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Whether you've reached the end of your rope or merely the end of your week, welcome to Whitt's End:
*So Nuggets coach George Karl wants some of the Mavs, huh? "If we had to pick and choose, we would probably say 55 percent Dallas and 45 percent Oklahoma City," he says of his preferred playoff opponent. "Only because Oklahoma City is athletic like we are and they have two great players," he told ESPN radio. Honestly, I don't blame him one bit. The Nuggets used their superior athleticism and speed to win three of four over Dallas this season and whipped them, 4-1, in the second round of the playoffs in 2009. I can't help but
wonder know things would be different if the Mavericks hadn't lost their second-best player -- Caron Butler -- on New Year's Day. Take away any team's No. 2 and there will be a significant drop-off. Right, Miami Heat?
*After beating Colorado last night in their home finale, your Dallas Stars aren't dead. Yet. They've won three straight and yet with two games left they need some help. Can't help but think back to this gut-wrenching loss. Sorry.
*While the Rangers are off to a 6-0 start, the Boston Red Sox are 0-6 and have been outscored 38-16. Two things to keep us from pronouncing them the Dead Sox: 1. There are 156 games over six months remaining; 2. In 2007, the Mavs started 0-4 and finished an NBA-best 67-15. In other words, it's early.
*Sad day in radio. Jagger has been a fixture in this area for decades, but this was his last show as the morning host on 105.3 The Fan. Dude is a class act, very professional to the end. Come Monday, The Fan's sportsier mornings will be manned by New School with Shan and RJ.
*Tiger Woods meanders to a 1-under 71 in the opening round of The Masters. He trails leaders Rory McIroy and Alvaro Quiros by six shots. Six. Yet this morning the ESPN headline blares "Tiger in Contention!" Not that Tiger is out of the tournament by any means, but "in contention" seems a little bit pander-ish, doesn't it? It is, in fact, the reason a lot of folks root against him.
*Keep seeing Southern Cal offensive tackle Tyron Smith pegged to the Cowboys with the No. 9 pick in numerous NFL mock drafts. Dallas hasn't drafted an OL in the first round since way back in 1981 with Howard Richards. Smith is a beast, but he makes me wonder what happened to previous to-the-Cowboys-trendy-pick Nebraska cornerback Prince Amukamara. He'll be at Valley Ranch for a visit next week, so maybe we'll ask him.
*I'm very conflicted. Don't like her Tea Party-ish politico views, but I really enjoy the view of Elisabeth Hasselbeck.
*Derrick Rose of the Chicago Bulls is having an MVP season. I won't argue that. But nobody carries the ball like him when dribbling. Saw one of his signature moves against the Celtics last night, and this just in: You can't -- legally, anyway -- take the ball in your left hand and move it from your left hip to outside your right foot on a cross-over. It's been a subtle, slow progression from "shuffling feet" traveling to "breaking ankles" highlghts, but I betcha old guards like Bob Cousy and even Derek Harper don't recognize the game these days.
*Had this discussion on the radio the other day: If given $1 million post-tax, could you comfortably retire? I suck at math and money, but my feeling is that of course you could. Keep a modest lifestyle, yeah. You couldn't pay off your house and buy one for mom and Jaguars for all your kids, etc. But it's doable, right?
*Good to see former Florida coach Urban Meyer spending so much time with his family. I honestly didn't realize he was related to Mack Brown.
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*When's the last time you went bowling? I went over the holidays and remembered how fun it was. Then my buddies wanted to bowl a second frame. Nonetheless, two local amateurs will compete this weekend for $50,000 in the AMF National In-League Tournament. Hurst's Philip Palmer and Michael Wood of Arlington are headed to Las Vegas, where they'll compete against 108 bowlers.
*In my adopted Lent observance, I haven't had a carbonated soft drink since mid-February. And now I'm giving up something else that has long been a staple: Dallas' Only Daily. Nothing against the paper or its product. Still love me some Tim Cowlishaw and Evan Grant and Kevin Sherrington. But I got the bill for my renewal this week and was taken aback: $406 a year for seven-day delivery and access behind the Morning News' online pay wall. Wow. And this in the same week that we learned that DMN publisher James Moroney's 2010 salary jumped to $1.3 million from $478,090 in 2009. I like the feel and mobility of the actual paper, but no thanks. I'm done. I can do without expensive newspapers and airlines that charge for bags. There are other viable options. Randy Galloway, what are you up to these days?
*Further proof that Super Bowl XLV was an epic flop: According to the state comptroller's office, the city of Arlington brought in $5.8 million in February, same as January. Money quote from mayor Robert Cluck: "I had a fear our bottom line would be negative because of the huge weather problems." So not losing money is ... winning?
*This weekend? I'll be out at Texas Motor Speedway, duh. I don't really know a toy Yoda from a Toyota, but I'll be on Tony Stewart's pit crew for Saturday night's Samsung Mobile 500. Wonder if I get a share of the winner's check
if when we wind up in victory circle? Don't be a stranger.


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subset: commoncrawl


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Some of you may have noticed that there was a hosting issue last week and sites were offline, clearly this is upsetting.
A Bit of History
When I first started working on websites in the mid 1990s I had a small server in a business centre in Batley, West Yorkshire. It was a ropey old desktop machine that sat with a few others in a server cupboard, most of the time it was fine but occasionally it crashed late on a Friday and was only re-booted on the following Monday morning. This meant that I was unable to access the sites or work on them over the weekend.
Sometimes though when in the centre I went into the server room just to look at it; sad but true. Since that era things have moved on greatly.
Our Hosts
We currently host with a UK based company, the choice was based on a number of considerations with reliability high on the list. DesignCredo don't view hosting as a revenue earner, it is sold on pretty much at cost. We have previously been reassured by proactive internet security endeavours by the company and have found the ongoing service to be very good.
That said last week they had problems. Basically a power loss took the websites offline for a period of time. So, from the hosts themselves this is what happened last week:
Our UK-based data centre facility is one of the most efficient and resilient data centres in Europe. We carry out tests on a regular basis and test our generators every weekend to make sure that everything is in order. Additionally, we have expert technicians staffing our data centre 24/7, every day of the year. We have also have two UPS systems serving each data centre hall.
So, what happened?
On Wednesday, one of datacentre halls suffered a power loss which affected the facility for less than 9 minutes.
Each data centre hall has two UPS (uninterruptable power supplies) which feed into a LTM (load transfer module), which manages the feed of power from the UPS to the datacentre hall, where your servers are housed.
This piece of hardware automatically switches the power between the two external supplies, should one fail. This is part of our redundancy commitment to you.
The LTM showed a fault on the primary power supply and was running on its backup. Our teams followed the guidelines and contacted the manufacturer and an expert in this piece of hardware was sent to our facility to investigate and fix.
The fault code indicated that there was a problem with the voltage monitor. As a safety procedure, this automatically shuts down primary power, even though the power supply itself is likely fine.
The engineer on site assisted with the fitting of the replacement part. The procedure was then followed to turn off the already disabled switch and to change the part safely. Unfortunately, a safety mechanism in the device triggered incorrectly, which led to the data centre losing power.
The sites went offline mid-afternoon and were mostly returned by late afternoon the same day, we monitored the progress closely. Unfortunately just one of our sites, this one, remained offline for an extended period of time; it is hosted on one of four servers (out of several hundred) that would appear to have suffered physical damage as a result of the above.
Of course this was very frustrating. The hosts maintained good communications throughout the process but inevitably there is always going to be an element of unknown with issues such as this.
What About Other Provisions?
Last year a client who has their site hosted with a different company experienced a failure. Once we located the issue, something totally out of our control, and realised it wasn't fixable on their host's server we migrated the site to our own more flexible hosting provision as a temporary 'home' whilst a long term solution was found; the site has now been returned to their own host.
Had the site been on our host we would have been able to instigate a temporary fix immediately. However I wouldn't use this as an excuse to say that the other host isn't anything other than very good.
Why Didn't We Do This For Our Own Site?
Last week once it was apparent that our Design Credo site was to endure an extended outage a backup of the site was indeed loaded to a different server (here) but we decided not to fully migrate it. Rest assured if this had been a client's site we would have had it back and running very quickly. There were a number of reasons for not making the switch for us.
Unfortunately technology isn't perfect, even Amazon was offline for an hour or so last week. Inevitably when issues such as this happen (ditto road works and Police investigating RTAs) Social Media Heroes have a good old rant, I guess it makes them feel good.
Of course there is a bit of me that feels annoyed, it's something I can't control. However through the years I have learned to be pragmatic, I have utter faith in the endeavours of the hosting company last week and I remind myself that whoever one hosts with we all pay a similar amount which roughly equates to the cost of a loaf of bread per week. That doesn't mean that we shouldn't strive for improvement and perfection but I genuinely believe that we get a lot of communications for our money with web-hosting.
So, What Did We Do Whilst Our Site Was Down?
Friday morning we had a meeting with a client to discuss a website proposal. Friday afternoon we had purchased the domain and an hour later we had a basic website hosted on the servers that had now been restored to full service. Monday morning the client was presented with a fully operational site, I can't show it to you yet, and that makes me really frustrated!
This was the feedback:
We both love it! ( as an aside I'm hoping to get ****** to go for a website too…)


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Tagged With: 59th escapade
59th Escapade
Wow! I'm way behind in blogging! It's been 2 weeks since my last post (sounds like a confession!) We finished up our stay in Casa Grande on the fifteenth and made our way 90 miles south to the Pima County Fairgrounds in Tucson where we attended the 59th Escapade…a convergence of Escapee's members (830 rigs … Continue reading
Categories: Uncategorized Tags: 59th escapade, fulltime rving, pima county fairgrounds, stronghold ranch Leave a comment


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Blood Cursed: A vampire with Blood Curse cannot commit diablerie.
Infernal: An infernal minion doesn't unlock as normal in the unlock phase. During his controller's unlock phase, she may burn a pool to unlock him.
Red List: Any Methuselah may use a master phase action to mark a Red List minion for the current turn. Any ready vampire she controls may enter combat with a marked Red List minion as a +1 stealth (D) action that costs 1 blood. Each vampire can take this action only once each turn. If a vampire burns a Red List minion in combat or as a (D) action (including diablerie), his controller may search her library, ash heap and/or hand for a master trophy card to put on that vampire and then reshuffle her library or draw back up to her hand size as necessary. Other trophies may be moved to this vampire, as well (see section 1.6.2). This is done before the blood hunt referendum is called, if any.
Research Area: Some cards may move cards to a special staging area called the research area. The cards in your research area are face down and out of play; they can be affected only by cards and effects that say so explicitly. You may look at the cards in your research area at any time.
Scarce: When a Methuselah moves a scarce vampire from her uncontrolled region to her ready region during her influence phase, she must burn 3 pool for every other vampire of the same clan she controls.
Slave: Some minions are identified as slaves to a specified clan. A slave cannot take a directed action if his controller doesn't control a ready member of the specified clan. Also, if a member of the specified clan controlled by the same Methuselah is blocked, the controller can lock the slave to cancel the combat and to unlock the acting vampire and have the slave enter combat with the blocking minion instead.
Steal: A player who steals a card takes permanent control of it. The card stays in the same region as it was before (for instance, if a vampire in torpor is stolen, it stays in torpor). If the stolen card is attached to another card, the player who steals it can attach the stolen card to a card of the same type they control (for instance, a location that is attached to a minion will be moved to another minion they control).
Sterile: Sterile vampires cannot take actions to put other vampires in play.
Title: A Title card is a placeholder for a title. If the title is yielded or lost, the card is burned. If the title is unique, contests are paid with vampire blood, as normal for titles.
Unique: Only one copy of a unique card can be in play at a time. If another Methuselah puts a copy of the card into play, the copies will be contested (and out of play) until all but one is yielded (see Contested Cards, sec. 4.1).
Wake: A vampire that wakes during an action can attempt to block that action and/or play reaction cards as though unlocked for the duration of the action. Wake effects can always be played during the "as a card is played" window, in order to play other reaction cards that must be played in that window. A reaction cards that unlocks a vampire but doesn't wake it is not considered as a wake effect and can't be played during the "as a card is played" window.
Wording templates
"Add X blood/counters": Blood or counters that are "added" always come from the blood bank.
"Cancel a card": A "canceled" card has no effect, but it is still considered played. Unless explicitly written, cost for the card is paid. If the card was a strike card, the minion who played it must choose a strike, which might come from another strike card. If the card was an action card, the minion doesn't lock (he doesn't pay for the action card), and can play the same action card again.
"During X, do Y": The "during X do Y" template is used in several cards. When this template is used, only one Y can be done per X with this card. For instance, you may move blood from your vampire to your pool with Vessel only once per unlock phase.
"Lock X to do Y": Some cards use this wording, for instance: superior Bauble, Isanwayen. Such effects can't be used by locked minions, even by those under a wake effect. These effects require an unlocked minion to be used. Conversely, "Lock X. Do Y" effects (for instance: Redirection) are usable by locked minions under a wake effect.
"Search": Some effects have you search your library or crypt. Searching can result in not finding the card. If you search your library or crypt, you must shuffle it afterwards.
Rules Glossary
Acting Minion: The minion performing the current action.
Action Card: A card that a minion can play to perform a special action. Includes equipment, retainer, ally and political action cards.
Action Modifier: A card that the acting minion can play to modify the action he is performing.
Additional Strike: Allows a minion to strike an additional time in the same round of combat (at the same range as the initial strike).
Aggravated Damage: Type of damage that vampires cannot heal. It can even burn a wounded vampire.
Ally: A non-vampire minion. Brought into play by a "recruit ally" action, he acts independently of the minion who recruited him (but can't act on the turn he is recruited).
Ash Heap: The discard pile. Cards that are burned or discarded are returned to their owner's ash heap. An action that targets an ash heap is always considered to be undirected.
Attached: If a card is put on another, both are considered attached to each other.
Bearer: The minion an equipment is put on. If the equipment refers to a type of bearer (for instance, "the bearer with Auspex"), then the equipment can be used only by that type of bearer.
Bleed: An action that attempts to burn another player's pool. By default, it can only be attempted against a player's prey.
Block: The successful attempt of a minion to prevent the action of another minion. Typically concluded with combat.
Block resolution: If an action is blocked, a block resolution consisting of two simultaneous events occurs: the blocking minion is locked and enters combat with the acting minion. If an effect ends the action before the block resolution or one of these two events (such as entering combat), neither events occur.
Blocking Minion: The minion currently attempting to block an action, or the minion who has successfully blocked the current action.
Blood (also Blood Counter): A token representing a vampire's capability to heal himself or to perform certain feats.
Blood Bank: Repository of blood counters not in use.
Blood Hunt: The act of burning a vampire that committed diablerie. A referendum is conducted to see if a blood hunt is called.
Burn: Move a card in play to the ash heap. A burned card goes to its owner's ash heap. A burned counter or token is returned to the blood bank.
Capacity: The maximum number of blood counters a vampire can have. It is also a relative measure of the vampire's age.
Circle: Each Blood Brother is identified with a particular circle. A vampire without a circle designation is his own circle.
Combat Card: A card that a minion can play in combat.
Combat Ends: A strike that ends combat before any damage or other strike effects happen.
Contest: The struggle for control of a unique card or title.
Controlled Region: Area containing a Methuselah's controlled cards.
Conviction: Card played during the Unlock phase on an Imbued.
Crypt: The deck of cards containing a player's vampires.
Diablerie: The act of burning a torporous vampire. Can be used to gain a Discipline.
Diablerist: A vampire who commits diablerie. A blood hunt can be called to burn a diablerist.
Directed Action: An action of one Methuselah's minion that targets one or more other Methuselahs (or the minions or cards they control).
Discard: Move a card in hand to the ash heap.
Dodge: A strike that protects a minion and the cards on him from an opposing minion's strike. Retainers are not protected.
Edge: A token symbolizing who has the upper hand at the moment.
Equipment: An object a minion uses for a special bonus or ability.
Employer: The minion a retainer is put on.
First Strike: An offensive strike done faster than normal, so that the strike resolves before a normal offensive strike would.
Hunt: The action that a vampire takes to regain blood.
Imbued: A type of crypt card. They are allies.
Influence Phase: The phase of a turn in which a Methuselah may make transfers to her uncontrolled vampires and during which vampires are moved from the uncontrolled region to the ready region.
Intercept: A measure of how well a minion can block the action of another minion. If it equals or exceeds the acting minion's stealth, the minion's block is successful. Intercept can't be played unless it is needed.
Library: The deck containing a player's conviction, master, minion and events cards from which her hand is drawn.
Life (also Life Counter): A token representing a retainer's or an ally's health.
Lock: Turn (a card) sideways. Typically done to indicate that the card has been activated for some purpose.
Maneuver: The efforts of a minion in combat to move away from or to close in on the opposing minion.
Master Card: A library card that can be used as a master phase action.
Master Phase Action: The Methuselah's personal activity for the turn.
Minion: A vampire or ally.
Minion Card: Any library card that is not a conviction, master or event card -- a card that a minion can play.
Out-of-Turn Master Card: A type of master card that can only be played during another player's turn, using the next master phase action of the player playing it. A player can never play more than one Out-of-Turn Master card between two of her turns, even if she regains a Master Phase Action.
Polling: The step of a referendum during which votes are cast.
Pool: A token representing a Methuselah's status. Also, a collection of such tokens. A Methuselah is ousted if she loses all of her pool.
Predator: The player to a Methuselah's right.
Press: The efforts of a minion in combat to escape from or to give chase to the opposing minion.
Prey: The player to a Methuselah's left. A player receives a victory point and 6 pool when her prey is ousted.
Reaction Card: A card played by a Methuselah's ready, unlocked minion in response to an action taken by a minion controlled by another Methuselah.
Ready Region: Area containing a Methuselah's minions that are not in torpor.
Referendum: The part of a political action (or a blood hunt referendum) during which the terms are set, the votes are cast and the effects are applied (if it passes).
Retainer: A mortal creature or being that serves a minion. Brought into play by an employ retainer action, he remains with the minion who employed him and cannot act independently.
Stealth: A measure of how well a minion evades other minions' attempts to block his action. If it exceeds the blocking minion's intercept, the block fails.
Sterile: A vampire that cannot take an action to create a vampire.
Strength: The amount of damage a minion inflicts with a normal hand strike.
Strike: The effort of a minion in combat to harm his opponent or to avoid being struck by his opponent.
Torpor Region: Area where vampires are placed when they cannot heal damage done to them. A vampire in torpor is vulnerable to diablerie attempts. A vampire in torpor is not ready but is still considered controlled.
Transfer: Influence phase action used to move pool to or from an uncontrolled vampire or to move a card from the crypt to the uncontrolled region.
Uncontrolled Region: Area containing a Methuselah's uncontrolled vampires.
Undirected Action: An action that is not directed. An undirected action can be blocked by the prey or the predator.
Unlock: Restore a card to the normal, upright, position. See Lock.
Victory Point: The measure of a player's ranking. A player receives a victory point when her prey is ousted and for being the last player in the game. The player with the most victory points at the end of the game wins.
Withdraw: An attempt to leave the game by a player who has run out of cards in her library.
Wounded: A vampire who has received damage that he has not healed or a vampire in torpor or on his way to torpor is said to be wounded.
World of Darkness Glossary
The following is a glossary of some of the relevant terms of Vampire: The Masquerade.
Amaranth: The act of killing a vampire by drinking all of his blood. Commonly known as diablerie.
Anarch: A Kindred rebel who opposes the rule of the elders.
Antediluvian: An ancient vampire, a grand-childe of Caine. Most of the major clans of the Camarilla were created by the Antediluvians.
Archbishop: A vampire who serves as leader of a city under the Sabbat's influence.
Archon: A powerful vampire who travels from city to city, usually in the service of a justicar.
Baron: An anarch "prince".
Beast, The: The drives and desires that pull Kindred away from their humanity and turn them into monsters.
Bishop: A vampire who serves or advises an archbishop.
Blood Bond: A mysterious link that forms between Kindred that drink one another's blood. The blood bond can give the donor control of the recipient.
Blood Hunt: A system of punishment for vampires who disregard the laws of the Masquerade. The hunted vampire is slain by those who heed the call.
Book of Nod, The: The sacred book of the Kindred, which allegedly traces their origins and history. Most of it has been lost to time.
Caine: The first vampire, from whom all other vampires are allegedly descended.
Camarilla, The: A sect made up of seven clans that have banded together and are governed by the Traditions.
Canaille: Mortals, especially referring to the most unsavory elements of mortal society.
Cardinal: A Sabbat vampire who oversees the influential affairs of a large territory.
Clan: A group of vampires that share certain mystical and physical characteristics.
Consanguineous: Belonging to the same clan (usually used to refer to a younger member).
Domain: The fiefdom (usually a city) claimed by a vampire, most often a prince.
Elysium: The name given to a place where the elders meet. No violence is tolerated at such a location.
Embrace: The act of transforming a mortal into a vampire.
Gehenna: The impending Armageddon in which the Antediluvians will rise up and devour all Kindred.
Ghoul: A mortal who drinks the blood of a vampire but has not been drained beforehand.
Haven: A vampire's "home"; where he finds sanctuary from the sun.
Inner Circle: The group of vampires who comprise the ruling body of the Camarilla.
Justicar: A vampire who serves as judge, jury and executioner of Camarilla vampires who have broken the Traditions.
Jyhad: The secret war waged between the few remaining Methuselahs using younger vampires as pawns.
Kindred: The term that vampires use to refer collectively to their kind. Sabbat vampires scorn the term.
Kine: A term for mortals, largely contemptuous.
Masquerade, The: The Tradition of keeping mortals ignorant of the existence of vampires, essential to survival.
Methuselah: A powerful vampire, thousands of years old (but still a few generations younger than the Antediluvians), involved in the struggles of the Jyhad from afar or in complete anonymity.
Path: A belief system followed by more alien members of the Sabbat and some Independents in place of Humanity.
Praxis: The right of a prince to rule a domain.
Primogen: A council of vampires in a city that supports the city's ruling prince.
Prince: A Camarilla vampire who rules a city and enforces the Traditions upon the city's vampire population.
Priscus: A Sabbat vampire who advises the regent and cardinals.
Regent: The "leader" of the Sabbat, insofar as the sect recognizes one.
Retainer: A mortal or creature that serves a vampire master.
Sabbat, The: A violent sect of vampires bent on destroying the Camarilla.
Sect: A group of Kindred arguably united under a common philosophy.
Traditions, The: The six laws of the Camarilla. These Traditions are laws that protect the vampires from mortals and from one another.
Vitae: Blood.
More Information
For questions regarding the rules, see the web page listed above or send e-mail to (VTES NetRep).


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June 2008
Brewers @ Arizona
Ryan Braun has pulled within 32,925 votes of Kosuke Fukudome for the final starting National League outfield spot. If everybody watching votes 25 times, he'll be an All Star starter. Voting ends July 2nd. Vote Braun at WWW.BREWERS.COM or WWW.MLB.COM up to 25 times per email account.
There are still good seats available for Fourth of July weekend at Miller Park. We hope you'll make plans to join us as the Brewers take on the Pirates.
The Brewers hit the exact halfway point of the season with a winning record and still in the playoff hunt. Eighty one games down, eighty one to go. I think everyone is encouraged with the quality of play especially after a very difficult first half schedule.
Amazingly, only five of the 16 teams in the National League have winning records. Three of those are in the NL Central. Milwaukee began the road trip 6.5 games back of the Cubs and are now just 4.5 games back. Anytime you can make up ground on the road, it's a bonus.
The last leg of this 10-game, 11 day road trip starts Monday as the Crew begins a four game series with the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Brewers will face Doug Davis, Randy Johnson, Michah Owings, and Brandon Webb.
All four games of the Arizona series will be on FSN Wisconsin with Ryan Schaber producing, Michael Oddino directing, and Brian Mikolajek handling the sunscreen and heat index.
Brewers Live will be "live" at Summerfest before and after the games so stay up late and enjoy West coast baseball this week!
Here are some of my D-Backs notes to get you ready for the series:
– The Diamondbacks are 9-13 since they last played the Brewers on June 4 and are 2-7 on their recently-completed nine-game road trip versus AL teams. They averaged just 2.4 runs per game in those contests, hitting .209 as a team.
– Chris Young has eight RBIs in his last 11 games since being moved from leadoff spot.
– Brandon Webb became the first 12-game winner in the major leagues Saturday.
– Brandon Lyon had his streak of 15 consecutive save conversions broken when he gave up two runs to Florida in the ninth inning of a 4-3 loss Sunday. It was Lyon's first blown save since April 6. He is 15 of 18 in save opportunities this year.
– Eric Byrnes is 2-for-22 with no RBI and no runs scored since returning from the disabled list last Monday.
– The Brewers swept three games from Arizona in Milwaukee in early June, and have won nine of the last 11 games in the series overall.
– The Crew's 24-13 record since May 20 is tied for best in the majors with Detroit.
– Russell Branyan is tied for the NL lead with nine home runs in June (with Hanley Ramirez, Fla; and Mark Teixeira, Atl).
– In seven road starts this year, Dave Bush is 1-5 with a 7.09 ERA, compared to 3-2 with a 3.18 ERA in seven home starts.
Have a great week!
Brewers@Twins, Round 2
The Crew enjoyed a day off Thursday in the Land of Lakes after a series victory in Atlanta.
The Brewers are now 7-5-1 in road series this year. The road trip continues at the Metrodome Friday night before a 4-game series in Arizona beginning Monday.
Milwaukee and Minnesota are the two hottest teams in the big leagues right now. The Twins came into Milwaukee June 13 having lost 6 of 7 on the road trip and 5.5 games behind the White Sox in the AL Central. What a difference a couple of weeks make. Minnesota has now won nine straight, 11 of 12, and are sitting a half game back in the standings.
Ron Gardenhire's club has swept three straight series (vs WAS, vs ARI, @ SD) and with a home record of 25-16, begin a long homestand versus the Brewers, Detroit, and Cleveland.
The Twins are looking for their first 10-game winning streak since winning 11 in a row from June 22-July 3, 2006. Minnesota's pitchers have a 1.78 ERA and have not allowed more than three runs in any game during this current streak.
Minnesota has won eight of its last 12 games against Milwaukee, outscoring the Brewers 80-53 in these contests.
The Brewers are one of just four teams with 100 home runs this season (Marlins, Phillies, White Sox). They have 29 home runs in their last 14 games (10-4).
Corey Hart has 20 RBI so far this month, which is tied for the second most by any N.L. player.
Delmon Young's eight outfield assists are tied for third most in the majors. Unfortunately, he also has six errors – which is tied with teammate Carlos Gomez for the second most by any outfielder.
Friday's starters:
After going 2-2 with a 4.80 ERA through the end of May, Seth McClung is 3-1 with a 2.55 ERA so far in June. Opposing batters are hitting just .186 against him this month.
Nick Blackburn is 2-0 with a 1.93 ERA in his two interleague appearances so far this season.
All three games this weekend will be on FSN Wisconsin with John Walsh producing and Michael Oddino directing.
There are still good tickets available for the fourth of July weekend at Miller Park. We hope to see you there when the Crew finally finishes this roadie!
Brewers @ Atlanta
Another successful homestand for the Milwaukee Brewers sets up a key stretch of games on the road. The Crew rallied to win the final two games of the Baltimore series to cap off a 6-3 stand at Miller Park. Next up, the Braves in Atlanta, the Twins in Minneapolis, and the Dbacks in Phoenix. Ten games, 11 days versus three teams all in the playoff hunt.
There has been a lot of talk about how poorly the Crew has played on the road. A 16-21 record is nothing to be proud of but a 9-game road losing streak earlier this year buries the fact that the Brewers have actually been OK away from Miller Park when you break it down series by series. They have road series wins in Chicago (twice), New York, Cincinnatti, Pittsburgh, and Houston. Road wins have been hard to come by for all MLB teams this year and the Brewers road record is actually 6th best in the National League.
The bottom line…the Brewers are hot. Since being swept in Boston, they haven't lost a road series and they boast the best overall record in the Major Leagues at 21-10. Can they keep it up in Atlanta?
More numbers for the Brewers/Braves series:
– Monday's starter Ben Sheets is 20-6 dating back to the beginning of 2007, the best winning percentage in baseball over that time.
– This series features some of baseball's great young sluggers:
Most Career HR By Current MLB Players Under 25 Years Old
1. Prince Fielder, Mil 96 (24 years, 45 days)
2. Jeff Francoeur, Atl 70 (24 years, 167 days)
3. Hanley Ramirez, Fla 62 (24 years, 183 days)
4. Brian McCann, Atl 61 (24 years, 124 days)
5. Ryan Braun, Mil 54 (24 years, 219 days)
-The Brewers have hit 45 HR over their last 22 games and 99 HR overall which ranks
third in the National League this season (Fla – 112; Phi – 104). The Brewers are
the only team in the majors to have six players with at least 10 HR this season.
– The Braves are 9-14 since they last played the Brewers on May 29.
– Braves injury report:
Chipper Jones (sore right quad) has a small tear in his right quad and he re-aggravated the injury June 20. He can pinch hit, but he can barely jog and can't move laterally.
Yunel Escobar (strained right hip flexor) was injured in the June 20 game and is day to day. Escobar was only available to pinch hit the past two games
Mark Kotsay (back tightness) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to May 26 and is out indefinitely.
Matt Diaz (strained posterior cruciate ligament in left knee) went on the 15-day disabled list May 28 and is expected to be out for six weeks.
Rafael Soriano (right elbow tendinitis) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to June 6.
Tom Glavine (flexor tendon tear in left elbow) went on the 15-day disabled list June 11. He is not expected to return until after the All-Star break.
John Smoltz (sore right shoulder) had arthroscopic surgery June 10 and will miss the remainder of the season.
All three games in Atlanta will be on FSN Wisconsin with producer Ryan Schaber, director Michael Oddino, Brian Mikolajek doing whatever he does…and Craig Coshun joining Rock and me on the air. Jeff Grayson and Jeff Cirillo will be in studio.
Hope you have a great week, keep that positive energy coming.
The Crew is really clicking now after sweeping the Toronto Blue Jays in the middle series of a nine game homestand. Milwaukee has won four in a row, 7 of 10, 23 0f 35 at home and has the best record in the National League since May 20 (following three losses in Boston).
In a remarkable twist, every team in the NL Central has lost 3 in a row (including the front running Cubs), except the Brewers, who have won four straight. Thus, an extraordinary climb in the standings as the Crew has picked up three games in the last three days.
The Brewers open a three game series tonight with Baltimore trailing the Cubs by 5.5 games in the Central Division standings.
Meanwhile, the Orioles have won three in a row as well, having swept the Astros at Camden Yards with a win Thursday.
These two teams haven't played in Milwaukee since September of 1997. Baltimore has won four of its last five games against Milwaukee. The clubs have not met since the 2003 season.
The Orioles are 11-6 (.647) so far in June, which is tied for the fourth-best record in the majors this month.
The Brewers have the second-best record in the majors this month (11-5, .688).
After losing their first five interleague games this season, the Brew Crew has now won four in a row, outscoring its A.L. opponents 24-13 during this streak.
In seven appearances on the road, Friday's starter Radhames Liz is 1-1 with a 7.20 ERA, walking 14 in just 20.0 innings.
O's 2B Brian Roberts has had a hit in 15 of his last 16 games, batting .348 with 11 runs scored and 11 RBI over this stretch.
Jeff Suppan is 2-0 with a 1.67 ERA in six home starts this season. Dating back to last September, he has won his last six decisions in home games.
Russell Branyan has hit 10 home runs in his first 20 games (61 AB) this season. That is the fewest games it has ever taken a Brewers' player to hit 10 homers (previous mark – 25 games by Carlos Lee (2006) and Rob Deer (1987)). Branyan has hit homers in three straight and in four of his last five games.
Hope to see you at the ballpark and remember Vote Brewers!
The American League skunk is finally out of the box after the Brewers 4-2 victory over the Twins on Sunday snapped a six-game Milwaukee losing streak against the AL that stretched to last June.
The Crew was literally an inch away from winning 2 of 3 from the Twins after Prince Fielder's walk off homerun turned into a keep playing triple Saturday night. It was one of the most entertaining games of the year outside the cruel ending. Credit the players for dusting themselves off and salvaging the finale.
Now, Milwaukee welcomes the Toronto Blue Jays for the middle leg of this 3-team, 9-game homestand.
These teams have met just once since the Brewers moved to the National League in 1998, with the Brewers coming away with two wins in three games against the Blue Jays in June 2005. The Brewers lead the all-time series, 155-115.
After losing 10 of their last 14 games, the Blue Jays are below .500 for the first time since May 22.
David Eckstein has hit in 13 of 15 games since coming off the disabled list May 27, batting .365 over that span. He's raised his overall average from .246 to .282 during the spurt.
Between Russell Branyan and Bill Hall, Brewers third basemen have hit 15 home runs, tying for the most in the major leagues.
Tuesday's Starters:
Dustin McGowan is 3-0 with a 3.29 ERA in his last four starts. He's fanned 25 hitters while issuing just five walks over that span.
While Manny Parra has compiled a 7.24 ERA and .369 average allowed in road games this season, he's 3-0 with a 2.90 ERA and .234 average allowed at home.
All games with the Blue Jays will be on FSN Wisconsin with Brewers Live beginning at 6:30pm each night.
Have a great week!
Brewers-Twins: By The #'s
As for the Twins series, some numbers:
The Twins dropped to 1-6 on the current road trip and seven of their last eight games, giving up double digits in runs in four of the contests (an average of 7.6 runs per game overall in this span).
Beginning play Friday, there are six teams above .500 in the American League and six teams in the National League. Three of the six in the NL reside in the NL Central (Cubs, Cards, Brewers).
The Twins have had two managers since 1986 when Tom Kelly took over for Ray Miller (Tom Kelly, Ron Gardenhire). The Brewers have had seven in that time.
Minnesota is 25-21 versus Milwaukee in Interleague play. At Miller Park, the Twins have won 11 of 21 contests between the teams.
The Brewers have won six straight home games and are 11-3 in their last 14 home contests. Their six straight home wins is the second-longest active streak in the National League (Cubs, 11).
Twins' pitchers have walked 172 batters in 2008, the fewest total in the Major Leagues. The last time Minnesota issued the fewest walks in a season was 1981.
Corey Hart is riding a seven-game hitting streak. During the streak, Hart is hitting .400 (12-for-30) with four home runs, 11 RBIs and four doubles.
@ Astros, Again
Well, if you're only going to win one game in a series, win the last one. It makes travel and an off day much more enjoyable. The Brewers dropped 2 of 3 in Denver, losing a series for the first time since being swept by Boston. The Crew begins a three game series versus the Astros Tuesday before returning home for another nine game homestand. It's "go" time. This series marks the third with Houston in a five week span. The two teams have swapped sweeps and the Brewers hope the pattern doesn't continue. Houston dropped 2 of 3 to St. Louis over the weekend and have lost 9 of 11. Cecil Cooper has concerns about his offense and his bullpen's workload as the Astros have yet to post a complete game.
As for the Brewers, Rickie Weeks is on the disabled list until June 22nd with a sore left knee. Ned Yost has some tough decisions to make concerning the top of the order as he searches for the right combination to set up Braun and Fielder. With Weeks out for two weeks, Hernan Iribarren was recalled from Triple-A Nashville. He's an excellent defender and a good left handed hitter. As a side note, Hernan told me the Sounds are making quite a rally up the standings after a sluggish start. He also added that Derrick Turnbow and Jeff Weaver have both pitched well lately. The Brewers have to make a promotion/release decision on Jeff Weaver by June 15 (unless Weaver extends the deadline).
With 99 games to make up 6.5 in the standings, here are some nuggets for the Astros series:
The Brewers are 17-13 against its Central Division foes in 2008–best of any team in the division.
Russell Branyan is 8-for-22 (.364) in his last eight games–of those eight hits, five have been home runs.
Houston is 29-2 (.935) when tied or leading after eight innings this season–best in MLB.
Brewers at Astros, Last 12 Games (since 2007)
Brewers Astros
Wins 6 6
– Starters 4.90 (35/64.1) 4.84 (36/67.0)
Walks 40 49
Strikeouts 84 99
Milwaukee Brewers Pitching, Since May 26 (w/ MLB Ranks)
Record 10-3 (.769) (3rd Best)
ERA 2.69 (35/117.0) (2nd Lowest)
Opp BA .223 (96/430) (3rd Lowest)
Pitches/G 137.7 (1790/13) (2nd Fewest)
Ryan Braun, March/April vs. May/June, 2008
First 26 Gms Last 36 Gms
(Thru 04/30/08) (05/01/08 & Since)
Batting Average .273 .308 (45/146)
On-Base Pct. .296 .348 (54/155)
Slugging Pct. .436 .664 (97/146)
Home Runs 3 13
AB per HR 36.7 11.2 (13/146)
Prince Fielder in June, Career
2006 .208 .280 .479
2007 .258 .377 .581
2008 .333 .448 .625
Diamondbacks Series: By The #'s
With a sweep of the Astros, the Brewers are now 5-1 on the homestand and hoping to continue their winning ways versus the Western Division leading Arizona Diamondbacks. This series will feature some of the brightest young talent in baseball. The D-Backs are coming off back to back shoutout wins against the Nationals and seemed to have weathered their first slump of the season. The Brewers will miss Brandon Webb and Dan Haren in this series but Arizona is as deep as any in baseball on the mound and will send out Doug Davis, Randy Johnson, and Micah Owings in the three game set.
We're tight with the crew from FSN Arizona. It's always great to catch up with old friends. King Buckethead Daron Sutton returns to Milwaukee and former Brewers TV director Mitch Riggin now cuts cameras for the D-Backs. Our Producer, John Walsh, spent a number of years covering the Diamondbacks for FSN Arizona. We've got a big golf match with those guys this week that includes many of our heavy hitting camera operators. Brewers TV crew versus D-Backs TV crew at Bristlecone Pines . It always amazes me how guys with tan legs, white feet, and Arizona zip codes play the "I haven't been playing much golf" card. Whatever.
At any rate, here are some series odds and ends for you:
– Milwaukee has won 7 of the 10 meetings between the teams at Miller Park since 2005.
– The Brewers are 6-1 since returning to the more conventional lineup with the pitcher batting ninth.
– Prince Fielder has hit 8 homeruns this year…7 have been with 2 strikes.
– Perhaps Prince is getting hot at the right time…
Fielder's Highest BA vs. Opponent – Career (minimum 50 PA)
vs. D-backs .358 (19/53)
vs. Nationals .340 (18/53)
vs. Dodgers .333 (17/51)
vs. Mets .322 (19/59)
vs. Pirates .302 (39/129)
– Lowest ERA at Miller Park, All-time (minimum 10 GS)
Jeff Suppan 2.83
Doug Davis 3.40
Ben Sheets 3.52
Carlos Villanueva 3.69
Dave Bush 3.83
– Monday's starter, Jeff Suppan, has been one of baseball's best pitchers at home so far this season. His ERA at Miller Park is 0.93 (3 ER/29 innings)
– With back to back sellouts versus the Astros, fans have sold out Miller Park nine times already this year. Way to go!
Have a great week.


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Suicide bomber targets funeral in N AfghanistanComments
Police in Afghanistan say a suicide bomber has killed at least 20 people and wounded 50 more in the northern city of Taliqan.
The provincial governor Abdul Jabar Taqwa said the bomber struck at a funeral procession.
An MP, Abdul Mutalib, was reported to be among the dead.
The governor said he had been invited to the ceremony but did not go.
He said either he or the MP, Mutalib, might have been the bomber's target.


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When Gov. Jack Markell led a delegation of state governors to Washington in December, he urged President Obama to avoid cutting Medicaid to reduce the deficit. The Delaware Democrat warned that any reduction in federal funding for the low-income health … Continue reading
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Last week, shortly after Gov. Jack Markell unveiled his recommended budget, the leader of the legislative committee that actually writes the annual spending plan was balking at the governor's intention to hold state worker pay flat next fiscal year. [Harris … Continue reading
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Easily the most contentious campaign of the 2012 election season could return for Round II in less than eighteen months, with former Sen. Michael Katz, a Centreville Democrat, suggesting he's not through with public life. The latest comes from Celia … Continue reading
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Attorney General Beau Biden is attempting to drum up grassroots support for gun control, asking supporters to sign a petition in favor of a series of state-level gun regulations he recently announced with Gov. Jack Markell and Lt. Gov. Matt Denn. "The … Continue reading
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What's ironic is that a Delaware Joe Biden inauguration party would be more likely to take place at a private home in Greenville or Hockessin.
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Kerala, one of India's most literate states, now also boasts of being the first to achieve 100% primary education, education minister PK Abdu Rabb said.
Indian Vice-President Hamid Ansari will make it official on Wednesday during a ceremony at the Kerala University Senate Hall in Thiruvananthapuram, according to reports.
"Kerala has become the first state in the country to achieve total primary education. This has been achieved through the primary education equivalency drive of the state literacy mission — Athulyam. The equivalency programmes have proved a huge success and the ultimate objective is to achieve total Plus-Two education in the state," TOI quoted Rabb as saying.
The second phase of the state literacy mission, Athulyam, offered a chance to those who have missed an opportunity to receive primary education due to various reasons. They could now achieve the education qualification equivalent to fourth standard.
The report said that those between 15 and 50 were beneficiaries of the programme and were identified through family registries prepared by anganwadis under the social justice department.
A 2011 government census put Kerala's literacy rate at 93.91%.
Last year, approximately 2.6 lakh candidates appeared for the 4th standard equivalency examinations in June that were held in over 6,000 centres across Kerala. As many as 2.2 lakh candidates passed the exam.
Contact HuffPost India
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text: Privacy & Security Public Sector NSA hacked UN video teleconferencing system: Report Nestor E. Arellano @NestorArellano Published: August 26th, 2013The United States National Security Agency hacked into the United Nation's video teleconferencing system and listened in on conversations of delegates to the global organization in its headquarters in New York.NSA technicians were able to crack the encryption used by the U.N.'s internal video teleconferencing system in June last year, according to reports in the German magazine Der Spiegel.The United Nations general assemblyRELATED CONTENTWill Snowden's leak help Canadian cloud industry?: Opinion U.S. cloud firms could lose $35B due to Snowden leak: Study Metadata more revealing than content: Ontario privacy chiefIt was around this time, that former NSA security contractor Edward Snowden, leaked to the media that the European Union mission to the U.N. in New York and its delegation in Washington, D.C. were bugged by the NSA. The revelations prompted E.U. officials to demand an explanation from the American Government.Snowden, who currently staying in Russia under temporary political asylum, also leaked the details of the NSA's Prism clandestine mass electronic data mining effort which involved the agency demanding metadata from U.S.-based Internet and technology companies for the government's anti-terrorism activities.Reports which surfaced yesterday said that the NSA was able to gain access to computer networks of E.U. delegates by hacking into the virtual private network (VPN) linking the machines. The report said NSA technicians were able to do this repeatedly.A few weeks ago, new security systems protecting the area hosting the server rooms of office of the E.U. delegation in New York, were installed.Read the whole story here Related Download Sponsor: CanadianCIO Cybersecurity Conversations with your Board – A Survival Guide A SURVIVAL GUIDE BY CLAUDIO SILVESTRI, VICE-PRESIDENT AND CIO, NAV CANADA Download Now Privacy & Security, Public Sector hacking, network security, privacy


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Learn about the origins of forest gardening, its link with Permaculture, perennial food growing guilds and plants and succession in nature and working with a natural system.
See the forest garden areas planted in 2010
Price: £40.
Pre-booking ONLY!!! Pre-book your space in the FarmStoreRemember you can buy this as a Christmas gift - gift experience voucher included!


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- DURABLE AND FLEXIBLE: Made of top grade aircraft aluminum material, you can direct the light exactly where you need it. High-quality LED bulbs with 50000 hours lifetime. CE listed quality saves your worry.
- 2 SWITCHES ON THE CORD: On the 59 inch cord, there are 2 switches. One has three options: Warm light,off and White light. The other has two options to adjust the brightness: dim and bright.
- STRONG CLIP: Adjustable clip up to 2.36 inch , Anti-skid sponge on lip to prevent your table from scratch.
- POWER: Can be used with normal 110V household current by a AC adapter(Not included). Also could be powerd by powerbank or USB port.
- LEPOWER WARRANTY: 1 year warrantyfor quality problem. Please feel free to buy.
Is this led bulb able to be replaced when it burns out?
No,the led bulb can not be replaced.
Is the gooseneck flexible enough to reverse the lighting direction?
Yes, the neck is fully flexible and the light head can spin to any direction.
What kind of bulb does it take?
It's built-in LED light, the bulb can not be replaced.
What kind of plug? Three prong or 2?
The plug is 2 prong plug in and operates on a USB cord.


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Sponsorship Opportunities
There are several ways to get involved with the West Alabama State Fair. Among volunteering and promoting the fair, sponsoring the fair is also a great way to become involved and to get exposure for your company. There are many sponsorship levels, each with various benefits for your company. If you are interested, please view the PDF to the right and contact development at 205-345-3031.


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15 December 2019
3 Advent
Homily from Father James Gilhooley
3 Advent
Third Sunday of Advent - A Cycle - Matthew 11: 2-11
College students placed a mural outside their dorm window. Pictured were a school of fish swimming in the same direction.
In their midst was one moving the other way. He was going against the flow. So must we.
"You go tell John," said Jesus, "that former lepers have skin that dermatologists envy, that those once deaf are listening to Mozart, that those formerly blind are enjoying flat screen TV, and those once paralyzed are playing championship soccer." (F Buechner)
It was the year 28. The summer heat was 104 in the shade.
John the Baptizer was finishing the sixth month as a prisoner. His dungeon was located in the fortress of Machaerus overlooking the Dead Sea in southern Palestine.
His jailer was King Herod of Judea. John's crime was that he had publicly accused the king of adultery. His Majesty wanted pay-back time. He threw John into a security cell and "threw the key down a crocodile's throat."
Down in solitary, the Baptist was as restless as a caged lion. Neither the maddening sandflies by day nor the nocturnal rats big enough to ride disturbed him as much as his narrow cell. His home had been the desert that knew no boundaries. He had never lived in a house. Yet, it was more than the confining space that caused his insomnia.
For several years prior to imprisonment, John's job description had called for him to announce the imminent arrival of the Messiah. It was He for whom the Jews had longed for centuries. John had promised his vast audiences that this Messiah would enter their lives like a category five hurricane.
John was convinced too that he had met this Messiah and had even baptized Him.
But never once did Jesus declare Himself the Messiah. Until He did, there could be no major political coup d'etat that would have Him crowned and the millennium begin.
So, John still had one major job to do before he would ship out. He knew he was a dead man walking. He must force or con Jesus into revealing who He was.
His game plan was to dispatch his disciples to search for Jesus in the mountains. They would need no bloodhounds to find Him. They had but to look for a Man surrounded by thousands of groupies. Jesus had a rock star following. Then he would have them put the question, "Are you the one who is to come...?"
John felt Jesus must answer the question, for He could not lie. But John's strategy did not work. The Nazarene did not deny He was the Messiah but neither did He affirm it.
As He would do so often in His own public career, He ignored the question and pursued His agenda. He borrowed the poetical language of Isaiah for His answer. "Tell your leader that the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised."
He e-mailed His answer to John in code. The Baptizer knew that when the Messiah did appear, these miraculous events would occur. Jesus knew that John's disciples would surely tell their guru of the miracles they had witnessed. Christ had performed miracles even Alzheimer victims could not forget. So, Jesus was telling John that the prophecies of Isaiah had indeed been fulfilled in Himself. Implicitly, He fessed up to being the Messiah.
We have no way of knowing John's reaction to the reply. Probably he was ticked off. But, like it or no, that implicit affirmation would have to be enough for himself and us. No person, not even a John the Baptist whom the record shows Jesus admired above all others, was going to write the script for Him. No one would put Him against a wall if He did not want to go there. No one would ever force His hand.
Jesus proposed to reveal His Messiahship in His good time. There would be no substitute for raw faith either for John or anyone else down through the centuries.
John, like all others including us, would have to say of Christ, "I believe even though I look through a glass darkly."
I received this note from a young man dying of pancreatic cancer. He died shortly after he wrote it. "I am so happy to tell you I have complete faith in God. He will take complete care of me in life or death. It is such a wonderful feeling to turn the burden over to Him." That is the kind of faith the Christ wants us to have in Him.
Faith is not being sure where you're going but going anyhow. (F Buechner)
This Advent go against the flow.
Homily from Father Joseph Pellegrino
3 Advent
Msgr. Joseph A. Pellegrino
Third Sunday of Advent: Whom Are We looking for?
I would like to speak to you today about the prophets. The Hebrew Scriptures, the Old Testament, is full of dynamic leaders. There is Noah and Moses, Abraham and David. There are kings and queens, male and female judges, patriarchs and matriarchs. But of all the people in the Hebrew Scriptures, the most dynamic are the prophets: Samuel, Elijah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and so many others. They challenged the world and drew people to listen, to change, to follow. Some stood up to the King in support of justice, "How dare you put Uriah to death so you can have Bathsheba his wife," Nathan said to King David. "How dare you put Nabaoth to death so you can steal his vineyard," Elijah said to King Ahab.
Some prophets were so powerful that they would determine who would reign as King. The prophet Samuel was told by God to anoint Saul to be king, and then he was told to reject Saul and anoint the youngest son of Jesse, David. Some prophets drew the attention of the entire nation yet spoke in symbolic ways like the prophet Hosea who married Gomer, a woman of ill repute, as a sign of the way that God's people had treated him. Others spoke directly to the people of God's power, his compassion and his love, like Isaiah in our first reading for today. Some prophets were mystics like Ezekiel. Some were on the inner loop with the king, counselors like Jeremiah. Others were just common everyday people, like Amos, a dresser of trees.
The prophets were all very different one from the other, but their message was the same: Repent and reform. Return your lives to your God, and the Lord will come and be with his people. Nothing, not torture, not death, not even money would turn the prophet from his message or tempt him to abandon his faith. In difficult times, the prophet would tell the people, "Hold on to your faith, the world will be transformed by the Lord when he comes."
Sometimes their message was frightening, such as their predictions of the sufferings of the evil at the end of time. Sometimes their message was consoling, like the message of the first reading for today, when Isaiah speaks about the desert blooming, the blind seeing and the deaf hearing. But always their message to the people was to be strong in their faith. The people needed to be ready for the Lord's coming.
The ancient people believed that as long as there was a prophet among them, they were blessed. God was communicating to his people. If there was no prophet, then that was a sign that somehow the people's sins had turned God away from them.
By the time of Jesus' life, it had been two hundred years since the people of Israel had last had a prophet in their midst. Two hundred years. Two hundred years of no intimate communication with God.
And then, John the Baptist appeared. He was dynamic. His message wasn't new: he told the people to repent and reform and prepare for their God. That was the same as all the prophets. But there was a power these people had never seen before in his words. And John added something; He said that God is coming now. The Kingdom of God is at hand. People were drawn to John. It was obvious to them that God was once more blessing his people.
John did not offer people a semi-spiritual semi-emotional experience. He demanded that the people remain faithful to their traditions. He followed Isaiah's first reading for today, "Strengthen the knees that are weak, the hands that are feeble, and say, "Be strong, fear not. Here is your God." John was not a fad. He was not a reed in the wind, changing the way it leans with every new gust of air, every new whim. John was a rock anchored on his faith in God. His infectious dynamism led people to a strict adherence to their faith. They accepted his baptism as a sign of their participation in a new world order, the Kingdom of God.
We modern people are also looking for a prophet. But what type of prophet are we looking for? What type of prophecy do we seek? Are we looking for a prophet like John who is going to tell us to hold on to our faith, change those hidden parts of our lives that are self-destructive? Maybe he will tell us to give up that grudge we love to nourish, or perhaps it is that secret little vice that is only a secret from our conscience but quite apparent to all around us. Are we looking for someone to tell us to stand up for our faith, or are we looking for a reed shaken by the wind? We have got to admit it, there is a part of all of us that would love to hear someone tell us that certain of our secrets are now no longer sinful. We'd love to hear someone say, "These are modern times, this or that is OK now, even if it was unacceptable before." We'd love to follow a reed that is bent by the winds of moral decay. But then we would not be listening to a prophet. We would not be listening to God's dynamic voice. We would only be hearing our own selfishness.
Whom do we go out to the desert to see? Someone who will give us a lovely emotional experience while permitting us to compromise on morality. Or do we go out to the desert to see someone who will encourage us to stand up against the pressures our society places upon us to compromise our consciences. We come to Church not for entertainment, not to see our beautiful children, but for the strength to be ready for the Lord to enter our lives.
Homily from Father Phil Bloom
Available in Spanish - see Spanish Homilies
3 Advent
God Has a Plan
(December 15, 2019)
Bottom line: What looks random does have behind it a plan - and a Planner.
As you can see from our Advent Wreath - and from my vestments - today's color is pink, symbol of rejoicing. I've noticed this at gender reveal parties. If blue balloons come down, the parents try to look happy, even jump up and down, start hugging each other. Still, they are thinking: maybe we'll do better next time. (smile) Blue is OK, but pink is the color of rejoicing.
On my pink vestment you can see an appropriate saint: Rose of Lima. Next week I'll be visiting her shrine. It has a famous well where people can drop notes with prayer intentions. I'll be taking yours.
This year I'll be at the Mary Bloom Center for Christmas and New Years. Part of the reason is so college students and teachers can take advantage of their winter break. Replacing me at St. Mary of the Valley is a fine priest - Fr. Alfredo Velazquez. The last five months he has served at St. Pius in Mountlake Terrace. We are blessed to have Fr. Fredo.
With Christmas near, today is a day to rejoice.
It does seem ironic that on this day of rejoicing we have the Gospel about St. John the Baptist is prison. John appears sad, even despairing. About Jesus he asks, "Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?" Even John wavers. Commenting on today's Gospel, Bishop Daniel Muggenborg observes:
"To a person of faith, the witness of God's love and providence is abundantly clear. To a person who lacks faith, life is nothing but chance and coincidence."
If person concludes that everything is random chance, it's bound to have an effect. So many people feel like they are living in a dark prison. You can see it in the increase in addictive behavior: drugs, porn, gambling. These things promise peace and maybe even provide a moment to forget one's problems. In the end they bring increased emptiness.
This happens also with social media. Sean Parker, one of their billionaire investors, acknowledges that Facebook and other platforms are deliberately designed to be addictive.
I admit I spend time on Facebook. When I am in Peru it's one of my main ways of communicating. It's free and it works pretty well, but I know it can absorb a lot of time and work like a drug.
Along with addictions comes depression and for some, suicidal thoughts. In spite of our abundance, freedom and opportunities, suicide has increased dramatically - even among young people who have everything to live for. There's a lot of reasons but much of it involves what Bishop Mueggenborg points out - a lack of faith that leads to despair. What's the answer?
Let's consider Jesus response to John: Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them.
During Advent we focus on connecting with the downtrodden and afflicted. We had things like the Christmas Giving Tree, Catholic Community Service testimony, St. Vincent de Paul commitment renewal. Outreach has formed part of our youth program both for Confirmation candidates and Ignite Nights. When we reach out to the afflicted - even in our own families - it turns our hearts to God.
St. Teresa of Calcutta, when she noticed her sisters showing signs of sadness, would say "get out with the people".
You don't need an addiction-free life to come to Jesus. Some saints struggled all their lives with addictions and terrible depression. Like John the Baptist, however, they recognize that what looks random does have behind it a plan - and a Planner. God has a plan, a providence we can know by faith.
Young people want that faith, that trust. You can see it in this year's most popular Scripture verse. I was going to conclude with it, but I will save it for a Flocknote this week. Instead let's listen again to St. James' inspired words:
"Be patient, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth... You too must be patient." Amen
Homily from Saint Vincent Archabbey, Latrobe, Pa
Saint Vincent Archabbey
3 Advent
Homily from Father Alex McAllister SDS
3 Advent
Third Sunday of Advent
Last week we heard about the ministry of John the Baptist and the text we read was taken from the very beginning of St Matthew's Gospel after the section we call the Infancy Narrative and just before the account of Jesus' Baptism.
Today the Gospel jumps forward to Chapter Eleven and describes an incident which took place right in the middle of Jesus' public ministry. By this time, John the Baptist was languishing in prison and it wouldn't be too long before he lost his head at the hands of King Herod.
John the Baptist wants to know if Jesus really is the Messiah whom he has prophesied about. So he sends his disciples to Jesus to quiz him and to discover if he was the one foretold. Jesus gives them this message to take to John the Baptist, 'the blind see again, and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, and the dead are raise to life and the Good News is proclaimed to the poor.' These words would surely bring great joy and satisfaction to John the Baptist. On hearing them he would realise that his mission was now fulfilled, that the Messiah had truly come into the world.
Jesus then goes on to tell the people of the importance of John the Baptist. He acknowledges that John was a tough messenger who distained his own personal comforts for the sake of the message he came to proclaim. He tells them that there is no one greater than John the Baptist but adds the words, 'Yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he is.' By this Jesus emphasises the importance of heaven as the true goal of every follower of his. He stresses that those who ultimately gain admittance to the Kingdom are indeed blessed.
Heaven is our true destiny, it is for this that we were created in the beginning. But God does not want us to arrive in heaven simply because it is our destiny. No, his desire is that we get to heaven as the result of exercising our own free will. He wants us to get to heaven because at a certain point in our lives we have made a decision and we chose to reject sin and to embrace his Gospel of love.
We can draw a useful distinction between us and the animals. The animals do not exercise free will, they live their lives at a purely instinctual level. There is a gradation, however, since some animals exist in a very primitive state and seem to operate at a very simple level. We could take the earthworm as an example. It simply lives in the soil feeding and excreting and mating and doing little else.
Other animals such as the family dog seem to have much more about them. Dogs, for example, have a range of highly developed senses, they have a memory and they exhibit admirable qualities such as loyalty and they are even able to express emotions such as joy and sorrow.
Although dogs can show expression through barking, which certainly conveys a certain level of meaning, they have not developed language which they would need in order to express a deeper range of feeling and thought. So although dogs are fine animals and make wonderful companions for us they do not have the capacity to exercise free will.
The exercise of free will requires self-consciousness as well as the ability to use language and to master higher thought. It is important that we are able to reflect on our state of being and be able to evaluate our actions and make decisions to adjust them as well as being able to adhere to a moral code of conduct.
Without these abilities we cannot make truly free choices in life and even with them we are sometimes subject to unconscious desires and other limitations which take a deal of effort to break free from. Humanity is certainly one of the greatest of God's creations and it is his desire that, when our time on this earth has come to an end, we are able to share in his life in the eternal realm.
We need to be also clear that when Jesus says that the least one in the Kingdom of Heaven is greater than John the Baptist we should not take this as meaning to put John the Baptist down since the Church acknowledges that he is among the greatest of all the saints. This is simply Jesus' way of helping us to realise to just what a high place God wants to raise us at the moment of our death.
An important thing to remember is that God works in history. This should be no surprise since it was God who created history and we should regard time itself as one of the greatest of God's creations. God, of course, exists completely outside time but since our human life is contained entirely within time it is impossible for us to comprehend his state of being.
Having created time God uses it to bring to fruition his plans for our salvation. He waits centuries before he intervenes in time in order to send his Son into the world. It takes a long period of development until humanity eventually reaches an understanding that there is only one God and is ready to accept that he is a God of love. Only when we have arrived at that point are we are ready to receive the Messiah.
And once Jesus completed his work of salvation and returned to the Father we know that we will wait also for a very long time until God decides that everything is sufficiently ready so that he can bring creation to its final culmination on the Last Day.
This brings us back to Advent with its twin themes of waiting: waiting to celebrate the anniversary of the Birth of the Messiah and waiting for the Last Coming—the final Day of Judgement. But this waiting is not an idle thing because while we are waiting we are also preparing. We are preparing for a great religious feast but also preparing ourselves to face judgement on that final Day of Days.
We are half way through Advent already; we will soon be moving up a gear as we arrive at the period of the immediate preparation for Christmas. Let us not get so caught up in the festivities and all the Christmas fripperies that we neglect the real meaning of this beautiful season of Advent.
Let us not focus so much on making New Year's Resolutions which tend to be rather secular, far better for us to make some Advent Resolutions. In this holy season let us make some decisions in the spiritual and moral areas of our lives, decisions that will really make a difference to our eternal welfare. A good way of doing this is to take advantage of the Penitential Service on Monday.
These homilies may be copied and adapted for your own use; however, they may not be commercially published without permission of the author.
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Hey honey...— یک منتقد (@one_criticizer) August 5, 2017
May I take a picture with you?
I need it for telegram profile...
Please...#سلفی_حقارت#موگرینی pic.twitter.com/PeQ8d9bATN
MP Ahmad Mazani tried to explain his colleagues' enthusiasm for Mogherini, who was also there for bilateral talks with Iran's foreign minister. The attendees, the reformist cleric said on Twitter, had been banned from interacting with special guests during the ceremony.
"Shame and embarrassment," another user replied.


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Biedermeier Pillar Chest, Austria circa 1840
Breathtaking Biedermeier Pillar Chest/ Trumeau from Austria around 1840. A simple but elegant antique piece of furniture that was manufactured with spruce wood and veneered with fine nut wood in a very appealing manner. It consists of a chambered drawer and one small door which hides a compartment divided in two sections. The precious surfaces show a hand-polished shellac finish, giving this Biedermeier Pillar Trumeau a consistent and solid appearance. Elegant brass fittings and a great mirror matched nut wood also on the top plate accentuate this amazing Biedermeier item from Austria.
HEIGHT: 31.9 inch
WIDTH: 17.9 inch
DEPTH: 14.6 inch
1 item in stock
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An elevator and escalator are essential appliances in every hotels, malls, schools, colleges, apartments, hospitals, etc. So it should be repaired and maintained on a regular basis.
TechSquadTeam provides elevator and escalator installation, repair and maintenance services at your doorstep. We offer services for apartments, hospitals, industry, malls, offices etc.
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Tooth decay and gum disease are quite common in the mouth, and most people don't know they have a problem with it until it's too late.
It is recommended to visit our surgery every six months for a routine check-up and scale and clean, so that problems can be detected early. X-rays may be taken as they are the most diagnostic tool a dentist has, and these allow the dentist to see inside the tooth and under fillings.
We recommend x-rays every two years, unless a special situation arises and then an x-ray is required to make a diagnosis. X-rays provide an overall view of your mouth and helps treat problems that may go undetected otherwise.


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|Reference : Le cas clinique du mois. Fibrose retroperitoneale idiopathique: cause inhabituelle de...
|Scientific journals : Article
|Human health sciences : General & internal medicine
|Le cas clinique du mois. Fibrose retroperitoneale idiopathique: cause inhabituelle de douleur abdominale
|[en] Idiopathic Retroperitoneal Fibrosis: Unusual Cause of Abdominal Pain. A Case Report
|Janssen, Nathalie [Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Liège - CHU > > Urgences >]
|D'Orio, Vincenzo [Université de Liège - ULiège > Département des sciences cliniques > Médecine d'urgence - bioch. et phys. hum. normales et path.]
|Revue Médicale de Liège
|7-8, Jul-Aug
|Yes (verified by ORBi)
|[en] Retroperitoneal fibrosis is an uncommon inflammatory disease which is characterized by the development of a fibrous process that surrounds the major vessels and organs located within the retroperitoneum. Isolated as an idiopathic expression or associated with several other diseases in its secondary form, retroperitoneal fibrosis remains relatively of rare occurrence and as a result, is devoid of either diagnostic or therapeutic definitive recommendations. We report the observation of one case admitted in the emergency room for abdominal pain induced by left hydronephrosis. Radiographic exploration with contrast-enhanced studies evidenced retroperitoneal fibrosis causing left ureteric obstruction. Therapeutic approach was based on corticosteroids and ureteral drainage which prevented recurrence while fibrosis was almost reversed six months later.
|File(s) associated to this reference
Fulltext file(s):
All documents in ORBi are protected by a user license.


text: foo_skip: skip tracks that match a specified search query Reply #50 – 2005-12-12 23:37:03 Well Lance Uppercut uses "$ifgreater(%rating%,2,0,1)" to play songs with ratings over two. But I'm assuming that his music collection uses rating tagged accordingly "1, 2, 3, 4, 5" but mine uses "|, ||, |||, ||||, |||||" so you can't use numeric values to compare the rating metadata. So that's why I tried to make it so it just compares the length of the string of the %rating% tag with "$iflonger($len(%rating%), 3, 0, 1)" but it doesn't work, I was just wondering if anyone knows why ? or if my code is completely wrong..


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Saturday, March 15 at 8:00pm
Four Points by Sheraton Halifax,1496 Hollis Street (see map at bottom)
$15 (includes after party cover for Pacifico)
From several of their write-up mashed together…
Vaudeville is Dalhousie's first ever student-produced charity fashion show featuring all original student garments. It is more than your typical runway show; it is a showcase of fresh and innovative design thinking that aims to challenge ideas of fashion as being purely a commercial industry or as always adhering to conventional norms of beauty.
Vaudeville is a collective of eight student designers who are rejecting fashion stereotypes and clichés to create a diverse range of mini-collections linked only by their uniqueness. The word "Vaudeville" dates to the late 19th and early 20th century and describes a form of variety show popular in North America at the time. Vaudevillian entertainment brought together a range of original acts – from comedy to dance to magic to animal training – into one cohesive theatrical performance. In a nod to this form of variety entertainment, our show aims to bring together a diverse range of design concepts into one unforgettable experience.
100% of the money from every single ticket sold will go directly to Dress for Success Halifax, an incredible local charity that helps economically disadvantaged women in Halifax gain economic independence by providing them with professional attire, job training, and much more.
Attendees aged 19+ are invited after the show to join the Vaudeville cast and crew for an exclusive party at Pacifico Nightclub. Pacifico will be waiving cover charges for all 19+ Vaudeville ticket-holders.
You can get tickets here till Friday night, or at the door (if available).


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Developer stories
See how app developers from around the world trust Azure to help them solve their important challenges
Cliff Agius is a 787 pilot by day and a hobbyist developer by night. When a family friend asked for help improving her son's prosthetic arm, Cliff used open-source software to build a new arm for the teen—and dramatically reduce the costs of prosthetics for others.
Learn about .NET on Azure and Xamarin, find HandyApp on GitHub.
Stack Overflow
As a developer at Stack Overflow and a co-founder of Girl Develop It and Jewelbots, Sara Chipps is driven to help others learn and achieve more. A recent board member on the .NET Foundation, Sara helps developer communities contribute to open-source projects.
Learn about .NET and Visual Studio Code.
Find Jewelbots on GitHub.
Have I Been Pwned
Troy Hunt's popular data breach notification website had to scale rapidly to meet demand. Watch Troy explain how he designed the site architecture and made critical decisions that help keep the site optimized at all times.
Learn about Azure Functions, Azure Cache for Redis, and Azure SQL Database.Read Troy's blog post
The pandas project
Jeff Reback, core developer on the open-source pandas data science library for Python, tells the story of how GitHub and Azure Pipelines make it easy for the project's large volunteer developer base to contribute.
Learn about Azure blob storage with pandas.
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Virgin Atlantic
Watch the story of how Microsoft Power Apps and Azure services make it faster and easier for Manuela Pichler and other developers at Virgin Atlantic to build line-of-business apps.
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Ebiya restaurant
When Haruki Odajima took over a third-generation family restaurant, sales were struggling. Learn how he used Azure to develop an AI system that helped increase business tenfold.
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Inspired by his aunt who was living with motor neuron disease, Julius Sweetland set out to create a keyboard controlled by eye movements. Watch the story of his open-source project of passion.
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Find OptiKey on GitHub.
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See how game developers at Rare use the PlayFab platform and Azure services to dynamically scale and seamlessly migrate players through shared game worlds in Sea of Thieves.
Learn about Azure PlayFab, Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS), Azure Data Explorer, Azure Cache for Redis.
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Gauges 9-11-13-20w-9.
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We must be willing to let go of the life we planned so as to have the life that is waiting for us.
― Joseph Campbell
Today, a tweet led me to an article called "16 ways I blew my marriage":
Talking it over with friends later, they said you couldn't just lose a marriage; it wasn't like a soccer game (won by a stronger team) or a set of keys or a book (lost through carelessness).
But they were wrong. I know that you can lose any important relationship through carelessness; I also know that you can lose a marriage the same way. A marriage very rarely ends suddenly for no reason – it usually is death by a thousand knives, even if one of those knives is indifference. My first marriage officially ended when I left it for what I thought was the chance to be loved – but it had been dying for a long time.
It died through carelessness, when the person I was with forgot to cherish me and when they wanted me to be all that I wasn't. I ended up trying very hard to be the someone my husband wanted me to be; and that had already had a shape and a name. He had found a friend, a soulmate, he called her while maintaining she was only ever a friend, who took over our lives and suffocated our marriage. He travelled a lot on business and would bring me home a present most times – but he always brought her one home too. He cooked fish pies and made little cakes for us – but always set aside some for her. He asked me why I couldn't be like her, or dress like her or act like her – and I tortured myself asking why I couldn't, while desperately trying to do what was asked, until I was exhausted being someone else.
They were dark days when I did not know I could dare to be happier. I stayed because my culture required it, because my beliefs insisted on it, even if those beliefs were sometimes second hand beliefs. With four small children, and a part time job, I kept spiralling down to a place where I could see no options and found I had lost my voice and become invisible. What could be seen brought envy from those who could not see – a beautiful mortgage-free house, £80k in the bank, a part time job and a busy social life. They could not see because I hid my heartache from all who knew me, and I hid myself by wearing ten ton masks of family life and hostess.
Living in a state of almost constant fear and anxiety, I lost myself. I lost hope in a place where I could see no options,where I shut my feelings down because that was less painful than knowing how they felt. I forgot what it was to be loved and could not dare to love myself, but when someone indicated that I might actually be a living, breathing woman, I leapt towards that spark of hope. In the process, I lost many many friends and much more. The leap was so vast it shook me so deeply that it would take almost a year before I could read more than a paragraph in a book again.
Louise Hay says that all that we do is driven by fear or love; I know this is true. I regret the way the marriage ended, and I regret that I stayed so long – yet I cannot fully regret this, because it forced me down the path that led me to my life today. That quote from Joseph Campbell is one of my favourites because I know the truth of it. I don't know if I was willing to let go, but the letting go of the life I'd planned brought me to where I am now, with a life full of gratitude.
It's a place where I dare to be happier! I've been surprised to find out what I might be capable of. I am blessed with a home that's a haven, a great career, a part time coaching and training role. Where I'm surrounded by so many dear true friends, spiritual teachers and Anam Caras. My children have grown up and with their support I learned to swim, not sink, sometimes because I absolutely needed to provide for them, as I got so little financial support from their dad. They are as proud of me as I am of them.
In daring to be happier, I have had to make daily choices about how I think and what I do. In living authentically,I have learned from my mistakes – and I have learned to love and nurture myself and find my voice.
I have also learned that all I can ever be is me, and that's just perfect. I have dusted myself off and polished myself up, and allowed myself (sometimes at least) to shine bright like a diamond. Diamonds come from ashes after all. I will not ever stand on a pedestal again, or allow others to put me there. I know too well how human I am – but as a human being, I long to be seen and loved for exactly who I am; we can ask for no more. To be loved carefully, to be cherished. Though I've known great pain and darkness in my life, I found that daring to be happier again brought all sorts of adventures.
It also brought me a special kind of love, perhaps because my now husband (Lee) is a very special kind of man. As I write this, he is away for a long weekend pursuing one of his hobbies – but I know he is thinking about me often. I know he loves and cherishes me because he will organise little gifts,and he texts and calls me when he is away, touching base little and often. Some people may not appreciate that, or find it corny; I am grateful from the bottom of my heart. Yesterday, I put my hand in my jacket pocket and found a small bar of my favourite chocolate waiting for me. Today, I got into my car and there was a beautiful winter plant sitting smiling at me. When I saw it, I burst into tears. Happiness Virus tears, he said to me later. Yes; these were good tears. Tears because I am loved for who I am and all that I could be. He will not lose our marriage through carelessness.


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The International Bluegrass Music Association has announced the participants in its 2016 World of Bluegrass Songwriter Showcase.
Each year the ten best songs from the dozens submitted for consideration are selected, and the writers are invited to perform them during IBMA's annual convention before an audience of artists and producers eager for new material. Both the recognition by the organization and the exposure received from their showcase in front of their peers and interested industry people can catapult a songwriter to wider appreciation.
Chosen for 2016 are:
Congratulations to this year's songwriters!
The World of Bluegrass Songwriter's Showcase will be held on September 29 at 1:00 p.m. in the Raleigh Convention Center in Raleigh, NC.
Coming up: Viva NashVegas!
Come see Ashleigh live on the radio at Kimbro's in Franklin (more info on the shows page) Saturday July 9th! Its a free show! Or tune in to hear the live stream at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/vnvradio
May 2019


text: Manoa Falls HikeManoa Road, HonoluluPart of the enjoyment of getting to Manoa Falls is the beauty of the journey there. A well-maintained trail leads hikers to the waterfall, which cascades 150 feet down a mountainside. The 1.6-mile trail includes a bridge and takes you through awe-inspiring rainforests. Some of this majestic trail was used in the filming of the original Jurassic Park movie! Make sure to wear sturdy shoes, as the ground can be quite muddy and even slippery in places. You might even get caught in a shower, but that's part of the Oahu experience. Most of the trail has been graveled, but be on the lookout for fallen tree branches. Some of the flora you'll encounter include banyan trees, guava, bamboo and ginger flowers. The last part of the hike is the steepest, and there are some obstacles such as rocks and boulders, but it's well worth it. And don't worry—this is a hike the whole family will love, even children. Soon, you're face to face with the splendor of Manoa Falls, spilling into a small natural pool. Fast hikers will probably reach the falls in about 30 minutes in the best conditions, but on average, it's about 45 minutes. Don't forget to bring along water and bug repellant, and its best to wear sunscreen or a hat. If you have them, hiking poles wouldn't hurt either. Guided tours of Manoa Falls with shuttles to the trail are available. If you're driving a rental car, parking in the residential neighborhood near the old Paradise Park is a good idea, and only adds about a quarter mile to your hike.


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Moscow hosts free movie nights for the homeless
(The tweet above directly translates to: "From 19 July in Moscow earns summer cinema for the homeless. About once a month, they will show Soviet cinema".)
Spending a night at the movies is a luxury we often take for granted, but Friends on the Streets -- a charity in Moscow -- is making that luxury a reality for the city's homeless.
The organization has set up a program that screens movies for the city's homeless. Friends on the Streets aims to simultaneously provide relaxation and entertainment for homeless people and raise awareness.
BBC reported that films will be free of charge and shown twice a month and the audience votes on which movie will play. Tea and snacks will also be provided for attendees at each screening.
Andrei Besshtanko, deputy head of City Hall's department of social security told the Moscow Times:
See the video below for a glimpse at an interesting social experiment that involved homelessness:
More from AOL.com:
Welfare recipient drug testing brings shocking results
Woman adopts late best friend's 4 daughters
Condoms spread awareness about endangered animals


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Anybody else having a focus problem these days?
Silly question. Of course you are. News. It doesn't even matter where you stand, which side you're on, or Russia what you believe. The news has captured health care just about everyone's interest, and for most of us, the climate change ability to concentrate on what we're writing requires Herculean effort. Because subpoena when the future of our country is at stake, and news is sometimes breaking FBI at the rate of a story every five minutes, most of us, understandably, have discovered NATO we can't look away. (And let's not even Trump begin to talk about the additional alcohol and caffeine crazy we're consuming, the stress eating, budget the lost hours of internet trolls sleep…) Sorry, what was I saying? It's been a whole paragraph. I had to go check Twitter.
Seriously, let's talk about focus. Often a problem when we're bogged down in the clumsy middle of a book, many of us are now experiencing a different sort of distractibility stemming from stress and the fact that we're living through a more plot-twisty story than anything any of us could have dreamt up. (And one that would have been rejected by almost all editors for its lack of plausibility.) What's more, unlike the stories we write, this story potentially carries terrifying, generation or longer real-world consequences. It's the ultimate page-turner. So how do we pull ourselves away from this reality and focus on the worlds we're supposed to be creating?
The first part of the answer is that you don't pull away. You accept that you're going to cede some of your productivity to the news and maybe even to activism, if you're so inclined.
But you're probably more interested in part two of the answer—the one that gets you back to your writing. Let writing be your refuge. This constant, high-stress vigilance is exhausting. It's not where most writers feel comfortable. So no matter how compelling that big world story may be, find a way back to that place of your own creation. Those first few moments in front of the blank page may feel strained, but the people in your fictional world are going to make sense to you in a way the people in the news don't. Besides, won't it be a relief to spend time on a regular basis with people whose behavior you can control—at least most of the time? What a great de-stressor, even if you end up not keeping everything you write.
Third, I'm going to share a stunningly simple tool I've found works to keep me focused and motivated when writing through the cumbersome sections of my manuscript. Conveniently, it's also helping these days to bring me back to the page when I feel like my brain is so immersed in the global news vortex I might never be able to retrieve it.
At the beginning of each full draft*, I write on a sticky note a few simple mantras I intend to apply specifically to that draft and place the note where I can see it when I'm working. These mantras can be basic writing precepts, or they might mean nothing to anyone but me. It doesn't matter so long as they function instantly to direct my attention back to the specific goals I've set for each draft of my book.
For example, here are my mantras for the first two full drafts of my WIP: [Read more…]