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exhibiting 101
image: studiostoks/shutterstock.com
Buyer Beware
A thorough audit of your trade show invoices may reveal errors that would otherwise wreak havoc on your budget.
Looking back at the hundreds of shows I've exhibited at in the last 25 years, I'd estimate that about 50 percent of the show invoices I've received had at least one error on them. In one case, my bill was almost $20,000 more than I'd anticipated. I ran to the exhibitor service desk, where the rep and I discovered that instead of being charged for the weight of my shipment, I had been billed for the gross weight of my freight and the rig. After a few taps of the keyboard, I had a corrected invoice that was a lot lighter on my credit card.
This example is the most egregious error I've found, but others haven't been far behind. With the amount of paperwork it takes to put together a trade show, mistakes are bound to happen. I've found that auditing my invoices, understanding every line item, and comparing the costs to the orders I submitted and confirmed is my best defense. This requires keeping an extensive paper trail and copies – either electronically or on paper – of all email confirmations with scanned copies of show orders, online confirmations, pre-show change requests, on-site labor tickets, certified weight slips, and deposits.
Here are some of the budget busters I've found when auditing invoices, broken down by service provider.If these charges pop up on your invoices, notify your biller, provide it with your back-up documentation, and request a correction.
Exhibit Houses
➤ Taxes that weren't included on quotes for goods or services but mysteriously appear on the final invoice. Make sure you know if a quote's bottom line really is all-inclusive. And remember that exhibit properties that are used the first time outside the state they were built in may not require tax payments in the state of origin.
➤ Vanishing credits for discounts negotiated on the exhibitor's behalf. This includes installation-and-dismantle labor-rate reductions, supervisory I&D fee waivers, and shipping discounts.
➤ Undisclosed fees, such as a 3- to 5-percent handling fee or surcharge for credit-card use. This charge is illegal in 10 states: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Oklahoma, and Texas, although at the end of 2016 some of these states had pending court cases to overturn these laws. Also, some states have laws in place that permit offering discounts on non-credit-card transactions.
➤ Failure to meet discount deadlines. When I negotiate to have an exhibit house provide "turnkey" service to order show services, I also note in the agreement that it is responsible for meeting all discount deadlines, since missing the deadline can result in at least doubling the total bottom-line cost of the services when including the additional turnkey fees.
➤ Exhibit-property disposal fees. I've requested and been charged for the disposal of exhibit properties, then subsequently found the same properties still listed on my quarterly storage inventory invoice or spotted them in the exhibit house's warehouse as part of their new rental inventory.
➤ Exhibit storage fees. There are many ways to compute exhibit storage, e.g., by cubic feet, per pallet, etc. Make sure you have a clear understanding how you're being charged. After paying for storage to the center of the aisle between crates to guarantee anytime access, I've been charged to move other exhibitors' crates that were blocking mine.
➤ Inventory labor and repair charges. One exhibit house charged me for inventorying my exhibit properties and checking them for damage before being put in storage. But seeing as how the damage I'd reported and requested to have fixed was still evident at the next show, I knew even if the inventory was done, the repair wasn't.
➤ Omitted standard charges on quotes. Always ask for an all-inclusive quote so you're not missing any of the commonly anticipated fees, including weight-slip charges, fuel surcharges, weight minimums, and detention (aka wait) time.
➤ Ancillary fees for services that were not disclosed or negotiated in the shipping quote. These include fees for additional labor and special equipment such as lift-gate trucks.
➤ Additional detention charges when your carrier is picking up shipments for multiple exhibitors. Carriers frequently have to wait for all of the exhibitors on their load to get their exhibits dismantled and outbound paperwork turned in to the general service contractor's (GSC) desk. But carriers rarely prorate this wait time and instead slap each exhibitor with the full detention charge.
Material Handling
➤ Incorrect weight. I've had problems with freight weights measured using forklifts whose forks double as a scale. Make sure the forklift driver clears the scale after each exhibitor's load is weighed.
➤ Wrong rate per hundredweight (CWT). Verify that the rate you're being billed per CWT matches your specific type of freight (crated, mixed, or blanket wrapped) and compare it to the rates quoted on the material-handling form in your exhibitor manual.
➤ Small-package drayage rates. Some shows offer a small-package rate for parcels under a specified weight, such as 35 or 50 pounds. Check your invoice for any small packages to ensure you're not paying for the 200- to 300-pound material-handling minimum standard at most shows.
➤ Overtime loading. I was once charged the overtime (OT) material-handling rate at a show because the GSC misplaced one of my high-value equipment crates for a few hours, which delayed my entire loading. I've also been billed OT for my move-out material handling when only 10 minutes of the two-hour load out was completed outside normal hours.
➤ Off-target material-handling charges. I've been charged a penalty for an off-target, direct-to-site move-in when I'd received a written variance since I was coming in with a shipment from another show. I've found it helpful to provide the truck driver with a printed copy of the variance, along with the inbound bill of lading and certified weight slip to avoid miscommunication and subsequent fees.
➤ Marshaling yard fees. It costs the GSC money to rent, staff, and maintain the marshaling yard, and some of these fees may be passed on to exhibitors. Beware of being charged marshaling-yard fees if you're using a small-package carrier such as FedEx or UPS. This freight is generally delivered directly to a special small-package dock at the show site.
➤ On-site power. Verify the number of outlets and the amperage of your electrical hook-ups. I've been charged for power I didn't order based on the electricians using another exhibitor's order and layout to install my electrical hookups.
➤ Early bird discounts. Obtain written confirmation that your electrical order was received by the discount deadline and be sure to have this confirmation with you at the show.
➤ Electrical surcharges for items such as high-voltage and 24-hour power. When in doubt about which electrical services to order, check with the lead electrician working the show and submit a copy of your floor plan.
➤ Material charges. You'll be billed for the cost of renting the materials necessary to connect ordered power to your equipment and lighting (e.g., extension cords, surge protectors, adapters, gaff tape, etc.). Verify that the items for which you're billed are actually being provided.
➤ Small exhibit electrical-labor credits. Some shows negotiate a credit for a couple hours of complimentary electrical labor, usually for exhibitors with 200 square feet or less of booth space. But just because the credit is noted in the exhibitor services manual doesn't mean you'll see it when you receive your invoice.
Carpet, Pad, and Cleaning
➤ Labor and materials. Read your carpet order form carefully to find out exactly what's included if you are renting carpet onsite from the GSC. Some GSCs bundle carpet, pad, two types of tape, Visqueen, labor, and multiday cleaning into a cost-saving package; others charge individually for these items.
➤ Phantom carpet. When renting carpet from the GSC, you'll often get a 9-by-10-foot piece for your 10-by-10 exhibit. The 1-foot shortage is due to the GSC reusing 9-foot-wide aisle carpeting. But you will still be charged the 100-square-foot minimum fee for vacuuming. If you dispute this based on the impossibility of a labor crew vacuuming carpet that isn't there, some GSCs will play fair and cut your cleaning bill by 10 percent.
I&D Labor
➤ Hours worked. Whether you've hired your I&D labor from the GSC or an exhibitor-appointed contractor (EAC), always verify the total number of straight time and overtime hours billed for each crew member on the handwritten documents (aka hard cards) that list the names, start and stop times, and total hours worked by your I&D crew members. If you are supervising setup, you'll be asked to sign these at the end of each shift. Then compare the labor charges on your invoice to your daily hard cards.
➤ Double billing of lead labor. When I was a rookie exhibit coordinator, the lead on my labor crew kept disappearing from my booth. I discovered that he was supervising setup for another exhibitor, too. I spoke with that exhibitor, and we determined that the EAC was double billing – knowingly charging both of us for 100 percent of the lead's day-labor rate, airfare, car, hotel, and per diem. After the show, I questioned this billing practice all the way up to the EAC's president. He told me this is a common practice in the industry and to "get over it." I did – and permanently got over using this company for my EAC labor. Make sure the words "exclusive use" appears in your contracts if you're paying for the work and expenses of a traveling lead supervisor.
➤ Supervisory fee. Check your invoice for this charge (25 to 35 percent of your total labor bill). It can pop up even if you didn't order a supervisor.
➤ Material charges. If you're providing your own I&D supplies, such as double-sided carpet tape, shipping tape for your carpet pad, Visqueen, cleaning supplies, strapping, stretch wrap, etc., check your labor invoice to make sure your I&D contractor hasn't charged you for them. Some labor contractors charge an undisclosed, fixed, flat percentage of your total labor bill for materials such as cleaning and shipping supplies whether they are used or not. Ask that this charge be removed from your invoice.
I've often joked that if I had a side business in which I could take home a cut of the money I saved exhibitors by finding errors on their invoices, I could have retired long ago. All kidding aside, these are far from all the things that can go wrong with your exhibit's billing, but they give you an idea of why diligently auditing your show
invoices pays off. Doing so not only saves your company money, but also gives you bragging rights to your boss for being an eagle-eyed guardian of your budget bucks.
Candy Adams
"The Booth Mom," is an independent exhibit project manager, trainer, speaker, consultant, and an Exhibitor Conference faculty member. email@example.com
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subset: commoncrawl


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Featuring our appetizing and delectable canapes created at Skyve Wine Bistro, our team introduces three catering options to our clients. Choosing between Gastronomic, Epicurean and Luxe selection, our clients can now 'skyve' at their premises while our team delivers and serve exquisite savories and mouthwatering sweets to their guests. Be it a Product Launch, Press Release Event or a Birthday Party, our canapes will never fail to impress your guests. Drinks, alcoholic or non-alcoholic, can be arranged on a free flow or bottle basis. Glassware rental is also available along with our Butler service. We deliver within an hour before the event commerce and set up will be done by our team, leaving the event hassle and fuss free for our clients.


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Another week gone by and let's be
honest there is nothing new to report. The transfer window which started with
lot's "close deals" has gone rumour based as every year. Take Gonzalo
Higuain, Marouane Fellaini or any other player.
a difficult situation as we have just started pre season. But on the other hand
we all know how important it is to get all the players together early on in pre
season. At least we've got an away kit event. Horaay!
deals seem to stuck. Take Nicklas Bendtner with his massive wage demands or
bids that are rejected such as the Lars Bender one. No new developments on the
horizon. So far we pushed out what was needed to be pushed out but didn't add.
I thought why not take some time to calm down take a break from transfer
madness and have a look back at glory days in a special feature of now and
then. Today the spotlight is on Jens Lehmann. Mad Jens was our keeper during
the Invincibles season and we never had such a good keeper since Arsene Wenger
started to promote Manuel Almunia to Arsenal's number one keeper.
started his career with Schalke in 1988 before joining AC Milan and Borussia Dortmund.
He joined Arsenal in summer of 2003 and rejoined in 2011 to help out when we
were in need. For those who are statistic freaks let's take a look at his
career stats:
Year Team
App (G)
FC Schalke 04 274 (2)
1998 AC Milan 5 (0)
1999–2003 Borussia Dortmund 129 (0)
2003–2008 FC Arsenal 147 (0)
2008–2010 VfB Stuttgart 65 (0)
2011FC FC Arsenal 1 (0)
2011 FC Arsenal
Reserves 2 (0)
Germany 61 (0)
not the statistic maniac so I'd like to focus on what Lehmann brought to the
team. Lehmann wasn't called Mad Jens for no reason. In some way he was crazy
about football. The good crazy of course. Lehmann had the spirit. The spirit
only few players have. The winning attitude that is needed to push a team over
the line. I remember the match against Manchester United at Old Trafford with Ruud
van Nistelrooy stepping up to the spot to take the penalty. Jens was jumping
around putting his arms up and down and Van Nistelrooy put it over the bar.
These are the moments you remember when talking about big players. Not a Marouane
Chamakh 5-0 against a lower league team in the League Cup. We haven't had lot
of these kind of players in recent years but I think we are getting back to it
with players such as Jack Wilshere and Mikel Arteta filling the gap.
moment everyone has in mind will probably be Lehmann's sending off against
Barcelona in the Champions League final. A moment he most definitely will never
forget either. He lives and breathes Arsenal (now and then) and not being able
to help the team win the most prestigious trophy in club football must be
painful. But as with other players you're not mad with Mad Jens as you know how
he might have felt.
is Arsenal through and through. Although his reign as Arsenal's No.1 ended in
2008 he never talked a bad word about his old club. Instead he decided to help
out when Arsenal were in need of an experienced keeper. Today Jens is well
known for his jobs as a TV pundit for Sky Germany. If Arsenal are playing, Jens
isn't far away. And it's always a pleasure to see him talk about HIS Arsenal.
It's not his former club, it's HIS ARSENAL. He would put on the No.1 shirt in a
heartbeat if you would ask him. The good thing about it is the fact that he's
not wearing Arsenal glasses. If he thinks we are heading into a wrong direction
he has the guts to say so. Just like in old times…..
many other social projects he helps out with the Willow foundation a foundation
close to Arsenal. Personally I hope he will end up at Arsenal permanently one
day as he was a player I always admired and who has a lot to give to young our
Chris Mader


text:
Search results
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Students will consider the use of the Internet as a research tool and learn how to use search engines more effectively. They then apply these new found skills to investigating popular myths about sexuality and contraception.
This lesson looks at food photography and the different techniques used by food stylists to make foods look appealing in advertisements.
This lesson familiarizes children with the nutritional value of foods advertised on television and in magazines.
In this lesson, students use science and critical thinking to test the legitimacy of advertisers' claims about their products.
To familiarize students with the marketing techniques used in television and magazine snack food ads.
In this lesson, students look at the health issues that are associated with our fast food culture, and the advertising of it.
Studies have found that fast-food ads dominate children's programming. In order to give children a perspective on the lure of snack-food advertisements, it's important that they understand where snacks can fit into a healthy diet. Once they have an understanding of where snack food fits into their lives, they can begin to deconstruct the ads themselves.
In this lesson students consider the meaning of the words "bias" and "prejudice" and consider how bias may be found even at the level of individual words due to connotation.
In this lesson students consider how well their favourite TV shows, movies and video games reflect the diversity of Canadian society.


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The Muslim Portal at Patheos is hosting the "Three Questions" project for the month of September in conjunction with the tenth anniversary of the terrorist acts of 9/11. We are asking American Muslims from across the nation three simple but important questions. Click here to learn more about the project.
Abed Ayoub, Chief Executive Officer of Islamic Relief USA (which has received a four-star rating from Charity Navigator eight years in a row), offers his answers to the three questions:
1. What is the most pressing issue or concern for you as a Muslim in America today, 10 years after the tragedy of 9/11?
The most pressing issue for me as a Muslim-American is helping underserved communities, regardless of race or religion. At Islamic Relief USA, we envision a world free of poverty and we strive to externalize those ideals. This is at home with American values and it's what our faith requires of us.2. In what ways – inwardly /or outwardly – did 9/11 change you or affect you?
As a Muslim, I became much more cognizant of my responsibility to embody the principles of Islam and project that positive image to others. That realization pushed me to do the work that I'm doing for Islamic Relief, and it feels good to champion a cause that reveals the beauty of Islam and our dedication to humanitarian issues.
3. What do you think non-Muslim Americans most need to know about Muslims?
The wounds of 9/11 will be slow to heal, but I hope in the years to come, people of other faiths will have a more accurate understanding of Islam and will build trust and alliances with their Muslim counterparts. Together we can move past this tragedy and help our society live up to the American ideals of tolerance and pluralism.


text: In message <C05696A9.39BB6%llee at lonestar.utsa.edu>, Laine Lee writes: > On 4/1/06 5:22 AM, "Luca Barbato" <lu_zero at gentoo.org> wrote: > > > strace it. > > Unfortunately, strace appears to be incompatible with the Mac OS on either > Intel or PPC: > > checking for supported operating system... NO! > > Maybe I can find another way to do what strace does. Thanks. Strace appears to be the penguinized version of ktrace.


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Our little guy is 8 months now. Over the last few weeks, he has begun to enjoy his meals way too much. He sits in his highchair at meal time, bellowing for us to toss him cheerios and scraps of whatever we're eating.
Last Saturday, we realized that it was time to start teaching him a more civilized way to ask. As soon as he was seated in his highchair I asked him, "Would you like a bite, please?" I emphasized the word please and patted my chest as I said it. Then I repeated the question, patting his chest instead. I gave him a bite.
Over the following days, we repeated the scenario countless times, trying to start before he bellowed out his own request. Sometimes we patted our own chests to demonstrate the sign for please. Sometimes we patted his chest. Sometimes we used his hand to pat his own chest.
By Sunday and Monday, he was bellowing considerably less – only when we were too slow to offer bites.
On Tuesday, he was clapping to ask for food! This guy is smart: the "real" sign for please is really just a clap on the chest, so he was halfway there.
Yesterday (Wednesday) he started touching his chest and then clapping his hands. Now he's 3/4 of the way there, and rarely bellows for food.
This was time well spent. Our meals are much quieter and more peaceful now.
Besides, he is unspeakably cute and obviously impressed with himself every time he is able to communicate a request to us.
Baby sign language: my boy is smart
Our little guy is 8 months now. Over the last few weeks, he has begun to enjoy his meals way too much. He sits in his highchair at meal time, bellowing for us to toss him cheerios and scraps of whatever we're eating.
He certainly is cute. 🙂
When we were little we learned to clap our hands and say "Bitte, bitte" ("please, please" in German) and I was tickled when I was able to teach my kiddos the same thing.
I love signing for kids. We started (waaay too late – with baby #6) signing when my son would lift up my shirt in public because he wanted to nurse. NOT good manners at all!
So we taught him the sign for milk; thought we were pretty clever, we did. Until someone noticed and said, "Hey, did you learn that from Meet the Fockers?!" After scratching our heads in puzzlement, we found out that that particular trick is used in a movie. Bummer. And we thought we were so smart.
Abbie is 10 months now, and is very good at "more" (she moved from clapping her hands as an attempt at "more" to now knocking her fists together…closer and closer – she'll get it!), and is working on please (we're rather spotty with that one!). We love early communication. It's so good for the family!
Now, if she would just obey "No.".
Very interesting. First of all, I laughed so hard at the comment, where her son signed for help,instead of crying out. Too Cute! Our son is almost 8 months. I know I have 4 older chilren as well, but I have never considered signing. I will be looking into it for good manners and communication in the early months ahead. I would love to hear more.
Your baby is beautiful and looks so happy.
Wonderful story to show the importance of teaching as training!
I only knew a few signs when my children where little but I have seen the fruit of a little goes a long way. Now my oldest DD (16) taught herself sign, and was able to help sign during a song service.
Yes! We have used signing with both our kids so far, and plan to again with this one and any future babes! We have found it cuts down so much on the dinnertime screeching, just like your story shows. Plus of course it is teaching them manners as soon as they are able to express it in some way.
Our favorite signing story is when my son was just over a year, and fell headfirst into his big toybox, where he was stuck, feet dangling above the floor. Poor guy didn't even cry, just frantically signed 'help!' 😉 And yes, I took a picture before I got him out.
a pedagogical moment: o vosso bébé é lindo!
Kim I have to agree that ASL really does help with communication! We start it almost at birth and it really cuts down on the yelling! You really have a cute little man there!!!!
What a cutie! Oh that more parents would work at teaching their children the love of learning!
That is one cute baby!!!!
I read somewhere that ASL is the fourth most-spoken language in our country. It's really smart for parents to help their kids learn it, and the kids have fun with it, too! And who can argue with something that offers a little extra peace and quiet, LOL!
BTW, your little guy is just adorable! I love his brown eyes and that cute baby "I'm proud of myself" smile!


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Ronaldo fronts up Champions Matchday
Wednesday 6 February 2013
Article summary
Javi Martínez, Rio Ferdinand and Ezequiel Lavezzi are in the latest Champions Matchday but Cristiano Ronaldo has top billing – get your copy ahead of this week's games.
Article top media content
Article body
The latest edition of Champions Matchday sits down with Cristiano Ronaldo. In an exclusive interview with the competition's official magazine, the Real Madrid CF forward opens up about meeting Manchester United FC, his former boss Sir Alex Ferguson and his constant wish to improve. "I've wanted to face United for some time. We are the better team but we have to prove that," he says.
Trying to stop Ronaldo will be Rio Ferdinand. "We've had a few texts but you don't speak until the game's over," the United defender tells Champions Matchday. He talks about his road to the top, recalls winning the UEFA Champions League and describes how United will play in Madrid.
As well as relating the history of United v Madrid, Champions Matchday has the inside story on the knockout stages; assesses the intriguing round of 16 tie between Mircea Lucescu's FC Shakhtar Donetsk and Jürgen Klopp's Borussia Dortmund; crunches the numbers for Galatasaray AŞ v FC Schalke 04; and looks at the technical merits of attacking full-backs, with the focus on FC Barcelona's Daniel Alves.
We have one-on-ones with Arsenal FC's Santi Cazorla, FC Bayern München's Javi Martínez, FC Porto captain Lucho González, and two of Europe's rising stars: Málaga CF's Isco and Mattia De Sciglio of AC Milan. We hear from Paris Saint-Germain FC striker Ezequiel Lavezzi on getting back to his best and profile Valencia CF's talented midfielder Sofiane Feghouli.
Plus expert comment from Guillem Balagué and Sandro Mazzola, the chance to win a signed match ball, and much, much more.
This Champions Matchday edition is available across Europe from today and also comes in digital versions, which can be purchased on Apple Newsstand or Zinio. This season, for the first time, Champions Matchday is available before each round of the UEFA Champions League and you can follow the magazine on Twitter @ChampionsMag.


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Read More...
Yes, we own the only Laserweb in the world. That is a pretty exclusive club. Laser cutting has been around for years and is gaining popularity quickly since it can produce some outstanding designs. What all the other laser cutters in the world cannot do, is offer interior laser cutting that will work on a high speed packaging system.
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What our customers
are saying:
"When we started Joseph Jewell Wines in 2007, we knew that we needed a label that would reflect our wines. We wanted customers to look at our label and say to themselves " if they put that much effort into the label the wine must be amazing." Hanna Wirth presented us with the laser cut griffin on our label. To be honest we didn't think it was possible to make that detailed and precise of cuts on a label and have it still work on a bottling line. After consulting with the staff at Paragon they reassured us that it would work. They were right!! This label has been the identity for Joseph Jewell and help set us apart from the market. Time after time our customers are amazed by the detail of our label. Paragon has kept their standards high and our labels keep getting better. I have to thank Paragon for being out of the box with the laser cut technology."
Adrian Manspeaker
Owner, Joseph Jewell


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Online Safety
The internet is a fun and exciting place for children to use and explore educationally and socially, but the challenge for parents, carers and teachers is to make sure our children are aware and understand how to be safe when online. At Ewhurst School we are committed to ensuring that our whole school can operate with safety and confidence whenever they use the internet.
Mrs Stevenson, our Year 2 class teacher, has undertaken CEOP training.
Please click on the links below:
Online Safety Parental Consent Form


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On my quest to finish series, I picked up The Shadow World by Jane Johnson, second book in the Eidolon Chronicles. (Read my review of Book One, The Secret Country.) The Eidolon Chronicles centers on Ben, an ordinary boy who finds out his mother is really the Queen of a magical country. She came to our world to marry Ben's father, but now they've discovered that in her absence, the magic is dying and the country is being taken over by the evil, dog-headed Dodman.
The second book picks up soon after the first. Ben's mother, Isadora, has resolved to return to her country to fight the Dodman. Ben's older sister Ellie follows her, and Ben and his father follow Ellie. Isadora's negotiations with the Dodman take a very difficult turn when he captures Ellie. Ben and his friends, including Iggy the talking cat (my favorite character), have to go to the rescue.
This book was good for what it was and disappointing for what it wasn't. There was nothing exactly wrong with what was there, but there just wasn't much. As they say, there was no there there. This felt very much like a sequel, especially one that's Book Two of a trilogy. It didn't move anything much forward, either in plot or in character development. Isadora goes back to the magic country at the very beginning, and a couple of villians join forces at the very end, and everything in-between felt mostly unnecessary to developing any larger story. The main conflict was rescuing Ellie, but her capture felt contrived.
I don't mean to make this an entirely negative review though. The characters were still engaging, the magic was still interesting. I just wanted more that was new. I wanted the characters to be gaining more depth, or to encounter new and different magic. There was a little of that, but it didn't feel like enough. We did get to know Ellie a bit better, and there was a little more of Awful Cousin Cynthia, who's a great creepy villain.
This was a perfectly fun book, but it also seemed to lack any real purpose. I'm still going to read the last book in the trilogy. The first book introduced everything, and hopefully the third will tie everything up. The second book probably just suffers from being, well, the second book of a trilogy, with no purpose except to mark time between the beginning and the end. Still, if you read the first book and like it, it's worth reading the second. Just don't expect too much, and plan to move quickly along to the third!
Author's Site: http://www.janejohnsonbooks.com/
Other reviews:
Savage Reads
One Day at a Time
Anyone else?


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Sponsored by SASAC under the State Council , Forum on Cooperation between Chinese and Foreign Enterprises was formally hold in National Exhibition and Convention Center(shanghai)on the morning of 6th November. Luan Richeng, member of the party group and vice president was invited to the meeting.
With the theme open and cooperation innovation and development , Hao Peng, party committee Secretary and director of SASAC under the State Council delivered keynote speech. On the basis of last year, The central enterprises under the supervision of the SASAC will further strengthen cooperation with enterprises in various countries, signing up to reach a series of procurement agreements and getting a range of co-operation results. This will actively promote the central enterprises to open for reform, open for development and open for innovation in order to deepen practical cooperation with foreign enterprises for win-win development, Hao said.
On CIIE, COFCO will sign contracts with more than 50 foreign partners from more than 40 countries and regions on five continents for import of high quality grain, oil and food in order to meet the escalating domestic consumer demand. Except for purchasing and selling grain and oil goods, integrated strategic cooperation including united purchasing and storage, information sharing and exchange of know-how, which extending to the upstream and downstream of the industrial chain are also booming.


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VMworld 2013: Will VMware Regain its Voice?
Think of one of your favorite bands. Odds are that when they first hit the scene they were brash, unapologetic, and reached stardom at an unthinkable pace. Then what happened? If they're like some of my favorite bands, they got rich, "matured," and lost touch with what got them to reach their early success. They then spent their remaining days playing their early hits to a devoted audience. Or they break up. Remind you of VMware, or other disruptive technology vendors? I ask because here we are a week before VMworld, and I'm wondering if the predictable VMware will show up – you knowRead More →


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Willy Russell's award-winning comedy 'Educating Rita' comes to the Market Place Theatre in Armagh next week following a record-breaking run at the Lyric Theatre in Belfast.
Hot on the heels of its record-breaking run in 2016, this reimagined production of Willy Russell's award-winning comedy returns to the stage with its original cast of Michael James Ford and Kerri Quinn.
It's 1980, and Susan 'Rita' White has decided it's time for a change.
A wise-cracking, no-nonsense hairdresser from the working-class streets of Belfast, Rita is tired of her job, her prospects, her husband, her life.
She wants to be the sort of woman who knows the difference between Shaw's Bridge and George Bernard Shaw, and so enrols in an Open Learning course in English Literature where she meets her tutor Frank. So begins her journey of self-discovery.
Frank has his problems too. Divorced, an alcoholic, and sick to the back teeth of the pretensions of academic life, Frank finds Rita's enthusiasm for learning and down-to-earth attitude refreshing.
Frank and Rita make an unlikely pair, but could they really show each other a way to a better future?
Educating Rita comes to the stage of the Market Place Theatre on Tuesday February 28 and Wednesday March 1.
The curtain goes up at 8pm and tickets, priced from £14, are on sale now from the Market Place Theatre Box Office on 028 3752 1821.
For further information or to book tickets online, log onto www.marketplacearmagh,com.


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Devil, Braves And Sacred Sword Palace
God Of Martial Arts
Vampire & Cross
Adonis Next Door
Embrace My Dragoness
Love Like In The Novels
Completed / Modern / Drama / Romance
Completed / Romance / Comedy
Completed / Drama / Romance / Comedy
Modern / Romance
Up to Ch.174
Up to Ch.18
Up to Ch.51
Up to Ch.25
Frequency: 2 ups/week
Frequency: IDK
Frequency: Completed
Frequency: 1 up/week
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NFC East Expectations
NFC East Expectations
Dallas Cowboys – The Cowboys are a very interesting team going into the 2012 season. The biggest problem for the Cowboys last season was their secondary, giving up 244 yards a game. However, this off-season they signed cornerback Brandon Carr to a huge contract and traded up in the draft to get Morris Claiborne, the top cornerback in the draft. If their secondary is fixed, they could be one of the best teams in the NFL. They have a very talented offense with Miles Austin and Dez Bryant at wide receiver and Felix Jones and Demarco Murray at running back. My only concern on the offense is quarterback Tony Romo. He is a very talented quarterback who can make every NFL throw. However, I question Tony's decision-making ability because at the end of games he makes errant throws that cost them the game.
Prediction 10-6
Washington Redskins – The Redskins are by far the worst team in the division. They have a rookie quarterback in Robert Griffin III who will be the starting quarterback day 1. However, I am skeptical in Robert Griffin's ability to function in a pro style system. Besides the quarterback position the Redskins have a average amount of talent on offense. This offseason they signed wide receiver Pierre Garcon to a long-term deal, which should help RG3 develop as a quarterback. The Redskins' defense should be able to hold its own this season. Their whole season, and its success, will be based off whether Robert Griffin III is effective.
Prediction 6-10
New York Giants – The Giants are the defending super bowl championships but don't expect them to repeat this year. The Giants lost many key players on their offense during the offseason in Mario Manningham and Brandon Jacobs. The loss of Manningham will hurt the offense the most since it will force Victor Cruz out of his slot position. However, if second year player, Jerrel Jernigan can step up at wide receiver this will allow Cruz to stay at slot. Again, the Giants should have a great defense led by their pass rush. However, their defense worries me because as goes their pass rush, so goes their defense. Overall, the Giants have a very talented roster, but will not make a super bowl push because of consistency issues.
Predication 11-5
Philidelphia Eagles – On talent alone, the Eagles are the best team in the NFL. The Eagles have Pro Bowl caliber talent at every level of their defense. However, last season they didn't play consistent enough and did not force enough turnovers to be labeled a great defense. Furthermore, on offense, they are one of the most explosive teams in the NFL. The Eagles offense did not live up to expectation this past year, mostly because of injuries. Michael Vick, the Eagles starting quarterback, missed significant time due to injuries. If Michael Vick is not playing quarterback, their offense is merely average. The Eagles are the most talented team in the division, but need to play with better consistency to make a Super Bowl run.
Prediction 13-3
Connor Willsey


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Hello hello!
I hope you have all had a great week! I am sure you have. This week has been full of surprises and a lot of excitement! So much has happened in this week that I feel like I could write a book! But, I guess I should keep it simple and start by saying that I have moved! I left Oldham on Friday and will be serving in Manchester for the next while! Now I know SO MANY of you are just dying to write to me so here is my new address (too much?):
Elder Shaquille Walker
8 Arlit House
11 King Way
Earlier this week, I had an opportunity to have a Skype interview with Isaac Wood of Flotrack. He asked me many question regarding running and my mission and how they have connected or not connected and it has caused me to think about the crazy things that happened to me in running immediately following my conversion into this church.
Last week I said that I would share an interesting story on the literal blessings of keeping our bodies healthy. One of my favorite scriptures is Isaiah 40:31 which reads, "But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint." Why do I love it? Because it talks about running! Now most of us would not take such a scripture literally, but as a newly believing, newly baptised member of the Church of Jesus Christ, I was "naive" enough to believe it!
During the Fall of 2011 I began running on the Brigham Young University track and field team. I had big goals. These goals were goals I had had from a young age and they were goals that I fully intended to achieve. Through all my effort and dedication however, I never seemed to be coming any closer to being at the level of competition I wanted to be at. Nevertheless, I continued. As the Fall of 2011 turned into Winter and then into Spring, I found myself competing at a much higher level than I had previously done. I seemed to be coming closer to my goals. Everyday I looked at that scripture which promised to run and not be weary and every day I believed it would happen, conditional upon me being patient and upon me keeping the commandments. With this in mind I kept working hard and then in the Summer of 2012 I was able to have the kind of success in track that I had waited so long for.
What does this have to do with you? It is to know that God can help you in any way, any aspect of your life. He helped me to have patience in training and hope to run faster. He can help you to succeed in any aspect. Only believe. Have patience. Draw on the powers of Heaven through faith. I love you all!
Stay healthy! Make good choices!
Elder Walker


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Visit Icod de los Vinos (Tenerife) to see the 1000 years old Dragon Tree, then continue to Los Gigantes – where the gigantic cliffs reach the waters of the Atlantic ocean….
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Dragon Tree - the symbol of Icod de los Vinos.
The Dragon Tree is native to the Canary Islands (also Madeira, Azores, Cape Verde). Its characteristic "muscular" branches fanning-out from a trunk create a very powerful image of the twisted in everlasting convulsions crown ending with the layer of thick leaves.
The Dragon Tree in Icod de los Vinos is claimed to be thousand years old although there is no scientific data confirming its age.
Strangely enough, the dragon tree does not grow the same way as normal trees so the annual rings cannot be used to estimate its age. Instead the number of branch forking occurrences can be used for that purpose as they indicate the number of flowering events.
The name "Dragon Tree" certainly reflects its strange, imagination capturing appearance and feelings of respect for its muscular body.
The Mighty Dragon Tree.
Some associate the name "Dragon Tree" with the reddish resin from its bark or leaves. Some look for an inspiration from the tale of Hercules and his journey to the Garden of Hesperides (possibly located on Canary Islands ?). According to the myth, the dragon tree sprang from the blood of the hundred-headed dragon killed by Hercules.
Actually I like this version because to me Tenerife seems to be a perfect and "natural" location of the ancient paradise garden!
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On the left - "Walking Trees".
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Casa de Lorenzo Cáceres.
Engineering Colonel - Gonzalo de Lorenzo Cáceres build this house in the beginning of the 19th century. This three-story building designed around the central courtyard is a beautiful example of the neoclassical architecture in Tenerife.
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Thanks to the good climate in Icod de los Vinos everything thrives and flourishes as you can see on the left photo.
Icod de los Vinos has more to offer than just the Dragon Tree (undoubtedly an important attraction!). The city, thanks to its location on the north-western part of the island, seems to be a one big garden with abundant sub-tropical vegetation (in contrast to the south-eastern rather arid part of the island).
No wonder - it is also the home to the "Butterfly Garden".
For watchers of these flying fairy-tale's beauties it is the part of the island's paradise – but please be careful – quite often at the entry you will find a "watchful" although seemingly lazy guardian – Lizard (probably a property of the owner).
I was not sure – if he was watching visitors, or just taking an afternoon nap?
Go to: Butterflies Garden - as part of the Icod de los Vinos tour.
And very important – as you may guess, the full Icod's name makes the reference to the "godly elixir" mostly known under the name of wine. According to connoisseurs and persons close to the "well informed circles", the quality of Icod's wines regained the ancient prestige, so please do not loose the opportunity…….
Anyhow, it is a good idea to finish the exhausting day with the glass of wine :-) - cheers!
To continue the tour of Tenerife click:
Santa Cruz -Tenerife (previous) or Los Gigantos -Tenerife (next)
If you want to make a tour of the Tenerife's El-Teide National Park, get friendly with animals in the Loro Parque, experience the bird's view of the island when paragliding, visit the secluded village Masca, taste local potatoes or witness the unique whistling language in La Gomera then click any of the following links:
El-Teide Volcano Park - and follow several pages
La Piedra de la Rosa
Tandem Paragliding in Tenerife
Canarian potatoes
Whistling Language in la Gomera
Loro Parque-Tenerife
Masca Village
If you enjoyed this visit, then please share your experience with friends :-)
Related pages on Amazing World....
City and more....
Cities and their little secrets
list of cities
Buenos Aires Walking Tours
Palacio Barolo (2 pages)
Anchorena Palace
Kavanagh Building
Plaza San Martin
Puerto Madero (2 pages)
Plaza de Mayo Tour (2 pages)
Plaza del Congreso Tour (3 pages)
Colonia Sacramento (2 pages)
Guilin - China (3 pages)
Shanghai (3 pages)
Shanghai- Yu Garden (2 pages)
Impression -Liu Sanjie Show
Havana (5 pages)
New York (3 pages)
Masca (Tenerife)
Tenerife tour (5 pages)
Paragliding in Tenerife
Timisoara(2 pages)
Kathmandu Garden of Dreams (2 pages)
Krakow Wawel (2 pages)
Castles- Orava
Ajlun Castle
Food and restaurants
Old Town Cracow Restaurants (several pages)
La Tasca -Patagonia
Café Tortoni Buenos Aires
Baked potatoes fiesta
Canarian potatoes
Loi Suites-Iguazu Falls (4 pages)
Hotel w/Infinity Pools
Nagarkot Hotel
Chitwan Forest Lodge
Dominica Jungle Bay Resort & Spa
Museums and Monuments
Selection of museums
Buenos Aires Open Art Gallery
Hemingway's Museum in Havana (Cuba)
Whistling language - La Gomera
General San Martin
English Tower
Cristo Redentor
Recoleta Cemetery (4 pages)
Colonia Antigua (Museums)
Park "La Flor"
Mokra Gora Ethno-Village (2 pages)
Saugerties Lighthouse" (2 pages)
Teatro Colon Buenos Aires (2 pages)
Churches, Temples and Pagodas
St. Patrick - NYC;
Iglesia de la Concepción (Tenerife)
Basilica of Blessed Sacrament (Arg)
Buenos Aires Cathedral (Arg)
Our Lady of Pillar (Arg)
Basilica in Colonia Antigua (Uruguay)
Orawka Wooden Church (Poland)
St. Nicolas Greek Orthodox Church in Havana (Cuba)
Street lamps
Street Lamps (3 pages)
Old Cars, Trains and more
Old cars
Sargan-8 Steam-Engine Train Adventure (2 pages)
Tara River bridge
Drina Bridge
If you have questions regarding this website, or simply suggestions, stories or pictures you would like to share, then please:Contact Us


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More than two million Afghan children are currently being immunized in a United Nations-backed three-day polio eradication drive following a sixth reported case of the crippling and sometimes fatal disease in the south of the country this year.
Two months ago, Egypt was declared polio-free after successful immunization efforts. The Ministry of Public Health, UNICEF and the World Health Organization remain confident that the goal of polio eradication is achievable for Afghanistan.
More than 15,000 health workers are traveling from house to house. This mobile approach is essential in ensuring that every child group is reached, with many families unable to access fixed health centres in rural parts of the country, which is one of just four countries in the world still affected by the virus.


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Hot Picks
An Interview with Deann Baker, Star of Bloom
by Mike Haberfelner
April 2014
starring Deann Baker on (re)Search my Trash
Quick Links
Your upcoming movie Bloom - in a few words, what is it about,
and what can you tell us about your character in it?
is a horror/psychological film that follows the story of a young
woman named Lily who wakes up one evening in a bloody motel bathroom with
fuzzy memories of the previous night. My character, Lily, is in a very
unsettling situation where she has to piece together what happened to her
while understanding who she's becoming as a result of this traumatic event.
Now always assuming that you have never actually been turned into
a vampire in your real life - what did you even draw upon to bring a role
like this to life? And how much fun was it to play a vampire?
know what happens when you assume... A lot of the inspiration came heavily
from Amy Acker's performance in Angel, per Travis's recommendation. She
had brilliant body language that was somehow stiff and fluid at the same
time. Basically she had the very essence of how you'd think a vampire
should move. Now if you were a vampire, how much fun do you think it would
be? Yeah, that's how much fun it was to play a vampire.
How did you get
hooked up with Bloom in the first place?
With luck
and knowing Travis Legge. I read the script a while back and saw how truly
different of a project this was going to be since there was very little
dialogue in it AND it was a Travis Legge script [Travis
Legge interview - click here]. Once finished reading, I
had immediately jumped on expressing my excitement to Travis in hopes to
be a part of it. The rest is in the credits.
What can
you tell us about working with your director Travis Legge [Travis
Legge interview - click here] on Bloom? And how did you
two meet up in the first place, and also do talk about previous
Travis Legge is a hell of a dude that knows
how much direction to give and when the actors need the space to explore
their character. He's an open funny dude that creates some of the best
on-set atmospheres. We met up a while back when he first started casting
for Legacy of the Masque, a superhero webseries. Who the heck can stay
away from a superhero webseries? I offered to help at any capacity I could
and from there he kept contacting me about any crew or cast opportunities
he'd have available on his projects. This eventually led to helping out on
his feature film Dry Spell which was a hoot and a holler to work on.
To what extent can you identify
with Bloom's horror theme?
The dark psychological
questions that Travis asks the audiences had me question a lot about my
own actions. It's an odd feeling to have when I instinctively know that
Lily is being a straight up blood-sucking jerk but I understand why.
What can you tell us
about the shoot as such, and the on-set atmosphere?
cast and crew were brilliant enough to make long weekend hours feel like a
breeze. With crew like Cherish Warden in particular being incredibly on
top of things, stuff moved pretty swiftly and smoothly. The atmosphere in
general was pretty fun for being, you know, a flick about a fucked up
Deann and Heather Dorff doing
Filming 'Round Midtown
future projects you'd like to share?
The next project in
the barracks for acting is Ron Purtee's film Indoor Air. There's also
going to be an eventual spin-off webseries of Filming 'Round Midtown that's
currently being written [Filming
'Round Midtown interview - click here]. I just have to add a few more goat jokes for
Heather Dorff's sake [Heather
Dorff interview - click here].
What got you into
acting in the first place, and did you receive any formal training on the
When I was a kid, I always wanted to be a "Moon
Ranger" (a cross between a Power Ranger and Sailor
Moon). Somehow I came to
terms with how impossible that was and decided the next best thing was to
pretend. In terms of training, I haven't been through as much as I'd like.
I took a few classes in high school and Acting Techniques for Camera at
Columbia College. I'm sure my lack of acting classes will help illuminate
a few things to the audience of Bloom.
with Kyle Hoskins in Dry
with Myke Wilson in What Do I Say? -
photo by Curtis Clegg
Can you still remember your first time in front
of a movie or TV camera, and what was that experience like?
think I remember my first time in front of a camera. My father was
creating a television spot for a pledge drive and he decided to spoof Poltergeist. He sat a very young me in front of a static television and I
got to say "They're back" as creepy as I could toward camera. To
say the least, it was inspirational.
What can you tell us about your filmwork prior
to Bloom?
I'm pretty shy so my film work prior to Bloom
is a short list. It does however include a small role in Travis
Legge's Dry Spell. There's a variety of genres on my
IMDb page but I tend
to gravitate toward comedies. One of my personal favorites is a short
called What Do I Say?, directed by Willy Adkins [Willy
Adkins interview - click here] and stars Myke
Wilson that you can watch here
http://youtu.be/HHrSAXsnNFM. It was a
one-day shoot where Myke and I just got to goof off using the words from
Kevin Bui's script.
Besides acting, you seem to have also
worked in numerous positions behind the camera - care to elaborate?
I act on a set I dig helping out off camera if time allows, this includes
gripping or standing around shouting what time of day it is. A majority of
the time though my week looks like this; During the day, I'm a
videographer and editor for Silk Road Rising. At night I'm a composer for
indie projects and on the weekends, I act. Editing I got into for
the sake of having a creative career while supporting myself. I've come to
love it more than I ever thought I would. Composing is my go-to
hobby. It actually came about when I started taking piano lessons a long
time ago. I hated the music my teacher would give me to practice so I'd
just go off melodically on my own for hours. Apparently piano wasn't
enough and around fourth grade I picked up the cello, fifth grade the
trombone, then the guitar, recorder, and now I'm trying out the clarinet.
I am truly the definition of 'master of none'.
How would you describe yourself as an
actress, and some of your techniques to bring your characters to life?
barely have the right to call myself an actress. I do try and build
characteristics based on the characters' past, explore what they've been
through up to the point where the script begins, and use this as the basis
for the character. I'm minimalistic in techniques. Whether that means I'm
lazy or truly minimalist, I'm not sure, but I like to primarily just
react. That was one of the things that made Bloom
so darn hard since
it was just silly me in front of the camera most of the time.
(or indeed actors) who inspire you?
Gary Oldman. There
should be an acting award named after this dude. I'm also an incredibly
huge fan of Simon Pegg. As for actresses, the actresses I've worked with
have been the most inspiring, particularly Heather Dorff [Heather
Dorff interview - click here]. Her strength,
energy, and unbelievable talent constantly make me push myself further.
Your favourite
Feeling lucky ?Want tosearchany of my partnershops yourselffor more, better results ?
The links belowwill take youjust there!!!
Find Deann Baker at the amazons ...
Looking for imports ?Find Deann Baker here ...
eThaiCD.comYour shop for all things Thai
Something naughty ?(Must be over 18 to go there !)
find Deann Baker at adultvideouniverse.com
There's way too many for this so I'll try and
narrow it down. The 1990 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie,
The Dark Knight, and Tremors.
... and of course, films you really deplore?
Last Airbender.
website, Facebook, whatever else?
Anything else you are
dying to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask?
dying to talk about how awesome (re)Search my Trash is for this
blast of an interview! Thank you so much!
for the interview!
� by Mike Haberfelner
Legal note: (re)Search my Trash cannotand shall not be held responsible forcontent of sites from a third party.
Thanks for watching !!!
Robots and rats,
demons and potholes,cuddly toys andshopping mall Santas,
love and death and everything in between,
Tales to ChillYour Bones tois all of that.
Tales to ChillYour Bones to -
a collection of short stories and mini-playsranging from the horrific to the darkly humourous,
from the post-apocalypticto the weirdly romantic,
tales that will give you a chill and maybe a chuckle,
all thought up bythe twisted mind ofscreenwriter and film reviewerMichael Haberfelner.
Tales to ChillYour Bones to
the new anthology by Michael Haberfelner
Out now fromAmazon!!!
On the same daya Burglar wants to kill youand your Ex wantsto make up ...
... and for the life of it, you can't decideWHICH IS WORSE!!!
A Killer Conversation
produced by and starringMelanie Denholme
directed byDavid V.G. Davies
written byMichael Haberfelner
starring Ryan Hunter
andRudy Barrow
out now on DVD


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Sonlight Preschool
Our Story
Preschool Curriculum
Toddler Curriculum
School Calendar
Toddler Curriculum
Toddler Curriculum
SonLight Preschool welcomes you! Preschoolers are curious and love to experiment with their surroundings. SonLight takes a hands-on approach to learning. Children are exposed to many different materials and experiences throughout their day. Preschoolers learn through play. They will learn how to follow rules while playing fun games. Children will have opportunities to develop self-control. They will learn to negotiate and problem solve. They will develop a sense of confidence. All children in our program are exposed to teaching strategies that help them become successful learners. The most important part of our program is love. Children will feel loved by our staff and they will know that Jesus loves them very much.
We offer a younger and older toddler classroom. Our classrooms provide many learning experiences using developmentally appropriate materials while providing a loving, nurturing environment. Our classrooms are set up with several learning centers which give each child choices. All aspects of learning are incorporated in every center. The Toddler classrooms allow your child to explore and discover while playing. We share the love of God in the classroom with our daily Bible stories. Children will learn through music and books.
Our staff assesses children in play throughout the year. Formal assessments will be sent home in January and May. You may schedule a conference at any time during the school year to assess your child's progress.
We use Ages & Stages for screening our infants and toddlers. These screenings are sent home for families to document their child's achievements. These forms are returned to school to be recorded. This allows us to work with our families in providing the best curriculum for your child.
The curriculum includes the following:
-cutting with scissors (fine motor development)
-finger plays & songs (language development)
-listening skills (reading & answering questions about the book)
-walking in the halls (staying with the teacher)
-gluing (fine motor)
-shape recognition
-counting to 10
-introduction to the alphabet with activities
-social skills
-science exploration
During our day we will experience science, art, music and movement, story-time and books, math, dramatic play, blocks, and sensory fun. Children will have opportunities throughout the day to explore nature and go outside.
-We will plant seeds, experiment with magnets, take care of our plant, and explore God's world. Children will view nature items in the classroom and explore outside. Children will develop new vocabulary. We will look at the weather and talk about the temperature. They will learn cause and effect. We will talk about dressing for the weather.
-Art experiences help develop fine motor skills needed to write and hold a pencil. Children will be introduced to paint, markers, crayons, confetti, glitter, glue, and many other art materials. Art allows children to express their feelings. Tearing paper is a beginning step to cutting with scissors. Art encourages discovery. Children will learn about cause and effect. If two colors are mixed, a new color will develop. Art encourages language development. Children will learn new words as they create.
Music and Movemen
-Music is introduced throughout the day. Children will use instruments to create their own music. Songs are used to transition children from one activity to the next. Movement songs like "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes" are used to encourage physical exercise. Children will be exposed to many forms of music. Through these songs children will learn about their world. All music used in the classroom is age appropriate.
Story-time and books
- Children will learn about our world through books. Books will come to life when we use props and music. Books encourage language development. Children will learn how to take care of books. Children will show awareness of pictures and print. Children will begin to use words to describe pictures. Repetitive books and books of songs, rhymes, and chants are used. Some books will introduce shapes, numbers, alphabet, and colors.
- Math is introduced throughout the day. Children will count and match objects such as animals, blocks, shapes, and colors. Children will begin grouping objects.
Dramatic Play
-Children at this age learn through imitation. Dramatic Play uses props and dress-up clothing to allow children to pretend. Children will wash the babies and dishes. They will make a pizza and pour tea for all their friends. Prop boxes allow the kitchen area to transform into a post office, grocery, fire station, veterinary office, and bakery.
Children will use a variety of block materials including cardboard blocks, soft blocks, large Lego's, animals, people, cars, etc to build and create. Block building develops self esteem and problem solving skills. Children are encouraged to
Sensory Table
-Children will play in water, dig in dirt, and shovel rice. Sensory materials are calming and fun. Children will use cups, scoops, boats, bubbles, squeeze bottles, and other fun materials to explore this area. Sensory area allows children to experiment and explore new materials.
Our goal is to build your child's self -confidence and love of learning. You may schedule a conference with the teacher any time throughout the year.
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Development of a Model-Based Clinical Sepsis Biomarker for Critically Ill Patients
Permanent Linkhttp://hdl.handle.net/10092/3736
Sepsis occurs frequently in the intensive care unit (ICU) and is a leading cause of admission, mortality, and cost. Treatment guidelines recommend early intervention, however positive blood culture results may take up to 48 hours. Insulin sensitivity (SI) is known to decrease with worsening condition and could thus be used to aid diagnosis. Some glycemic control protocols are able to accurately identify insulin sensitivity in real-time. Receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curves and cut-off SI values for sepsis diagnosis were calculated for real-time model-based insulin sensitivity from glycemic control data of 36 patients with sepsis. Patients were identified as having sepsis based on a clinically validated sepsis score (ss) of 2 or higher (ss = 0-4 for increasing severity). A clinical biomarker was calculated from patient clinical data to maximize the discrimination between cohorts.
Insulin sensitivity as a sepsis biomarker for diagnosis of severe sepsis achieves a 50% sensitivity, 76% specificity, 4.8% PPV, and 98.3% NPV at a SI cut-off value of 0.00013 L*mU min-1. A clinical biomarker combining SI, temperature, heart rate, respiratory rate, blood pressure, and their respective hourly rates of change achieves 73% sensitivity, 80% specificity, 8.4% PPV, and 99.2% NPV. Thus, a clinical biomarker provides an effective real-time negative predictive diagnostic for severe sepsis. Examination of both inter- and intra-patient statistical distribution of this biomarker and sepsis score show potential avenues to improve the positive predictive value.


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Allan Titford Update, 11 April 2017
Prepared by Ross Baker, Researcher, One New Zealand Foundation Inc. 12/4/1017. (C)
For further information: www.onenzfoundation.co.nz Email: email@example.com
It must be remembered Allan Titford was a completely innocent victim when the Crown decided it wanted his freehold titled farm to help settle Te Roroa's "alleged" Treaty of Waitangi claim, but Allan refused to sell his farm until the Rural/National Bank joined forces with the Crown to bankrupt him over a 5 year period forcing him to sell his farm, under duress, without legal advice and well below its true market value. As his father's farm was held as security by the Rural/National Bank for a loan Allan had on his farm, his father would also lose his farm that had been in the family for 100 years.
Allan's farm had an approved seaside subdivision on part of it and when sold would have repaid the Bank and made him debt free, but the Crown destroyed all this, including a young innocent family to satisfy Te Roroa's "alleged" Treaty of Waitangi claim. See letter below from the late Ngapuhi Chief, Mr Graham Rankin.
The original Sale Agreement to purchase Allan's 1650 acre freehold titled farm at Maunganui Bluff was drafted by Philip Fox Solicitors in 1994. On the 8 December 1995 Allan, on his New Zealand Lawyer Mr Clive Jackson's advice, decided he now had no other option than to sign this Agreement, under duress, or he would lose everything as well his father would lose his farm The Bank held as security.
On the 12 December 1995, and without legal advice, Allan was forced, under duress, to sign a new Sale Agreement drafted by the Crown Law Office that he had never seen before, this included many new clauses, especially a clause that Allan could not sue the Rural/National Bank for mismanagement of his farm when it was under the Bank's financial control. He made and signed a large amendment to page 11 of the new Sale Agreement that he was selling his farm, under duress, and as he was in Tasmania, he had a Tasmanian Notary Public, Mr Sam Samec, who was paid by the New Zealand Crown, witnessed this amendment.
Allan and Mr Samec also initialled pages 10 and 12 and both signed the execution page 13 but left the other pages un-initialled as they were not the pages Allan had agreed to sign on the advice of his New Zealand lawyer, Mr Clive Jackson, on the 8 December 1995. Allan's New Zealand lawyer, Clive Jackson said if he had seen this agreement before he signed it he would have advised Allan, "Not to sign it"! The Notary Public then sent the Sale Agreement back to the Crown Law Office later that morning.
Allan and his New Zealand lawyer, Clive Jackson, were refused copies of the fully executed Sale Agreement after being signed by the Commissioner of Crown Lands, Mr Sam Brown, on behalf of Her Majesty the Queen, therefore, they had no idea the documents had been tampered with. If Mr Brown had known Allan was selling his farm, under duress, he would not have signed the Sale Agreement as an contract signed, under duress, cannot be enforced in a court of law.
When Allan and the One New Zealand Foundation eventually received a copy of the fully executed Sale Agreement under the Official Information Act in 2004, page 10, 11, and 12 that both Allan and Mr Samec had initialled had been substituted for clean pages. While every page of the fully executed Sale Agreement had been initialled by Mr Sam Brown, not one page was initialled by Allan or Mr Samec.
In 2010 Allan found a copy of the original agreement in a government file with page 10, the amended page 11 and page 12 that he and Mr Samec had both initialled but had been substituted for clean pages in the Agreement Mr Sam Brown, the Commissioner of Crown Lands, had been given to sign in 1995.
Once we presented the original Sale Agreement with the amendment to page 11 and the initialled pages 10 and 12 to the Crown Law Office and a letter from Mr Samec and Mr Jackson stating that neither of them had given Allan legal advice before he was forced to sign the new Crown Law Office Sale Agreement, we believe the Crown had no other option than to:-
- Admit the documents had been tampered with by the Crown Law Officeand pay Allan compensation for having his farm taken for an "alleged" claim using corrupt documents, or
- Convict Allan on "alleged" assault charges against his children, burning down his house and assaulting and raping his wife. The Crown chose this option! Surprise, surprise!
When the Crown found Allan's wife Susan was divorcing him because she had had enough of the claim, the constant harassment by the Crown and the Police and wanting to take control of the family Trusts; the Crown gave her immunity in February 2010 to help the Police lay 58 charges against Allan. The court breaching 3 fundamental principles of our legal system to convict and jail Allan for 24 years!
- The criminal justice system must be, and must be seen to be, free from political interference. I attended the meeting where the Hon John Carter gave Allan's estranged wife Susan immunity from prosecution to help the Crown and Police lay charges against Allan. Susan Stating, "I think when they go to get him they are going to get him for as much as they can", and they certainly did!
- One of the most crucial aspects of a fair legal trial is the right to call witnesses on both sides. Although Allan had given his Crown paid lawyer a list of witnesses, he refused to call any in Allan's defence.
- A man is innocent until proven guilty. Allan was not found guilty, he had a guilty verdict handed down by Judge Duncan Harvey who had only heard the Crown's witnesses.
Allan has waited over 3 years for a hearing date for his appeal, but as the Crown has him where they want him and are in no hurry to allow him an appeal. In fact, he should be completely exonerated because of the way his trial was conducted; it was no more than,
"A malicious prosecution of a political nature to pervert the course of Justice".
In September 2015 Chief Ombudsman, Dame Beverley Wakem, made another unforgivable mistake when she stated Allan had been convicted of sexually assaulting his children, the worst crime any father can be accused. While she apologised, this seems to have been picked up by Allan's Case Manager Erica Hiyama at Corrections and Allan's 5 year old son Leo was immediately refused visiting rights to his father. Since then, the ONZF has been trying to have Leo's visiting rights restored, but Corrections and the Crown seems to want to make Allan's prison term as miserable as they possibly can. Both Erica Hiyama and Chief Ombudsman, Dame Beverley Wakem have now "left" their employment and the new Chief Ombudsman, Judge Peter Boshier, refuses to reply to our letters as does the Crown Law Office.
This was the first claim by the apartheid Waitangi Tribunal which stated, "This land must be returned to Te Roroa at whatever cost". The Crown did not want egg on its face with its first claim and decided to take Allan's farm, "At whatever cost", including tampering with the Sale Agreement.
The Minister of Justice, Hon Doug Graham, who signed the Deed of Sale on behalf of Her Majesty the Queen, initialled Allan's amendment to page 2 of the Deed of Sale stating, that Te Roroa's claim was only an "alleged" claim because he knew there was no evidence to prove otherwise.
This claim had already been heard by Chief Judge Shepherd in 1939 and after a full investigation by the court, it was found there was no case to answer and Parliament rejected the claim in 1942.
As Allan has no family or friends in Auckland he asked if he could be moved to Ngawha Prison in Northland, but so far has been refused. What else can the Crown do to break this man! A man that has not only fought for his own rights but for the rights of every New Zealander who owns land, therefore, he needs and deserves our support for a fair re-trial or to be completely exonerated.
Allan Titford has suffered enough at the hands of the Crown and its bureaucrats, especially those in the Waitangi Tribunal, the Police, the Crown Law Office, the Ombudsman's Office and the courts; they all helped to put Allan where he is today, teaming up to protect each other when the Crown stole Allan's freehold titled farm for Te Roroa's "alleged" Treaty of Waitangi claim. "The work of the claim was shoddy, unclean and destructive in the eyes of our New Zealand Society. Bad research coupled by greed and inefficiency", the late Mr Graham Rankin, see letter below, therefore, there is no doubt that Allan Titford's trial was;
"A malicious prosecution of a political nature to pervert the course of Justice".
Allan not only fought for his rights, he fought for every land owner's rights in New Zealand by initiating the 1993 Treaty of Waitangi Amendment Act, "That private land is sacrosanct and totally excluded from Treaty claims and the settlement process", but the Crown still took his land, two years after the Act was passed.
We must now fight for Allan to be completely exonerated, he was not the villain here!
For further information, the following two books can be purchased from, ONZF, P.O. Box 7113, Pioneer Hwy, Palmerston North. $10-00 each, incl. P & P. "STOLEN LANDS AT MAUNGANUI BLUFF" and "WHY ALLAN TITFORD WAS JAILED FOR TWENTY FOUR YEARS", both a must read for the truth.
It's time the Government and the media told the truth on why Allan Titford was jailed for twenty four years!
June 4th 2001.
Minister of Treaty Claims, Hon Margaret Wilson.
Tena koe,
Eighteen months ago I met a man of good Bohemian stock. I have met him several times later, a young man with a terrible bile in his belly, and rightfully so.
No living person should suffer the pain he and his wife and children, at the hands of Government and Associates, Ministers in particular. From the time the Te Roroa claim took effect, I asked, "could this be the land of our fathers".
In my view, how could Te Awha Parore and Tiopira own so much land, when Maori, at some time in our history had communistic laws? The Chief only apportions a small parcel of land for family requirements, no more, no less. The land belonged to the Tribe not the chief.
Te Roroa people are only squatters, living on the edge of Waipoua Forest. They don't even know what they are!! Ngatiwhatua or Ngapuhi. Like the Israelites, driven out of the Bay of Islands to Whangaroa, then fled with Hongi Hika in chase to Waipoua.
My Ngaitu people were the earlier settlers, our Tupuna, Chief Kohuru of the funerary chests at Kohekohe. I am angry that the chests were never returned to Kohekohe, but interred in a simple ceremony at Waimamaku without permission.
I have read the Te Roroa report, also attended the findings at Waikara Marae, men and women in the finery, Ministers, Members of the Tribunal, others in country apparel, gumboots, oilskins, horses, tractors and dogs, out for a great day. The big tops, a large dining area, all at the expense of the Government of the day.
Before the seal had set, this 15th day of May 1990, the great philosophers found there was a grave mistake. Accordingly, a prompt change to the Act was pushed through by Parliament, "land that was owned by private ownership should not be challenged". The work of the claim was shoddy, unclean and destructive in the eyes of our New Zealand Society.
My question Minister, the land can never be given to Maori, sitting as a "crown jewel" when it should be returned to Allan Titford, now.
I asked Titford to bring me copies, various deeds, Court minutes, successions before writing. I am satisfied what I have witnessed, by the sequence of events, from the time the Crown purchased Maunganui lands from Te Awha Parore in successions, or lease, is compatible with the standard within the law of our country.
Also let it be known to the Tribunal and yourself, in permanent storage, Turnbull Library had "an epitome" of official documents, relative to native offers and land purchases in the North Island of New Zealand. A very useful follow up guide for claims. Compiled and edited by N.Hansen Turton. There is a large section contained about Maunganui lands.
Enclosed, is exhaustive research provided by Titford. Maps and Deeds can be supplied if required. I am a devoted protector of my Maori Peoples interests if a case is fair and accurate, same goes for Pakeha people.
I must reiterate, this must be the saddest case I have come upon. Bad research coupled by greed and inefficiency. Please have the Tribunal sight this letter. Be guided by extra care in the future.
Tena Koe Hoi ano
Signed, Graham Rankin, Ngapuhi Elder.
Regards to our Great Prime Minister.
The late Graham Rankin was a respected Ngapuhi Chief who knew the whakapapa and history of this land and its people far better than the claimants, the Crown or the Waitangi Tribunal, but the Crown failed to listen and gave Allan Titford's land to Te Roroa, "when they were only squatters living on the edge of the Waipoua Forest"! FACT!


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Statement by the Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
The National Council of Resistance of Iran strongly welcomes and supports President Francois Hollande's call for attending the Paris mass rally on Sunday.
As Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the President-elect of the Iranian Resistance, has stated the Iranian people and their Resistance have been on the side of the people of France from a long time ago in the fight against terrorism and fundamentalism and defending the separation of religion and state.
Since three decades ago, the Iranian Resistance has declared that the epicenter of fundamentalism, export of terrorism, and retrogression is the religious caliphate ruling in Tehran, which is the spiritual godfather of the ISIS and is the world's leader in execution, terrorism, and barbarism in the contemporary times.
Mrs. Rajavi described the remarks of President Hollande who reiterated that the terrorist crimes have no relevance to Islam as encouraging for all Muslims and nations of the region such as Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Yemen that are the main victims and the primary enemies of Islamic fundamentalism.


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|Not the latest Raptors court, I know
Remember all of the Kyle Lowry rumors from a month ago? They're all gone now and that's great for Toronto, not because they're actually competing (though that is always a positive), but because there is no way they would have gotten proper compensation for him. Lowry has been absolutely brilliant for them, being 6th in both WS/48 (.218) and total Win Shares (6.2), right behind MVP candidate Paul George. Lowry has been one of the best point guards in the NBA, and nobody has really been paying attention to him. As of this writing, he's averaging 16.2 points and 7.4 assists per game while shooting 43.4% from the field (40.9% from deep) and currently has a 20.1 PER, which is bordering on elite. When you combine him with the high-flying DeMar DeRozan, who has been a Top-10 shooting guard this year, you get one of the best backcourt duo's in the NBA. DeRozan is leading the Raptors in points, averaging 20.1 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game. The USC product is showing an improved offensive game, showing off a solid array of dribbling moves as he continues to get into the paint at will. The only knock on his game right now is his limited shooting range, as he only shoots 29.7% from long range, but that hasn't stopped him from being 2nd on the team in PER (17.2) and Win Shares (3.6) and third in WS/48 (.121).
Of course, the Raptors wouldn't be on fire with only two players playing well; teams also have to deal with the tandem of Jonas Valanciunas and Amir Johnson in the low block and they are a handful. Johnson is second on the team in WS/48 (.148) and third in Win Shares (3.5) and has been a solid contributor all season long. Valanciunas has shown a better back-to-the-basket game and has combined well with Johnson to form a solid front court, capable of rebounding well and scoring when they need to. It almost doesn't matter who they plug into at Small Forward; it doesn't make much of a different when your other starters are playing like All-Stars.
If the Lakers want to win this game, they need take care of the ball and convert their outside jumpers. It helps if you feed Pau Gasol early and often, seeing as how he's your best player at the moment. Unfortunately, Kobe Bryant will not be here to hit a game winner or two against Toronto, (seriously, Kobe has been historically cruel to them in the past) and that's fine; Bryant's main focus should be to get 100% healthy, and not rushing back on the court. The good news for the Lakers is that Nick Young returns today and can help take some of the load off of Kendall Marshall and the heavy minutes he has logged in in the past couple of games. Hopefully, Mike D'Antoni will decide that Jordan Hill needs more than 11 minutes in today's contest.


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Ever heard of a comedic poet? No, neither had I, until I had the pleasure of seeing Amanda Baker live at the Hexham Book Festival. I honestly wasn't sure what to expect from her show 'Snail Love', but I was thoroughly entertained throughout her short, but sweet, act.
The show took place in the café of the Queens Hall, which created a relaxed and friendly atmosphere where you didn't have to sit in uncomfortable silence with a few awkward laughs and obligatory applause. Our laughs were genuine and our applause was honest.
Amanda started off with her poem 'Soap Opera': an enjoyable poem with a mix of sarcastic comments and satirical humour about the soaps we watch. The audience enjoyed the poem, as most of us in Britain are secret (or maybe not so secret!) soap addicts, and what she was saying was very true and also very funny.
Amanda then went on to comment that inspiration for her poems can come from everyday things, for example TV and radio advertisements. This led on to another humorous poem, 'Aspirational Bathroom', which mocked advertisements from how they are said, to the strange things that are actually said to try and convince Joe Public to try, buy and use products. The truth in this poem generated many laughs.
The poems Amanda then proceeded to deliver varied from serious topics, such as Irish terrorists, to arguing with bus drivers and experiences of going to an all black church. However, all the poems had an individual spin, making the audience see the funnier side of subjects usually seen in a negative light.
After these comedic poems, Amanda went on to tell us how she had written a more serious poem about the grief after someone close to you has died. This poem was submitted for the Bridport Poetry Prize and Amanda said, 'My socks were blown off when I found out that it was shortlisted.' The poem demonstrated just how talented she is and left the audience speechless.
The audience enjoyed every moment of this event, from the witty sarcasm to the comedic rhymes. It was a brilliant, lighthearted way of listening to poetry.
Amanda Baker appeared at the Queens Hall, Hexham at 6pm, Thursday 3rd May as part of the 2012 Hexham Book Festival.


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FC: North Korea | By: Jimmy B. Vale Cruz 4A
1: Climate | Located between 38 and 43 N, North Korea has a continental climate with four distinct seasons. Long winters bring bitter cold and clear weather interspersed with snow storms as a result of northern and northwestern winds that blow from Siberia. The daily average high and low temperatures for P'yongyang in January are -3 and -13 C (27 and 9 F). On average, it snows thirty-seven days during the winter. Winter can be particularly harsh in the northern, mountainous regions.
2: Geography | North Korea has an area of 120,540 km, of which 120,410 km is land and 130 km is water. It has 1673 km of land boundaries; of these, 1416 km are with China, 238 km are with South Korea, and 19 km are with Russia.
3: Agriculture
4: Korean Language | Two names for Korean, Hangugeo and Chosnmal, written in hangul
5: Beliefs | As the culture of a country develops over the centuries -- and for Korea, there have been many centuries -- its people evolve a very distinct sense of belonging, and begin to differentiate themselves
6: History
7: The Korean Peninsula was first populated by peoples of a Tungusic branch of the Ural-Altaic language family, who migrated from the northwestern regions of Asia. Some of these peoples also populated parts of northeast China (Manchuria); Koreans and Manchurians still show physical similarities. Koreans are racially and linguistically homogeneous. Although there are no indigenous minorities in North Korea, there is a small Chinese community (about 50,000) and some 1,800 Japanese wives who accompanied the roughly 93,000 ethnic Koreans returning to the North from Japan between 1959 and 1962. Although dialects exist, the Korean language spoken throughout the peninsula is mutually comprehensible. In North Korea, the Korean alphabet (hangul) is used exclusively.
8: Korean Dishes | Korean cuisine is largely based upon rice, vegetables, and meats. Traditional Korean meals are noted for the number of side dishes (banchan) that accompany steam-cooked short-grain rice.
11: Baked Tofu Ingredients 1 water pack block extra firm tofu Marinade: 1 Tbsp rice vinegar or balsamic vinegar 1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil 1 Tbsp Tamari soy sauce 1 tsp sugar or agave syrup 1 Tbsp minced fresh ginger OR 1/2 tsp ground ginger 1 Tbsp minced fresh garlic OR 1/2 tsp powdered garlic 1/2 cup chopped scallions 1/2 tsp cumin 1/2 tsp coriander pinch cayenne fresh ground black pepper.


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Commentary | In less than 24 hours Americans will go to the polls to elect a President. Tomorrow's election has been called the most important election in American history by pundits, journalists and supporters of both candidates. While that may turn out to be a slight exaggeration, there is no doubt that this election is crucial to the future of this nation.
On the surface, the two candidates seem to be total opposites. President Obama is a true believer in the far-reaching power of a strong Federal government, which he favors over state's rights and a strict interpretation of the Constitution. He relies on Executive Orders and advocates placing more power in the hands of the President.
Mitt Romney is a highly successful businessman who amassed a personal fortune of over 250 million dollars. He earned his credentials as the President and CEO of the Salt Lake Organizing Committee for the 2002 Winter Olympics. His hard work as an Olympic Organizer launched his political career and led to his election as Governor of Massachusetts.
Neither man had much experience in government prior to running for President. Obama served one term as a US Senator. Romney served one term as a Governor. While Romney touts his business experience and faults Obama for lack of financial knowledge, the Democrats say Romney has no foreign policy expertise.
Obama portrays himself as a man of the people. He attended university on scholarships and worked for years as a community organizer. He has constantly attacked Romney as one of the landed gentry, who is out of touch with the middle class. He accuses Romney of supporting the ultra rich at the expense of the poor.
Romney appears to have taken the high ground in the campaign. Much to the dismay of many of his Republican supporters, he has resisted numerous opportunities to criticize Obama over a wide variety of issues, including the fiasco in Libya. Even after the Democrats slandered Romney over his tax returns, he refused to retaliate by mentioning Obama's sealed personal records.
The polls have been unpredictable at best and we wonder if anyone really has a feel for the pulse of this election. Democrats have put on their poker face and exude confidence. Republicans claim the American people are fed up with four years of Obama's failures and will sweep the President out of office on Tuesday.
While no one can be sure who will win tomorrow, one thing is entirely clear; Americans need to exercise their greatest freedom and vote. Our nation has a dismal record on election day, with the lowest voter turnout of any Western nation. We are reminded of the days when El Salvador was finally freed from the vice grip of Somoza and people walked for days through the jungle just to vote. Over 90 percent of that tiny nation managed to vote, while here in America we are lucky if the turnout hits 50 percent.
There is no excuse. It doesn't matter who you support. What matters is that you utilize the power you have been given and take the time to cast your vote. Tomorrow is America's day of decision and your participation is needed.