read
What: OMB memorandum on the administration's Evidence and Innovation Agenda
Why: In a White House speech July 8, President Obama promised an "aggressive" second term management agenda designed to capitalize on the power of technology to improve the efficiency of government operations, optimize policy outcomes and innovate government services. A memo to agency chiefs from OMB Director Sylvia Burwell and other top policy staff released July 26 goes a little deeper into explaining what Obama has in mind.
Agencies are directed to develop "evidence-based practices," that draw on data and experimentation to drive policy, with the goal of driving resources toward programs and policies that work efficiently and effectively, and away from programs that do not. In September, OMB will kick off a series of five workshops designed to acquaint senior agency personnel with how to apply experimental, data-driven approaches in their own budgeting.
The language mirrors a proposed $14 million Data-Driven Innovation effort in Obama's 2014 budget that would give the U.S. CIO's office a mandate to look for savings and improvements across government. When the proposal was unveiled in April, CIO Steven VanRoekel said, "We'll work with agencies to scale out what this evidence-based analysis and agenda can drive for the whole of government."
The memo identifies a few early efforts in this direction. The Treasury Department plans to test whether people with delinquent government debt can be nudged into paying by using a more personalized approach, simpler language, and a reminder that the recipient is in a small minority of those with outstanding debt. A joint data-matching program between the departments of Health and Human Services and Housing and Urban Development is looking to find out more about the health of senior citizens living in federally subsidized housing. OMB is also asking agencies to develop more innovative funding methods such as "pay-for-success" grants, in which programs initiated by non-profits and the private sector receive government funding after they are shown to have achieved results. Finally, agencies are being asked to share effective research and policy approaches in government-wide repositories.
Verbatim: "Proposals should utilize randomized controlled trials or careful quasiexperimental techniques to measure the effect of interventions on important policy outcomes. We particularly welcome proposals that draw on behavioral insights to improve results and lower costs in direct operations."
About the Author
Adam Mazmanian is executive editor of FCW.
Before joining the editing team, Mazmanian was an FCW staff writer covering Congress, government-wide technology policy, health IT and the Department of Veterans Affairs. Prior to joining FCW, Mr. Mazmanian was technology correspondent for National Journal and served in a variety of editorial roles at B2B news service SmartBrief. Mazmanian started his career as an arts reporter and critic, and has contributed reviews and articles to the Washington Post, the Washington City Paper, Newsday, Architect magazine, and other publications. He was an editorial assistant and staff writer at the now-defunct New York Press and arts editor at the About.com online network in the 1990s, and was a weekly contributor of music and film reviews to the Washington Times from 2007 to 2014.
Click here for previous articles by Mazmanian. Connect with him on Twitter at @thisismaz.
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Defense leaders and Congress are looking to encourage more aggressive cloud policies and prod reluctant agencies to embrace experimentation and risk-taking.
Steve Kelman talks to the agencies that have embraced tech demos in their acquisition efforts -- and urges others in government to give it a try.
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Ninety days after the Trump administration's executive order, FCW sat down with agency cyber leaders to discuss what's changing.
A month after the GSA named 10 winners for its next-generation telecommunications contract, the $50 billion vehicle has a big supporting role in the White House IT modernization plan.
M-13-17 is now available in open, standard, machine-readable StratML format at http://xml.fido.gov/stratml/drybridge/index.htm#OMB or, more specifically, http://xml.fido.gov/stratml/carmel/M-13-17wStyle.xml
Objective 3.3. Performance Partnerships & Waiver Demonstrations -- Enable States and localities to demonstrate better ways to use resources, by giving them flexibility to pool discretionary funds across multiple Federal programs serving *similar populations and communities* (emphasis added) -- highlights the importance of issuing the next round of GPRAMA program inventory descriptions in an open, standard format like StratML Part 2, with the stakeholders of the beneficiary type clearly documented machine-readably.
Doing so will also enable agencies to comply with subsections 202(b)(4) & (5) and 207(d) of the eGov Act, which require them to:
• Work together to link their performance goals to key groups, including citizens, businesses, and other governments, as well as internal Federal Government operations; and
• Adopt open standards (e.g., StratML) enabling the organization and categorization of Government information in a way that is searchable electronically and interoperably across agencies.
Also highly relevant are the recent Executive Order and OMB policy memo making openness and machine-readability the default for government information. http://xml.fido.gov/stratml/carmel/EOOMRDwStyle.xml & http://xml.fido.gov/stratml/carmel/M-13-13wStyle.xml
8251 Greensboro Drive Suite 510, McLean, VA 22102 703-876-5100


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Chapter 2 (v.1)
"Okay, here you go."
I took the schedule paper and a welcome card from the sweet secretary. I nodded and smiled an appreciation at her. She then looked over my shoulder and called out to a Steve in a rather high pitch voice. "Can you help your new friend here with her way around to her class?"
"Of course," a boy came beside me, smiling at her and then at me.
"Thanks, honey. So if you need anything, you know where to find me, Rina." She turned back to her computer to continue her work so I followed Steve who nodded in the direction of the hallway, still smiling.
"So you are new."
"Yeah, I just moved from England."
"Cool. Which part?"
"City or United?"
"Oh, you know them? I thought football, I mean soccer, isn't as popular here. I'm United, born and bred." I said with a laugh.
"Figures. Well our football team isn't is umm,.. well isn't that much interested in winning and yeah soccer is kinda more popular in this town actually."
" So you guys have only boys team?"
"There used to be an all-girl team but it didn't quite work out, and there isn't much competition so yeah, only boys team now. Why? You thinking of playing?"
"Umm,.. no. I'm not the athletic type. I'm crazy about it though. "
"Well it's not always about strength when it comes to soccer. Anyways here we." He said as we reached the lockers. ''And yours is … right here."
"Okay thanks." I said and decided to ask him what I've been meaning to ask him the whole time.
"I guess you've been here for long."
"Do you happen to know a Nicole Tyler?"
"Yeah, I do. In fact, we know each other quite well."
Great! At least, I could learn a thing or two about the girl from him.
"Why the sudden query?"
"Just curious."
"Yeah, right." He paused, as if waiting for me to say something more."Okay, then."
He said and shrugged.
"I'm Steve. Rodgers."
"Huh? Like the character? From the comics?"
"There you go."
I just couldn't keep a straight face anymore. Trust me, you wouldn't be able to either. Look at the guy. I mean he's like him (I mean like Chris) in looks, more or less, but man, really? Captain America, with a pot belly?
I guess he seems to get that a lot too 'cause he just kept laughing along with me, not looking offended.
"And I'm Rina Haven. It's very nice to meet you, too, Captain." I closed my locker after putting books in it. Now I only have books for the first class in my bag. Yeah I like it light.
"What's your first class, Ma'am?" he said, suddenly capturing the voice.
"Physics, and stop it before Marvel hears it, or they'll cancel the series."
He grinned at my amused expression.
"Alright, alright. And gril. I didn't figure you that way."
"What do you mean?"
"Umm,.. about Nik. You just got here and you're already looking for her. I actually thought I might have had myself a chance there." He said with a fake disappointed look on his face."
I didn't really know what he was saying but just smiled back.
"Here we are."
He said opening the door to the class and holding for me.
"Thanks, Cap."
"Hey, don't start now."
I grinned.
"And there's your Nicole."
I looked in the direction he nodded and saw a guy tongue-raping a girl. Well not really because she seems to be enjoying it. Really enjoying it. First impression, not impressive. She was clad in quite a sophisticated manner. Truth be told, she barely had on anything. Only a rather revealing tank top and a jeans miniskirt.
Steve seems to have a different class too because he said goodbye and when I turned around to say it back he'd already dashed out, when the bell rang. I took my seat in the second row my eyes still on Nicole who had to cut short her make-out session because the teacher came in.
"Morning, everyone. I see we have a new student here so why don't you introduce yourself to your friends before we start,umm.. Ms .Haven?" she said looking at what I was guessing would be my papers and sitting down at her desk.
I sighed and got up. I'm not a big fun of public speaking. It's only a few dozens of students here, but still.
"Hi, I'm Rina Haven. I'm from England. "
I said standing up but no one was paying attention since Nicole made quite a mess scrambling out of the room. I looked over to the back of the class and saw that guy with her from earlier. His eyes met mine and a smirk formed on his lips, which made me groaned internally.
"How old are you?"
"I'll be 17 in a few months." I said and sat back down, still wondering where she took off. Steve had me think that we had the same class. Well evidently not.
"Okay, class. I hope you will be nice to your new friend. Now where did we leave off last week?"
Whoa, she's cute!!! And that twitch she made with her lips when our eyes met made my lips ache for hers. They looked quite … delicious. And those eyes, you could so easily get lost in those emerald orbs all day and never would want to escape. She looks so elegant and beautiful with that long black hair of hers. And her smooth-looking pale skin just makes her all the more …touchable.
But she looks quite interested in that whatever-her-name-was and she didn't seems to like my BREATH-TAKING smile that I gave her just now. But all that's gonna change soon. Very soon, Rina.
But for now, I gotta get some sleep. Yeah I know this being in a class and all. But I have soccer practice next and physics doesn't interest me that much. Maybe it's the teacher who seems to always be trying to get at me. But I couldn't care less. I have a big day ahead of me. And an exciting one I might add.
I came crashing out of the room, my eyes scanning the area, half-expecting to find the brunette that stole into my dream not a few minutes ago. But I rushed in the direction of lockers, knowing I could easily lose my already confirmed spot on the team if I don't make it to the try-outs in time. I let out a sigh of relief as coach hasn't finished giving his lectures. I was motioned to join in after being given a frown.
"Ok, as usual, no dirty playing , and those who were on the team last year, just because you had a spot last term doesn't you are guaranteed one. And as I've always said, football isn't about ……..".
Coach went on for another five minutes which made me regret my decision to rush here. Now I'm stuck here getting my mind boggled with that broken-record speech he has to give before every game. I could have taken more time looking for her, which brought me back to thinking of the dream I just had of us. Damn, that feeling of looking down into her eyes, having her in my arms, kissing her sweet full lips and …. "
"Taylor, maybe you should take a break and watch from the stands. We are going to practice here." I gave out a nervous chuckle at his sarcastic comment and ran to the centre of the pitch, and waited for the whistle.
I had told Ms. Jones we'd like to try out for her swimming squad, we being Elizabeth and me. Liz and I have become friends in the second period. She's quite friendly, a little too friendly if you ask me.
My thoughts drifted back to Nicole as I walked out of the pool accommodation. She's quite different from what I'd imagined her to be. Maybe this was her way of burying her pain. I kept scanning the area in search for her. I need to find her. I need to talk to her before this whole thing crashes down on her.
And that guy. He unquestionably is a player, and from the looks of it, he's just taking advantage of her vulnerability. One minute he's kissing her with such passion, or lust, and the next he's looking at me intently like I'm some piece of meat.
I nodded to whatever that chatterbox beside me was throwing my way, and grabbed my lunch and waited for her to finish. It wasn't break yet, but there's no class for both of us ftill lunchtime. We then walked out of the cafeteria to the library. I'm not a big fan of cafeterias. And I'm not theirs. And from the looks of it, Elizabeth herself doesn't care where she has her lunch, as long as she has someone to have it together with. As I found out, she's also new here, only a couple weeks earlier than me.
"You wanna hang out after school? There's a nice diner I found a few days ago. You know, just talk and get to know each other better. I have this great feeling that we are gonna be best friends."
By talk, I know she means one-way conversation, me being on the receiving end of it.
"So do I. but I can't today. I have to be somewhere. In fact I have to leave after break."
The smile in her eyes faltered a little as I politely turned down her offer. I wasn't lying about it. I do have to ditch the rest of the day. Besides as much as I don't enjoy getting my ears blown, I do want to hang out with Liz. I want to be friends with her. I haven't had a good one in a long time.
"Maybe I could come with you. If it's not too much trouble."
"Uhh … actually, it's kind of a family thing. You'll get bored before we even get there. I don't want you to get stuck in my normal uninteresting stuff. Besides I've got your number. Maybe I'll call you when I get back. You could bomb my ears all night long if you like."
Her mood lightened and she gave me a sheepish grin, which means she did know that she talked a lot.
"What do you mean I'll get bored. Of course, I'm interested in my friend's life. Alright, then. But you have to call me. I gotta know how your day went. Still I'll call you if you don't anyway. So you like to swim huh? Me too. You know, when I was young, mom would take ……"
The whistle ended the match, and I walked off the pitch to get some water. There's no one in the stands. Coach made sure of it. He doesn't want any distractions. Though this was a try-out session, there weren't many changes in the squad. How ego-boosting it may be to know that I'm still the bad-ass on the pitch, I doubt we're gonna win the championships this year. That is if we make it to the final, which is highly unlikely with this squad. Old players had dropped stamina and new ones aren't that impressive. If we want to win this year, we have to bring some quality to the team. But that's up to the coach.
After we were dismissed, I took a shower and changed. I fixed my hair and looking in the mirror, I grinned with satisfaction at the walking example of hotness standing before me. I headed for the parking lot. Coach has given us a break till after lunch time. I got on my bike and started the engine. Soon as it purred to life, I sped out. I think I'll have a quick nap back home. But I gotta come back here for lunch, a beautiful lunch.
I sat before my father's grave with a few stray tears running down my cheeks. I've been crying for a while now since I got here. Just thinking about it brings about tears I didn't know I still had.
We were a perfect family. Warm, loving, caring for each other, almost never losing sight of one another, especially mom and dad. Dad, he was a respected businessman in his line of work. Not in terms of success, but because of his skills and hard work and also of his integrity and generosity towards the less fortunate. He was content to live with what we had, a non-luxurious life but with a family that understood him and would always be there. We were exactly that for him, mom and me. Mom was a simple housewife who knew nothing of what' going on outside of her kitchen where she would indulge in the anticipation of sound of her husband car pull up in the driveway. I was just a normal kid who was doted on by her loving parents. It was seven years ago when dad got this co-partnership with the owner/president of the company and made a fair amount of money. Well, a little more than fair, which led him to decide on going on a holiday to the States. That was the first ever trip I've gone on with my parents outside the country. It also turned out to be the last.
Our two-week holiday was cut short when dad got in a car accident. But he didn't leave us right away. When we got to the hospital room where he was being treated, he was lying on a plain white bed surrounded by nurses and doctors. I still hoped he could survive this, despite the sight before me, when I saw him smile at mom and me. I sat down beside him while one of the doctors helped my crying mother out of the room to have some words with her. Everyone else also left, letting me have probably the last conversation with my dying father. But he didn't say anything but kept that smile that sent comfort through my body, giving me the knowledge that he'd always be there for me no matter what. He winced when I took hold of his hand but when I let it go, realizing the pain I've inflicted on him, he tried to grab my hand back with such a feeble effort which made me broke into tears yet again. I took his once strong but now bandaged hand in mine, as he tried again to say something. I leant over on his face and listened as he said,"Remember, no matter what, you are always my daughter." I didn't really understand what he meant but nodded to him . But he'd already closed his eyes and sighed heavily. I heard the door oopen and mom came in trembling with a tear-stained face. Dad opened his eyes once again and as she sat down beside me, he turned his gaze to her slowly and gave an encouraging smile before he passed out. The sound that monitor was making got high pitched and I turned to see that the line showing on the screen went flat. The hospital staff burst in and did their work while we watched helplessly,… hopeful that God would bless us with a miracle so that we don't have to witness his untimely departure. But that was it. He never came around. Minutes after minutes which seemed like years on that bench outside the operation room, we sat. Then the doctor came and told us the news we didn't want to have to hear. That he left us forever. On this very day seven years ago.
We buried him here in the States, and went back home. But without the man who provides this family with love for our hearts and food on the table, we broke down, both of us. But mom was worse than me. She became a wreck. She never recovered from the loss of the love of her life. She wouldn't talk to me, she wouldn't talk to anyone for that matter. And when she finally stopped spending day and night crying, she started drinking a lot and staying out late, sometimes never coming home. She didn't seem to realize that she still had family, me. It went on like this for a couple of months before I was put into foster care and I never saw her again. I never got adopted because I was always transferring homes. I was at my sixth orphanage home when I got adopted. But I was kept well because after about two years, somebody started sending some money to make sure that I was kept well. But it did nothing to help m. I got bullied at school. Those kids at the orphanage never liked me because in their eye I was getting things I didn't deserve. I had few friends both at school and at my so-called home. But after over 5 years of emotional suffering, I got to meet my benefactor, Jennifer. And she then decided to take care of me herself. My life has been pretty smooth since then, despite my no-friend-streak in continuation. She was a very nice lady, quite well-off and beautiful, surprisingly single and never married. Well, somebody's loss was my gain because the moment I met her, I felt like I've known her forever. It wasn't certainly because she's been helping me out all those years, but maybe because I needed someone, after so suddenly losing everything I held dear in my life and going through something a 10-year-old girl should never have gone through. But since that day we met and she pulled me into a warm motherly hug and said it was all going to be all right, I couldn't help but felt overjoyed at the thought that once again I had someone who cared for me, and I could care for.
A/N; if you are against same sex relationships, I suggest you don't read on.
© Copyright 2017 igor42. All rights reserved.
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Book / Romance
Book / Romance
Book / Romance
Book / Romance
Book / Romance
Book / Romance
by jaylisbeth
Poem / Poetry
Short Story / Gay and Lesbian
Book / War and Military