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- Are you a Medicare Part B insurance holder?
- Are you considered clinically obese with Body Mass Index of 30 or more?
- Do you know Medicare Part B covers certain weight loss services if provided by a qualified health care provider?
Medicare coverage for weight loss – what is covered and what is not?
Did you know that the 2010 Affordable Care Act (ACA), mandates all health insurances, including Medicare, to provide coverage for screening for obesity for all adults irrespective of their weight?
Obesity screening & counseling coverage by Medicare part B
At that screening visit, if it was found by the patients primary care provider that the patient does have a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or more, then Medicare covers behavioral counseling sessions for obesity.
How often does Medicare cover weight loss related services for the obese?
Medicare covers these IBT sessions for obesity once every week for the first month and once every other week for the next 5 months to help you lose weight. After the initial first 6 months, if the patient has lost at least 3 kilograms of body weight or 6.5 lbs, then coverage for obesity will be extended by another 6 months.
Where can I get the IBT for obesity?
This counseling may be covered if you get it at any physician's office that is considered a primary care setting, where it can be coordinated with your other care and a personalized prevention plan.
Who's eligible for Medicare Screening for obesity?
All people with Medicare Part B (Medical Insurance) irrespective of their body mass index for the screening for obesity.
Who's eligible for Medicare IBT counseling for obesity?
If a Medicare patient has a BMI of 30 or more, IBT for obesity will be covered if provided by a qaulified primary care provider. Since this is a service that all primary doctors provide, it is sufficient that the provider that seek this service meets the definition of primary care provider as defined by Medicare.
Cost of Screening Services for Obesity for Medicare Part B holders
You pay nothing for this screening for obesity as it is considered a preventive service if the primary care doctor or other qualified primary care practitioner accepts Medicare.
Medicare coverage for Intensive Behavior Therapy (IBT) for obesity
What does the Medicare Intensive behavioral therapy(IBT) for obesity consists of the following:
- Screening for all adults for obesity with measurement of Body Mass Index and if found to have a BMI of over 30, do the following:
- Dietary (nutritional) assessment; and
- Intensive behavioral counseling and behavioral therapy to promote sustained weight loss through high intensity interventions on diet and exercise.
What are the 5 A principles of Medicare IBT for obesity?
- Assess: Ask the patient (get the history) as to what is causing the weight gain such as their eating habits, food cravings, behaviors etc.
- Advise: Give clear advice on the risk and benefits of losing weight such as reduced risk of high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease etc.
- Agree: Identify the goals, and methods to get the goals, enquire about and agree on patient's interest in and willingness to change the behavior.
- Assist: Using behavior change techniques such as self-help and/or counseling, aid the patient in achieving agreed-upon goals.
- Arrange: Schedule follow-up contacts (in person or by telephone) to provide ongoing assistance/support and to adjust the treatment plan as needed, including referral to more intensive or specialized treatment.
How often does Medicare Cover IBT for obesity?
- One face-to-face visit every week for the first month;
- One face-to-face visit every other week for months 2-6;
- One face-to-face visit every month for months 7-12, if the beneficiary meets the 3kg weight loss requirement as discussed below.
What happens after 6 months of getting the IBT for obesity?
At the six month visit, a reassessment of obesity and a determination of the amount of weight loss must be performed.
What is the minimum amount of weight loss required by Medicare in the first 6 months of receiving IBT for obesity?
To be eligible for additional face-to-face visits occurring once a month for an additional six months, beneficiaries must have achieved a reduction in weight of at least 3kg over the course of the first six months of intensive therapy as documented in the physician office records for applicable beneficiaries consistent with usual practice.
What happens if I fail to lose at least 3kg of weight in the first 6 months of IBT?
For those that do not achieve a weight loss of at least 3kg during the first six months of intensive therapy, a reassessment of their readiness to change and BMI is appropriate after an additional six month period.
How do you define a primary care setting for the purposes of receiving IBT for obesity?
For the purposes of this decision memorandum, a primary care setting is defined as one in which there is provision of integrated, accessible health care services by clinicians who are accountable for addressing a large majority of personal health care needs, developing a sustained partnership with patients, and practicing in the context of family and community.
Which facilities are excluded from Medicare covered IBT for obesity?
w8md affordable weight loss low calorie weight loss upplements and meal plans
Emergency departments, inpatient hospital settings, ambulatory surgical centers, independent diagnostic testing facilities, skilled nursing facilities, inpatient rehabilitation facilities and hospices are not considered primary care settings under this definition.
Do most W8MD weight loss centers accept Medicare?
Most W8MD physician weight loss centers are not only participating in Medicare Part B but also qualify for the primary care setting definition although exceptions do exist. Please contact the individual W8MD physician weight loss center for further information.
Does Medicare cover diet pills or appetite suppressant prescription medications?
In general, Medicare part D does not provide coverage for diet pills or prescription weight loss medications as these were considered excluded under the Medicare law although this might change in the future.
What are the W8MD's weight loss centers that provide IBT for obesity and other weight loss services for Medicare patients?
For a list of the latest list of the W8MD weight loss centers, please contact the main website at www.w8md.com
Weight loss doctors that accept Medicare Part B for weight loss and IBT
|Insurance weight loss programs
|Weight loss testimonials
"I lost 75 lbs with W8MD and feel great". - J.W.Smith, CPA
|Pennsylvania - Philadelphia
1718, Welsh Rd, Philadelphia, PA, 19115
Pennsylvania - King of Prussia
987 Old Eagle School Rd, Ste 712, Wayne, PA, 19087
New York City
Brooklyn, NY
2632 E 21st Street, Ste L2, Brooklyn, NY, 11235
Manhattan, NY
401 E 55th Street New York New York 10022


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organic commercial china papel higienico toilet tissue
Tree Free Toilet Paper, Facial Tissue, Paper Towel
1) Bamboo mix bagasse pulp,or recycled paper
2) Color: white
3) Mainly export to: Japan, Australia, USA and Europe
4) Certificate: ISO9001, ISO14000, BRC approval
5) Strong and easy water absorbency
6) Packaging: individual plastic/paper wrapper, 4rolls/pack, 10rolls/pack, 48 or 50rolls/outer polybag or outer carton
Company View
Test Room
Tissue Range
BSCI Certifcate
ISO9001:2008 (Quality System)
ISO14001:2004 (Environment System)
How can I get the most competitive price?
Please send us the email and provide as much detail specifications as possible. Like tissue size, material, weight, ply, package, printing, quantity etc. The more detail information, the more accurate we can quote you the price.
What Can I do if I cannot provide such detail specifications?
Please send us the information as much as you know. We will make a price for your reference which based on our experience. If you really have no idea of the specs, please try to find some photos of the products.
Can I get samples?
Yes. We can send you sample for free, but the freight is on your account.
Can you make sample according to my own specifications?
Yes. We can. But there is sample charge around USD400.00.
Is the sample charge refundable?
Yes. We will deduct the sample charge from your order.
How long does it take to make sample?
It's about 10 to 15days.
What's the production lead time?
It depends on the quantity. It varies from 20 to 45days.
Do you have any certificate or test report of your products?
We have ISO9001(quality system), ISO14001(environment system), BRC (WCA+SQP audit).

subset: commoncrawl


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We Will Learn To Feel Quite Clean In This New Skin by Farrah Field
Some friends and I were recently exchanging embarrassing stories from adolescence and it was no surprise that most of these stories ended with some form of appreciation of books and music—the two things that got us through the sticky, dorky periods of our lives. I don't think this need for music was all that unique—it's a basic need to have someone sing how we feel (sound plus words equals getting lost equals being found). What is rare is being the young person making music. I would've never touched an instrument on a stage in front of other people when I was seventeen. Young performers and entertainers, the boobs-out and biceps kind, delivered through the System of Normal corporate media over-saturation, come and go, but young musicians, actual musicians, are the ones we tend to grow with. They are so bafflingly gifted with their awkward courage, their blossoming ability to collaborate (read the liner notes of any record to know just how many people are involved in the process), their willingness to experiment with sound, to not wait until they "grow up," their keen insight taken from their musical influences and the determination to emulate them, and their early yet strong motivation to make art. Laura Marling, a singer from London, makes music with quite possibly all of these qualities, with a soulful voice and a provocative nature to boot. Although she is now twenty years old, she completed her debut album, Alas I Cannot Swim, at the age of eighteen.
When I was younger, I wanted to spit every time someone said, "you're so young." Why not say, "all I noticed about you is your age and I'm older than it." So it's with great hesitation that I point out Laura Marling's age, but I must admit it sort of attracted me to her music. My boyfriend and I were driving to Massachusetts and we turned on the radio with the hopes of hearing a traffic report, but caught a Laura Marling song instead. She was playing her wordsy, folk but not folksy songs and was being interviewed by David Garland for the show, "Spinning on Air, which was recorded two weeks before her eighteenth birthday. Alas I Cannot Swim came out not too long after that. If having an album out by the age of eighteen isn't impressive enough, Marling had been in the popular English band Noah and the Whale prior to making her album. After hearing her sing, I was awfully surprised to find out how young she was. Age—the years you are, the years you have left, and the time period in which you were born—is something I often think of while listening to Marling's music, which coming from a young person or not, is some of the smartest music I've ever heard.
"Her music is interesting but not complicated, but a complicated experience," David Garland said on air. His succinct description encapsulates the pulling and tugging of Marling's music: personal as well as abstract, poetic, planned yet surprising, and observational yet private. Her music generates the same kind of thinking that reading a poem does. She said in the 2008 interview that she wanted Alas I Cannot Swim to be "one consistent piece of work," to cohere thematically. Her website, in fact, used to describe a limited run of a song box that was sold with the cd, including little handmade trinkets and a songbook, furthermore stressing the idea of her album as an object, as a well put together thing.
The arrangement of the album itself was clearly important to her and she somewhat shyly yet knowledgeably described the lyrical thematic movement (water, birds, love, death) and musical arrangement, a "purposeful lift" from minor to major. Indeed Alas I Cannot Swim moves musically first through songs that have a sort of chorus of back-up voices, to the soulful alone toughness of her voice, eventually adding other sounds (birds, footsteps, more instruments, more voices), and finally leaving us in low registers.
Lyrically, she delves into love and meaningful relationships, death and rebirth. She often explores fraught relationships, trying to keep up with unpredictable people and particularly in the first song, "Ghosts," investigating lovers' history.
She tickles her songs with pronoun play, most successfully in "My Manic and I," she sings, "I can't control you/ I don't know you well/ These are the reasons I think that you're/I'm/we're ill," describing with simple wordplay the snarled entanglements of being with someone who's out of control, being the one who chooses unhealthy people, and the combinations thereof.
The album takes on rebirth and death with a bold face. Marling's songs may never outright declare what it is she wants exactly, but it's pretty clear she doesn't want to be dead. Her songs time and time again reveal a fear of turning into one's parents and reject the high and mighty version of God. In "Failure," she emphasizes that if God made her in his image, then he's a failure. The concept isn't self-deprecating as it is self-correcting, self-aware in the sense that it supports active living. (Blind faith is a sort of sinking, a giving up). Besides, how are women supposed to live in "his" image? If that's the case, we don't stand a fighting chance. (Why can't God be hermaphroditic or at least fully half and half? Doesn't seem fair).
Marling is incredibly invested in the idea of rebirth as a burst of personal strength, a self-baptism if you will. Water and birds are the glue working in her songs' periphery. Water tends to serve as a measure of distance. "There's a boy across the river but alas I cannot swim." Everything is out of reach—the lover you'd rather have, the person you'd rather be, the fauna around you both wild and tame for its daily accountability, in other words, birds. They're all-knowing with their beautiful songs and their sense of direction, sense of the seasons. Birds, however, are a dark subject matter. You can't touch them, can't cage them, and they have the feet of monsters. Birds are iconic Laura Marling imagery, in the sense that there is a dark side to most of her songs. They may be constructed like pretty folk songs, but pretty frightening depths are composed in these songs.
For instance, "The Captain and the Hourglass," is one such Laura Marling song that attains weird levels.
[The Captain And The Hourglass]
In a Melville sort of way, the title alone suggests the itch for adventure marked or stifled by the passage of time. Marling mulls over falling into water, which among other options, could very well indicate being so far to one side that you're off the boat and in the water. (My father likes to describe liberals this way). In this song, she introduces the elements (wind and rain) in a holding-her-fists-up-to-God sort of way, a rain-on-me-I-can-take-it way, and an I'm-not-afraid-of-you-you-big-blue-sky way. What threads together the song is Marling's most memorable, exemplary lyrics. "Inside every man is a heart of sand/ You can see it in his face/ He'll tick tick tick tick tick tick tick away." The spell of this song is in these words, the ticking away of time, growing older, seeping with a violent regret as though this song could be played while reading Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates. The use of "captain" is pretty witty too, juxtaposed against God's judgments, and instilled with mocking self-mockery of the man who thinks he's in charge, but is really slipping away. After all, who is in charge anyway?
Late last year I saw Laura Marling perform for the CMJ Music Marathon. Her live performance is incredibly different than her record. First of all, her accent is not what I expected at all. I guess I prepared myself to hear something hard-edged and Londonish, but her accent was rather grassy and rolling. In any case, I couldn't believe how different she sounded during her show, commanding the stage with a voice much bigger and more resonant than the album suggested. I don't know whether this is saying something about recording technology or how artists cut and mix their first albums. I also don't know if Laura Marling's vocal talent has been developing because of her constant touring, and growing a bit older, but there was a noticeable difference between her voice on the album and her voice during the live performance. Live, Laura Marling isn't fussy or showy. Accompanying her was a cellist who added a lush quality to all of the songs. I know she could have comfortably filled out the room, alone with her guitar. Laura Marling simply opens her mouth in a seemingly effortless way and out comes beautiful sound. Her second album, I Speak Because I Can is due out soon.
Author's Notes:
The Girls Talk of Troilus
Consider the possibility.
Everyone likes poop.
The weight of his armor equaled three of us.
We learn how to love during lessons.
We want someone who can handle us.
We sit on the wall and watch him pass.
From the book with the war and a woman.
What are you supposed to do besides what you have to?
He loves older women. They were lovers through the gapped stones.
Our parents have that look again.
Replacement. Kneecap eyes. Dress with only a center.
We have everything to look forward to when we grow up.
Farrah Field's poems have appeared in many publications including the Mississippi Review, Typo, Harp & Altar, La Petite Zine, Copper Nickel, Effing Magazine, and Ploughshares and are forthcoming in Mantis, Cannibal, and Memorious. Rising, her first book of poems, won Four Way Books' 2007 Levis Prize. She lives in Brooklyn where she co-hosts a reading series called Yardmeter Editions. She blogs at adultish.blogspot.com.
Questions, compliments, (hopefully not) complaints? Contact Jackie Clark: jackie [at] coldfrontmag [dot] com. Check out previous POP essays here: http://pop.coldfrontmag.com/


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2010 NFL Draft: Ted Ginn Jr. Acquistion Means Drafting of Spiller or WR UnlikelyApril 17, 2010
The acquisition of Ted Ginn today means that it is very unlikely that the 49ers will use a first round pick on CJ Spiller or draft a WR in the first three rounds.
Spiller's supporters touted his ability to help in the return game and make the offense more dynamic as reasons to use a first round pick on the RB out of Clemson. Ginn covers the need for a return man and bringing him to the team will likely result in Niner fans seeing a lot more three receiver sets with Ginn, Morgan and Crabtree.
Frank Gore is still only 26 years old and is a back that needs a lot of carries to get him going. Spiller would only see very limited time on the field and the Niners would be better served using a first round pick on someone who can get on the field for more downs per game.
This does not mean that the 49ers won't draft a change of pace back. If they address their RT hole in the first they may look to Jahvid Best if he is available in the second or Dexter McCluster in another round.
For all those of us hoping for Jordan Shipley, this trade ends that speculation as well. In the first three rounds the Niners need to get a CB, a safety and an RT. They could also use a pass rusher at either an OLB spot or more likely a DE. If they draft a receiver it will be in a later round.
Overall, this is a good trade for the Niners. They give up very little to get a very good return man and a WR who could thrive when put in a position where he does not have to be the number one or number two option. It definitely changes the outlook for the upcoming draft.


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Children's Winter Fair
The 2019 Children's Winter Fair is just around the corner! This event is a time-honoured tradition at our school and a wonderful community celebration of the magic and beauty of the winter season. You will find a host of creative activities and events for children, student musical performances, delicious food and beverages, and our very popular Marketplace overflowing with a wide selection of quality handcrafted toys and gifts for children and adults, with an adult-only Night Market the Friday prior.
The Children's Winter Fair is also an Open House and we invite all who are interested to come and learn more about Waldorf education and the Vancouver Waldorf School.
Please invite your friends and neighbours!
We hope to see you there!
Links & Downloads
Children's Winter Fair Poster
Facebook Event
Waldorf Winter Fair Night Market
Facebook Event


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The Orange Longlist 2012
From the longlist, I've only read Gillespsie and I by Jane Harris and it was quite good. I read part of The Night Circus a few months ago but abandoned it halfway. I was disappointed that the novel was more driven by setting rather than characters. However after all the praise its received, I'll just have to give it another go. I doubt I'll read everything on the longlist but oh, there are so many that look interesting! I've narrowed it down to eight books I'd love to read. I highly doubt I'll even read half of this before the shortlist is announced on May 29 but it's nice to make a list. Here they are in the order I'd like to read them (with blurbs courtesy of Amazon):
The Translation of the Bones by Francesca Kay
Mary-Margaret is seemingly a harmless enough young woman, ready and willing to help out in the Sacred Heart church in Battersea. It is the statue of Jesus on the cross Mary-Margaret is especially drawn to, and one day she decides to give Him a thorough and loving cleansing. But then something strange happens, and moments later she lies unconscious, a great gash in her head, blood on the floor. Soon a full-scale religious mania descends on the quiet church and Battersea.
The Blue Book by A.L. Kennedy
Elizabeth Barber is crossing the Atlantic with her boyfriend, Derek, who might be planning to propose. In fleeing the UK - temporarily - Elizabeth may also be in flight from her past and the charismatic Arthur, once her partner in what she came to see as a series of crimes. Together they acted as fake mediums. Elizabeth finally rejected the game but Arthur continued his search for the right way to do wrong. She hadn't, though, expected the other man on the boat. As her voyage progresses, Elizabeth's past is revealed, codes slowly form and break as communication deepens. It's time for her to discover who are the true deceivers and who are the truly deceived.
The Sealed Letter by Emma Donoghue
Miss Emily "Fido" Faithfull is a "woman of business" and a spinster pioneer in the British women's movement, independent of mind but naively trusting of heart. Distracted from her cause by the sudden return of a once-dear friend, the unhappily wed Helen Codrington, Fido is swept up in the intimate details of Helen's failing marriage and obsessive affair with a young army officer. What begins as a loyal effort to help a friend explodes into an intriguing courtroom drama complete with accusations of adultery, counterclaims of rape, and a mysterious letter that could destroy more than one life.
Island of Wings by Karin Altenberg
A richly imagined novel about two people struggling to keep their love, and their family, alive in a place of extreme hardship and unearthly beauty. Everything lies ahead for Lizzie and Neil McKenzie when they arrive at the St. Kilda islands in July of 1830. Neil is to become the minister to the small community of islanders, and Lizzie-bright, beautiful, and devoted-is pregnant with their first child. As the two adjust to life at the edge of civilization, where the natives live in squalor and babies perish mysteriously, their marriage-and their sanity-are soon threatened.
by Ann Patchett
Dr. Marina Singh, a research scientist is sent to Brazil to track down her former mentor, Dr. Annick Swenson, who seems to have all but disappeared in the Amazon while working on what is destined to be an extremely valuable new drug, the development of which has already cost the company a fortune. Nothing about Marina's assignment is easy: not only does no one know where Dr. Swenson is, but the last person who was sent to find her, Marina's research partner Anders Eckman, died before he could complete his mission. Plagued by trepidation, Marina embarks on an odyssey into the insect-infested jungle in hopes of finding her former mentor.
by Anne Enright
A new, unapologetic kind of adultery novel. Narrated by the proverbial other woman—Gina Moynihan, a sharp, sexy, darkly funny thirtysomething IT worker—The Forgotten Waltz charts an extramarital affair from first encounter to arranged, settled, everyday domesticity. . . . This novel's beauty lies in Enright's spare, poetic, off-kilter prose—at once heartbreaking and subversively funny.
by Ali Smith
At a dinner party at a posh London suburb, Miles Garth suddenly leaves the table midway through the meal, locks himself in an upstairs room, and refuses to leave. An eclectic group of neighbors and friends slowly gathers around the house, and Miles's story is told from the points of view of four of them: Anna, a woman in her forties; Mark, a man in his sixties; May, a woman in her eighties; and a ten-year-old named Brooke. The thing is, none of these people knows Miles more than slightly. How much is it possible for us to know about a stranger? And what are the consequences of even the most casual, fleeting moments we share every day with one another?
So which ones on the longlist have you read? Which ones would you like to read?
Here's the complete longlist:
- Island of Wings by Karin Altenberg
- On the Floor by Aifric Campbell
- The Grief of Others by Leah Hager Cohen
- The Sealed Letter by Emma Donoghue
- Half Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan
- The Forgotten Waltz by Anne Enright
- The Flying Man by Roopa Farooki
- Lord of Misrule by Jaimy Gordon
- Painter of Silence by Georgina Harding
- Gillespie and I by Jane Harris
- The Translation of the Bones by Francesca Kay
- The Blue Book by A.L. Kennedy
- The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
- The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
- Foreign Bodies by Cynthia Ozick
- State of Wonder by Ann Patchett
- There but for the by Ali Smith
- The Pink Hotel by Anna Stothard
- Tides of War by Stella Tillyard
- The Submission by Amy Waldman


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AfterThought: Hating to love the BlackBerry
After a strong debut last week, it's nice to see our pal L.M. Lloyd back in the saddles with his second edition of AfterThought. This week, L.M. gives a rundown as to why he hates to love the device we all love… to love. Another strong showing. Thank you, sir.
Ah, CES! All the new gizmos gathered together. A million seductive whispers promising you everything you could ever dream of, sometime in the next two fiscal quarters. CES always reminds me why I hate the BlackBerry, but also reminds me why it is the device permanently attached to my hip.
At CES you see all the dreams of what a mobile device could be. GPS, 3G, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Wi-Max, VoIP, desktop-class processors, amazing displays, voice recognition, millions of desktop-grade applications available, DVD quality video, CD quality audio, video conferencing, gigabytes on gigabytes of storage, expandable, programmable, easy to use devices that can get your mail from anywhere instantly, browse the web effortlessly, and still fit in your pocket!
It is a dream that makes the BlackBerry look like a drab piece of plastic, sitting uselessly in my pocket. It sounds wonderful, and I want to know where I can buy the dream soon as possible!
Of course then the drab reality sets in. How much will it cost? How long will the battery last? Will the device get too hot to touch while I'm using it? Can I see the screen outside on a sunny day? Will this work with my service provider? How is the reception? How much more will the additional service cost? Does it come in any other color? Will it work with my existing headset? On, and on, and on, until all the magic has been banished, and all you are left with is a pile of moribund compromises.
The device that does everything you could ever want, for two hours and then the battery dies. The device that lasts all day, and looks really exciting, but crashed three times in the ten minutes they were demonstrating it. The device that is everything you had hoped for, but costs $3000. And that, my friends, is exactly where the BlackBerry comes into its own, as the king of the boring compromise *sigh*.
You see, I've been using handheld gadgets practically as long as I can remember. Dating all the way back to the days of odd Japanese clamshell electronic organizers, I have always had some little bit of portable computing I had to take everywhere with me. I have been a sucker for more devices than I can even keep track of, and every time I have hoped that this would be the one that would deliver on all the seductive whispers of a perfect mobile device.
Unfortunately, they never do. Some have gotten close, but there is always something 'wrong' with them. Something that overshadows all those great features, and makes the device an unbearable pain to carry around. The BlackBerry has more 'wrong' with it than most devices I have ever carried, yet it is the only device I have returned to after trying other alternatives. It is a device that there is very little to get excited about, a lot to be disappointed about, but there is very little to actually hate. It is almost the definition of safe and boring.
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Escape to thought-provoking realms in a major Michael Whelan exhibition opening at the Riverside Art Museum in February 2017. "Beyond Science Fiction" features 50+ masterpieces from the storied career of a modern master.
Michael Whelan's pop-culture-defining imagery has undoubtedly influenced many of the top illustrators working today. But his deeply personal work simultaneously resonates with sophisticated art collectors.
"Beyond Science Fiction" offers a unique opportunity to view these both his illustration and personal works side by side in a breathtaking show curated by Bob Self of Baby Tattoo Books.
Come join us in celebrating work from an artist whose accomplishments are unrivaled in his field.Continue Reading
Michael Whelan will be one of over 70 artists exhibiting work at the Abend Gallery in Denver as part of a breathtaking show of Imaginative Realism titled "Inner Visions." The exhibition, which runs from October 8 through November 11, includes up and coming artists displayed side-by-side with award winning, world renowned paints.Continue Reading
Michael Whelan will be exhibiting art at the first ever IlluXcon Preview Weekend, a celebration of Imaginative Realism at the Delaware Art Museum that runs from September 23-25
The event leads up to IX 9 in October, this year's installment of the groundbreaking art show, symposium, and celebration dedicated solely to the genre.
The preview will feature a packed schedule of demonstrations, lectures, workshops, gallery tours, sketching tours, and more!Continue Reading
IlluXcon 9
Michael Whelan will be among the 90 juried artists displaying in the main show at IX9 (IlluXCon). The groundbreaking IX show is the world's largest symposium dedicated solely to Imaginative Realism.
This will be Michael's first appearance there in several years and a great opportunity to meet him and see his paintings in person.Continue Reading
The first offering of palette gremlins has arrived in our shop, eight framed and ready to hang pieces from Michael's 2016 online gallery project LEFTOVERS & PALETTE GREMLINS. You won't find a better opportunity to own a Whelan original at such a great price!
Also new in our shop is a reproduction of Michael's latest gallery work IN A WORLD OF HER OWN, which features elements of both his FADED STAR and LUMEN series. The painting will be featured at Tree's Place in Orleans, MA starting on August 13 in a show with Michael Mariano entitled KINDRED SPIRITS, ARTISTIC SOULS.
PLEASE NOTE: We have been experiencing difficulty with our webhosting today. Apparently some of the gremlins escaped and have been tinkering with our server. We hope to have the issues resolved, but if you continue to have problems accessing our shop please don't hesitate to contact us. We're always happy to coordinate sales offline.Continue Reading
On August 13, Tree's Place Gallery in Orleans, MA will feature new art by Michael Whelan and Michael John Mariano in an exhibition titled "Kindred Spirits, Artistic Souls."
Both Whelan and Mariano will be doing a live demonstration at the opening reception. Come watch two masters engaging their creative process as they collaborate on canvas.
Established on Cape Cod in 1986, the gallery at Tree's Place is billed as one of America's Finest Contemporary Galleries.
Opening Reception: Saturday, August 13th from 5-7 PM.
The show will continue through August 26, 2016.
Summer Hours: Mon – Sat: 10 AM – 5:30 PM, Sun: Noon – 5 PMContinue Reading
Over the weekend, Michael Whelan received his 31st Locus Award for Best Artist. The awards, chosen by an online poll of readers, were presented on Saturday, June 25 by the Locus Science Fiction Foundation in Seattle, Washington.Continue Reading
Michael Whelan sat down for an interview with Skeptic's Guide to the Universe last Saturday. The podcast is now available for download or to listen to online. Among the topics discussed were digital art and art versus technology.
The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe is dedicated to promoting critical thinking, reason, and the public understanding of science through online and other media.
http://www.theskepticsguide.orgContinue Reading
Leftovers are little spur-of-the-moment doodles or sketches created from paint left over from a work in progress. Most of these quickies end up in the trash, but some are kind of cool on their own and others have lead to full scale paintings.
I've been doing this since my art school days: THE PEEPER came from the paint left over from a piece done for my first professional portfolio.
Palette Gremlins are small creations found in random shapes, usually paint on a palette or the mat board I use to protect my drawing table. Often what I see is an alien or a face, but PASSAGE: THE RED STEP was suggested by shapes in the over-spray left from a complex airbrushing session.
In either case, when they spark an idea that leads to a larger work, it feels like a gift from my Muse! The point of it all, however, is to play with some paint — and see what happens.Continue Reading
Many years ago in a galaxy far, far away I was faced with painting works to use as portfolio pieces, hoping to secure a commission from a national magazine like Time. Being an early and enthusiastic fan of David Bowie, I decided it was a good opportunity to combine my interests in SF and his music in one piece.
In the end, I believe it never was used for a publication, but I don't regret taking the time to create it. (Needless to say, I was thrilled to learn that he was cast as the lead in the film THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH!)
We are all diminished by the loss of this singular and uncompromising artist. Fly on forever, Major Tom.Continue Reading


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From where we stand now there's a very good view of a building on the opposite side of Mokhovaya Street – which is older than Manège Square, and even than the Manège itself. In fact before the fires of the Napoleonic occupation of 1812 on what is now Manège Square there was previously a place called Moss Square, where they traded in moss – it was used for insulating the log-built houses of those days. There are two buildings worth noting here – the house of the architect Zholtovsky, and the Hotel Nationale.
The Hotel Nationale opened just slightly before WW1, becoming an overnight success, to the delight of its shareholders. In fact the new hotel quickly showed a clean pair of heels to its rivals – the shareholders of the Metropole Hotel. The Nationale was as attractive as a wedding-cake and with every comfort the first decade of the C20th could lavish. It was the first Moscow hotel equipped with sofas, mirrors and electric lifts.
After the 1917 Russian Revolution Lenin and the staff of the Moscow Administration used the Nationale Hotel as their offices. Later it was renovated as a hotel once more. At different times its famous guests have included; the ballerina Anna Pavlova, the poet Sergey Yesenin, and writers HG Wells and Henri Barbusse. Today the hotel feels very much as it did then – long corridors and the characteristic aroma of wooden floors.
This sand-coloured building with an eight-columned colonnade was built by architect Zholtovsky. Experts say that it was this very building that launched the trend later called the 'Stalin Empire' style. Another interesting aspect of the building is that it housed the American Embassy for a short time.
Moscow is the capital of the ancient and modern Russian state. It has been playing crucial role for centuries. Here you can face all episodes of rich and gorgeous Russian history.
The city is full of historical buildings, monuments, cathedrals, museums and parks. It started many centuries ago from the Kremlin – medieval city-fortress overlooking the Moskva River. Now it is not only the government seat but open air museum. Behind the tall red brick walls palaces, cathedrals and museums are hidden. You can get there through one of the gates and walk along the streets that saw Ivan the Terrible, Boris Godunov, Peter the Great and all other Romanovs, and the Soviet leaders.
You can visit all the cathedrals on Sobornaya (Cathedral) Square, climb Ivan the Great Bell Tower, take photos of the Tzar Bell and Tzar Cannon, see state regalia, ceremonial vestments and gold and silver relics in the world-known treasury-house – the Armoury Chamber. To say more, the Kremlin and its vicinities are on the UNESCO World Heritage list.
We would like to advise you not to concentrate on the Kremlin only. Now you can get out of the Kremlin through the Spasskiye Gate and find yourself on Red Square – the main square of the country where Victory Day parades take place. In winter there is a skating rink with some kind of souvenir bazar. Red Square is famous for being the part of so called Kitai-Gorod – the second ring of fortified walls. Here you will see the beautiful fairy-tale St. Basil's Cathedral. It is open for tourists and it's worth visiting. Other places that pay tourists' attention are GUM (the main center for shopaholics), Lenin's Mausoleum, the State History Museum and the small Cathedral of the Kazan Icon of Our Lady. If you go along Nikolskaya Street, you will get to Lubyanka Square with the imposing buildings of former KGB and the biggest in Russia Children's World Department Store.
If you decide to go through the Resurrection Gate you will find yourself on Manezhnaya (Manege) Square at the entrance to the Alexander Garden. It's a large pedestrian open space and a nice place to walk and relax near the fountains. Underground Trade Centre "Okhotny Ryad" or "the Hunter's Row" is a paradise for shopping. You can continue your walk towards Arbat or Tverskaya Street. There are also fine buildings to visit and to take pictures of: The Shilov Art Gallery, hotels "Moskva", "Nationale", Pashkov's House, The Former House of the Moscow State Duma etc.
If you decide to turn round Georgy Zhukov's horse monument you'll occur on Revolution Square where you can visit the Museum of Patriotic War of 1812. From there it's very easy to get to Teatralnaya or "Theatre" Square limited by the Metropol Hotel, The Bolshoi and the Maly Theatres. In the center you will find a beautiful fountain by Vitali.
All these sites and even more you will be able to visit and explore with knowledgeable audio excursion with offline map from Your Audio Guide "Attractions around the Kremlin". You will find Moscow very pleasant for spending holidays.


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My THIRD kit is complete!
I have completed the third week of the Brownie Scraps Designer challenge and am even more in love with my kit than I was last week! I never knew that designing was like having little mini babies, each one is so special! Except it is a lot more fun and much less painful to give birth to scrap kits than to human babies
Here is my newest kit, free for you to download, called Family Memories:
This kit contains:
6 papers
2 embellished frames
1 full metal tile alpha
2 buttons
1 ribboned tag
1 curled embellished paper edge
1 row of stitching
1 ribbon rope
For the challenge we were only permitted to create 6 papers and 8 elements, so I of course createad more than that LOL. Later this week make sure you return for an add-on to this kit!
If you make a layout with the kit this week, please stop by Brownie Scraps and upload your layout, you could win a gift certificate to their fabulous store!
Thanks for stopping by and please leave some love if you download!
14 Responses to "My THIRD kit is complete!"
Charmaine! This is wonderful!! You did a fantastic job!
This is awesome! I love the colors and the theme:) There is a page on my blog!
Where do I post it at Brownie? I see lots of challenges but I don't know which one this falls under, lol…all I can think of is eating when I'm on that site!
LOL! You lose a lot less sleep over a kit too!
It's gorgeous hun! Off to fulfill my CT duties!
OK but you didn't tell me which challenge to post under:)
Beautiful kit! Thank you so much!
Love the colors, love the textures, love the elements – thanks!
beautiful ! Thank you for sharing
Lovely kit…thanks for sharing
I love this! It is hard to find cute stuff for boys that isn't too cute (if you know what I mean). This is perfect!!! Will a full kit ever be for sale?
Thanks I love this!!!!
What a great kit! And I must say — I love your blog layout and that there is so much space in the middle for your content. If you don't mind sharing, I'd love some information on how you did this. My e-mail address is included above.
What a great kit! Thank you so much!!
This is too cool. I love the papers and colors. I love the rustic but "not all boy" feel. I have lots of pics of my dd's fishing with Dad. This will be a wonderful addition to my memories. Thank you for making me look so good.


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Tempo Traveller Ahmedabad to Bhuj Tempo Traveller cab hire, compare Car fares & check for online discounts & Rs.15.5 per kilometer. Ahmedabad to Bhuj Tempo Traveller taxi service. Clean Cars, No Extra Charges.8888807783. Ahmedabad, in western India, is the largest city in the state of Gujarat. The Sabarmati River runs through its center. On the western bank is the Gandhi Ashram at Sabarmati, which displays the spiritual leader's living quarters and artifacts. Across the river, the Calico Museum of Textiles, once a cloth merchant's mansion, has a significant collection of antique and modern fabrics.
Bhuj is a city in the state of Gujarat, western India. It's known for its centuries-old buildings, many of which were damaged in a 2001 earthquake. Close to Harmirsar Lake, the 18th-century Aina Mahal palace is elaborately decorated with chandeliers, mirrors and semi-precious stones. Nearby, the Italian Gothic–style Prag Mahal palace has a bell tower that overlooks the city, and a courtyard containing a Hindu temple.
Force Traveller, or widely referred to as Force Tempo Traveller is the flagship model of Force Motors & an undoubted leader in Tour & Travels segment. Force Traveller is a monocoque van, which is light in weight and thus offers best in class power to weight ratio. Powered by a 91 HP, FM 2.6 Common rail engine, it gets mated to a 5 tpeed gearbox and offers a a max torque of 250 Nm. Force Traveller 3350 wheelbase variant offers wide range of seating options from 9 to 13 passenger seats. In terms of maintenance, this Force Motors van comes with 7 free services and a warranty of 3 years or 3 lakh kms. The rigid front suspension with semi-elliptical leaf springs ensure lowest cost of regular wheel alignment. The bigger 215/75 R 15 tyres offer a ground clearance of 210 mm in this Force van. To know more about Force Traveller price, submit your interest for us to get back to you.
When you rent a car from Ahmedabad to Bhuj Tempo Traveller cab, taxi services, we'll help you pick from a range of car rental options in Ahmedabad. Whether you're looking for budget cars, comfortable cars, large cars or a luxury car for your trip- we have it all. We also provide Tempo Travelers for large groups. Ahmedabad to Bhuj Tempo Traveller cab, car hire, you can choose between an Indica, Sedan, Innova or luxury cars like Corolla or Mercedes depending on the duration of your trip and group size.
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|Force Tempo -12 Seater
|Force Tempo -17 Seater


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Young Alaska Natives are gaining their place in the community, with the help of leadership programs provided by organizations like the Alaska Native Professional Association.
Find out more about summer internships and development opportunities for young Native professionals on the next Community Forum, Wednesday (July 15, 2009) afternoon at 2:00 pm.
HOST: Ellen Lockyer.
Jorie Zilys. Advancement Officer. Cook Inlet Tribal Council, Inc.
Amber Jenkins. Leadership Development. First Alaskans Institute.
Download Audio (MP3)


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Sixth Circuit Rejects Due Process Clause Challenge to Michigan Foreclosure
The state of Michigan has supplied the Sixth Circuit with no shortage of foreclosure-related decisions since the financial crisis, but the court's recent decision in Garcia v. Federal National Mortgage Association, No. 14-1687, — F.3d — (Apr. 7, 2015), ruled on a particularly interesting issue: whether the Federal National Mortgage Association's (Fannie Mae) foreclosure upon the plaintiffs' home violated their constitutional due process rights. The court answered, "No."
The plaintiffs obtained a home loan in 2003. In 2007, they fell behind on their payments and defaulted on the loan. In early 2011, plaintiffs received a letter about the default and potential loan modification, and they were later offered a loan modification for a three-month trial period. Bank of America, the mortgage holder, also offered them a permanent loan modification in May 2012, but the plaintiffs never executed and returned the required paperwork to do so.
Bank of America, therefore, notified plaintiffs in August 2012 that a non-judicial foreclosure would take place. Notice of the foreclosure was properly published, and the property was sold to Bank of America at a sheriff's sale in October of that year. Plaintiffs did not redeem the property during the six-month statutory redemption period under Michigan law, and Fannie Mae, having been quitclaimed the property, filed a possession action. Plaintiffs responded with a lawsuit, alleging, among other things, violation of their Fifth and Fourteenth Amendment Due process rights. The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), the federal conservator for Fannie Mae, intervened.
The panel first noted that it had not yet addressed the questions of whether the FHFA is a state actor and what restrictions the Due Process Clause may impose on it in its direction of Fannie Mae. The court's prior decisions focused on whether Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were transformed into state actors in light of the FHFA's conservatorship. Ultimately, the court found it unnecessary to answer those questions, because the FHFA's compliance with Michigan's foreclosure-by-advertisement process did not violate the core requirements of due process: notice and the right to be heard. In particular, the panel noted, "the Due Process Clause is flexible and calls for such procedural protections as the particular situation demands. Due process is required to prevent, to the extent possible, an erroneous deprivation of property." (Emphasis in original).
With respect to notice, the court noted that the Michigan foreclosure-by-advertisement statute required both written notice and opportunities to cure default or redeem the property several times before the borrower's rights were extinguished. The borrower has a six-month statutory redemption period following the sheriff's sale, for example. In the present case, the plaintiffs had received the required statutory notice of foreclosure and sheriff's sale, and they did not claim lack of notice.
The plaintiffs' main argument was that they had the right to a judicial hearing before foreclosure. The court flatly rejected this contention, stating that "[w]here only property rights are involved, . . . the postponement of a structured judicial hearing is not a denial of due process if there is adequate opportunity after the foreclosure for such a hearing." The Michigan statute provided borrowers with adequate constitutional protection because it gave borrowers notice of the default, an opportunity to cure, and a statutory six-month redemption period after foreclosure, as well as a chance to set aside the foreclosure sale for "fraud or irregularity" in the process. The court held that the ability to bring an action before the expiration of the statutory redemption period satisfied the requirement that there be a hearing "at a meaningful time and in a meaningful manner" before permanent deprivation of property.
With this opinion, mortgage holders have another arrow in their quivers to defend against wrongful-foreclosure claims.


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It wasn't long ago that I was singing the praises of Zouk in Manchester in the form of a blog post, which you can see here. Of course, when I was invited back to try out one of their cookery classes I jumped at the chance to discover how this delicious food was created! For the class, I experienced how to make the perfect Tandoori marinade from scratch and how to tailor it to each meat to grill on the BBQ. From Paneer to Chicken, we learnt how to not only create the most beautiful flavours, but also how to make a Seekh Kebab (including how to actually keep it on the skewer!). The fresh flavours, straight from the BBQ grill, were like something I hadn't tasted before and the hours we put in to creating our food was well worth it when we came to feast on it all.
The class took us from 10am up until lunch time at 12.30 and the intimate masterclass also showcased the way the chef creates the ultimate summer salads, alongside the method to prepare and cook the naan breads. It's safe to say I'm still fully stuffed from all the food now!
You can find out more about the Zouk Manchester Cookery Classes online here.


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"Protect Me From What I Want" Necklace
Pearl Collective
The Omerta Collection by Anthony Dreyer was developed with the intention to create beautiful pieces of jewelry that didn't just look great, but gave the wearer the power of a secret message.
This fashion-forward design combines the sparkle of silver pyrite with genuine white freshwater pearls and his signature sterling silver handcuff clasp, spelling out "Protect Me From What I Want" in Morse code. The necklace is 36 inches in length.


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Last week Mr C and I took a trip to Menorca for 7 nights. A last minute decision based on lots of recommendations from various people!
The hotel and resort was not our first choice unfortunately, we went from a quiet area and hotel to a fairly busy resort. I can't complain to much though as it was so nice to relax and not to worry about work, house selling or house work!
The weather was fantastic, it was a bit cloudy on Tuesday but that was perfect for me as it was the day we went shopping!
Here are a few pictures from the trip!
I'm already thinking about our next holiday, if anyone has any recommendations please let me know!
Much Love


text: Play the best spa games online for free at TheFrozenGames.com.We have 33 spa games for girls that can be played online. Play all our cool free spa games online at our site. Vote for the best spa games for girls. It is all about Frozen Games with new Elsa Games every day. Share all the Frozen games with your friends! Enjoy playing spa now.


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Want to know more about this Community?
Map It
Rundle is a community in the North East section of the city of Calgary.
The community development started in the early 1970's along with many other communities in this area.
There are both single family homes and multi-family residences in this neighbourhood.
The community can be found just south of 32nd Avenue NE in between 36th Street NE and 52nd Street NE.
The neighbour just on the west side of 36th Street is The Peter Lougheed Hospital.
The community is conveniently located near commercial and industrial areas. It has great parks and playgrounds and is connected to the bike path system.
The LRT (Light Rail Transit) is in the community and runs along 36th Street NE with the station located close to 25th Avenue NE.
Shopping can be found all along 36th Street NE with Sunridge Mall just west of the community and south of the Peter Lougheed Hospital.
Another mall, a little further south is called Marlborough Mall and is named after the community that it resides in.
Access to downtown is via 36th Street NE to 16th Avenue NE (TransCanada Highway) or further south to Memorial Drive. Schools an be found in the community and surrounding neighbourhoods.
Calgary Board of Education
Elementary Rundle
4120 Rundlehorn Drive NE (In the community)
Elementary Cecil Swanson
4820 Rundlewood Drive NE (in the community)
Junior High Dr. Gordon Higgins
155 Rundlehill Drive NE (In the community)
Senior High Lester B. Pearson
1304 - 44th Street SE (Pineridge)
Calgary Catholic School District
K-6 St. Rupert
111 Rundlehill Drive NE (In the community)
K-9 St. Martha
6020 - 4th Avenue SE (Marlborough)
7-9 St. Rose of Lima
2419 - 50th Street NE (Rundle)
Senior High Father Lacombe
3615 Radcliffe Drive SE (Radisson Heights)
Population: 11,258
Owner Occupied: 60 per cent
Hospital: Peter Lougheed, on 36th Street NE at 26th Avenue NE
Vehicle Travel time to Downtown: 16 minutes
Vehicle Travel time to Airport: 15 minutes
Vehicle Travel time to Banff: 1 hour and 40 minutes


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Tag : Star Wars controversy
Monday, Oct 26, 2020Last Update:2:54 PM EDT
title : 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' First Official Trailer Released, Black Stormtrooper Controversy Ensues
summary : Director J.J. Abrams released an 88-second trailer for the newest Star Wars film over the Thanksgiving weekend. However, some fans were unhappy with the content inside it, sparking a controversy.
date : Dec 01, 2014 05:05 PM EST


text: LONDON, UK, June 9 -- The planned Global Venture between AT&T and BT has named many of the members of its leadership team and the principal locations from which they will operate. The leadership team will manage the company's organizations from bases of operations dispersed across the Americas, the UK, Europe, Asia and the Caribbean.The company's principal employee locations will include Australia, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Singapore, the UK, and the Americas. The team leading the company's operations will include Nancy Gofus, president of Global Products and Services; Neil Hobbs, president of Global Markets; and Cathy Martine, president of International Carrier Services. In addition, David Nagel, Chief Technology Officer of AT&T and president of AT&T Labs, will assume additional responsibilities as Chief Technology Officer for the Global Venture.


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This is gonna be sooooo emotional. Lo & behold, you've been warned.
My grandpa, fondly known as AhKong amongst grandchildren, is Chua Hong Han. He has passed away due to old age, yesterday morning, 6th January. *paused to tahan tears*. This blog post is dedicated to him and all the good memories he gave me.
When i was a little girl, life was poor. My dad has to go Indonesia to work. So we stayed at AhKong's house. So, my childhood revolves around my mother, grandparents and my beloved uncles James and Junior. Ah Kong, is a fisherman, but he also works on the paddy field. How does that happen? I don't know, the people of those days are really hardworking!
I do not get to see him in the morning, because he wakes up really early. He has a car, usually in mustard yellow color. He will drive to work. His car was sold or disposed about 20years ago, but i remembered very vividly. It was a 4 door with rubbery cushion and sponge, with roller window and thin skinny gear rod. The steering wheel is skinny too. How do I remember so well? He never locks his car door, i will sneak inside and play driving driving.
During the evening about 3pm or 4pm, AhKong will be home. He will sit at the dining table, demanding for kuih for teatime. Usually at this hours too, Uncle Lim will appear with groceries and some nyonya kuih from Tengkera. I always seen Uncle Lim around, in and out of our home. Uncle Lim then married my eldest aunty. That was the first wedding I attended without knowing. So, AhKong was a kopi O lover. He will carry two water containers to work, 1 contains plain water and the other, kopi O. Sometimes when i will force myself to wake up very early to drink Ahkong's kopi O. Usually i get scolded because its too hot and kopi O is not for small kids. AhKong introduced me my favourite tea break menu- Kopi O with So Ta Pia. Until today, i enjoyed it. He will drink kopi O and make the 'ahhhhhh' sound to make me laugh. Thats how much i enjoy my tea break moment. Shamefully, at later stage of life, he couldnt drink kopi O already due to vertiligo that makes him dizzy and unbalanced.
The next thing which I'm going to reveal is my biggest secret. AhKong and I can spend hours together, watching Hokkien Hee (hokkien drama). Uncle Lim used to rent tapes for AhKong, and during his resting hours, i will sit with AhKong for his hokkien hee session. The hokkien hee is those traditional ones, with dancing and singing ala bollywood. I cant remember clearly the style of the hokkien hee, but as a child(until age 6), i enjoyed stealing moms dress and AhMak's cloths to make selendang and dance. You know, those opera style and the hand pusing pusing moves. It was so embarassing because everybody seems to think its funny and teased me. Hence i put this memory into the my brain's safety box and lock it away. Come to think of it, i think it is AhKong who disturb me and gave me a selendang then tease me. That old man is the mastermind of practical jokes, i tell you!
I inherited similar traits from my AhKong. We both have thunderous temper, we love sambal, kopi O, ice water, ice cream, fruits of various kinds. One thing for sure, family dinner time will never be the same. As he grew older, weaker, lonelier, and sadder, he became a difficult person to deal with. And for this, i admit that i have not done better as a grandchildren. I never regret for not loving you enough, i regret you had such a hard days of late. I'm sorry AhKong!
If there's one thing I will give you, i will pray with all my heart, you will be surrounded with love in your next life. I will pray that your thunderous temper will be harmonised by people who loved you tremendously. I will pray for that, i promise you this.
I love you, and do take care. Death is just an another adventure, *waves goodbye* i will never forget you!


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A key figure in the development of keeping most of West Marin as open space will be feted Saturday at one of the areas he helped preserve.
Dr. Marty Griffin will be honored on the occasion of his 90th birthday at Audubon Canyon Ranch in Bolinas at a sold-out event.
Griffin, who lives in Belvedere, first laid his eyes on the area around Bolinas as a 13-year old Boy Scout. He was struck by the natural beauty, including egret and heron colonies among the tall redwood trees.
"We had camped out the night before and when morning came I looked out and it all opened up before my eyes, it was really something," he recalled. "I remember thinking that one day I wanted to live here."
He returned to the area as a college student while studying zoology at the University of California at Berkeley with a bird watching class. He called the trip to the egret heronry on Bolinas Lagoon "a welcome contrast to the stench of the purulent tide-flats and garbage dumps of the East Bay shoreline."
Griffin came back to the region after World War II to practice medicine in Sausalito and was again struck by the beauty of the undeveloped western part of the county. But he saw changes afoot.
The completion of the Golden Gate Bridge in 1937 made it possible to make Marin a suburb to San Francisco and builders had their eyes on the bucolic western part of the county.
"I went to a meeting on the proposed large freeway going from the Golden Gate Bridge to West Marin and up the Sonoma Coast," he said. "I picked up a brochure and was horrified when I saw the maps. The freeway was going to destroy Bolinas Lagoon and Tomales Bay. I knew we needed to save this."
He got a lesson on how to halt development from Caroline Livermore, with whom he worked to fight a plan to fill in and develop Richardson Bay tidelands. Livermore raised money and bought land she felt needed protection.
Griffin then sought to employ the same strategy in West Marin as he served as acquisition manager for the Marin Audubon Society.
His first work was in 1961 at what now is Audubon Canyon Ranch on the shores of Bolinas Lagoon when he wrote a personal check for $1,000 to hold the property for that was being sold for $337,000.
"I don't think I could have even covered the $1,000 at that point. I wondered how I would come up with the rest," he said with a laugh.
He enlisted the help of other Audubon Societies in the region and their memberships to help buy the land, which provides a home for egrets and provides educational programs.
"And we didn't stop there. We bought more land around Bolinas Lagoon and Tomales Bay," Griffin said, saying the key was to be quicker than the developers to find landowners willing to sell.
"We had to keep all the operations very secretive because once someone else found out what you were up to it was trouble," he said.
Griffin, who worked on land acquisition for Audubon for 11 years, also helped stop plans for a new city on the east shore of Tomales Bay, an effort he recalls with pride. The town was going to be built to take advantage of the new Point Reyes National Seashore.
By stopping the freeway, a water pipeline from the Russian River and a planned nuclear facility near Bodega Bay, Griffin and his cohorts eventually killed plans to urbanize West Marin.
"There was a time when I wasn't too popular among those developers," said Griffin, who chronicled the battles in his book "Saving the Marin-Sonoma Coast." "It was probably the biggest land-use battle California has ever seen."
Scott Feierabend, executive director of Audubon Canyon Ranch, said Griffin's role cannot be overemphasized.
"He saw that the whole coastlines of Marin and Sonoma were such a treasure," Feierabend said. "He understood if he could acquire keystone properties along the coastline they would be impediments to any linear construction."
Feierabend noted Griffin still remains active in his community and on environmental issues.
"He has vision and incredible enthusiasm," he said. "He is tireless in his work and bounds with energy."
Read more West Marin stories at the IJ's West Marin section.
Contact Mark Prado via e-mail at firstname.lastname@example.com


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"More than 250,000 youth who've never smoked traditional cigarettes have tried e-cigarettes. Data from National Youth Tobacco surveys estimate that middle and high school students who've used e-cigarettes are twice as likely to smoke traditional tobacco products"
Nursing 2017
While great strides have been made in decreasing traditional cigarette smoking in the United States, a new danger is poised to reverse this advance in disease prevention. Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes), also known as electronic nicotine delivery systems, have saturated the market in recent years. Nicotine is once again being made to look sexy, smart, and glamorous. The renormalization of smoking by this new technology exposes more individuals to nicotine and increases their risk for addiction and other health consequences. Efforts to regulate tobacco use are being sidelined by the big business of e-cigarettes.
Advertisers claim that e-cigarettes are merely a means to quit smoking by delivering nicotine, a tobacco derivative, through a process known as vaping, although evidence supporting this proposed benefit is scant. In spite of this, in 2014, vape, defined as the inhalation and exhalation of vapor through a device such as an e-cigarette, was named the Oxford English Dictionary word of the year.1
This article presents some of the dangers of e-cigarettes, examines their potential usefulness in tobacco cessation efforts, and discusses new legislation aimed at regulating these products.
Deadly allure
Young children, teens, and college-age youth who experiment with vaping may find themselves fighting a strong addiction to nicotine later on in adulthood. The highly addictive nature of nicotine is a critical element when an experimental tobacco smoker transitions to a sustained habit of cigarette smoking.2 Although e-cigarettes don't contain tobacco, they may contain tobacco-derived nicotine. A global survey of over 19,000 e-cigarette users found that less than 4% of them choose products that don't contain nicotine.3
More than 250,000 youth who've never smoked traditional cigarettes have tried e-cigarettes.4 Data from National Youth Tobacco surveys estimate that middle and high school students who've used e-cigarettes are twice as likely to smoke traditional tobacco products.4 A recent longitudinal study reports that youth who tried e-cigarettes were more likely to initiate traditional cigarette use over the subsequent year.5
Easy access coupled with flavoring make e-cigarettes especially appealing to children, adolescents, and young adults. As of early 2014, e-cigarette products were available in over 466 brands and 7,764 unique flavors with about 242 new flavors added per month.6,7 Public health strides to reverse the trend of youth tobacco use may be challenged by a product used by celebrities that's viewed as cool.
National reports of e-cigarette products demonstrated a 150% increase since 2012.8 Because Loomis et al. conducted their study before recent federal regulation, it may serve as a baseline measurement for any changes achieved with new legislation.8
Current federal tobacco laws resulted from decades of efforts to protect the public, and particularly children and teens, from smoking. Since early initiatives to curb harm from smoking cigarettes, substantial research has linked smoking to diseases of nearly all organs in the body, to harm to the fetus, and to overall morbidity and mortality.2 Although e-cigarettes are heralded in the lay media as a smoking cessation tool and can be easily purchased on the Internet, current research can't be used to predict the long-term effects or potential harm of e-cigarette use.9,10
In May 2016, the FDA extended its authority to include regulation of e-cigarettes that contain tobacco products and nicotine.11 The new regulations require product manufacturers to:
- list the ingredients in all e-cigarette products
- place health warning labels on all product packaging and ads
- register manufacturing establishments
- prohibit the sale of modified-risk tobacco products (including e-cigarettes, cigars, hookahs, pipe tobacco, nicotine gels, and dissolvable products that didn't previously fall under the FDA authority)
- prohibit sales to those under age 18, sales in vending machines except in adult-only venues, and distribution of free samples
- undergo a premarket review to receive marketing authorization.2,12
Examine the evidence
Before the FDA's 2016 ruling, concerns about the regulation of e-cigarette use had reached a fever pitch. The debate highlighted the controversy about the use of e-cigarette devices: Do they offer an acceptable alternative for smoking cessation or do they perpetuate smoking? Only two randomized controlled studies looking at the use of e-cigarettes as a smoking cessation tool have been published to date. Both demonstrated statistically insignificant evidence that the use of e-cigarettes improved rates of sustained smoking cessation.13,14 Both trials recommended further study. In a systematic review of 27 case reports about individuals using e-cigarettes, negative outcomes (such as systemic effects, nicotine poisoning, and mechanical effects) were reported in 25.15
The issues of e-cigarettes should prompt the public health community to gather all available evidence on their potential harm as well as their proposed benefits. Ethical implications for healthcare providers include addressing patient needs and lifestyle choices while refraining from promoting a product that may cause future harm.
The availability of e-cigarettes in retail outlets in the United States is more prevalent in communities with a higher median household income and lower percentage of minority residents.16 This is in contrast to low-income communities, which have the highest numbers of traditional smokers.17 E-cigarettes are marketed to young people, who aren't those most in need of smoking cessation efforts. Prior Federal regulations strictly prohibited this marketing practice. Data from a nationally representative sample of teens suggest that one of the biggest reasons teens vape is based on taste.18 Youth with increased access to e-cigarettes and a variety of flavors to choose from should raise some red flags for healthcare clinicians.4
Looking at the chemicals
E-cigarettes, which are powered by a battery, produce a vapor by heating a humectant such as propylene glycol mixed with flavorings and/or nicotine that activates when the user inhales.19 (See Anatomy of an e-cigarette.) Most users choose a nicotine product when vaping.10 While many products resemble a traditional cigarette, others resemble pipes, pens, or lipstick.19 Researchers question the quality control used in manufacturing e-cigarettes and the potential impact of inhaling aerosolized propylene glycol, the main chemical component in some products, as well as additional additives.15
The potential use of nicotine in e-cigarette products highlights the problem of nicotine addiction. The varying nicotine levels in different brands and unknown chemical components used remain untested and unclear.20
Many advocates of e-cigarettes believe that their harms are overstated. They argue that the cost-benefit equation should take into consideration these products' value as alternatives to smoking traditional cigarettes, saving long-term healthcare dollars spent on tobacco-related illness and death.21 Because e-cigarettes don't contain tobacco, they're purported to be "less toxic" than traditional tobacco products, but the lack of long-term research and the variability among available products makes this claim unsubstantiated to date.10 Additionally, the overall cost savings of substituting smokeless tobacco products to decrease negative health outcomes of traditional tobacco products is still unknown.
E-cigarettes have been treated as a single product for research purposes, but further investigation demonstrates increasing variability among products.20 Overgeneralizing about a product that may be beneficial in tobacco control in some of its forms could be dangerous because the long-term effects aren't yet realized.
A role in tobacco harm reduction?
In 2006, the American Council on Science and Health endorsed tobacco harm reduction (THR), defined as "actions taken to lower the health risks associated with using tobacco or nicotine."22,23 (See Goals of THR.) THR supporters contend that substituting safer sources of nicotine will help smokers who can't or won't stop smoking and that these smokers are less likely to develop complications associated with tobacco use.23
THR using e-cigarettes has been proposed as one of the more favorable options for harm reduction because of its acceptability by smokers.9 Even the American Heart Association (AHA), in a policy recommendation, states that supporting smoking cessation attempts with e-cigarettes is "reasonable" for those patients who've failed conventional treatment or refuse to use smoking cessation medication.6
How this particular viewpoint will play out in the form of national policy guidelines is unclear. However, the latest U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommendation concludes that evidence is insufficient to recommend the use of e-cigarettes as a tobacco cessation alternative.24
Advocates for stricter regulation of e-cigarettes suggest a different view on harm reduction. Their increasing concern is that the public opinion of smoking has softened and the acceptance of e-cigarettes will reverse efforts to date to decrease smoking overall.24 Tobacco companies have acquired some e-cigarette manufacturers, raising other concerns25: In the past, tobacco went unregulated for many years, largely due to the influence and lobbying efforts of tobacco corporations.26
With the new FDA regulations, history may repeat itself. The costly premarketing application process will undoubtedly leave only the biggest manufacturers—the tobacco companies—to market and sell these products.12 Other harms are highlighted by multiple lawsuits related to injuries from using e-cigarettes, including combustion, nicotine poisoning, and systemic effects such as sensory disturbances.27
The AHA, the American Lung Association, and the World Health Organization all support stringent regulatory efforts for e-cigarettes until their safety and efficacy are known.6 Another drawn-out public policy battle may be on the horizon.
Emerging health policy issue
In the not-too-distant past, the tobacco industry manipulated levels of nicotine in cigarettes without the public's knowledge, thereby increasing their potential for causing addiction. This revelation bolstered antismoking advocates across the country.26 Whether the tighter restrictions recently enacted will improve health outcomes in the general public remains to be seen, but they constitute important steps to protect the safety of the nation.
Questions still remain. The public is confused about where e-cigarette use is permitted. Most smoke-free laws were enacted before the introduction of e-cigarettes. Is e-cigarette use permitted where tobacco cigarette use is not? The health impact of exposure to secondhand vapor isn't known, and little legal guidance exists on this topic. Additionally, the scope of state and local laws varies and are only a temporary fix because they fail to provide a uniform national policy for e-cigarettes.19
E-cigarette sales have risen rapidly in the United States, from $195 million in 2011 to over $2 billion in 2015.28 Online sales have surpassed the $1 billion mark.29 These figures raise the stakes dramatically for those invested in the manufacturing and marketing of e-cigarettes. A complex dynamic is displayed by opposing objectives: the possible public benefits of smoking cessation alternatives versus potential future harm from e-cigarettes. The evidence-based recommendations surrounding e-cigarette use encompass four key components: inadequate safety, poor effectiveness, minimal regulation, and an ethical framework that proposes to do no harm.30
Now that the new FDA regulations have been initiated, healthcare professionals should guide patients based on current regulatory standards and best practices supported by well-designed research studies. Currently, 85 ongoing research projects are focused on e-cigarette use. Their results will help policymakers form reliable evidence-based recommendations going forward.12
Nursing implications
Nicotine addiction is considered a tobacco use disorder as defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5).31 Nurses are on the front lines, educating and promoting smoking cessation efforts to the public, and they must be well-informed of the harms and benefits associated with any suggested alternative to traditional tobacco use. Current research implies that nurses' lack of knowledge of the available resources to assist patients to stop smoking may hinder their efforts to conduct successful smoking cessation interventions.32 Promoting awareness of the potential harms of e-cigarettes among nurses involved in smoking cessation efforts is an important first step toward improving current strategies to mitigate the challenges from increasing availability and use of e-cigarettes.
Healthcare clinicians' recommendations should be reserved for strategies demonstrated to be safe and effective for patients who wish to quit smoking. These strategies include nicotine replacement therapy such as patches, gum, and inhalers; medications such as sustained-release bupropion hydrochloride, varenicline, clonidine, and nortriptyline; and counseling, support groups, and various online resources.33 Primary prevention and avoidance of tobacco products in general is an optimal health goal. The protection of youth and limitation of their access to e-cigarettes should be a national priority.
Future recommendations
Policies and public opinion have increased restraints on traditional cigarette smoking over the years.25 Sustaining the momentum of important public health advancements while guiding the public with sound evidence-based recommendations remains a core objective for healthcare clinicians today.
Nurses are particularly well-positioned to address smoking cessation efforts. For example, a growing body of evidence shows that nurses can play a key role in the public health efforts toward smoking cessation.32,34 One thing remains clear in the search for viable options to help with smoking cessation: Patients need evidence-based, reliable, and effective solutions. Civil libertarians, lobbyists, medical professionals, and the public will continue to sound off in the coming months as the new regulations take shape. Nurses must make sure that, as healthcare professionals and key stakeholders in this debate, we have the loudest voice.
Anatomy of an e-cigarette
Most e-cigarettes consist of three different components, including a:
- cartridge, which holds a liquid solution containing varying amounts of nicotine, flavorings, and other chemicals; some are nicotine free
- heating device (called an atomizer or a vaporizer)
- battery (or sometimes another power source).
In many e-cigarettes, puffing activates the battery-powered heating device, which vaporizes the liquid in the cartridge. The resulting aerosol or vapor is then inhaled (called "vaping").
1. Schiavenza M. The word of the year is a total drag. The Atlantic. 2014. http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/11/oxford-dictionary-names-vape-as-2014-word-of-the-year/382919/.
2. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The health consequences of smoking—50 years of progress. A report of the Surgeon General. Executive summary. 2014. http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/reports/50-years-of-progress/exec-summary.pdf.
3. Farsalinos KE, Romagna G, Tsiapras D, Kyrzopoulos S, Voudris V. Characteristics, perceived side effects and benefits of electronic cigarette use: a worldwide survey of more than 19,000 consumers. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2014;11(4):4356–4373.
4. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. More than a quarter-million youth who had never smoked a cigarette used e-cigarettes in 2013. 2014. http://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2014/p0825-e-cigarettes.html.
5. Leventhal AM, Strong DR, Kirkpatrick MG, et al. Association of electronic cigarette use with initiation of combustible tobacco product smoking in early adolescence. JAMA. 2015;314(7):700–707.
6. Bhatnagar A, Whitsel LP, Ribisl KM, et al. Electronic cigarettes: a policy statement from the American Heart Association. Circulation. 2014;130(16):1418–1436.
7. Zhu SH, Sun JY, Bonnevie E, et al. Four hundred and sixty brands of e-cigarettes and counting: implications for product regulation. Tob Control. 2014;23(suppl 3):iii3–iii9.
8. Loomis BR, Rogers T, King BA, et al. National and state-specific sales and prices for electronic cigarettes–U.S., 2012-2013. Am J Prev Med. 2016;50(1):18–29.
9. Nitzkin JL. The case in favor of e-cigarettes for tobacco harm reduction. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2014;11(6):6459–6471.
10. Tomashefski A. The perceived effects of electronic cigarettes on health by adult users: a state of the science systematic literature review. J Am Assoc Nurse Pract. 2016;28(9):510–515.
11. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. FDA takes significant steps to protect Americans from dangers of tobacco through new regulation. 2016. http://www.fda.gov/newsevents/newsroom/pressannouncements/ucm499234.htm.
12. Abbasi J. FDA extends authority to e-cigarettes: implications for smoking cessation. JAMA. 2016;316(6):572–574.
13. Bullen C, McRobbie H, Thornley S, Glover M, Lin R, Laugesen M. Effect of an electronic nicotine delivery device (e cigarette) on desire to smoke and withdrawal, user preferences and nicotine delivery: randomised cross-over trial. Tob Control. 2010;19(2):98–103.
14. Caponnetto P, Campagna D, Papale G, Russo C, Polosa R. The emerging phenomenon of electronic cigarettes. Expert Rev Respir Med. 2012;6(1):63–74.
15. Hua M, Talbot P. Potential health effects of electronic cigarettes: a systematic review of case reports. Prev Med Rep. 2016;4:169–178.
16. Rose SW, Barker DC, D'Angelo H, et al. The availability of electronic cigarettes in U.S. retail outlets, 2012: results of two national studies. Tob Control. 2014;23(suppl 3):iii10–iii16.
17. Agaku IT, King BA, Dube SR; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Current cigarette smoking among adults—United States, 2005-2012. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2014;63(2):29–34.
18. Patrick ME, Miech RA, Carlier C, O'Malley PM, Johnston LD, Schulenberg JE. Self-reported reasons for vaping among 8th, 10th, and 12th graders in the US: nationally-representative results. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2016;165:275–278.
19. Paradise J. Electronic cigarettes: smoke-free laws, sale restrictions, and the public health. Am J Public Health. 2014;104(6):e17–e18.
20. Hitchman SC, McNeill A, Brose LS. Electronic cigarettes: time for an accurate and evidence-based debate. Addiction. 2014;109(6):867–868.
21. Wagener TL, Siegel M, Borrelli B. Electronic cigarettes: achieving a balanced perspective. Addiction. 2012;107(9):1545–1548.
22. Lindson-Hawley N, Hartmann-Boyce J, Fanshawe TR, Begh R, Farley A, Lancaster T. Interventions to reduce harm from continued tobacco use. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2016;10:CD005231.
23. Rodu B. The scientific foundation for tobacco harm reduction, 2006-2011. Harm Reduct J. 2011;8:19.
24. U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. Draft recommendation statement. Tobacco smoking cessation in adults, including pregnant women: behavioral and pharmacotherapy interventions. 2015. http://bit.ly/1F3SKub.
25. Maron DF. Are e-cigarettes safe. Sci Am. 2014;310(5):31–32. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/smoke-screen-are-e-cigarettes-safe/.
26. Derthick MA. Up in Smoke: From Legislation to Litigation in Tobacco Politics. 3rd ed. Washington, DC: CQ Press; 2012.
27. Rudy SF, Durmowicz EL. Electronic nicotine delivery systems: overheating, fires and explosions. Tob Control. [e-pub Mar. 9, 2016].
28. Statistic Brain Research Institute. Electronic cigarette statistics. 2016. http://www.statisticbrain.com/electronic-cigarette-statistics.
29. Wile R. E-cigarettes just passed the $1 billion sales mark. Business Insider. 2013. http://www.businessinsider.com/e-cigarettes-passes-1-billion-sales-2013-8.
30. Meernik C, Goldstein AO. Should clinicians recommend e-cigarettes to their patients who smoke? No. Ann Fam Med. 2016;14(4):302–303.
31. American Psychiatric Association. Highlights of changes from DSM-IV-TR to DSM-5. 2013. http://www.dsm5.org/documents/changes%20from%20dsm-iv-tr%20to%20dsm-5.pdf.
32. Dombrowski JJ, Snelling AM, Kalicki M. Health promotion overview: evidence-based strategies for occupational health nursing practice. Workplace Health Saf. 2014;62(8):342–349.
33. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Best Practices for Comprehensive Tobacco Control Programs. III. Cessation interventions. 2014. http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/stateandcommunity/best_practices/pdfs/2014/sectionA-III.pdf.
34. Rice VH, Hartmann-Boyce J, Stead LF. Nursing interventions for smoking cessation. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2013;(8):CD001188.
35. Maki J. The incentives created by a harm reduction approach to smoking cessation: Snus and smoking in Sweden and Finland. Int J Drug Policy. 2015;26(6):569–574.
Source: Nursing 2019


text:
Leslie Cipolla
Licensed Massage Therapist
"Expert in pain relief and stress reduction massage"
College educated and NYS licensed professional Leslie Cipolla asks you to come and take an uplifting journey that will
leave you feeling pain free and relaxed.
Why massage therapy?
Let me demonstrate how therapeutic massage can improve your health and quality of life by relieving:
- * Muscular aches and pains
- * Sciatica pain
- * All types of back pain
- * Stiff neck and shoulder pain
- * TMJ pain and carpal tunnel pain
- * Stress and sinus headaches
- * Tennis elbow and Golfers elbow
- * Leg, calf cramps and foot pain
- * Mental and bodily stress due to work and/or family responsibilities
- * Also increases blood circulation and boosts your immune system
- * Studies have shown massages to release serotonin and endorphins
- * Studies have also shown that massage helps improve sleep, which has a role in pain and healing
Professional line of massage lotion used - Biotone (hypoallergenic - unscented)
This unique specially developed lotion manages to maintain gentle drag and extended, lasting performance and
still penetrates the skin for a pleasant non-greasy finish. Or if you prefer organic coconut oil.
For an appointment please call or text 631-766-2356
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Bahar Aav Tari Bairi Batavu Gujarati Natak
Synopsis: This is a adult comedy drama. The story revolves around Madhav, his wife and his friend Manohar. The coupleRead more
Synopsis: This is a adult comedy drama. The story revolves around Madhav, his wife and his friend Manohar. The coupleRead more
Overview: The Bhagavad Gita , also referred to as Gita, is a 700–verse Dharmic scripture that is part of theRead more
Bhada No Bungalow – Mahesh Bhagat – Gujarati Comedy Enjoy the gujarati comedy video "Bhada No Bungalow" by Mahesh BhagatRead more
Synopsis: In a drought-stricken city in India, the emperor Maharaja Dhiraj Chandrasen, who has two wives, and no children, orders allRead more
Synopsis: Since the inception of Stage; dramatics, various protagonists, characters, and stories have been performed on stage, portraying different shades andRead more
Synopsis: A scientific survey says men have a lesser life span and have more blood pressure problems than women do. InRead more
Watch and listen Gujarati famous songs with lyrics in english. Bhishka dene maiya pingala, Jogi ubho chey tare dwara, MaiyaRead more
Watch and listen Gujarati famous bhajan with lyrics in english. Be phool chadave murti par, Prabhu nahi male sasta ma,Read more
Synopsis : The story covers two types of people the ones who do everything to have the perfect relationship with their wivesRead more
Watch and listen one of the famous gujarati prabhatiya with lyrics. Bhajan na bharoshe re ante te nar opse re,Read more
Synopsis: Watch devotional super hit Gujarati Movie featuring Naresh kanodiya, Roma Manek, Hitu Kanodiya , Priti, Padma Rani, Kalpana Deevan, Devendra Pandit, Arvind Joshi, Abhishek, Hema Deevan, Tina Ghoyal, AaushiRead more


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New BC Wine Awards competition announced
Photo: Skimmerhorn winemaker Mark Rattray
In a major expansion, a new British Columbia Wine Awards competition will be launched this fall by the Okanagan Wine Festivals Society.
The new competition replaces the traditional competition that the OWFS has been running for 30 years. In all that time, the competition has been open only to wineries that are members of the OWFS – which is to say, Okanagan and Similkameen wineries making grape wines.
The British Columbia Wine Awards are open to all the wineries of British Columbia, including the fruit wineries. The OWFS anticipates 600 entries for the competition, with the judging taking place in Kelowna from October 3 to 6.
A panel of 12 judges (I am one) will award gold, silver and bronze medals, along with "Best Overall" awards for red, white and dessert wine and a Best New Winery award.
The only other British Columbia competition open to all wineries (except fruit wineries) is the Lieutenant Governor's Awards of Excellence in Wine. It makes only 12 awards. In the eight years since it was launched, virtually all the awards have gone to Okanagan wineries.
I expect that Okanagan wineries will dominate the BC Wine Awards as well, but only because most of British Columbia's 175 or so wineries are in the Okanagan.
But I would not be surprised to see significant medals go to wineries on Vancouver Island and in the Kootenays, assuming those wineries compete. For example, Creston's Skimmerhorn Winery, while practically unknown outside the region, is a pretty accomplished winery. Mark Rattray, the winemaker, travels here each vintage from New Zealand and makes excellent wines for owners Al and Marleem Hoag.
The Vancouver Island (and Gulf Islands) wineries will be able to compete with wines from the 2009 vintage, which was a great year for quality. Most of the 2009 island wines I have tasted this year have been very good indeed. Once again, those wines are rarely seen off the island. A few gold and silver medals for these wines will draw the attention that these wineries deserve.
Allowing fruit wines into a major competition in this province is a breakthrough for the burgeoning number of fruit wine producers. Often, fruit wines are excluded: for example, the Vancouver Playhouse Wine Festival almost never allows fruit wines into its show. To be sure, the Playhouse gets applications each year from far more grape wineries than it has room for.
I suspect that the fruit wine flights will be the most challenging to judge, since few, if any, of the judges have experience with fruit wines. However, we all have to start somewhere.
There are perhaps two dozen fruit wineries in British Columbia. And most of the grape wineries on Vancouver Island also make blackberry port. With any luck, the judges will have a good flight of blackberry ports, for that will help us understand this wine and figure out the difference between a medal winner and an also-ran.
Some fruit wineries already have begun to win awards in the handful of significant competitions that accept these wines. Forbidden Fruit Winery and Elephant Island Orchard Wines, for example, have an impressive number of medals. But most of their peers, perhaps from not competing, lack their profile. Perhaps the BC Wine Awards will bring a few more into the spotlight.
This fall's Okanagan Wine Festival, which runs from September 30 to October 10, appears to one of the largest in the 30-year history of the festival. This year's guide to events is 60 pages long. If you can't find one in a local wine store or winery, it is also on line at www.thewinefestivals.com.
The medal winners wine reception, which you can taste the award winners, is on the afternoon of October 8 in the Penticton Convention Centre. Tickets are $45. As well, the grand finale consumer tastings are that evening and the next evening, also in the convention centre. Tickets are $57.


text:
Key points: Loose leash Turns; Recall; Stand; Dog body language & good manners
The following is an overview of the training exercises and discussion topics covered during Week 2:
Revision of Week 1 exercises
New exercises:
- Dogs to Sit for greeting: Use of food to reward good behaviour and "negative punishment" if dog jumps up
- Left About Turn: Use dog's name and food lure to get dog level with your left leg, place right leg in front of dog and use lure to complete turn with left leg, dog swinging its backside (anti-clockwise) around to follow you
- Informal Recall: Loose lead walking, stop, use dog's name to gain attention, then lure dog with food and command "Come" – run backwards short distance if necessary and repeat lure and command. Dog only has to return to owner, it does not have to sit in front of owner (working towards Week 5 Formal Recall)
- Remember: never reprimand a dog when it has come to you (even if you've had to fetch it!).
Discussion - Body language & good manners:
- Discussion on dog body language – warning signs
- Appropriate social behaviours for dog to dog greeting
- How to approach another dog and handler on the footpath – handler to handler
- You have a right to move to another spot in class or ask another handler to restrain their dog if it's making your dog feel anxious
New exercises:
- Stand: Use food lure, left hand signal & voice command
- Dog to Stand on Inspection Table: lure, do not force, okay if dog does not want to walk onto table and/or stand (come back and try when quiet later).
- Responsible Dog Ownership Course Resources: Quotes from & links to various sources to complement Discussion Points covered in class.


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I'm a horrible boss, and a union's worst nightmare.
My employees don't work standard 9–5's. In fact, they don't have set hours to begin with. They also work from home whenever they want to. In fact, they have unlimited vacation days. I don't review their expense reports, I sign them blindly. In fact, I encourage them to spend and simply reconcile credit card statements at the end of the month. Managers don't get more laissez-faire than I do. But all of this is completely intentional.
In giving my team complete trust, I've received the complete opposite of what you'd expect from the aforementioned circumstances — my team is here all the time, they're working on weekends, they're even more productive on the days that they occasionally work from home, and all of them have yet to take a single vacation day. Why? Because they enjoy their work. They want to be here. They want to work. They're in an environment that supports excellence.
And excellence doesn't happen in places where a boss is breathing down your neck.
My Gen Y hires are all focused, hard-working, and well-meaning individuals who don't even entertain the notion of abusing our workplace's open-concept, holacratic, transparent, results-only-work environment. Every decision made is one that assumes that my team is independent, capable, trustworthy and all aligned on the end goal: make awesome things. As the manager of digital marketing & creative multimedia teams, I've taken the Theory Y approach to management.
Theory X and Theory Y are theories of human motivation, created and developed by Douglas McGregor at the MIT Sloan School of Management in the 1960s, that have been used in human resource management, organizational behaviour, organizational communication and organizational development. Wikipedia describes the two contrasting models of workforce motivation as such:
Theory X
In this theory, management assumes employees are inherently lazy and will avoid work if they can, and that they inherently dislike work. As a result of this, management believes that workers need to be closely supervised and comprehensive systems of control developed. A hierarchical structure is needed with narrow span of control at each and every level.
Theory Y
In this theory, management assumes employees may be ambitious, self-motivated and exercise self-control. It is believed that employees enjoy their mental and physical work duties. Given the proper conditions, Theory Y managers believe that employees will learn to seek out and accept responsibility, exercise self-control and self-direction in accomplishing objectives to which they are committed.
Theory X could work well for managers in workplaces such the military, in fast food chains or other places where menial, tedious and/or soul-crushing work is done. But in an agency setting — and most certainly for knowledge workers — Theory X would stifle creativity and ultimately be the undoing of the undertaking. In my organizations, we give Gen Y a massive sandbox, shiny tools and plenty of time to work and play.
To get the best from Gen Y, I encourage my fellow managers to hire smart, creative, funny and talented people. Then, start from a place of complete trust, assuming that your team wants to be there and do their best work. Find ways to enable and encourage them. Then, step back and let them do what they do best — find creative, innovative ways to reach the goal. Your job isn't to manage Gen Y (they're perfectly capable of managing themselves!) Your job isn't to create their to-do lists, it's simply to remove obstacles from their path. Your job isn't to tell them what to do, it's simply to inspire them.
I'm a horrible boss, because I'm not a boss at all. I'm simply a coach. And coaches don't play ball — they just empower and motivate their teams to win championships. Then, they get out of the way.
This post was originally published on Medium.