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LAS VEGAS — Cisco will seek to tackle the growing market for "huddle spaces" — informal or ad hoc collaborations that aren't necessarily confined to the boardroom in more open modern offices, and will also bring its room-based solutions downmarket with a new hardware offering for a smaller, five-person room.
Announced at its annual Partner Summit here this week, Webex Share is a device that attaches via HDMI to any screen a customer may have, and brings with it many of the whiteboarding and screen-sharing abilities familiar to users of collaboration tools such as Webex Teams. Webex Share is very much the "Chromecast" approach to bringing collaboration to places where teams gather to work together, enabling new experience and functionality via a simple dongle.
Sri Srinivasan, vice president and general manager of Webex Teams, Meetings and devices, said the Share will come in with a price point below $500 U.S., making it an attractive way to get more value from displays companies already have.
Srinivasan said there are more than 25 million such "huddle spaces" already out there in companies worldwide, and the number of such ad hoc meeting points is growing at about 20 per cent per year. But it's a market that's not largely connected — he noted that nearly half of those spaces have no formal technology enablement.
"And those than do have it, have way too many wires and are way too difficult to manage," he added. "It makes it very difficult proposition for an enterprise to scale it out. They want to bring value to their employees, but they're getting a pretty poor experience and they're often not able to do what they set out to do."
The Webex Room Mini Kit is for more formalized collaboration, but shares the "attach to any existing screen" mentality of the Share, essentially a set-top box for enabling a smaller room-based collaboration experience. It's targeted at teams of up to five people in a single location that need to interact with remote teams of a similar size of larger, using Cisco's room-based collaboration offerings.
Jay Weisblatt, lead for the collaboration partner team in Cisco's Global Partner Organization, said that the "huddle space market has been pretty elusive for everyone" to date, but with the combination of hardware built for the market and partner experience and expertise, Cisco is bullish on its ability to capture the market.
"It's really cracking open an entirely new market, and a market where nobody else is even close to a simple, comprehensive platform," Weisblatt said.
For partners who have already invested in a video collaboration practice, Weisblatt called the new offerings "an easy add-on" to enable collaboration in new and novel places customers may not have considered in the past, while the modular and simple nature of the solutions makes them "an easy way to com in." Cisco's collaboration offerings "used to have a pretty high bar" in terms of specializations to do design and deployment, but that's evolving as the solutions get simpler and target smaller customer or groups within customers, he said.
As with most solutions, Weisblatt said it's not a matter of selling a specific product, but partners recognizing opportunities or pain points within their customers.
In many cases, he said, the simple to sell and deploy new solutions may be the all important "foot in the door" to open up a new customer to broader collaboration suite possibilities.
"Any partner can come in with the,, and then go look at what they need in the boardroom, in terms of training and support," he said. "It cascades from there, and can ultimately even lead to an endpoint on every desk."
Cisco also announced plans to integrate its Webex Teams collaboration software with the cloud calling capabilities it acquired when it purchased Broadsoft earlier this year, and formalized plans for the cloud-based Teams with its Jabber on-prem collab tool, part of what new Cisco collaboration chief Amy Chang called a strategy of "building bridges, not islands." In the past, Cisco's collaboration tools have, oddly enough, not collaborated terribly well together, but Chang said that will change with a new and unified portfolio approach.
"Thing like Webex and Jabber should work together, and they will work together," Chang said.


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Welcome to part two of our blog exploring why the humble espresso is truly the king of coffees, and the vital role it plays in the success of your business.
In part one - click here if you missed it - I talked about how important it is to make consistently perfect espresso all day, every day so that all of your coffees are the very best quality every time. The sort of coffee that makes your customers come back for more and tell their friends too! I focused on having the right equipment and making sure you regularly maintain it.
But that's just the beginning. Here, in part two, we'll explore the next stage - how to make the perfect espresso.
Mix these two key ingredients together – the right equipment and making high quality espresso, and you'll have a recipe for success!
So how do you make consistently high quality espresso? Here are my top tips:
- Quality is key
- Regular checks
- The perfect brew
- All in the timing
- Fresh is best
- On the level
Source a good quality roasted coffee bean from a reputable coffee roaster, and work with your supplier to establish and maintain a good business relationship.
Check the grind of the coffee and the shot time on a regular basis - at least four times a day.
Just like a good cup of tea, you have to brew the coffee to the correct temperature to achieve the best results. The extraction is made by passing
hot water - 190 to 202 °F (or 88-94°C) with a pressure of 9 bar through the ground coffee.
To create the perfect espresso, aim for a 22-23 second shot. If your shot is too short (10-15 seconds) it will be under extracted and thin, and
if it's over extracted (28 seconds plus) it will be bitter.
To ensure the freshness of each espresso shot, don't store more than 250 grams of coffee in your hopper.
Use the Tamp to even out the coffee to ensure it is level in the portafilter. If the coffee isn't even, the flavour of the coffee will be affected; it's important to make sure there are no gaps, and your coffee is as even as possible.
Remember - the espresso is the basis of the majority of coffees, so your espresso needs to be perfect every single time to keep your customers coming back for more.
As well as my top tips above, practice is really important. I recommend you produce at least three or four espressos every morning before you sell one single cup of coffee.
We'd love to hear your views on making the perfect espresso. Perhaps you have some tips you can share with us? If you do, please leave us a comment.
Supplying Artisan coffees, teas, hot chocolate, espresso and bean-to-cup machines in Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hampshire, Oxfordshire, Surrey and Wiltshire

subset: commoncrawl


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Cheap gifts that impress!
Being frugal can be a character trait or a necessity.
Some people like to watch their money while others have such a large extended family, they simply have to budget their gift spending.
It is a misconception that cheap gifts are cheesy. If you choose your present wisely, add a few homemade accessories and decoration, it can be equally impressive and memorable as a more expensive gift. People realize that, in most cases, effort and intention are more valuable than anything money can buy.
Lovers can surprise one another for Valentine's Day, or any other romantic occasion, with a self-composed poem or song. The girls can knit a scarf, sweater or hat, while the guys can surprise their sweetheart with a handcrafted jewelry box, a CD with their favourite songs, or an expected picnic at the park. Pack roasted chicken, cheese & crackers, fruit, condiments, a nice bottle of wine and a blanket and you will have a wonderful time. Even simple sandwiches that you personally made will make her heart flutter.
The best way to save on gifts is by watching the sales. Toiletries, colognes, picture frames, stationary, wish cards, board games, tote bags, music CDs & DVDs, coffee cups, gardening and handyman tools are often reduced. Why not pick up those items and stash them in the corner of a closet until the time is right? The person receiving the gift does not know you only paid half and will feel extremely special because of your generosity.
Lots of gifts for everyone in the family can be purchased for under $ 20.
For children:
• Reading & colouring books are available for all age groups.
• Wooden or plastic building blocks help with coordination and kids can also learn their colours.
• Babies love motion-sensor fish bowls, featuring lights, soothing music and ocean sounds.
• Teenagers love handheld games. It keeps them busy and will make car rides a lot more peaceful.
For her:
• A nice coffee table runner with matching placemats can be found for every season.
• Most women love mood rings as well as fashion or custom jewelry.
• The younger woman with an extensive wardrobe may enjoy a lady's watch with interchangeable wristbands.
• Candles are romantic mood makers, but more so if they are scented and float in a decorative glass dish.
For him:
• Gadget lovers will be thrilled with a brand new tactical laser self defense flashlight.
• A wall clock with the logo of his favourite sports team fits perfectly in his workshop or bar.
• You can never go wrong with a gourmet sausage or imported beer sampler.
• A 1000 piece bolt, screw & washer kit neatly arranged in a plastic storage case is a crafter's dream.
Handmade gifts are appreciated year round, but especially during Christmas. Trays of cookies and squares are handed out on beautiful tin trays. The ladies craft exquisite necklaces, earrings & bracelets, children make tree ornaments, which they will hand out to their grandparents, uncles and aunts, and the carpenters will carve wooden salad bowls and picturesque figurines. Paintings, drawings and collages, counted cross stitch wall hangings, hand-knotted rugs and other crafts will be ever so impressive. Yes, the materials may have been cheap, but with the love that went into these creations, their value has skyrocketed, turning them into priceless treasures!


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Please complete and submit the form below to request a proposal for your company. Note: this form is for price quotations only.
All fields marked with * are mandatory.
You are being directed to the Life Balance Service Request Form
You are being directed to the HIPAA compatible Counseling Service Request Form
To request Counseling or Life Balance Services, you may contact us by:


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Posts under tag: outlook.com
The next step: Outlook.com is migrating into Office 365
(Original article from Tom Warren for TheVerge.com)
Microsoft is migrating its Outlook.com email service over to Office 365 soon, and with it will come a new interface and features. In a significant overhaul of Outlook.com, Microsoft is adding 13 new themes to its email service. While the look is familiar, it's now more closely aligned to the look and feel of the upcoming desktop and Windows 10 versions of the Outlook app.
Most of the new features are centered around improving the overall email experience. Clutter is designed to sort messages you ignore into a separate folder to keep your inbox clean. Microsoft says Clutter will automatically learn which emails to filter out over time, and you can manually drag messages in and out of the Clutter folder to help train it. If email filtering isn't your thing, you can turn Clutter off to keep a classic inbox.
Microsoft is also improving the search interface for Outlook.com. Search suggestions will automatically highlight the people you email regularly when you're searching for content, and a Refiners feature lets you filter search results based on sender, folder, date, and attachments. There's even a highlight in search results so you can clearly find what you're looking for. Search was one of the weak points of Outlook.com, so it's encouraging to see Microsoft address this.
For more of this article, click here.


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Call it sex-change you can believe in. This author reported Tuesday that Barack Obama had held the first-ever White House transgender conference last Friday. The People's House conducted this proud meeting in such complete secrecy that we know the identity of only one attendee, Mara Keisling of the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE), a group lobbying for "a comprehensive civil rights … [Read more...]
Obama's Decrees Cause Energy Prices to "Skyrocket"
In a candid moment while running for president, Barack Obama told the editorial board of the San Francisco Chronicle, "under my plan…electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket." Last week, the Obama administration moved to make that a reality, using its rule by executive fiat to punish the coal industry. The action comes as the president is halting offshore oil drilling and threatening one … [Read more...]
Obama Considering Rule by Executive Order in 2011
This morning, political commentators are paying a great deal of attention to one of the Los Angeles Times' stories about Barack Obama's plans for a Republican takeover of Congress. Unfortunately, they are focusing on the wrong one. Most commentators spent the morning quoting the president's remarks on a black radio program that a GOP-dominated Congress will result in "hand-to-hand combat." The … [Read more...]


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Jerry Craven, Director of Religious Education, announced the listing of CCD students who had perfect attendance for the Spring Semester of the 2012/2013 school year.
Grade 1: Joshua Davis, Sophie Granville, and Olivia Hutton.
Grade 2: Mischa Corrigan, Maddox Folmar, Daniel Gray, Jamie Massung, Abby Vaux, and Jocelyn Williams.
Grade 3: Isabella Curtorillo, Olivia Curtorillo, and Lauren Sinclair.
Grade 4: Cheyenne Corrigan, Jocelyn Hutton, Haley Mantz, Michael Tocimak, Dale Weaver, and Harley Williams.
Grade 6: Dawson Granville and Natalie Ruggiero.
Grade 7: Kyra James.
Grade 9: Logan Butterworth and Aaron James.
Grade 10: Ryan Kost, Colton Moore, Ben Webster, and Carl Webster.
Grade 11: Sarah Belinda, Cameron Caprio, Erica Coval, Cody Horgas and Jacki Zawisa.
Announcements >


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UAC (User Account Control) is a Windows Security mechanism that ensures that malwares and virus infected scripts and applications will not be able to exploit system administrative privileges. Whenever an application attempts to write to system wide locations, it prompts standard user to enter system admin password to let application write to required system folders and locations, such as, Program Files, Windows registry, etc. UAC Process Analyzer is a portable application which informs you about the integrity of a selected running process. It helps users identify the UAC restrictions imposed on the applications. UAC Process Analyzer fetches UAC specific security details for selected application, which includes, Integrity Level, Trusted Directory, UAC Virtualization and Digital Signature. UAC Analyzer assists application developers in investigating the reasons due to which their applications might be considered suspicious by UAC."
Download: Home Page.


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Autism on Scene Response Cards
Designed for law enforcement and first response field use. Check out this article about how the Irondequoit police are using these important cards.
Contains key communication and response information for first responders.
Can be used by children and adults with autism, parents and care providers as an on-scene handout.
Laminated cards come in two sizes, small (business card) or large.
Card front sample statements:
- Communication – "May not respond to your commands or questions"
- Behavior – "May laugh or giggle at your presence"
- In Criminal Justice Situations – "May not understand consequences of their actions"
Card back sample statements:
- Tips for interacting with persons with autism
- "Use simple language"
- "Give praise and encouragement"
- "Allow extra time for response"
Small card, front:
Large card front:
Small card back:
Large card back:
Small cards, 3 1/2 by 2 inches, 150 for $29.95, add $2.00 shipping & handling for each additional order of 150 cards.
Large cards, 3 1/2 x 5 inches, 150 for $39.95, add $2.00 shipping & handling for each additional order of 150 cards.


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Hazardous waste management statute and regulations: Toxics Use Reduction and Hazardous Waste Reduction Act, Oregon Revised Statutes (ORS) 465.003 to 465.037, ORS 466.005 to 466.385, ORS 466.990, ORS 466.992, ORS 466.995, and regulations at Oregon Administrative Rules (OAR) 340-100 to 340-143
Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) Land Quality Division Hazardous Waste Program
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 10
See ADDRESSES & CONTACTS for addresses and telephone numbers.
See national section for basic information and federal regulations.
• Rules. Oregon's hazardous waste management rules include the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) rules and several more stringent state requirements. The state's rules apply to hazardous waste generators; transporters; owners and operators of treatment, storage, and disposal facilities (TSDFs); handlers of universal wastes; and handlers of used oil.
• Administration and enforcement. Oregon has received RCRA authorization from EPA. RCRA authorization allows the Land Quality Division of DEQ to administer and enforce the state's hazardous waste management rules.
To receive RCRA authorization from EPA, a state's hazardous waste management rules must be at least as stringent as, and consistent with, the federal hazardous waste RCRA rules at the time of authorization. To maintain federal authorization, DEQ must adopt EPA's latest RCRA rules or more stringent state standards.
Note: Any federal regulation that is promulgated under the 1984 amendments to RCRA (the Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments of 1984 (HSWA)) becomes effective in all states at the ...
State RequirementsNational | Alabama | Arizona | Arkansas | California | Colorado | Connecticut | Delaware | Florida | Georgia | Illinois | Indiana | Iowa | Kansas | Kentucky | Louisiana | Maryland | Massachusetts | Michigan | Minnesota | Mississippi | Missouri | Montana | National | New Hampshire | New Jersey | New York | North Carolina | Ohio | Oklahoma | Oregon | Pennsylvania | Rhode Island | South Carolina | Tennessee | Texas | Utah | Virginia | Washington | West Virginia | Wisconsin |
Oregon Hazardous Waste - General Resources
|List of Equipment, Structures, and Areas to be Considered for Inclusion in an Inspection Schedule (Hazardous Waste)
|South Carolina Notification and Reporting Form (EPA 8700-12, 8700-13 A/B, 8700-23)
|RCRA Training: Hazardous Waste: Health Effects


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Whether you need to rent a portable air conditioner or heater, Mobile Air can help you resolve your problem immediately! With warehouse locations throughout the Midwest, even if it's only for a day or for a few months, it's so easy to rent from us that you'll always think of Mobile Air for all your portable heating and cooling needs! Please read about our Rental Terms and Conditions and contact us or call us (888) 474-4340 if you have any questions.
Downloadable PDF Documents:


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A foremost authority on FCRA and advising about risks under that law.Legal 500
Jonathan D. Jerison
Senior Counsel
Jonathan D. Jerison counsels financial services clients on the consumer protection regulatory, legislative, and transactional matters that impact their business. As Senior Counsel in the Washington, D.C., office of Buckley LLP, he assists clients on a wide variety of consumer finance issues, including the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), the Truth in Lending Act (TILA), the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA), the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act privacy provisions, advertising and marketing (including telemarketing), and electronic commerce matters. He also defends clients facing government enforcement actions in these areas.
Mr. Jerison counsels bank and nonbank financial institutions, including mortgage lenders, servicers, insurers, and student lenders, in complying with federal and state consumer protection laws and regulations, and advises on fair lending and general regulatory issues, reviewing consumer disclosures and drafting amicus briefs and legislative and regulatory language advocacy papers.
Mr. Jerison has recently been involved in the following matters, among others:
- Assisting in representing consumer reporting agencies in Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) investigations, with an emphasis on issues involving the sale of ancillary products
- Assisting large financial institutions in connection with CFPB matters involving credit reporting practices
- Assisting the private banking units of large, internationally-active banks in addressing issues arising under the federal consumer laws, including assisting with FCRA and unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts or practices (UDAAP) issues raised by a new online mortgage platform and in remediating a potential problem arising under TILA
- Assisting startup fintech companies in all aspects of federal and state compliance
- Preparing a chapter on the revised HMDA rules as part of an American Bankers Association reference book
- Represented a credit reporting bureau in a CFPB enforcement action alleging UDAAP and FCRA violations relating to the marketing of educational credit scores to consumers and use of negative option billing
His prior experience includes 14 years in the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) Divisions of Financial Practices, Policy and Evaluation, and Enforcement, where he was responsible for enforcement, interpretation, and rulemaking involving the federal consumer finance laws and the Federal Trade Commission Act.
Mr. Jerison has been recognized in the area of Cyber Law (Data Privacy and Data Protection by Legal 500, which noted: "Jonathan Jerison is a foremost authority on FCRA and advising about risks under that law."
Mr. Jerison received his J.D. from the University of California, his M.L.T. from Georgetown University School of Law, and his B.A. (cum laude) from Yale University.
A foremost authority on FCRA and advising about risks under that law.Legal 500
In The News
Legal 500 2020 recognizes 21 Buckley attorneys in six practice areas
"Buckley attorneys are incredibly responsive while providing top quality legal services," is how respondents described the firm in the 2020 edition of Legal 500, which ranked Buckley as a top law firm and recognized it in six categories:
- Corporate Investigations and White ...
Buckley Sandler Announces 2016 Promotions
Washington, DC (Jan. 6, 2016) – Buckley Sandler LLP , a premier financial services, government enforcement and litigation law firm, announced today the promotion of 11 attorneys from three of the firm's five offices, effective January 1, 2016. Katherine L. Halliday of the firm's Washington, DC...In The News
"Accurate FCRA reporting during Covid-19" by Marshall T. Bell, Jonathan D. Jerison, and Jessica L. Pollet (Bloomberg Law)
As financial institutions respond to a flurry of regulatory recommendations and mandates in response to the Covid-19 crisis, those relating to consumer reporting may be among the most difficult to decipher and operationalize. Federal and state authorities have made it clear that they expect...Articles
"Don't let your shield down—FTC gets tough on EU-U.S. privacy shield framework" by Elizabeth E. McGinn, Jonathan D. Jerison, and Magda Gathani (Bloomberg Law)
The Federal Trade Commission took more enforcement actions related to the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework in 2019 and the beginning of 2020 than it did in the prior three years combined. The FTC also has alleged deception in many cases where there was no indication that any misrepresentations...Articles
"Wearables present new realm of legal risks for teams" by Elizabeth E. McGinn, Jonathan D. Jerison, and John B. Williams, III (Sports Business Journal)
Reaching peak athletic performance is an increasingly scientific and quantitative pursuit, and professional sports franchises, which have tremendous financial and emotional motivation to be the best, are at the forefront in gathering as much data about their assets as possible. FitBits, Apple...Articles
Special Alert: CFPB Releases Outline of Proposed Rule for Third Party Debt Collectors
On July 28, the CFPB announced that it is considering proposing a rule to "overhaul the debt collection market by capping collector contact attempts and by helping to ensure that companies collect the correct debt." The CFPB released several related documents, including a report on third-party debt...Articles
Awards and Recognitions
Awards & Recognitions
- Legal 500 2020: Recognized in Cyber Law (Data Privacy and Data Protection)
Practice Areas
- J.D., University of California, Berkeley, 1977
- M.L.T., Georgetown University, 1988
- B.A., Yale University, 1973 (cum laude)
- California
- District of Columbia
Government Service
- Staff Attorney in the Divisions of Financial Practices, Policy and Evaluation, and Enforcement at the Federal Trade Commission


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Serves: 8-10
Prep & Cooking time: 15-20minutes
Notes: This recipe contains: Vitamin A, B-Vitamins, Vitamins C & K, protein, fibre, calcium, iron, phosphorus, potassium, manganese, no added sugar and is low in salt and fats!
This dip/spread is has a wonderful fresh and zesty flavour that is absolutely delicious…feel free to adapt it with some of our suggestions below. 🙂
Quick facts:
- Broad beans are also known as 'fava' beans. In the UK these beans are normally in season during June-August; don't worry, you can still buy frozen varieties that are just as nutritious!
NB: To find out when your favourite fruits and vegetables are currently in season, check out this link!
360g Frozen broad beans
100g Baby spinach
20g Fresh parsley
100g White onion
4g Garlic clove
1 Lemon (Zest & Juice)
120g Plain soya yoghurt (unsweetened)
10ml Olive oil
Salt & ground black pepper
125ml Water
Nutritional Info:
If you're a fan of using the FSA traffic light system, this is another one of our dips that gets green lights all the way!
This recipe is great for those leading a healthier lifestyle. 🙂
Place a small saucepan full of cold water over a medium heat. Bring to the boil. Add the beans. Reduce to a simmer. Cover with a lid. Cook for 3-6 minutes or until tender. Drain. Allow to cool slightly.
Wash the spinach and allow it to drain (if applicable). Wash, dry and gently rip the parsley into half. Peel and dice the onion. Peel and finely grate the garlic. Wash, finely zest and then juice the lemon.
Place the beans, yoghurt, parsley, onion, garlic, lemon zest and juice, oil and as much spinach as you can push into a food processor. Season it with some salt and black pepper to taste. Pulse and blend until the mixture starts breaking down; feed the remaining spinach into the food processor's feed tube. Pour in the water. Blend until combined.
The mixture will be 'chunky'. Taste and season as necessary.
Remove and transfer the mixture into a resealable container.
Serve as a dip or sandwich spread.
NB: Refrigerate in a resealable container; consume within 3 days.
If preferred…
- Add a little more oil and some pine nuts…and you'll have yourself another fun and tasty vegan pesto flavour!
- Swap the lemon for lime and add a little ground coriander for more of a 'Mexican-inspired' taste.
- Substitute the broad beans for soya beans; our broad beans were cheaper to source!
- When making this recipe, you may prefer to push the beans out of their skins prior to processing however, by doing this you will reduce the fibre content of this dip/spread. NB: Broad beans and spinach are both a great source of insoluble fibre!


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New ideas are exciting. Ideas can inspire and re-engage people. Ideas can generate new opportunities and invigorate how work gets done.
The challenge is that new ideas take time, mental space and resources to develop and implement. Things that most of us don't have a huge surplus of.
So, how do you create room for new ideas and the energy these bring?
Ideally organizations regularly evaluate, refine and sunset programs. But, in my experience this doesn't happen as often as it should. So, how can you get started?
Explore with your team:
Starting these discussions can be challenging. You may hear some perspectives that you don't like or agree with. But if you ask, you need to listen and allow people to share their viewpoint.
These discussions may not solve your problems now. But, the dialogue will help you understand where people are coming from, learn about what really happens in your organization, and offer you opportunities to share insight about why or how you do stuff.
This awareness can inspire new ideas for revising how work gets done and what work is done to better leverage your resources. And the process of exploring this together can build understanding of your goals, your purpose and how you can work together to advance both.
Go ahead and ask. Your people may be reluctant at first, but as trust grows so will the discussion.
Join me and some really smart colleagues in exploring the questions associations should be asking. We are highlighting questions your organization should consider and resources and tips to help you frame successful discussions.


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The RAPTC Museum is dependent on the hard work of its volunteers to
continue to operate. Our volunteers carry out vital work within the Museum as
well as providing important links to the local community.
Volunteers are currently involved in conducting research,
documentation, digitisation and collections care.
We accept volunteers age 16-80 from all
sections of the community. Full training and support is provided for
If you are interested in volunteering please contact the Curator.


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- Hardtop is a Decepticon from the live-action film series continuity family.
Hardtop is a crack shot, a dedicated hunter, and an expert in espionage. He considers the Autobot Bumblebee his greatest rival and worst enemy. What started as professional rivalry turned into a bloody personal vendetta. Hardtop is less interested now in the hunt for the All Spark than he is in tracking down his foe across the cosmos and finishing the job once and for all.
Target.com profile
Hardtop followed his rival Bumblebee to Earth, and was the first Decepticon to arrive on the planet. Like Bumblebee, he too managed to uncover the connection between Sam Witwicky and the All Spark, but never had time to act on it. Turns out Bumblebee managed to bury him under tons of rubble somewhere in the Rocky Mountains.
This might not have been fatal, and Hardtop might still be alive... and really pissed.
IDW Transformers (2007) comics continuity
Thundercracker's only company on Mars bar his drones, Hardtop was scouting when he happened on a group of Autobots making a move on the undermanned Nemesis. Starscream ordered him back, or he'd miss out on the fun. The Reign of Starscream #2
Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details for The Reign of Starscream issue 3 follow.
Hardtop managed to get a bead on the Autobot Smokescreen, but was fatally sniped by Arcee before he could make the kill. The Reign of Starscream #3
Transformers (2007)
- Hardtop (Scout, 2007)
- A redeco of the Cybertron Hardtop toy, Hardtop transforms into a dune buggy of indeterminate model. Plugging a Cyber Planet Key into the butt of his rifle flips out an extended barrel for a "sniper" mode. He comes with a Planet X-style Key with a Sector Seven logo on it.
- Hardtop (and the rest of the Scout wave) are exclusive to Target stores, where they are all part of a Robo-Vision promotion. Hardtop comes with a Robo-Vision Decoder which allows you to see the Robo-Vision Code printed on his cardback. Starting June 2, 2007, Target's website allowed users to input those codes to access exclusive content.
- This mold was also used to make Cybertron Swindle.
- Hardtop's bio notes that it was a shot from him that wrecked Bumblebee's vocal processors. This contradicts the events of the IDW movie prequel comics, where it's Megatron who does the throat-crushy. Alternate timeline, or does Bumblebee just have Cybertron's unluckiest neck? It's worth noting that the expanded bio from the Target.com site removes any mention of Hardtop causing the injury.
- Speaking of odd possible contradictions, Hardtop's bio pegs him as a Decepticon, where his toy's only "faction" marking is for Sector Seven. It's possible Hardtop is hiding out among the Sector Seven motor pool disguised as one of their standard-issue assault jeeps. (And that his bio was written without knowledge of the deco.)
- The packaging the toy comes in depicts the key used for the toy as a Cybertron-style key, unlike the Planet X key that actually comes with it.


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Cider sales closing in on lager
Soaring cider sales over the last 12 months are threatening the dominance of lager in the UK with more than half (60 per cent) of UK drinkers saying they now drink cider, new research reveals.
Figures from the consumer analysts Mintel show cider has bucked the economic climate that saw many lager brands including Carlsberg and Heineken report flat UK sales in 2012. Three in five adults now drink cider, a 47 per cent increase on the figure in 2011. While it still trails beer, which is drunk by 70 per cent of Britons, cider is consumed by a greater number of adults than spirits (57 per cent).
Cider sales have soared 32 per cent between 2007 and 2012 to reach £2.7bn, with sales increasing 5 per cent in the last year alone. Volume sales have posted slower growth, although the market still managed overall growth of 18 per cent over the same period. Over the next five years Mintel predicts the category will reach sales of £3.7bn, driven partly by duty increases and rising brand awareness.
Growth has been buoyed the entry of brands such as Strongbow and Stella Cidre Pear variants into the favoured cider segment, alongside brewers investing in marketing to make cider a year round drink rather than focusing on the summer months only. Traditional beer brewers' such as Molson Coors with its Carling British Cider variant and Carlsberg's Somersby drink have made moves into the category in recent months.
Chris Wisson, senior drinks analyst at Mintel says brewers need to invest more in the premium end of the market to reap "spectacular rewards". Areas ripe for product development include the premium end of the market with more emphasis on medium and dry cider to boost daily consumption rates and attract older drinkers, he adds.
Just 8 per cent of Britons think that cider is sophisticated, while only 14 per cent believe that it is worth paying more for, both of which are behind the associations with wine.
Wisson says: "While cider enjoys a range of positive associations among drinkers, such as being refreshing, natural and suitable for men and women, sophistication is an area where there is significant room for improvement. The cider market has improved its image greatly over the past decade and should continue working to evolve away from unfavourable historical associations such as those with underage and binge drinking, and towards being a sophisticated drink to be seen with."


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Wellness and patient engagement company Sharecare broke the news yesterday that it is teaming up with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota to offer its personalized health platform to commercial customer groups starting in 2019. This comes just a week after Sharecare announced a seperate partnership with retail giant Walmart that will give employees and their families access to the wellness platform and, ideally, improve community health.
"Sharecare is a great match with the health and wellbeing programs we offer at Blue Cross," Cain A. Hayes, president and chief operating officer of the Health Business for BCBS Minnesota, said in a statement. "Both of our organizations are focused on bringing about real change in people's health through meaningful experiences and information that inspire action and reward progress. Empowering and encouraging people on their health journeys is at the heart of what we do and is central to our mission of making a healthy difference in people's lives."
As part of the agreement Sharecare will be used as BCBS Minnesota's digital health management offering as part of the payer's "do." platform, which helps patients manage health and wellbeing. The "do." platform also lets businesses and workforces customize the services to fit their needs.
Users will get access to Sharecare services, including the RealAge assessment, which gives people the age of their body instead of their calendar age, and the AskMD symptom checker feature.
On the employer side, the partnership will let companies set customizable reward programs, create wellness challenges, chose health screening options, and provide analysis and deep insights on overall health factors.
As part of last week's deal with Walmart, the company's employees, their families, alumni, and the community at large will get full access to Sharecare. The online platform will give users tools to track and understand their health. It also allows users to develop an actionable plan towards improving their health and gives participants health trackers, articles, and tips.
This isn't the first time the retail giant has used digital health to address employee wellness. Four years ago it launched the ZP Challenge, a rewards programs that encourages overall wellbeing in fitness, family, food, and expenses. Now ZP users will get access to Sharecare as a way to provide them with more health tools and wellness programs, Walmart said.
"Given the current state of health in the United States, large employers, in particular, must be willing to deliver their employees with relevant and personalized experiences, and when it comes to making good on that commitment, Walmart bears the gold standard," Jeff Arnold, cofounder, chairman and CEO of Sharecare, said in a statement. "We look forward to building on the foundation Walmart has laid for its associates by using Sharecare to amplify the improvements they are making in their lives each day and create a whole new value for the currency of good health."


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In the early 1990s I realised the reason why it was I had never tried to game in Tolkien's wondrous creation before.
It was because I was a snob.
I was trying to run a MERP game with a couple of players - post War of the Ring - but couldn't quite figure out why it was I wasn't enjoying the game. It hit me at the beginning of the second session; the players weren't playing the game the way I wanted them to. I had an image of Middle-earth in my head, the way everyone acted, spoke and basically presented themselves, and the players were not playing it that way. They were playing it the same way they played old D&D and WFRP games, speaking normally and messing around. They just weren't taking this amazing setting and world seriously enough. I'd even go as far to say that I was angry at them because they didn't have the same level of respect that I did for Tolkien's world.
Crazy? Oh, yes, it was a crazy attitude to have but after more than ten years being brewed in my head it was going to be difficult to let go of the images and attitudes I thought should be present in a Middle-earth game. Before the game descended into madness I did exactly what my former MERP GM did; I changed the setting to a fantasy Europe. The games were considerably better and the campaign, though short, was a good one.
This was a dilemma - how could I game in Middle-earth when the players involved didn't have the same approach to the setting as I did? Had I ruined any chance at gaming in my favourite fantasy setting? What I needed was something that would unite imaginations, make sure that we were all working from the same page and were approaching the game with the same attitude. This was why my Star Wars D6 games worked so well, because we all had the same visual and emotional attachment to the films so they were very easy games to run and get involved in.
So when Peter Jackson's 'The Lord of the Rings' movies were released, and the Decipher version of the rules was published, I had my visual and emotional anchor. I thought I'd give it another shot.


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Polo Capital is an independent asset management group based in Rio de Janeiro. The group was established in 2002 and started investing in 2003.
Polo Capital manages clients' capital in various liquid and illiquid mandates. The liquid strategies include Event-Driven, Macro and Quantitative, while the illiquid segments comprise Credit, Real Estate and Special Situations. The products managed by Polo Capital target superior performance by investing capital in market segments where the firm has a tangible competitive advantage and/or there is a notable scarcity of capital, and hence limited competition. The focus is value creation in the long-term.
Polo Real Estate and Polo Securitizadora are some of the group's companies.
Polo Real Estate is an asset management group focused in investments related to real estate development.
Polo Real Estate website
Polo Securitizadora is a securitization company whose objective is to capture oportunities in credit, primarily in securitizations collateralized by real estate assets.
Polo Securitizadora website


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I'm Daniel Chapman, a writer and editor, also known as Moscowhite, because of the internet. From 2013 to 2017 I edited The City Talking magazine, and since 2011, have co-edited The Square Ball fanzine, seeing it through its 25th anniversary. During that time, The Square Ball has been shortlisted for the Football Supporters' Federation Fanzine of the Year award eight times, and won twice.
100 Years of Leeds United, a new history of the club, is a 432 page hardback that will be published by Icon Books in 2019, to coincide with the club's centenary celebrations.
In 2017 I wrote Do You Want To Win?, a book and film about Leeds and Leeds United from 1988 to 1992, the years when Howard Wilkinson took over from Billy Bremner, and took over everything. You can watch the trailer and order the book and DVD here.
You can support my writing on Patreon and get a daily email about Leeds United from twenty pence per week.
I'm on Twitter here (and here), Instagram here (and here). You can sign up to a mailing list here, and email me at email@example.com.
Leeds United, 2016/17
The Square Ball Week: Jonny, We're Sorry — I was already thinking of what might have been on the day Jonny Howson was sold to Norwich. Although, before becoming nostalgic about the future, I'd got the present situation wrong. Right now is always the hardest time to interpret. • May 19, 2017
The Square Ball Week: Charlie Says — Last to leave and least lamented, Charlie Taylor has spoiled everything at the last moment. Of all the bowling balls aimed at the ten pins of Leeds United in recent seasons, I didn't expect the last of the Cellino era to be rolled by one of our own. • May 12, 2017
Wigan Athletic 1-14 Leeds United: Oh The Humanity — Chris Wood had equalised, but he wasn't laughing. "Thirty, mate?" he said. "Make it forty." "Forty?" asked Stuart Dallas. "I want forty, and you guys chip in," said Wood. "The play-offs, mate. The play-offs." • May 7, 2017
Leeds United 3-3 Norwich City: Lessons in Letting Go — The theme of recent weeks has been learning. As Leeds United's season has faded from possible glory to improbable failure, anxiety has grown around this season's push for promotion, but more around next season's hopes. If this season was to come to nothing, as eventually it did, we had to ensure that it counted for something. It yet might. Leeds United's liquid progress can't be allowed to evaporate in the heat of the coming summer. • May 1, 2017
The Square Ball Week: In Focus — Amid all the comparisons between this season and Leeds United a quarter of a century ago, the roles that haven't been reprised by today's actors are those in the boardroom. • Apr 28, 2017
Burton Albion 2-1 Leeds United: The Drain — The cheerleaders completed the picture. Leeds United only know goal music as an enemy sound, and long may that be the case, but Tom Hark means a goal conceded. Cheerleaders? That's something else. But as they wiggled and shook in the corner of the Pirelli Stadium, they were stamping their dainty feet all over Leeds United's grave. • Apr 24, 2017
The Square Ball Week: Do You Want To Win? — As I sat in his living room, asked questions, and listened to the answers, the decor faded away, my colleagues and their cameras faded away, and all that was left was Howard Wilkinson, illuminated like a buddha in the darkness, talking about how Leeds United won the First Division championship in 1992. And I felt, for a few moments, as if I was watching an interview on television. • Apr 21, 2017
Leeds United 0-1 Wolverhampton Wanderers: Scenario — There's an indignity about playing Wolves. They turn up season after season, after ironing a sponsor onto their Puma teamwear kit, with an expensive team, managed by someone completely different to last time, never with a prayer of promotion. They're a reminder that you're in the Championship. They're a warning that they could be you. • Apr 18, 2017
Newcastle United 1-1 Leeds United: All About Leeds — Rob Green had more touches than Chris Wood, and the game belonged to both of them, watching and waiting at either end of the pitch, and coming alive when it mattered: frequently, in Green's case, eventually, in Wood's case, importantly, in both cases. • Apr 15, 2017
Leeds United 3-0 Preston North End: Front Foot — If Leeds United keep playing like they did against Preston North End, it'll be as much fun as Grayson's teams ever were. • Apr 10, 2017
The Square Ball Week: Fail To Prepare — Failure comes to every football club. Are Leeds United prepared to fail with Garry Monk? • Apr 7, 2017
Brentford 2-0 Leeds United: Confidence, Man — The problem with the first half was that Brentford were playing much, much better than Leeds United, and scored twice. • Apr 5, 2017
Reading 1-0 Leeds United: Olé, Oi! — Selection questions, and how much they are due to Garry Monk's whimsical tastes, were a big question before the trip to Reading. • Apr 3, 2017
The Square Ball Week: Lambo Mambo — The international break is always an odd time, but this one has kept us busy at Leeds United. • Mar 31, 2017
The Square Ball Week: High Maintenance — With ten minutes of a resounding 4-0 win over Stoke City remaining, one of Howard Wilkinson's first significant victories as Leeds United manager, the board went up for a substitution. David Batty was coming on. • Mar 24, 2017
Leeds United 2-0 Brighton & Hove Albion: Cryptic Principles — The song still works if you change the players. As Luke Ayling was suspended, there was plenty of time to practice before this game. • Mar 20, 2017
The Square Ball Week: Being There — Eighteen players strode out on to the Elland Road pitch on the day in May 1992 when, before a 1-0 win over Norwich, Leeds United were crowned First Division champions. • Mar 17, 2017
Leeds United 0-0 QPR: Don't Feel Down — If somebody said to you after this game that you shouldn't feel too down about things, and reminded you that Leeds United are still fourth in the league, you should cherish that person, for they care about you, and you should heed their good advice now and in the future. • Mar 13, 2017
The Square Ball Week: You Make Me Feel So Weak — After the Fulham match LUFCData's ever-interesting Twitter account offered up some stats that were interesting in the same way that watching an alien autopsy would be interesting, which is to say, they were terrifying. • Mar 10, 2017
Fulham 1-1 Leeds United: Do It Like This — For a big game, a really big game, you don't want any of this. Not a promotion decider, or a game that would settle the play-offs, but a big old influencer of fates for Fulham and Leeds United, of which Leeds United's is our concern here. • Mar 8, 2017
Birmingham City 1- 3 Leeds United: Seriously Right — Garry Monk in the stands, Pep Clotet and James Beattie on the touchline, Leeds in all-white on the pitch, and Nikola Zigic nowhere to be seen. His old lack of quality haunted the match anyway. • Mar 4, 2017
The Square Ball Week: Remember This Way — For the last few months, while I've been making a film and writing a book about Leeds United's rise under Howard Wilkinson, the inside of my head has looked a lot like the years 1988 to 1992. • Mar 3, 2017
Leeds United 1-0 Sheffield Wednesday: Everything Forever — This game had everything you could possibly want from a game of football, and lots of it in the 54th minute. • Feb 27, 2017
The Square Ball Week: Levels — This week I watched a video of Scott Wootton running in a straight line. • Feb 24, 2017
Ipswich Town 1-1 Leeds United: Welcome to the Championship — It's a cold heart that has never warmed to Mick McCarthy. I like him. I wonder sometimes if he might be Leeds United manager one day; I wish sometimes that he already had been. • Feb 20, 2017
The Square Ball Week: Some Goalkeepers I Have Seen — Mervyn Day. • Feb 17, 2017
Leeds United 2-1 Bristol City: Do What You Gotta — Garry Monk had to change things after Saturday, and not only because Liam Bridcutt was suspended. • Feb 15, 2017
Leeds United 0-2 Cardiff City: Valentine's Dead — Neil Warnock is a pox on football, a pest, a blight; if he was a building, neighbours would campaign for his demolition, to stop people lighting fires on his derelict rubble-strewn floors and pets being injured climbing across the shattered glass of his broken windows. • Feb 13, 2017
The Square Ball Week: Lost Outside The Tunnel — Recently I had the great pleasure of talking about some things with Howard Wilkinson; of which we'll talk more another time. • Feb 10, 2017
Huddersfield Town 2-1 Leeds United: The Better Team — There are several irritating things about Huddersfield Town these days, irritating because they're true. The ones we have to deal with right now are the fact that their team was better than ours in this game and deserved to win; and that, at the moment, they represent the standard Leeds United have to reach. • Feb 6, 2017
The Square Ball Week: Young Guns Gone — Football comes at you fast in the closing days and hours of the transfer window, so much so that Leeds United have lost and won since Alex Mowatt was sold, and his departure feels like it was a long, long time ago. • Feb 3, 2017
Blackburn Rovers 1-2 Leeds United: Undo Pressure — Ten changes were the pre-match team news, but that wasn't quite the whole story. These were less changes, more a reversion, putting players back where they ought to be. • Feb 2, 2017
Sutton United 1-0 Leeds United: Play to Lose — Naming a reserve side for an FA Cup match ought to be a bulletproof tactic. It protects your first team from injury or suspension, and against a non-league team, even one fired up by Ian Baird, they still ought to be able to win. And if they don't win, well, your team's reputation should survive; it's not like it's the first team getting beaten out there. • Jan 30, 2017
The Square Ball Week: If A Goal Falls In The Wood — Wednesday should have been his night. Twenty goals before the end of January is no mean feat, especially for a player who, since he signed for Leeds United, has at times seemed weighed down by his banjo, unable to locate Billy Paynter to hit it with. • Jan 27, 2017
Leeds United 2-0 Nottingham Forest: Doukaragooooooool — This didn't feel like a night when reputations would be made, or memories fixed in history. • Jan 25, 2017
Barnsley 3-2 Leeds United: Normalising — A winter afternoon, and red against blue, like an old fussball table or a Subbuteo starter kit, and, in this age of squads and rotation, an unchanged lineup for Leeds United, as part of Garry Monk's continuing mission to put football and normality back at the heart of Leeds United. • Jan 23, 2017
The Square Ball Week: Virtual Radrizzani — The last time we heard about a previously unknown Italian businessman selling his old interests so he could buy Leeds United, it sounded like an empty threat made in a fit of pique. • Jan 20, 2017
Leeds United 1-0 Derby County: Yeeeeeerrrss — Statistics can, as Reading have recently shown to great effect against Leeds United and then this week against QPR, be used to suck all the joy and fun out of the game of association football. • Jan 14, 2017
The Square Ball Week: Changes Are No Good — This is the moment when it all goes wrong, right? The ides of march, the tides of thundersnow. January, you leave Leeds defenceless. • Jan 13, 2017
Cambridge United 1-2 Leeds United: The Ick of The FA Cup — When the magic of The FA Cup means Matt Grimes in midfield, you do have to wonder if the naysayers don't have a point: take it out, put it out of its misery, let everyone stop pretending they're not obsessed with league football — or, as it's also known, money. • Jan 10, 2017
The Square Ball Week: Leaving Leeds United — One of the odder bits of half-forgotten flim-flam that found its way on to my laptop during Massimo Cellino's time at Elland Road is a screenshot from YouTube of a video, 'Cagliarifornia', by a Sardinian rap group called Alter Ego. • Jan 6, 2017
Leeds United 3-0 Rotherham United: Carry On — By the end every third pass was a backheel, every second pass a flick; every foul was against Leeds United, for a player zealously chasing a stray backheel or flick that had erroneously found a Rotherham foot. • Jan 3, 2017
Aston Villa 1-1 Leeds United: Can't Dream a Dream — Leeds United's recent theme has been coping with the changes injuries throw at them, but one area that has remained blessedly unchanged has been the defence. Since Pontus Jansson arrived, it has picked itself. • Dec 29, 2016
Preston North End 1-4 Leeds United: Who Can't Wait? — Characteristic of Leeds United's charge to the top of the Championship has been the ability to cope without the first eleven's favourite stars. • Dec 27, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Real White Memories — I had thought a few months ago that I might like to write something about David White. • Dec 23, 2016
Leeds United 1-0 Brentford: Winning Anyway — The theme of the week at Elland Road has been boredom, after Reading's non-performance and Jaap Stam's weirdly personal defence of it. For most of this game, Brentford and Leeds United stayed stoically on trend. • Dec 19, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Pure Numbers — Part of loving football is being curious about what other people love about it; curious, and judgemental. • Dec 16, 2016
Leeds United 2-0 Reading: Jaap Stam's Circus Comes to Town — Oh, but there haven't been many laughs at Elland Road these past few years, and who could have predicted Leeds versus Reading would be the game to have the fans rolling in the aisles? • Dec 13, 2016
Brighton 2-0 Leeds United: Control — If this run of games I keep referring to — Newcastle, Liverpool, Villa, Brighton, Reading — wasn't to end in table topping glory, it was going to have to be a learning experience. • Dec 10, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Dead Weight Descendants — There's a deal of sensitivity around trigger warnings these days, to protect sufferers of post-traumatic stress. With that in mind, the Football League might have been kind enough to excuse Leeds from their trip to Brighton. • Dec 9, 2016
Leeds United 2-0 Aston Villa: Announcing Leeds United, 2016/17 — On a cold weekend in late November 1991, Leeds United went to Villa Park, home of presumptive title contenders Aston Villa, and put on a show that wowed the nation. • Dec 5, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Right About Now, 50/50 — The magic of the League Cup. It's not a phrase much used by football romantics. Even if you win it — in February — it will have to take its place between whatever league fixtures are pressing at the time; you can't even celebrate properly with more games ahead, instead of the endless summer that follows a league title or FA Cup win. • Dec 2, 2016
Liverpool 2-0 Leeds United: Close Commitment — Who would be a football manager, when it comes to the League Cup? • Nov 30, 2016
Rotherham United 1-2 Leeds United: No Free Passes — Jesus Christ. Well, he wasn't playing, in either his Pontus or Pablo form. Leeds United coped well without Jansson, but oh, what might Hernandez have done in this game? • Nov 28, 2016
The Square Ball Week: No Pablo, No Pontus, No Point — A thought I had after Leeds United lost to Newcastle last weekend was that Leeds would be a fantastic club to follow right now if only the team didn't have to play any others. • Nov 25, 2016
Leeds United 0-2 Newcastle United: Experience The Fairytale — The full house didn't so much melt away from Elland Road after this match as congeal around the drains, slowing the already sluggish march away from the ground. • Nov 21, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Talking — There's a new issue of The Square Ball fanzine out on Sunday; we've just been nominated (again) for the Football Supporters' Federation Fanzine of the Year award, and we'll be selling the new issue to the biggest crowd at Elland Road in years, so there's a lot to celebrate. Thanks, by the way, if you nominated us. • Nov 18, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Presidential Pieces — It's been a pleasure over the last few weeks not only to watch Leeds United winning games and scoring good goals, but to able to write down thoughts about their progress without mentioning Massimo Cellino. • Nov 11, 2016
Norwich City 2-3 Leeds United: Love Answers — The pre-match questions about Leeds United's trip to Norwich City crystallised in one question before kick-off, which was, Was it right to start with Souleymane Doukara? • Nov 7, 2016
The Square Ball Week: The Unbearable Nowness of Selling Out — Those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it. There's one truism we can — and that often is — co-opt for football reasons. • Nov 4, 2016
Leeds United 2-0 Burton Albion: Instant Replay — I used to measure the darkness of the Evans and Milanic eras by the timing of the first replay on the big screen at Elland Road, when it wasn't unusual for Leeds United to get through an entire game without doing anything that was working watching twice. • Oct 31, 2016
The Square Ball Week: The Missing — As ticket sales ticked up on Monday and more of Elland Road was opening for the game with Norwich City, I wondered what all these people were expecting. • Oct 28, 2016
Wolverhampton Wanderers 0-1 Leeds United: Momentum — Stephen McPhail's retirement this weekend reignited some good old debates about the career of the player Eddie Gray was convinced would outshine any of Leeds United's other Academy products of the nineties. • Oct 24, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Gary Sprake — Goalkeepers occupy an odd, sad, position in football. • Oct 21, 2016
Leeds United 1-1 Wigan Athletic: No Substitute — As my car creeped towards Elland Road, I heard Garry Monk saying something on BBC Radio Leeds about how there's always a special atmosphere for night games, and I thought about the platitudes football managers trot out. • Oct 19, 2016
Derby County 1-0 Leeds United: Some Motion — The right changes in the right places have transformed Leeds United this season, putting diamond formations in the past and diamond players in key positions. • Oct 17, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Patterns of Play — When the 17th October 2019 comes around, it will be one hundred years to the day since scandal-hit Leeds City's players were auctioned off at the Metropole Hotel, and City's fans met at Salem Church Hall to organise a new football club: Leeds United. • Oct 14, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Korsten — There's a story in the squad numbers at Leeds United for 1998/99 season, the story of how everything changed. • Oct 7, 2016
Leeds United 2-1 Barnsley: Too Good — By now you've probably heard about how good Leeds United were in this game; that this, the fifth win in six matches, was the best of the lot. • Oct 3, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Twenty Percent of Total Trash — It's time to stop talking about Revie, Bremner, Collins, Charles. We can talk about them again later, but not now. • Sep 29, 2016
Bristol City 1-0 Leeds United: End to End — The first ten minutes of this game looked like a bust for Leeds United, as Bristol City made themselves comfortable on the edge of our eighteen yard box, and life uncomfortable for our defence. • Sep 28, 2016
Leeds United 1-0 Ipswich Town: New Complaint — The last Saturday afternoon match at Elland Road ended with a torrent of rancour aimed at the cowering players, whose performances had embraced every awful synonym for terrible as they allowed Huddersfield Town to beat them 1-0. • Sep 26, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Not a Care in The Cup — Not going to the League Cup match against Blackburn Rovers this midweek left me queasy and dissatisfied, gazing bleakly into the future. • Sep 23, 2016
Cardiff City 0-2 Leeds United: No Fuss — After the non-performance against Huddersfield, Leeds United needed these two games, against Blackburn and Cardiff, to find some sort of firm footing on which to start building some sort of season. • Sep 19, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Identity — Garry Monk's prickly interview with the BBC's Adam Pope after the defeat to Huddersfield Town made identity the word of the week, for a couple of days. • Sep 16, 2016
Leeds United 2-1 Blackburn Rovers: The Most Important Thing — It's been a long time since Leeds United fans at Elland Road have been left open-mouthed in wonder at the wayward, savage power stored within nature's mysterious creations. Since Rodolph Austin left, in fact. • Sep 14, 2016
Leeds United 0-1 Huddersfield Town: Forever Feeling — Pontus Jansson looked composed as he calmly passed the ball to his partner at centre-half, Kyle Bartley. Bartley didn't rush things from there, maintaining possession and scanning the field ahead of him for an opportunity to play the ball forward. Liam Bridcutt, the new captain, showed for the ball and took it, turning to see how the game had developed. He couldn't see an obvious way to penetrate the Huddersfield Town players, so he kept the ball moving, back to Jansson. • Sep 12, 2016
The Square Ball Week: The Group — "The group is the group," said Garry Monk at his press conference this week. It is what it is, and we are where we, and here we go, again. • Sep 9, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Dead Running — An imaginary footballer and mystifying Instagram photos. That's definitely what Leeds United needed out of transfer deadline day. Amadou Haidara, you were no Andrea Tabanelli. • Sep 2, 2016
Nottingham Forest 3-1 Leeds United: Continuing Theme — Leeds United continued in some very same-old ways at Nottingham Forest, and are finding habits difficult to lose and form hard to gain. • Aug 29, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Stories Are Not For Sale — The man on the platform opened a can of cheap lager and drank, as if gulping away another mundane day of paper shuffling. • Aug 26, 2016
Sheffield Wednesday 0-2 Leeds United: Change Given — While Fulham knocked the ball quickly from player to player around and inside the Leeds United penalty area on Tuesday night, a voice in the crowd piped up, 'That's how you do it, Leeds! That's how you play football!' • Aug 22, 2016
The Square Ball Week: So Serious — 'The match was frankly awful,' reads the Leeds United match report I have in front of me. 'It was our worst performance of the season … like decrepit donkeys pacing up and down Blackpool beach. • Aug 19, 2016
Leeds United 1-1 Fulham: Point Unproven — It's never good to hear a Leeds United player being booed by the Elland Road crowd. Worse, though, is seeing a Leeds United player running to the crowd with his ear cupped, as if he's proving a point; at least the fans are always on the right side of the ticket/wages transaction in this argument. • Aug 17, 2016
Leeds United 1-2 Birmingham City: Let Them Play — The pleasure of Pablo Hernandez's performance at Fleetwood in midweek was that he was everywhere, doing everything, his influence only limited by how quickly he could get across the grass to take part, and lead, the play. • Aug 15, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Newness & Old Feeling — The dissatisfied clamour was growing. Wednesday threatened to be the perfect storm; a day and night that would doom this coming Saturday to relentless drizzle. • Aug 12, 2016
Fleetwood Town 2-2 Leeds United: Start Soon — Pablo Hernandez looks good. The blue away kit looks good. Pablo Hernandez in the blue away kit looks good, so let's not look too far past that, if we can help it. • Aug 11, 2016
QPR 3-0 Leeds United: Get With It — "It was a kick up the backside," said Leeds United's new defender Kyle Bartley, and after being kicked up the backside Bartley and his teammates should do the decent thing, turn around, and receive the matching kick in the groin that every Leeds fan watching this game received as reward for their pre-season optimism. • Aug 8, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Leeds United, Day After Tomorrow — The Olympics have barely started, so I really don't know what business the 2016/17 season of the English Football League Championship has beginning already. • Aug 5, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Wishing For It — Sam Allardyce for England. It's the culmination of all Mike Bassett banter; every Dave Hockaday joke now dies on the lips. England's greatest exports: tea, punk, and now, four four fucking two. Assuming, that is, the world will buy it. • Jul 29, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Now There's A Whole New Image — Leicester City 2016 have Leeds United 1992 beat in the unlikely stakes, but if you're lucky enough to have seen both of these great against all odds league title wins, then Leicester's might have given you a faint sense of déjà vu. • Jul 22, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Try To Compete — The news of Lewis Cook's sale to Bournemouth dropped while I was writing for this column last week, and my mood dropped along with it. There wasn't much coherent analysis going on here, although that probably doesn't matter. We've sold the best young academy player of a generation. What more is there to analyse? • Jul 14, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Emosh — The writing hand emoji was, according to Emojipedia, approved as part of Unicode 1.1 in June 1993. • Jul 8, 2016
"This Is The Lows" — Stevie Ward, Leeds Rhinos — "You would struggle to write that in a script," says Stevie Ward of Leeds Rhinos, as we recall the moment when Danny McGuire kicked the ball towards the touchline at Huddersfield, in the final seconds of Super League XX, and Ryan Hall collected it on the run. • Jul 1, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Don't Get Involved — An unexpected way of dealing with England's unwanted exit from the European Championships is to point out, to people who know you have a deep and enduring love of football, that this is exactly why you hate football and would never recommend loving it to anyone. • Jul 1, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Imagining Antonsson — I have certain preconceptions about Scandinavian footballers that came straight to mind when I heard Leeds United might sign Marcus Antonsson from Kalmar in Sweden. • Jun 24, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Enjoy The Football — It's Thursday afternoon, and you feel tense and nervous; staring sullenly into the middle distance, you make a fist just so your middle-finger can scratch your palm. There's no itch there; it's a cooling, hopefully calming sensation. • Jun 17, 2016
The Square Ball Week: Blue — Whether Massimo Cellino brings the attention on himself, or people just love to give attention to Massimo Cellino, is a perennial question, and we'll contribute to the debate by making this column not about Massimo Cellino. • Jun 10, 2016
The Square Ball Week: The Mad Monk — "From the moment I sat down with him," said The Garry, in an interview with Thom Kirwin on LUTV, before the press conference that announced him to a world agog as Leeds United's manager/head coachey bloke, "just his knowledge about football is incredible." • Jun 3, 2016


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Women's rugby looking for interested female student-athletes
Symiah Dorsey, Staff Reporter
November 22, 2019
Women interested in playing rugby have the opportunity to form their own club team and compete against other universities. Interest meetings will be held for females interested in the sport, and the development of the team will be dependent on the number of students who are willing to participate. ...


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How Do I Join AAHIM?
To become a member of AAHIM, you must join the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) and select Alabama as your Component State Association (CSA). There are no dues for AAHIM – just pay your AHIMA dues.
Learn more about AHIMA membership and join today!


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- By Michele WojciechowskiLiving & Learning WriterJuly 20, 2016
- By Michele Wojciechowski
The comedy world lost another great with the passing of Garry Marshall at the age of 81 on July 19, 2016. Marshall was an incomparable talent, having worked as a director, writer, creator, producer and actor for more than five decades.
Although he attended Northwestern University and worked briefly as a journalist, Marshall is best known for the work he did on television and in movies. After his start writing jokes for comedians, Marshall began writing forThe Jack Paar Tonight Show in 1960. His final film —Mother's Day — starring Jennifer Aniston and Timothy Olyphant — appeared in theaters in 2016.
We look back at things we loved about him:
Five Things We Loved About Garry Marshall
The Odd Couple's many lives. Marshall adapted the Neil Simon play The Odd Couple for the hugely successful TV show starring Tony Randall and Jack Klugman that ran from 1970-75. A TV reboot, starring Ron Glass and Demond Wilson called The New Odd Couple ran one season from 1982-83. Most recently, Marshall served as a consultant on the recent Odd Couple TV reboot starring Matthew Perry and Thomas Lennon, where he also played Walter Madison, Oscar's father. His sister, actress/director Penny Marshall, appears in this clip, along with Teri Garr, Al Molinaro, Tony Randall, and Jack Klugman:
- Marshall helped launch the career of Robin Williams. Williams first appeared as Mork on an episode of Happy Days, a show created by Marshall, called "My Favorite Orkan." It was so popular that Mork appeared again on the show and then got a program of his own when Marshall created Mork and Mindy. In this clip, Mork talks with Orson:
- Marshall's best friend, actor Hector Elizondo, appears in almost all of his movies. The two men met in the early 1980s, and Marshall included Elizondo in everything from large to small roles in many of his flicks. In this clip from The Princess Diaries, Elizondo tries to teach Anne Hathaway to dance:
- Marshall made photo albums every time he made a movie. He made sure to include a separate picture of himself with each and every member of the cast and crew. Here's a clip from Pretty Woman, which catapulted Julia Roberts into stardom. Wouldn't it be great to see that photo album?
- Marshall appeared in his sister's film A League of Their Own. Nearly two decades after Penny appeared in big brother Garry's Odd Couple, Garry returned the favor and appeared in the classic movie she directed, playing baseball team owner Walter Harvey in A League of Their Own. In this clip, he talks about the movie at Dodgers Stadium:
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We all know the rigors of being an author. We have to plot the story, develop the characters, write the book and find publication. That's the fun part. Now – thanks to drastic shifts in the publishing industry – we also have to market, promote and publicize the book. Scary stuff, especially for the unique race of creative souls called "writers". It's just not in our reclusive DNA to go so far, but what choice do we have?
There are wonderful ideas everywhere, books on basic marketing and promotion skills, workshops on platform building and every producer of the dreaded "sparklies" is lurking inside our computer screen ready and willing to help us out. With just a few clicks of a cursor you too can have lovely imprinted mugs or fancy book videos. You may need these things, you may want these things, but oh how confusing it all can get.
And there's the big question. Does this stuff work? We network with other authors who do contests and giveaways. Do those work? We even imitate some of the strategies we see … but are those strategies actually creating book sales?
The truth of the matter is that without book sales, real author success is out of reach. It's all good, every technique, every promotion, every contest. It's all very important too, because you must be visible and active, but if you are still not getting the results you want, what can an author do?
Simple. It's time to build a better mouse trap. To do that you need better materials, you need to place your trap in better locations and you must seed it with better cheese.
Promotion is important but have you looked carefully at how you create your promotions? Are they based on the success stories and events other authors are doing … or are they based on what's inside your manuscript? For example, if you're giving away a free book on facebook, so is every other author with a facebook account. BUT … if your main character is a gardener suspected of murdering the dead man found beneath her petunias … and you do a book giveaway to online gardening groups and communities in addition to your Facebook friends and fans … now you've expanded your reach in a big way!
Think about this. There are hundreds of gardening groups and communities on facebook, twitter and yahoo all over the internet. There are more in your real life communities. Imagine one little tweak to your promotions that includes this entire new audience and what it can do for you. Look at all the new fans you'll meet, new places where you can introduce your book to and offer book giveaways whether online or in live speaking engagements.
This small adjustment can easily represent hundreds of sales for you … and all because you did what all the other authors do, but did it with a broader, more unique brush stroke. You made sales from the marketing magic right inside your manuscript. Your promotions are now personal, powerful and part of a much, much better mouse trap!
What's inside your manuscript that can make your marketing, promotions and publicity seriously stand apart, and where can you find new targets for your strategies?
To help you create more exciting approaches, I'd like to offer anyone who would like one, a FREE 10 Tools for Author Success PDF handbook! Just go to The Author Success Coach website and download!
Finding Author Success: Discovering and Uncovering the Marketing Power Within Your Manuscript can be found …


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The (Mis)Use of Kiswahili in Western popular culture
The Kiswahili words and phrases sometimes crop up in western pop culture is not surprising; it is, after all, the most widely spoken African language on the continent. But every so often its use leaves native speakers a little puzzled.
In the United States the African American holiday Kwanzaa takes it names from the Kiswahili phrase 'matunda ya kwanza' meaning 'the first fruits of the harvest'; 'kwanza' is the Kiswahili word for first. If you're English, American or Canadian you may have also found yourself shouting out a Kiswahili word when playing the popular wooden block game Jenga; Jenga being the Kiswahili root word for build.
In western popular culture Kiswahili has found itself in film, television and music. Sometimes its been used in short snippets, while other times complete monologues of characters have been in Kiswahili. However while its use is apparent the correct use of the language has not always been so.
Hakuna Matata
Disney's 1994 animated feature The Lion King is perhaps the most popular western film featuring Kiswahili. The film tells the story of a lion cub and future king named Simba. The film is full of Kiswahili words and phrases. The main character 'Simba' means lion (in Shona it means strength or power) and the friendly Baboon called Rafiki means friend.
There are also many songs in kiswahiki in the film. One of which is when Rafiki sings to Simba'Asante sana squash banana, Wewe nugu mimi hapana', which is Kiswahili for 'Thank you very much, squash banana, you're a baboon and I'm not.'
Liberian Girl
The use of Kiswahili here is a little odd as Kiswahili is not spoken in Liberia
Kiswahili has also been incorporated into the lyrics of several pop songs. The late great king of pop Michael Jackson first visited the continent in 1974 when he arrived in Senegal as part of the Jackson 5. In the 1990s Michael Jackson spent time in Cote d'Ivoire, Egypt, Gabon, South Africa, Tanzania and Tunisia.
Michael Jackson expressed his feelings for the continent describing Africa as "the root of all rhythm. It's home." It's no surprise then that his love of Africa was written into his lyrics as early as 1987 when he released Liberian Girl, from the album Bad.
The song celebrates the beauty of African women with Jackson singing about a special girl from Liberia. The song opens with South African female singer and anti-apartheid campaigner Letta Mbulu saying the Kiswahili phrase 'Nakupenda pia – nakutaka pia – mpenzi we', which translates as "I Love you too. I want you too, my love." However the use of Kiswahili here is a little odd as Kiswahili is not spoken in Liberia or anywhere in West Africa. Nevertheless his inclusion of East, South and West African elements in this song was perhaps in honour of his love of sub-Saharan Africa.
The Swahili speaking nations of East Africa have created their own localised forms of hip hop which incorporate Kiswahili, such as Genge in Kenya and Bongo Flava in Tanzania, however Kiswahili has also been used in a number of American hip-hop artist's songs.
One example is the 2010 hit As We Enter from Nas featuring Damien Marley in which Nas raps "Y'all feel me even if it's in Swahili, Habari Gani" (meaning whats the news/how are you doing) to which Marley replies"Mzuri sana" (very good). The song called I'm In It from Kanye West's Yeezus album uses the word"Swaghili".
While there appears to be no apparent relation to Kiswahili, apart from rumours that Kanye is Kiswahili meaning "the only one", one commentator decided that Swaghili should be a creole that mashes English with Swahili. Little did he know however that Sheng, a combination of Kiswahili and English, has existed for decades in Kenya's multilingual environment.


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In October I entered an essay competition organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Korea. The competition sought to find out what foreigners thought was Korea's national image. I entered, you'll be happy to hear, but not because of some overwhelming desire to share my thoughts on what made Korea Korea, more because top prize was a new computer, and I fancied my chances.
So I dutifully brainstormed a notion and worked away on the essay, then forgot about it, then remembered about it, and of course I waited until the last minute to submit it.
Part 2
Of course, to be a writer you have to write. But of equal importance to the writing element is you have to be read. There are many different ways to be read, but rest assured that for all the fantastic poetry and prose you scribble in your fancy notebook and for all the standing up on stage you do at open mic nights, you will never be never be read if you do not approach the media.
Of course you could argue that you write for yourself, which is fine, but if that is your take on writing then this post is not directed at you. And even if that is your take, you probably want to write for someone someday.


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Clay, Henry (former slave)(born: 1861)
Henry Clay was born to parents who were enslaved in Louisville, KY. In 1892, Henry Clay left for New Orleans to join a railroad construction crew that was transported to Guatemala, Central America. The crew of 75 men were to build a railroad from Puerto Barrios to Guatemala City. The pay was to be in Guatemalan silver at $10 per day per worker, but none of the men got paid because the contractor ran off with the silver and left the crew stranded. Clay remained in Guatemala for 39 years. He was one of the last three crew members still alive when he returned to the United States in 1931. Many of his fellow crew members had died fighting during the revolts in Guatemala; revolutionists were recruited with the promise of $150 in silver and a rifle. Clay had preferred to fish for a living rather than fight as a Guatemalan revolutionary. For more see "Old Negro returns, ends 39-year exile," New York Times, 07/15/1931, p. 21.


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Eating is enjoyable and we want to keep it that way, which is not an easy thing to do considering the reputation that "hospital food" has. Our Food Services Department works diligently to prepare food that is both delicious and nutritious—and even caters events for our residents and clients.
With the help of our Clinical Nutrition team and Canada's Food Guide, we have not only developed a six-week cycle menu that fulfills general nutritional guidelines for seniors, we also develop personal eating plans with clients and patients who suffer from food allergies or other sensitivities.
Of course, one of the most enjoyable things about meal time is sharing with family and friends. Our cafeteria doors are always open to outside guests, so swing by to spend some time with our residents, clients and staff.
Cafeteria Hours
8:15 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. – Coffee Break
11:00 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. – Lunch
2:00 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. – Coffee Break
4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. – Dinner
Catering Services
The Food Service Department also provides catering services to various committees and groups, along with family celebrations such as birthdays and anniversaries at a minimal cost.
Canteen Cart
Our Canteen Cart makes rounds throughout the building, making sure that every resident is included in our offering of special (and healthy) snacks and treats. The canteen cart makes rounds:
Tuesday & Friday afternoons from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m.
Homesteader Room
This is one of our favorite places to socialize. We serve ice cream, milkshakes, beer, spirits, wine, coffee and hot chocolate in the Homesteader Room:
Monday, Wednesday, Friday from 2 to 4 p.m.


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It is with great joy and thanksgiving to God that I, Prof. Zana Itiunbe Akpagu, Vice Chancellor, University of Calabar, on behalf of the University Governing Council and Management heartily welcome all of us; staff, students and the entire University community back from the yuletide vacation. As we commence the 2019/2020 academic session, let me use this medium, to thank all of us, who in various ways have continued to support and contribute towards the actualization of the vision and aspirations of the present Management under my headship. I enjoin us all to rededicate ourselves to growing Unical into a high-end knowledge generation, dissemination and distribution vehicle that produces highly knowledgeable and skilled students with the competitive edge. My prayer, as always, is that, we all key into the vision of driving the Institution to an enviable height while also sustaining and building, on the progress already made, as well as, institutionalizing integrity and academic excellence. I implore us to work harmoniously and diligently towards raising the present standard of our University's ranking, administrative effectiveness and staff/students welfare. I strongly believe in our collective ability and count on all of us, as we brace up to new challenges, pursuant to making this present administration a distinctive one. Let me reassure us that the Administration will continue to take deliberate steps to improve staff and students welfare so as to engender commitment and motivate staff to put in their best and infuse in our students a new enthusiasm and zeal in the pursuit of academic excellence. Have a fruitful academic session! Once again, welcome and happy New Year!! Thank you all and God bless.
(KSM,JP) faci,fipmd
Vice-Chancellor University Of Calabar
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There's something we need to talk about, and it's not going to be easy. It's a topic rarely discussed, probably because it comes with a lot of really hard emotions and, honestly, a degree of shame. But this is something I've been wrestling with and I know I'm not alone. I hope you'll read my heart in this.
Y'all, this subsequent pregnancy after a loss thing? It's hard. It's a type of hard impossible to understand completely without living it. I hope that by making the incredibly difficult decision to share something so vulnerable, I can help you understand why I seem a bit detached from the congratulatory hugs. That it might make some sense as to why I've not purchased a single baby item yet. That it might explain why I'm in a daze most of the time.
I have spent every single day since that positive pregnancy test in an internal battle with a fear so deep, I can feel it in my bones. I live with that sick feeling in the pit of my stomach (and no, I don't mean morning sickness). I don't sleep too well these days. Worst of all? I have actually felt faith shamed for my fear, to the point where admitting what I'm dealing with has been really dang difficult. After all, I should just trust God. Just choose faith over fear. Just relax. Just. Just. Just.
It's not that simple.
I trusted God and praised Him with my first pregnancy. I had full faith that we'd be welcoming our first child on Nov. 19, 2017. My heart and world shattered that March day on the ultrasound table and I have never been the same. A part of our family is missing. That's no small thing. I have so many questions about why, but I also know that I have to accept that no answer would be good enough or simple enough for my human mind and heart to comprehend.
From the moment we found out that we're expecting a second time, my anxiety has been through the roof. It's a constant thought that if we lost one, we could lose another. You guys, I'm flat out exhausted.
Were you aware that research shows that 40 percent of women who suffer a miscarriage have symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder three months after the loss? This stuff is no joke.
A subsequent healthy pregnancy doesn't cure the pain. A subsequent healthy pregnancy doesn't replace the child(ren) lost. A subsequent healthy pregnancy doesn't erase the past.
Every day, I give thanks for this new life growing. And every day I beg God to protect that life. To allow that life to grow and to flourish. To allow me the honor of earthly motherhood. I pray that the Lord would calm my heart and mind. I pray for bigger faith. I pray for the ability to let go of fear. I pray. And I pray. And I pray.
He has been faithful to send empathetic ears and the right words at the right times. And empathy is exactly what I've needed. My mom has it mastered. My closest friends have it mastered.
I'll never forget the day when a friend said this to me: "It's okay to be nervous. I'm praying for peace for you, but also not guilt if you feel nervous too."
Oh, sweet grace. The heavy weight of shame over my fears was suddenly a little bit lighter.
So what's my point here? It's simply to offer a glimpse at the emotions associated with loss and life. It's to ask that when you encounter a momma in a subsequent pregnancy, that you offer her empathy and grace. That rather than questioning her faith or telling her she "just needs to trust God," you pray fervently for her aching and anxious heart, and for her growing child. Trust me, she wants to feel joy. She doesn't want to be living this way. She wants to feel calm. She wants to enjoy everything about this pregnancy. She really, really does.
It's just not that simple.
It's not that simple
Saturday, December 30, 2017
By Jennifer at December 30, 2017 No comments
The best birthday yet
Friday, December 15, 2017
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." -Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)
It was a chilly morning. I rolled out of bed somewhere around 5:15 am, stumbled through the dark and managed to find my gym clothes. By 6:05, I was at the local YMCA questioning my life decisions while a buff little fitness guru kicked my rear into smithereens. I'll admit it was miserable, but I was 34 now and this was hopefully my last round of high-intensity interval training for quite some time.
The nerves that morning were indescribable and continued in the days ahead. The birthday texts and Facebook posts flooded in as we drove the hour to Indianapolis. I knocked back my water, ate my Valium tablet and waited. And waited. And begged the nurse to let me go tinkle. Twice.
Speaking of Valium, why do they make you take that before you sign the consent forms? Nothing like signing your life away when you're high as a kite, am I right?
Finally, in came the doctor. "Are you ready?" she asked.
"Ready as I'll ever be," I said.
Into the procedure room we went. Up first: A stop at the embryology window. Name. Date of birth. Number of embryos.
One. One little embryo. Our future as parents hinged on a microscopic group of cells we were already madly in love with. If I didn't know for certain that there's a God who holds my future, I'm not sure I would have had the guts to try this again after the nightmare of the first round of IVF. But I believed God had led us down this path after years and years of praying and asking Him to either grant us a natural miracle or show us what to do. He knows the desires of my heart. After all, He put them there. I believed that one way or another, He would fulfill this dream, whether via this embryo transfer or another journey He hadn't yet revealed. And so we proceeded, not knowing the plans He had for us, but knowing that He did have plans.
The embryo thawed perfectly and transfer was flawless.
Hurdle #1: Cleared.
The 10 days between transfer and beta #1 were painful. When my phone rang and the clinic number came up on caller ID, I felt like I couldn't breathe. Sweet nurse Janet on the other end of the line could hardly contain herself: 338!
I'll be brutally honest here: I had to stop myself from blurting out a curse word in her ear. My first beta with my first pregnancy was only in the 70s. This 338 was huge!
Hurdle #2: Cleared.
My second beta followed 48 hours later. The numbers needed to have doubled at that point. Well, at 892, they had done more than that. Praise God!
Hurdle #3: Cleared.
The fourth hurdle brought the most anxiety of all. The first ultrasound is the time when we found out that our first pregnancy wasn't viable and that I would miscarry. I went into the ultrasound this time around feeling as fearful as I can ever remember. Immediately, the doctor shouted, "HEARTBEAT!" I, of course, cried. Jake sat behind me in silence staring at the monitor. There was a baby in there!
Hurdle #4: Cleared.
The first trimester has not been a walk in the park. Anxiety is a beast born of Satan. As any subsequent pregnancy momma will tell you, there's a fear that lives inside of you that reminds you of the past and makes you wonder if this one will slip through your fingers too (a topic for a different post). I've had to wrestle with a minor complication early on that did nothing to calm my fears. And, like most pregnant women, I have been walking around sporting a lovely shade of green and trying not to ralph everywhere. But, it's like I told a friend: I'm super happy to be feeling crappy!
The pitter patter of tiny feet is on its way to our home. Now at 12 weeks, baby will be joining us sometime around late June.
It's hard to express just how faithful God has been throughout this entire journey. He was with me when we suffered our greatest loss back in April and He is with me now as we pray expectantly for the safe arrival of the most precious and miraculous gift we could have ever hoped for.
By Jennifer at December 15, 2017 No comments
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_ This article may be freely published in any e-zine, newsletter, newspaper, magazine, website, etc. as long as my name and bio remain in tact. Please send me a link when you run my work. Just be sure to NOT edit them in any way and to always INCLUDE the credit line at the bottom. Copyright laws apply!
_10 Important Things to Tell Your Prospects
_ by June Van Klaveren
1. Tell your prospects that you offer free delivery. This may cost a little money, but, you will gain the extra customers to make up for it.
2. Tell your prospects that you offer a lower price. If you can't afford to offer a lower price you could always hold the occasional discount sale.
3. Tell your prospects that your product achieves results faster. People are becoming more and more impatient and want results fast.
4. Tell your prospects you've been in business for a longer period of time. People think if you've been in business longer you have more credibility.
5. Tell your prospects that your product tastes, smells sounds, looks, or feels better. When you target the senses you're triggering human appeal.
6. Tell your prospects your product is compact or light. People may want to take the product on a trip or don't have much room where they live.
7. Tell your prospects that your product lasts longer. People don't like to spend more money purchasing replacement products all the time.
8. Tell your prospects that your product is easy to use. People don't want to buy a product that they have to read a 100 page instruction manual.
9. Tell your prospects that your product has better safety features. People want to feel safe when they use your products.
10. Tell your prospects that you stand behind all your products. People want to know that you back- up any claims you make about your product.
June Van Klaveren, owner of Compelling Communications, helps her clients attract and keep customers. To contact her, call 800-779-0067 or email firstname.lastname@example.com.
Compelling Communications to Keep


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Dutch Culture and the Netherlands
Final Report: The Netherlands and Dutch Culture
Seminar in multi-culturalism
Table of content
The Dutch golden age........4
The geography of the Netherlands......5
Population in the Netherlands.......6
The Dutch colonies.........7
Inspired by the topic introduced by director Wu of "Centre of Netherlands Education" we will write our report on the Netherlands and its Dutch culture. In this report various topics about this country and its culture will elaborately be discussed. As we have one Dutchman on our team, we should be able to explore the different topics to a greater depth. First of all we will discuss some of the Dutch history. For this, we have selected a more specific topic that is by far the most interesting and influential in many years of Dutch history: The Dutch Golden age. Subsequently, we will talk about the geography of the Netherlands. Also, its population, the Dutchmen, will be discussed. Furthermore, we will explore some more of the Dutch history by looking at the colonies and their, to us very interesting, presence in Taiwan. Also, the typical Dutch capital, Amsterdam, will be discussed. We will end the report with an overview of typical Dutch tourist attractions, areas that are must-visit and some of the Dutch delicacies.
The Dutch golden age
The Dutch golden age is a period in the Dutch history in which the Dutch society's economy, trade, art, science and army rapidly enhanced to become one of the world's best. The Dutch golden age took place around the 17th century and basically started after fighting off the Spanish occupation. With the start of the VOC, the world's first multinational company, the Dutch builds a huge amount ships and sailed all around the globe. In many countries, especially in Asia, they did extremely profitable trade. Lots of money was going into the country and the economy flourished. Furthermore, the freedom, tolerance and open-mindedness also contributed to the Dutch success in this time. Artists and scientists were able to "express" whatever they wanted without "obstructions" of rules by government or churches. This was all influenced because the Dutch got in touch with "different thinking people" at a very early stage. These days, those believes are still clearly noticeable. Famous artists and scientists from this time include: van Gogh, Vermeer, Rembrandt, Huygens, Spinoza and van Leeuwenhoek.
The geography of the Netherlands
The Netherlands are a country located in the northwest of Europe with Belgium and Germany as neighbor countries. Its total size is 41.549 km² and is so one of Europe's smallest countries. Approximately the half of the Netherlands landmass is located less than one meter above the sea level and around one fourth is under the sea level. Netherland's flat regions are protected from storm surges through dikes which have in total a length of 3.000 kilometer. The highest point of whole Netherlands with 877 meters is the Mount Scenery, located on the Caribbean island "Saba". The highest point of the mainland itself, "Vaalserberg" is in its very south on the borderline triangle of Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany which is 322, 5 meter above the sea level. Some parts of the Netherlands were created artificial through land reclamation like for example nearly the whole province "Flevoland". Around one fifth of the landmass is covered with water; the biggest part is called "Usselmeer" a former bay which was poldered with a 29 kilometer long dike in 1932.
On the left: map of the Netherland without using dikes.
On the right: map of the Netherlands with rivers and provinces.
The most important rivers of the country are the "Rhein", "Maas"and "Schelde". These rivers separated the country in north and south and meet each other in the delta of "Rhein-Maas" – the biggest and most central...
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