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You won't see this trial coverage on CNN, Fox, MSNBC today, but you will hear national 'news' about a poor man sent to jail for faking illness to get a free dinner (yes I heard that on national news today).
Full trial coverage of Cannibal Cop Giberto Valle
Latest trial coverage of Cannibal Cop Giberto Valle
NEW YORK (AP) — The estranged wife of a police officer struggled to keep her composure Monday as she testified about discovering shocking online chats and other evidence on his computer showing he had discussed killing her and abducting, torturing and eating other women.
"I was going to be tied up by my feet and my throat slit, and they would have fun watching the blood gush out of me because I was young," Kathleen Mangan-Valle told a Manhattan jury that one chat revealed.
Kathleen Mangan Valle, the wife of 'Cannibal Cop' Gilberto Valle, is driven out of Manhattan Federal Court on Monday
Mangan-Valle, 27, also read about plans to put one friend in a suitcase, wheel her out of her building and murder her. Two other women were "going to be raped in front of each other to heighten their fears," while another was going to be roasted alive over an open fire, she said.
"The suffering was for his enjoyment, and he wanted to make it last as long as possible," she said.
Agent Corey Walsh read passage after passage from emails and text messages between Officer Gilberto Valle and a man the government said used Moody Blues as a screen name and MeatMarketMan as an email address.
"I'm dying to taste some girl meat," the agent said Valle wrote.
Some of the passages went into sickening descriptions about cooking and eating women. Others sounded so absurd they bordered on cartoonish, feeding the defense argument that Valle and friends he met on extreme sexual fetish websites were merely engaging in fantasies.
In describing one potential victim, Moody Blues suggested "cutting off her feet and barbecuing them in front of her" while she was still alive. Throughout, jurors remained stone-faced as they followed the words on screens before them while Walsh read them aloud in a federal courthouse in Manhattan, where the charges of conspiracy to kidnap and improper use of a federal database system could bring Valle, 28, a life sentence if he's convicted.


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From Nintendo website:
Wario makes his mad debut on the Nintendo DS with 180 all-new, factory-fresh microgames!
What really makes this game rock is the DS's touch control. Whether you're slicing veggies flying through the air or ripping the clothes off a sweltering beachgoer, the touch control makes playing Wario's blazingly fast microgames so simple, even a nintendo.com writer can figure 'em out.
Did we only say "touch"? Sorry, we forgot mic control. Yep, a karaoke-mad robot named Mike is on hand to get this party going with special mic-controlled games. For the absolutely first time in video-game history, you can blow sweet nothings into the ear of that someone special or cool off a cup of hot java.

subset: commoncrawl


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Shelley was seen at the MTV Press Junket with her Teen Wolf co-star on February 18 you can find the pictures in the gallery.
On January 6 Shelley attended the People's Choice Awards along with her co-star so you can check out the pictures in the gallery.
Hi! You can now find in the gallery every missing screencaptures of the episodes of Teen Wolf. It took me awhile and sorry for being this late but episodes 5×10, 5×11, 5×12, 5×13 and 5×14 are there. Don't miss an all new episode on MTV tonight.
Hi everyone so today i uploaded the screencaptures of episode 5×09 entitled Lies of Omission.
MTVTEENWOLF finally posted a trailer for season 5B that will returns january 5th. You can also find in the gallery the screencaptures of episode 5×08 entitled Ouroboros.
Hi! You can find in our gallery new hd screencaptures coming from Teen Wolf season 5A, Episode 6 entitled Required Reading and Episode 7 Strange Frequencies
Hi everyone! So i'm still behind on the whole screencapture thingy but here i am back with some missing screencaptures. You can already find the captures of episode 5×05 entitled A Novel Approach in the gallery.
Hi everyone! As promised i will update the gallery with all the missing screencaptures. You can already find the captures of episode 5×04 entitled Condition Terminal. I also replaced the previous screencaptures of the divine move.
As you may know the NYCC were happening this week-end and we got a new trailer for season 5B enjoy.
Hi guys! I finally uploaded the san diego comic con various pictures onto the gallery you'll find pictures from: the panel, the entertainment weekly photoshoot, the nintendo lounge and so on.


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Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen are collaborating with JCPenney on a juniors' line called Olsenboye by Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen. The line is rumored to be launching in spring. JCPenney has previously collaborated with Kimora Lee Simmons and Charlotte Ronson. [The Cut]
Heidi Klum is teaming up with Modern Vintage and Majestic Mills American co-founders, Brian and Rick Cytrynbaum, to create a range of shoes. The as-yet-unnamed line will eventually expand to include active wear, dresses and swimwear. The collection will hit stores early in 2010. "It's the whole 'Heidi's closet' concept," revealed Cytrynbaum. "It's feminine with a bit of a fashion and rock 'n' roll edge." [WWD]
Stella McCartney has created a new collection of children's clothes which will be sold at GapKids and babyGap beginning November 2nd. Items are priced from $14 to $128 and include gray cashmere hoodies, military jackets and leopard motif sweaters. In the past, McCartney has collaborated with H&M, LeSportsac and Adidas. [WWD]
2 Comments
hmm i wonder if any of it is something we'll want to buy … cant wait for a sneak peek
hmm i wonder if any of it is something we'll want to buy … cant wait for a sneak peek


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We Love Good News. The publicity department at AR & Co. PR and Marketing, a Paso Robles, CA, public relations firm, knows that making headlines makes people happy; well most of the time! The marketing and media relations experts at AR & Co. write the press releases and generate the local and national publicity that mean exposure and name recognition for your small business, large business or products. Now that's good news!
Located in San Luis Obispo County, the AR & Co. PR and Marketing agency has built extensive media relations with an exhaustive list of local media contacts to help you achieve editorial coverage delivered to your target audience. Informative and well-written press releases composed by experienced AR & Co. writers will enhance the validity of your company and promote your business or other products, services and personnel through gained press coverage.
Working to produce the best possible publicity and PR results within your budget, AR & Co. conducts in-depth follow-up until maximum press coverage has been reached. Learn more about AR & Co. by calling Angela Robinson in Paso Robles, CA at 805-440-0078.
The function of a good public relations and marketing firm is relationship building: AR & Co. works not only to develop good communications and rapport in media relations, but also in client relations. Realizing the importance of evaluation and analysis before implementation, AR & Co. learns both your history and your vision before pursuing the editorial coverage essential to achieving future growth. Working to meet your PR needs and wishes every step of the way—from concepting to writing and pitching press releases—AR & Co. then utilizes strong connections with local reporters, journalists, editors, and freelance writers to achieve maximum publicity placements for you.
AR & Co. will take these steps to ensure your publicity success:
• Get to know your business history and trends
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• Follow-up to achieve desired publicity results and editorial coverage
Let AR & Co. help you send a loud and clear message to local and/or regional media. Learn more about our publicity and public relations experts by reading some of our press releases, or contact AR & Co. PR and Marketing by calling the San Luis Obispo County office in Paso Robles, CA.


text: A career with Liberty Mutual is an opportunity to do meaningful, innovative work. Whatever your expertise, you'll be working with products and services that help individuals, families and businesses get through some of life's toughest challenges-and help prevent them too. At Liberty Mutual, we believe in a culture of continuous improvement, because our customers depend on us to excel. You'll hone your skills alongside a diverse, collaborative team, and contribute to solutions that improve our business, every day. And you'll have the freedom to expand your field of interest and explore opportunities across lines of business.


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HOW COULD ONE DESCRIBE HIS LEELA's ? THERE IS NO NEED TO WORRY ONCE YOU TAKE HIS UDI AND HIS NAME WITH FIRM FAITH. Just want to conclude saying that HIS LOVE AND HIS GRACE IS ALWAYS WITH US - BE IT OUR HOMELAND OR IN FOREIGN LAND.
Since we had to act quickly we decided on one of the property which was near to school and the railway station as well. We signed the papers and got the keys. After signing the contract we had two months to move into our new house. We were not happy thinking that although we purchased a house in Australia we won't be having our parents or our close relatives for the house warming ceremony. It was again through Param Pujya Bapu and Param Pujya Suchitdada that we got an auspicious date to move into the new house. But persistent delay in getting Permanent Residency was also adding to grief. A month passed by and suddenly one day I got a call in my office that we have got the Permanent Residency. The situation had changed completely and I was shocked to believe my ears. On hearing this I became very happy and felt pleasantly relieved. OUR HEART WAS FULL OF GRATITUDE AND LOVE FOR BAPU. WE REALISED HOW BAPURAYA STANDS BEHIND HIS DEVOTEES AND ALWAYS WANTS THEM TO BE CHEERFUL AND HAPPY.
Later, when there were only two days to move into the new house, we were MORE SURPRISED WHEN WE OPENED A COURIER sent from Sydney by a Bapu bhakta, Ashishsinh Rane. Being Satchidanand Utsav in December we had received our Param Pujya Bapu's Padukas. WE WERE EXTREMELY GRATEFUL TO OUR BAPU AND THANKED HIM SINCERELY FROM THE DEPTHS OF OUR HEARTS. As advised by HIM, on 5 December 2008 we moved into our new home with all smiles and happiness along with our Bapu's Padukas. Before unpacking our things in the house, we had Paduka poojan done in our new house. What more could we wish for when Bapu himself came past seven seas to bless us and our new home and we walked into our new home along with our Sadguru Bapuraya. Now to just make a point here, all of above events cannot be just series of coincidences waiting to happen. I can confidently say that it was my Bapu who took care of all of above events to my advantage.


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The golden ratio in mathematics is the irrational number (1 + sqrt 5)/2. A decimal approximation of the number is 1.618. The German astronomer Johannes Kepler and his contemporaries were the first to call it the golden ratio.
The golden ratio's origin dates back to around 500 B.C. It is known for providing an aesthetically pleasing proportion for the sides of rectangles. The ancient Greeks were the first to observe the aesthetic qualities that result from using the golden ratio. The golden ratio was also influential in the work of Leonardo da Vinci and other Renaissance figures.
The golden ratio is relevant to modern mathematics, as it often occurs in descriptions of fractals, which are of particular importance to chaos theory.


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Swizz Beatz has created one of the three covers that YRB will be using in their next issue.
The hit producer who just wedded the lovely Alicia Keys, was generous enough to create a cover for YRB's art issue. However, those who are heavy in the belief of the Illuminati will definitely have something to say toward this.
Peep the cover below and let us know does Swizz have a creative artwork, or is this just another tease of those gosh darn Illuminati.
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You must contact the inmate or parolees Parole Agent for parole information. The Office of the Ombudsman can assist by providing basic parole and post release community supervision information; however, we do not have jurisdiction over parole issues.
You may visit the Department's Division of Adult Parole Operations website at:
If you have any questions or need assistance, please contact one of the headquarters offices listed below:
Northern Region Parole Units Southern Region Parole Units
California Penal Code section 3003 states that a parolee must reside in the county they were living in prior to being sentenced to prison, unless CDCR grants them a transfer. Staff in the prison will assist an inmate in initiating a request to transfer his/her parole to another county; however, the inmate may be released before that transfer is granted. The parole agent will help the parolee with the transfer. You can also contact your son/daughter's parole agent to request a transfer. Be prepared to provide the complete address, your contact information, and, if you are renting, a copy of your lease.
Penal Code 3003 and Department policy allow a parolee to reside in another county if:
Download the Department Operations Manual available online. Pursuant to the California Administrative Procedures Act, many Department rules are in Title 15 of the California Code of Regulations, which is available at: http://www.oal.ca.gov/
If you cannot find what you are looking for, you will need to submit a Public Records Act request. More information about how to submit a Public Records Act request is available at: /News/CPRA.html
DAPO's first priority is public safety. Victims of and witnesses to a murder or voluntary manslaughter, mayhem, rape, sodomy by force, oral copulation, lewd acts on a child under 14, any felony punishable by death, stalking, and assault with a great bodily injury enhancement have the right to request:
The CDCR Office of Victim and Survivor Rights and Services can assist you with notifications about releases, restitution collection, and referrals to services to help you. It is important that you fill out and submit the CDCR Form 1707, which helps DAPO contact you and determine where to place the parolee. In the event you are contacted by the parolee, or feel that your safety is in jeopardy after the inmate is released, call 911 immediately. If you are not in jeopardy but have concerns regarding your safety or the offender, feel free to contact the nearest parole office or the CDCR Office of Victim and Survivor Rights and Services at 1-877-256-6877.
When the inmate was sentenced, the judge may have imposed a restraining order. You should check the expiration date of the restraining order, and may seek to renew it if it's expired.
The parolee has a history of committing crimes while under the influence of alcohol. For example, the Robbery, which is his controlling case currently, the police/probation report noted that parolee had watery eyes, a strong odor of alcohol emitting from his person, had an unsteady gate etc. all signs of intoxication. Further parolee has admitted that he drank 2 six packs a day plus hard alcohol. The restrictions are an attempt to assist the parolee with sobriety which intern would prevent or lessen future criminality. Further he has a special condition to attend and complete a substance abuse program to also assist him in his transition into mainstream society. We are doing what we can to try and assist the parolee in earning an early discharge from Parole.
As far as church, it is not a blanket restriction, the parolee has an offense or offenses against children and the church they asked to attend has a Sunday School so that request was denied. The parolee can however attend services during the week at a facility with no Day Care or School attached and during the evening service where it is less likely he would have accidental contact with children. Also we would need a letter from the Pastor or head of that church stating they are aware of his crime and they are authorizing him to be on church grounds for services. Have a discussion with the parole agent to see if a compromise can be worked out. However it is important to remember that public safety is the number one concern. (Penal Code Section 3067)
Contact the parole agent. Your daughter may be receiving services from the Parole Outpatient Clinic (POC) which provides services including evaluation of mental illness, medication management, individual therapy, group therapy, crisis intervention, and case management. If your daughter is not receiving these services through parole, the parole agent can make a referral to POC for an initial evaluation. You can also seek assistance through county mental health in the area you live in. The parole agent and a trained mental health professional can work together to assist your daughter with the services she needs to effectively manage her mental health illness.
Your husband may be eligible for Post Release community Supervision (PRCS) and eligible for supervision by county probation. In order to confirm this, your husband needs to first, report to the parole office so that parole can make a determination on who will supervise your husband in the community. If your husband is determined to be eligible for PRCS, parole will instruct your husband to report to the probation department that will have jurisdiction.
You may send clothing to the prison for the inmate to wear once released. You may order this clothing through one of the quarterly package vendors or you may send in clothing. This clothing should arrive at the prison 30 days before the release date and be clearly marked as DRESS OUT CLOTHING on the outside of the box. The clothing that you send should include 1 full set of clothing: one pair of pants/shorts, one shirt, one set of underwear, one pair of socks, one pair of shoes/boots/flip-flops, a jacket, if necessary. Do not send articles such as wallets/IDs/credit cards/etc. Only send clothing! Check with the individual prison for the mailing address for dress out clothing.
Upon arrival at the prison, check with the guard at the gate for instructions. If there is no guard, proceed to the Visitor Processing Building and check in with the Correctional Officer to confirm the individual you are picking up is being released. Upon confirmation, they will give you additional instructions on where to wait and what time your inmate will be released. Plan for delays – you do not want to be late picking up your Loved One. Parolees who do not have someone there to pick them up are put in a prison van and taken to the nearest Greyhound bus station, or to the Amtrak train station. The cost of transportation is taken out of their $200 release money. If they don't have $200 (because they've been in for less than 6 months), the prison make sure they have a bus ticket to the county that they were jailed.


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SAN FRANCISCO — It may soon get even harder for smokers to light up in San Francisco.
Under legislation introduced Tuesday, people won't be allowed to smoke near the doors, vents and operable windows of any building, including restaurants, shops, offices and housing complexes.
If the ordinance is approved, smoking would be banned at farmers' markets, lines for movie theaters, concerts and sporting events, near ATMs and cab stands, and at the outdoor tables of restaurants.
Supervisor Eric Mar, chief sponsor of the legislation, says the restriction are aimed at protecting San Francisco's most vulnerable residents from secondhand smoke.
The legislation was originally proposed last year, but it ran into fierce opposition from businesses. The new proposal addresses some of their biggest concerns.


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Batman Vintage Purple T-Shirt
Sign Up to be Notified When Your Size Is Available
Product # JUD45577730
Simple. Batman simple. While like to think the dark night had a penchant for not making things overly complicated, surely there was nothing straightforward about fighting crime in Gotham City. But Commissioner Gordon knew that everytime he turned on the Bat signal, he'd be there no matter what. This classic shirt features a distressed Batman logo, in a cool purple that is both fashionable and cool. (Softness Rating = 7/10)
- 100% cotton
- Distressed Batman logo
- Officially licensed


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Galco Ankle Lite Ankle Holster
A guest post written by Lori Winstead.
A guest post written by Lori Winstead.
I see this headline all the time, "Women Fastest Growing Demographic of Gun Owners," or something very similar. In the last
It wasn't too long ago that the subcompact semiauto .380 ACP hit like a fever. These lightweight, small-enough-to-fit-in-your pocket pistols
Written by Be a Blogger for a Day Contest Winner, Rachel McMurry.
Should I sell my gun?
Three years ago, I was asking this tough question about a particular gun I had purchased for concealed carry.
As many as 200,000 women use a gun every year to defend themselves against sexual attacks.
Every body—and I mean the way we are shaped—is different. Some have more on top, or
A U.S. District Judge has ruled in a lawsuit brought against
One of the biggest hits of 2014 in the gun world has undoubtedly been GLOCK's Model 42. It's not much of a surprise
If you are looking for a small, easily concealed pistol that comes in pink direct from the factory, you are
As a woman working in the firearms industry, I often am asked what guns I recommend for other women. It
It really irks me every time I read Shannon Watts Mom's Demand Action for Gun Sense in America's leader describe members of Open Carry Texas as rapists. It makes me just as sick to hear threats of sexual violence against Ms. Watts. Though I do not believe that Shannon Watts is all that trustworthy, I don't doubt for a second she has received threats to her life.
I have good news! Crime rates are dropping across the country. Women are less likely to be victims of crime and the numbers of reported rapes are decreasing. However, women report feeling higher levels of fear of crime than men do, even though young men are more likely to be victims of crime than women are.
Concealed carrying in winter is easier than in warm weather because we wear more layers, and cover garments, such as sweaters, hoodies or jackets, do not look suspicious.
I am surprised to be the first author who writes for The Shooter's Log to pen a range report for the 9mm Beretta BU9 Nano as it has been available a little over two years. Perhaps it is because pocket 9s have saturated the market and we have been too busy reviewing others, but somehow I get to be the first to review it. Either way, I'm excited I get to go in without any influence from my cohorts.
The differences in concealed carry for men and women are profound.
On Thursday, August 29, 2013, Ted Nugent's wife, Shemane—who has a concealed carry permit—was arrested at DFW Airport in Dallas, Texas for having a gun in her carry-on luggage. According to the family's attorney, David Finn, it was an "honest mistake."
"I don't mind living in a man's world as long as I can be a woman in it." – Marilyn Monroe
I generally avoid ranting on any of my blog posts. However, being an Internet blogger means I get to break the rules a little bit. Like being able to start a sentence with like and and. So, I'm going to go ahead and skate on thin ice here, break the rules and write about something that has been chapping my hide lately.


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The second you set foot in The City Cancun, you will have to pick your jaw up off the floor.
Whether you are watching one of the fire shows or acrobats flying through the air, you will be captivated by the endless exhibitions. And let's not forget about the outstanding light shows and music throughout the night.
The City upholds very high standards and has had the privilege of hosting some of the most famous and entertaining performers in the world such as Afrojack, Akon, Tiesto, Sean Paul and Snoop Dogg. If you visit Cancun and don't go to The City Nightclub, you are missing the biggest and most exhilarating party of your life.
-Meeting Point SR FROGS CANCUN
-Express line regular entrance, we don't do line
-Open Bar
*Does not include transportation.
Did you prefer a personalized attention? Call us now, send us an email or fill our Contact Form


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4 / 14 Adverts
Charming Apartment 2nd floor, shared entrance, in a modern block of flats, 5 floors
from £66/Night (rates)
from 4 to 6 people 4 adults, 2 children
2 bedrooms
3 roomsLiveable floor area : 1,076 Sq.ft.
2 bedrooms
3 roomsLiveable floor area : 1,076 Sq.ft.
Direct access to the beach
Benefits : Direct access to the beach
- View : Panoramic, unobscured, not overlooked, dominant, sea/ocean
- Children welcome
- Setting : Waterfront
- Sandy beach at <165'
- Thalasso, Festival, Fishing
- Exposure : East
Touristic region : discover Mediterranean Sea
Advert No. 75478
For your guidance
Contact by phone
Contact by email
For safety and quality control reasons, we strongly recommend to contact the owner through IHA Holiday Ads.
Reviews about the Advert 75478
Be the first to provide a review about this advert!
La CornicheAdvert 75478Mahdia - Mahdia Governorate - Tunisia
Advert details 75478
Assets Flat-Apartments
Benefits : Direct access to the beach
Interior Charming Apartment with View: panoramic, unobscured, not overlooked, ...
Receive up to : from 4 to 6 person(s) (4 adults, 2 children)
Liveable floor area : 1,076 Sq.ft.
Interior layout : 3 Room(s), 2 bedroom(s), 1 bathroom, 1 shower room, 2 WC, sitting room 323 Sq.ft., separate kitchen, tv room
Sleeps - bed(s) : 1 double bed(s), 2 single bed(s)
Guest facilities : Lift, T.V., t.v points, cable/satelite, cupboard, fully air conditioned, central heating, Rolling shutters, entry phone system
Appliances : Crockery/cuttlery, kitchen utensils, cafetiere, gas cooker, electric cooker, electric hobs, oven, freezer, dish washer, washing machine
Exterior Charming & Luxury holiday letting in Setting: waterfront
Outside accommodation : Covered terrace 85 Sq.ft.
Outside amenities : Outside shower facilities
Rates Calendar Availability Charming & Luxury holiday letting in Mahdia
Seasons & Availability Charming Apartment in Mahdia
Rates Charming Apartment in Mahdia
Reducing rates
Season Night Weekend week 2 weeks Month
Low season£134* £178*£623*£1068*£1958*
Mid season£147*£205*£716*£1210*£2252*
High season£160*£214*£748*£1282*£2545*
Festive specials - - - - -
Promotional period£107* - - - -
ServiceFrequencyIncluded / SuppliedSupplementRates
Cleaning on departure
For your guidance
Information :
Children welcome
Pets accepted under certain conditions (ask the owner)
Mobile telephone network coverage
Water : hot/cold
Local voltage supply : 220-240V / 50Hz
Electricity supply : mains and back-up generator
Booking conditions
Reservation :
Payment made upon reservation : £89*
Payment balance : on handing over the keys
Deposit required : £534*
Accepted methods of payment :
Bankers draft
Leisure, Surroundings, Location Charming Flat - Apartment 75478
Leisure Mahdia - Mahdia Governorate
Specific activities on site or less than 5 km/ 3 miles :
FISHING Mahdia Governorate
THALASSO Mahdia
FESTIVAL Mahdia
Leisure activities less than 20 km / 12 miles : Bathing, pedalo, scuba diving, banana boat, water skiing, jet ski, surfing, windsurfing, kite surfing, parascending, boat trips, fishing, angling, spear fishing
Attractions and relaxation : Discotheque, restaurant, historical site, museum, local craftshop
SurroundingsSeaside - Mahdia Governorate
Locality :
Sandy beach at <165'
Amenities :
Town centre at 0.3mi.
Breadshop at <165'
Local shops at <165'
Supermarket at 0.3mi.
Location AccessFlat-Apartments Mahdia
Immeuble la Corniche
5100 MahdiaMahdia Governorate
GPS coordinates of accommodation
Latitude 35°31'5"N
Longitude 11°2'36"E
Access routes Charming & Luxury holiday letting 75478
at 0.62mi. / 10min.
Train station Mahdia
Mahdia, Mahdia Governorate, Tunisia
at 26mi. / 30min.
Motorway (junction) A1
El Jem, Mahdia Governorate, Tunisia
Towns close by
Mahdia (0.62mi.)
Monastir (23,6mi.)
El Jem (26mi.)
Close to Wadi ar Rimth, Kudyat Bedaou, El Behira, Wadi Bab al Gharbi, Jenane Kerdradoui, Henchir Youssef, Hamadet Ghar Fafi, Ra's al Wadi, Henchir Roumi, Wadi Rijl Shaybah, Henchir Allaya, Leptis Minor, Al Karmah, Halte de Hiboun, Al Kaf, Al Burjayn, Ain ez Zerga, `Uqlat al `Alalishah, Al Hanashah, Sidi Bessari, Ed Douira
Towns close by
Nearby places
Photos Flat-Apartments 75478
Return to the rental listingsContact


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There are dozens of cute ear piercings to choose from, including the rook piercing, done on the cartilage that separates the inner and outer ear; and the helix, which pierces the upper ear. Combinations of different piercings and mixing and matching earrings creates potential for various unique looks.
With ear piercings more popular than ever, the kinds of piercings now available can be combined in a multitude of ways for cute and sleek looks. One increasingly popular style is the industrial piercing, where holes on opposite ends of the ear are joined by one long metal wire; and the Tragus piercing, a piercing of the thick section of cartilage that covers the ear's hole when pushed down.
Another popular piercing is the conch piercing, which pierces the curved section of cartilage in the lower ear that touches the skull. More daring individuals can try earlobe gauging, a process where thick earrings are inserted into holes in the earlobe. In time, larger diameter earrings are inserted, stretching the earlobe further and further. Those interested in this look must be careful; when stretched too much, the earlobe will not contract, leaving a permanent, sagging hole. Even worse, too much stretching can cause the earlobe to tear, an injury that requires surgery to fix.


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Jack Richards, a Fakenham-based logistics firm, has added five 15.65m trailers to its fleet after been awarded one of just 10,000 licenses allowing them to take part in the Department for Transport's (DfT) Trial of Longer Semi-trailers.
The DfT's research project has been designed to evaluate and understand the use of these vehicles on Britain's roads. The DfT initially launched the ten-year trial, open to any haulage operator or road transport operator in 2012, and operators were recently invited to bid for a remaining share of the allocation.
Following its successful application, Jack Richards, part of Palletways, Europe's largest and fastest growing express palletised freight network, has invested close-on a quarter of a million pounds to expand its fleet. The company initially purchased three 15.65m double-deck trailers and this year added a further two. The longer trailers offer more loading space compared to the standard 13.1m models frequently seen on roads today.
Dominic Purslow, depot principal at Jack Richards, said: "We had to meet a stringent set of credentials and criteria to get accepted onto the trial which aims to discover the feasibility and impact of using 15.65m trailers on the roads full time.
"This has been a massive investment for us but the return is huge, as we now have the ability to carry more pallets on fewer journeys. To put the savings into context, the extra capacity in every three 15.65m trailers we run means we can remove one equivalent trailer off Britain's roads, which is a significant saving. We're delighted with the results of the trial which could potentially be game-changing for hauliers and the wider logistics industry."
In agreeing to take part in the research project, Jack Richards' usage and performance of its new longer Semi-trailers is monitored and evaluated by DfT's contractors on a monthly basis.
Jack Richards & Sons, which was founded more than 50 years ago, is one of 100 plus member companies in the Palletways UK pallet network. Road Transport is at the core of the Jack Richards business. The company provides full load haulage services across the UK utilising a fleet of over 200 units and 350 curtainside trailers, the majority of which are plated to 44 tonnes giving a payload of 28.7 tonnes.


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Every grower knows there's no such thing as a perfect field. There may be parcels that produce great yields (and profits) year after year, but there's always something that could be better.
Take weeds, for example. Even in what would be considered a productive field, there could be a dozen or more different weed species present — and the number of weed seeds dormant in the ground, just waiting to emerge, could be astronomical given the thousands of seeds a single plant can produce each year.
Whether it's weeds or other potential problems (like insects, erosion, soil moisture, etc.), understanding what's going on in your fields is important. A good way to accomplish this is by using available technologies and embracing precision farming practices as a part of your overall management efforts.
In short, precision farming is an integrated agricultural management system that incorporates several different technologies. One of these technologies is GPS, which growers can use to map problem areas in their fields no matter the size of the operation.
"Everybody needs to spend time walking their fields and observing what's going on. Recording things using GPS is the best, most accurate way to do this," says Jerry Mulliken, JM Crop Consulting.
Mulliken's company contracts with growers in the Fremont, Neb., area to map up to 15,000 acres each year. As a part of this work, they scout fields looking for problem areas and then mark the locations using GPS. This data can then be used by growers for a number of purposes, including determining where to spot-spray for weeds.
Annual mapping
According to Mulliken, taking time to check your fields and map problem areas is something that needs to be done yearly.
"You can do an awful lot on just $5 per acre … and that's a trivial expense," he says. "If you find just one weed problem, you'll pay that expense back very quickly."
So instead of applying herbicides uniformly across an entire field, spraying only where needed using GPS waypoints can offer significant cost savings to growers. In addition, there are environmental benefits to reducing the volume of herbicides used.
"There's no single best way to identify problem areas. It needs to be a system approach," cautions Viacheslav Adamchuk, an associate professor of bioresource engineering at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, who is also an adjunct associate professor and former Extension precision agriculture engineer in the Biological Systems Engineering Department at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Adamchuk notes that a number of technologies today can help growers identify problem areas. Besides using GPS, he says high-resolution cameras and other optical-based sensors have been developed to help identify or simply detect weeds in field conditions, but operation logistics and equipment-compatibility issues have limited adoption of these technologies. Nonetheless, Adamchuk believes everyone can (and should) scout weeds in their fields.
"There's an investment either way …paying for the time to delineate areas that require little or no chemicals, or paying for chemicals that are wasted," says Adamchuk. "Field experience shows, however, that good herbicide management and reducing the amount of chemicals applied can result in significant savings."
In short, given the importance of the bottom line in farming, finding ways to cut costs without negatively impacting yields is important. Weed mapping using GPS technology is one such technique, but other technologies can also be used to gain better knowledge about your fields.
Beyond GPS
Mulliken offers remote sensing as an example of an underutilized technology, but says even investigating what imagery services are available (such as Google Maps and USDA Farm Service Agency maps) can provide some valuable information, as long as you understand their limitations.
"Farmers have a tremendous advantage over anyone else when it comes to their fields, so they should be out there looking for things at critical times," says Mulliken.
And even though technology can play a key role in identifying, understanding and managing problem areas, Mulliken believes, at a minimum, farmers need to "pay attention, be observant and take notes" while in the field. In short, being proactive and becoming a student of your profession is important no matter what technologies are being used.
"Even a little better understanding of the biology of weeds would go a long ways," he advises.
- Yontz writes from Urbandale, Iowa.


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Although weasels are common enough mammals it is rare to get more than a fleeting glimpse of one before it disappears into the undergrowth.I have followed the secret behaviour of these tiny predators through a number of cameras hidden in my garden for over a year. I have watched a female bringing up a litter of 7 kits, her battle for survival with a local stoat which sees her as a competitor and appears to actively hunt weasels.
I even saw their aggressive mating ritual - right outside my kitchen window. This was incredible. The male literally grabbed the female and when, after a short scuffle, she curled up into a submissive ball, he picked her and up carried her off by the scruff of her neck to mate.
I began watching the female in March, after Lara, who works in my gallery, came rushing to find me claiming she had spotted a baby stoat in the garden. Weasels are often mistaken for stoats. But as they are much smaller and, as it was too early for stoat kits, I knew by her description that she must have actually seen a weasel. A few days later I saw the weasel for myself from my studio window, which overlooks the same patch of garden.
I dashed downstairs, grabbed my camera and took my first ever photographs of a weasel from the kitchen window. Looking back through these photographs, I could tell the weasel was a female since she had very delicate features. I was surprised how small she was: just over twice the size of a wood mouse. I decided I needed to get her to feed regularly in the garden so that I could study her closely for a new painting.
I set about designing four 'weasel feeders', special wooden boxes fitted with fine mesh floors and Perspex sliding roofs. I drilled 32mm entrance holes into the sides, big enough for a weasel to get in and out but, importantly, too small for a stoat or rat. I positioned each box in different locations in my back garden, where I had seen the weasel hunting, and baited them with dead mice or voles every day. Sometimes I dragged the bait over the ground in front of the box to leave a scent trail.
After 10 days of repeating this process I'd had no joy and was starting to get disheartened. Then one morning I heard the birds in the garden calling out in alarm. Interestingly their calls were much more subtle then when a sparrowhawk is on the scene. As I looked out of the window I could see a weasel going from feeder to feeder diligently taking each rodent. Success! I reached for my camera and quickly snapped it as it made off down the path. I was off to a good start.
Over the next few weeks, the weasel started to come most days. But its raids were so quick I often missed its visits. I decided to reduce the number of feeding boxes down to one. With just one box to keep an eye on I would have a much better chance of getting clear sightings.
I fitted the box with a tiny camera so that I could see inside via a TV screen in my studio and a motion sensor with an alarm, which would alert me when it arrived.Then I artfully placed tree roots in front of this entrance so that any photographs I took would make it look as though the weasel was emerging from a natural setting. It took a few days to get the weasel to return to this adapted feeder, but one morning she dashed up through the roots and into the box. I watched on my TV monitor as she grabbed the mouse inside. I had tied down the bait with mini cable ties, so that it would slow the weasel down and give me chance to grab my camera.
I had a fascinating month watching the female weasel. Then one day a male arrived and went into the feeding box. He was much bigger and stockier than the female. He became a regular visitor too, although the relationship between them was very tense. But, spurred on by the possibility that this could be a mate for her, I headed off to the workshop to finish off a nesting chamber I had already started to build.
I made this out of a hollow hawthorn log and again hid a camera in it. It had a six inch hollow middle, which was the perfect size for such a small mammal. I put the whole thing into a small plastic bin and fixed three 32mm pipes leading in to it. I hoped the pipe would be too small for the larger male to get down. Inside I put two voles' nests made from dead grass and leaves to add extra scent. The pipes smelt of new plastic so I poured soil and sand through it before pulling a dead vole on a bit of string through too for good measure.
She fled, but she wasn't quick enough. The male caught her and rolled her over into a conifer. She was squeaking, hissing and spitting in aggression. As she rolled on to her back the bush was shaking and I got fleeting glimpses of weasels bobbing up and then disappearing behind the foliage.
I ran upstairs to get a better view. The female scrambled on top of a small shrub and leapt onto the path. But she wasn't quick enough. The male grabbed her by the scruff of the neck and carried her off out of sight.
I didn't see either weasel for the next three days which was unusual. I was worried that the male had chased her away, but I hoped that they were just mating. I was pleased to see her back one evening and even more pleased to see her investigating her new, bespoke, nesting chamber.
She checked every nook and cranny. It was like watching Location, Location, Location. Within minutes, she had decided she liked it and fetched one of the dead mice I had pushed down the pipe. She pulled this inside with her.
Then, incredibly, she set about neatly building a nest out of the old vole nest that I had put in earlier. She soon built a dome structure out of dry grasses and leaves and pulled her mouse into it. She ate some of her mouse and then the nest fell quiet as she fell asleep.
As the weeks passed I noticed that she was getting plump. Typically the gestation period for a weasel is 35 days. But she now couldn't fit down the pipe into the nesting chamber and instead she began sleeping and making a nest in the feeding box.
But the male could fit into this too. And for two nights just before she was due to give birth, he slept in it himself. It was clear she wouldn't give birth there now and shortly afterwards she gave birth to kits in a hole in the wall of my back shed.
As the female weasel ran back and forth from her nest in my back shed to the feeding box in my back garden, I wondered if I could channel her movements in some way. I watched her going backwards and forwards from my kitchen window and then decided I would build a mini dry stone wall with a weasel sized hole in, so I could capture her running through from either side. I built it during the day, and decided to put up cameras when the female had got used to using this new route. She started using it straight away. I think she enjoyed the security of having a safe place to hide in, so that she wasn't so exposed.
The following day, I was giving a talk to a large group in my gallery and opened the door in my studio where I have a deck overlooking my back garden. The nesting chambers and feed boxes are all here and I've nicknamed the back garden 'weasel town'.
Some of my customers walked out on to the deck to look at the garden and the spectacular view of the Yorkshire Wolds. They were pointing at the path and I went outside to see the weasel running along the path looking a bit distressed. I asked the customers about what they had seen and they told me that they had seen the weasel running back and forth with baby mice in its mouth. They went on to tell me that it had gone towards the nesting chamber, next to the back wall of my living room. I knew straightway that it wasn't baby mice that she was carrying but 6 day old kits! I got everyone inside quickly so that the weasel could move her kits in peace. We watched from a live camera inside my studio instead.
She had brought seven kits into the nesting chamber one at a time. She was now slim enough to fit into it again. The kits were just over one inch long. They were blind and hairless. They couldn't walk but could squirm and wriggle about. Once the last of the kits was brought into this safe haven, the female scurried out to the feeding box to retrieve a dead mouse. She dragged it into the nesting chamber with the kits. And I was amazed to see how the seemingly helpless kits quickly wriggled towards this new food source and started to suck on it. Who would have thought that such young creatures would already have the taste for meat at such an early stage?
I was slightly disappointed that I hadn't captured any footage of her moving the kits, I hadn't yet put the cameras either side of the mini dry stone wall, although I was beyond excited that they had chosen to nest in my 'home-made' nesting chamber with pre-installed camera.
This young family seemed very happy in their new location, but I suspected she may move them again, so I set about making her a new nest. I placed it outside my kitchen window near the feeding box. It made out from an old elderberry trunk. I laid it on its side and fitted it with a camera and a motion sensor. I put some dead mice in the entrance hole to attract the female to it. I had positioned it between her existing nesting chamber and the feeding box so she soon found it. On 17th June she moved two of the kits into this nest. The alarm connected to the motion sensor in the elderberry trunk was ringing loudly in my kitchen, so I looked at the TV screen to see the weasel carrying a tiny kit into the new nest right in front of the camera. I opened the kitchen window to get my camera in place. She came out of the entrance and spotted me. She ran back into the old nest with the other kits. On the TV screen I watched her curl round the kits to let them suckle. She seemed to settle down with them, forgetting about the other two that she had already moved. After half an hour I went out to check on the two kits and opened a door on the elderberry log nest. The kits were inside but they were still warm, so I went back inside to wait. A few minutes later she decided to abandon this move, came out and took the two kits back with her.
But after this 'failed' move, I knew another was imminent. I was glued to the TV screen, which relayed live images of the nest. I even set up another TV screen outside to show me what was going on inside the nest while I was filming. The weasel moves so fast, I could miss all the action if I wasn't careful.
I based myself at home, as I knew the move was imminent and I didn't want to miss it. I looked closely for any unusual behaviour patterns. Over the next two days she continued her normal routine, collecting food from the feeding box and taking it down to feed her kits in the nesting chamber. On Saturday 20th June in the morning she took a mouse into the hollow log, which acts as a 'front porch'. Then a few minutes later she took the mouse away and stashed it elsewhere. She then disappeared for nearly two hours. This was quite a long time to leave such young kits, certainly the longest she had left them to date, and I was getting concerned. I was relieved when she came back and let the kits suckle straightaway.
A customer wanted to speak to me in the gallery and I went through to chat to him. He asked me how my weasels were getting on and I pointed to the screen to show him the nesting chamber. At that very moment I saw the weasel pick up one of the kits by the scruff of the neck. It had started. She was moving them.
I rushed into the kitchen and activated my go pro video camera, which I had positioned outside the nest. Visitors to the gallery crowed around the screen to watch this rare event unfold. I was all fingers and thumbs and didn't know what to do. I couldn't decide whether I should outside or not and risk disturbing her.
I expected her to move the kits one by one to the new nest in an orderly fashion. But this was not the case. She pulled them all out at once into the front porch and then set off with one in the direction of the hedge. I took the opportunity to go into the back garden and get into position to film. My camera and tripod were already set up. I sat down and waited. She was soon back and she grabbed the kits one by one and took them the short distance to the hedge. She must have dumped them there! She was in such a rush she dropped one, but she soon picked it up again. I retreated to the back shed, where she had given birth to the kits. I waited motionlessly. I knew the weasel well and I had a hunch she was heading that way. Sure enough she appeared through the little dry stone wall that I had built for her holding a kit by the scruff of its neck and ran along the back wall of my studio. She dashed into a pile of scaffold poles still holding her 17 day old kit! She appeared out of the end of the three metre long pipe before making a final dash into the the nest in the back shed, where she had given birth.
She was moving so fast I had no chance of focusing my camera on her. I knew I would really have to concentrate if I was going to get a photograph of this amazing behaviour.
At this stage I wasn't sure how many of the kits she had moved already. But she came back out to get another. While she was away I shuffled into a better position. I crouched down on the step leading into the back shed and trained my camera on the hole in the dry stone wall. There was a glimmer of light coming through from the other side of the hole. When it went completely dark I knew she was on her way. Split seconds later she was in the entrance hole, where she stopped for a mili-second – just enough time to rattle off a few shots. She repeated this process twice more. So I counted up that would make four kits so far. But she was moving so fast that it was virtually impossible to get a sharp photograph -video would be the only way that I could capture this behaviour. So the next time she was in the nest I ran to get my go pro camera. When I returned, I stood back and I watched as she came out to get another kit. I seized the moment and quickly put the go pro camera into position right outside the hole in the dry stone wall. I pressed record, then sat back down to wait. This time, when she returned with the fifth kit, the camera was in her path and she paused to glance at it for a few seconds - just long enough to give me a chance to get some photographs properly in focus. She went into the nest for a few minutes and I was beginning to think that this episode was over, but she soon came out. I suspect she was checking to see if she had left any kits behind. Next she went to the feeding box to collect a mouse to feed her family in their new home. It had been an action packed hour!
It was a long wait before I saw the kits again – although I still saw the female regularly. She came to feed at the specially designed feeding box which I had now put up in a branch 1 metre off the ground. I did this so I could get some good action shots of her running up and down the 1.5 metre
long branch.
The problem was she was just so quick – it was like trying to capture a shot of
a flying bird, not a mammal.
She was getting quite used to be by now and she didn't mind my presence in the back garden. I had some great encounters with her as she travelled from the feeding box back to her nesting site. I could just sit 1 metre away from the route I knew she would take and she would storm past me with a mouse for her kits in her mouth. I didn't even need to set up a hide or wear camouflage clothing!
My elaborate set up with the mini dry stone wall was working well, but the problem was she was impossibly quick and it was difficult to get a photograph of her. It really was split second stuff. So I positioned another TV monitor outside that I could watch as I sat waiting for her to appear. This could relay live images of her in the feeding box. This would show me when she was leaving the feeding box and give me chance to get ready for her coming through the dry stone wall. I even positioned a large mirror on the other side of the dry stone wall so I could see her reflection as she approached along the garden path and then going into the far side of the dry stone wall. Often she would dash straight past me and it was very difficult to get a good shot, but on other occasions she would pause for a fraction of a second – just long enough to rattle off a few shots.
When she appeared out of the dry stone wall she would head straight for a pile of scaffold poles that were lying by the side of the wall of my studio. She would run inside the poles and I could hear her claws scratching against the metal. As she emerged she would look up at me – and I would need to sit very still – and then she would scuttle round the corner and into her nest in the back shed to feed her kits. I had positioned a trail cam directly outside the entrance hole to the dry stone wall. But even though it was just 50cm away it struggled to cope with the sheer speed of the weasel and it rarely activated the motion sensor.
It was 6th July and now been four and a half weeks since the kits were born and I was expecting to see the kits any day now. Late one evening I decided to check the trail cam. It had captured a few shots of a weasel, but I was then surprised to see a video of a stoat coming out of the nest. The trail cam had recorded the footage at 6.50am. I wondered if this could be the end of my weasel kits. Ten seconds later the trail cam had recorded the female appearing out of the entrance to the nest, checking to see if the stoat had gone. I didn't know if the much smaller weasel had seen this large predator off and managed to save her kits or not. The next video was at lunch time of a kit peering out of the hole.
It was hard to tell at first that it was a kit – it was fully formed and as large as the female. But it's movements were slow and clumsy in comparison to the swift dexterity of the adult which gave it away.
I was so relieved when I saw her busily taking food in to the nesting chamber the following day. It signified that the kits were alive and well and hungry! Then the trail camera captured footage of a large rat sniffing going into the entrance of the nest chamber. Rats are not really thought to be 'hunters' but they could easily kill a whole litter. Again, I was worried.
A week later the female didn't take as much food as normal from the feeding box. She was only taking two mice a day – which was only sufficient to feed herself. I was worried that the stoat or the rat had been back again, as in addition to her not taking any food down to the kits I hadn't captured any new footage of the kits appearing out of the entrance to their nest. But thankfully the following day her feeding pattern returned to normal, taking seven mice in quick succession and even a bit of rabbit too.
She had obviously got lucky and managed to hunt something herself. I decided to take a look at the entrance to the nesting chamber. The back shed wall had a large pyracantha bush growing up it. I peered in to see two weasel kits playing in the thick cover.
But the nesting chamber was very vulnerable to attack by the rat and the stoat so I decided to reduce the size of the entrance hole so that these larger predators would be unable to get in.
The female rarely came to feed by night so I knew this would be the least intrusive time to do a bit of handiwork. So over three nights I cut back the pyracantha and put in three clay pipes over the holes with a 32mm reduce plate inside so nothing larger than this size could get in. Around these clay pipes, I built a drystone wall with a small waterhole to give myself a natural-looking backdrop. Two pipes lead into the nesting chamber and the third led into my back garden.
Weasels have a very strong sense of smell, and I didn't want to alarm them with my scent. So I put chopped up rabbit and mice all over the drystone wall. I thought it would serve as the perfect distraction from the work I had done. It worked a treat. The next day I saw the kits investigating their new front door complete with waterhole. They scurried around from one hole to the next, collecting the morsels of food that I had stashed in crack and crevices in the wall. They definetly liked the improvements I had made, but the most important thing was to wait and see if the female accepted the changes.
I kept replenishing the food on the wall and was delighted to see her taking the morsels in to the new holes. I had seen her nearly every day since March – more than four months – and I would often come across her while I was out in the garden. She had built up some trust in me, and accepted the changes that I had made to her nesting chamber.
I built a hide 5 metres away from the chamber and the door next to my studio so that I could watch the comings and goings of the young family of weasels. The kits were still very tentative when they were outside the nest and rarely strayed far from cover.
Then on 20th July when the kits were 48 days old there was a real change in behaviour. The female weasel decided it was time to take them on their first adventure into the great unknown. I was just walking through the kitchen when I heard the alarm of one of my sensors going off. I realised it was the sensor that I had positioned inside what I hoped would be a nest for this family of weasels in an old hollow log. The log was just outside the kitchen window. I looked at the monitor and saw that several weasel kits were already in the nest. I grabbed a camera and opened the window. The female weasel and her kits were in the entrance to this new nest. She saw the movement and quickly pulled the kits back inside the hollow log by the scruffs of their necks. Seconds later she appeared in the entrance again, looking my way. The kits seemed to think it was some sort of game and pounced on her. She made a chitting sound and two kits followed her. It was as if they were moving as one animal – nose to tail. As they bounded away I watched them dash up into the feeding box and then watched two more weasels whizzing around the garden. There seemed to be weasels everywhere! The female was taking them on a tour of their territory. After a full morning of exploration, they all headed back to their back shed nest. After lunch I sat in my hide filming the kits. It may sound unlikely but it is impossible to count them as they dash around. I saw four at once, which started to gave me a good idea of numbers. The female took five mice away from the top feeding box, but she didn't take them back to the back shed nest so I wondered where she was taking them to. I went back to the hide to find four kits dashing in and out of the holes. The female came to the wall. I couldn't see her but I could hear her chittering call. One by one the four kits dashed after her in the direction of the back garden. I checked through my video footage and found that in spite of being just 48 days old these four kits were already bigger than her. It seemed to me that these four were probably male weasels. I had seen some smaller kits as well – so was hoping that all seven were still alive. I didn't see anymore weasels for the rest of the afternoon, so was starting to wonder where she had moved them to. Later that day I was out in the garden putting some food out for some wild kestrels that I have trained to come to feed on a post in my garden. I heard a squealing distress call. I ran over to the meadow area of my garden and parted the tall grasses. There was a weasel having a battle with a young rat. They were rolling and writhing about. One moment the weasel seemed to be winning, the next moment the rat appeared to have the upper hand. The rat tried biting the weasel's face. The weasel was spinning around the rat almost like a snake. I dashed back to the house to get my camera. By the time I got back the weasel was winning the war and the rat's squeals became subdued. The weasel had the rat by the throat and was viciously biting into it. It was making sure that rat was not just playing dead. It definitely was dead but it was still flicking and twitching. The weasel had been so caught up in the fight, that it hadn't noticed me stood right over it filming. But it soon dashed of into the grasses and I retreated to let it eat it's well earned meal. As I did so I could hear another young rat being caught by one of the other weasels. The female had obviously taken the young kits on a hunting mission. What a tough first outing for these youngsters – as female rats, like most mammals, are known to fiercely defend their young. I have watched cheetah take down gazelle in
but this was every bit as dramatic and a very rare sight to witness.
As the summer passed I watched with interest as the kits became more and more adventurous. I watched them playing, pouncing and fighting. There seemed to be only one female. The other 4 were male kits. I suspect the other 2 had died at some point. The males gave the female a hard time – dragging her around by the scruff of her neck. But she was feisty and gave as good she got. The female had a special bond with one of the males and they often went around together.
I attracted a new stoat to the garden, that has become a regular visitor. One day I heard an ear piercing screech from the weasel and I knew that she had been attacked by the stoat. She appeared a few days later sporting a serious gash on her chin. By mid-august she disappeared completely. I will never know what happened to her, but I strongly suspect that it was the stoat who got her in the end.
Four of the males disappeared by late summer. I think they will have gone off to find their own new territories and I am currently left with the female and male kit.
Tomorrow's episode on BBC Springwatch will explain what happens next... so tune in tomorrow night and read my next blog here about what happens next....
Tomorrow's episode on BBC Springwatch will explain what happens next... so tune in tomorrow night and read my next blog here about what happens next....


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Ghost in the Shell 2.0
In 1995 director Mamoru Oshii unleashed Ghost in the Shell on the world. Based on the philosophy-heavy science fiction comic by Masume Shirow the movie met with little success on its release, showing for only two weeks in native Japan and clocking only a hundred thousand viewers in 1995. Since then it has gone on to become one of the most successful must-see anime features to date. Ghost in the Shell 2.0 revisits the original movie, bringing it up to date with modern cinema and home entertainment technology, ready for a cinema and BluRay re-release. From the opening shot, panning down into a detailed wireframe cityscape, to the similar but reversed shot which bookends the movie, we are treated to a lovingly crafted redux which enhances the original with re-recorded dialog, newly mixed and enhanced audio, colour-corrected 2d animation, and new full-CGI scenes.
The most obvious change to the movie is the new CGI sequences, in particular the opening sequence with Kusanagi leaping off the building to assassinate a foreign diplomat has been completely redone in full CGI. While the quality of these new scenes doesn't compare to the likes of Pixar's groundbreaking digital animation, they are nevertheless high quality. Other than the new scenes, the traditional animation in the rest of the movie has been retouched significantly, mainly through colour correction and filters. The overall colour palette is a lot more understated than the original, which makes everything look a lot more natural and less "cartoony". At times the colours have been washed out slightly, that when combined with the faintly misty filter, contributes to the noir vibe of the movie.
Arguably the best improvements to the movie (since there are die-hard fans who will argue against the visual changes) is the audio. This isn't entirely surprising since the whole impetus for the 2.0 version of the movie came from a conversation with Tom Meyers about the idea of him redoing the audio for Ghost in the Shell. Overall the audio is crisper, clearer, makes better use of the surround sound channels, and just generally sounds great. A lot of sound effects have been redone and sound punchier and more realistic, in particular the gunfire sounds in the movie stood out as being worlds better than the original sounds.
I did have one gripe with the movie; The new full CGI sequences for Kusanagi are so clearly modern that the cut from them back to the original 1995 cel animation was quite jarring, in fact at times it almost felt like two different movies had been spliced together. Luckily the "computer" sequences and the scenes involving layered cel animation and CGI blended a lot more comfortably with the rest of the movie. On the topic of gripes and visual changes, some reviewers have taken issue with the new colour palette, complaining that the faded and slightly misty look lacks the punch of the original scenes.
While many will at first approach with the hesitant fear of having fond memories stomped on like certain other "enhanced releases" rest assured that nothing has been lost (with the exception of the few sequences that have been redone in full-CGI). Hitting UK cinemas on 2nd October, 2009, any existing fan - and lovers of anime and science fiction in general - would be mad to miss this opportunity to see one of the greatest anime movies ever made on the big screen. Also worth noting is that the Blu Ray release will include the original unaltered movie, so you get the best of both worlds!


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Here are a few lovely images, interior, lighting and furniture that has my creative mind all excited :)
Unfortunately I have no reference of where these images are from as a lot of them are from my 'general inspiration' folder on my Mac... But if you like any of the images, I will do my very best to find the original source for you. Hope you like. Have a great day :)


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Are We Ready To Reclaim Our Cultural Heritage And Humanity? Know Thyself Community Wednesday
Are we ready to reclaim our cultural heritage and humanity?
We received an email back in October of last year from Brother Akhu Ra for our Community Payroll contest when we were looking for solutions to the issues facing our community.
Brother Akhu Ra writes:
The issue which plagues our community is fundamentally an issue of humanity. The human rights of our community have been taken away by historical, political, as well as economic factors which have left us without our human heritage.
Humans are entitled to nationality, language, culture, and most importantly the right to self determination. By reclaiming our cultural heritage we reclaim our humanity and begin to cause our community to awaken from the death like state which grips it.
Only when we have the same rights to a culture, heritage and identity as other ethnicities will we be able to participate as contributing members of the human family.
The solution to our community's problems is the adinkra of Sankofa, which means go back and fetch it. How do we fetch it? How do we return? By turning to our classical cultural heritage and using it as a model to build a functioning social and spiritual system in the modern age which is directly relevant to our issues and speaks to our nature.


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Posts Tagged '30 Rock'
Chillpak Hollywood Hour #504
This week's installment of YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour begins with a special audio montage. After two weeks of "theme" episodes, your friends in podcasting would love to discuss TV and Movie news and reviews, however the bulk of this week's show is spent celebrating the lives of such luminaries as Zsa Zsa Gabor, Richard Adams, George S. Irving, Carrie Fisher, Debbie Reynolds and George Michael. Then, with what time is left, Dean and Phil reveal how they spent their respective New Years.
Chillpak Hollywood Hour #502
Let your friends in podcasting put a little Ho Ho Ho into your holidays (and honestly, we have no idea what this even means) with their fourth "Top Ten" show of this, year ten of YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour … This week, Dean and Phil count down their Top Ten (episodic) Television Shows of 2016, and this year their countdown comes replete with caveats! Who doesn't love a good caveat during the holiday season?
Chillpak Hollywood Hour #463
The world really took it on the chin this week with abominable violence in Brussels and the deaths of a groundbreaking rapper, a gentleman actor-turned-union leader, and one of the most influential figures in the history of comedy. Your friends in podcasting will try to make sense of all of it, while celebrating new voices in comedy, a great new sci-fi film, and challenging their own industry to send bolder, more clear messages that discrimination anywhere will not be supported.
Dean Haglund and Phil Leirness – When the world is at its worst, they tend to be at their best.
Chillpak Hollywood Hour #420
Now that Dean Haglund resides in Sydney, Australia, we have to ask is Dean Haglund on the "down low from down under"? Is he "the thunder from down under"? Is the show "asunder from down under"?
In the weeks and months to come, your friends in podcasting will most certainly have to change the way they change the way you listen to the internet! For now, we invite you to sit back, relax and enjoy a very special "theme show". It's all about Dean and Phil's favorite funny ladies of stage and screen.
And, yes, it was pre-recorded.
Chillpak Hollywood Hour #397
Before taking off on their holiday travels, your friends in podcasting, Dean Haglund and Phil Leirness are doing what they do best: Making sense of a (show business) world gone wild …
They weigh in on the cyber terrorist attack against Sony. They celebrate a milestone achieved by one of their favorite shows. They discuss live events starring the likes of Angela Lansbury and Jeff Goldblum. They dish on an animation price-fixing lawsuit, the decades-long Roman Polanski judicial drama and the idea of actors owning a copyright interest in their performances. They discuss casting news that has them hopeful and casting news that gives them pause. They champion three outstanding films from earlier this year that you probably missed that are available now on home video and they warn you against an award-hopeful Christmas Day opener that is without a doubt one of the worst films of the year. All that PLUS much more as they wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!
All together now (singing): "We need a little Chillpak, right this very minute!"
Chillpak Hollywood Hour #375
How does a show that begins with a lengthy discussion of Phil's hairstyles thru the years end up being so darn inspiring?
When it's YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour, of course!
On this week's show, Dean and Phil discuss The Paramount Ranch, westerns, Chaplin, Alexander Payne, the moon landing and history belonging to those that move and delight us.
Dean shares great advice for comedy writers.
Phil explains both the good and the bad in our move to BlogTalkRadio.
Then, your friends in podcasting remember a famous werewolf, a punk rock icon, the Grand Dame of Broadway, the preeminent bass player of his generation, the last "real man", a war hero and Olympian, and a 21 year-old actress and filmmaker.
Chillpak Hollywood Hour #299
Many topics covered on today's installment of YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour including:
An interesting study on violent video games … Dean's latest half-marathon … Paul Auster's The Book of Illusions … A table reading of Dean and Phil's new film The Lady Killers … The location filming of an intriguing sci-fi short … The movie version of Les Miserables … JJ Abrams departing Star Trek for Star Wars (and whether he ever knew he was making Star Trek in the first place) … IFC's "Portlandia" …
And even if that were enough for one show, your friends in podcasting keep it coming, analyzing the scarcity of employment opportunities for women behind-the-camera in Hollywood and analyzing this year's Best Picture Oscar nominees thru the prism of the Becdel Test.
Finally, many listeners have asked whether Dean and Phil will be attending Dragon*Con this year and one asked Dean and Phil's reactions to some disturbing news about where much of the revenue from the event goes each year. Whether you don't know what Dragon*Con is or even if you go to the annual Labor Day Weekend event in Atlanta every year, you won't want to miss the return of all-time classic Chillpak Hollywood Hour #121 (Live from Dragon*Con!), available NOW for the first time in more than two years!
Chillpak Hollywood Hour #273
Somehow a bet on the Oscars turned into this episode all about television …
The recent Emmy nominations are discussed at the outset and very quickly the show turns into a grudge match pitting comedy against drama, Luther vs. Sherlock, Dean Haglund vs. Phil Leirness and Dean Haglund vs. David Lynch!
That's right, you're about to hear what happened when Dean had to fulfill his obligation (upon losing the annual Chillpak Hollywood Oscar pool) to watch the pilot episode of David Lynch's seminal series Twin Peaks.
The owls are not what they seem …
Chillpak Hollywood Hour #205
Much is on the minds of your friends in podcasting, Dean Haglund and Phil Leirness. From wishing happy birthdays to loyal listeners, to answering your questions, to sharing what they've learned through the process of making their documentary, they really prove this week that it is YOUR Chillpak Hollywood Hour. There's the usual entertainment industry news and analysis, film and television reviews, irreverent insights and informative diatribes. So, enjoy, and if you are going to be in the London area, make sure to purchase tickets for the Saturday 30 April premiere of The Truth Is Out There!


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The bill was first presented by Sen. John Sununu, R-N.H., but amendments to it that were made public Thursday morning would permit the states to regulate VOIP services with taxes both to subsidize universal service and to compensate traditional telcos for access.
Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., introduced the amendment, which passed by a vote of 12 to 10. Another amendment that also passed, from Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont., called for E911 compliance. The entire, amended "Regulatory Freedom Act" passed by a vote of 13 to 9.
The states have about $20 billion a year at stake in universal access subsidies and other fees, which could erode as increasing numbers of subscribers desert the PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network) for lower-priced, managed-network and Internet IP voice services.
Reaction from the VOIP service provider community was unsurprisingly negative. Don Hoffman, president and CEO of New York-based M5 Networks Inc., an enterprise-focused IP Centrex provider, said additional taxes for PSTN compensation would be punitive and unwieldy.
"We pay full taxes and surcharges for the services that we buy to connect to the public network, just like any business would. To then force me to break that out and pass it along to a consumer is confusing, to say the least.
"We have many clients who come to us to connect their locations across different states," Hoffman said. "To have to contend with different regulatory issues on a state-by-state basis is not how business is done today."
Jason Talley, CEO of VOIP provider Nuvio Corp., based in Kansas City, Mo., said the E911 obligation entered by Sen. Burns "is more burdensome" than that required of traditional telecom providers. "Asking us to tax VOIP to subsidize the PSTN is like taxing e-mail to subsidize the post office," he said.
The legislation now goes to the full Senate for consideration, but it is not expected to be voted on before congressional adjournment in November.


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TORONTO (August 11, 2011) - The film Leone Stars is one of six finalists chosen to compete at Toronto International Film Festival's Pitch This! It is the sole documentary this year and only the second doc in the 12-year history of Pitch This! to battle for the $10,000 development prize.
Leone Stars co-directors Allan Tong and Ngardy Conteh will pitch on Tuesday, September 13 in Cinema 3 at the TIFF Bell Lightbox. From noon till 1:30 pm, six pitching teams will have six minutes each to present their project before a live audience and a jury of film professionals. If Leone Stars wins, it will mark an historic year for documentaries at TIFF. From the Sky Down is opening 2011 TIFF as the first-ever doc to hold that honour.
|Bono - Defender
Leone Stars was the first documentary in English Canada to successfully raise $20,000 in funding on the popular crowdfunding site, Kickstarter.com. The funds allowed the production team to take a three-week trip to Sierra Leone capital, Freetown, and the southern province of Bo earlier this year. Additional funding is needed to follow the team to the world championships in 2012.
Leone Stars began in 2008 when Allan Tong saw photos of the team taken by New York photographer Fiona Aboud. Allan enlisted Ngardy as editor then co-director. Halifax producer Walter Forsyth came on board and enlisted Jerry McIntosh, who manages the Feature Documentary Program at the Canadian Film Centre, as the executive producer. Endorsed by War Child Canada Leone Stars is seeking broadcast partners and private investment.
902.492.1047 (Walter Forsyth, producer)
647.200.9146 (Allan Tong, co-director)
416.897.5575 (Ngardy Conteh, co-director)
- 30 -


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Discussion > EU must be joking
When deciding whether we should be in or out of the EU, perhaps you should consider what von Rompuy said, in his acceptance speech for the EU presidency: "…this is a major step forward to world government." If that doesn't chill your bones, you already have ice for blood.
Radical Rodent
World government is well underway, the latest is the non-EU Paris Agreement. In or out of the EU it won't make a lot of difference to the end result as far as the UK is concerned. An even more remote governing elite.
I'm not sure that it isn't better to work within the EU to create more accountability and democracy there than be a lone voice crying in the wilderness or a small state governed by a very select elite who don't meet in the way the current first stage world council of the G8 or G21 do.
Sandy S. " a lone voice, crying in the wilderness "
I know the feeling.
There are plenty of international laws established, without the requirements of world government; all that is required is the agreement of the countries involved, hence the international regulations governing the airline industry, for example.
Working within the EU for more accountability will not work, I am afraid; it is what our "leaders" have been trying to do (or at least claiming to be doing) for most of our membership. The corruption is too entrenched for it to be wheedled out so easily, and few other countries show any desire to help. Perhaps the only way to resolve the problem that we have left is to leave; after the UK leave, the EU may well disintegrate further; while many of the elite in Brussels will suffer, most of us will feel little effect. I suspect that the EU is doomed, whichever we choose in June – our departure will trigger a slow demise; remaining will extend the life, but the end result will be more catastrophic and unpleasant.
SandyS on Apr 23, 2016 at 9:04 AM
Being in the EU and conforming to all its authorities means we cannot deal with the problems. In fact that is true elsewhere in the EU but few feel bothered, though they are increasing in numbers! The point of the rule of law is to stop bad behaviour, not just to punish those committing the crimes, for ever and a day! The criminal activity needs to stop.
As an example of the ineffectiveness that we have, an 'unpleasant' migrant, who was being expelled, abused a young girl and then said he couldn't be returned to his home country because he would be treated unfairly. He was allowed to 'remain'. So, a criminal offence leads to better treatment!
Isn't that just taking the micky out of our authorities and the taxpayers? There are many other ways of getting around the spirit of the law and, with the ECHR available, no wonder our authorities are unable to do what is expected.
Robert, there were methods used in the past to deal with unpleasant people when the law is ineffective. Shunning, should be even more effective today with modern communications and social media. No authorities can force individuals to speak to or even recognize those undergoing shunning.
Alan Kendall
It is interesting to see how this subject divides us (and no use hiding that fact) however I find that with one or two exceptions; I still agree with the same people as usual.
My opinions on this are in line with:
Radical Rodent
Robert Christopher
golf charlie
Green Sand
mike fowle
David Jones
Steve Richards
One side of this argument is trying to make this choice (IN or OUT) far more complex than it really is. Who among us can justify arguing against freedom and democracy?
Robert Christopher
Is your example a person who used Tony Blair's Human Rights Act in the UK or did they use the pre-EU Eleanor Roosevelt inspired European Convention on Human Rights to which UK acceded to the in March 1951
If the latter lay the blame at Sir Winston Churchill's feet, if the former then lay the blame at Tony Blair's and Sir Winston Churchill;s feet, The case against the EU is Not Proven.
<humour>If you are saying that you don't like any legislation inspired by Johnny Foreigner then that is your prerogative I suppose, or perhaps you haven't forgiven the French for Castillon and the German Navy for shelling Hartlepool?</humour>
If you think anything like the EU membership isn't highly complex then I recommend listening to half a dozen editions of BBC Radio4's The Moral Maze.
(Alan Kendall take note of a tip to the BBC)
Good of you Dung to identify "the usual.suspects", but why do you believe others argue against freedom and democracy? Categorizing those with different views as being opposed to those values is both wrong and somewhat insulting. Please note I still sit on the fence here.
Sandy S. Thanks for the H/U but I do listen avidly each week. Some parts cause teeth grinding, others a triumphal raising of the fist.
I did not say that the arguments were not complex, I am saying that they do not need to be complex. I am saying that freedom and democracy are what brexit is about and I ask how anyone can argue against that.
Alan Kendall
If you argue for remaining then you are arguing against freedom and democracy. The EU is not democratic (which I presume you do not dispute) and without democracy there can be no freedom.
I said I was planning to keep out of this discussion and I'm aiming to stick to that but I would like to draw your attention to an article in today's Times (sorry, it's behind a paywall) by Ed Conway, economics editor at Sky News.
If you can't get access there, I've blogged on it here with a couple of quotes if anyone cares to go and have a look.
My aim is not to convert anyone but to try, probably in vain, to get people at the very least to argue in the basis of the facts and not the myths.
To take one example highlighted by SandyS, how many more times are we going to have to explain that the European Court of Justice and the European Court of Human Rights are not the same thing. Leaving the EU will not make it any easier to deport those we would wish to.
To put it more bluntly than I normally would, the example quoted by Robert at 2.47 has bugger all to do with our membership of the EU and everything to do with the fact that we are signatories to the European Convention on Human Rights and the extent to which we fight (or more often don't fight) our corner when it comes to arguing Section 8.
Conway quotes several examples which debunk the myth that there is no room for manoeuvre when it comes to EU directives and reinforces the argument that I have made for years that the problem that the UK has is largely one of its own making.
As I said in my original post, "Read the treaties". And then ask why the principles of proportionality and subsidiarity apparently apply to everybody else and not the UK. The answer is, of course, that they apply to everyone. It's just that the UK for its own obscure reasons pretends that such principles don't exist and chooses to go the extra mile to prove what good Europeans we are while complaining about the burdens heaped upon us.
There is all too much myth and misunderstanding in play.
I do not like to argue with you because I usually agree with most of what you say however now you are perpetuating yet another myth. Not everyone who argues against the EU is unaware of the problems caused by our own government.
Within the EU the laws are being made by unelected beurocrats and that remains true regardless of whether or not we abide by those rules.
Germany has taken command of 66% of the army of the Netherlands and 100% of their navy as the start of the EU armed forces.
The loss of our fishing grounds is not a figment of my imagination.
Get rid of the EU and everyone can see who is responsible for our problems (and vote against them).
I could write a hundred reasons here but I return to freedom and democracy, that is all that is needed.
If Brexit comes then I sincerely hope you are not disappointed regarding freedom and democracy, history suggests you may well be.
I suggest you read Mike Jackson's comment very carefully, it reflects my beliefs regarding the EU and the UK.
Once again I hate to argue with you but you are ignoring the obvious.
Neither you nor I know what will happen after Brexit however what we do know is that our future will be in our hands and ours alone.
Cameron is the most enthusiastic pro EU lapdog in the country, visibly moving heaven and earth to keep us in. Cameron got nothing through his negotiations with the EU and that is what any UK government would get if they tried to reform it from within.
Merkel invited 1 Million muslims to go to Germany and after the Cologne rapes she tried to force the rest of the EU to take a share.
I want my country back for better or worse.
Re-fishing grounds. Perhaps the poor deal in the original CFP is explained by: Fishing is a relatively unimportant economic activity within the EU. It contributes generally less than 1% to gross national product.
In a document produced by the Scottish Government regarding the new CFP there is this sentence
Across Scotland, perhaps surprisingly, fishing makes a very small contribution to GDP
Scottish fishing grounds got special treatment because the fishing industry and politicians made enough fuss. The CFP was reformed only recently and the new policy came into force January 2014. Now I'm not sure I recall any fuss being made by the UK government to improve the lot of UK fisheries during the negotiations for the new policy. In fact all I can recall is the campaigns by various people like Fearnley-Whittingstall to stop the throwing away of accidentally caught illegal fish. Pushing at an already open door.
What doesn't get much news coverage is the selling of UK fishing boats along with their quotas to foreign owners, mainly Dutch and Spanish.
There have been reforms to CFP in 1983, 1992 and 2002, I'm unaware of any efforts by the UK to get a better result for the UK fisheries.such as increased exclusive fishing limits.beyond 6 miles.
So I'll posit that the UK and fishing boat owners let the UK fishing industry down, just as has happened in many industries, for example steel.
The EU is not responsible for much of the above.
Neither you nor I know what will happen after Brexit however what we do know is that our future will be in our hands and ours alone.
We might think so but the realist in me suggests this won't be the case.
There has been a migrant camp at Calais since before Merkel made her foolish invitation, which wasn't greeted with unadulterated enthusiasm here in France, the reason being that in this case the UK negotiated an opt out of Shengen and kept control of its borders. The French are not over the moon about the situation of having to look after several thousand people who want to be somewhere else.
With regard the the sharing proposed by frau Merkel it seems to have been met met with a universal "you must be joking". But is it a problem created by the EU or Angela Merkel aided by a weak Greece and and uncoordinated response. Just how brexit UK would change a great deal remains unclear to me.
You do not need to convince me of the guilt of Cameron when it comes to industrial disasters in the UK, I am a believer !
What is the downside of reclaiming our sovreignty?
You tell me it is not the answer to all our problems, I agree but what are the downsides?
I've spend enough time here tonight I'm off to do a bit of work on research into what the family call grandad's little boats. I'll return later for a catch up.
I love France and most of its people (NOT Parisians hehe). If the French do not like our Shengen opt out then they should negotiate their own opt out.


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WintergrassperationSubmitted by robin on Sat, 02/24/2007 - 9:50am
I had my introduction to Wintergrass yesterday. What an exciting event!
Vendors were selling instruments, books, CDs, and more. People found little nooks all over the Shearton Hotel to jam together. 5 stages of live music and three were in the hotel making it easy to find something good everywhere you turned.
A couple of bands I saw had excellent performances and I would recommend seeing them:
- The Infamous Stringdusters
- The Greencards
- Uncle Earl (although their sound guy could use a little training)
All of the music was fantastic and people really seemed to enjoy themselves. Workshops were held earlier in the day, but I did not get a chance to attend any.
It was great to experience and I'm definitely going back next year with plans to stay in Tacoma for at least a couple of days so I can get the full experience. Maybe I'll be capable enough to jam with some folks by then!


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yuki ichigo
Winter and early spring are seasons of my fav convini-sweets (sweets that you can get at convenience store or super market) "yuki ichigo".
It's like ichigo daifuku, but this sweets made of fluffy cake, fresh cream, and strawberry in gyuhi dumpling.
yuki ichigo – Yamazaki (Japanese)
gyuhi - Wikipedia
daihuku – Wikipedia
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Corn earworms are a bane to both home gardeners and commercial farmers alike. In fact, they cause more damage to corn crops than any other insect and are found throughout the continental U.S. In addition to corn, corn earworms eat at least 16 other cultivated crops and over 100 … [Read more...]
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Fresh-picked corn is one of the true pleasures of summer, but for many gardeners, bringing a crop of corn to harvest is a challenge. Corn takes up a lot of space in the garden and must be planted in a block so wind can pollinate it. It is a heavy feeder, requiring frequent … [Read more...]
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Is corn a starch or a vegetable? Is it good for you or fattening? Many people are confused about corn's benefits. Corn is actually considered a grain, like wheat and rice and for vegetarians is added to a meal of tofu or legumes to make a complete protein of amino acids. But … [Read more...]
Growing Sweet Corn in the Home Garden
You can buy fresh sweet corn in season at a farm stand or supermarket. So if you have a small garden, you may want to skip a corn crop and grow vegetables that take up less space. That would be the practical thing to do, but you would be missing out on an incomparable culinary … [Read more...]


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My husband, who is celebrating his birthday today, likes to attend auctions. He is always bringing 'treasures' home for me. Yesterday he gave me a shoebox size plastic container full of old sewing items and pieces of jewelry.
While sorting through it, I found this thimble holder in the form of a hat! It's
in need of cleaning, but I think it's really cute.
Heading to Shipshewana next week for the fall Dear Jane Retreat. I'm making my stack of projects to work on while there.


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These mineral nodules in the deep ocean lie on the surface of the ocean bottom. They contain a range of very valuable minerals in concentrated form.
Let's assume for the sake of the argument, the worst case scenario; that the hovering up of the nodules and the return of the gangue* totally smothers that area of sea bottom.
*waste bits and pieces that are not mineral nodules
No polluting chemicals are used. No excavation of the sea bottom occurs. At the most extreme, the returning waste will smother whatever is living on that area of sea bottom. The most extreme possibility is that the area is rendered sterile. Once the area has been mined it can't be mined again for many thousands of years. That is how long it takes for the nodules to grow. Here is where it gets interesting. Let me sidestep for a moment.
Let's look at a mature forest; one that has reached it's climax state. Competition has gone on between the various plants (trees, epiphites etc.) and the various animals and whatever survived makes up the environment. Many species have fallen by the wayside in this competition. Then a giant tree falls or a fire burns out a section of the forest. Note we are not talking about logging in which massive areas are clear felled and as soon as the new growth is large enough, logged again but rather a bit of the forest that is cleared.
All sorts of pioneer species start to grow in the cleared area and the forest is greatly diversified. Animals which do better in a pioneering forest return. The forest is now much more diverse and for that matter much more interesting than it was.
The same thing can be expected on the ocean bottom. Note that here we are not talking about A) the huge areas which are cleared by bottom trawling or B) the trawling again and again of the same area, never letting pioneering species establish themselves.
It takes that long for nodules to grow. The area gets recolonized by whatever lives in the area and whatever larvae drift by from afar and over time goes back to its original state. If it follows the path that is observed in many ecologies from pioneer to climax state. The over all area is enriched by a small part of it being re-set to its beginning and going through a succession toward its climactic state.
Compare that with bottom trawling which we do allow. You scrape the bottom clean and then do it again and again and again. The area never has a chance to recover. If we want to do something for the bottom of the ocean we should ban bottom trawling and only allow long line methods.
We need a sense of proportion when deciding what to allow and what to forbid. Nodule mining has to be on the extreme benign end of the spectrum and a good case can be made for it even being beneficial. Bottom trawling is at the disastrous end.
This whole episode is similar to the stramash we had over indoor dairy farms in the MacKenzie country. Yes, indoor dairy farms can be bad for the animals and truly horrible places. However they can be much better for the animals, far more ecologically friendly and, would you believe, more profitable. The devil is in the details.
I saw a similar situation in Canada. I met a fisheries biologist who should have known better. He was off to break up a beaver dam in the belief that they were bad for fish stocks in that river. Hydro dams are bad so, so must be a beaver dam. I asked him why, before the Hudson Bay Company era, when beaver dams were in pretty well every location where one could be built, the salmon runs were many orders of magnitude larger than they are today*. He still went out to break up the beaver dam but hopefully it got him thinking.
Biology is complicated and intricate and the first knee jerk reaction to a situation is not often the best one. Each situation has to be examined in detail and intelligent decisions make. Much of our use of the planet is disastrous but not all of it.
*In about 1888, the Hudson Bay Company initiated a policy to exterminate the fur bearing animals of the Columbia Catchment to deny an economic base for America in that area. The beavers were first to go. Salmon runs plummeted.
More famous is the situation with wolves. Farley Mowat deals with this in his very amusing book Never Cry Wolf. Canadian wildlife biologists were convinced that the wolves were decimating the caribou and put a bounty on them.
Of course we then have the example of the destruction of the fisheries of the Grand Banks under the supervision of Canadian fisheries biologists, a group of people who tend to be as green as they come. Through a combination of corporation short sighted greed and faulty science by the best scientist of the day, the Grand Banks were trashed.
I am a greenie through and through. I always support the Green Party, my hero is George Monbiot and my passion is rewilding in general and beavers in particular but the greens do sometimes do go off half cocked with knee jerk reactions to things without examining the deeper implications (unexpected consequences) of their actions. As greens we must choose our battles and carry them through to the end and not get distracted by unimportant causes or causes in which we are on the wrong side of the argument.
We must realize that humans are the story telling ape and get better at telling the story. It is far more interesting than the sound bite.
The green parties of the world are our only chance in a world we seem to be determined to trash. They are usually the only party with a vision that extends beyond a single election term. We desperately need them to make the right choices, hold their governments feet to the fire, speak truth to power and just maybe they will succeed in pulling us out of mad rush to exterminate ourselves or at least to end the fantastic advances we have made since we have shaken loose the bonds of religious fanaticism.