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The NYPD is seeking the public's help in identifying the following suspects wanted in connection with a possible abduction within the 68 Precinct in Brooklyn.
On Sunday, Dec. 22, at 2:20 p.m. hours in front of 434 Marine Ave., a male Hispanic child was seen exiting the driver's side rear door of a vehicle parked at the location and then entering the trunk of the vehicle. At the same time, an unknown black male exited from the front driver's side and closed the trunk with the child inside. The unknown male black then re-entered the front driver's side of the vehicle and left the location, traveling eastbound on Marine Avenue towards Fort Hamilton Parkway.
The vehicle has been identified as a dark colored Nissan Altima, possibly a 2007-2012 model.
The male Hispanic who entered the trunk of the vehicle appeared to be 10-15 years old, with short black hair, wearing a grey hooded sweatshirt, grey sweatpants and white sneakers.
Anyone with information in regards is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477). The public can also submit tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then enter TIP577.


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Tips on hip replacements
In June 2012 my left hip was replaced and I knew there was a good chance my right one would have to be done at some point too. This time instead of ignoring the signs, I decided to be more proactive.
I was a runner and taught hard core classes up to the day of my first surgery in 2012, so I was in good shape. But since then, I had gained a much deeper insight and appreciation of the importance of anatomy, biomechanics and how optimal alignment is important to support the body when recovering from a hip replacement (or any surgery for that matter).
Organizing the body before and after a hip replacement
Being a Pilates instructor, I know it's important to strengthen the muscles that support the hip and knee, be able to alleviate cranky SI joints, work internal rotation of the lower leg bones while externally rotating the femur and understand the significance of developing the muscles that spiral and crisscross throughout the body.
For instance, there's a rotation that occurs in the pelvis at the head of the femur. It literally makes the femur feel stuck 'stuck' – this is what's referred to as bone on bone and can be very painful. After my own movement practice and trial and error with clients, I noticed that working upper spinal extension and rotation while keeping the pelvis neutral helped minimize the pain and discomfort in my hip by regaining more neutrality in the lower back muscles and pelvis.
Being more proactive for round two
Early in 2017 small indicators began to manifest. This time instead of ignoring the signs: joint stiffness after sitting for prolonged periods; some discomfort during and after exercising; disruption in sleep due to dull aching in my hip; I decided to be more proactive.
Similarities and differences of my first and second surgery
As I recover from my most recent surgery it has allowed me the opportunity to reflect on the differences and similarities of the surgeries.
In both instances I had a total hip replacement which entailed the hip joint being replaced with an artificial socket and a metal ball and stem. Both were done laterally; the incision runs along the side of my thigh which meant the major hip rotators had to be aggressively manipulated and some nerves impacted due to the incising. It also meant that for the first 6 weeks there is no forward flexion. As a result of this procedure exercises both pre and post that focused on balance as well as strengthening these muscles was and is imperative.
When I met with my surgeon in 2012 I was given a binder which detailed everything from pre-surgery preparation, what to expect while in the hospital, post -surgery activity, discharge and follow-up. Almost 5 years later that information has expanded and now includes websites and you tube videos for educating on the procedure, your stay in the hospital, healthy eating tips, exercises and information on publicly funded rehab facilities as in home visits by therapists are no longer in existence. In both instances there was a preadmission clinic visit approximately 4 weeks before my surgery. Although the visits were over 5 hours it was another opportunity to review in more detail all that was in the binder but more importantly to actually meet with the anesthetist, the nursing team and physio therapist and ask questions.
What I found intriguing in 2012 and now is their focus on pain and pain management. I had been taking extra strength Advil three times a day for a few months leading up to my surgery but after both surgeries I had absolutely no pain and thus no need for opioids. Having worked with a wide variety of clients over the years I know everyone's perception of pain is different. It was therefore refreshing to see how the surgical team recognized and addressed this. In 2017 the binder has been updated with more information and websites that discuss the pros and cons of opioids, the how's and whys to manage pain and how to safely wean off pain medication. Their goal is to make sure that there is as little pain as possible and to manage pain early so that people can return to normal activities as soon as possible.
Although everyone's speed of recovery will vary, by making your body and mind stronger prior to surgery will not only make your recovery faster and smoother, you will also feel more confident.
Some takeaways
- Learn how to differentiate between pain and muscle tightness
- Find balance between moving and resting. Use ice it helps with the initial swelling.
- If your surgery is in the winter you can still get outdoors but use Nordic Walking poles. You'll stay more erect and have a more even gait.
- Do your exercises every day 3-4 times a day.
Here are a few Pilates based exercises that start easy and get a little more challenging
Lying or sitting:
- Use a Theraband for foot & ankle work.
- Heel slides works both knee and hip and you can engage core muscles
- Hip abduction and adduction – slide leg away from midline and back
- Hip flexion – bend knee and lift leg aiming for 90 degrees
- Hip abduction – similar to standing – move leg to side
- Hip extension – works erectors and gluts
More challenging for thigh
- VMO – a squishy ball under the knee – slight external rotation of leg, foot flexed, press back of knee into the ball
- Rec Femoris +hip flexor – side lying, hips stacked, small squishy ball between bent knees press knee down into ball. More advance straight legs.
- Glut med-Theraband above knees, side lying, hips stacked – lift top leg hold. More advanced, theraband around ankles legs straight, lift top leg, hold

subset: commoncrawl


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Prestige Kew Garden
|Prestige Kew Gardens
Prestige Group, the leading real estate development company based in Bangalore, is now working on its new residential projectPrestige Kew Garden that will soon charm the people of the city who are looking to invest in high quality living environments. This new project,Prestige Kew Garden, will feature 2 BHK, 2.5 BHK, 3 BHK and 4 BHK apartments in various sizes. The project is currently in its growing stage and is being developed in a land of 20 acres in the Marathahalli – HAL area of east Bangalore. The apartments will be ideal for the IT professionals of the city as well as large, medium and small families.
The new housing project Prestige Kew Garden will feature tons of high quality living amenities that are at par with global standards. This will include 24/7 power supply that is also further supported by an efficient backup system, play area, gymnasium, club house, community hall, tennis and badminton courts, swimming pools, temples, cafeteria and retail area. The creators of Prestige Kew Garden will also provide for plenty of open space and beautiful gardens that will allow the residents to relax and unwind. Such facilities will surely make Prestige Kew Gardens a great place to spend time with family and friends.


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The Witcher 3 Developer: Both PS4 and Xbox One "Wonderful Pieces of Hardware;" Allow to "Go Crazy" on Visuals and Gameplay
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is shaping up more and more as a RPG powerhouse for storytelling, gameplay and visuals, and Lead Gameplay Designer Maciej Szcześnik seems definitely confident that both the PS4 and the Xbox One will be able to raise to the challenge just fine, as he told GamesTM in an interview:
We wanted to put as much force as we could into the punch that, we hope, will change the RPG genre for a long time. Both consoles are wonderful pieces of hardware and allow us to go crazy on the visuals and gameplay ideas. This next generation of hardware will mean a next generation of graphics and storytelling in open-world RPGs.
Szcześnik also mentioned that, while the story remains the focal point of the game, the development team is working hard to making sure that the action combat part of the game will be up to par:
We want to make an extremely good RPG for next-gen platforms. Our intention is to convince people that it's a revolutionary game not because it's the only game available, but because it's truly good. Will it help? It might, but we're not thinking about it – we're making the best game we can, not wishing there's no competition when we launch. That would be stupid, because there's always another game, be it RPGs, strategy, sports or shooters; it's not like gamers play one genre only. In terms of our audience, I hope it reaches everyone who values a good story in a mature environment. The story is always the most important part of the experience for us, but this time around combat could stand on its own so even action-orientated gamers will like it.
CD Projekt RED's strictly hardware-agnostic policy is quite interesting, especially in an industry where many developers are either starting to take sides or struggle to provide equal performance on both consoles. Yet, the house of The Witcher has already surprised us many times, so it's very possible that they'll manage to sweep us off our feet once more.
We still don't have a firm release date for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, but hopefully we'll manage to play it by the end of the year.


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BBTS News: TF Masterpiece, Star Wars, Getter Robo, 300, Batman, Resident Evil, TMNT & More!
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Read Toy Nippon on Google Currents!
You can now read Toy Nippon on your smartphone via Google Currents. To add Toy Nippon to your Google Currents, go to www.toynippon.com on your smartphone's STOCK web browser and click on the link below (link doesn't install correctly with Dolphin/Opera/other browsers):


text: The European Commission supported SemanticHEALTH Support Action develops a roadmap on research and deployment of ICT-based solutions to improve the quality and efficiency of health services, focusing on semantic interoperability. At the Medical Informatics Europe Conference (MIE) on May 27, initial findings will be presented for discussion, further refinement and validation by invited experts. Areas for short term action, medium term evaluation, and long term research are identified for the domains of Electronic Health Record systems, ontologies and terminologies, public health as well as socio-economic issues.


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The Compendious Guide to Flying For Free as a Family
There's a lot of research one does before taking on a project as lofty as ours. Traveling around the world as a family, albeit a small one, is no simple measure. Among that research, one tends to look for ways to save as much money as possible, and airfare is an understandably huge cost—in fact, it's typically 30-60% of the total cost of a trip. If there's a trick that can make that price tag shrink, well, then that's a fine trick indeed. Thanks to the blogosphere, it's easy to discover just what that is. Enter the realm of Award Travel.
For practically pennies on the dollar, you and your family of varying sizes can scurry around the world with ease basking in the jealousy-inducing thought that the person in the seat next to you paid somewhere close to full price for their ticket, while you and your kin did not. Huzzah. But don't let those opportunistic blogger-types fool you; though it might be fairly simple to score a free roundtrip flight from New York to LA, round-the-world award travel is a whole different ball game. In fact, it's not really fair to call it a game at all. Let's call it a full-time job.
Don't get me wrong. I am a huge fan of award travel, but—just like anything else that's worth it—it comes at its own special price. Getting to the point where you can fly around the earth on airline points instead of dollars is not accomplished without a great deal of learning, patience, and dedication.
I want to give you what I didn't have when I started this journey: an idea of what you should expect should you decide to travel around the world with award points. It is my biased opinion that minimizing your trip cost in this way is well worth the effort, but depending on your own situation, certain factors may make it more hassle than you care to experience. For your convenience, I've made a list of cons so you can determine right now if this is for you, and therefore potentially justify reading this extremely long article:
1. Award Travel is only realistically available for citizens of certain countries such as the US, Canada, or UK
2. Redeeming points can be extremely difficult to understand
3. There's a huge learning curve to flying for free as a family
4. Potential credit risk if you're dumb about how you're collecting points
5. Collecting points for 1 is easy… collecting points for 3 and above is not
6. Lap babies do not fly (completely) for free
Did I scare you off yet? Good. Let's get started.
In The Beginning, There Were Alliances
There are two airline alliances that cover almost every flight in the world. They are the Star Alliance and Oneworld. Star Alliance has airlines like United, Lufthansa, TAM, Singapore Air, and many others. Oneworld has American Airlines/US Airways, Qatar, British Airways, and more. There is a third one with Delta and a couple others, but it's not too useful, as they are still very small (called SkyTeam Alliance).
Points between the two major alliances are valued differently – as in, 10,000 points in Star is not the same as 10,000 points in Oneworld. Both have different flight schedules for award travel, but both are pretty compendious between destinations. Star Alliance covers the majority of everywhere, while Oneworld doesn't have much to do with Australia/Oceania.
Not everyone is as crazy as us and needs to save for an entire year's worth of round-the-world family travel. But even if you were, the first step is the same: regardless of whether your trip has 1 segment or 5, you need to see how many points you need for your flight.
Step 1: Find Out How Many Miles you Need to Go on your Trip
Go to milez.biz and plug in your departure/destination. When asked to select airline programs, select "United / Star Alliance" and "American Airlines / Oneworld". Those two will get you the amount of points it'll cost for any of the airlines within the respective alliance, regardless of whether that's British Airways or Qantas. Hit the button.
Scroll down to the bottom and you'll see something like above. It breaks out the pricing by alliance and by type of seat. Obviously the higher classes are going to cost more points, but that's where you get the real value in using points—economy's nice and all, but with a bit more points you can get a major upgrade. With a family, though, that's not always a possibility.
Make note that the points you see here is roundtrip and per person (except for lap babies). If you want a one-way cost, divide that number in half. Also make note, I've found it easier to get points for United, and here's why…
Step 2: Pick a Rewards Program
The picture above is from the ultimaterewards.com (UR) website, which is Chase's credit card rewards program. What's nice about that is UR points transfer to everything you see above. If you book your award travel flight through United, you have access to all the airlines on Star Alliance. This is where I like to get detailed and know exactly how many points each of our flights will cost.
Chase not only has massive bonuses for opening credit cards, they also make it fairly easy to get a solid amount of extra points by purchasing. For example, the Freedom card will give you up to 5 points per dollar on different kinds of items that change quarterly, but usually it's things like gas, entertainment, food, and amazon.com. The business card Ink Bold comes with a 50,000 point bonus, and also allows 5 pts per dollar spent on office supplies, 2 pts per dollar in travel, and 1 pt per dollar on everything else. But let's face it, you're not going to get point-rich by spending massive amounts of money. The sign-up bonuses is where it's at. We'll talk about that in a minute, though… the next step is to make sure you know what you need.
Step 3: "Book" Your Flight
Go to http://www.united.com/web/
On the United site fill out the information correctly for your desired trip. Don't bother with searching for nearby airports, you can do that later and it won't affect the price much. Do select the "My dates are flexible" option, though, and it will give you a calendar in case a flight on a specific day isn't available. Make sure you fill out who's traveling and what age group, and then submit at the bottom. You'll see something like this:
You want Saver Award. Never fly on a standard award day if you can help it, it's like double the points. Otherwise follow the color key to know what to select for either economy or business travel. Let's select a green day just to see both economy/business tickets.
You'll come to a screen like this where you pick your first flight. Keep in mind that though there are sometimes direct flights, if you're going to/from any destination that's not a major hub you'll have transfers. This is important because sometimes the flight will take you a whole freaking day to get to your destination. Ah, the joys of award travel. Select a flight (usually the first one's the best, since it's placed in order of time length) and then select your home-bound flight if you're flying roundtrip. Under the button you click to select a flight, you'll see the amount of points for the one-way and the $$ price. That's literally the cost of your flight. Nice, huh?
After selecting the first flight and trying to book the 2nd, you might see a screen like above. This happens all the time on roundtrip flights, and it all depends on where you're going and when you want to be home. If you're flexible, that's always best. In the event that you're not, I've had really good luck giving United a call on the number they provide for booking award travel and having them find a flight on a partner flight that isn't showing up online. Again, try to never fly standard. It's just not worth it.
Assuming you are flexible and find a flight online, it'll now ask you to sign in. If you don't already have a United.com MileagePlus account, it will not hurt you to sign up for one. It's free, and you'll need it to apply for certain credit cards anyway. Once you're signed up and signed in, you'll see what we've been looking for this whole time:
Depending on where it is you're going, this is likely what you're going to find too. What you see here is exactly what you should expect for your flight cost in both points and dollars. This is a good amount of miles, but it's not impossible, so stop crying already.
Step 4: Make It Rain (with points, not tears)
The amount of award miles it takes to fly as a family is nothing to shake a stick at, and assuming you've got a year or so's time it's definitely doable. Short term (less than 9 months) might be a bit harder. Either way, here's where things get tricky.
Since applying for credit cards is the best and quickest way to get points, you want to get a bunch within a short period of time. Only problem is this will mess with your credit score a bit, and if your score gets too low then you won't be accepted for more credit cards. If your score's not around or above 720-740 already, get it there before you try this or you'll be spending a lot more time getting it up later.
If you're good to go, then enter what is called the "app-o-rama". An app-o-rama is a method of bending the system like Neo in The Matrix by signing up for a bunch of cards at the same time so that your score doesn't have enough time to be affected by each credit inquiry the credit card companies make, therefore increasing your chances that you'll be accepted for the cards you sign up for. Each card will put a "hard ding" on your credit by about 2-5 points, but again, as long as you're somewhere above 740 or so you're pretty safe.
There's some very ridiculous complexities to correctly performing an app-o-rama, so I suggest some reading at the links I'll provide at the bottom. It's imperative you know what you're doing, because you can get denied if you're not careful, polite, and patient. By the way, none of this is illegal or shady (millions of people do this and write about it publicly), but it's not something that credit card companies are dying to have their customers do, given that it's not likely bringing them more business than what they have already with you.
In theory, an app-o-rama can be performed every 91 days from the last credit card signup. This is because of two reasons: a) it takes your score about 3 months or so to recover the points it lost, and b) credit card companies have rules stating that they will deny anyone that signs up for a card before that period. There are exceptions, but they are few and far between.
Every credit card bonus has requirements, and usually that requirement is a "spend $xxxx.xx in 3 months". If you sign up for a ton of cards, you have to be willing to spend this, or you won't get some or any of the bonus. That being said, the links I have provided below have suggestions on how you can spend that easily on stuff you already spend money on. Most of these cards also come with a $100 or so yearly fee that's waived the first year. Some of these cards are well worth holding onto, others… not so much. You'll have to read up about the best way to cancel when that time comes. There's a certain finesse to it.
Even though there are many different airlines and entities offering bonuses and rewards for getting and using their card, not all points are created equal. For example, United Airlines award flights are often more points than the American Airlines / Oneworld Alliance award flights, and it's much harder to get AA points since there's only a handful of credit cards that will offer you a big signup bonus. And don't expect your points to transfer, either—once your points belong to a certain airline, they likely won't let you transfer them to another one. That means that if you have 50,000 points through your Southwest Airlines credit card, you won't be able to use them on United, even though you can transfer your Ultimate Rewards Points (Chase) to either airline. And, just to make it harder, you can't book a flight using a combination of points from different airlines, even if they're in the same alliance. To avoid this, it's best to get lots of points with a few companies and focus your efforts there. The little guys can be worth it, but you can't fly around the world (or much of anywhere, for that matter) with the 15,000 Air Canada points in your back pocket, and it may not be worth the effort to invest in more points if they don't come easily.
To give all this nonsense a real-world application, I'll give you a real-world example. About 4 months ago a friend came to me with a task: he wanted to get his family of 3 to Cambodia and back from the US and wanted to do so with points. He had 9 months to accrue 160k points for the same airline, as using multiple airlines wasn't ideal. Though it was a bit of a stretch to collect enough for that short of a time period, it was definitely doable. I suggested the following credit card application schedule based on the available bonuses at the time:
App-o-rama #1:
– Chase Business Ink Bold (50k pts, must spend $5k in 3 mo)
– Chase Sapphire Preferred (40k pts, must spend $3k in 3 mo
App-o-rama #2 (3 months from last one):
– Chase United MileagePlus, personal (30k pts w/ $1k spend in 3mo, but some people have been able to get them to bump it up to 50k pts)
– Chase United MileagePlus, business (same as personal card)
This was a pretty moderate schedule. I warned him that when he signed up for the business credit cards they might put it on "pending" and ask a few questions first, but even without having a legitimate taxable business people get those cards all the time. If he was lucky, he might even get another 20k points on the money he'd already have to spend to make the bonuses. If he needed help with the minimum spend, he could use Amazon Payments to game the system a bit and knock out about $1000 a month without spending money (read more about that here).
Last week I asked him how the process was going. He replied:
"I have earned all the points for me and my wife, and we have enough points to pay for my daughter as well. My new goal is to get first class seats. I use Amazon Payments like crazy. I always get a card for me and my wife and my dad. I send money to my dad who sends money to my wife who sends money to me. I have my dad using the cards for bigger purchases and he pays me back. We knock out a $5000 minimum spend requirement every month and I think it is so fun to rack up points."
You can get more cards than what I scheduled for my friend, and from more than just one company. In fact, some people will usually do up to 8 cards per app-o-rama, which is pretty crazy. Sometimes they'll sign up for the same card multiple times in a row (this is called "churning"). People are crazy, but for those that can make over a million miles in a year, that's kind of cool. Think of it as couponing for vacations instead of groceries.
In The End, There Were Free Flights
Collecting the points needed to fly for free as a family can be a daunting and arduous task, but—assuming miles are going to be around for the next couple years—it's extremely lucrative if you can handle all the hoop jumping. After telling a friend about this method, he told me that I might as well have put all that effort into building a business and making the money I was supposedly saving with points. He may be right. But at least I get to rub my free ticket in the face of the guy sitting next to me in first class. And that makes it all worth it.
Wanna learn more? Here's some friends that have been in the points game much longer than I have:
extrapackofpeanuts.com – My friend Trav has been doing this for a few years and he's got some pretty good down-to-earth info online.
millionmilesecrets.com – Another good blog, he works hard for his fanbase so you get good info there
thepointsguy.com – Pretty popular site, and well worth reading thru his information.
There's also a forum at flyertalk.com, but it takes a while to understand what's going on there… everyone speaks in jargon. I still have a hard time with it.
5 thoughts on "The Compendious Guide to Flying For Free as a Family"
A few issues I see with this plan. First, amazon payments will sooner or later end the no fee $500 payments (They officially "launched" this week so if they grow as they expect they will cut off this benefit, IMO), but even if they continue people must research how to bounce the money around because Amazon will cut off the privilege if you don't complicate the payments enough. What I mean is that you can't just pay $500 to and from two accounts, you have to use like 3-4 accounts. This can get complicated whether you use accounts of your own (very risky) or involve relatives, friends, etc. Ethically it's a similar thing to the app-o-ramas, costing a company money and resources but not illegal. Second, I might have missed it but I didn't see how you are acquiring more points than the sign up bonuses. Are you still doing app-o-ramas throughout your 12 months? I understand you can regularly spend $$ the old fashioned way but that will not rack up points very fast or very much unless you're spending a lot. Even if you involve relatives, friends, etc like the guy you quoted, it's getting very complicated and most people IMO wouldn't have other people to help them gain points (by spending on your behalf or signing up and giving you the points, etc). The one thing I'm curious about is if balance transfers count as "spending". One trick I'm able to do is balance transfer money to a card attached to my bank account (for cards with promo 0% apr for transfers), which means I could instantly meet the spending requirement and pay the money back to them right away as cash from my account.
Thanks for your thoughtful comment! Amazon Payments, as with all current methods for reaching the minimum spend, is almost a "use it till it's gone" thing – I personally only use it just as a tool for reaching my spend as a last ditch effort, as I regularly use it to pay people for real (such as for rent, family plan phone bills, etc). If the number of people that do 8-card app-o-ramas every 3 months or churn thru cards regularly increases, no doubt services such as these will be reworked and/or shut down. But where there's a will, there's a way. I think we're getting closer to the end of easy-to-get mileage points, but then again, that's probably what people were saying 10 years ago too.
While we're traveling we're not doing any app-o-ramas because of the difficulties in getting the cards where we're at. We might pick up a couple cards toward the end if we are lacking enough points, but we also want to get a loan to buy property when we're done with our trip so we're trying to lay low on our credit pulls for the next while. Assuming airline points are worth anything by the time that's done, we'll likely start saving them again for big family trips.
As far as acquiring more points than the bonuses, most of that is from regular spending – we do a fair amount of research to make sure that we're using certain cards for certain categories, but the majority of what we pay for on our cards at this point is travel-related (plane/train tickets, etc) so we don't use more than 1 card most the time. I have some business expenses for my company that still allow me to get up to 5x points per dollar, which is nice.
You're absolutely right in saying that it's getting more complicated to get points, and though there's always been an element of creativity involved, you can only play one game so many times before it gets old. The balance transfer thing I'm not sure of, I'll have to look into that. Let me know what you find out, that could be a very useful method for cards with no transfer fees.
Now that Amazon payments is gone, what strategies are you using to manufacture spend?
Thankfully for the time being we have plenty of other expenses that we pay using credit card already, so for minimum spend it's been fairly straightforward and simple. But that won't last – we're not doing any app-o-ramas right now, but when we get home and aren't using our credit card as much (especially for big things like rent) we'll have to look into other methods. There's always new free payment services popping up, and a few will likely allow the same Amazon method. I'm keeping my eyes peeled.
Without that, though, the easiest way for us right now is to just pay for as many things as possible with credit card, even though it comes with fees. I'll be weighing it out thoroughly, but the 1.9% or so I'll be missing out on might be worth the points if its a matter of meeting the spend for a 50k card or not.
What about you? What strategies have you been looking at?
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The month begins with the Moon nowhere in sight, at least in the evening. But almost immediately after sundown you'll see a starlike beacon far above the southern horizon — so high up that it's almost overhead. That's the planet Jupiter.
A little to Jupiter's right is a small cluster of stars called the Pleiades (or, sometimes, the Seven Sisters). These stars all formed together about 100 million years ago. Just a bit to Jupiter's left is the bright star Aldebaran, marking the angry eye of Taurus, the Bull.
Another bright planet, Mercury, is viewable around the middle of February. Search for it beginning about the 9th or 10th low in the west as twilight darkens. Watch where the Sun sets, and then look just above that spot about 45 minutes later.
Well up in the east, look for Orion's distinctive belt, a trio of stars that make a diagonal row. To the belt's upper left is Betelgeuse, and to the lower right is the blue-white diamond called Rigel.
February might be cold where you live, but its evenings offer many amazing sky sights. To track them down, download this month's 7½-minute-long audio sky tour.
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For CREA
"CREA dances on the edge, is ahead of the curve, in what it works on as well as how it does it."
"CREA's work is not about training in the sense of skills and technique absorption. It is about critical thinking and where that takes you."
"CREA creates much-needed opportunities for inter-movement dialogue, especially women's rights, sexual rights, disability rights."
"Many donors are more educated because of CREA's process of engagement (around "global", sexuality and intersectionality)."
"In the beginning of CREA's existence, there was this bias that international, as well as analytical work was the sole space of US-based international and white women-led organisations. What the world needed was groups like CREA to keep them accountable. But, the US-based groups working globally were the preferred partner of most US-based funders. It was ironic how obvious this bias was. Many donors asked CREA, 'How can you be international if you are based in India?'"
"CREA brings an intersectional approach to sexuality, human rights, women's human rights, exclusion, disability. Without CREA, these links would be weaker."
"A lot of organisations that have good leaders build goodwill—that is not unique. What is unique about CREA is the diversity of people amongst whom goodwill has been built, and who are willing to lend support."
"CREA is a very good partner and ally. It does not try to take over the process or over attribute. It tries to place its role as best as it can. That is very CREA."
"When CREA organises an event, people show up."
"Organisations like CREA create spaces where there are no boundaries, where one can expand thinking—this should be highly valued because it really does not exist so much for activists and practitioners."
"CREA has helped democratise access to good knowledge."
"CREA's advocacy (national and global level) is about growing spaces and making them more inclusive and strategic."
"CREA was the first in the Indian context. Their concept of 'Institutes' breaks the instrumental approach to capacity building for activists and advocates that we tend to see here in India."
"We are not just employing young people; it is CREA's guiding force. We do not just 'include' young people; we know that it is with young people that the vibrancy and energy is."
"Without CREA, less space for South–South and South–North dialogues would exist."
"Without CREA, not as many young people would be involved in the same way in the sexual rights field."
"CREA was a platform for my provocative ideas. It allowed me the space to develop them, and provided an enabling environment. Since then, I have written them down and they have got published."
"Without them, links between women's rights movements and movements of sexual minorities/sex workers/disabled women would be much weaker."
"CREA has a sustained commitment to a variety of marginalised communities."
"Their approach is about openness, about building bridges between communities, instead of just middle-class people engaging in activism."
"CREA is always inclusive, always cognizant of other communities."
"They are about growing policy space, making it more inclusive, including younger people."
"CREA works in collaboration, and is a very good ally and partner. It is hard to locate whether CREA is a 'catalyst' or not. It does not try to take over the process, does not try to over-attribute, but instead, tries to always place its role with humility and balance."
"They focus on providing young women activists with spaces and voices in activism, debates, and knowledge building."
"CREA is one of the few organisations that do not infantilise young people."
"The Institutes are extraordinary; the quality is world class. They are rigorous theoretically, involve excellent external resource people, and combine knowledge and practice."
"Everybody has learnt something from this Institute. I thought I knew more than I actually did!"
"In our society, a woman who expresses desire, especially for sex, is viewed with great suspicion. Most often, women submit to sex with their partners, even though they may have no desire, because they do not think their expression of their own wishes in this matter would be considered 'right'. The workshop opened our eyes to the world of sexuality, of sexual desire and preferences, of expressing one's own desires about love and romance."
"[What attracted me was] the sense of how they were exploring issues around sexuality, because these had concerned me over the years, and to see them dealt with in a framework where feminism was a key part...[I wanted] the possibility to explore issues around disability and its context in India, and how sexuality fed into that. It was a chance to do some exciting teaching that both offered opportunity to explore ideas and concepts as well as practicalities on the ground."
"The Sexuality and Rights Institute is the first programme in India to address the complex, bias-ridden, and contentious issues of sexuality."
"I am happy to write that I thoroughly visited this website and found it to be extremely informative, useful, and thought-provoking. The most important feature of this website is that it is 100% accessible. It establishes that howsoever severe your disability may be, sex is your psychological and physical need. Further, there is nothing vulgar in this website and it is prepared from psychological, social, and clinical point of view. Moreover, it gives an enormous amount of external links and relevant articles. Thanks to the proprietors of this website."
—Professor Shyam M Sayanekar, via e-mail
"First of all hats off to your guts, passion, and sensitisation for even thinking up of coming up with such an informative, educational, and very much needed website. People, especially apprehensive mothers, hesitate to speak on these issues or share their feelings. This website is a boon in disguise to many people who have anything to do with disability. God bless and keep the flag running high. It gives me immense pleasure to be associated with you."
—Aditi Panda, via e-mail
"...We are Svjetlana and Jana, from organisation 'Out of circle VOJVODINA', from Serbia...We have a website of our organisation, www.izkrugavojvodina.org, and we would like to expand it, to make a separate section which would be about sexuality and disability. As you may know, we are practically very much involved in the field of sexuality and disability, working directly with users. However, it is such a rarity to find quality texts around these issues, and we found a treasure chest of this on CREA's website.
We read your website, and we liked link http://www.sexualityanddisability.org/, and texts that are there. We thought, with your and CREA's permission, to translate some of the texts in Serbian (mostly texts about body, having sex, and relationships, and less about having children and violence). Also, with your permission, we would publish link to CREA's website, and link to website sexuality and disability, so that is known which texts we took and translated from you, but also for people who know English to be in contact what is happening around the world with this important issue around sexuality and disability..."
—Svjetlana and Jana, Out of circle VOJVODINA, via e-mail
Sexuality, Gender, and Rights Institute—Global
"For the past almost 10 years, I have been lucky enough to sit in on many classes, training programs like this, and I have to say, many topics designed for these kinds of seminars, workshops or institutes focusing on sexuality and rights issue, such as reproductive health/rights, sex work, gender equality, pornography, politics of representation, are quite the same. Then, what made this institute so different? My answer is, the faculty. You would never be able to meet fellows of this level in a short period of time in other courses…"
"In terms of the kind of structured courses, I think it has been quite a demanding course. But, really, really powerful at the same time. So, half of my brain has sat in the class. The other thing is that I have not been a participant in anything for a very, very long time. Being somebody who organises these kinds of things, half of my brain has been stuck in the kind of participant mode and the other half has been thinking about facilitating processes like organising and putting together curriculum and so forth. And, I think that CREA has done a great job. I can imagine the tensions constantly between wanting to create this space for discussions, go into things that are deep, but also wanting to expose to people as much as possible. I think, CREA has done an excellent job in striking that balance."
—Carrie, South Africa
"What we have been learning is a very difficult question, because mainly, we have learnt a lot of concepts and theories, and how these concepts are related to our work and to a very different context. So, I am very glad. This is such a unique opportunity to have exchange of ideas, strategies, concerns, and questions with people from around the world. It is a unique opportunity for people like me from Latin America to know about the complexities of different kinds of environment in places like Africa and Asia. It is very impressive to see that sometimes, we have a lot in common and, sometimes, we find difficulties that are very alike among the continents or global tendencies. But, sometimes, we work in such a unique context. So, it has been a very impressive experience for me. I have learnt a lot from most of the lecturers and with my mates. I mean, it is not just about the formal course; we continue the discussions when we are eating. It is an ongoing experience of questioning assumptions. I also liked a lot that I have challenged many assumptions I had previously, mainly on sex work issues...you can truly debate at a very high level and you can be sincere to share with others the very polemic issues. So, I have been enriched basically by the arguments of others, and also trying to know why I think or approach certain problems with certain perspective."
—Erik, Mexico
"...this has given me an opportunity to reflect on things that I have read before, but not thought about in enough detail. Also, I have never really critiqued them according to how I use them in my work. I have to say that all of the sessions, without an exception, have been really fascinating...I was really interested [in] affirmative rights because I think that one of the problems that we have in our work around LGBT and sex workers is that we talk a lot about violations and harm, but not about what it would look like to affirm our rights and assert them. We have engaged very much in the importance of sexual rights within the broader context of human rights, but we have not spent enough time talking about affirmative rights. I am sure that is to do with the situation in Zimbabwe, where it is a lot about harm and violations. But, I think, we need to move beyond that discourse and start talking about affirmation, particularly if you want to critique the human rights framework itself. I think, it is very difficult to critique something that you are using to only discuss harm. Once you start to discuss positive, affirmative actions, it is then that you are able to critique the framework...This is very interesting. In the work that we have done with organisations, particularly with women living with disabilities, I would like to get back and challenge them a little bit as well, about how they are taking the discourse on sexuality further, rather than simple talking about action and recognition. It is not about protecting them, but about fulfilling them. It has been an enabling and conducive environment that allows me to implement the choices that I am "allowed" to make...I think that a lot of the human rights activists in Zimbabwe would benefit hugely from this course, because there is so many assumptions about how human rights work should be done. The discourse around sexuality can be very informative of the other areas of work. I think that the ways the things have been challenged is very enlightening for me. I think that the human rights sector in Zimbabwe would benefit significantly from looking at the areas more deeply and also by pushing ourselves."
—Sian Maseko, Zimbabwe
"It has been very, very insightful as far as course content is concerned. For me, this course has been a process of unlearning as much as it has been learning, because we have come here with almost two decades of information that has been entrenched in my belief system and how we operate in the society. One of the big issues has been around sexuality, where personally, I have been exposed to...stereotypes or the taboos behind sexuality. So, it has been a good opportunity to dig under."
"SGRI has been very interesting and empowering because I am learning new things; learning how to fit theory into practice as a practitioner. This has been helpful for me as am looking to going back and developing some courses with youth of my country to see how we can move debate on different issues on peace and security and sexuality, because this is the space that is very personal and political at the same time. SGRI has been able to give me ideas and information on how this can be made possible."
"I am working on issues of human rights and sexuality. I thought that I knew what sexuality was until I actually started learning the concepts at this Institute. For me, this course has really challenged my thinking around sexuality. It has challenged how I work on human rights issues and how is it that I am also talking about issues of sexuality and linking that with the work that I do most of the time within the context that work in. It is like we are working on human rights on a broader level, which is challenging the law. Campaigns that just talk about human rights for all but not really going into deeper aspects of what do we mean what human rights are and who determines them, and looking at self and how personal is political."
"The real problem was that nobody, including myself, related these challenges to its real bottom causes—sexuality, gender, and rights. As a counselor to positive Transfusion Transmissible Infections (TTIs) in blood donors, I was faced with a lot of challenges when it came to explaining the effect of TTIs on donors' sexual behavior before and after she/he contracted infection."
—Mohamed Hamad, Center for Development Services, Egypt
"The Institute has made me stop categorising, judging or assuming. I would rather deploy efforts to listen, learn, and understand."
—Marianne M Hanna, Egypt
"This is a vibrant community where we exchange materials, opinions, and feelings in an open way and ever-challenging environment!"
—Participant, SGRI 2012, about SGRI e-group
"I benefited a great deal from the course. I might not understand all that was presented in the course, because of the language, but I did learn a lot of new knowledge and information from the course. The course made me understand that 'sexuality' covers a broad range of topics, that is, sexuality is not only individual and personal but also social, cultural, and historical, and is not a 'thing' by itself but a social behavior that intersects with all important social distinctions and structures. It made me have a clearer understanding on the differences between sex and gender, the relationship between sexuality and gender, and so on. The information will be useful for me and my colleagues to develop education materials for sex education intervention in our studies. What we are planning to do is to put some of these contents on our sex education website to disseminate the information among school students and youth. Chinese adolescents know little about these concepts (sexuality, gender, and sexual rights), as current sex education in school does not cover the information. Moreover, the information will be very useful for our current study on Chinese youth sexuality and reproductive health development, by using the concepts into data analysis and preparing papers later. It will be also useful for me to be engaged in research on the field in the future; at least, we can involve parts of the contents of sexuality, gender, and rights into our future studies.
Also, the course made me understand more deeply about human right, especially sexual rights, and made me know more about terms such as social construction theory, essentialism, postcolonial, and feminism, and about sexual rights advocacy, sexual difference, trans issues, sexuality and disability, sexual pleasure, and others. What most surprised me is the rights of sexual workers. In China, commercial sex is illegal; the course let me reconsider the issue. I shared the information I got in the course with my colleagues by discussion and introduction...It is meaningful to change people's perceptions on these issues and to promote the process of transformation."
—Lou, China
"My participation in SGRI has been very instrumental in forming my thoughts around gender and sexuality work. Since I were involved in both fields already, my perception of my own work and the efforts being done around me have really changed. Particular concepts and issues have been of great importance, such as postcolonial feminist thought, issues of representation, and limitation of human rights approach when working with Arab and Muslim communities. In light of those concepts, I was able to rethink my own approaches, language, and strategies. It is still a work in progress in my mind, and it has triggered a lot of questions that I started pursuing after leaving SGRI and until now. I think, I will continue to pursue those questions and learn more around those topics. Certainly, the mailing list [SGRI e-group] is a great opportunity for more learning and discussion with other SGRI graduates.
Since I am also moving to a new organisation that is human rights focused and as I will be responsible for sexual and reproductive health and rights there, I can take the learning I had in SGRI and develop it further during my work there."
"The nine days in the Institute in Istanbul is an unforgettable experience. I think, it benefits both my sexuality research and teaching career development. I truly hope more and more Chinese scholars could participant in this Institute, especially those whose works are often being excluded by the so-called mainstream research domains... As a teacher, I am impressed by the course design and interactive teaching in the Institute. Besides lectures, there are multiple ways for us to learn more about sexuality, such as movies, movie clips, websites of arts, documentary, group discussion, group presentation, and [various] kinds of assignments... One outstanding strategy the institute used is to use dynamics within participants to enhance learning and sharing...I was very excited to know so many people from the regions I had never been, such as Syria, Uganda, Southern Africa, Kyrgyzstan, Argentina, Indonesia, Zimbabwe, and Mexico. Most of the participants are the first people I met of their regions. The information they carried made me want to explore more about their politics and culture. Meanwhile, I felt a kind of responsibility to know more about China, to represent well of my country, and to make it better...I did learn a lot from the Institute and will digest what I have learnt, to use them in my future teaching, research, and advocacy."
—Pei Yuxin, China
"I am leaving the Institute with more conceptual and strategic tools that I can use in the future legislations that I propose. I now know how to apply my knowledge into advocacy work and am now thinking about systems of accountability that can apply to non-State actors."
—Participant, SGRI 2010
"I know that they were very happy to participate in this meeting because it gave a new perspective…It was first time in our history when there was combination of participants not only from traditional rights movements, but there were LGBT, disabled people, and sex workers. So, it was a first experience having opportunity for relation (sic), inter-communication, and sharing. I think, it is a pity that there is no common understanding that we are working in one field but in different corners, so that to make some change. We need to be together, we need to understand others. There should not be any isolation and marginalisation within women's movement…"
—Olga, Women's Crisis Centre
"I discussed with my lawyer colleagues regarding the Institute...My BLAST colleagues are very positive on this. I shared with them. Some of them are very interested to work on sexuality, gender, and rights widely. It is very nice that in my working area, I have been invited to share my experience of the Institute.
Some more...
"Initially, I came with a limited programmatic view. But, looking at sexuality, gender, and rights from different perspectives has made me personally feel more a human less a 'woman' and, professionally, stronger to explain sexuality, gender, and rights."
"Do not assume! Ask! For me, it was a personal experience in understanding sexuality. I often used the language of biology to explain sensualities; there is a clear shift in my understanding of sexuality now."
"The idea that sexuality has a history and is a product of social construct was compelling."
"It has really broadened my perspective; made me question my biases. I was able to look beyond gender. I got a whole new idea on the PCPNDT, pornography, and so on."
"My idea on sex work, age of consent, child pornography, violence and women, and the restrictive effect that it has on the work on sexual freedom has been a great learning. Also, to look at sex work as an occupation that can come under labour laws was amazing."
"The hijacking of the gender agenda to promote racism was a totally new concept."
"My monopolistic and ethical values are STRIPPED in a BIG way. [My] Biases on lesbian issues have had a great change."
"The whole arena of 'pleasure' and importance of addressing it in the context of agency of women was not part of my analysis. It has influenced my thinking in many ways."
"I have come to understand and articulate diversity—sexual diversity—rather than calling 'different' or 'from the third gender', which is a very easy term that I had been using. I also understand the need to articulate and identify oneself based on one's sexual preference. The entire concept of fluidity regarding sexuality is important, even while identifying to a particular form is very interesting."
Feminist Leadership, Movement Building, and Rights Institute—East Africa
"My organisation is led by sex workers. Leadership has been our challenge. But, from this Institute, I know where we are going. We are going to re-strategise and [determine] his or her role in the organisation. I would also recommend CREA to continue doing this, especially with sex worker organisations."
—Participant, FLMBaRI 2011
"The training was really good. It has opened up my mind, especially about feminist movement. It is my challenge to go home and work with my women...I will do my best to follow the whole procedure as we did in our exercise."
—Soffia, Tanzania
"The Institute has been very encouraging and I felt very, very empowered. When I came here, I thought that I was a real feminist. But, [at the Institute] I realised that I was missing something. So, I am glad because the gap has been filled in for me."
—Participant, FLMBaRI 2011
"The training is also different because it has brought different groups together, that is women with diverse experiences, and still allowed the diversity to act as a positive/strength…I learnt a lot about the history and how the current systems that we have been socialised affects my attitude towards many things…The guest speakers were truely not just experts in their fields, but also had genuine interest in the progression of women."
— Rhoda Awino
Disability, Sexuality, and Rights Online Institute
"The course made me see how mental health issues were not on my radar at all. This course and some of the interactions with other participants made me realise how important it is to consider this while talking about disability. The course gave me more impetus to work in this field, both from a women's rights point of view, as well as from the disability perspective. I feel my learning curve took a great leap. This has helped me in my continuing work with non-hearing women, and inspired me to take it to the next level."
—Nandini Rao, Participant, DSROI 2011
"Thankfully, since CREA sponsored the course for me, for the little I could not pay, I could invest that money into the phone calls I made in the role of a peer-support to other women, or even men, who have mental health concerns...Most of us can only discuss our sexuality with those who are as crazy as us or are highly sensitive and trustworthy to not use it against us...The course made me realise how much work I still need to be alive for to do! There is no doubt that people living with mental illness do have high energy levels, which gets expressed through an uncomfortable behaviour to others. But, not everyone has the same expressive skills to tell the other what truly are their worries...the course allowed me to relate the different types of sexual issues, compare them with other people living with mental illness (PLMIs), and tell them that I know 'normal' people who have the same thoughts and ideas. It is not your symptom. The re-assurance does save a lot of distress. They would then ask, could you put me in touch with them or send me the reading material? Would they mind if I ask them all these questions? For a 'crazy person' to reach out this way...is the most comforting hope for me, as they are willing to share and ask others and find their own ways, provided they have the support, trust and constant re-assurances that what they feel is not part of their symptoms."
—Reshma Val, Participant, DSROI 2011
"I have always worked in the areas of sexual and reproductive health and rights of women. Unfortunately, a lot of us never really consider that people living with disability have reproductive and sexual right, much less protecting the right. This course opened my eyes to a whole new world of people with disability, and influenced my thinking that beyond gender, disability must necessarily become an issue for consideration in human rights jurisprudence."
—Uju Okeke, Participant, DSROI 2011
"This course has given me a lot of information on issues of sexuality in people with disability. Before this course, I had no idea of sexuality regarding people with disability, since here, in Malawi, people with disability have no chance of getting to know more about sexuality, as they say that people with disability do not practice sexuality. I was comfortable to talk more about sex and disability because this is where I gained a lot of experiences and there was a lot of commitment. I am also happy for learning more about sexual rights in people with disabilities."
—Participant, DSROI
"I saw the biggest changes in myself after the training on communalism. Before the training, I would hardly ever talk about the way we did things at home—what we cooked, the food we ate, what we celebrated, nothing. Others in the office would talk about things that were happening at home. But somehow, as a Muslim, I could never talk about it even to my closest colleagues. After that training, even the smallest occasion at home became important to share. I would talk about every occasion that we celebrated at home, about the food we cooked—no longer restricted to Eid and Ramzan. I believe that if I shared with others, then others would also talk about themselves...I no longer feel shy or unequal because I am a Muslim."
—Sarvari, Prerna Bharati, Jharkhand
"In our society, a woman who expresses desire, especially for sex is viewed with great suspicion. Most often, women submit to sex with their partners even though they may have no desire and because they do not think they expression of their own wishes in this matter would be considered 'right'. The workshop opened our eyes to the world of sexuality, of sexual desire and preferences, of expressing own desires; about love and romance."
—Kalpana Khare, CREA staff member, then associated with Gramonnati Sansthan, Uttar Pradesh; and Shahnaj, Action India, New Delhi
"It was at the World Social Forum 2003 [participation facilitated by CREA] that I realised that violence against women or the negative impact of globalisation is a worldwide phenomenon. Violations exist whether the women live in Burundi or Colombia or India. It was amazing to meet with so many people and learn so much."
—Reshma, Sangatin, Uttar Pradesh
"Though largely staffed by women, Prerna Bharti has its share of male workers. Breaking patterns of behaviour developed through socialisation and education has not been easy. The training we attended was in 2003 and now, in 2008, we can see some change—things like women learning to drive; men making tea in the office; and cooking duties in the mess being shared by a man and a woman. Earlier, male colleagues would hesitate to talk about women's issues or would prefer not to be present at women's meetings. Similarly, women would not talk in front of the men about their problems. Now, that has changed. There is less awkwardness, and both men and women are present during women's meetings. In the same way, we have brought some changes in the schools we are associated with. We speak to the teacher and ensure that roles are not fixed—that if one time, the girls do the task of cleaning the floor, the boys do it the next time. We are constantly looking for creating opportunities for girls to do the non-traditional, the unexpected, for example, learning to use the camera and then take pictures of newlyweds for marriage registration purposes; learning to repair some electrical appliances; and using laptops."
—Kiran and Sarvari, Prerna Bharti, Jharkhand
"I have learnt a lot on women's health rights and use of medicines; sexuality- and gender-based violence; the ways to strategise in the fight against violence against women, as a result of discrimination; and women's empowerment by giving them information on human rights and other issues through self-help groups, and the ways to involve them and increase access to health."
—2010 Institute participant from Ibtida network
"I had some information on sexuality issues. But, after attending this Institute, there is more clarity on the issues. I work on HIV/AIDS issues and have never made links between sexuality and HIV/AIDS before. After attending this training on sexuality and gender, I can make a connection between different issues like gender, sex, and law and my work. This will help me to deliver my services in a better way in the society".
—Ibtida member Lifeline Service Society, Madhya Pradesh
"My hesitation broke during these trainings [the two Ibtida trainings that she attended]. We used to engage in sex, but did not even know the name of what we were doing! Now, I am able to tell my husband when I am not in the mood [for sex]. And, if he is not in the mood, then I have to get him to come around! I am now able to share everything with my colleagues (alluding to her relationship with her husband). We reach out to each other whenever we need help. Earlier, if there was any tension with the husband at home, we would hide these matters and feel that this 'family matter' cannot be discussed at office. But now, that is not so."
—Rekha, teacher in the crèche supported by Akanksha Seva Sadan, Muzzafarpur, Bihar
"Our biases have also reduced. Earlier, we would feel that if there is a case of domestic violence, the woman is at fault; she must have done something wrong. Although this was not explicit, it was there in the back of our minds. But now, we do not think that way. We have understood how and why violence against women happens. We are now able to take decisions. For example, after I travelled alone from here to Delhi (for an Ibtida training), I felt changed somehow…Also, earlier, we used to be scared of Hijras. There is a child in our crèche who is probably a Hijra. We have become very conscious about integrating this child into the crèche and not discriminating against him. Earlier, we used to be scared of Hijras and felt it was a kind of curse people are born with. Now, we do not feel that way. They have their own identity, and thinking lowly of them causes violence. The same thing happens with women..."
—Staff members, Akanksha Seva Sadan, Muzzafarpur, Bihar
"…Sometimes, dowry is mentioned in passing, in the form of a joke, by men and elders in the family, say when they joke with a daughter-in-law about what she has brought with her from her home. And, over time, these kinds of comments can lead to harassment over dowry. We were not sensitive to these apparent joking and also participated in it. Many times, in our field area, we found that domestic violence and fights suddenly become more acute with women over 40 years. We used to immediately deal with the issue and resolve it, often make a compromise. But, we could not understand the reason behind this. It is only when we became sensitive to the issue of sexuality [after the Ibtida trainings] that we realised that women go through many bodily changes during this phase and do not feel interested in sex any more. This is when what men would share (about the their wives' disinterest in having sex) and what the information from CREA trainings started to come together. So, we spoke to the husbands and explained about bodily changes during menopause."
—Meera Singh, Head of Mahila Mandal, Itkori, Jharkhand
Feminist Leadership, Movement Building, and Rights Institute—South Asia
"My major lesson, which I will take back, is that it is possible to implement programmes on human rights…and gender even in a rural setting. I was of the opinion that it just cannot be done with rural, poor, marginalised people, who had other primary concerns."
—SAMBHRI 2010 participant
"I would like to inform you all that I have been involved in a panel discussion in 'National Consultation with The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation with Human Right Defenders'. Moreover, I have met with UN Special Rapporteur Margarete Sekkagya along with my other LGBT friends. We shared our issues with her and she assured us…that she would speak about our issues with our government. It is my great opportunity for me to meet with her. It is my continuation of my follow up work after training in Geneva. Again, I would like to thank CREA, as the training has enhanced my capacity before meeting with UN Special Rapporteur."
—Manisha Dhakal, Blue Diamond Society, Nepal


text:
As we hurdle toward the finish line, 2016 will go down as a uniquely active year in the semiconductor market. Spurred on by the onset of several generational tech trends -- the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence, self-driving cars, and the like -- major semiconductor companies have gone on a buying spree to prepare them to cash-in on this growth. Two such names that sit smack dab in the middle of these growth markets are NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA) and Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO), whose shares have handily outperformed their benchmark over the past five years.
Both NIVIDIA and Broadcom are attractive in their own right, but which semiconductor stock is the better buy today? In this article, we'll run both stocks through a three-part gauntlet to see if one is more deserving of investors' attention.
1. Financial fortitude
The first prism through which we'll analyze these semiconductor stocks is the strength of their balance sheets. Though their investment theses lie in their revenue and profit growth stories, investors need to understand a given company's financial strength in any investment scenario. In looking at NVIDIA and Broadcom, though, both companies appear fine for the most part. A few important distinctions emerge, however.
Cash and Investments
Cash From Operations
Current Ratio
$6.6 billion
$2.9 billion
$7.4 billion
$2.0 billion
$15.0 billion
$3.4 billion
To get this out of the way, NVIDIA is the clear winner in every category here. NVIDIA has more cash and liquid assets on hand, carries less debt, and generates more cash flow from its core business. There's really no way around this or disputing it.
However, the important nuance in comparing the two companies is that Broadcom's financial position isn't a negative either, especially given the company's intelligent acquisition strategy (see Part 2 below). Simply stated, Broadcom, along with its pre-merger counterpart Avago, has been one of the most prolific acquirers of semiconductor companies, a part of the broader trend of rapid consolidation we've seen within the chip industry.
In fact, Avago funded part of last year's transformational merger with Broadcom by issuing $9 billion in fresh debt. The combined company is undeniably stronger as a result of the Broadcom-Avago merger and other recent acquisitions, so Broadcom's current debt burden is most appropriately viewed as the cost of the company's transformation into a company poised to dominate the Internet of Things chip market in coming years.
Winner: NVIDIA.
2. Durable competitive advantages
Unlike the above section, it's far harder to determine which company holds stronger competitive advantages. Simply said, both companies are enviably positioned to dominate their markets for years to come.
Broadcom's area of focus is connectivity. The company operates four reporting segments -- wired infrastructure, wireless communication, enterprise storage, and industrial and other -- that help make our increasingly connected world tick. Its chips appear in smartphones, cellular base stations, Internet of Things devices like smart appliances, data centers, and more. The company's semiconductors touch multiple points of the connectivity value chain, as well, which is fantastic news given the unprecedented growth opportunity the IoT presents.
According to Ericsson, the number of IoT connected devices is set to grow from 4.2 billion to 14.2 billion by 2021, and Broadcom's offerings will be selling directly into this trend from a place of market leadership. As such, there's little doubt that investors should love Broadcom's competitive stance at present.
As enviable as Broadcom's competitive positioning is, though, graphics chip leader NVIDIA's competitive advantages are every bit as compelling. Akin to Intel's dominance of the CPU microprocessors that power PCs, NVIDIA is the undeniable leader in the high-end graphics chips that lie at the heart of growth markets like self-driving cars, artificial intelligence, and machine learning. In fact, NVIDIA's chips power the budding AI or cloud platforms for Amazon, Facebook, Alphabet, IBM, and Microsoft. Its chips also underpin the self-driving car efforts of Tesla, Audi, Baidu, and many more. It's for this reason that analysts see NVIDIA's earnings per share compounding at a 28% annual clip over the next five years, and there's a legitimate case to be made that Wall Street still underappreciates NVIDIA's growth story.
Winner: Tie.
3. Valuation
When it comes to valuation, the case becomes somewhat more clear cut. As you can see below, NVIDIA is priced for meaningful growth, deservedly so as we learned from the section above. However, Broadcom's valuation multiple is more appealing, though a bit harder to gain a sense of as the result of some merger-related accounting.
P/E Ratio
Forward P/E Ratio
In the past three quarters, Broadcom has booked $1.5 billion in non-cash merger-related charges, which has artificially depressed its generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) earnings. In backing those charges out, the company's normalized earnings per share for 2016 come to $10.84 per share, a very reasonable price for a company with Broadcom's positive growth outlook.
Winner: Broadcom.
Putting it all together
Both NVIDIA and Broadcom sit at the middle of some of the most important growth markets in tech today. As such, each company should experience impressive sales and profit growth in the coming years. If we're splitting hairs here, you can make a plausible case that Broadcom's lower valuation makes it the better bet. However, the more important big-picture takeaway is that both NVIDIA and Broadcom are fantastic options for investors looking to participate in the next wave of semiconductor market growth.


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Advocacy in Israel: MAZON visit July 14, 2013
Abby J. Leibman, President & CEO and Mia Hubbard, Vice President of Programs are in Israel, meeting with our grantees and gaining a deeper understanding of hunger in Israel. Follow along on their journey!
Today, Mia and I joined C & K Hecht Consulting to meet with three grantee partners, each of which focus on food insecurity needs of a particular population in Israel:
- Yad Ezra V'Shulamit – Orthodox community, particularly children
- Ezrat Avot – Elderly
- NACOEJ – Ethiopian Jews
All three of these partners are passionate and compassionate providers of essential services to communities facing real needs. It also became clear that the needs of each community are evolving, growing and becoming ever more complex. This complexity seems to mirror the food insecurity issue as a whole in Israel.
Each agency is meeting the immediate food needs of children, seniors and immigrants, and while each aspires to engage the government in their efforts, their optimism about succeeding is limited. In Israel, these organizations, their leaders and their communities have much closer access to policymakers than may be the case in the United States. Yet, even with such access, they are rebuffed all too often as the Knesset (the legislative branch of the Israeli government) struggles with competing demands and tightening budgets.
Daily struggles and successes consume these tireless community service providers. The desire to think beyond those immediate concerns – to find time to create and implement a comprehensive vision for ending food insecurity in Israel —remains a hope. But for the present, it's out of reach.


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Eighteen is a pivotal age for most young adults as it presents a multitude of education and career decisions that must be made. But for young event rider Bailey Moran, who knew exactly how she'd like to step into adulthood, age 18 has put her firmly on track with a full-time riding schedule and her very first sponsor.
On Nov. 11, Moran read Majyk Equipe's letter offering to sponsor her to her then-crying parents, Kim and Dan Moran, on their 5-acre farm in San Antonio, Texas. The sponsorship served as not only the best 18th birthday present Bailey could hope for but also a very fitting and motivating preamble to her success Jan. 25-26 at the Rocking Horse Winter I Horse Trials in Ocala, Fla., where Bailey won two divisions. Bailey topped the intermediate rider division on Loughnatousa Caislean, and a section of preliminary rider on her newer mount, Catalyst.
While in high school, Bailey had the option to graduate early. "My parents told me, 'If you do the work and you graduate early, then you can have the year off to do whatever you want,' " she said.
So Bailey graduated Vanguard Christian Institute (Texas) with a small class of 10 students last year, carrying her straight-A work ethic into her riding vocation.
"I sent an email [to Majyk Equipe] without telling my parents," she said, thinking it was a long shot and not wanting to get her hopes up. "At the end I wrote something like, 'I plan to be at the top of eventing one day, and I'd like to take your brand with me.' "
Bailey's confident approach intrigued Majyk Equipe, a company offering protective boots for horses. The sponsorship was a major step in Bailey's longtime goal of one day becoming a professional eventer, a dream she's pursued since she fell in love with the sport at 9. After working her way up the levels on a variety of mounts, she met "the light of her life," Loughnatousa Caislean, better known as "Leo." She first saw the horse on a trip to Ireland in 2011, during which she also worked with stallions at Parkmore Stud.
Bailey took the 9-year-old Irish Sport Horse through the North American Junior and Young Rider Championships CCI* (Ky.) and wasn't nervous to move up to intermediate this year.
"Leo and I have been through everything together," she said. "I've been there since he was a spooky novice horse, and he knows me better than I know myself. I know what he's going to do before he even thinks it."
Bailey has trained with Donna Kinney for six years out of her farm in Texas, which she and a couple friends manage, but she takes winter trips to a small farm in Ocala called Shady Oaks. There she's trained with Joe Meyer for the past two years.
"Donna tells you what you're doing and gets you there, and Joe refines it," she said of their complementary styles. "Joe focuses on detail and really gets in there and makes it that much better."
At Ocala Properties Winter 1 H.T. on Jan. 11, the pair's first run at intermediate, the duo finished ninth after incurring 12 jumping faults in show jumping and a few cross-country time faults. At Rocking Horse, Bailey finished on top of her intermediate division on her original dressage score of 30.4.
Bailey praises Leo's adjustability and cross-country acumen. "With him it's a lot about the more technical questions; it's easy for him to get to the skinnies and the tight corners and angles," she said of the 17.3-hand gelding. "He's so adjustable. He's dead on. As soon as he gets the [jumps] in his eyes, it doesn't matter where you are or what you're doing. He knows that's where he's going, and he'll take you right up to it."
Although she wasn't expecting to win at Rocking Horse with Leo, it was Catalyst who surprised her the most.
"We like to set low expectations, so our horses shock us as we go," said Bailey, who had only taken "Catch," a 5-year-old Holsteiner, training prior to his win. She purchased him sight unseen only six weeks ago when Meyer found him in England.
"In the first week, I wasn't blown away," said Meyer of introducing the new horse to Bailey. "But I was really, really happy because they clicked right away. He's different from her other horse; he's a fancier mover, a bit slower, the right size for her, and he's a great jumper. I think that sometimes it's good to have that different horse. The shape of this horse suits the way she's riding at the moment."
Although Catch is a bit slow off the leg compared to Leo, who requires a lot of sitting up and strong posture, he's very responsive, Bailey said.
"He has a wise man's brain and is well beyond his years. He's just very quiet and kind of goofy and goes along with everything, whereas Leo is more of your militant, 'Yes, ma'am,' type of horse," she said.
"During Catch's training in Ocala, a loose horse went flying in front of him and went shooting back to the barn, and he just sort of watched and kept cantering on," she continued. "He's so laid back. Leo probably would have tried to spin around and chase the other horse back to the barn!"
Bailey attributes her success to her supportive family. Her father, Dan, a retirement 401k manager for larger companies, attends her events around his work schedule. Her mother, Kim, is her main travel companion, and Bailey said she wouldn't be anywhere without her grandfather, Art Dix. Bailey also draws inspiration from her boyfriend, Nicholas Hansen, a dressage rider who winters in Wellington.
"I completely credit my doing well in dressage to him," Bailey laughed. "He's also evented through preliminary, so we help each other out." In their free time, the two commute the four hours between Ocala and Wellington to ride together.
Although Bailey has cliniced with her eventing role models, like Will Faudree, Heather Morris and Boyd Martin, competing alongside the likes of Buck Davidson and other top eventers is still awe-inspiring.
"You can't help but have that kid-in-a-candy-store jaw drop," she said. "I learn so much from just watching them."
Next Bailey hopes to compete in the Rocking Horse and Ocala Properties Winter II Horse Trials.
"She's a fierce competitor, young and hungry," said Meyer. "Last year she was wanting to know if she was ready to do the CIC** at Red Hills (Fla.), and that's starting to become more of a reality now."


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Great, Grand And Famous Champagne: Behind The Bubbles
Stock information
General Fields
Special Fields
Enter a world of champagne that is as complex and enticing as the flavours and aromas found within each bottle! In Great, Grand & Famous Champagnes, you will discover the fascinating history of the Champagne region, the stories behind many of the great champagne producers, their more current vintages and the science behind the creation of champagne. It is also packed with useful hints and tips to help you get the most pleasure from your champagne experiences, anytime, anywhere.


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Hania Noelia Aguilar missing: Body found in search for kidnapped NC girl.
Law enforcement officers have taken a body found Tuesday near Lumberton during the search for missing 13-year-old Hania Noelia Aguilar to Raleigh for identification, but they have not said whether they believe it is the girl.
Lumberton police detectives and FBI agents discovered the body in an area near Wire Grass Road in Lumberton about 4:45 p.m. on Tuesday, the FBI said in a news release.
They had asked the public for any surveillance video or photos from the area last week, and they had looked in the area by air and on foot previously.
The FBI didn't provide additional details about what they found at the site or the specific location of the body. They gave no information on the person's age or gender.
"The body discovered off Wire Grass Road this afternoon has been removed from the scene by crime scene officials and is on the way to the state crime lab in Raleigh for identification and an autopsy. There is no time frame for when a positive identification will be made," the FBI said in a news release late Tuesday.
Wire Grass Road is several miles south of Hania's home, where she was last seen the morning of Nov. 5.
"The body has not been positively identified, but investigators with the FBI, Lumberton PD, the SBI and the Robeson County Sheriff's Office were following leads related to the search for 13-year-old Hania Aguilar when the discovery was made," according to the earlier news release.
Hania, a Lumberton Junior High School student, was waiting outside her home at 3525 East Elizabethtown Road to get a ride to school from her family. Just before 7 a.m., she was forced into a running SUV parked in the driveway, a relative's car, police said. A witness heard the girl scream and saw a man wearing black clothes and a yellow bandana force her into the SUV and drive away, police said.
Tuesday, the FBI said it had notified Hania's family of the body's discovery "out of an abundance of caution" but repeated that they had not confirmed the body's identity.
"Please continue to pray for Hania, her family, and each other as the investigation continues to find out who kidnapped Hania and hold them responsible," the release said.
The FBI said its agents and local law enforcement "have followed close to 800 leads" and had completed at least 400 interviews in the search for Hania.
The FBI and Gov. Roy Cooper's office have been offering a reward of up to $30,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person who kidnapped Hania.
On Friday, the FBI said in an email to The News & Observer that it was searching "areas of interest" in Robeson County, including homes and businesses where they were requesting surveillance video "in an effort to narrow down exactly when and how the family's stolen SUV" got from Hania's home to "where it was found on Quincey Drive."
The stolen SUV was found abandoned about 10 miles from Hania's home in Rosewood Mobile Home Park shortly after her disappearance, police said.
"We need any video from Robeson County, specifically along Highway 41/Elizabethtown Road and any side streets, especially along Popes Crossing Road, Wire Grass Road, and Lovett Road," according to the FBI.
The FBI has been seeking surveillance footage to assist in the search and focused attention on finding a man seen walking near Hania's home. The FBI said it hoped the man could be of assistance.
"On Nov. 8, the FBI released surveillance footage of a man walking toward Rosewood Mobile Home Park on the morning of Nov. 5, leading up to the hour when Hania was kidnapped. The FBI continues to ask the public to help identify the man that is seen walking on Lambeth Street who then turns left onto Elizabethtown Road. He appears to be wearing light-colored shoes, a light-colored shirt and a hoodie," the N&O previously reported.
Hania is a Hispanic girl, 5 feet tall and weighs about 126 pounds. She has long black hair and brown eyes. She was last wearing a blue shirt with flowers and blue jeans.


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Darius Rucker will appear on NBC's Weekend Today on Saturday (1/30) to talk with Lester Holt about his platinum-selling debut country album, Learn To Live, his fourth country hit, "History In The Making," and his recent CMA Award win for New Artist.
"Lester was one of best interviews of my career with Hootie & The Blowfish," says Rucker. "Having the opportunity to talk with him about where I am as a country singer really made the entire process come full circle. I am so grateful for the opportunity I've been given thanks to country radio, and now, thanks to Today."
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OK, I'm just going to come right out here and say it: I'm not a crafty person. No, not the "crafty as a fox" kind of crafty; I mean I don't possess the gene for quilting, or scrapbooking, or decorating cakes. I once knit something, I think; it was probably 40 years ago, and I recall pulling out crooked rows and starting over, endlessly. While I like to look at Martha Stewart Living magazine, it would never occur to me to actually DO any of those things she suggests. I mean, making a centerpiece reindeer out of candy canes and brown felt and pom-poms? What's the point? A vase of flowers is the extent of my "skills," and even then my husband has to do the arranging.
So when it comes to fancy finger food, all that luscious stuff that's just perfect for holiday buffet grazing, I'm somewhat at a loss. I can put potato chips in a nice bowl and stick another bowl of dip alongside. I can even slice cheese evenly, and arrange it on a plate with crackers. But rolled puff pastries encasing a spiral of ham and cheese? Tiny quiches, each garnished with a perfect dab of sour cream? Forget it. I like to eat. I DON'T like to decorate my food.
But wait–there IS one "fancy" thing I know how to do. And it stands me in great stead at the holidays. I can make puff shells–big ones, medium ones, little ones, any size. These airy, crisp shells with their meltingly soft interior are the perfect vehicle for sweetened whipped cream or pastry cream; for ice cream (profiteroles) and, on the savory side, for cheese spread, hummus, curried chicken salad, or any number of special-occasion fillings. Like a rich slice of paté. Or a cube of rare roast beef with a dab or horseradish sauce. You get the (taste-tempting) picture, right?
Puff shells are made from dough called pâte â choux–the French "choux" meaning "cabbage," a reference to the cabbage-like shape of the baked puffs. The dough itself is just as fast and easy to make as cookie dough; and, like cookie dough, you simply drop the puff dough onto a cookie sheet, bake, and pull out beautiful golden puffs, ready to split open and fill. Trust me; you can do this. Even I, the anti-Martha Stewart, can make puffs.
And here's the very best part: you can make the dough, dollop it onto the cookie sheets, and freeze. Wrap the frozen unbaked puffs in a plastic bag, and pop them–FROZEN–into the oven when guests arrive unexpectedly. Half an hour later–bring on the ice cream, or cream cheese with hot pepper jelly, or melting little cubes of baked Brie. Serve to praise and accolades. And never again believe that YOU don't have the crafty gene.
Check out our recipe for Easy Mini Puffs. Here's a step-by-step lesson that'll convince you just how simple and non-threatening they really are.
Bring water, butter, and salt to a boil, dump in flour and stir with a heatproof spatula for about 30 seconds. The mixture will quickly come together and follow the spatula around the pan. Transfer it to a mixing bowl, and cool for about 10 minutes.
Beat in the first egg. Don't panic! The mixture will look like a slimy, stringy mess.
Keep beating; it'll smooth out...
...and by the time you've added the final egg and beaten for an additional minute or so, the mixture will be smooth and glossy.
Use a teaspoon cookie scoop to dollop chestnut-sized mounds of dough onto a parchment-lined or lightly greased baking sheet.
Bake the puffs till they're golden brown. They will have expanded quite a bit...
...and will be about the size of a golf ball. Attention: Don't eat the Max-Fli. It's kinda tough.
See these four puffs? The two on the left were frozen before being baked; the two on the right were baked immediately . Notice any difference? No? Good! I didn't either. Don't you love stuff that you can store in the freezer and bake right when you need it?
That's all folks. Add ice cream or whipped cream and fruit for a sweet little dessert, or anything savory for an appetizer. Instant gourmet!


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It's so quick and easy to purchase the Tullia d'Aragona! All it takes is a few clicks on our web-store and this wonderful handbag could be on its way to you. Don't wait any longer.
Pratesi Pelleterie is happy to introduce to its customers the Tullia d'Aragona bag, an exclusive design from the King bag collection. This handbag is hand-made in Florence by our master craftsmen, using only cow leather that has been tanned and treated in the Pratesi tradition of plant based materials. The Tullia d'Aragona is a structured shoulder bag constructed fully in calf leather that has been embossed and treated to give it the appearance of crocodile skin.
The bag has a gold-tone chain shoulder strap weaved with a string of the same colored leather. The interior of the bag is roomy and has two compartments as well as a zipped pocket and a smaller slot for a mobile phone.
A led light is also included inside. A gold tone metal snap button closes the bag.


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If you're going to ride in the Canary Islands you can't not climb Spain's highest peak, El Teide.
Often covered in snow, but still a climb you can do in short sleeves and shorts, the 56.5km or 35 mile climb up the south side of the volcano is definitely one of those bucket list climbs. We tackle it on day 5 of our Gran Canaria & Tenerife camp. Logistically, the Thomson team splits up and the bikes are taken over on the inter-island ferry on the evening of day 4, ready for you when you arrive by island hopper the next morning.
Starting from Los Cristianos, the climb starts almost immediately, gaining height rapidly as you climb out of one of the most touristy towns on the island. There is little respite until you eventually reach the volcanic wasteland towards the center of the island. It's a fascinating moonscape that never fails to thrill as you cycle upward. The peak of the volcano is only visible from the last 3rd of the climb.
The downhill to Santa Cruz de Tenerife is not as straight-forward as it seems either as the road twists and turns past the European space program observatories and down through the clouds, into the pine forests. It's important to take a wind jacket and cover up as the temperature change can catch you unawares.


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Find Us
We are located on Bank Street, the end of Brashawgate, just down from Prestons Jewellers, in Bolton town centre. If you want to use a sat-nav or look up the location online use the postcode BL1 1TS.
If you are visiting us for a Sunday service, or a for an evening or weekend Bank Street event then our car park will be open. We have about 20 places in our car park, but these are on a first come, first serve basis, and the car park fills up quickly on a Sunday. There are however lots of public car parks very near including Crown Street car park and Bow Street car park. Please not that the car park gate is closed after a Bank Street event ends.
PLEASE NOTE: If you are visiting the Chapel for a event run by a group hiring our building (i.e. Weight Watchers, Gamblers Anonymous) then you will be in the Chapel Hall which has its entrance on Crown Street, opposite Bow Street multi-storey car park.
If you would like to send post our postal address is Bank Street Chapel, Crown Street, Bolton, BL1 2RU.
Our telephone number is 01204 528633.