text:
The Sport of Speed Wine Blogging
Over the weekend I caught a glimpse of the future; something that could truly revolutionize action TV sports. It could be bigger than fishing or hunting TV. It will be more exciting than TV poker tournaments. I'm a little hesitant in sharing for fear that the idea could actually be picked up by a national show.
Speed Wine Blogging!
The rules
- 8 wine bloggers / 8 wines / 4 minutes with each wine
- Bloggers listen to the marketing PR blurb then quickly swirl, smell, sip, spit and score the wines.
- Prior to the cowbell ringing the blogger must document their tasting notes with either a tweet or a mini-post consisting of no more than 300 characters (140 character reviews are given an extra 2 points)
- At the end of each round the posts and scores are evaluated and compared to the baseline "Parker Score" to determine those that continue to the next round.
- One blogger is eliminated each round.
- The last blogger remaining wins.
The scene is intense. The room reeks with anticipation…and hints of brett, funk and cherries. The assembled bloggers are cleansing their palates, stretching their tongues and limbering up their nostrils for the event.
Here we are today assembled around the greatest talent in wine writing and reviewing hoping to determine the world champion of Speed Wine Tasting (Red Edition). Our contestants hail from across the US in the hopes to win the coveted @bparkerchuk trophy of a giant nose sniffing a bung hole. "Much love and success to each of you. 100 points *" inscribed on the base.
Our contestants are the formidable Joe Roberts (1WineDude.com), Steve Heimoff (SteveHeimoff.com), Fredric Koeppel (BiggerThanYourHead.net), C. Jason Mancebo (20dollarwineblog.com), Kori Voorhees(WinePeeps.com), Pamela (Enobytes.com), Gary Vaynerchuk (TV.winelibrary.com), and newcomer Steve Paulo (StevePaulo.com).
Round One
Round one begins with a fast pace as the winemaker rushes from contestant to contestant pouring and explaining the wine. The camera cuts across each of the blogger/writers serious faces as they begin to examine the wine with vigorous swirls. Thoughts of berries, cherries, cassis, leather, plums, prunes and pencil led come to mind. The camera cuts to Gary V. who spits gloriously in his trademark Jets spittoon. Newcomer Steve Paulo looks perplexed by the mouth feel of the wine and newly crowned blog king Joe Roberts has already submitted his perfectly crafted 140 character tweet and score. The horn sounds signaling the end of round one. What's this! Gary Vaynerchuk has grabbed the mic and begins talking about the wine's availability on Cinderella.com and how he met the winemaker back when he sold him a baseball card in the Jersey mall. The side judges quickly regain control and deliberate the outcome of the first round. In a huge surprise, Gary is cited with a black Vinum and ejected from the competition. Gary offers a string of expletives and then reminds folks of the "Thank You Economy" coming out later this year.
Round Two
The crowd quickly regains composure as round two sounds with the clicking of the 85oz Riedel glass. Everyone gasps at the odd blend of Mourvedre, Syrah, Counoise, and Cinsault. This may prove to be a difficult round. In a bold move with only one sip and spit, both Fredric Koeppel and Steve Heimoff confidently submit their post. Let's watch that again in slow motion…will their haste prove to be a good strategy or will one of them be eliminated? The bell rings and Pamela from Enobytes is having trouble submitting her post. Twitter API is frozen! The judges huddle and extend the time by 30 seconds. Everyone has their entries in and the judges quickly review the submissions to determine the winner. The scoring is close with Heimoff pegging the wine almost to a tee. Missing the flavor profile and the score by just one point, Pamela is eliminated. Damn that fail whale.
The energy in the room continues to rise as the rounds progress.
Round Three
Kori Voorhees is eliminated after round three. Strangely enough the wine was a Woodinville winery from her backyard. Dejected Kori and Colby rush from the packed auditorium trying to escape the media interview. As Randy and Kaz from WineBizRadio.com try to stop them, Colby takes the camera and smashed it to the ground.
Round Four
Round four ends with the elimination of Steve Heimoff. He is disqualified for going over the 300 character limit as his post includes a rant against the Republican leadership in California and a dissertation on how no money will ever be made in wine blogging. He's escorted out of the room by security.
Round Five
With only four contestants remaining the fifth round begins. The purple tooth stains and barrage of tannin and acid are beginning to take their toll on the contestant's palates. A strange purple stain had developed on Mancebo's chin…and oddly enough on his bald head…Joe Roberts has a commanding lead with each review coming in at exactly 140 characters. The contestants battle through the round when out of the corner of his eye, Joe catches a glimpse of Geddy Lee from Rush in the stands. Immediately he faints from excitement and is disqualified. After calming the crowd and reviving Joe, the play continues.
Round Six
Three contestants remain; Mancebo, Koeppel, and newcomer Steve Paulo. Mancebo's eyes seem a little bloodshot and he's struggling to find the keys on his iPad. A bead of sweat drips from his chin into the glass. The wine is the Molly Dooker Velvet Glove. As he stares into his glass his face turns flush and he quickly rises. "No wine should be 16.8%ABV this is a travesty against wi…." In mid-sentence he falls forward onto the table sending purple spit juice everywhere. For several minutes the scene is chaos. The head referee calls for a 30 minute break so the contestants and compose themselves and clean the spit out of their hair. In a post interview, Mancebo says, "I guess the lesson here is to spit. I let the excitement of the day get to me. I'm a professional, I should know better than that. I'll be back next year."
Final Round
The lights dim and the music comes up as the final round begins with perennial award winner Fredric Koeppel and the new kid Steve Paulo surviving to the finish. Intense stares of determination are fired across the table. The wine poured is a 1949 Chateau Ausone. The stage is set and the audience is eerily quiet for the first time all evening. The sound of swishing and spitting can be heard across the room. Both writers deliberate, sketch a few notes and deliberate some more. A commotion arises from the back of the room. Bursting into the room is Joe Powers from AnotherWineBlog.com. "This is a scam, this is a set up! Who are the judges? How the hell did these people get picked to be in the finals! I demand to know!" He overturns the table crushing Koeppel. Paulo attempts to restrain him, but Joe (more crafty than he looks) eludes his grip and rushes off. Screaming toward the exit, "I bet Tom Wark is behind this madness," Lenn Thompson from NewYorkCorkReport.com dives from the mezzanine level and tackles Joe. Lenn quickly restrains him and stuffs his head in the only remaining spit bucket.
What a night. What a sport. Dazed, the officials and referees head to the replay booth to review the tape. After several minutes of deliberation, they return to declare Steve Paulo the winner by default as he is the last man standing. This new sport is sure to take hold across the country as wine bloggers turn in to rock stars and thousands clamor to the scene.
57 comments on "The Sport of Speed Wine Blogging"
Vivian Mycroft What a surprise – GaryV was ejected first round. Vegas had odds for GaryV to be in at least until Round 7. Odds on Paulo made him a long shot! Somebody surely cleaned up picking Paulo to win it all. Were the winnings used to buy the $180/bottle Molly Dooker? That is over $10 for each percentage of ABV. Perhaps I have just hit upon a new measure. Mutineer Mag should adopt it.
Great weekend! -
1WineDude Laughing my ass off!
Nice one… -
Steve Paulo Well played, sir… well played! I would happily defend my crown, even if I did win by default
Joe Paulo the winner?? This is bullsh*t!!! I had $1000 riding on Mancebo at even money odds. Do you know how many $20 bottles of wine $2000 would've bought??!
I call shenanigans!!
Damn funny post, Josh. I'm trying to solidify myself as wine blogging's comedian, but you are forcing me to up my game. Cheers to that!
Joe (not to be confused with Powers or Roberts) Herrig
Ed Thralls Well played, sir. At the very least this should be picked up for ESPN3.com
Cecilia Dominic Ha! I hate reality t.v., but I'd watch this. Great post!
Jennifer (wineofcourse) Love it Josh! Your commentary is brilliant! I see a bright future for speed wine blogging. Anyone thinking what I'm thinking?…Summer AND Winter Olympics! Finally Wine is a Sport! Cheers!
Ryan O'Connell lmao, awesome idea. Good work, sir! Let's do it IRL. I've got a venue if you can get to France.
World's Fastest Sommelier competition 2011
Preston Porter Haha love it!
"Prior to the cowbell ringing…" I think Christopher Walken should be the cowbell ringer/referee for every Speed Wine event -
Joshua S Sweeney Why in the hell didn't I make it out to WBC10? You better be ready, Steve. I'm training with Apollo Creed AND Mr. T up in the Soviet mountains (don't question the timeline). Come, WBC 11, I'm storming through this event, and my sights are on you.
Jason Mancebo Wow, Josh. You nailed me on that one…and I exit on the perfect note for the not so perfect wine.
Now that I'm infamous, I WILL be back!
Jon I think I would make a great contender for 2011 😉
Brian I hear spin-offs, Iron Taster, American Wino, So you think you can Taste, Tasting with the Stars…
Beau Carufel I laughed my a$$ off! Absolutely superb, didn't know Jason was such a lightweight 😉
Brian Oh, and I'm fairly sure this would only be aired on ESPN 8 "The Ocho"
Sunshine Mugrabi Oh man, this brings back memories of that cowbell… Very funny stuff.
Laurel (CorkPopper) Ha! Fantastic! We should totally make it happen at next year's WBC … except now I'm picturing a marathon session wherein the two final contenders end up in a tie over and over again like that Wimbledon match last week!!
Pamela @ Enobytes #twitterfail #twitterfail #twitterfail #twitterfail #twitterfail #twitterfail
I demand a rematch! -
Ben Simons Outstanding post Josh. I laughed out loud on the airplane I was boarding in Vegas. I ended up having to explain what I was laughing about to a nun sitting next to me, who just stared blankly back at me and said, "hmm".
David Honig Perfect. Joe Power was a great touch. The only question I have is, what the hell is Wine Biz RADIO doing with a camera?!?
Kori Hilarious, Josh! 3rd round, huh? I'll be back next year to take it all.
Colby David – Josh is too polite to say where I put the microphone!
Tamara Belgard Josh, we all knew you were funny, but you've really outdone yourself, practically wet myself!! And do I detect just a smattering of parody? Well played! 140 character wine reviews – you may be onto something (else).
Kristen Hilarious post Josh! And I think Jon Troutman would be an excellent choice of a contender next year.
fredric koeppel Josh, I hope my injuries weren't too serious…
Pingback: A Video Recap of WBC10 And Bonus Stuff | Drink Nectar
Cindy @Vinonotes This just may be (yep, it is!) my favorite wine blog post, recap, idea, etc ever! So funny! So glad I was there – pouring for all you blogging maniacs! ha!
Next year – perhaps there could be a sensory tasting element included, where one of the rounds happens in the dark?
Oh, and I absolutely love Brian's comments and names for spin-off shows – "So you think you can Taste". Pure Awesomeness! -
Houstonwino How unrealistic! Being from Toledo, I would easily have taken out a few more people before being subdued. And that spit bucket better have had some good stuff in it too.
Mia ROFLMAO ! Hilarious post!
Houstonwino True, those New York guys are pretty sneaky. Just wait until next year…
WineWonkette Funny as sh!t post! However, Lenn could NEVER subdue @HoustonWino. Too bad I forgot to bring his "F*ck You, I'm From Detroit" Kid Rock T-shirt. Heimoff's "black belt" might as well be pink.
Houstonwino Good thing that you didn't. If it were like the typical movie script, coming from the same place as P.J. O'Roark and Gloria Steinham would have ended up with me as a hit man or a transvestite with a chili dog fetish. Or worse…married to Tom Cruise.
William Pollard I did the speed wine blogging at WBC 10 on Friday – ended up at the Charles Smith party with flaming burlesque girls. Not sure how I got there or back to my room. I'm swearing off the speed blogging.
Pingback: A Few Highlights from the Wine Bloggers Conference '10 | Enobytes Wine Blog


text:
Pownall History, Family Crest & Coats of ArmsThe name Pownall was carried to England in the enormous movement of people that followed the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Pownall family lived in Cheshire, at Pownall, from whence they derived their name. Early Origins of the Pownall familyThe surname Pownall was first found in Cheshire where they held a family seat from very early times and were granted lands by Duke William of Normandy, their liege Lord, for their distinguished assistance at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 A.D. Early History of the Pownall familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Pownall research. Another 122 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1350, 1520, 1560, 1571, 1722, 1731, 1757 and 1805 are included under the topic Early Pownall History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Pownall Spelling VariationsEndless spelling variations are a prevailing characteristic of Norman surnames. Old and Middle English lacked any definite spelling rules, and the introduction of Norman French added an unfamiliar ingredient to the English linguistic stew. French and Latin, the languages of the court, also influenced spellings. Finally, Medieval scribes generally spelled words according to how they sounded, so one person was often referred to by different spellings in different documents. The name has been spelled Pownall, Pownal, Pownell, Pownel and others. Early Notables of the Pownall familyOutstanding amongst the family at this time was
To escape the political and religious persecution within England at the time, many English families left for the various British colonies abroad. The voyage was extremely difficult, though, and the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving. But for those who made it, the trip was most often worth it. Many of the families who arrived went on to make valuable contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. An inquiry into the early roots of North American families reveals a number of immigrants bearing the name Pownall or a variant listed above: Pownall Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include: Pownall Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
HMS Prince of Wales
HMS Repulse
The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto. Motto: Officium praesto Motto Translation: I perform my duty.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Politics in France always contains a potentially explosive element of sex and affairs of the heart mixed into public life. But the newest case of politics colliding with the personal in France has taken things to a new, uncomfortable high.
On Tuesday, just six days ahead of critical runoff voting in the nation's legislative elections, French First Lady Valérie Trierweiler voiced her support for a dissident leftist challenging the official candidate from President François Hollande's Socialist Party (PS) in the city of La Rochelle. But in addition to violating internal party discipline, Trierweiler's move also risks creating serious domestic stress within the Élysée. The official PS candidate in question is Ségolène Royal — Hollande's ex-partner of nearly 30 years, whose bid the President has publicly backed.
Uncomfortable, indeed.
(MORE: Meet Valérie Trierweiler, France's Unmarried First Lady)
Trierweiler's tweeted endorsement on Tuesday morning of renegade candidate Olivier Falorni came as leftist heavyweights flocked to La Rochelle to back Royal's legislative runoff. Royal topped first-round voting on June 10 with a 32% score. But she faces a tough race in the June 17 final against Falorni, who finished second in the initial stage with 28.9%. Not only is Falorni a native of La Rochelle and deputy mayor of the town, he also won much local sympathy and support following his expulsion from the PS for refusing to withdraw his parliamentary run in deference to the transplanted Royal.
In addition to that, Falorni is now getting the vocal backing of conservative figures in the region calling on their voters to help the local upstart beat the official PS candidate "parachuted in" to a presumable safe seat. Given the failure of the right's candidate to qualify for Sunday's final, La Rochelle conservatives view Falorni as their only chance for beating Royal, whom they've reviled since her 2007 presidential campaign. Those anti-Royal ranks appeared to thicken further on Tuesday with Trierweiler's tweet.
"Courage to Olivier Falorni, who didn't lose heart and who has fought alongside La Rochelle residents in a selfless manner for so many years," Trierweiler said in a tweet that quickly went Franco-viral.
"I don't have a comment," a smiling but clearly surprised Royal told journalists who pressed her for a reply to Trierweiler's post as she stumped on Tuesday. "I'm focused on the voters of La Rochelle and doing my political duty."
Falorni was less tongue-tied in responding to Trierweiler's partisan warble.
"It's a message of personal support and friendship that I appreciate, especially within this context of political attacks and personal threats," Falorni told French TV channel LCI. "I've been pressured to withdraw and leave the final to a single candidate [who] was imposed from above by the direction of the PS."
Though the increasingly bitter battle of La Rochelle is unlikely to prevent the left from winning a parliamentary majority in this Sunday's polling, it is a badly timed embarrassment for the PS. Projections from first-round voting show the left taking legislative control — providing Hollande the support he'll need to apply progrowth and socially attentive policies French conservatives virulently oppose. Yet those initial results had also led Socialist officials to quietly hope the PS might win an outright majority of its own and thus not have to rely on support of smaller parties that will demand policy be pushed harder left.
With that objective in mind, the PS had sought to close ranks and unite behind all Socialist candidates who'd qualified for runoffs. That image of unity took a blow on Tuesday, however, with Trierweiler appearing to side with Falorni against the candidate (and former squeeze) her own presidential partner endorses. Indeed, Royal's campaign posters feature a photo of her head-of-state ex-companion and his quote stating, "Ségolène Royal is the only candidate from the [left] who can claim my official backing and support."
As of early Tuesday afternoon, the Élysée was offering no official response to the buzz rising from Trierweiler's stance — though French media quoted unidentified presidential advisers expressing astonishment and some dismay at her initiative. There may be more of that where it came from. A decidedly independent and assured woman disinclined to assume the role of an Élysée prop, Trierweiler recently surprised political analysts and fellow journalists by declaring she'd continue pursuing her long reporting and writing career during Hollande's term. In doing so, Trierweiler waved off concerns that her media work and status could create conflicts of interest or other sorts of controversy.
After Tuesday's tweet, however, she'll have a harder time dismissing warnings that her reported dislike of Royal risks creating trouble for Hollande. Now that that's happened in an election context, Trierweiler will probably be able to contemplate those perils in what stands to be the tight-lipped, jaw-flexed silence of the Élysée until voting ends on June 17.


text:
Well, this is from the Friday before Halloween, which for 2010 I believe fell on a Saturday. It was the first year I had my custom way ahead of time. Diana and I went vintage shopping to a gem down the peninsula, we headed to the fabulous vintage store Empire in Palo Alto.
Here we are with our friend Jasmine. She was so nice to send me the photos. I think I forgot my camera that day.
L-R: Ridlerette (Diana), Jasmine (80's Madonna) and Ring leader master (me)
The vintage Halloween queens. All of our clothing is from the Empire vintage store. We were decked out.
ahoy! dominating the untammed lions in every bike lane in this handsome town - hazaaaa!
the heartbreaker club.
Here are is a little bit more about the details of my make-up and bird earrings. I love how much fun those earrings are and the bowtie I have continued to use it for other customes since I got it. The polka-dotted blouse is also vintage as well as the top hat.
chirp chirp. these red lovebirds kept me updated on all kinds of gossip.
Did someone say custome -- because I have more alter-egos that I can count!
You know I already can't wait for Halloween this year!! I do live in San Francisco so, any excuse to dress up and play with make-up is pretty much the norm.


text:
This is NOT a short-term vacation rental
Imagine waking up in your luxury Mediterranean villa, with the soothing sound of the Pacific right outside your window. Step out through the beautifully manicured lawn to one of Maui's most beautiful beaches, where you can swim, sunbathe, snorkel, windsurf, surf, you name it!
This 800 sq.ft. gem is the BEST VALUE anywhere in the world! Complete kitchen, jacuzzi bath tub/shower, living room, dining area, queen-size bed room.
The cottage is connected to the Sea Breeze Villa, which is Maui's favorite and most beautiful villa and location on Maui.
Laundry facilities in garage, below the cottage. Ocean views from balcony. Easy access to beach (20 steps away), very close to Mama's Fish House (70 steps away).
Questions, comments, suggestions? Please let us know! Just call us at (847) 204-2642, email us, or fill in our contact form - we're here to serve!
131 Aleiki Place Paia, Hi. 96779 (847) 204-2642 Email Us
Home | Sea Breeze | Sea Breeze gallery | Dolphin Beach Hideaway | Dolphin Beach Hideaway gallery | About Maui | Links | Contact Us


text:
PinUp Red Sateen Restock Coming Soon! Join Our Email Newsletter To Be The First To Know!
Regular price $0.00 $21.00 Sale
An opaque liquid lipstick with a high shine true metallic finish. Once these gems dry down, they are long-wearing and transfer-resistant without a dry feeling to the lips. Can be paired with a lip primer or lip pencil for an optimal professional look.
Stargazer Liquid Lip Metal - A hot magenta pink metallic
Application Tip: On a clean, dry or freshly primed lip, use one to two swipes of the Liquid Lip Metal on your bottom lip to begin filling in the lip. Use the edge of the wand to trace the outline of the bottom lip. As hard as it may be, try to not rub lips together. Once bottom lip is filled in, apply using the same technique on the top lip. Allow a few minutes to dry and your liquid metallic lip look is complete!


text:
Voyance Montpellier
Fortune telling services you can trust in Montpellier
Fortune telling services of Montpellier
Clairvoyance is always stimulating curiosity. Discover its definition and how it works.
Definition of Perspective
Clairvoyance, in general, is a highly intuitive and psychologically aware ability that can be innately acquired or developed through spiritual practice later in life. These skills are varied and depend on the skills of the individual practicing them.
There are 6 types of clairvoyance.
classic view;
Empathy Vision
verbal vision
the vision of the prophet;
You can gain clairvoyance through healing or manifesting.
While the medium has the ability to communicate with the spiritual master or the deceased, the seer is defined as someone with extrasensory perception that enables them to obtain information about people, events, places or objects. As a result, prophets can feel, hear or see things invisible and invisible to ordinary mortals.
Montpellier (UK: , US: , French: [mɔ̃pəlje, -pɛl-] (listen); Occitan: Montpelhièr [mumpeˈʎɛ]) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the department of Hérault. In 2017, 285,121 people lived in the city, while its urban area had a population of 616,296. The inhabitants are called Montpelliérains. In the Middle Ages, Montpellier was an important city of the Crown of Aragon (and was the birthplace of James I), and then of Majorca, before its sale to France in 1349.
Aiguelongue, Aiguerelles, Alco, Antigone, Bagatelle, Beaux-Arts, Bologne, Boutonnet, Celleneuve, Cité Paul-Valéry, Courtarelles, Ctre Historique, Domain d'O, Estanove, Figuerolles


text:
Is this really it? This fall the world will see the final performances of two very different showmen for two very different reasons. Because Halloween is a time to blur the line between good taste and bad and between reality and fiction, we bring you Marat Safin's farewell tour. This Is It, folks. Whether we are talking about the King of Pop's untimely demise or the end of Marat Safin's supposedly unfilled career, we are all left with the same question: Too Soon?
(tsf illustration by troy venechanos)


text:
Even when it is chilly exterior, you can discover ways to start an indoor backyard. Vertical or pocket gardens are another great choice for growing herbs (as well as tropical vegetation and succulents). Parisians and other house dwellers residing in mainland European cities are often starved of outdoor space, so that they make the most of their balconies and indoor planting areas. Most of the schools we work with in New York and Chicago use our donated seedlings of their classrooms with tower gardens," says Nicole Baum, director of promoting and partnerships at Gotham Greens.
Plant in sheet moss placed in a wicker basket with an iron pedestal base, carry outside weekly for a watering, and place in oblique mild indoors. These are nice crops to have for a beginner gardener or only a cactus fanatic because they require minimal water, can develop distinctive nicely in all kinds of sunlight … Read the rest


text:
On The Spot Air Conditioning & Heating Plano
On The Spot Air Conditioning & Heating Plano Services
Are you looking for an HVAC company that can install or repair your HVAC system? If yes, On The Spot Air Conditioning & Heating Plano is the company you can count on for the job. We do AC installation, repair, and maintenance services. We also offer heating services such as furnace repair, tune-up, and installation. Besides, we have a team that provides duct services like air duct cleaning and dryer vent cleaning. Our HVAC company Plano has a well-trained team of HVAC technicians and other experts to offer exceptional services. We have the right equipment and install durable and effective AC units, furnaces, and other components. Please note that we offer product and workmanship warranties. Contact us now for more information.
Plano ( PLAY-noh) is a city in Collin County and Denton County, Texas, United States. It had a population of 285,494 at the 2020 census. It is a principal city of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. == History == European settlers came to the area near present-day Plano in the early 1840s. Facilities such as a sawmill, a gristmill, and a store soon brought more people to the area.
544 Place, Briar Meadow, Briarmeade, Carriage Hill, Castlemere, Creeks Of Willow Bend, Dallas North Estates, Deerfield North, Denham Village, Estates At Wooded Cove, Fairfax Hill, Forest Creek Estates, Forest Creek North, Glen Meadows, Greenhollow


text:
"She Changed the World!" commemorates the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th amendment to the U.S. constitution, giving women the right to vote. However, the passage of the 19th amendment was not the end of the struggle for women's suffrage and rights. Native American, African American, and Asian American women among others continued to be denied their right to vote well into the 20th century.
Today we remember those women who fought for women's suffrage, a fight that began in the 1840's. We recognize that the struggle for equal rights for women and justice for all continues. We acknowledge the numerous women in our communities who continue to contribute in personal and public ways to a better future. We celebrate a select group of those women who have changed the world. Their lives inspire us.
The final message of this display, "What will you do to change the world?" challenges each of us to think about the ways that we can have an impact on the lives of others. One person can make a difference, and in a democracy each person has not just the right but also the obligation to participate in creating a better future for all.
The members of the Chapel Hill and Durham chapters of NOW (National Organization for Women) are pledged to stand together for justice. We work locally and collaborate nationally for reproductive justice, economic equality, and protection from violence. We work toward a world in which a woman's safety and a woman's dignity are treated as inalienable rights. We are proud to be among the many local and national organizations that share these goals.
Geraldine A. Richards Chapel Hill NOW
Esther Barkley Durham NOW
To access individual posters and read the associated text, please click on the links below:
• Register to vote.
• Vote in every election – town, state, and national.
• Contact your town, state, and federal officials to let them know your concerns about an issue.
• Attend a town hall meeting.
• Participate in a NOW Chapter in your state.
Contact Chapel Hill NOW at email@example.com
Contact Durham NOW at email@example.com
• Attend a protest, rally, or demonstration.
• Pick an issue of personal interest and educate yourself.
• Access social media to spread the word.
• Get the press involved. Publicize your actions.
• Write a letter to the editor.
• Volunteer your time to back candidates whose platforms support the goal of justice for all.
• Encourage another to change the world through one of the actions listed.


text:
If you are looking to purchase Garyline promotional items, then look no further than IASpromotes.com. We are a select distributor of the complete Garyline line of promotional merchandise.
When you purchase any Gary Line (TM) Promotional Bottles Recycled Plastic Products USA from IASpromotes.com you are assured of receiving the best service, fast response and excellent pricing we are known for coupled with the quality merchandise and industry leading promotional products Garyline are known for and why we choose to partner with each other. So shop here for these specialty advertising products and any of our other custom printed and personalized advertising items.


text:
CANDLE : (1) Rumple Minze® 20 oz Candle With Wick
Color: White
Candle Scent: Non-Scented
Captivity: 16 OZ
Dimensions: 7in. Tall x 3.5
Number Of Wicks: 1
Approx. Burn Time: 40+ Hours
Packaged and safety labeled this candle is made from the actual recycled bottle. No label reproductions. Each unique bottle is hand cut and poured. The candle contains 100% soy wax for maximum burn time. Each is scented with our signature Premium Fragrance Oils designed to be a very pleasant fragrance. The beveled edge give the candle a nice finish on the top.


text:
Using a common wire: Safety PLCs with safety Ethernet
Specifying a safety PLC upfront in planning makes it possible to save significant time and money when designing the wiring and planning functionality of a project. Using Ethernet allows projects to do start/stop, speed references, and safety all over the same wire. One design used safety PLCs and safe I/O to include the guarding zones between presses.
Safety systems today are growing bigger and more intricate. As they do, so, too, grows the importance of keeping costs down while working faster. Specifying a safety PLC upfront in planning makes it possible to save significant time and money when designing the wiring and planning functionality of a project.
A systems integrator in Franklin, TN, and a Siemens Solutions Partner, Advanced Engineering and its technicians have designed and installed many systems with more than 100 safety I/O points. Using Ethernet allows them to do start/stop, speed references, and safety all over the same wire.
In the estimation of Advanced Engineering, the day is coming when everything will have safety Ethernet. Simply plug up to a device to obtain control, diagnostics, and safety from it. In addition, zones can be set up, and the device reset. In smart devices, such as a drive, other functions are available as well.
The integrator works extensively in the automotive industry and has installed safety systems with more than 200 I/O safety points. Typically, that number of I/O points requires a great deal of wiring. However, by distributing the I/O over Profinet using a Siemens Simatic S7-300F processer, wiring is reduced and operator safety enhanced significantly.
In one case, an automaker was setting up zones for robots and stamping presses. The original specification to safeguard the zones called for many safety relays. However, the automaker was concerned with the cost for a relay based system. The suggestion was made for a design using safety PLCs and safe I/O up front that included the guarding zones between the presses. The design also determined which functions to shut down for each zone to make it safe for the operators to enter a zone.
In this instance, the quote for using safety relays reached $100,000. Done with a safety PLC, the cost was reduced to about $60,000. In addition, the automaker has since modified the system, which would have been nearly impossible with relays and which would require costly downtime. With the safety PLC system, the automaker simply added new zones into the safety PLC logic, similar to programming a normal PLC.
Ultimately, using a safety PLC is more productive than relays. For example, one company installed a safety relay system on a line of machines. It estimated that unplanned downtime caused a 20% drop in productivity. In fact, the company's production charts revealed that as each machine was fitted with safety relays, productivity dropped 20% on average. On the other hand, safety PLCs are flexible, offer diagnostics, require few wires, and can accommodate distributed I/O points without the downtime.
If safety is approached as an afterthought, if becomes very difficult to retrofit it into an existing machine. However, incorporating safety into the design at the beginning of the process has shown time and again to be cost effective. Whether an integrator or a plant, it is possible to start small. For example, Siemens offers a small PLC with distributed ET200S I/O; the heads of the I/O have safety capabilities. As the system grows, it can accommodate a central processor that can control these remote heads and allow zones to be set up.
– Jim Neufeldt is president, Advanced Engineering, Franklin, TN; Edited by Jeanine Katzel, Control Engineering consulting editor. www.controleng.com.
Also read:
Integrated Safety and Motion;
Safety Sensors Rise to New Heights .
Do you have experience and expertise with the topics mentioned in this content? You should consider contributing to our CFE Media editorial team and getting the recognition you and your company deserve. Click here to start this process.


text:
Two groups of family-based immigrant visa categories, immediate relatives and family preference, are provided under the provisions of U.S. immigration law, specifically the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). You may wish to review our Directory of Visa Categories on usvisas.state.gov to learn more about these two categories of immigrant visas, as well as other types of immigrant visas to the United States, including our Diversity Visa Program.
To apply for an immediate relative or family preference immigrant visa, follow the steps on the Immigrant Visa Process on usvisas.state.gov. Once you have completed those steps, review the instructions given to you by the National Visa Center (NVC), along with the information presented on this website, for further guidance and instructions.


text:
Harvey Nichols Fashion Ads Deliver High Fashion Messaging
We're sure there's many different levels of inner meaning to these Harvey Nichols ads for its Beauty, Womenswear and Menswear lines sent to us by Adrants reader, Susannah, but we won't bore you with our analysis. Rather, we'll just point you to them and you can interpret them yourselves. DDB London did the ads.


text:
New Course at University of Illinois Corrects Animal Production Myths
A new course this spring at the University of Illinois will address false statements and emotional untruths being used to win the hearts and minds of the "typical" American consumer
March 24, 2010
A new course this spring at the University of Illinois will address false statements and emotional untruths being used to win the hearts and minds of the "typical" American consumer. The new course for animal science freshmen that teaches about these fundamental societal issues that are impacting the care and use of animals in production is titled "Contemporary Animal Issues."
University of Illinois associate professor in animal sciences Janeen Salak-Johnson will explore a new and increasingly important side of those sciences, addressing such topics as animal well-being, animal-environment interactions, domestication of animals and contributions to human welfare, biotechnology, food safety and societal and economic impacts of animal production.
"In the United States, animal agriculture has become a small island surrounded by an urban sea," Salak-Johnson says. "We need to teach our students how to reclaim the legitimacy of animal agriculture by leading with moral arguments based on science."
Science along with ethics and experience should drive the changes that animal agriculture will make in the future.
"Consumers want to know where their food comes from, that it is safe and, ultimately, affordable," she says. "We need to show them that our production practices are humane and based on science. Our students need to be exposed to the issues now so they are prepared when they enter the real world."
The new course is one example of major changes coming for the school's animal science curriculum in 2010-2011, to focus not only on courses, but also on how faculty create learning opportunities for students.
"The revised animal sciences curriculum is expected to provide a more integrated sequence of subject matter that will not only teach our students technical information, but help them develop a better sense of what it means to be a professional animal scientist and to understand the many career opportunities in this field,' remarks Neal Merchen, department head.
The revised curriculum's three components of a core curriculum, a specialization curriculum and a demonstration of learning provide students greater flexibility and options in their animal science major.
"For example, we may have a student now who hasn't taken genetics until senior year," says Walter Hurley, professor of animal sciences. "Even though we recommend a certain path, students aren't required to take classes in that order. Our revised curriculum develops a core foundation so a student like this could discover an interest in genetics early. Then, he or she could take more genetics classes in junior and senior year."
During their demonstration of learning, students will be urged to engage in internships, study abroad programs, academic teams and any other activities that extend beyond the formal classroom and share the knowledge they have gained with classmates.
"Animal agriculture is always changing," says Salak-Johnson. "We need to continually find ways to expand the influence our students will have in the future and arm them with the knowledge they need to be successful."
You May Also Like


text:
Viewing Record 916 of 1946Previous Record Next Record
Switch Views: Lightbox | Image List | List
Welcome to the archived version of the MIT Museum's online collections portal! This site was used to test features and content for the newly redesigned MIT Museum Collections site, which has now launched with over 106,000 objects. Please use the new MIT Museum Collections site for further research and discovery. Webmuseum.mit.edu remains online during the transition period but will not receive new updates or content.
Arthur Barnes
Named collection: Holography Collection
Object type: hologram
Maker: Perry, Hart
Date made: 1978
Materials: 120° integral stereogram (Multiplex); film
Measurements: 9 1/2 in x 19 in
Nomenclature: fine art
Classification: holograms
Rainbow-colored portrait of a bearded African-American man in glasses, suit and tie, shown seated in a chair; when the viewer stands to the left of hologram, he is shown in profile so that his right side is visible; his left hands are shown at the bottom in a slightly raised position; another black man's hand is seen on the far right side; as the viewer moves to the right, Barnes' position rotates so that he is looking straight out at the viewer; as the viewer moves left to right, he raises his hands and the hand on the right moves toward his hands, while a white woman's hand moves from the left side to his hands; when the viewer reaches the center, all 4 hands are clasped together at chest level in front of Barnes.
Please note that due to the unique challenges of holography as a medium, high-resolution digital images are not available for most items in the holography collection. Please contact us for more information on reproducing images of holograms.


text:
Some Verizon Investors Happy to Pay More for Vodafone Stake
By Sinead Carew and Kate Holton
NEW YORK and LONDON -- Some shareholders of Verizon say they could be happy for the company to pay up to $130 billion for Vodafone's stake in their U.S. wireless venture.
Reuters reported last week that Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) had hired advisers to prepare a $100 billion cash-and-stock bid for Vodafone Group PLC's (VOD) 45 percent stake in Verizon Wireless, though several major Vodafone investors have said that figure is inadequate.
Two large shareholders in Verizon told Reuters they could be comfortable with paying 20 percent to 30 percent more to secure the No. 1 U.S. mobile service provider, which generates 66 percent of Verizon's revenue and almost all of its profit.
"No way do I dream that $100 billion is going to get this deal done. It's just not going to happen," said Craig Leopold, portfolio manager at Columbia Management Investment advisers.
His firm, with $341 billion assets under management, is Verizon's 10th-largest shareholder with 22 million shares, according to the latest publicly available records.
"I think shareholders would be willing to accept a price as high as $130 billion because it would still be accretive to Verizon. But the preference would be a lower price like $120 billion," Leopold said.
Verizon declined to comment on what it might be willing to pay for full ownership of Verizon Wireless, and it isn't clear if the company would be willing to go beyond $100 billion, which would already be the third-largest deal on record.
Sponsored Links
Spending so much on the business isn't without risk for Verizon: there are few cost-savings to be had, and the mature U.S. mobile market is expected to become a much tougher place to compete in due to strengthening rivals and slowing growth, analysts said.
Not all Verizon shareholders are happy about the company shelling out big bucks. Bill Jones, president of the Association of BellTel Retirees, said he sees strategic benefits from such a deal, but worries that Verizon will overpay. About 72 percent of his group's 128,000 members own Verizon shares.
"If they can't afford $8.5 billion to put the pension fund on a good footing, how are they going to come up with $130 billion to pay Vodafone?" said Jones, who is currently surveying the BellTel members to estimate their collective holdings.
Verizon Chief Executive Lowell McAdam told analysts this week that he didn't believe a premium would be needed to buy the stake, and warned Vodafone of a "lean" year for dividend payments from their wireless venture.
On the plus side, there are no obvious integration costs from such a transaction as the wireless venture is already run by Verizon. The deal would immediately boost earnings per share as Verizon would keep 100 percent of profits.
Leopold estimated Verizon could lift its 2014 earnings per share by more than 20 percent if it bought the Vodafone stake for $120 billion, or by about 15 percent if it paid $130 billion.
Analyst estimates for a likely price tag range from $108 billion to $139 billion. Vodafone shareholders have suggested a $120 billion price.
"$125 billion to $130 billion is a number I would be comfortable with," said Mike Wetherington, an analyst at Barrow, Hanley, Mewhinney & Strauss, who makes the official recommendation to the firm on how his firm should vote on telecom issues.
Barrow Hanley has $77 billion assets under management and is Verizon's 16th-biggest shareholder with 16.82 million shares. The firm also holds 9.88 million of Vodafone's shares, according to Reuters data.
Credit Rating Impact
According to people familiar with the matter, Verizon would likely have to line up at least $50 billion of debt to put in a 50-50 cash-and-stock bid for Vodafone's stake.
Paying a high cash price could weigh on Verizon's future dividend or its credit rating. Research firm Gimme Credit said raising debt for a deal could cut Verizon's rating two notches.
And the more shares it uses for a deal, the more dilution existing shareholders face. Morgan Stanley analyst Simon Flannery said a stock award could also cause problems for Vodafone shareholders, as some cannot keep Verizon shares.
Working in Vodafone's favor, however, is Verizon's public stance that it is keen to buy the asset. Market conditions are also good, with funding costs low, preferable foreign exchange rates and Verizon share at levels not seen since October 2000.
The discussion of price for Vodafone's stake in the venture, formed in 2000, follows years of speculation that the British firm could sell out of its most important asset. Growing expectations for a deal have boosted shares in both companies over 20 percent his year.
Smaller investor Reaves Asset Management would prefer a deal as close to $100 billion as possible but could support more depending on the structure, portfolio manager Louis Cimino said.
"At $125 billion we'd look at it very carefully. Under the right mix of cash and stock that could work. It obviously gets riskier," said Cimino, whose fund manages under $3 billion in assets including a little more than 2 million Verizon shares.
Investor and analyst estimates all assume Verizon will pay with a mixture of shares and cash, which it could raise through a debt offering. With this in mind analysts estimate that Verizon could pay a valuation of between seven and nine times Verizon Wireless' estimated operating earnings.
In comparison, Verizon in 2009 paid about 8 times earnings estimates for rural wireless operator Alltel.


text:
BNLer Alistair Rogers' Third Intel Semifinalist Named Last Week
Mentored by Rogers, Kennedy High School senior Benjamin November's research to improve representation of photosynthesis in models for climate change projections
January 16, 2014
Braving the bugs in Alaska, Brookhaven Lab's Alistair Rogers and his colleague Stefanie Lasota collect the leaves Intel semifinalist Benjamin November analyzed for his research project (Photo: Roy Kaltschmidt)
Alistair Rogers of Brookhaven Lab's Environmental Sciences Department received good news on Jan. 8, when he found out a student he mentored—Benjamin November, a senior at John F. Kennedy High School in Bellmore, N.Y.—was named a semifinalist in this year's prestigious Intel Science Talent Search. Rogers has now mentored three Intel semifinalists in the past four years.
Alistair Rogers, a plant physiologist in Brookhaven Lab's Environmental Sciences Department, has now mentored three Intel semifinalists in the past four years.
November was selected for his project analyzing samples of plant leaves Rogers collected in Alaska hundreds of miles north of the Arctic Circle. By measuring the leaves' nitrogen content and thickness, November provided new data that can be used to calculate Arctic plants' capacity for taking up carbon dioxide, a key component for models used to project future climate change.
"Ben was able to think beyond his data set to see wider implications of his results, a skill you don't often see in a high school student," said Rogers.
November, who lives in Merrick, is one of 300 semifinalists selected from 1,794 entrants representing 489 high schools in 45 states, Washington D.C., and seven schools overseas. Through the annual Intel Science Talent Search, a program of Society for Science & the Public, he and every other semifinalist will receive an award of $1,000. An additional $1,000 is awarded to each student's school for furthering its excellence in science, technology, and engineering education.
Benjamin November, a senior at John F. Kennedy High School in Bellmore and a semifinalist in this year's prestigious Intel Science Talent Search, was selected for his research that will be used to project future climate change.
"This huge accomplishment is the result of Ben's hard work and dedication with Alistair's commitment to science and inspiring our young, up-and-coming scientists," said Barbi Frank, a research teacher at Kennedy High School who taught November and Rogers' other two semifinalists as well. Including November, Kennedy High School had a total of three semifinalists this year.
November's research with Rogers was part of the Next Generation Ecosystem Experiments (NGEE-Arctic) project, which is supported by the Office of Biological and Environmental Research in the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science.
At 7 a.m. on Jan. 22, November and his fellow semifinalists will find out who among them is chosen to go on as one of 40 finalists. Those finalists will be invited to attend the Intel Science Talent Institute in Washington D.C. March 6–12 and share $630,000 in awards.
2014-4568 | INT/EXT | Newsroom


text:
Dude Falls Asleep While Robbing House
A man who fell asleep while robbing a house was arrested in Washington County in Oregon. How exactly does one fall asleep while committing a crime? Possibly a raging case of narcolepsy? Well, that or you are a complete and total idiot, not to mention an amateur when it comes to being a criminal.
Cristian Villarreal-Castillo was jacking valuables from a home in Washington County, Oregon on Friday (Sept. 21). Cops were called to the location at around 5AM when the resident claimed that an unknown man was sleeping on the kitchen floor. The perp entered the home through an unlocked door but crashed out while ransacking the crib. Steal some stuff. Take a nap. All in a day's work.
The sleeper has been charged with two counts of burglary, attempted theft, trespassing and criminal mischief and was held at Washington County Jail. He had other items believed to have been stolen elsewhere on him, including a GPS and other electronics.
Hopefully he got a full 8 hours in lock-up.


text:
Karol Bobko
Karol Bobko is an American astronaut who was born on December 23, 1937 in New York City. Before he became an astronaut, Bobko was a pilot for the Air Force.
Bobko became an astronaut in 1969. He has flown on three space missions spending over 386 hours in space.
In 1983, Bobko piloted the first flight of shuttle Challenger. In 1985, he flew aboard shuttle Discovery where he helped deploy two satellites. Bobko flew a second time in 1985, aboard the first flight of shuttle Atlantis.


text:
In many ways the hero of the western genre has it easy. They're often tough as nails, a sure and expert shot with a six-shooter or two, and can meet any threat with a steely-eyed resolve. While their opponents can be formidable, in the end these adversaries will be not quite as brave, tough, or good with a gun.
That was what made the portrayal of the character of Will Kane so jarring in the 1952 film High Noon. America was familiar with the western, ranging from well-made dramas to B-grade outings with comedy and song. The plot is a familiar enough one: the lawman of a small frontier town receives word that a bad man and sworn enemy has been released from jail and is en route to meet up with his gang. Revenge is promised and a showdown inevitable.
But already Kane is reluctant to face his old nemesis. Newly married to a Quaker wife (played by Grace Kelly), Kane only wants to retire from his position as Marshal and ride off with his bride — which he actually does at first at the behest of his friends. But he can't.
Instinctively, Kane knows that he will have to face his enemy, Frank Miller, eventually and he decides that he'd rather do it at his home with a badge and a gun. Here the plot deviates from formula as Kane receives no help from his old friends and even his new wife is urging him to flee. His attempts to recruit deputies is an abject failure and his current deputy will only help if he's promised the job of Marshal — a position Kane does not believe he's fit for.
The town is unanimous: despite the crimes Frank Miller has committed or the fact that collectively they outnumber his gang several times over they want Will Kane to take the fight elsewhere. They want no part of it.
Alone and betrayed, Kane is understandably terrified. He has lost his long-time friends, his wife, and soon he is likely to loose his life as Miller is due to arrive by train at high noon. Gary Cooper does an excellent job of portraying Kane's fear without seeming cowardly. But despite having lost everything he refuses to run. He will face Frank Miller no matter how terrified he is.
In movies we're accustomed to seeing the hero face down and defeat armies of opponents as if it were merely a day at the office. That is what made High Noon special for its time. Will Kane is understandably fearful in facing a gang single-handedly and knows he would likely face defeat, but he stays anyway.
Still not all appreciated the film and it is said that the later film western, 1959's Rio Bravo starring John Wayne, is a counter-point to High Noon. Both films have their merits and both have their own depiction of heroism. But High Noon has, I think, the most telling portrayal of a hero. The story of a man, who while completely terrified, opts to stay and do the right thing regardless of the cost.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
The author, Jesse Schultz, really does live in the West and frequently becomes nervous when the clock strikes twelve. Two of his previous blog posts on Merlin and The Makers of Fire will appear in our new book Heroic Leadership: An Influence Taxonomy of 100 Exceptional Individuals.


text:
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (April 2, 2013) – Bobby Fong did not disappoint at this year's GEICO Motorcycle AMA Pro Road Racing season opener at Daytona. Third-place finishes in both the DAYTONA 200 and the lone AMA Pro Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson Series race are strong indications that Fong is showing up to play in 2013. The Stockton, California product made the switch to ride for RMR/Triple Crown Industries this season and the move looks to be paying off quite nicely.
"Richie (Morris) is a great teacher and an excellent businessman," said Fong. "He and I have become great friends ever since we started working together. He has helped me quite a bit as far as speaking with my sponsors and how to promote myself a lot better. Overall, I'm very pleased with how smoothly everything has gone with my newly assembled team this year."
Though Fong is pleased with his third-place efforts at Daytona to kick off the 2013 season, he still isn't completely satisfied and won't settle with any results other than perfection.
"The whole team did really well at Daytona," said Fong. "Third-place is something to be proud of and to build off of, but I'm not content with just that. My team and I know what we have to do in order to prepare ourselves for Road America. Personally, I plan on shredding a few pounds to be as light on the bike as possible to give myself the absolute best chance to come away with a win."
After racing in just his first career AMA Pro Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson Series race in 2012, Fong looks to complete a full season's worth of races on both his Harley-Davidson as well as in AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike competition in 2013. Expect Fong and fellow teammate Michael Barnes, defending AMA Pro Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson Champion, to split time atop the box on multiple occasions this season.
As far as the 2013 AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike season is concerned, Fong has a world of confidence in himself and his team moving forward. When asked about Yamaha Extended Service/Graves riders Cameron Beaubier and Garret Gerloff, and their excellent first and second-place performances in the DAYTONA 200, and how whether or not he would be able to hang with them, Fong responded with; "I'm very confident that we have the machinery and personnel to have what it takes in order to compete with anyone in the AMA Pro GoPro Daytona SportBike class. Cameron and Garret are elite competitors and I have a lot of respect for them. I love competing against guys like them because it brings out the best in me. There's no doubt this is going to be a very exciting season."
Learn more Future Looks Bright for Versatile Bobby Fong on VANCE & HINES NEWS


text:
The economy of Mauritius is a middle-income diversified economy with growing industrial, financial, and tourist sectors.
Port Louis is the capital of Mauritius. It is the largest city of the country and main port. The economy of Port Louis is dominated by its port, which handles Mauritius' international trade. Manufacturing is dominated by clothing and textiles, but also includes chemicals, plastics, and pharmaceuticals.
Port Louis has an overall cost of living index which equates it with middle cost of living locations. The overall cost of living index is comprised of the prices for defined quantities of the same goods and services across all 13 Basket Groups.
The latest cost of living rank for each of the 13 Basket Groups is now available.


text:
Real Yoga with Swami Harinanda - Free Yoga Lessons |
Search |
December 25, 1928 to August 19, 2014
Sadly, I must inform you that Swami Harinanda passed away early in the afternoon on Tuesday, August 19, 2014. His death came quickly and without pain. As per his wishes there was no service nor memorial, although he would have appreciated donations to the SPCA or any animal shelter that you like. It goes without saying that this one–of–a–kind and great man will be greatly missed.
I first came to know Swami Harinanda around 1995. He was a customer of mine. One way or another, we got talking about spirituality and he mentioned to me that he was a swami. I must admit, I thought he was joking. But then I realized he was serious. We corresponded by email. Amazingly, I still have a printed copy of his early emails to this day.
Swami Harinanda was able to answer some of my basic questions about yoga and although I had started on the yogic path before I met him, talking to and knowing Swami Harinanda helped make my path more clear.
I was lucky enough to have met Swami Harinanda for the first time in April, 1996. I can remember the first time I met him as I drove up to his house. He came outside to greet me — I felt a great sense of joy and calm come over me.
The next day, Swami Harinanda personally taught me the science of yantra yoga at his dining table. I wrote down the principles of yantra yoga on both sides of a blank piece of paper as Swami Harinanda talked. It was a beautiful moment for me — finally my teacher had come. These lessons I still have to this day and still act as my foundation regarding yantra yoga.
Starting around late 1996 to 1997, I helped Swami Harinanda build an early web site. Later we expanded and moved his web site to this current location real-yoga.com. Swami Harinanda wanted people to see the words real yoga
— he wanted people to awaken to the truth of what real yoga is not. Swami Harinanda was not interested in yoga for health.
While building the real yoga
web site, Swami Harinanda didn't know what information we should add. So I suggested to him that we should add informaton that is not easily found elsewhere regarding real yoga. I told Swami Harinanda that myself and others want to know why we should practice yoga, what are the types of yoga, who are some famous yogis and a lesson in pure hatha yoga. So this is what we did. I asked the questions, Swami Harinanda wrote the content.
Swami Harinanda was a pure teacher. He would never accept money for teaching. Yoga or spirituality is part of universal knowledge that belongs to everyone. Therefore, one cannot charge for what already belongs to them. Swami Harinanda always said that a good teacher has a day job and then teaches on his or her own time for free. The teacher should pay for any room rental, etc — this is the sign of a pure teacher which Swami Harinanda was.
Swami Harinanda was taught or told personally by Ramana Marharshi to never accept payment and as Swami Harinanda would always say, Ramana Maharshi is never wrong.
Swami Harinanda did not go to meet Ramana Maharshi in India, instead, they met on the astral plane. Ramana told Swami Harinanda that he did not need to be in a cave or anything like that to be a good student of yoga. Swami Harinanda took those words to heart and lived a normal life while being totally dedicated to self realization.
Swami Harinanda knew many little or lesser known things about yoga. He really studied the theory of yoga and put himself into a position to meet people that would impact him. Somewhere along the way he learned the Master's Chant
, as an example, and many more things. Swami Harinanda would openly teach kriya yoga as well. Swami Harinanda loved the yogic life and just absorbed every little detail.
In 1996, I was personally quite ill and possibly near death. Swami Harinanda gave me the book on Karma Yoga by Swami Vivekanda to read. It was the best medicine I've ever received. From that day onwards, I fell madly in love with karma yoga. Knowing this, Swami Harinanda bestowed the name Karmananda
to me. I thank him very much for this honour.
Swami Harinanda was a good teacher, a good person and a good friend.
- Yogi Karmananda
jaideemarketing-karmananda -a-t- yahoo.com ... replace
More Information | ||||||
Advertisements: Warning: Use of undefined constant Y - assumed 'Y' (this will throw an Error in a future version of PHP) in /usr/home/ganteng/real-yoga.com/_txt/calculations.php on line 116 Warning: Use of undefined constant n - assumed 'n' (this will throw an Error in a future version of PHP) in /usr/home/ganteng/real-yoga.com/_txt/calculations.php on line 159 Warning: Use of undefined constant M - assumed 'M' (this will throw an Error in a future version of PHP) in /usr/home/ganteng/real-yoga.com/_txt/calculations.php on line 221 Warning: Use of undefined constant F - assumed 'F' (this will throw an Error in a future version of PHP) in /usr/home/ganteng/real-yoga.com/_txt/calculations.php on line 230 March's Numerology Influences For People Born On November 27... This is a month where successes begin to flower (materialize). The potential of your efforts is revealed, for better of for worse, depending on the quality of previous life choices. The influences of this month encourage you to become introspective as self revelation begins allowing you to see yourself more clearly… it's at this time you can say "I made the correct choices" or "What a fool I was". Enjoy the full bloom (success) of this month or investigate why there was rot (failures). This is a good time to take a bit of a rest… a sabbatical in a way. Take a break from the rat race of life this month by being a humanitarian… give back by embracing the spirit of universal love, sincerity and understanding while doing charity work or something similar. Love Influences For March: There is a possibility that you will feel misunderstood this month. If so, go for a walk in the park to clear your mind. While this is a month in which your relationship can begin to flower, it's also a month in which your relationship can be full of turmoil if your relationship is built upon a bad foundation. This can drain your nervous system. Relationships started this month will usually not last longer than 2 months. This only relates to new relationships rather than relationships that have been developing for a while. Write a love letter… take the time to also express your love by serving your partner with unconditional love. 2024's Numerology Influences For People Born On November 27...2 Year Cycle — Development, Nurture Through Association This year is known as the rooting period. This is a year in which you will want to water that seed you planted in the 1 cycle and give it warmth. Take care of what you began in the 1 year cycle by cultivating the seed so it begins to grow. Nurture and be gentle with the life. Water the plant and till the soil and feed the earth. This is all pertaining to the new venture started in your 1 year cycle. Health Influences For 2024: Take care of your health this year, especially your kidneys. Consider taking care of your body fluids such as helping to keep your blood pure and healthy. |
real-yoga.com is professionally designed by Jai Dee Marketing. All Rights Reserved. All text that is intellectual property is © Copyright 1999 - 2024 by Swami Harinanda and Jai Dee Marketing. Legal action will be taken against violators. |


text:
Expanding our moral universe
The United Nations University International Human Dimensions Programme recently ran a writing contest with a focus on the human dimensions of the Green Economy. Young scholars from all over the world were invited to submit their articles, with those from developing countries particularly encouraged to take part. Our World 2.0 is pleased to share the winning entry by Joy Merwin Monteiro who is currently completing his Ph.D. at the Centre for Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences at the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore
by Joy Merwin Monteiro | OurWorld 2.0 | March 30, 2012
Energy is a fundamental necessity for life, let alone a vigorous society or civilization. This fact has been recognized by humans for a very long time — Sun, Wind, Fire and Water (in the form of rivers and waterfalls and rain), worshipped by most cultures, are manifestations of energy in one form or the other. The main difference between pre-industrial times and the present day is that we have restricted our worship only to Fire, neglecting the others almost entirely. Why this became the case, and as humanity again pays due attention to the other Gods again, what entities must again return into our moral equations, is what this essay tries to describe.
Sun, Wind and Water are, by nature, non-constant but rhythmic entities. The sun is up every day, but disappears during the night, winds change according to seasons, some rivers dry up in the summer and others flood during the rains and still nobody understands perfectly how the rains come and go.
Other important aspects of these sources of energy are that they are diffuse and not easy to store. Sunlight, wind and flowing water cannot be stored by themselves, but must be converted to some other form that can be stored. Such entities are normally called "fluxes", and they are the most natural form in which energy is present around us. Even the purest form of energy that we know, electricity, is a flux and has to be converted to chemical energy in batteries before it can be stored.
The fact that these sources were hard to handle and diffuse (or not concentrated) was counterbalanced by the fact that they are, for all practical purposes, eternal. A European sailor planning to come to India to trade had to plan his visit to catch the monsoon winds, but he did not need to fear that these winds would stop some day. If today is cloudy, you can sun-dry your vegetables tomorrow. Pre-industrial society's entire existence revolved around recognizing this variability and developing means to "harvest" this energy. Economic, social and cultural activity revolved around this ebb and flow of energy. Agriculture, wind/water mills were among the primary methods of harvesting this flux of energy, converting it into stocks of energy (in food grains) or using it immediately.
The main issue with these "gods", as mentioned above, is that they are quite moody. Thus, those human activities that had to happen without break, everyday, like cooking for example, could not depend on them. It was Fire that came to our rescue.
© IHDP Secretariat/Louise Smith
Constant movement
Before moving onto the miracle of fire, it is necessary to analyse the moral universe of a person in a pre-industrial society. By necessity, a lot of objects in the world needed to be incorporated into her moral decision-making, the way she would decide something was "good" or "bad". The rhythms of nature that manifest themselves in the movement of the sun, the seasons, flowering of plants, migration of animals, fruiting of trees were very important. Any activity that did not fit into this rhythm was not desirable. Restrictions on grazing, fishing, hunting, leaving land fallow, plucking flowers and fruits at certain times in the year are all indicators of the consciousness that humans depend to a very large extent on natural cycles over which they have no control. Therefore, any decision on the goodness or badness of any activity depended on the season, the time and the natural environment we found ourselves in. This was not due to altruism or an abstract love for nature, but due to sheer necessity.
Fire is unlike others in this pantheon. Rather than being energy in itself, it is a signature of a source of energy. Not only that, it indicates the presence of a highly concentrated source of energy. Sunlight in itself cannot become fire, but when concentrated through a lens or a mirror, it can become a very destructive fire as Archimedes discovered. Fire also yields easily to his worshippers, you can switch him on and off at will, once you have mastered the art. Therefore, it was but natural that those human activities that required constancy were built upon the foundation of fire. As long as there was fuel available, fire was there, regardless of time, region or season.
It is therefore not surprising that Prometheus, the one who gave fire to mankind in Greek mythology, is treated as a great champion of mankind. If gods are defined to be the masters of humanity, then fire, in giving us greater control over our own destiny, made us gods. The fundamental reason for this capacity of fire is that it depends on stocks of energy already stored and not the eternal fluxes that surround us at all times.
As humanity grew from being primarily agricultural to also indulging in trade and commerce, the prominence of fire grew very rapidly. The reason for this lies in the very nature of trade and commerce — it is the movement of things, people, ideas and cultures and all movement requires energy in one form or the other.
Controlling trade to some extent means controlling the energy that drives it. For this reason, initial trade (and, by implication, industry) was driven by animal and human (slave) power, firewood and sail boats. Mankind was making the move from harvesting energy to "mining" it from forests, animals and other, more unfortunate humans.
From the point of view of the enterprising businessman or trader, constant movement (of something or other) was required — movement implied trade and trade implied profit. Not only was constancy attractive to the trader, but also to every section of humanity: constancy implied security and it increased the natural capacity of humans to build upon their ancestor's work. In this sense, it is a hallmark of civilization itself. This demand for constancy was at odds with what we had to work with — seasonal winds, disobedient labourers, lazy slaves and rapidly depleting forests that simply did not grow back as fast as we wanted.
It is from this point of view that the shift to coal (and later to oil) must be seen. It reduced the necessity to include the multitude of objects that previously entered our moral equations. Mankind could finally look inward and achieve magnificent progress without too many worries about what was happening in the non-human world. This was the era in which both the pessimists and the optimists, when discussing the future of the world, were simply discussing the future of the human species. Nature did not matter, for sooner or later we would completely conquer it anyway.
Fossil fuel-based transport, electricity to drive industries and homes, pesticides and fertilizers, which made agriculture less of a gamble, all combined together to provide the constancy we wanted and ensured a period of unparalleled prosperity and population growth. A mining civilization had more or less replaced the harvesting one. Fire was now our one and true God.
With fire came a profound shift in the way we worked and viewed the world. Farmers who could previously grow certain crops only at certain times of the year, could now grow them all around the year. People who previously aligned work and leisure with the sun and seasons now relied on casual leave, medical leave and government holidays. We began to work all year round, eat strawberries all year round and live in houses that were maintained at 27°C all year round. Corporations set up branches all over the world, so that the sun never set on their empires, forcing people to stay awake when they are supposed to sleep and vice-versa. Like the Red Queen in Alice in Wonderland, we had to keep running to stay in the same place. Constancy was showing us that it was not all great, after all.
The severe jolt
It is therefore not surprising that, gradually, what was "good" and "bad" was decided by taking ever fewer objects into consideration, the logical conclusion of which came to be enshrined in the Homo economicus. To be fair, a life driven by coal and oil does not provide one with the time to do otherwise. Nothing but a severe jolt to the sensibility of humans could shake them out of their breathless but optimistic race towards an ever-receding perfection.
One by one, every resource that humanity has mined over the past few hundred years has either withered away or stood up in revolt. The first signs came when the humans being mined for their energy and skill revolted under the banners of communism and socialism. The frenetic movement that characterises our era moved diseases, plants and animals to places where they were not known, not always with good results. Agriculture is currently under siege by stubborn insects that simply refuse to be eradicated, no matter what is thrown at them. The oceans are nearly empty of fish, and the sky full of gases that threaten to heat our planet beyond the capacities of our best air-conditioners. When you play with fire, it is unlikely you won't get burnt.
Slowly but surely, and somewhat reluctantly, humanity is beginning to realize that an inward looking civilization simply cannot survive forever. Those unsightly trees and insects will always have to be part of our culture, no matter what we do. The first few steps towards this consciousness have been taken (somewhat ironically) by identifying the rhythms of the Sun, Wind, Water and Life itself. Scientists are mapping out what are the best places to harvest solar energy, what areas of the world have high wind energy potential, hydroelectric potential and what places have large biodiversity. Modifying crops to suit local circumstances, using biological control for pests, understanding the response of ecosystems to our activities are under way. In essence, what was known before, and conveniently forgotten, is being painfully relearnt in a more "scientific" manner. Our moral universe is slowly but surely being reclaimed from the wasteland to which it was condemned for the past few hundred years.
However, as we are making this shift, a very fundamental contradiction arises — our civilization, still predominantly a mining one, wants to be driven by technologies that belong to a harvesting civilization. We demand the constancy that we have been used to for many generations, and which we idolize as the epitome of civilization, but we hope this constancy will be driven by technologies that are moody, uncontrollable and unanswerable to anyone.
This contradiction is manifesting itself in many contemporary debates and concerns: Can organic farming feed the world as it is designed today? How can solar thermal plants run round the clock? How can we design an electricity grid that is smart enough to provide constant power supply when connected to solar and wind installations? How can we design newer batteries and fuel cells to shelter us against the vagaries of the Sun, Wind and Water? What are the "sustainable" pollution levels that our skies and oceans can tolerate?
That we can go back to a completely harvesting society is a pipe dream, similar to the nineteenth century dreams of infinite progress and complete social equality. But it is equally apparent that unless our moral decision-making does not encompass at least a larger part of our natural and social environments, we cannot achieve what we cherish and aspire toward. The energy industry has always sought to modify consumer behaviour through prices. However, given that the largest consumers are those that are also the most affluent, it is questionable how effective this strategy will be in the future. It is unlikely that a person living in a house with an A/C, goes to work in an office with an A/C and travels in a car with an A/C will even relate to the symptoms of global warming.
Moral decision-making must include a notion of duties towards other beings, human, non-human and even non-living. Some actions must be performed simply because we consider them to be our duty towards others. Our moral universe must not be one forged in Fire, but also kissed by the Sun and caressed by the Winds and Water. Most importantly, as these elements come together in the glorious phenomenon called Life, the survival and prosperity of all life must be embodied within our notions of justice. Our happiness and survival depend on an intricate web of causality that encompasses everything from simple molecules to the well-being of the vast oceans. May it never be thought of otherwise.
This article was first published in the inaugural issue of Dimensions, a new publication from the UNU International Human Dimensions Programme.
Read more... Sphere: Related Content