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Get the gear that makes your ride awesome with accessories from The Ski and Bike Shop. We've got a great selection of cycling accessories from water bottles to pumps and much more. Got questions? Give us a call or stop by the shop today.
Lezyne's Micro Floor Drive HV is a powerful mini-pump that thinks it's a floor pump. Its fold-out foot peg, high-volume barrel and aluminum construction make it easier than ever to pump up to maximum pressure of 90psi and get back on the trails. You'll also appreciate the ergonomic handle, extra-long hose and Presta/Schrader-valve compatibility.
Garmin started with the aerodynamic form factor of the popular Edge 500, added in-ride challenges on Strava live segments, color display, connected capabilities and advanced analysis features. The result—Edge 520, the GPS bike computer that's right-sized for competitive cyclists and packed with the features you crave. Edge 520 compromises nothing when it comes to display — 2.3 inches of high-resolution color. We maximized the display so you get the most live area in relation to the compact size of the 520. You'll also appreciate the screen clarity in all lighting conditions. The compact, rugged form factor and 15+ hour battery life of Edge 520 make it ideal for off-road adventures. It's also compatible with GPS/GLONASS satellites, so you benefit from more signal options, wherever your ride takes you. - Offers in-ride challenges through Strava live segments - Reports cycling-specific VO2 max and recovery time when used with power and heart rate - Pairs with compatible ANT+ indoor trainers for data display and control - Tracks Functional Threshold Power (FTP), watts/kg and cycling dynamics when used with Vector or Vector 2 power meters - Connected features (when compared with a compatible phone): automatic uploads, live tracking, smart notifications, send/receive courses, social media sharing, weather
$17.99 - $19.99
Budget-focused riders can journey with confidence knowing the Comp Seat Bag will keep essentials are close at hand. • Hook and loop straps attach pack securely to seat rails and seatpost • Angled zippered opening makes access to contents easier when bag is fitted tight • Taillight tab for increased visibility • 100% polyester
Shine on The Ion 35 front light comes in an easily mountable compact size, yet comes to the party with enough power to light the road in front of you. A 35 Lumen front light featuring three modes: high, low and flash while offering 270 degrees of visibility. Comes with batteries and Sync mounting brackets. - 35 Lumens via high-power, environmentally-friendly, 0.5W CREE LED - Be seen with focused optics and over 270 degrees of visibility - High, low, and flash modes for versatile lighting options - Sync bracket allows for quick and easy adjustment, mounting, and removal - Includes 3 AAA batteries and Quick Connect bracket - Blendr compatible
Make every ride safer with the first tail light designed for daylight visibility. Flare R's balanced optics set off with a powerful CREE LED can be seen from over 2km day or night. 65 Lumens and 270 degrees of visibility help make you the biggest distraction on the road. The Flare R's powerful CREE LED shine bright through balanced optics ensuring visibility of over 270 degrees. Visible over 2km day/night for the ultimate in riding safety. - 65 Lumens for visibility from over 2km day or night - Be seen with balanced optics designed for 270 degree visibility near and far - Two day-time visibility modes and two night modes - Day modes: 65LM flash-4.25hrs, 35LM all-day-10hrs, 25LM steady-4.5hrs - Night modes: 65LM flash-23hrs, 5LM steady-21hrs - Battery save mode at 5% life helps ensure a safe ride home with depleted battery - Quick Connect bracket with 16 degree offset compensates for seatpost angle - Includes quick connect bracket and USB charging cable
Ride all winter long in Bontrager's OMW Shoes. Waterproof, insulated, and protected, your feet won't even notice the cold, wet, and nasty riding conditions. •inForm Tundra last - roomier high-performance fit for thicker socks •Bronze Series Composite sole - Nylon composite with full Tachyon Rubber outsole and SPD compatibility •Waterproof main zipper with 2-strap hook and loop closure system •Stiffness index 6 •Fleece-lined removable inner bootie with 200g 3M Thinsulate insulation •4-way stretch upper with waterproof breathable OutDry membrane •Anti-draft, elasticized ankle cuff with toggle-cord closure •GnarGuard - Outer protection against trail brush and debris
The ABUS Primo 590 features a strong, self-coiling steel cable secured with a sturdy keyed lock. You get a 9.5mm-thick cable and a soft, durable cover that protects your bike's finish. And, ABUS' bracket lets you attach the lock to your seatpost for convenient transportation.
Brave the most extreme winter conditions and never worry about your feet with 45NRTH's Wølfgar Winter Cycling Boot. They will keep your feet warm down to -25ºF and keep out the harshest of winter days and nights. Whether you're heading out on a multi-day expedition or groomed singletrack session, the removable felted wool liner boot wicks moisture away from your feet while retaining its insulating properties. On long rides, carry a spare liner to swap out for a fresh, dry pair. Precise placement of aerogel under the foot and over the toe blocks cold and wind from chilling your feet. The 2-bolt compatible Vibram outsole is custom studdable to claw into the ice when things get slick.
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Introduction to Fashion Days, an İMA classic, hosted Atıl Kutoğlu in September. Kutoğlu shared his experiences of career with young fashion lovers in a warm and friendly environment.
İstanbul Fashion Academy, where globally recognized educational systems and structures are successfully adopted, hosted Atıl Kutoğlu at its regular Open Day activity held every Friday between 15.00 – 17.00. Granted Austria's Best Fashion Designer Award as young as 26 years of age, Atıl Kutoğlu is now among the world-renowned fashion designers. He shared with the audience the story of his career and candidly answered curious questions coming from fashion students. His biggest advise to them was to keep working hard to be successful in this business.

subset: commoncrawl


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DIY Bug and Wasp Trap
Shoo, Fly! DIY Plastic Bottle Bug Trap
Keep pesky bugs and wasps away while enjoying lunch on your patio this Summer with a homemade wasp trap that repurposes a plastic bottle. Along with being seriously easy to make, the trap can be dumped, rinsed, and reused. Perfect for using in small spaces or spots that highly attract wasps, like balconies or rooftop terraces, these bug traps can be discreetly tucked in corners while still being effective.
Here's how to make your own wasp trap:
- Any size plastic bottle works for creating the trap. Simply remove the cap and the label from the bottle, and use scissors to cut away the top fourth of the bottle.
- Now invert the top of the bottle into the bottom, creating a funnel. There should be at least a one-inch space between the end of the funnel and the bottom of the bottle.
- Mix together a sweet bug- and wasp-attracting solution of two parts warm water to one part sugar, and carefully pour into the wasp trap, leaving at least a half-inch gap between the sugar water and the end of the funnel.
- Place the wasp trap outdoors, and let it do its job. Bugs are attracted to the sweet water, fly down the funnel for a taste, and then are contained in the trap. Add more sugar water as needed, and empty and reuse after the trap has done its job.


text: The Road Less Traveled Sunday, July 31, 2011 12:00 AM | David Lose | 8 Comments Facebook-twitter-g+-LinkedIN-EmailPrint Dear Working Preacher, There are two ways to preach this story from Matthew. And a lot hangs on which one you choose. The first tack -- the more familiar of the two -- is to stress Peter's failure. Yes, he is bold and impetuous, attributes we often admire, particularly if they come in the lead character of a summer blockbuster film. But in the gospels these qualities are as often the source of Peter's troubles as they are his successes. And so while he asks -- demands? -- to come out to accompany his Lord among the waves and eagerly climbs over the gunwale, he soon falters. Where did all that impetuous confidence go? It was cast aside with the flicker of his eyes, as he glanced away from his Lord and looked instead at the strength of the sea. The theme of the sermon that ventures this way quickly becomes clear: keep your eyes on Jesus. And preachers all across the world will beat this thesis statement like a drum sounding the rhythm to a relentless march: keep your eyes on Jesus; focus on the Lord; keep your eyes on Jesus; the worse your troubles, the more you need to look steadfastly to the One who can save; keep your eyes on Jesus; don't be led to doubt and fear by circumstances; keep your eyes on Jesus; fasten your gaze upon the master of wind and wave; keep your eyes on Jesus. As drumbeats go, it's not bad, pulsing away with its resonant good advice, imploring us to a livelier, more trusting faith than we often seem to manifest. And certainly there's ample textual evidence to support treading in this direction. And yet... And yet my problem isn't that I don't know I should trust Jesus. Honest. I picked that up early and haven't forgotten. It's just that no matter how hard I try, I seem to get distracted, worried, even overwhelmed at times by the waves all around me. Economic, political, social, medical, ecclesial -- I can find things to worry about just about anywhere, and while I know that I should trust them all to the Lord, it just isn't that easy. And, truthfully, having one more cheerleader tell me from the pulpit what I should do but can't seem to just doesn't help. If anything, it makes things worse. Which is the problem, I think, with this familiar exegetical route. It confuses the gospel with good advice. After all, it's not that the counsel isn't good: we should keep our eyes on Jesus. It's just that the funny thing with advice -- and all the law for that matter -- is that it can never create what it demands. Which brings me to a second possibility, definitely in my experience in the pews the minority report when it comes to this story: instead of emphasizing Peter's failure, look to Jesus. No, I'm not kidding, look and see what Jesus actually does when Peter takes his eyes off his Lord and begins to sink. It's right there in verse 31: "Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him." When I was nine, I went hiking with my brothers, sisters, some cousins, and an uncle. We came to some steep terrain and ended up in a cave of sorts. We ventured in and could soon see a hole up above, which we figured led out onto the ridge we were hiking to. The path through the cave narrowed until I was the only one small enough to climb any further. Bold and impetuous as the typical nine-year-old, I eagerly climbed farther to investigate. Just before sticking my head out of the hole, though, my foot slipped and I fell. It was, maybe, all of ten feet -- though it felt like thirty -- and it was over in a terrifying heartbeat, as my uncle caught me. Literally. He was down below and reached out his arms and just grabbed hold of me. And it was the best feeling ever. I have a hunch that's what Peter felt like. And then he didn't need to be told to look to Jesus anymore. What else could he do? That's the thing about the gospel, you see, it doesn't just tell you to do something, it makes it possible to do it. Sometimes, it actually makes it seem impossible not to. "Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him." There it is, the heartbeat, rather than drumbeat, of the story and sermon for me. Yes, Peter should have kept his eyes on Jesus...and so should we. But when we don't, when we falter, or even fail, Jesus will be there to grab us, to catch us, to support us and set us up straight again, ready to give it another go. So maybe we should try a little guided meditation in hearing this text, inviting people to imagine Peter's excitement as he perceived the Lord, his eagerness to join him amid the waves. And then perhaps invite us to remember how big those waves are, the worries and concerns and anxieties we carry. In the middle of that, maybe we could even reach out and grab each other as we read verse 31. I don't know what might work. You'll know better than I. But I do know that there's something remarkably tactile about being touched, about being grabbed hold of, that's in keeping with the experience this story narrates. Jesus, finally, isn't simply our guide or life coach; he's our Savior, the One who does for us what we cannot. Too much of American Christianity, I think, has forgotten that, reducing the gospel to one more spiritual self-help recipe, hardly different from what you might hear on Oprah. But the Lord who walks atop the sea in this story not only directs wind and wave but also death and life. This Jesus wants more than to command our attention; he wants to save our lives. And he has promised to do just that. Two routes, Working Preacher. Even two paths, that diverge in the exegetical wood before us. I invite you to take the one less traveled, and I promise you that it will make all the difference. Yours in Christ, David PS: No matter what you're preaching this week, take a moment to read the passage from Romans 10. Slow down, read it aloud, and then imagine it's about you. Why? Because it is. "But how are they to call on one in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in one of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone to proclaim him? And how are they to proclaim him unless they are sent? As it is written, 'How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!'" This is what you do, Working Preacher -- you proclaim Christ that we may believe and call on the Lord who unfailingly and indefatigably reaches out to grab us when we sink or fall. So there you go -- whether you've got size 7 or 11, when your toes are calloused or adorned by painted nails, you've got beautiful feet. You probably didn't know it, but you do. And I give thanks for them -- and you! -- regularly. Tags: Matthew 14:22-33, Pentecost 9 A, walking on water, Peter, Dear Working Preacher, David Lose 8 Comments | Facebook-twitter-g+-LinkedIN-EmailPrint previous main next


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Rupert's New Home
A lot has happened in the life of Rupert Bear since he was purchased from the Daily Express in 2005 by the family entertainment business, Entertainment Rights, for six million pounds. As well as a new home, Rupert has acquired a new look, new chums and a TV programme all of his own. While he has exchanged his brown boots for trendy trainers, Rupert is still instantly recognisable in his yellow check trousers and red jumper.
Aimed at children aged 2-5, Rupert's TV show, Follow The Magic, was launched in 2006 and has delighted youngsters ever since. Themes of the show are magic, adventure, fun, friendship and nature, blended with early learning activities. Children are encouraged to use their imaginations as they follow Rupert and his friends on magical journeys from Nutwood to Rocky Bay and beyond. The friends' exciting adventures are always based on an event in the natural world with emphasis on the importance of caring for the environment.


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"¡Prepárense y dáleeeeee!"
Yo' chico Pitbull is getting his own SiriusXM radio station.
"First of all, I want to thank SiriusXM for the opportunity to touch my fans in a more personal way," Mr. Worldwide said in a statement released yesterday.
"I will also get a chance to play all the music that I love and grew up listening -- most of all, we are going to have a lot of fun in the process."
See also: Pitbull's New Year's Revolution 2015 Broadcasting From Miami on Fox: "Daleee!"
very excited to announce the creation of our own channel on @SIRIUSXM and @SiriusXM_Latino get ready #pitbullsxm coming soon
— Pitbull (@pitbull) August 11, 2014
Launching early next year, everyone's "Culo" will shake when Pitbull's channel hits satellite airwaves.
Sure, you'll hear all of his latest collaborative pop hits, from "Timber" with Ke$ha to "We Are One (Ole Ola)" with J. Lo to the Miami Heat theme song "Feel This Moment" with Christina Aguilera. But the most exciting news is that you'll also get to hear all of those sucio 305 anthems like "Toma," "Ay Chico (Lengua Afuera)," and "Bojangles."
Of course, Armando Christian Pérez isn't the only cantante to be broadcast via #PitbullSXM -- the channel will also feature music from "across multiple genres exclusively for SiriusXM listeners."
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Músicaaside, Mr. 305 will also be spreading his "¡dáles!", "¡tomas!", and raspy voice across the globe as the host of his own weekly radio show.
Until then, keep calm and ¡dále!
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-Ten Best Miami Rap Anthems Ever
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If I shove the two words "My Theology" a bit closer together and let go of an E, I realize that I'm left with mythology. As a faith based person, it's interesting to me how varied any of our views are about what we believe. Personally, I've always thought it didn't matter exactly how we choose to practice our faith as long as our faith is grounded in Christ. That belief alone keeps us connected to the guidance of the Holy Spirit and God's will for our lives. At least, that's what my theology says.
I bring up the idea of the myths of our faith because I realize that we all carry around opinions, life experience, hearsay, and whatever else we throw into the pot of our faith content. Now, this seems fine until we run across the places that are more difficult. For example, in a conversation with a very dear Christian friend of mine who suffers the pain of Fibromyalgia, I was astounded to hear her describe some people of faith who believe that she has the "Devil's" disease, and that people who get that do so because they did something wrong. Whew! I guess there's not one of us who doesn't have Fibromyalgia then.
Of course, this brings to mind the story of Jesus and those who wanted to stone the woman caught in adultery. Jesus said, "Anyone here who has never sinned can throw the first stone at her." No stones were thrown that day, and yet, how often do we find an opportunity to throw stones at each other even cloaked in our beliefs?
Fortunately, God sees our motives from the heart and sees us covered with the grace of a resurrected Jesus, so even when we walk around among the stones being lofted over our heads all day long, He alone knows who we are and what it is we hope to be for Him. Perhaps it's my mythology that wants us to be kinder to each other, more supportive and less inclined to hurl verbal slingshots, but somehow it seems that those of us who profess Christ, might want to really strive to honor Him by the ways we acknowledge and love each other without labeling each other or offering judgments.
My theology as I understand it, isn't stony at all…it's woolly…'cause I'm just the sheep of an awesome Shepherd, who forgives me every time I go astray. That's what I believe anyway and I'm pretty sure there's no "mythstake" in that.


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Table of Contents
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The Amityville HorroreBook - 1979
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From the critics
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This book is a page turner, I read the entire thing in about 5 or 6 hours on a gloomy rainy afternoon. I couldn't put it down, and the rest of the day I was totally creeped out. If you're into horror/paranormal topics this book is a good read.
I read this as a teen and it scares the hell outta me.
I'll give it another go soon and update my review
Well I read this book almost 30 years ago and I had the same reaction as Winnipeg here. Since then though I've matured a lot and I've met a lot of real life pigs and I can say this; " Pigs are not evil".
I was reading this book in bed when my husband was at work, working nights. It was so scary I had to put it down & sleep with the lights on. Don't even care if the story is true or not. Between the story & the writing - they don't come any scarier!
Whether or not the Lutz's story is accurate or fabricated, the book in itself paints a horribly freaky vibe throughout. If you aren't too practical and analytical, it's a great scare read. The peculiar things which happened by these days preferences, seem standard, but if you can throw yourself out of reality into this sub reality as George and Kathy Lutz, you'd find yourself wanting the hell out of that house just as much as they did There is extreme argument on this case and I choose to believe the possibility that those experiences could very well had taken place at 112 Ocean Ave and that Ronnie DeFeo really did hear voices. The Unknown is Spectacularly Interesting
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Team members
- Mathias Stang (mjstang)
- Patryk Kucmann (patrykk)
- Guro Møller Ødegård (guromod)
- Pavel Shramau (pavelsh)
Product descriptions requirements
We are doing the Stock Level Visualisations assignment.
Our app should let the user enter two different modes:
- Estimated months of stock left
- Let user select one or more organisation from any organisation level (multi-select)
- Let user select which stock to show from a pre-defined list of admin-defined configurations
- Let user override which indicators/data elements to use for stock levels and monthly usage, and min/max thresholds of what is an acceptable number of months
- Show graph based on the aforementioned options
- Let user save current graph to a dashboard widget
- Time trend for a single organisation unit
- Let user select one organisation from any organisation level (no multi-select)
- Let user select which stock to use from a pre-defined list of admin-defined configurations
- Let user select how many months to show the time trend for
- Let user override any admin-defined data in the same way as the Estimation feature (min/max thresholds should apply to min/max acceptable stock levels, not months)
- Show graph based on the aforementioned options
- Let user save current graph to a dashboard widget
In addition, there should be an admin configuration page that lets admins add, edit and remove configurations. A valid configuration should contain:
- Name (shown to the user where the users selects a configuration)
- Set one data element/indicator used for stock levels and one for usage. Assuming that if multiple data elements are combined, this can be done outside the app using indicators
- Set min/max thresholds for number of months of left (for the Estimation feature) and min/max thresholds for stock levels (for time trend feature)
We chose React as our main framework, as it's a widely used, well documented framework, and one of the team members had some previous experience with it. We also considered Angular.js, but it seemed like having a steeper learning curve and fewer third party components, and Vue.js, which is a less mature framework with fewer third party libraries (which turned out to be important for us). In retrospect, it would have made sense to use Redux or Flux, as there's a lot of data stored in a top-level component being passed down to child component. However, we decided against it as we already had our hands full learning React's state management system, and using Redux/Flux would add another layer of complexity and increase development time.
We decided to use Semantic-UI. It seemed to have all main components we were looking for, and seemed to have all the UI components we needed to build our app. It also has good support for response layouts, which was a plus.
For visualising data, we decided to use HighCharts because it is already used in DHIS2's Visualizer chart plug-in, so we assume that DHIS2 has a valid license for it. It also has a much simpler API than a library such as D3.js, and is more powerful than similar open source libraries such as Chart.js.
- November, 1st - wiki page, understanding of DHIS2 API needed for the application, frameworks and tools to be used are defined.
- November, 7th - general look and design of the application, functional and non-functional requirements specified, start of implementation.
- November, 26th - end of implementation, start of testing and debugging.
- December, 1st - project done, start of presentation preparation.
- December, 4th - presentation made.
Group meetings, problems discussions and temporary result evaluations every Tuesday and Friday.
In our project we are using React as the only JS-framework to develop the application. React was using BSD+patents licence before, but from version 16 it is licensed under permissive MIT licence. This grants us the permission to use React in any way with only one condition, which is to include the copyright notice. Since we are interested in developing a fully open source application with source code published as it is on GitHub and the only framework we are using is React, Stockalyzr will be released by MIT licence too.
DHIS2 is using BSD licence, but we are using only Open API's from DHIS2, so it does not come under consideration.
Division of labour
Each team member initially focused on different parts of planning and development, but after a while we were all coding. We use a Kanban-like development process where we have organised everything we need to do into discrete tasks and use Trello to show tasks that need to be done, tasks in progress, tasks which need reviews and tasks that are done. Each team member codes their currently chosen tasks on a separate branch of our GitHub repo, and when it's ready, another team member reviews it and chooses whether to merge it into the master branch.
The initial division of labour was as follow:
- Mathias: Set up the repo with the main libraries, ESLint config etc. so that the rest of the team has a good starting point
- Pavel: Figure out which parts of the DHIS2 API we needed, and document everything for the rest of the team
- Guro:
- Patryk:


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(Houghton, NY) – Houghton Academy began its 135th school year on August 28, 2017, welcoming 115 students in grades 7 – 12. That number includes 55 international and North American boarding students joining day students from all over western New York.
"Growing in Character" is this year's theme, and will serve to guide both faculty/staff and students as they interact not just in the classroom, but also in after-school co-curricular activities and Class Communities. The Class Communities will meet once a week to discuss spiritual topics, plan class activities and; identify, perform, and complete a class service project during the year.
Aligning with the school theme, and providing a renewed focus on spiritual formation, a new Discipleship Program has been established. Under the direction of two discipleship coordinators, the program will seek to develop clear-thinking, well-prepared young adults capable of defending their beliefs and willing to step out and confidently serve as committed representatives of the Savior.
The Academy will continue to develop its outdoor experiential education program, under the guidance of Houghton Academy alum Stephen Ries. Outdoor activities will include backpacking, rock wall climbing, canoeing, and usage of Houghton College's ropes course. Athletics offerings include volleyball, soccer, basketball, golf, tennis, and track & field. Classroom electives include Understanding the Culture, Exploration into Servant Leadership, Photography, College Computer Science, Introduction to Computers and Applications and Handbell choir.
Several new Faculty and Staff join the Academy this year.
- David Huizenga, Christian Studies Instructor
- Michael Burgett, Science Instructor
- Jerome Bell, Choral Music Instructor
- Julia Newbrough, English Language Learning Instructor
- Jeanne Daningburg, Writing and Literature Instructor
- Stephen Ries, Academic Support & Outdoor Program Coordinator
- Phil Nelson, Boy's Dorm Head Resident
- Jessica Nelson, Athletics Coordinator
- Judi Mollenkof, Principal
To learn more or to suggest community service opportunities for students, call Houghton Academy at (585) 567-8115.
Houghton Academy is a Christian boarding and day school located in Houghton, New York. Houghton Academy offers a college preparatory education for students in grades 7-12.


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Road To 2016
Dave Brailsford: "The rewards from joining the Performance Programmes can be massive"
British Cycling Performance Director, Dave Brailsford, has encouraged athletes with the goal of reaching the highest level in cycling to make themselves known, as applications to the World Class Performance Programmes go live.
British Cycling are currently recruiting athletes from 14 to 22-years-old, across all of the development programmes including Olympic Talent Team and Olympic Development Programme with Brailsford highlighting those who should apply as "anybody serious about performing at the highest level, in this sport."
For a young athlete, Brailsford acknowledged the challenges faced before reaping the rewards, singling out the period when joining the full-time, residential-based Olympic Academy Programme as a pivotal period of not only physical adaption, but lifestyle progression.
"I think the important thing about the Olympic Academy is learning to be disciplined, organised, sort your life out and understand how to really adapt to a big volume of training" Brailsford summarised.
"That can only happen if you eat well, you're nourished well, you're organised and you're not late for things. We've all been there when you're growing up and it seems like such an easy thing when you're a bit older, but when you're younger it can be quite a challenge and I think that's what the Academy is all about."
The Programmes, which have been instrumental in the success story of British Cycling, have helped transform athletes to world and Olympic champions, creating a unique atmosphere that extends beyond competition.
"You're with a bunch of other people of a similar age group, all trying to achieve the same thing and I think there's a camaraderie that can develop there and there's a real culture that you can buy into about trying to improve. I would encourage anybody to apply, it's fun, it's hard work - it really is hard work - but the rewards can be massive."
Opportunities to join the British Cycling Performance Programmes for 2012/13 close from September 3. Apply to join here.


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20 August 2015
Warm-up: Run to Sul Ross and Back
Lunge across gym
Burpee Broad Jump across gym
Accumulate 2 Minutes in the Bottom of a Squat, Stretch out
Backsquat 3X5 (add 5-10#!!!)
Benchpress 3X5 (add 5-10#!!!)
WOD: 15 Minute "Cindy with DUs"
AMRAP 15 Minutes
5 Pull-ups
10 Push-ups
15 Air Squats
20 DUs
Cool Down: 3 X Farmer's Carries to Black Mailbox and Back, rest as needed in between


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TRIPLE RIPPLE: Leaders who have rocked and ruled
Chancellor Angela Merkel on Monday won a historic third term by a landslide in the German elections.
Merkel's Christian Democratic Union and its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union, finished four seats short of an absolute majority in the new Bundestag, the lower house of the German parliament, one of the best results achieved by the conservatives.
The two parties together polled 41.7 per cent of the votes, nearly right per cent more than in the last election four years ago and secured a total of 311 seats in the lower house, according to official results. In a result that was closely watched in Europe, Merkel not only crushed her opponents, but some of her allies too.
By doing so, the German chancellor has joined a small, but exclusive club of leaders who have achieved the same feat.
Rediff.com brings you a list of such leaders.
Click NEXT to read further...
Image: German Chancellor and leader of the Christian Democratic Union Angela Merkel smiles as she addresses supporters at the party headquarters in Berlin
Photographs: Fabrizio Bensch/Reuters
Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru was elected by the Congress to assume office as independent India's first prime minister although the question of leadership had been settled as far back in 1941, when Mahatma Gandhi acknowledged him as his political heir and successor.
As prime minister, Nehru set out to realise his vision of India. The Constitution of India was enacted in 1950, after which he embarked on an ambitious program of economic, social and political reforms.
He oversaw India's transition from a monarchy to a republic, while nurturing a plural, multi-party democracy. In foreign policy, Nehru took a leading role in non-alignment while projecting India as a regional hegemon in South Asia.
He ruled India from its establishment as an independent nation in 1947 until his death in office in 1964, winning three elections during this time.
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Jyoti Basu
Jyoti Basu served as the chief minister of West Bengal from 1977 to 2000, making him the longest-serving chief minister of any state of India. Basu was a member of the Communist Party of India-Marxist Politburo from the time of the party's founding in 1964 until 2008.
From 2008 until his death in 2010, he remained a permanent invitee to the central committee of the party.
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Photographs: Reuters
N T Rama Rao
After his career in films, Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao, or NTR, as he was known among his millions of fans, entered politics. He founded the Telugu Desam Party in 1982 and served three tumultuous terms as chief minister of Andhra Pradesh between 1983 and 1995.
He was known as an advocate of Andhra Pradesh's distinct cultural identity, distinguishing it from the erstwhile Madras State with which it was often associated. At the national level, he was instrumental in the formation of the National Front, a coalition of non-Congress parties which governed India from 1989 until 1990.
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Photographs: Reuters
Narendra Modi
Narendra Modi the chief minister of Gujarat, too has won three terms. He is the prime ministerial candidate of the BJP and the National Democratic Alliance for the upcoming 2014 general elections.
He first became chief minister of Gujarat in October 2001, being promoted to the office upon the resignation of his predecessor, Keshubhai Patel, following the defeat of the BJP in the by-elections.
In July 2007, he became the longest-serving chief minister in Gujarat's history when he had been in power for 2,063 days continuously.
He is currently into his third consecutive term as chief minister.
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Photographs: Amit Dave/Reuters
Franklin D Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt, commonly known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States (1933–1945).
He was also the only President who served for 12 years and four terms until his death in 1945, and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic depression and total war.
A dominant leader of the Democratic Party and the only American president elected to more than two terms, he built a New Deal Coalition that realigned American politics after 1932, as his domestic policies defined American liberalism for the middle third of the 20th century.
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Photographs: Reuters
Hugo Chavez
Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías was the president of Venezuela from 1999 until his death in 2013.
He was formerly the leader of the Fifth Republic Movement from its foundation in 1997 until 2007, when it merged with several other parties to form the United Socialist Party of Venezuela, which he led until 2012.
After winning the October 2012 presidential election, he was to have been sworn in on 10 January 2013, but the National Assembly of Venezuela agreed to postpone the inauguration to allow him time to recover from medical treatment in Cuba, resulting from a return of the cancer that was originally diagnosed in June 2011.
Chávez died in Caracas on 5 March 2013 at the age of 58.
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Photographs: Jorge Silva/Reuters
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher was the prime minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and the leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990.
She was the longest-serving British prime minister of the 20th century and is the only woman to have held the office.
A Soviet journalist called her the "Iron Lady", a nickname that became associated with her uncompromising politics and leadership style. As prime minister, she implemented policies that have come to be known as Thatcherism.
She passed away in April this year aged 87.
Image: Margaret Thatcher points skyward as she receives standing ovation at Conservative Party Conference on October 13, 1989
Photographs: Stringer/Reuters


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Sorry kids, summer is over and you're probably just getting used to your daily school routine. Take the good with the bad – not only does this time of year mark the beginning of school, but it's also when hockey seasons start up. There's something so majestical about the start of the minor hockey seasons; breaking in new equipment, walking to the arena in shorts while the warm weather is still around, hanging out with all of your old hockey buddies again. There truly is a buzz in the air for young hockey players.
At Integral Hockey, we get to see the excitement of minor hockey players on a first-hand basis when they get a stick that used to belong to one of their favourite pros. At the same time their parents are just as excited, having saved about 70% on our refurbished composite sticks VS buying one brand new.
I honestly couldn't believe that it was refurbished. The weight and response felt identical to the sticks that I used to use towards the end of my career, it was amazing. I definitely recommend using sticks from Integral Hockey."
So kids, do not be discouraged by "back to school". Back to school really means "back to hockey!".
Ovechkin seems excited…


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"S" Miami Logo Tee
Show your love for the Magic City in this soft jersey tee. It showcases a one-of-a-kind design with our signature "S" logo and the Miami scene. Wear it to rep your sunshine state of mind.
Wide crewneck. Short sleeves. Mock rolled sleeve hem. 40" chest circumference for standard sizing, 56" for GREAT sizing. Standard body length 29", GREAT body length 33". Pulls over. Made in New York.
For fit information refer to our original size guide.
97% rayon, 3% Spandex


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Malaysia is one of Asia's biggest employers of foreign labour. But recently, cases of deaths, abuse and forced labour have come to light. What is going on? Who is protecting these migrant workers?
Abu Sayeed Asiful Islam, Adil Sakhawat
The land of promise for tens of thousands of Bangladeshi labourers, Malaysia is fast becoming a place of bondage for them.
A loss of registration status has left between 800,000 and 948,000 Bangladeshi nationals, according to data from Malaysian rights organisation Tenaganita, vulnerable to low-wage exploitation or police raids and detention.
Despite its need for imported labour, the problem of dealing with the 3.2 million undocumented labourers from all over the world has made many Malaysians less welcoming towards Bangladeshi workers, even those using legal channels.
The approval by Cabinet on February 8 of a draft memorandum of understanding to export 1.5 million workers under the G2G Plus scheme has led some quarters in Malaysia to protest against a renewed influx of foreign workers.
Some local Malaysian NGOs are calling for a moratorium on labour imports until existing undocumented labourers are registered.
Malaysia's registration system ties workers to an employer and a job. So illegal entrants, a minority, and legal arrivals who become undocumented by default if they switch jobs, are at increased risk of exploitation by employers or detention by authorities.
After surviving the "floating coffins" and jungle cages used by people smugglers or the costly legal labour recruitment system offered by the public and private sectors, Bangladeshi workers are often no better off than where they started.
Burdened by the debt of buying passage to Malaysia – whether by legal means or otherwise – most are inclined to try their luck in the hope of recouping their costs and sending money home.
"Bangladeshi workers in Malaysia are vulnerable, especially if they have fallen out of the system," a senior research volunteer at Tenaganita, who asked not to be named, said.
"Registering undocumented labourers would be a good thing," the volunteer added.
Documenting labourers enhances their ability to resist being exploited by unscrupulous employers and enables them to have recourse to the law if disputes over working conditions, wages or other matters arise.
Theoretically, registration would essentially mean getting existing foreign workers a job, since legal status is tied to an employer and a job.
Properly utilising the foreign labour force would probably be a win-win situation: workers would enjoy legal protections and underutilised labours would be utilised more fully.
"Without the proper papers, workers have little standing in the courts and power rests overwhelmingly with employers. While Malaysia has superb labour laws, even better than some first world countries, they suffer from inefficient enforcement by the authorities and by delays in the courts," the Tenaganita volunteer said.
This restoration of legal standing will be important for the 15,000 and 18,000 Bangladeshis who are in custody for various offences and in a variety of holding facilities in Malaysia, including the notorious "immigration depots."
"If you treat them badly, they'll take it quietly"
Malaysia's economy can absorb the existing undocumented foreign workforce and still require the extra 1.5 million that Bangladesh is getting ready to supply through formal channels.
That is so because the demand for labour in 3-D jobs – which stands for Dirty, Dangerous, and Demanding – is said to be around 9 million. There are currently just 6 million foreign labourers in Malaysia of whom just 2.8 million have valid documentation of some kind. But unscrupulous employers have little reason to welcome registration because that would increase labour costs, the Tenaganita volunteer said.
"Bangladeshi labourers are the most expendable group of labourers; if you treat them badly, they'll take it quietly," Ashikur Rahman, chairman of Migrant 88, a Bangladeshi migrant rights NGO in the process of being registered, told the Dhaka Tribune.
When action is taken to address the problem of undocumented workers, labourers suffer but their employers and the system that leaves them in limbo are untouched, he said.
Take the raids on undocumented workers in the Cameron Highlands in 2015. In a Rakyat Post report published on January 10, 2015, the president of the Regional Environmental Awareness of Cameron Highlands (REACH), Ramakrishnan Ramasamy, pointed out that not a single employer had been charged with employing undocumented workers.
"A bit higher than a dog"
Advocacy for Bangladeshi migrant workers in Malaysia is inadequate, Migrant 88's Ashik said. Labourers complain that Bangladesh embassy staff are often unsympathetic towards them.
"They see me as a bit higher than a dog," Ashik recalls one migrant worker telling him.
Volunteers of rights organisations in Malaysia have told the Dhaka Tribune that Bangladesh embassy staff are slow to respond to requests for assistance and are often indifferent to the plight of workers.
Many migrants labourers alleged that embassy staff sought bribes to process even routine paperwork, but this could not be independently verified by the Dhaka Tribune.
Bangladesh High Commissioner to Malaysia Shahidul Islam responded to these concerns over the telephone.
He said his staff routinely provided services to Bangladeshis at a rate far beyond the embassy's capacity, adding that embassy staff had strict orders to maintain the highest standards of courtesy and professionalism when providing citizenship services.
But he admitted that with the overwhelming workload it was possible that those standards were not always maintained.
"Why does Bangladesh, which has a million and a half nationals in Malaysia, operate a High Commission with just 11 officers?" Ashik said. Other South Asian countries have been far more effective in protecting their labourers in Malaysia.
The position of Indian workers, for example, is bolstered by the presence of a historic community of Malaysians of Indian origin who are able to advocate for them and assist them.
Nepal has leveraged the renown of the Gurkha soldier to corner the market for imported security personnel and has worked to create favourable working conditions for its nationals.
"Modern day slavery"
Ashikur Rahman of Migrant 88 – the number 88 refers to Bangladesh's telephone country code – says Bangladeshi labourers are often asked to buy their own safety equipment.
"Construction workers are asked by some employers to purchase even basic safety gear like helmets or gloves, which labourers often do not do because they would rather save their income," he said.
Plantation workers are routinely exposed to hazardous chemicals that can cause serious long-term damage to the respiratory system, skin, eyes and endocrine system. "But they are often not given protective clothing and have little or no access to health care facilities."
"Modern day slavery – that is what many Bangladeshi labourers are enduring in Malaysia," Ashik said.
The irony is that ethnic Malays, who make up about half of the country's "bhumiputras" or sons of the soil, were themselves migrants to what is now Malaysia. Other powerful communities such as the Chinese and Indians were also migrants and often enjoy more say in modern Malaysia than the indigenous communities, known as "orang aslih."
Despite protests by local groups who oppose more Bangladeshi labourers coming to the country, High Commissioner Shahidul is optimistic about the future prospects for the export of manpower. He reaffirmed that at the government-to-government level, both countries are keen.
The logic is simple: Bangladesh's labour surplus can easily be absorbed by Malaysia's labour-hungry economy.
The question that remains for both countries is why it is taking so long to realise that a healthy and well-treated labour force, no matter its origins, is equally important to economic productivity and social justice.
Source: DhakaTribune
Address: Wisma MTUC,10-5, Jalan USJ 9/5T, 47620 Subang Jaya,Selangor | Tel: 03-80242953 | Fax: 03-80243225 | Email: firstname.lastname@example.com


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London, UK – June 4, 2015 – Imagination Technologies (IMG.L) announces its participation in the Design Automation Conference (DAC) 2015, a premier conference for design and automation of electronic systems. During the conference, Imagination executives will address some of the biggest challenges facing designers of tomorrow's electronic devices, ranging from embedded security to the role of IP in next-generation SoC designs.
Who: Imagination, a global leader in multimedia, processor, communication and cloud technologies
What: Imagination presentations and events at DAC 2015 include:
"IP Management in 2020" – Krishna Yarlagadda, president, Imagination Inc., joins panelists from Cadence, Synopsys and TSMC to discuss the challenges ahead for IP companies and new management tools that will be needed. The panel discussion will take place on Tuesday June 9th, from 2:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. in room 101.
"IoT Security for devices, applications and cloud services" – a presentation by Kevin McDermott, director of IoT segment marketing for Imagination, will take place on Wednesday, June 10th from 2:30 p.m. – 2:50 p.m. in the Synopsys "Silicon to Software Thought Leadership Theater," in booth #2133.
Exhibits – In booth #1709, Imagination will showcase its latest technologies and partner solutions for a wide range of applications and will highlight its breakthrough multi-domain, hardware virtualization-based security approach called OmniShield designed to provide the most scalable and secure solutions for protection of next-generation SoCs.
When: June 7-11, 2015
Where: Moscone Center, San Francisco, CA
Visit Imagination in booth #1709. For more information, contact email@example.com.
About Imagination Technologies
Imagination is a global technology leader whose products touch the lives of billions of people across the globe. The company's broad range of silicon IP (intellectual property) includes the key processing blocks needed to create the SoCs (Systems on Chips) that power all mobile, consumer and embedded electronics. Its unique software IP, infrastructure technologies and system solutions enable its customers to get to market quickly with complete and highly differentiated SoC platforms. Imagination's licensees include many of the world's leading semiconductor manufacturers, network operators and OEMs/ODMs who are creating some of the world's most iconic products. See: www.imgtec.com.
Follow Imagination on Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, RSS, Facebook and Blog.
Imagination Technologies and the Imagination Technologies logo are trademarks of Imagination Technologies Limited and/or its affiliated group companies in the United Kingdom and/or other countries. All other logos, products, trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Imagination Technologies' Press Contacts:
UK: David Harold firstname.lastname@example.com +44 (0)1923 260 511
USA: Jen Bernier-Santarini firstname.lastname@example.com +1 408-530-5178


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Growing support for new event which celebrates why this Norfolk town is so special
PUBLISHED: 06:31 27 February 2019 | UPDATED: 06:44 27 February 2019
Archant © 2010
A new event which aims to promote and celebrate everything good about Fakenham is rapidly gaining support.
The first Fakenham Fayre will see businesses, sports clubs, schools, emergency services and other organisations come together in the town centre.
It will be on Saturday, March 30, between 10am and 4pm, when the town's Market Place will be closed to traffic.
Organiser Liam O'Sullivan, who owns Gallery Bistro, said: "I've had a lot of positive feedback while I've been out promoting the Fakenham Fayre.
"Many people are keen to get involved. People are pleased to see something positive happening in Fakenham."
The event will feature live music and street food and businesses will have information stands, promoting some of the exciting career opportunities that exist in the town.
Mr O'Sullivan said: "Fakenham has some businesses who are world leaders in their fields. A lot of people don't know that, but it's something we should be proud of.
"We want to show people that they can stay in Fakenham and build careers here."
Some of Fakenham's biggest businesses have agreed to attend, including Bill Cleyndert & Company Ltd, Jack Richards & Son, PMC Harvesters Ltd, Kinnerton Confectionary, AOT Engineering and P4.
Representatives from Tesco and Morrisons supermarkets will be there and Fakenham Racecourse has shown an interest.
Mr O'Sullivan said: "It's all about creating a fun environment and enabling people to see that Fakenham has a lot going for it."
It is hoped the Fakenham Fayre will go on to become an annual event.
Meanwhile, Gallery Bistro is hosting a new event called Catch Up, on the evening of Thursday, March 7.
The event aims to create a relaxed and welcoming environment for people to socialise with friends.
Mr O'Sullivan said: "I think social media is having a negative impact on society and this is about encouraging people of all ages to come together and communicate in a more natural environment."
Catch Up will be held twice a month.
For more information about the Fakenham Fayre or Catch Up, visit Gallery Bistro in Fakenham Market Place or call 01328 855000,
If you value what this story gives you, please consider supporting the Fakenham and Wells Times. Click the link in the orange box above for details.


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Find luxurious elegance in these drop earrings! You'll love the aquamarine drop hanging from a white zircon accented swirl, which leads to an aquamarine at the top. Adorable iolite gems accent the earring and simple butterfly backs make it easy to on and take them off. These earrings are crafted in platinum plated sterling silver to make the gemstones really stand out. Attract attention when you wear these beauties on their own or pair them with your favorite accessories!
All weights pertaining to gemstones, including diamonds, are minimum weights. Additionally, please note that many gemstones are treated to enhance their beauty. View Gemstone Enhancements and Special Care Requirements for important information.
Platinum Plating:
Platinum can be used as a finish coating over sterling silver or copper alloys. Its bright, pure luster enhances the brilliance of gemstones and does not discolor or oxidize. Platinum plating is also characterized by its good resistance to surface abrasion, making jewelry pieces more durable against everyday and long-term wear. Over time, platinum plating will wear off and therefore will require re-plating.
To care for your plated jewelry items:
Iolite gets its name from its sensational color, using the Greek words ios (violet) and lithos (stone). The stone, often referred to as water sapphire, cordierite or dichroite, was used by the Vikings as a navigational tool and came to be known as "Vikings' Compass." When Viking explorers ventured far into the Atlantic Ocean, away from any coastline that could help them determine position, they were able to navigate safely by looking through iolite lenses that allowed them to find the exact position of the sun.
The property that made iolite so valuable to the Vikings was the gem's pleochroic property, which is the display of different colors when viewed from different directions (like a modern-day polarized filter used in sunglasses). A cube cut from iolite will look violet-blue from one side, clear as water from the other and honey yellow from the top.
Pleochroism may have been helpful in navigation, but it makes a gem cutter's job quite difficult. If iolite is not cut from exactly the right direction, its color will not show to its best advantage. When cut properly, the stone is usually a violet blue and can be obtained in sizes up to 5.00 carats relatively easily. Iolite ranks a 7.0-7.5 on the Mohs Scale and is readily available and affordable. Today, it is mined in Brazil, India, Mozambique, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe. The Vikings probably mined iolite from deposits in Norway and Greenland.
Traditionally given as a 21 st anniversary gift, iolite is thought to bring harmony to relationships. It is also said to balance the masculine and feminine aspects of one's own character, bringing harmony and enabling that person to enjoy each moment. Iolite is believed to heighten psychic abilities by aiding and encouraging people along their spiritual paths. It is said to enhance curiosity and achievement, and aid in money management. Iolite is also believed to possess the power to guide lost sailors to the brilliance of the sun, so that they may find their way home.
Zircon often suffers for its name's similarity to "cubic zirconia," the simulated diamond. The stone zircon, however, is actually a beautiful natural gemstone. It is named from the Persian word "zargun," meaning "gold-colored." This is despite the fact that it comes in a wide range of rainbow colors . The majority of zircons are brown or yellow-brown, while pure red and green are the most valuable colors. The yellow-red to reddish-brown variety is called "hyacinth."
For many years, the most popular type of zircon was the colorless variety. More than any other natural stone, colorless zircons produce a brilliant sparkle similar to diamonds . The most popular color today tends to be the bright pastel blue variety. Sometimes called "starlite," blue zircon has recently become considered an alternative birthstone for December.
Zircon is one of the heaviest gemstones, meaning that it will look smaller than other varieties of the same weight. It ranks a hardness between 6.5-7.5 on the Mohs Scale and is mined in Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar and Australia.
Travelers during the 11th century wore zircon amulets for protection and to encourage welcome greetings on their journeys. In the Middle Ages, the stone was said to bring wisdom and prosperity to its owner. Hindu mythology even mentions the gem when referencing the Kalpa Tree, which was a glowing tree covered with gemstone fruit and leaves of zircon.
Aquamarine's name was derived from the Latin terms "aqua" meaning water and "mare" for sea. According to legend, aquamarine was the treasure of mermaids and held the power to keep sailors safe at sea. Sailors carried it to stay in the good graces of Poseidon and ward off seasickness. Other folklore says that aquamarine was the stone of the sea-goddesses and sirens. Sea goddesses were said to cleanse the stone in the ocean water at night by the light of the full moon. Beads of aquamarine are even found in ancient Egyptian mummy tombs, used as a tribute to the gods of the netherworld for safe passage.
From the lightest sky-blue to the deepest sea blue, aquamarines are found in an exceptionally beautiful spectrum of blue hues. With its clear brilliance, deeper colors are unusual in smaller sizes since it generally takes a larger stone to hold a darker shade. The most prized aquamarines are those displaying a deep, intense, pure blue with no green tints. These are more rare and therefore more valuable. Unlike its emerald sister, aquamarine is known for being relatively free of inclusions with evenly distributed color. It retains excellent clarity, which is why aquamarines are frequently cut with large step facets to show off their flawless surfaces, immaculate transparency and high brilliance.
The different shades of aquamarine are distinguished by their names. "Santa Maria" is the name for the rare, intensely deep blue aquamarines found in the Santa Maria de Itabira Mine in Brazil. Similar colors are found in some of the sparse aquamarine gemstone mines in Africa, especially in Mozambique. In order to better distinguish them, these aquamarines are denoted as "Santa Maria Africana." Not quite as deeply blue are "Espirito Santo" aquamarines from the Brazilian state of Espirito Santo. Another beautiful color has been named in honor of a Brazilian beauty queen from 1954, and has become famous as "Martha Rocha."
Aquamarine is thought to possess a number of mystical properties , with powers that allegedly develop best if the stone is immersed in sun-drenched water. It is a stone of peace, joy and happiness, especially in the renewing of relationships. Its pale blue color arises sympathy, trust and harmony, all feelings that soothe and calm emotional fires or problems. The gem is said to re-awaken love in married couples or spark new friendships. In fact, carrying an aquamarine is supposed to guarantee a happy marriage and to make its owner happy. As a necklace, it is the most magically ideal gift for a groom to give his bride on the day of their nuptials.
In ancient times, aquamarine was thought to be capable of preserving youth and health. In magic today, this beautiful stone is worn or carried to enhance the utilization of psychic powers. Aquamarine can be worn as a magic charm to ensure good health, to halt fear and to strengthen courage. Because it is a cleansing and purification stone, it can be worn or rubbed on the body as a part of a purification ritual. Aquamarine can also be worn or carried as a protective amulet while sailing or flying over water. Fishermen, sailors and pilots have long made it their special amulet against danger. Other modern beliefs suggest the Santa Maria aquamarine makes the heart beat faster.
Now and then, sensationally large crystals are found. The largest known aquamarine is a 243-pound stone found in Brazil in 1920. It was cut into many smaller stones, and a 13-pound uncut piece resides in the American Museum of Natural History. Another noted aquamarine is an 879.50ct step-cut flawless sea green stone that is on display in the British Museum of Natural History. Aquamarine is found in many exotic places around the world, including Afghanistan, Angola, Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Russia, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Most of the gemstones available in the market today, however, come from Brazil.
Many modern designers have named aquamarine as their favorite stone, as its light color allows for a special creative freedom to bring out the character and brilliance of each stone. Gemstone artists get their inspiration for new cuts more often from aquamarines than from any other stone. These creative designer cuts have no doubt contributed to its high popularity. Aquamarine is the March birthstone and has become the traditional gift for 16 th and 19 th anniversary gifts. With an 8.0 ranking on the Mohs Scale , the stone is very durable and can stand up to everyday wear. It is the symbol for youth, hope, health and fidelity.
Earring Back Types
Butterfly Back: A double looped piece resembling a butterfly that fits over a post. Variations on this design are called push back clasps. The basic post and butterfly back are usually used for stud earrings and lighter weight drop earrings.
Hinged Snap Backs: This clasp features a hinged post that snaps into a groove on the back of the earring. It is commonly found on hoops. Sometimes the hinged post is curved to provide more room to fit around the ear, sometimes called a saddleback.
Hook Backs: This earring backing is simply a long, bent post that fits through the piercing. Hooks have several variations, most notably the shepherd's hook and the French hook. While thin wire hooks reduce the weight of long earrings, making them more comfortable, they aren't as secure as other clasp styles.
Lever Back: A hinged lever snaps shut against the curved post to form a closed loop around the ear lobe. This clasp is very secure and good for large or medium sized styles that drop just below the ear.
Omega: Also called French clips, this clasp has a straight post and a looped lever. The hinged lever closes around the post and is held against the ear with pressure. The omega clasp is the most secure clasp, especially for the larger, heavier earrings.
Screw back: This backing is a slight variation of the standard post and butterfly nut back. Instead of pushing on the back, the nut twists onto the threaded post. A screw back post design is often preferred for expensive diamond stud earrings that require increased security.
About the Collection
For nearly 30 years Gem Treasures has created vibrant genuine gemstone jewelry with an abundance of personality. Focused on the latest in jewelry industry trends, the Gem Treasures collection offers a spectrum of visual impact with lasting style.
Expand your jewelry wardrobe with a variety of inspired looks from the meaningful and collectible to the whimsical or rainbow-inspired, each gem design will showcase your unique personality and be your lasting treasure.


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Beginning with gratitude…
My first and best teachers were my parents and grandparents. While none of them were college educated, they all held education in highest esteem - as a privilege to be pursued and embraced. They taught me to be grateful for the opportunity to go to school.
Children in other parts of the world do not have the luxury of feeling entitled to an education, much less one that is stimulating and of the highest quality.
For those of us who follow the Kopila Valley School in Nepal, we are continually welcomed to share in the moments of gratitude, demonstrated and expressed, that Maggie Doyne's kids experience. Children in other parts of the world do not have the luxury of feeling entitled to an education, much less one that is stimulating and of the highest quality.
In some ways, our greatest challenge in this country in general and in this fortunate community in particular, is to find effective ways to facilitate the development of genuine gratitude in our children. Being blessed with abundance, we run the risk of allowing abundance to feel like our expectation and our right, rather than our great privilege. So too with quality education--it feels like a right rather than a beautiful gift that is worthy of gratitude.
One way to help your child embrace gratitude is to model it. Tell your children that you are grateful for their many and varied opportunities to learn. Remind them that being able to learn is cause for celebration. When students are grateful (or at least on the path toward gratitude) that they can learn and that they are given opportunities to learn, they are that much closer to loving learning.
Embrace the struggles…
My mother was known for her quips and sayings that boiled lessons down to their most simplistic form. For instance, I will never forget her continual reminder that "Can't never did anything!" Mom was so vehemently opposed to the notion of "can't" that we were literally forbidden to utter the word in our household.
While this was thoroughly annoying to me as a child, I must admit that I have adopted a similar philosophy in my own childrearing practices. My children and students have not been allowed to assume the passive position of being incapable of learning. They have been reminded repeatedly that they simply haven't learned or mastered a concept yet.
I know that many of you do the same, and as a result, your children are that much closer to loving learning. We must all remind ourselves that within the struggle is where growth occurs. Learning is not going to be easy. It is not supposed to be easy. At the very least, it won't always be easy; however, it is always worthwhile and deserving of our best effort. Giving our best-- that contributes to a love of learning too.
It is the process, not the product...
Finally, when striving to make learning fully accessible to all, it is extremely useful to bear in mind that assessments and grades provide direction and not a destination. If you want to rob a child of his or her natural curiosity and love for learning, just focus on grades. The joy that is inherent in our youngest learners is certain to wither and die.
Acknowledging the boldness of this statement, I ask that you pause to consider. When we focus on products (grades) without a full appreciation for the process (learning), we lose sight of the reason we are all here. Our children need to receive input into their learning process. They will not fully grasp every concept, at least not immediately, and their process will not be flawless.
Yet, every child can learn to understand and accept his or her own learning style and then begin to advocate and adjust to his or her own needs. This process is likely to take some stamina. Learning to submit to and love the process leads to better outcomes. My most sincere belief and observation remains: when you focus on the learning, the grades take care of themselves. If you're striving to love learning, the focus cannot be about making straight A's.
For any part of this blog that comes across as preachy or judgmental, please do me the kindness of hearing it instead as passion. I happen to believe that we all share the value of wanting our children to be lifelong learners, but we can get a bit off track and become consumed by the need to achieve or to be better than. Most parents report that their greatest desire for their children is happiness. When we support our children in learning to love learning, we help to position that much coveted happiness more firmly within their grasp.


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I've wonder why we can't add mongodb into xampp ?
According to Mongodb :
What is MongoDB?
MongoDB is an open-source database developed by MongoDB, Inc. MongoDB stores data in JSON-like documents that can vary in structure. Related information is stored together for fast query access through the MongoDB query language. MongoDB uses dynamic schemas, meaning that you can create records without first defining the structure, such as the fields or the types of their values. You can change the structure of records (which we call documents) simply by adding new fields or deleting existing ones. This data model give you the ability to represent hierarchical relationships, to store arrays, and other more complex structures easily. Documents in a collection need not have an identical set of fields and denormalization of data is common. MongoDB was also designed with high availability and scalability in mind, and includes out-of-the-box replication and auto-sharding.
Feature Comparison
Like MySQL, MongoDB offers a rich set of features and functionality far beyond those offered in simple key-value stores. MongoDB has a query language, highly-functional secondary indexes (including text search and geospatial), a powerful aggregation framework for data analysis, and more. With MongoDB you can also make use of these features across more diverse data types than with a relational database, and at scale.
Why use MongoDB instead of MySQL?
Organizations of all sizes are adopting MongoDB because it enables them to build applications faster, handle highly diverse data types, and manage applications more efficiently at scale.
Development is simplified as MongoDB documents map naturally to modern, object-oriented programming languages. Using MongoDB removes the complex object-relational mapping (ORM) layer that translates objects in code to relational tables.
MongoDB's flexible data model also means that your database schema can evolve with business requirements. For example, schema changes that took days of weeks in The Weather Channel's MySQL databases could be made in just hours with MongoDB.
MongoDB can also be scaled within and across multiple distributed data centers, providing new levels of availability and scalability previously unachievable with relational databases like MySQL. As your deployments grow in terms of data volume and throughput, MongoDB scales easily with no downtime, and without changing your application. In contrast, to achieve scale with MySQL often requires significant, custom engineering work. Baidu migrated from MySQL to MongoDB to support its rapidly growing business. The Chinese internet services giant now powers over 100 apps and manages in excess of 1PB of data with its MongoDB cluster.
source : https://www.mongodb.com/compare/mongodb-mysql
I've already looking for on your site but I can't add new version of mongodb into xampp
Please help me and thanks for your support !
Best Regards.


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When looking for a great birthday gift, Firefighter coffee mugs certainly come to mind, because they are fairly priced, come in many types and colors, and are surely something any coffee loving firefighter would appreciate.
Of course these mugs also make great graduation gifts, retirement gifts as well as gag gifts!
Here below you will see a few awesome fireman coffee mug gift ideas including funny mugs, personalized mugs, and travel coffee mugs.
Funny Firefighter Coffee Mugs
Sexy Firefighter Funny Tee Mugs – Unique Coffee Mug
This firefighter coffee mug to your left is the PERFECT gift for the self-assured, badass firefighter who thinks nobody is better or more sexy than him or her, right?
If you want to make them silly for a moment, then consider this one as a funny gift or a gag gift for a fellow firefighter.
Well, this was just one pick, here below you'll see a few more funny firefighter coffee mugs that you'll (hopefully) find just as silly and funny, LOL.
I'm a Firefighter, What's Your Super Power?Funny Coffee Mug Wolds Okayest Firefighter Novelty CupFirefighter Mug Firefighter Beer Coffee MugFirefighter Nutritional Facts LabelFunny Coffee Mug Best Firefighters Because even Cops Need HeroesFunny Coffee Mug World's Best Looking Firefighter
Here are even more great ones from Zazzle.com. Oh, I was really struggling to choose between some of the funniest firefighter coffee mugs there, so you're just seeing a tiny fraction here. But the good thing is that you'll find loads more here.
Fireman: You Should See My Other Hose MugFire Fighter, I fix Stupid Coffee MugNo Coffee No Workee Firefighter MugFunny firemen rescuing cat mug
Custom / Personalized Firefighter Coffee Mugs
Personalized Firefighter White Coffee Mug, Ceramic
If you're looking for a personal gift for a retiring firefighter, someone who has a birthday upcoming or looking for a firefighter Christmas gift for a friend, this ceramic coffee mug which comes with a free personalization is just one among the dozens or hundreds you can choose between.
I realize that this firefighter coffee mug may not be exactly what you're looking for, so I've taken the effort to dig for some more coffee mugs and cups you can choose between right here below.
Firefighter Helmet Custom Coffee Mug CERAMICPersonalized Custom Fire Fighter Coffee MugNever mistake my silence for weakness…I Think I'm allergic to morning
Here's just a fraction of all the beautiful custom / personalized firefighter coffee mugs you can buy from Zazzle.com:
Proud to be a Firefighter's Mother Coffee MugFirefighters are our true heroes coffee mugI Know You Hate Me Because I'm A Great Firefighter Coffee Mug
Firefighter Coffee Travel Mugs
When you're getting too late for your shift and don't have time to finish your coffee, wouldn't it be handy to have a coffee travel mug like this one?
I bet you're nodding your head now, LOL. In my opinion, this type of birthday gift would be very much appreciated by your firefighter. Just like here above, I've hand picked a few coffee mugs both from Amazon.com and Zazzle.com.
Harley-Davidson Firefighter Original Auto MugFirefighter Maltese Cross with Crossed Axes DecalPersonalized Coffee Travel Mug – Firefighter – Custom Engraved for Free
Firefighters are our true heroes travel mugFire Helmet Travel MugFiremen Barcode Travel Mug


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What's Happening Now?
Last updated October 2018
Wulugu High School – June 2018
25 years on and now 1,750 students in the school, 750 girls. The library and the girls hostel built by the Wulgu Project.
Tauhidia primary school revisited
In 2006 we visited the new school that we had built at Tauhidia with one of the first teachers blocks.
In 2014 Karimu Nachina revisited Tauhidia to find a flourishing school, but in need of basic maintenance, so it was added to our list. Solomon Nachina and his team returned in May 2015 with the necessary funding to find very good news.
Solomon reported:
"Tauhidia PTA are building a four classroom block to compliment the four classroom block built by WULUGU in 2004. They have temporarily converted some of the original teachers' quarters into classrooms for the children but have promised to move out for the teachers to occupy once they are able to finish the new block. It is a delight to see that they are helping themselves rather than sitting back waiting for donor sponsorship."
The work on the original four-roomed school was completed on time and there is every chance that the extra PTA classrooms will be completed this year. Yet another example of the locals helping themselves!
Kokpeng School now open!
After 5 months of construction, hampered by the heavy rains, the new school at Kopeng is now open to 161 girls and boys!
Local MP Displays His Plastering Skills
Director of Education talks to the pupils
Another 100 older pupils in the 5th and 6th grades will be joining them soon as they can now move to Kokpeng from the distant school in Nyankpala.
Year 3 starting School
Guess who provided the desks?
Kokpeng Women help build their school.
Work is in progress on our new Primary school at Kokpeng. The weather has been unhelpful–storms when we needed dry, dry when we needed water. But the local community are helping where they can.
Coming to the old school. Starting their new school.
New school at Murugu on Mole Game Reserve
We have become aware of the enormous problems at Mole. This is the largest game reserve in Ghana and is in our Northern Region. The communities that were moved from their traditional lands when the reserve was created . They have continued to hunt here–although they are now 'poaching' We are doing what we can to reduce poverty and offer alternative ways of earning a living through improving access to and availability of schooling. Murugu is our second Primary school at Mole. It now has toilets. Desks were provided by students at Biddick Academy in Sunderland Initially 300 children and their families are benefitting. Over 10 years this will become 1,000 Long-term, as the children become qualified for employment, at least 10 other adults and children will be lifted from poverty. After 20 years, the total benefitting will be in the region of 20,000 villagers.
Murugu is our second Primary School at Mole game Reserve supplied with desks by Biddick Academy.
Tusk Trust
TUSK, a conservation charity set up following the work of Princess Diana, have supported our work at Mole by providing a classroom at each of our new schools. At Reading University in January, students at Biddick Academy took part in a presentation about our Mole work to International Science teachers . We are very grateful and look forward to working more closely with TUSK .
As well as three of our vocational schools, we have completed essential repairs to two of our oldest schools, at Tauhidea and
Repaired school with steel doors and a water tank for drinking water.
Training for teachers.
Following two very successful pilot training days, we were given funding to begin a course of four 2-day training sessions for teachers, trainers and heads at our seven Vocational schools. The first session, in Tamale in May, was for the heads and deputies. The next, in September, will involve many teachers. Participants find it very helpful to meet with colleagues from other vocational schools and realise they not only have a lot to learn but also a lot to contribute to the training.
Teachers conferring on their presentation.
Help from local NGO in Ghana
A Ghana-based charity heard about our work in vocational training and visited our school at Savelugu as we were starting the repairs. They realised that we could use more teaching rooms and have paid for two to be built. We are so pleased to have in-country help, it is a reflection of the support that we have from locals as they recognise that we are trying to meet the real needs in the best possible way
Loans for Women at Lukula
In memory of our Ghanaian Founder, Karimu Nachina, 50 Lukula women were given income-generating loans. They will use these to develop local enterprises and will be able to afford to send all their children to school as well as feed them well. At the end of the loan period, they will re-pay with interest so that the loans can be passed on to more women.
Larbanga now has a hostel for Teachers too.
Larabanga primary, our first on the edge of Mole game Reserve, is thriving. Finishing off the toilets presented huge difficulties as the rock was so hard, but we sorted it. Our block for teachers at the school is helping to ensure that teachers attend regularly and stay at the school. There is little to attract teachers to this district and providing accommodation really works.
The new Teachers Block being handed over to School.
Larabanga has a new school.
Our first village school, on the edge of the Mole game park, is overflowing with children, sitting at desks donated by Biddick Academy in Sunderland U.K. Teachers' accommodation and toilets have completed the package. There are four more schools, on the edge of the park, that need help.
Tolon Vocational School runs taster courses.
Having opened at Easter, the vocational school has set up very popular short courses for women in catering, weaving, tailoring and using the computer before the full time courses start, with the new academic year, in September. No time is wasted.
Quote from a Chief,
"Education is to be valued. Sell your cattle to send your children to school. Cattle can be replaced but not the children"
A very wise and brave man.


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Welcome to the Menopause Café Nottingham
We are delighted to announce that Flourish has partnered with the Menopause Cafe Nottingham to launch the group's first event on 9 May in Nottingham.
About Menopause Café?
Rachel Weiss started the first Menopause Cafe in Perth, Scotland and since then it has grown exponentially with cafés springing up across the UK.
A Menopause Café is an agenda-free discussion about all aspects of the menopause. It is run on a not-for-profit basis, aside from an investment in a cup of tea and a slice of cake if you so wish (on the menu at Rudyards Tea House).
The Café is open to people of all genders, ages, walks of life and ethnicity. Come and join our informal discussion about all things perimenopause, menopause and the whole issue of embracing life after menopause. Participants are encouraged to share experiences or just listen and learn from each other in a safe, welcoming and inclusive environment.
Menopause can seem a bit of a taboo subject. Perhaps you haven't had the opportunity to share your thoughts or questions before with like-minded people.
Your special invitation
We'd love you to join us to celebrate the launch of Menopause Cafe Nottingham. The details of the event are below:
Date: Wednesday 9th May 2018 , 19:00 – 21:00
Venue: Rudyards Tea House, 82 High Road, Beeston, Nottingham NG9 2LF
Entry fee: FREE
Hosts: Koren Harris and Bridget Hazell
What happens at the events?
Someone will be there to greet you, introduce the principles, and keep the conversation flowing (although we usually find the conversation flows without any help).
There is no speaker or expert, no agenda, no product being sold: just a safe space to have a conversation and the only thing we encourage is talking about the menopause – this might be how it has impacted you or others; how you have coped; what worked for you; or just to be better informed before it occurs.
The Menopause Café movement's overall aim is 'to increase awareness of the impact of the menopause on those experiencing it and their friends, colleagues and families, so that we can make conscious choices about this third stage of life'.
Why it's important: a note from Koren Harris and Bridget Hazell, your hosts:
"We wanted to offer a platform for the issue of menopause and re-orientating into the next chapter of life to be explored together. Not everyone has the opportunity to do this and yet, in our experience once we are invited to share, we have a lot to say!
We all navigate this process in different ways – some sail through whilst others endure a great deal – but we will all experience this completely normal process, heading towards a new significant stage of life worthy of celebration!!".
Koren Harris & Bridget Hazell via Flourish International
Organisers and Hosts of Menopause Café Nottingham
Koren and Bridget are psychotherapists who met through attending a Mindfulness Class and recognised they have a shared passion for encouraging people to come together to share common goals and issues in a safe, welcoming space.
Flourish International, recognising that women have so much more potential to contribute, is committed to helping women and girls from all walks of life to flourish.
For general information about Menopause Cafés:


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A compact adjustable weight bench for muscle-building workouts. This
bench can be used for many exercises and can be combined with other
fitness equipment to give you a good overall workout. You can choose to
either set the bench to flat, incline or decline depending on your
workout needs.Adjusts down to -5 degrees and up to 85 degrees for
shoulder pressing with a quick and easy adjustment feature.
Ideal for home or gym use
Adjustable flat / incline / decline bench
Seven Starting positions
Ideal for training biceps, triceps, chest and shoulders
Dimensions: 155 (cm) L x 63 (cm) W x 134 (cm) H
Please note there is a 3-4 week delivery time on this product.


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In the beginning of the 2012 season our contributor John Bolan wrote an article predicting how the year-end WTA rankings would look like and we asked you to join him, promising the reader whose predictions turn out the most accurate one Top 10 WTA autograph. You know that Women's Tennis Blog always keeps promises and now the time has come to announce the well-deserved winner.
About 30 of you participated with Top 10 season-ending ranking predictions and the best predictor was James of Moo's Tennis Blog! Congratulations, James! Both John and me picked James (without knowing each other's winners). It was not an easy decision between James and Justin, though, since they both got eight of the 2012 year-end Top 10 members right and both placed one player at the exact same ranking position at which the player ended the year.
Moreover, the sum total of the ranking positions that they missed was almost the same. What I mean is that, for example, Azarenka finished No.1, James gave her No.8, that's 8-1=7, and I calculated that for all the players and summed up. In that respect, James' score was 25, Justin's 24 (which is one point better than James). However, it is only one point, and James was much quicker with his response, posting it on the same day the article was published. So, that was the determining factor.
Thank you all for participating! This was a fun competition, wasn't it?
James, I will contact you right away to discuss which Top 10 autograph you will receive! 🙂 Congratulations once again!
Reminder: Here's our contributor John's comparison of January WTA ranking predictions to the 2012 year-end outcome.


text: Who We Are Our partners Agricultural Chaplaincy Partners Methodist Church of Great Britain, including Sheffield District and Nottinghamshire & Derby District. The Agricultural Chaplaincy project is funded by the Connexional Fund of the Methodist Church. Their generous support means that the project can get on with the business of supporting farmers in Derbyshire for which we are immensely grateful. Read more about their support here. Workplace Chaplaincy Derbyshire (WCS). WCD is a Christian organisation which provides pastoral support to people in the county by building bridges of understanding between industry, faith, commerce and society. WCD provide excellent training and support to Derbyshire's Agricultural Chaplains. Read more about their support here. The Royal Agricultural Benevolence Institution (RABI). RABI offer financial support to farming people in hardship of all ages and do a fantastic job supporting farmers. The Derbyshire Agricultural Chaplaincy cannot commend RABI highly enough. The lead Agricultural Chaplain, Rev'd Alan Griggs is a member of the Derbyshire RABI Fundraising Committee. Read more about their work here. Addington Fund A charity whose main area of work is to provide homes for farming familiies living in England and Wales who have to leave the industry. The Addington Fund have provided vitally needed support to farmers in Derbyshire, helping the Agricultural Chaplaincy offer holistic support in times of need. Find out more about the Addington Fund. Farming Community Network (FCN) FCN is a voluntary organisation and charity that supports farmers and families within the farming community through difficult times. The Agricultural Chaplaincy works closely with FCN on the ground, cross referring and working together to support farming in Derbyshire. Read more about FCN.


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Scarred Sun
From Sonic Retro
<forumuser name="Scarred Sun" type="game" /> Scarred Sun (aliases: ScarredSun, QJanebo) is the webmaster of Sonic Retro—the general go-to person for questions, comments and such—and an administrator at The Sonic 2 Beta Page. She was formerly an administrator at Sonic Classic and sysop of SHIT from 2004 to 2006. A member of the Sonic community since January 2001, SS is also involved (or just reads a lot nowadays, due to time constraints) in other Sonic Communities, including Sonic CulT, The Sonic Stadium and the LiveJournal community sonicstuff (though that mostly involves laughing at bad posts.) When not online, she is a technician and motorscooter enthusiast.
Scarred Sun hangs out a lot at the Sonic Retro IRC channel and is the owner of BadnikNET. It's pretty much the best channel in the history of ever, and if you're reading this, then get on irc, you loser. This is highly preferred as the method of contact for SS, as if she's not there, there's usually other folks who will know the answer. If you do need to speak directly to SS, please send a query to ScarredSun/QJanebo, as logs are now too long to read through between times of availability.
Sissy Ass Cookies
When attempting to run for president of Sonic Retro (a moot point? perhaps), Scarred Sun countered saxman's proposal of making cookies for the website by making her own batch of cookies. saxman used his bully pulpit of YouTube in response, calling SS' cookies "sissy-ass." But we all know who really won the cookie war.
SS really appreciates it when you donate money to keep Sonic Retro alive. Blanche Hodapp explains:
[ipbwiki_post post=282530 /] (TODO: Fix IPB integration, then change square-brackets back to angle-brackets.)


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Osvaldo Golijov / Luciano Berio: Ayre / Folk Songs
Using Folk Songs as a starting point and the lovely voice of Dawn Upshaw as inspiration, Golijov has created a work of remarkable breadth and nuance.
Osvaldo Golijov / Luciano Berio
Ayre / Folk SongsLabel: Deutsche Grammophon
US Release Date: 2005-09-27
UK Release Date: Available as import
Every accomplished composer has a muse. For one composer, that muse could be the true love of his life; for another, the mirror might be the only place to look. Some composers can and could create technically perfect music out of thin air, music that contains pleasant melodies and vague senses of mood -- still, it's impossible to evoke true emotion from nothing. For Luciano Berio, the muse, at least for a time, was a voice: Cathy Berberian, who also happened to be his wife. Spousal obligation aside, it was Berberian's range that spurred Berio to write his cycle of folk songs, songs designed to showcase the versatility of that voice in tone and timbre. Osvaldo Golijov's muse, then, in the creation of his most recent work Ayre, was twofold -- again, there was a voice to be written for, in this case soprano Dawn Upshaw, but there was also the matter of paying tribute to one of his own influences, none other than Berio himself. Using Folk Songs as a starting point, Ayre exists as a testament to the influence of a past hero and a current inspiration, the combination of the two allowing Golijov the power to maximize his creative prowess and create something extraordinary.
Ayre is extraordinary, a song cycle exposing the tenuous relationship between Jewish, Christian, and Arab culture, using the similarities between the three to subtly color and transition passages throughout the work while incorporating the tension between the three in the conflict-ridden text of the songs. The setting is southern Spain in the late 1400s, where the three cultures once lived among each other, aware of each others' differences but still managing to live amongst one another in relative peace -- relative, that is, to the conflict between the three in other lands. In listening through Ayre, one is just as likely to hear a passage featuring Spanish guitar as klezmer clarinet, just as likely to hear a Sephardic (Spanish-Jewish) melody as a Christian Arab one. The end result is alternately disconcerting and peaceful, and at least as dynamic as anything the pop scene has released this year.
In fact, it's entirely possible that fans of pop music will find something to love in Ayre, which by definition is of a genre many of those fans have been conditioned to despise. For one, the folk melodies are, understandably, fairly close to pop in structure, leaning heavily on repetition and subtle shifts over constant melodic development. More startling is Golijov's decision to incorporate obvious, vaguely industrial-style electronic elements into the 15th century mix, a juxtaposition that actually melds remarkably well after the initial shock has worn off. "Wa Habibi" ("My Love"), melodically an amalgamation of Christian and Muslim Arabic melodies, is the most prominent display of Golijov's electronic tendencies, building a cathartic explosion of hurt on top of the pulsating beat as Upshaw sings (translated) "My love, my love, what has befallen you? Who saw you and grieved for you, you who are righteous?" Every minute of the six that comprise "Wa Habibi" is utterly captivating.
As Golijov surely could have told us long before the release of Ayre, nearly every other minute in which Upshaw has a vocal appearance is similarly enticing. She spends most of Ayre and Folk Songs in operatic mode, using her pristine, crystal-clear soprano to evoke moods as much as words, often spending large stretches on wordless melodicizing. Beautiful as that soprano is, however, Upshaw's greatest asset is her versatility. "Tancas Serradas a Muru" ("Walls are Encircling the Land") features a growl of a vocal style, sung as much through the nose as the mouth, and "Kun Li-Guitari Wataran Ayyuha Al-Maa'" ("Be a String, Water, to My Guitar") is a lovely a cappella spoken-word piece that becomes something of a leitmotif as Ayre progresses. Upshaw's performance evokes Jarboe as much as it does Maria Callas, and the contradiction of coexistence that such a performance brings fits right in with the musical backing it adorns.
Disconcerting as Ayre is, it's easy to be relieved/let down when Upshaw's performance of the Folk Songs that inspired Ayre begins. Berio's approach in his collection of eleven songs was to stick to one nationality per song, writing his own folk songs in styles faithful to the already existing folk canon of whatever country they belong to. The traditional, minor key flavor of an American folk song like "Black is the Color" stands, then, in stark contrast to an Italian dance such as "Ballo", but Berio avoids making the in-song transitions that Golijov would later employ and master in his own work. For the most part, Upshaw is also more traditionally operatic throughout Folk Songs, and the end result is something that, on its own, is a dynamic and interesting collection, but sounds positively tame next to Golijov's manic culture-crossing.
Even so, the presentation and packaging give the impression that Berio's Folk Songs are here as a display of inspiration, allowing the listener some insight into the creation of Ayre. There's no question that the primary work of this release is Ayre itself, a piece that now stands as Golijov's first studio-recorded work, a startling statistic given the keen sense of dynamic and perfect, crisp production of the entire CD. To be sure, Ayre is spectacular, and we have Folk Songs to thank.


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Turn Technologies, Inc.
HR Tech • Machine Learning
On-demand companies -- from new startups to more established companies like Saucey and Rinse -- use Turn's modern, online identity screening platform to help manage their contingent workforces. Turn combines its worker identity infrastructure with a set of future applications for new business models in the gig economy.
6Local Employees


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Every life lost to suicide is a tragedy, and the New Jersey Department of Children and Families (DCF) is committed to decreasing youth suicide. Suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death for New Jersey's youth ages 10-24. Parents, professionals and/or concerned citizens can use the following resources for support and/or guidance related to suicide or suicide. Click here to read more.
- https://www.nj.gov/dcf/adolescent/prevention/
- 1-855-654-6735 NJ Hopeline – New Jersey's 24/7 Peer Support & Suicide Prevention Hotline
- Michele Hart-Loughlin, Division Director of Bergen County, Department of Health Services & Division of Mental Health