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Rookie Blue Review: Walking TargetsChristine Orlando at .
All of 15 Division was "Under Fire" on this edition of Rookie Blue - and no one was immune to the consequences.
It all start innocent enough... well, maybe innocent isn't the right word.
Nick and Andy were perfecting their version of morning exercises and their technique didn't involve the risk of shin splints. I know all of the McSwarek fans hate it but every week these two become a more appealing couple. They're honest with one another. They seem in sync emotionally and they have fun.
On the flip side, Sam and Marlo were anything but in sync. Marlo was pulling back as she took her leave of absence and was staying with her sister. She needed the space to pull herself back together. And in an odd sort of role reversal, Sam was pushing her to stay connected.
The shooting in the park was truly frightening. One moment Chloe was joking with Andy about her secret relationship with Nick. I couldn't help but laugh when in this Rookie Blue quote Chloe told Andy…
Nick's great. I mean, if I wasn't climbing Dov mountain I would be all over that. | permalink
Only Chloe could make a line like that sound oddly sweet.
When Andy slowly turned around to find Chloe still standing in front of her with blood seeping through the fingers around her neck, it was a truly horrifying moment. The fact that Chloe didn't simply fall unconscious after the gun shot, that she was talking and bleeding and terrified... it made it feel all the more real.
Andy stepped up in those moments. As scared as she was she kept her head, called it in and pulled Chloe to safety all while they continued to take fire.
To find out later that Chloe has a husband was a definite surprise. I didn't see that one coming any more than Dov did. But hearing how she and Wes wed impulsively during a weekend at Niagara Falls sounded completely in character.
I know it was an awkward situation, but Chloe and Wes were obviously separated, or at least how he said, I must still be her emergency contact, certainly gave that impression. I wish Dov had told Wes that he and Chloe were dating.
Dov was blindsided but I hope he mans up and decides to fight for Chloe. They're just too darn cute together.
Speaking of cute, once again Steve Peck won me over. He was worried about Traci going out on the street to search for the sniper but he respected her job and didn't try to dissuade her. Instead he offered to team up.
Then he said exactly what was on his mind. He asked Traci why she didn't want him to meet Leo and then he made it clear that he was serious about her. Not only was it incredibly sweet but it was so completely refreshing to have a character be so direct and honest about their feelings without hesitation. If Traci's not a little in love with Steve Peck, I think I am.
And wasn't it great to finally get some sort of follow up on Noelle? I've really missed her this season and now that she's officially cancer free, I hope we get to see a lot more of her in season five.
The only surprise about Gail and Holly's kiss was that Gail initiated it. I really would have thought it would have been the other way around. It was fun to see how off kilter they both were from the experience It will be intriguing to find out where this couple goes from here.
The last half of the episode had me wondering who was going to get shot next. When Celery showed up frantic after her encounter with Kevin Ford, I immediately hated the thought of him targeting Oliver. 15 Division would lose its heart without Shaw.
Then it looked like Ford's focus was on Marlo. As she walked in her bare feet across the wood floor in nothing but her bathrobe, I had my heart in my throat. It felt as though I was walking beside her. All I could think during those few agonizing seconds was where is her gun?!?
Thankfully it was Sam and Andy at her door. Those two had had quite a day.
Sam was completely focused on the case and protecting Marlo. The one thing that definitely got his attention was watching Andy kiss Nick before he went out on patrol. If Sam was unclear about Nick and Andy's relationship, he certainly isn't now. And if the kiss wasn't enough, the fact that Andy shared all of the behind the scenes details of the Kevin Ford case with Nick showed just how much she trusts her new boyfriend.
The question is, now that Sam knows how serious Andy and Nick are, will he do anything about it?
Of course the other side of that question is, will he have the chance?
Now that Ford has Oliver and is still gunning for 15 Division, is anyone safe? What's your guess on who will live, who will die, and who will still be a couple as we head into the Rookie Blue season 4 finale?
C. Orlando is a TV Fanatic Staff Writer. Follow her on Twitter.


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Animal Friends
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The following links are in
4MomsAtHome - Kids' Page
Games, free stuff, links to cool and educational sites. Visit the worksheet page too for free puzzle pages and worksheets.
Activities and Themes
A variety of preschool theme and activitiy ideas!
Adventures with Posnayko
Adventures with Posnayko - an online educational magazine for children 4 - 7. A fun way to learn - cool games, stories, pictures, jokes, and music. A family friendly site - no chat, no violence, and no advertising. Kids and parents love it!
A fun Place for kids
fun educational website for ALL!
A fun place for kids online.
Kbears.com offers students, parents and teachers a free, and innovative learning environment.
Barcode Software for Mac
Barcode Software for Macintosh computers. Extensive Know-How section on barcode related topics.
Caregiver Resources
Resources and activity ideas for preschool teachers and child care providers. Recipes, theme ideas, fingerplays and more!
Here is an easy way to tap into a comprehensive curriculum of interactive chess instruction. Students are able to progress through the curriculum at their own pace and receive immediate feedback on their performance.
Don Crownover's Bible Puzzles
This is just a new web address (and new email) for my site which is already listed, but I did not see anything for updating.
FEKids.com makes learning fun and interactive for children of all ages, Pre-K - 12. FEKids.com combines interactive, educational games; special projects; instant homework help; and a reference area. FEKids helps students succeed in school, build skills, and have fun -- all in one online location!
Felt Board Stories.Com
Similar to the flannelboard stories of yesterday, but of much higher quality, the Story Teller felt products answer these concerns in many ways: They provide a delightfully entertaining educational tool - kids have so much fun, they don't even know they're learning! Felt products promote creative play and exploration (good for Kids), and they are completely washable and durable (good for Mom). Many activities are offered with an optional accompanying audio tape of stories, rhymes, and songs for a true multi-sensory experience.
Free Kids Games
Contains many games, puzzles, jigsaws, coloring pages, songs and jokes.
Free Worksheets, Craft Ideas, and More at Kambini Kids!
Enjoy FREE printable worksheets teaching and reinforcing the alphabet, numbers, shapes, and more. We also have kid craft ideas, articles for parents and teachers, and a message board to help you share your thoughts, ideas, and questions!
Girl Scouts of Big Sky Council
Girl Scouts of Big Sky Council, a not-for-profit organization, serves the thirty western counties of Montana. Eighty-two Service Units (geographic units) provide the setting for the primary services of Girl Scouts of Big Sky Council. Our membership reflects the rich cultural heritage of our council where we serve one in twelve girls living within our jurisdiction.
Glendale Public Library
Most public libraries have storytimes. Call for information
Grandmommy's Home for Grandparents
A great site for grandparents and parents looking for ideas and games for kids.
Jesus Is All Ministries
Jesus Is All Ministries shares God's Word through FREE weekly Sunday School Lessons for students and teachers via e-mail. You'll find fun Bible trivia for all ages, daily Scripture readings, and many other FREE resources. Visit our web site now! www.JesusIsAll.com
jigsaw puzzle machine
Turn your photographs or artwork into jigsaw puzzles.
Little Folks Music
How to Sing and Dance is a research-based Music and Movement Curriculum designed by an educator to help meet the criteria for developmentally appropriate music activities specific to infants-preschoolers.
MOMS Club of Newport Beach
The MOMS Club of Newport Beach is one chapter in the International (non-profit)MOMS Club. The MOMS Club is basically a group of stay-home moms in the 92660 zip code who have come together to support one another. In fact, "MOMS" stands for "Mothers Offering Mothers Support." We have a calendar of different events each month such as park play days, walks, a general meeting with guest speakers, and mom's night out.
MusiKids featuring Kindermusik
Our number one goal is to have every child come away with a sense of wonder and accomplishment!Guided by a proven methodology combining music and childhood development research, Kindermusik sparks magical, memorable learning for each and every child. A GOOD BEGINNING NEVER ENDS...
Online Dictionary
Online Dictionary in 7 modern languages: English French German Spanish Italian Russian Chinese Japanese
Painting Adventures
Ideas for painting without brushes and painting crafts and projects for preschool.
Piano Lessons on the Net
PS Workshop Photoshop Tutorials
Your Premier Photoshop Tutorial search engine. We're still the easiest way to find that exact Photoshop Tutorial.
Ready-to-print Images and Flashcards for teachers
Find over 2000 images to print as full size flashcards in color or black & white. Easy add text to any flashcard in English, Spanish, or French.
School Themes
Presenting e-book school themes with descriptions and examples designed to promote school spirit in a positive and fun learning environment.
Sew What's New?
Connect, create, contribute! A free social network for sewers and quilters.
Story Time Felts - Fun Felt for Kids
Unique, washable felt boards for storytelling and dramatic play. Lessons and audio CDs are included! Free sample and catalog on request. See and feel the difference!
Stuff a Friend Workshop Parties
Host a party that kids will love and never forget-throw a Stuff a Friend Workshop Party! Each guest gets to stuff and name their own new "friend"!
The Therapist's Cookbook
The Therapist's Cookbook combines all the good skills that therapists (speech pathologists, physical therapists, and occupational therapists) work on with the fun of stirring, mixing, measuring, and baking. A great way to engage your child and help them develop emerging skills such as direction following, pre-math, same and different, association, and fine-motor skills.
The United States Constitution
An on-line copy of the U.S. Constitution, all its articles and amendments.
Zahira Kids
Here at Zahira Kids we are proud to offer you 100% all natural products. Our products are only made from earthy natural materials like wood, wool, cotton or silk. We take our inspiration from nature and try not to change it to much as we want children to see and feel what mother earth has provided us.
eLearningToys.com sell high Quality Educational Wooden Toys from all over the world. Infant Plush, Toddler Developmental and Preschool Learning Toys. Many award winning toys. Flat shipping rate $3.95. Free Gift Wrapping all year long.
Little Tikes Always on Sale!
Shop here anytime for big discounts on a full line of Little Tikes toys. Creative role play toys for girls and boys with electronic sounds. Your child can build a real birdhouse (all parts included) with the ActionPower (TM) workshop. Playhouses, playgrounds, slides and outdoor toys that last here! Great service.
20 Long Distance Activities for Moms Over Miles
20 Long Distance Activities for Moms Over Miles
Designed for Kids, meant for the whole family! Art, Adventure, Music, Games, Educational! A learning experience for the whole family.
A B C's of Cartooning - Educational Cartooning Lessons
Absolutely wonderful educational cartooning lessons for preschool and primary.
Adventures of Herman
History and facts of the common earthworm as told by Herman the Earthworm. Learn about heir anatomy, what they eat, and even who they help.
Artistic Stages in Children
Artistic Stages will help you examine children's art in relationship to artistic development. This will help you form realistic expectations of the children's artwork as they do art activities.
Birds of the World
Bird illustrations, popular before photography, are both art and science; the color and exquisite detail of these illustrations please not only artists and art lovers, but also anyone with an interest in birds or natural history.
Books Children Love; Usborne
I am an Usborne Book Consultant, and my child loves these books.
Bubble Town
Blow huge bubbles, long lasting bubbles. All you need to become a bubble blowing expert is here in Bubble Town.
Cartier: The Jeweler's Art
An overview of Cartier, the firm that became one of the world's greatest designers and manufacturers of jewelry and art objects, and a supplier of those items to royalty, nobility, and millionaires.
Childrens Art and Gardening
Fun and easy projects parents and children can do together that will last a lifetime.
Computer Ergonomics for Elementary School
Computer Ergonomics is about things that you can do to make working on a computer more comfortable and better for your body. For example, wearing a bike helmet when riding a bike and a seatbelt when riding in a car are two simple things that you do to be safe.
Cool School Sites
Links for Teachers, Students, and Parents. Resources and help available for teachers and parents. Resources for research and fun are included for students.
Crafts and Projects
Bright ideas and crafts for children
Cyber Bee
Tutorials to learn using programs like Word, Powerpoint, and for creating school webpages.
Discovery Toys - Learning Through Play!
Discovery Toys have a LIFETIME guarantee! 100% satisfaction or your money back. They have the highest ratings from parents and kids alike!! Browse around the site and request the latest catalog.
Early Childhood Links Childrens Website Index
A directory of the best kid sites on the web. Favorite characters, toys, and tv shows, games, and search engines. Ages 3-9 years and beyond. Internet safety articles and filtering software for parents.
Early Childhood Links Teachers Index
A directory of the best teacher links on the web. Art recipes, associations, childrens books, coloring pages, crafts, directories, fingerplays, games,lesson plans, listservs, magazines, resource sites by grades and specialities, search engines, songs, stores, theme units, videos, and worksheets. Parents are welcome!
Free Kids Crafts
Links to the best free kids crafts on the net.
Fun 4 All Kids
Unique web site for children aged 3yrs - 11yrs. Also includes audio facility and easy navagation for blind, visually impaired and disabled children
FUNIX Foreign Languages Made Fun
FUNIX is an innovative breakthrough for learning foreign languages. If you can speak English, you can speak Fun Spanish, Fun Chinese or any language in the world. Ages 2 and up. www.funixbook.com I thought you may be interested in this. Thank you Mike Ellis Author FUNIX Foreign Languages Made Fun
Fun Mail For Kids
Personalized letters,certificates, and educational crafts just for kids!
Fun Match
A cool on line memory game
Affordable freelance programming, custom web and graphics design for your website. Thousands of programmers, web designers, copywriters, interpreters bid on your projects.
Joe the Dragon's Lair
Fun, Games and Education! That's what you will find in Joe the Dragon's Lair. Virtual journeys, jigsaw puzzles, interactive maths games and puzzles, SpellCatch, music, dragonArt, dragonPong, SequenceSpace, towerBlocks and much more
Kids Are Worth It
Raising children to be responsible, resourceful, caring individuals.
Kids CraftBase
Kids CraftBase is a fun place for kids to explore crafts.
Kids Domain Brain Builders
Brain Builders offers educational information, printable activities, clip art, etc. on such subjects as dinosaurs, computers, safe surfing, animals, space, science, math, language arts, music and more.
Kids Freebies
Kids Free Fun and Games
Free online learning activities for elementary and middle school students. Includes educational games, puzzles, and quizzes.
Kids, Internet: games, entertainment
Kids, games, entertainment, music, movies, art, health...
This site will offer all of the vocabulary, worksheets and crafts in both English and French.
Kidz Fun Central
Kidz Fun Central creates fun and exciting activity kits that are delivered to your home, every other month, in a bright, fun package!
Kidz Time
Kidz Time provides you with the opportunity to spend quality shared recreation time with your child in the comfort of your own home and at your own pace.
Kraft For Kids
Welcome to Hands on Crafts for Kids, the home of fun & creative craft projects for Kids.
Magical Childhood
Make fun crafts out of things from outside or in the recycling bin. Some crafts that give mommy some much needed quiet time.
This website gives kids the chance to make their very own homepage on the web - and it's free! With the easy to use homepage builder, 9502 kids have created pages so far.
Mommy and Me
At Mommy & Me, our mission is simple: to provide activities, information, and products that inspire parents to make the most of the one-on-one time they spend with their children. Toys, gifts, games, information for parents, news, playgroups, playgroup finder.
Native American Crafts
Children in the American colonies frequently learned how to make toys and other crafts from the Native American children who lived nearby. The activities below illustrate some of the crafts, techniques, and materials which Native and Colonial children might have used for their toys and crafts.
Nuttin' But Kids
Nuttin' But Kids - themes which have activities, songs, poems, centers, and book suggestions.
On-Line Dot to Dot
ON-LINE CONNECT-THE-DOTS Just click on the dots in order and a picture will appear. Connect-the-dots, and you'll get a peek, Of an animal who's not very meek; He has a beak, and his voice is unique.
On-Line Dot to Dot
ON-LINE CONNECT-THE-DOTS Just click on the dots in order and a picture will appear. Connect-the-dots from one to thirteen, And you will get a surprise on your screen; They're small and cute, and rarely seen, As they swim all day in the sea serene
On-Line Dot to Dot
Here's another fun online dot-to-dot
Open Source Education Foundation
The Open Source Education Foundation (OSEF) was founded on the idea that technology in education should prepare students to excel with technology. It is the role of educators to help students become productive members of society. OSEF will research and develop the tools required to ensure that educators and students alike have the information needed to succeed in our technological society.
Owl Children's Trust
The Owl Children's Trust is a not for profit foundation committed to supporting the development of multiple media activities that nurture the potential of children by encouraging their interest in and enjoyment of the world around them.
Great animated online learning activites in math and reading for kids- very well done!
Page by Page Creating a Childrens Book
Have you ever read a great book and wondered how it was made? This site takes an inside look at how books for children are made. Using real-life examples, you will explore the story behind the story. You'll discover inside information: starting with where the idea came from, all the way to what happens after the book is printed.
Parenting.com - Activities
Enjoy these creative games with your little one while exercising his mind and body.
Parenting Gifted Preschoolers
Practical suggestions for parents of gifted preschoolers including activities.
Parents' Guide to Reading for Kids
Encourage your kids to enjoy reading. Articles and links for parents and educators.
Patterns and Prints of India
Looks at Indian textiles and fabrics, and their designs of figures, animals, and gods, which reflect the vitality of the Indian people, their environment, and the social, cultural, and political influences affecting their lives.
Pencil Flag
Pencil Flag sparks imagination by utilizing creativity. We offer for sale paper cut-out patterns with the most adorable characters on them, that can be assembled into flags by using pencils. On the site we also offer FREE of charge the "Remember Pencil Flag." This flag was created as a dedication to the World Trade Center and has helped children cope with the recent tragedy. It is our gift to children.
Periscope Playhouse
Why is the playhouse as timeless as the landscape of childhood itself? Re-discover the word of infinite possibility found in the periscope playhouse.
Photography Tips.
PhotographyTips.com is for everyone with an interest in photography. It is intended to help beginners get started in photography, and become so good at it that they turn into advanced amateurs.
Pueblo Pottery of the Southwest
Examines Pueblo Indian artistic traditions that create beautiful pottery vessels that provide both a link to the past and a symbol of a dynamic future; includes links to a glossary, how Pueblo pottery is made, and other images and information.
Reading and Language Development for Toddlers
Reading and Language Development for toddlers - including children with special needs.
Real Families, Real Fun
"Real Families, Real Fun" is the modern information source parents turn to to help make family time quality time. Combining editorial insights from family activity experts, along with feedback and contributions from a nationwide panel of actual families, this site is packed with activity tips, winning travel destinations, easy recipes, and reviews of family entertainment.
Recipes 4 Learning
Learning, Fun and Free recipes for Coorking, Crafts, and More!
Roman Glass
Examines how glass, in its mass production and mimicry of luxury items, held a relatively lowly position among Roman material goods; includes links to other pertinent texts and images on ancient and Roman glass and glassmaking.
Sheeze - Great Activities For Kids
Sheeze, e-specially designed for Parents, Kids, and Educators.
Shells: Gems of the Sea
A look at why shells delight and fascinate us in the visual combination of shape and color. Smooth or textured, symmetrical or not, single-hued or bearing complex and astounding markings, shells provide a remarkable display of nature's art.
Squigly's Arts and Crafts
Squigly likes to spend some time being creative.
Summer Fun for School-agers
There are many exciting activities and ideas for older children to be found on-line. Here are just a few places to look.
The Assembly Directory
A directory of school assembly programs.
Treasures from the Royal Tombs of Ur
Examines the extraordinary objects from one of the most spectacular discoveries in ancient Mesopotamia (modern day Iraq), which reflect the full glory of ancient Sumerian art and culture (2600-2500 BC) at its zenith.
Welcmoe to Trotters a small, friendly company, which sells children's clothing, shoes, toys and books for the 0 to 11 age group.
Truck Dot to Dot
Try this dot-to-dot, hint it's a truck!
Where is That!
A great on-line geography quiz. Learn your State and Country Locations.
At Zappazoom.com there are all sorts of fun activities for kids of all ages. You'll find fun things to do where you can imagine, create, and share with kids from all over the world!
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41 Remington Magnum 230 Grain Lead Keith-Type Semi-Wadcutter Gas Check
Ammo ID System
- Caliber: 41 Remington Magnum
- Bullet Weight: 230 Grains
- Bullet Style: Hard Cast Keith 21 BHN
- Case Type: Brass
- Muzzle Velocity: 1450 fps
- Muzzle Energy: 1074 ft lbs
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This ammunition is new production, non-corrosive, in boxer primed, reloadable brass cases."


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A few available, one shown. Each frag is 3+ polyps.
Our corals are photographed under T5 and Reef Brite Blue LEDs. Coral colors will appear different under different lighting conditions.
* Note - In the rare instance where there may be an incorrect price listed on our website, Bayside Corals reserves the right to cancel the sale even if the order has been confirmed and your credit card has been charged. Corals listed as "free" are a glitch, and are not actually free. Please let us know if you see this.
Are very hardy and can be kept in low light up to high light. They can also tolerate low flow areas as well as higher flow areas. Good lighting is all they need to grow and thrive. These are hardy and fast growing coral.


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29 August 2014
Aunt Norma, 2001
My Aunt Norma is my dad's oldest sister. She is the most like my grandmother, her mother, of all my aunts. She spoke like her mother, except her southern draw was a bit more pronounced. She looks remarkably like her mother and she has the same kind and loving way I remember from my childhood days at my grandparent's home.
Aunt Norma always, at least in my lifetime, lived in Florida. So going to visit her meant adventure. Growing up surrounded by water means that you cross a bridge frequently, but, southbound was the most fun. Leaving Maryland's Eastern Shore and headed to Florida you can cross the Bay Bridge Tunnel. It's seventeen miles of engineering marvel and as a kid, it's the scary kind of fun.
Sometime we would stop at South of the Border in South Carolina, a tacky weigh station for travelers and truck drivers. Dad refused to get a bumper sticker every time Eric and I insisted it was required. Good call, Dad.
More than the travel there, I remember always feeling at home in Aunt Norma's house. She insitsted we have a glass of lemonade; she let us run through the backyard and she took us to the beach. Ma insisted that we help with supper clean up and mind our manners, but, Aunt Norma knew we would rather have ice cream. Aunt Norma is still in Florida, is still loving and kind, and this week I am thinking of her because Dad and Ma are down there visiting her. I bet they are not jumping on the couches like Rachel and Samantha did on this trip in 2001, but, I know they have a cold glass of lemonade nearby.
28 August 2014
Splash - August 2014
18 August 2014
Back to School Circa, 2014
School is back in session - where does the time go? This year I asked everyone how the first day of the year went. I thought I would include a few of their comments. My kids crack me up.
JMichael: Mom, I liked kindergarten
better; first grade doesn't have snack.
Josephine: We have a pet in our class - a tarantula!
I didn't hold him, but, he's cute.
Charlotte: We get to dissect a cow's eye!
Samantha: Hey, I didn't get lost! (the high school has over 2,000 students and is 45 acres!)
Rachel: We blew up a watermelon today in Chemistry. Bam.
16 August 2014
Goodbye Summer 2014
Just because everyone is getting so tall and we are all pictured with wet hair - let me tell you who we are in the picture. Right up front from left to right we have JMichael, Josephine, Rachel and Samantha. In the middle we have me, then Charlotte in red/orange. And of course that's James in the back. I just love my BallTeam.
15 August 2014
12 August 2014
Mom gets a day off......
This week I have some unexpected time off - we are preparing the school for a new school year and the cleaning and organizational jobs are not taking as long as we thought - yay for a few days off!
So, mom has a day off; mom says we go to the pool...and so we did.
Rachel and Samantha diving with style.
Charlotte and Josephine following suit.
Handstands - can you guess whose feet these are? And JMichael - sans water wings! This was a big day for JMichael - he swam the length of the pool with no help or floaties. He did it once, then again, and again, and again, and again.....go JMichael! He can also jump off of the diving board without the floaties, but, this shot is off of the side of the deck.
And this is what Samantha looks like under water. Rachel has a lifeproof case on her phone and over much protestation from James and me and much encouragement from her sisters - she submerged her phone in the water and took pictures. Ugh. As if I am not grey enough....but I will admit; it's a cool picture and I can't fault a child of mine for being adventurous and curious - they get that honestly from their once young and carefree parents.
10 August 2014
CHS Dance Team 2014-15
Samantha made her high school dance team. It's a spirit squad and they perform at every football and basketball game - home and away. They do chants for the crowd and dance on the field or court at halftime and during a time out. Cheerleaders do flips and stunts - dance team dances. Samantha was on the junior high dance team, too, and the difference this year is competition. While the spirit aspect is important during the sport seasons, the dance aspect will be her main focus later. The high school team travels in the spring to compete against other high school dance teams in three types of dances. The dancers on each competitive squad are the best for each form of dance. The three squads are pom, jazz and hip hop. Samantha, only a sophomore, is in the front line of her hip hop dance and loves that genre of dance. As she puts it, she rocks out. She also made the jazz competitive squad. We are looking forward to all the games we get to go see - for the games? No. To watch our dancer - Samantha.
08 August 2014
Last minute school stuffs....
Getting ready for school does not just mean new shoes and pencils. Today we did the hardcore stuff - vaccinations and eye appointments.
Our school district imposed some new requirements for students 11 and up this year. So, off we go to the doctor to get some shots. No tears. Lollipops all around.
Our next appointment was for their beautiful eyes. Everyone had their eyes dilated, and they got "sunglasses" to wear for a few hours while their eyes return to normal. Rachel and Samantha already wear glasses. They don't always wear them, but, now they are getting new ones. Stronger ones. And new at this year's examination - the other three need glasses too!
Interestingly, we have a pattern. It runs according to their birth order, like this: Rachel is far-sighted (close up vision is blurry). Samantha is near sighted (far away vision is blurry). Next is Charlotte, who is far sighted. Then Josephine is near sighted. Finally, JMichael is far sighted. Wow. We are so cool and organized. More pictures to follow when spectacles arrive in about three weeks.
Charlotte demonstrates dilated eyes. Kinda creepy. They all said it made their vision blurry and it made their eyes numb and very sensitive to light. It only lasted a few hours.
04 August 2014
Jumpin`, jumpin`, jumpin`
Josephine, nine years old, demonstrating a back flip on the trampoline. I didn't get a picture, but, she did stick the landing. And then, a picture of her jumping simultaneously with the little man, JMichael, six years old. This trampoline was a gift from our friends who moved and gave it to us. Our kids are out there daily just bouncing and jumping and flipping and laughing laughing laughing. We love it.
03 August 2014
Splash - July 2014
This July picture was taken to celebrate America in popsicles. When we went to the store to get them, they didn't have a white flavor. Undeterred, I bought one orange, two red and two blue. Rachel, through the magic of some app she has on her phone, changed the color of the popsicle from orange to white. So, I was able to have my red white and blue popsicles after all. Thank you Rachel.
The red paint on JMichael's face is supposed to be a star - another attempt at portraying our patriotism.
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text:
Monday, November 20, 2017
52 comments:
I like your question Angi - Would you accept protection from a stranger? A good hook for your book!ReplyDelete
janet_kerr at msn dot comReplies
Thanks Janet. I hope it hooks a lot of readers. >>grin<<Delete
Looking forward to reading Jack and Megan's story. As for the question, I doubt that I'd easily accept any help from a stranger. I'd be too suspicious.ReplyDelete
I had to once. I was stranded on the side of the road. I'll have to write about that story for next month here on JRS !!Delete
I have a pretty good feel/sense of people. If I felt like I could trust them then I wouldReplyDeleteReplies
In years past probably, now in this day and age, I am not sure.ReplyDeleteReplies
bn100candg at hotmail dot com
- Colleen C.November 20, 2017 at 11:27 AM
Maybe... would depend on his actions...ReplyDelete
I like the excerpt. Sounds interesting.ReplyDelete
I really like your site - In addition to this I herewith posting a very useful site regarding the educational and Govt Jobs information.ReplyDelete
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It would depend on the reason for the protection.ReplyDelete
jtcgc at yahoo dot com
I don't think I can let a stranger protect me -- although it also depends on the situation ^^ReplyDelete
I hope I wrote one of those situations !Delete
Well that is a catchy pull in. It does depend as others have said. But if that is the only option I would take it!🍀🍀ReplyDelete
I can't wait to read this! Love your books.ReplyDeleteReplies
Thanks so much, Patty.Delete
- AnonymousNovember 20, 2017 at 6:01 PM
I would love Jack as my protector!ReplyDeleteReplies
He is adorable in the book.Delete
I think I would accept the protection if the alternative was scarier.ReplyDelete
I sure hope I got that across.Delete
I think I'd be skeptical about help from a stranger but it would depend on the situation!ReplyDelete
ahui89 at hotmail dot com
I'm a situation such as this one, yes. Sometimes you have to go with your gut feeling. Sounds terrific!ReplyDelete
Not until my friend had convinced me that he was there to protect me.
I'm sure I would if I was in enough dangerReplyDelete
Thanks your book looks greatReplies
- AnonymousNovember 20, 2017 at 11:07 PM
I would have to be very certain it was the person my friend was recommending. In Megan's condition, she really had no choice.ReplyDelete
library pat AT com cast DOT netReplies
Whew...that's exactly the feeling I wanted to convey.Delete
I am not sure I would but if I was in serious danger then anyone who wants to protect me that is fine with me flip me out of my scooter and go get them for me . Peggy Clayton email@example.com
If my friend sent him, stranger or not I'd take the help if I was in danger!!ReplyDelete
thebigbluewall77 (AT) gmail (DOT) com
I have helped lots of strangers over the years...if I didn't get a really strange feeling about it I probably would accept..mostly with a dimpled chin stranger...ReplyDeleteReplies
Ain't that the truth.Delete
Well, i'm Hooked and can't wait to read it.ReplyDelete
This comment has been removed by the author.ReplyDelete
I would definitely accept help from a stranger. I help others all the time. Now it's never life or death type help but I do what I can. So unless I got a bad feeling about the person, I would take whatever help I could get.ReplyDelete
Thanks for being a kind person Jo-Anne ! We need more of you !Delete
CONGRATULATIONS, PATTY !!ReplyDelete
I'll be in touch.


text:
BURLINGTON, Wash. — The chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board said Saturday that the bridge collapse in Washington state is a wake-up call for the U.S.
"This is a really significant event and we need to learn from it, not just in Washington but around the country," Debbie Hersman said after taking a boat ride on the Skagit River below the dramatic scene where a truck bumped against the steel framework, collapsing the bridge Thursday and sending two vehicles and three people falling into the chilly water.
Investigators need to find out what happened in Washington state and if it could be repeated at similar bridges around the country, Hersman said.
"At the end of the day it's about preventing an accident like this," she said.
Her team will spend a week to 10 days looking at the bridge, talking to the truck driver whose vehicle hit it, and examining maintenance documents and previous accident reports.
Other over-height vehicles struck the Skagit River bridge before the collapse, she noted. Investigators are using a high tech 3-D video camera to review the scene and attempt to pinpoint where the bridge failure began.
Hersman does not expect the investigation to delay removal of debris from the river or work on a temporary solution to replace or repair the I-5 span. State and federal officials can, and will, work together on the investigation, she said.
They'll be watching for safety issues that could affect other bridges.
"The results can be very catastrophic," Hersman said. "We're very fortunate in this situation."
Washington state officials said Saturday that it will take time to find both short- and long-term fixes for the bridge that collapsed on Interstate 5.
While, the National Transportation Safety Board finishes its inspection, state workers will begin removing debris from the river. Next, a temporary solution will be put in place to return traffic to Washington state's most important north-south roadway.
The enormity of the collapse of the Skagit River bridge on the busy Interstate 5 corridor was just beginning to sink for both Americans and Canadians on Friday as they headed into the Memorial Day weekend, one of America's busiest holiday periods. Less than 24 hours after one of the bridge's four spans collapsed into the river on Thursday night when an Alberta truck driver carrying an oversized load crashed into a girder, roads around Burlington and Mount Vernon never meant for heavy traffic volumes were clogged with freight trucks and commuters.
And the devastation and dislocation is not going to end any time soon.
State politicians and federal investigators say the region — which includes a vital U.S.-Canada trade corridor — will have to get used to long and frustrating detours that could last for months as a fix is sought.
Long marked on a national register as being "functionally obsolete", the northernmost span of the bridge lays in a crumpled heap in the river, knocked down after William Scott, 41, a truck driver from Camrose, Alberta, clipped several of the aging bridge's spans with the heavy drilling equipment he was hauling to Vancouver, Washington.
But even before recriminations had begun over how the accident occurred, there were questions about just how the state and the U.S. federal governments are going to literally bridge a divide that has wounded the Pacific Northwest's robust interstate commerce.
The I-5 is one of America's busiest highways, stretching from southern California right to the Canadian border, a ribbon threading through almost all the major cities on the West Coast, from San Diego to Seattle. It links directly with Canada's Highway 99, and is a vital conduit for the goods and traffic that fuel the two countries' economic engines. It is the major direct link between Metro Vancouver and Seattle.
As old as it was, and for as many complaints that truckers had about how it bounced and swayed when put under pressure, this was a vital bridge. Every day, it carried more than 70,000 vehicles, many of them commuters heading for the Seattle area.
It also had its fair share of Canadian travellers, many of them shoppers drawn to the low prices of the factory outlet stores just south of the river.
The destruction of a single, 160-foot span, 130 kilometres south of Vancouver, might not seem like a major problem, especially when there are diversions and detours in place that can, for the time being, keep a trickle of traffic flowing. But the fact that a single truck carrying an oversized load could strike the nearly 60-year-old bridge and so simply knock it into the river is perhaps a sign of just how fragile the U.S. highway network really is.
Washington Governor Jay Inslee underscored that concern when he met with reporters on the banks of the Skagit mere hours after the accident. With the twisted wreckage of the floodlit span illuminated behind him, Inslee acknowledged that many of the state's bridges are in dire need of repair. Like most governments — and British Columbia is no different — Washington struggles with budget challenges that make it easier to put money into vote-popular education and health programs than into aging but critical infrastructure.
"This is the arterial of commerce and industry for the entire state of Washington. It is job number-one for all of us," he said. "Obviously, we need to do an investigation to find out what happened here. That may take days and weeks. We have some work to do on our bridges whether or not this accident happened, and we will have some discussions in Olympia about making sure we make investments in bridges to prevent this from happening."
It is a comment that will gain added weight in the days, weeks and months to come as parallel state and federal investigations look at how the bridge could so easily be knocked out.
The impact on Canada-U.S. trade cannot be understated, according to U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell of Washington state. She worries about a prolonged closure.
"We don't know the total assessment of this, but we do know that when we've had other incidents of I-5 being shut down for flooding or other cases, it is in the tens of millions of dollars of lost economic activity," she said. "We think of this as a region, the Seattle-Vancouver region, and we want the flow of goods and services to work very effectively."
Debbie Hersman, the chairwoman of the National Transportation Safety Board, told a news conference on Friday afternoon that it could take as long as a year to complete an investigation of the accident.
Hersman said the bridge, a through-truss design called a "Warren Truss", was built in 1955. There are thousands of bridges across the U.S. of similar design and age.
If during their investigation the NTSB identifies problems with the bridge that may affect other similar structures, it will issue interim orders to correct them, she said.
The condition of U.S. bridges, many built decades, even half a century ago, is a growing issue. James Garrett, the dean of Carnegie Mellon University's college of engineering in Pittsburgh, says as many as one-quarter of the 600,000 bridges in the U.S. have been deemed "structurally obsolete" or "structurally deficient."
"What they said about this bridge was that it wasn't classed as structurally deficient, but that it was functionally obsolete," he said. "What that means is it is too narrow, or doesn't have enough height over waterways, or things like that."
It is an issue that just as easily applies to British Columbia's many bridges and roads, especially as TransLink wrestles with how to fund major necessary improvements such as the replacement of the aging Patullo Bridge over the Fraser River.
Washington State transportation secretary Lynn Peterson said the bridge had been inspected annually. It was most recently inspected in November, after it was hit by another truck, and the damage was repaired.
She said the bridge did meet national safety standards, and insisted that if engineers ever found a state bridge to be unsafe it would be immediately closed for repairs, regardless of where it was.
She said Washington is scouring the entire U.S. to find a suitable Bailey bridge, the Second World War-era structures used for temporary crossings. Such a temporary structure was used on the Sea-to-Sky Highway several years ago when a flood knocked out one of the road's many bridges.
If a Bailey bridge can be found, the Skagit crossing could be temporarily reopened within weeks, subject to passing an engineering inspection, Peterson said.
But she also made it clear the state does not have the money for a new structure, and ultimately is only looking at replacing the one damaged span.
Washington State Patrol Chief John Batiste said the accident occurred in the most routine of ways — an oversized truck like the ones that travel the I-5 daily entered the bridge at the north end, clipping one side of the bridge girders.
Within seconds, the span collapsed, taking with it at least two vehicles, including one towing a trailer. Three people were slightly injured, including an Oak Harbor couple and a Mount Vernon man who rode the bucking bridge deck 15 metres into the frigid river. Only one of the three remains in hospital with minor injuries.
Ed Sherbinski, vice-president of Calgary-based Mullen Trucking, which owned the truck Scott was driving, told The Edmonton Journal that four company inspectors are travelling to Washington to be part of the investigation. He said Washington State had given the company a permit, saying the truck would fit over the bridge.
"We take this very, very seriously," Sherbinski said. "We have a stellar safety record and all our resources are on this now."
He said a lead truck typically drives in front of such heavy loads, equipped with a high-reaching electronic pole that sends signals to the other driver if the pole touches any guide wires or support structures. Sherbinski said he doesn't know how high the pole was compared with Scott's vehicle, but it usually reaches "significantly" higher.
Mike Allende, a state Department of Transportation spokesman, confirmed the truck had a permit.
"We're still trying to figure out why it hit the bridge,"
Allende said. "It's ultimately up to the trucking company to figure out whether it can get through."
State officials approved the trucking company to carry a load as high as 15 feet, 9 inches, according to the permit released by the state. However, the southbound vertical clearance on the Skagit River bridge is as little as 14 feet, 9 inches, state records show.
The bridge's curved overhead girders are higher in the centre of the bridge but sweep lower toward a driver's right side.
The bridge has a maximum clearance of about 17 feet, but there is no signage to indicate how to safely navigate the bridge with a tall load.
The permit specifically describes the route the truck would take, though it includes a qualification that the state "Does Not Guarantee Height Clearance."
Scott's wife, Cynthia Scott, said her husband had all the correct permits and at least 20 years of trucking experience. He had driven that same route before, she said.
"He's doing OK, best as he can," Scott said from her Spruce Grove home. She spoke with her husband seconds after the collapse. "He looked in the mirrors and it just dropped out of sight. . . . He was just horrified."
Batiste said Scott appeared to have all the right permits and was using a pilot vehicle, but more investigation is required to determine if the trucker was obeying all the conditions of his license. Scott also submitted to a drug and alcohol test.
For now, there is no indication how long it will take to repair or replace the bridge. Inslee estimated it may cost $15 million. In the meantime the federal government has said it will contribute $1 million in emergency funding to remove the wreckage from the river.
Mark Green, the associate head of civil engineering at Queens University, estimated it could take upwards of two years to replace the bridge and doesn't believe, at first blush, that the remaining spans can be saved.
"I think you are looking at having to build an entirely new bridge," he said.
Green said bridges are hit by trucks more often than people think.
But it is rare for a bridge to be brought down by an accident like this. In this case it is possible that the older design led to a catastrophic failure if the truck damaged more than one of the steel members, he said.
"The most disturbing part of this is that if this were the only cause, that's quite a vulnerability," he said. "What this leads me to believe is that it is likely that just the way this was designed it only took a couple of members of the bridge to fail."
Green said these types of older bridges weren't built with the high clearances now necessary for the heavy and tall-capacity trucks that travel the nation's roads.
Garrett said the sheer volume of America's functionally deficient and aging bridges is a problem as governments face tighter budgets. "'We need to bring a more systematic and data-driven approach to all of this infrastructure," he said. "You've got not just bridges, but highways, pipelines, dams and locks. These are all pieces of infrastructure over which you need to distribute your budget to maintain."
Carnegie Mellon is undertaking several studies looking at how technology can measure and warn about deterioration in bridges and other structures such as pipelines. Many new bridges incorporate measuring devices, but many of the nation's aging infrastructures could benefit from being retrofitted with them, Garrett said.
With files from The Associated Press and Edmonton Journal
Click here for information about detours
Click here for alternate route map


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text:
Residents of the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince, who are recovering from both the devastating 2010 earthquake as well as years of economic pressure and political turmoil, marked Easter 2011 by looking past the rubble that still surrounds many and placing hopes on a better future.
"We can't take in any more of the negative stuff," Victor Nickenson, aged 30, said in an interview with ENInews on Easter Sunday, 24 April, following the Easter morning service at Holy Trinity (Episcopal) Cathedral in downtown Port-au-Prince. "The earthquake is something that has passed. We need to think of the new life, the life ahead."
While it will take years for the cathedral itself to be rebuilt, another cathedral congregant, Romilus Jean Dieudoné, 75, said the physical loss of the cathedral complex – including a school and all but three of the cathedral's famed 14 murals – has begun to mean less and less.
The durability of the congregation itself is what matters the most, he said. "We are the church, not the building," he said, pounding his chest. "And today is the day of re-birth."
Fellow congregant Madame Nicolas Canier, aged 62, agreed. "Jesus Christ has taken victory on this day," she said.
The calm in Port-au-Prince during Easter may be connected with recent political events in Haiti. Uncertainty and worries about the recent return of former presidents Jean-Claude Duvalier and Jean-Bertrand Aristide, one-time lightning rods, proved baseless. Both men have kept low profiles since their respective returns from exile.
And there appears to be much good will toward newly elected Michel Martelly, a one-time singer known as "Sweet Micky," who assumes the Haitian presidency in May. Martelly was elected following a 20 March run-off election in which he won more than 67 per cent of the vote, though just under a quarter of all registered voters cast ballots.
Herode Guillomettre, a Haitian Protestant leader, pastor of the Evangelical Christian Church of Pommier, just outside of Port-au-Prince, and president of the Christian Center for Integrated Development, a humanitarian agency, said in an interview with ENInews prior to Easter that the election of a non-politician like Martelly is "a lesson to the politicians."
"They need to be closer to the people, have their feet on the ground and need to know the realities of the country," he said.
An increasingly younger nation – roughly half of Haiti's population of about 10 million is under the age of 20 – was looking for a leader who did not fit the traditional mould, Guillomettre said. Among Martelly's stated priorities are expanding educational opportunities in a country where only about half of its citizens are literate.
Anne Suze Denestant, aged 26, who lives in one of Port-au-Prince's post-quake tent cities and who lost her right arm in the quake, said the Haitian government had done nothing to help her or her family in the last 15 months. Still, she was taking a neutral attitude towards the new president. "It's still a 'wait and see' time for us," she said. "When they're elected, it's like they promise a lot."
Chris Herlinger, a New York-based stringer for ENInews (www.eni.ch), is in Haiti on an assignment for the humanitarian agency Church World Service. He is also completing a book, Rubble Nation: Haiti's Pain, Haiti's Promise, to be published later in 2011 by Seabury Books.


text:
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text:
This is the Valles Marineris, believed to be the biggest canyon in the entire solar system. At nearly 2,500 miles long, it would stretch clear across the continental United States.
Much like Mars's highest peak, Olympus Mons, the sheer scale of Valles Marineris is almost incomprehensible. Depending on how you measure it, its total length falls somewhere between 3000 and 4000 kilometers, its width is as much as 600 kilometers, and it reaches 8 kilometers deep at points.
A NASA astronomer adds:
By comparison, the Earth's Grand Canyon in Arizona, USA is 800 kilometers long, 30 kilometers across, and 1.8 kilometers deep.The origin of the Valles Marineris remains unknown, although a leading hypothesis holds that it started as a crack billions of years ago as the planet cooled. Several geologic processes have been identified in the canyon. The above mosaic was created from over 100 images of Mars taken by Viking Orbiters in the 1970s.
For more on Valles Marineris and other extreme points in the solar system - and how to climb them - check out our earlier feature on solar system mountaineering.
Check out the full photo at NASA.


text:
Tarot Card Meanings
The Lovers
Creative compromise helps you accept your commitments fully.
The Hierophant
The Chariot
Watch Now: The Lovers Video
Learn the meaning of The Lovers Tarot card in under a minute!
General Meaning
Although it has taken on a strictly romantic revision of meaning in some modern decks, traditionally The Lovers Tarot card reflected the challenges of choosing a partner. At a crossroads, one cannot take both paths. The images on this card in different decks have varied more than most, because we have had so many ways of looking at sex and relationships across cultures and centuries.
Classically, the energy of this card reminded us of the real challenges posed by romantic relationships, with the protagonist often shown in the act of making an either-or choice. To partake of a higher ideal often requires sacrificing the lesser option. The path of pleasure eventually leads to distraction from spiritual growth. The gratification of the personality eventually gives way to a call from spirit as the soul matures.
Modern decks tend to portray the feeling of romantic love with this card, showing Adam and Eve at the gates of Eden when everything was still perfect. This interpretation portrays humanity before the fall, and can be thought to imply a different sort of choice -- the choice of evolution over perfection, or the choice of personal growth through relationship -- instead of a fantasy where everything falls into place perfectly and is taken care of without effort.
In the Reversed Position
The Lovers card reversed may indicate that you are going along with a divided situation because you have a vested interest in opposition. You can't resolve this situation until you own up to your own double standard.
Admit the resistance you feel, instead of proceeding halfheartedly or with unspoken resentments. In such an important area of your life, you should not just go along to get along.
In the Advice Positon
The Lovers card advises that you study your options and make the wisest choice. Carefully consider your long-term interests. There is no judgment on what you choose to keep from the array of possibilities before you. Just watch out for choices that will produce dissatisfaction and discontent.
Be willing to make some compromises, then stick with the commitments you finally make. Trust your intuition along with your rational intellect, and once you make your choice, carry it out with conviction.
A powerful message is waiting for you! Get your Reconciliation Tarot Reading NOW...
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SWORDSAce of Swords
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COINSAce of Pentacles
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King of Pentacles


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Excellent high ISO image quality, Shoots at 8.1fps
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Will the weatherproof K-3 be enough to tempt consumers away from Nikon and Canon?
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Fuji's entry-level CSC gets more affordable
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Mid-range NEX is replaced again
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text:
The Family Is of God (Friend)
Music for Children, Music from the Friend
1. Our Father has a family. It's me!
It's you, all others too: we are His children.
He sent each one of us to earth, through birth,
To live and learn here in fam'lies.
2. A father's place is to preside, provide,
To love and teach the gospel to his children.
A father leads in fam'ly prayer to share
Their love for Father in Heaven.
3. A mother's purpose is to care, prepare,
To nurture and to strengthen all her children.
She teaches children to obey, to pray,
To love and serve in the fam'ly.
4. I'll love and serve my family and be
A good example to each fam'ly member.
And when I am a mom or dad, so glad,
I'll help my fam'ly remember:
God gave us families to help us become what He wants us to be—
This is how He shares His love, for the fam'ly is of God.
Text: Matthew Neeley
Music: Matthew Neeley
Artist: Neeley
Album: Music Published in the Church Magazines: Friend
Composition Date: 2012-10-08
More Info: Friend
Family, children, mother, father, Plan of Salvation, learn, teach, serve, Fatherhood, Motherhood


text:
National League North 2020/2021 Odds Comparison, Fixtures, Livescore & Results
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The number of upcoming games for the league is 416. Follow the next game between Bradford Park Avenue and Boston United on 02/11/2020 at 19:45UTC here on Oddspedia.


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The Marine Corps says 17 people have been punished for placing ads on the Internet seeking sex while they were deployed to Afghanistan.
Those punished included 11 military personnel and six civilian employees of the Department of Defense.
The ads were discovered during a 2012 investigation. Those who placed the ads were deployed to Camp Leatherneck in Helmand province, which was then under the command of the Camp Pendleton-based 1st Marine Expeditionary Force.
Local news from across Southern California
The investigations were revealed by the Marine Corps Times, which noted that military personnel were specifically told not to place sex ads on websites.
Punishment for the military personnel was meted out by their unit commanders, with possible loss of rank, extra duty, fines and restriction of privileges.
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For the past 4 months a group of activists have occupied a corner at Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) to protest nuclear energy in Japan. They have been told to move out today.
Kjeld Duits • Friday January 27, 2012 • Politics •
Embarrassed by leaked video clips that expose their deceit and murderous actions, powerful forces are now trying to close down WikiLeaks and incarcerate its founder. So what is WikiLeaks and who is Julian Assange? Swedish national television broadcaster Sveriges Television AB (SVT) has created a documentary that aims to honestly answer these two questions. It shows that shutting WikiLeaks down would silence the press and greatly damage press freedom.
Kjeld Duits • Monday December 13, 2010 • Politics • Add Comment
(From the Official Google Blog) Like many other well-known organizations, we face cyber attacks of varying degrees on a regular basis. In mid-December, we detected a highly sophisticated and targeted attack on our corporate infrastructure originating from China that resulted in the theft of intellectual property from Google. However, it soon became clear that what at first appeared to be solely a security incident—albeit a significant one—was something quite different.
First, this attack was not just on Google. As part of our investigation we have discovered that at least twenty other large companies from a wide range of businesses—including the Internet, finance, technology, media and chemical sectors—have been similarly targeted. We are currently in the process of notifying those companies, and we are also working with the relevant U.S. authorities.
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The Official Google Blog • Wednesday January 13, 2010 • Politics • Comment
(By BRAHMA CHELLANEY) With Asia in transition and the specter of a power imbalance looming large, it has become imperative to invest in institutionalized cooperation to reinforce the region's strategic stability. After all, not only is Asia becoming the pivot of global geopolitical change, but Asian challenges are also playing into international strategic challenges.
Asia's changing power dynamics are reflected in China's increasingly assertive foreign policy, the new Japanese government's demand for an "equal" relationship with the United States, and the sharpening Sino-Indian rivalry, which has led to renewed Himalayan border tensions.
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The Japan Times • Wednesday January 13, 2010 • Politics • Comment
US President Obama' first visit to Japan today is attracting much attention. Many political changes affecting the US-Japan Alliance have taken place in both countries as well as Asia. Washington especially frets about the new Japanese government seeking a more independent course. Here are some links to articles with thought-provoking observations about the relationship and today's meeting.
Kjeld Duits • Friday November 13, 2009 • Politics • Add Comment
The elections that take place in Japan today could possibly become one of the most important in the history of the country. "The elections are about the shape that Japan must take," says Masakazu Uchino, chief editor of the Japanese magazine Weekly Economist. "It is probably the first time in the history of Japan that voters have this choice."
Kjeld Duits • Sunday August 30, 2009 • Politics • Add Comment
Election day has finally come to Japan. Although Japanese election campaigns only last for two weeks, this time it felt like it lasted several years. Since the Democratic Party Japan (DPJ) won a majority in the Upper House in July 2007, expectations have been rising for an opposition victory in the more powerful Lower House, still controlled by the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).
Kjeld Duits • Sunday August 30, 2009 • Politics • Add Comment


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Webcam-watchers get scoops
Breaking news! I have attached the picture so you can see it with your own eyes. I knew you would want this scoop: "Charlottesville– the home of the world's biggest coffee cup."
From your faithful L.A. reader and cam voyeur.
Carole Livengood
Los Angeles
Our southern exposure creates havoc sometimes. Anyone have a good glare shroud?–editor


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Want to get your middle school student savvy on U.S. history? Here is a challenging series of match-up games, featuring U.S. presidents! Read the long description for each, and try to figure out which one fits which president. If you get stumped, try process of elimination.
To match up more of our presidents, click here.


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Arthur Szyk created what is arguably the most beautiful book of all time. This Polish-born illustrator also used his art as a weapon against Fascism during World War II to such devastating effect that Eleanor Roosevelt described him as a one-man army.
And yet Szyk's name (pronounced Shick) had been largely forgotten by the end of the 20th century although his stylized artwork was still familiar to some. Several major exhibitions helped spark a revival and today interest in his work is on the rise. His magnum opus is The Szyk Haggadah - completed in the style of an illuminated manuscript where the text is supplemented by decorated initials, borders and illustrations. It was created under the shadow of Adolf Hitler and combines political symbolism with sheer beauty.
The Haggadah (which means 'the telling' in Hebrew) is an important element of the Jewish Passover holiday. Reading the book is a Jewish rite in order to learn how the Jews escaped to freedom from slavery in Egypt. Every Jewish household has a copy. Szyk's edition draws parallels between repressive regimes of Nazi Germany and the ancient Egyptians. In his original artwork for the book, Szyk placed swastikas onto Egyptian figures but he was persuaded to remove them because of concerns that a religious text should not be tainted by racist images. The Haggadah features a story about four sons - one is wise, one is wicked, one is simple, and the last does not know to ask. Szyk's wicked son is clearly Germanic complete with a little Hitler moustache.
The Szyk Haggadah was published in 1940 by Britain's Beaconsfield Press. Only 250 copies were printed. Each one cost $500 and it was the most expensive new book in the world at the time. Two of those copies were available on AbeBooks at almost $60,000 each. The books were printed on vellum. They were bound in gold-stamped leather with end pages printed on silk and full color illuminations on double leaf parchment. There is an English translation accompanying the Hebrew text.
The first copy was given to King George VI and is housed in Windsor Castle. The reviewer at The Times of London wrote the edition was "worthy to be placed among the most beautiful books that the hand of man has ever produced." The plates found their way to Israel and the first reprint on ordinary paper was in 1956. Reprints, in various bindings, followed on a sporadic basis.
A new luxury version, limited to 215 copies of the deluxe edition and 85 copies of the premier edition, of The Szyk Haggadah was published in 2008 by Historicana, who also sell rare books on AbeBooks. Bound in blue three-quarter leather with red Japanese silk-rayon cover boards and a gilt-panel spine, this edition, which includes a custom clam shell box, is a remarkable offering of Szyk's book. Because of more advanced printing technologies, Historicana's edition renders Szyk's colors far better than the original.
Irvin Ungar of Historicana had the deluxe edition on display at the Vancouver Antiquarian Book Fair in 2010 and it is a stunning piece of work. Brilliant colors, particularly the vivid blues and reds, leap off the illuminated pages. Historicana has also published a companion volume to Szyk's Haggadah called Freedom Illuminated: Understanding the Szyk Haggadah – it contains scholarly essays, illustrations, a history of the book and comes in a slipcase. It also displays how Szyk's Egyptians would have looked with the swastikas. Abrams has also just released highly affordable versions of Szyk's Haggadah.
Ungar has been one of the driving forces behind the recent revival in Szyk. "I found some copies of Szyk's Haggadah in a bookshop in New York and gave them to people in my wedding party some 35 years ago. That was the start of my interest in him."
But let's put the Szyk Haggadah to one side for a moment and learn more about the man himself and his development into Roosevelt's soldier in art. Szyk was born in 1894 to a Jewish family in Lodz in Poland, then ruled by Russia. He studied art in Paris but was won over by the beauty of medieval illuminated manuscripts. He returned to Poland and fought for the Russians in World War I.
In 1921, he moved back to Paris and his career took off. He illustrated a number of books and mixed the traditions of medieval illumination with contemporary elements, and his style was born. One of Szyk's most famous works of the 1920s was an illustrated version of the Statute of Kalisz - a 700-year-old charter of Jewish liberties. In the early 1930s, he produced Washington and his Times, which included 38 watercolors illustrating key events of the American Revolutionary War.
Szyk's work became more political as Hitler rose to power. He was drawing caricatures of the Nazi leader as early as 1933. He eventually moved to London to oversee the production of his Haggadah, a three-year process.
In 1940, he moved to the United States and was embraced by the Americans for his cutting caricatures of the Germans and their Axis allies. His popular status grew massively during these years and his work provided valuable propaganda for the Allies. Szyk's venom was genuine - he had lost his Polish homeland, his mother died in a Nazi death camp in 1943 and his faith was threatened with extinction.
His work was seen in newspapers, magazines and art galleries – he considered himself a "soldier in art." Apparently, Hitler even put a bounty on Szyk's head. In 1941, his wartime drawings were published in a book called The New Order. In 1946, another collection of drawings called Ink & Blood was published in a limited edition format. Both books were popular.
Aside from his caricatures, Szyk's work during and after the war also included illustrating the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, the Book of Job, a collection of fairy tales by Hans Christian Andersen. A year before his death in 1951, he also completed an illuminated text of the United States Declaration of Independence.
The Haggadah illustrated by Arthur Szyk
Justice Illuminated - 1936
The New Order by Arthur Szyk
"Madness"- Axis leaders from Ink & Blood 1941
Andersen's Fairy Tales - 1945
Self portrait - 1946
"Satan Leads the Ball" - 1942
"Andersen's Fairy Tales" - 1944
The Arabian Nights - 1948


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Three-time world champion, 2008 U.S. Olympian, #88 in the starting block, Kyle Bennett had a smooth style on the bike that made him look as if he were flowing around the BMX track. He didn't sharply jerk his bike from side to side like some riders. He made it look effortless. Like butter.
At 2:16 a.m. Sunday morning, Butter — as KB was known — flowed no more. The 33-year-old BMX legend died in a single-car accident in his hometown of Conroe, Texas. According to the Montgomery County Police Reporter, information at the scene indicated he was likely driving to help his fiancé, Lynsie Argenti, after she called to say someone had broken into her car where she worked. Bennett's 2006 Toyota Tundra truck left the highway for unknown reasons, traveled through a ditch, struck a culvert pipe, crashed through a wrought-iron gate, uprooted several trees, and landed on its roof on a residential lawn. Rescue personnel determined that Bennett, who was not wearing a seatbelt, died at the scene.
Bennett left behind Argenti, a four-year-old daughter Kylie, and a tight-knit community of BMX riders stunned by his loss.
To them, Bennett was more than a three-time world champion and Olympian. He was, as Mike King, USA Cycling's BMX program director, put it, "a great person."
"Take away all of his accolades and he was still an amazing person," echoed 2012 Olympian Connor Fields, who started racing BMX when Bennett was dominating the sport and "was everyone's, including my, hero."
"He was always so gracious and always had time for the kids," continued Fields, who just turned 20. "He inspired my generation of BMXers."
Bennett was born on September 25, 1979, in Conroe, a city of about 59,000 people set in the pine woods 40 miles north of Houston. When he was seven, his grandfather took him to the Armadillo BMX track in Conroe for his first race. His grandparents also set up a BMX course in their backyard so young Bennett could practice. It paid off. During the summer of 1988, he won his first national championship.
Inspired by his stepfather, John Purse, a BMX pro and 1997 world champion who helped him train, Bennett turned pro after graduating from high school. In 2002, on his first trip out of the country, he won the UCI BMX World Championships in Sao Paolo, Brazil.
He successfully defended the world title in 2003 and won it for the third time in 2007, a year after knee surgery to reconstruct a torn ACL. In 2008, Bennett was the top-ranked athlete in USA Cycling's BMX ratings, so he earned an automatic nomination to the U.S. Olympic BMX squad.
Favored to medal at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, Bennett crashed in the quarterfinals and separated his shoulder. He advanced to the semis based on combined times from earlier heats but did not qualify for the finals.
He continued to race after the 2008 Olympics and found success in domestic races, winning two national-level races in 2010.
"When Kyle Bennett got on the start gate, people knew he was on the gate and could be considered for a win lap after lap," said King.
Bennett hoped to make the 2012 U.S. Olympic team but realized it was going to be much harder than he imagined, said King. He was in the twilight of his BMX racing career and had talked to King about the crossroads he was approaching.
Coaching would have been a natural career segue for the rider who already led summer camps and clinics. Just a week ago, Bennett gave an evening clinic at Armadillo BMX. In July 2012, on Armadillo BMX's Olympic Day, the track had been renamed after Bennett.
"A lot of younger athletes looked up to him not only for his accomplishments but for the way he rode and the way he was as an adult male athlete," said King.
As Fields quickly climbed the pro ranks, he grew to know Bennett as a teammate on both Team USA and the Free Agent BMX trade team.
"He was so helpful and welcoming, never making you feel as if he was better than you or like you didn't deserve to be there," said Fields. "He took me under his wing and was always offering me advice."
Fields also liked his attitude, calling Bennett the opposite of a stereotypical athlete: "He was so laid back and happy. He never seemed to have a care in the world and always had a smile on his face, regardless of if he won or got last, and that's why everyone loved him. He had a contagious smile and a goofy way about him that just made everything feel more lighthearted and fun."
Bennett's death left everyone in shock, including his 2008 Olympic teammates Mike Day and Donny Robinson. Calling Bennett "the best to ever do it," Day tweeted a photo of the three standing on the 2008 Olympic BMX course in Beijing.
Robinson tweeted, "I cry when I'm awake, then I try to sleep it off and I cry in my dreams. I can't escape the fact it's real, Bennie …"
On Sunday night, about 500 people attended a candlelight vigil at the Kyle Bennett Armadillo BMX Park.
Then on Monday, the UCI BMX commission announced that it would retire Bennett's number, 88.
"That in itself kind of gives you an idea what his passing has meant to our sport," said King. "It's definitely a tragic and big loss for a lot of these kids that want to be the next Kyle Bennett and to say that they got to meet him or speak with him or were at one of his clinics. That's going to have a lasting affect to any kid coming through the program."
Peggy Shinn is a freelance contributor for TeamUSA.org. This story was not subject to the approval of the United States Olympic Committee or any National Governing Bodies.


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Isle Of Wight Festival 2014 Information
HomeRumoursTicketsLineupWeatherNewsFeaturesReviewsPhotosInfoAddress: Seaclose Park, Newport, UK, Newport, Isle of Wight, UK,
About Isle Of Wight Festival 2014
The original Isle Of Wight Festival will forever be etched in musical history after it housed Jimi Hendrix's last ever performance,
attracted the largest ever UK festival crowd and led to the banning of any future festivals on the island in 1970.
However, since it was re-ignited in 2002, the festival has forged a new identity that differs from its predecessors. Big names like The Rolling Stones and The Police honour the spirits of the big names like Dylan and The Doors as some 60,000 fans annually cross the Solent for the three-day bash.
With one main stage and a big top the Isle of Wight Festival line up swings from rock to pop and dance to blues with Jay-Z, Paul McCartney and Pink all performing recently.
Onsite at the Isle Of Wight Festival there is a funfair as well as a selection of food and drink stalls. Camping is available from the Thursday with entertainment provided for campers.


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(CMT Offstage keeps a 24/7 watch on everything that's happening with country music artists behind the scenes and out of the spotlight.)
Now I know better. After Wednesday night's (May 22) season finale of Nashville, I know better because I know everything. So many people came clean about so many things.
1. Rayna comes clean that she's dating Deacon.
2. Gunnar comes clean that he's been using his late brother's lyrics.
3. Avery comes clean about still loving Scarlett, singing her "The Moon Is High."
4. Juliette comes clean that she is glad her mother's gone because "it's finally over."
5. Brad Paisley (as himself) comes clean that it's going to be hard to sing when he's looking at Rayna's embellished bustier.
6. Will comes clean that in order to be the next big thing in country music, he'll have to put his homosexuality aside and bed every girl he meets.
7. Peggy comes clean that she's pregnant, and presumably Mayor Teddy is the baby daddy.
8. But all those revelations paled in comparison to the tiny little smile that appeared on Deacon's face when Maddie came clean to him that he was her father. And even though there was so much anger after Maddie's confession — "I need you to tell me you haven't been lying to me every moment for the last 13 years" — and a night of binge drinking and a good mayoral assault, I think Deacon and Rayna will all be OK. Next season.
Oh, and Juliette won CMA female vocalist of the year.


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David Skinner of Anglican Mainstream, a group of Christian denominations dedicated to supporting traditional marriage and family life, has forwarded to me the following information from Marketing Week:
Tesco has signed a deal to become a major sponsor of London Pride, the UK's largest gay festival, as it outlines plans to host its biggest ever event in the capital.
Tesco will also host a family area designed to provide families attending the event with a 'safe, relaxed and chilled out' place with family-friendly entertainment and activities aimed at younger children.
The supermarket will also contribute to funding the free-to-attend event, which is organised by volunteers.
Tesco joins Smirnoff as headline sponsor for the annual event and builds on Tesco's presence at the 2011 festival.
The news comes shortly after Tesco ended its 10-year partnership with Cancer Research's Race for Life fundraising event.
Pride London is already the largest Gay Pride event in the UK and it is extending its carnival route and adding a second day to the festival for 2012, when it will host the global festival WorldPride 2012.
Andrew Higginson, CEO of retailing services at Tesco, says, "Tesco is the UK's largest private employer, and a very diverse international organisation where everybody is welcome. Our Out at Tesco team will be working closely with Pride London to ensure next year's event is even more fun."
Why on earth is Tesco promoting an event like this? Tesco is a supermarket; its remit has been to sell good-quality food and other items at very reasonable prices, and in this it has been hugely successful. Why has it now aligned itself with an aggressive political organisation such as Pride London? Why has it given up its sponsorship of Cancer Research? Or at least, if it has given up this sponsorship, why hasn't it taken up with another mainstream charity such as the British Legion or Age UK? There are thousands of ex-servicemen and wounded soldiers needing help in this country, and millions of elderly people in danger of neglect. They are a fundamental part of the fabric of our society – the kind of fabric that Tesco should be reflecting.
Why, why, why?
I understand that one in four of the British public shops at Tesco. It is certainly "diverse and international" and a place where "everyone is welcome" – whatever their orientation. Who cares about other people's orientation when they are shopping? It's about making ends meet, balancing the family's food budget, getting value for money and picking up bargains (including Bogofs). I shop there and have done so for years. At its doors there are often charity workers asking for money – notably Children in Need and other worthwhile causes.
Inside the store you can see why it is so successful: organic food, Fairtrade, low-fat, corn-fed chickens, free-range eggs, a range of healthy options, vegetarian foods – any possible new demand has Tesco instantly on its heels with a shelf load of new items. For my taste there is too much Halloween junk, too much piped muzak, too much "Christmas cheer" too soon and too many Easter eggs on display by New Year's Day – but these are small quibbles; that's how a retail business works.
But to throw its enormous weight behind a marginal group (but which also has a determined and sinister political agenda) that does not in the least reflect the huge majority of its customers – why?
David Skinner also sent me the letter he had sent to Andrew Higginson and Philip Clarke, the CEO, in protest. I reproduce some of it here in order to encourage as many readers as possible to do likewise.
"I understand… that Tesco is sponsoring London Pride and setting aside 'family areas as safe places where children can go'. For Tesco to sponsor a tiny homosexual minority (according to the Office for National Statistics) that amounts to little more than one per cent of the population…[it] will be showing the utmost contempt for a large proportion of British society that still adheres, more or less, to the morality and values of the Ten Commandments."
Apparently he received a stock response to this, merely saying that Tesco's is "inclusive" and that "everyone is welcome". He now urges as many people as possible to write direct to:
Sir Richard Broadbent, Chairman, Tesco PLC,
New Tesco House,
Delamere Road,
Cheshunt, Herts EN8 9SL
Skinner has told Tesco that he will not be shopping at their shops any more. I am going to send a similar letter with the same message. If only a few people do this, it will appear pathetic. Tesco thinks in terms of balance sheets and profit margins like any capitalist organisation. If thousands of Christians and others were to join a campaign of protest it is likely Tesco would think again. It has happened before: some years ago Tesco announced it would sell the "morning-after" pill at the chemist outlets in its shops. There was a huge outcry and a storm of letters from Christian denominations. The result? Sir Terry Leahy, the then chief executive (and a Catholic, as it happens), sent out a mollifying letter saying he had listened to the protest and that the company had re-thought its decision.
Let's send Tesco a similar message: stick to groceries and stop dabbling in dubious fringe political movements.
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Congokŏng´gō [key] or Zaïrezī´ēr, zäēr´ [key], great river of equatorial Africa, c.2,720 mi (4,380 km) long, formed by the waters of the Lualaba River and its tributary, the Luvua River, and flowing generally N and W through Congo (Kinshasa) to the Atlantic Ocean.
Sections in this article:
- Introduction
- European Exploration
- Economic Importance
- Course
- Bibliography
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2012, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
See more Encyclopedia articles on: African Physical Geography


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Good vibrations for BepiColombo
Mimicking the intense vibrations experienced by a satellite during launch, the engineering model of the BepiColombo mission to Mercury has been subjected to similar forces at ESA's spacecraft test facilities.
BepiColombo vertical vibration test
A major design issue for spacecraft arises from the intense environment experienced during launch, ranging from vigorous vibrations to deafening noise. It is essential to test spacecraft under similar conditions here on Earth, to ensure they will survive the violent ride to space.
In these videos of recent vibration tests, the BepiColombo structural and thermal model is in its launch configuration in the test facilities at ESTEC, ESA's technical centre in Noordwijk, the Netherlands.
BepiColombo is a joint mission between ESA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency to explore the properties of Mercury, the enigmatic innermost planet in our Solar System.
The spacecraft comprises a number of components. Seen here from top to bottom are the sunshield, which conceals the Japanese Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter, with the European Mercury Planetary Orbiter below. Underneath is the Mercury Transfer Module, which will deliver the two scientific satellites into orbit around the planet.
BepiColombo horizontal vibration test
During the tests the spacecraft was mounted on a table where it was shaken up-and-down or from side-to-side to mimic the vibrations it will experience when it lifts off on an Ariane 5 launch vehicle in 2015.
Each test lasted for 2.5 minutes during which the frequency of the vibrations was increased from 3 Hz to 100 Hz. At the lowest frequencies the spacecraft movement reached 10 cm, which decreased as the frequency continued to rise.
Other mechanical tests to simulate the launch and voyage in space include exposing the spacecraft to the tremendous noise a rocket produces, the harsh vacuum of space, and scorching temperatures of some 450°C that the modules will endure as they orbit around the closest planet to the Sun.
The engineering model will also be subjected to the shocks generated during the separation of BepiColombo from the launcher, the separation of the individual spacecraft modules and the deployment of its solar arrays and antennas.
BepiColombo is scheduled to launch in 2015 and will arrive at Mercury in 2022. The two orbiters will study the planet's composition, geophysics, atmosphere, magnetosphere, and geological history.
As the nearest planet to the Sun, Mercury has an important role in the story of planet formation. Mercury together with Venus and Mars make up Earth's rocky neighbourhood. Each planet holds information necessary for understanding how the innermost planets of our Solar System formed and evolved.