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Losing weight is fibrous stuff, mega when you cognize that you have to say au revoir to whichever old bad customs. Junk provisions and soda ash are part of those bad behaviour that you have to let go of in instruct to submit yourself to a good weight loss.
The ill near trash hay and sodium carbonate is that they are fraught next to sugars and congested beside last calories. You get a big sugar and alkaloid spill out that lonesome lasts for a few written account. Then you clangoring and you're lacking more of the same debris over again.
What is scrap food? Junk food is sorted as thing that is not inside the nutrient pyramid: high-velocity food, chips, ice cream, candy, soda, confection bars, etc. You cognize...all the "bad" belongings that you adulation to eat.Post ads:
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Even arts school systems are recognizing that detritus diet is bad for kids and are attractive radical measures to destroy trash nutrient from our arts school systems. We have need of to see this importance, too and help yourself to endeavour in our of their own lives. Here are few distance to cut subsidise on the second-hand goods food:
Buy more than fresh fruit. Stock your abode near wads of apples, bananas and grapes. Instead of grabbing a bag of chips to go, have a handful of sweet, red grapes or a luscious apple.
Leave the dust off your purchasing detail. Don't buy those elfin collation cakes or candy parallel bars this time period. Instead, go for cold cereal exerciser or barmy beside food.Post ads:
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Throw distant all dust. Before you can even begin, you have to cleanable out your cabinets. As you heave away all the unwanted items you see, don't devise going on for it as throwing distant funds. Think astir it as throwing away pounds that would be on your hips.
Finally, for most people, scrap provisions is a way to soothe your from the heart desires. What material possession lever your involve to pampering on debris food? By fingering these things, you can swot how to control that spur on to go for junk, and alternatively renew it beside better, more than constructive traditions.


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March 23, 2014 is when my baby arrived.
It was the longest night if my life but now when I think of it I would do it over and over again to meet my little beauty.
My contractions started Saturday the 22nd at about 4 am and were all over the place until about 9PM. That is when i decided to call the hospital and they told me to come in. I got to the hospital with my mom and cousin and they just told me to go back home because they were only 7 minutes apart.
The second i walked into the house they got stronger and stronger and were down to about every 3 minutes. At 3 am i couldn't take it anymore so my husband and I headed back to the hospital. At that point I was 6cm dilated and was in labor. I can not explain the pain contractions give. It is as if there is a sharp knife in your stomach just being twisted. Finally at 7am they gave me epidural and i have to say…epidural is sent down from heaven. I felt nothing from that point on. Finally around 1:30pm i started pushing and 2:11pm she was out, healthy, weighing 7lbs 16oz, 20inches long.
There is no way to explain the feeling of bringing a child into this world. The love that is in you and you don't even know until you bring a child into this world.

subset: commoncrawl


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Be sure to also check the Workshops page for the schedule and location of upcoming events.
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Beverley McMaster founded Leaderwise and works with corporately sponsored and self-funded clients who want to develop their leadership skills. Trained as both a somatic and ontological coach, Beverley will soon be one of a handful of Strozzi Institute's Master Somatic Coaches in the UK.
Dawn Bentley heads Aurora 4 Success - Business Coaching and Consulting based in Buckingham, UK. Aurora works with leaders in medium-sized to large organisations to create the conditions in which people can thrive and contribute their best at work. Dawn has trained with Strozzi Institute and approaches her work with a somatic sensibility.
The Rev. Francis Briers is a remarkable man of many talents. He is a non-denominational minister who offers both therapeutic and ceremonial services, teacher, corporate guy, and facilitator of The Samurai Game. His blog can be found:
Pete Hamill, MSc, BSc (Hons), CertCoun is a consultant, facilitator and coach with an international background in leadership and organisational development. He is interested in leadership and personal development, including the role that conflict plays in organisations and society. His book Embodied Leadership was published in 2013 and he co-leads Strozzi Institute's Embodied Leadership programmes in the UK.
Adrian has an eclectic background which includes environmental work, philosophy, religious studies and paganism, his Ph.D. thesis being entitled The Wisdom of the Body: Embodied Knowing in Eco-Paganism. Adrian maintains an interesting website of embodiment resources and a great Blog.
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Arre Session 10
The Forsaken gain the lay of the land around Sagentown while they are staying at the Lord's Inn Discretion. A group discussion session ensues.
Somewhat more than a week (actually eight days) remains to plan and attack Havelin. Tim gives us a dossier on the whole town and the tower we need to neutralize. Apparently it is worth noting that he has made himself extremely useful and is competent and loyal to Valak's tutelage.
The Captains are sized up: Captain Iron Sam Garhold in command-Everard Keep
Captain Math and his wayward wife-ascertain status of the affair.
Captain Edderly who is cuckolding him-the party decides to gather more information if possible to sow dissent between these two.
Captain Varning, who patrols the area-the party decides to ambush his group while he is habitually walking about.
Tacitus the Mage and his ravens-these will be neutralized by poison introduced into birdseed and confusion during the attack will be sowed by a wizard or the warlock copying his appearance. Amadeus pens a fan letter for meeting to discuss magic guy stuff and feel him out.
Mama Giuseppe brings her famous stew to the soldiers- if possible, their pre-attack meal will give them the shits.
Barnabas Eisenbach commands the Dwarf engineer contingent-we resolve to get him and his peeps drunk on two barrels of ale and 6 bottles of Captain Odenkirk's emergency whiskey.
Valak sends Grimnok the Ogre on a mission to inform Sacarac Fire Axe about the plans, and the likelihood of ambushing Capt. Varning. Grimnok leaves having been given supplies and potion to assist him.
Pretor discovers someone, apparently the innkeeper sneaking around at night. He follows him to a storage area behind the tavern's bar. After waiting for a decent interval, he follows him in to discover stairs leading down to another storage area. After an exhaustive search for a secret door, and without the return of the innkeeper or anyone else, Pretor leaves the area and returns to tell his roommate Xander about the incident. They decide to investigate later. Considering the history of the Inn, a secret tunnel to the residence of local caste is likely.
Picket gets lists from Goya's, the local apothecary and Liam Neeson's Magic shop and we buy a bunch of shit: 241 gp for bird poison to make sure ravens don't get away. 400 gp for a Mighty Maw to make special Inks. 2000 gp for a Bag of Holding. 2750 gp to make a 'common peoples' party' for Solstice. 150 gp for a Water Breathing Potion. 4gp for meat for the ogre. 75 gp for Pretor to get an emo as fuck raven familiar. Total cash outlay is 5620 beans
Plans are finalized with the whole party present.
Session 10-Target Everard Keep
The adventures of the party as recorded by the Chronicler
Post Reply
5 posts • Page 1 of 1
- Posts: 24
- Joined: Tue Nov 14, 2017 3:45 pm
Re: Session 10-Target Everard Keep
Its "Barhold" not Garhold, and he is not the commander of the keep.
Its "Mott" not Math.
Tacitus doesnt keep the ravens.
There is no accounting for the stone duster attachment for the MI-T Maw.
Its "Mott" not Math.
Tacitus doesnt keep the ravens.
There is no accounting for the stone duster attachment for the MI-T Maw.
kyle wrote:The party then goes full retard
- Posts: 24
- Joined: Tue Nov 14, 2017 3:45 pm
Re: Session 10-Target Everard Keep
Thank you...mutatis mutandis
Re: Session 10-Target Everard Keep
By Karamaka's Will
Re: Session 10-Target Everard Keep
Continuity bump
kyle wrote:The party then goes full retard
Post Reply
5 posts • Page 1 of 1


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Verizon continues to be interested in potentially acquiring Yahoo for the 1 billion people who use its email, finance, sports and video services; its broad online content offerings and its heavy Web traffic. The mobile carrier upped its pursuit by recently enlisting the help of the CEO of its AOL unit to research its strategy, according to a report.
Tim Armstrong, CEO of AOL, which Verizon owns, has been given "a leading role" in exploring a possible bid for Yahoo, according to a Feb. 8 story by Bloomberg that is based on reports from an unnamed source who is familiar with the matter.
Verizon "hasn't hired bankers to conduct an offer and there have been no formal talks, according to the person, who asked not to be identified because Verizon's plans haven't been made public," the story reported. "Still, as Yahoo sorts out its strategy, Armstrong is taking a lead in preliminary discussions, the person said."
The wireless carrier, which already has about 112 million subscribers, wants to potentially combine Yahoo into its corporate umbrella to drive growth for its go90 streaming video service, the article reported. Yahoo's Web traffic and its exclusive content "is just what Verizon needs to secure a foothold in video advertising against YouTube and Facebook serving a mobile phone-addicted generation," the article continued.
Further reading
Armstrong has known Yahoo CEO and President Marissa Mayer for many years, according to the report. Both Armstrong and Mayer were executives at Google before leaving to join Verizon and Yahoo. Armstrong even talked with Mayer previously about a possible Verizon acquisition or partial purchase back in 2014 at a media conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, another source told Bloomberg. "This was a year before Verizon acquired AOL and when Armstrong was exploring a deal to combine the two former Web portal giants."
Armstrong "serves as a talent scout and deal maker" at Verizon today, helping the company develop its mobile video business to compete with Google and Facebook, the story reported.
Yahoo has been having a tough time in recent years. Earlier in February, Yahoo announced that it is cutting about 1,700 workers, or about 15 percent of its workforce of 11,000 full-time employees, as it works to scale back its operations and business units to cut costs, according to an earlier eWEEK article. Yahoo was founded in January 1994 as Jerry Yang and David Filo's guide to the World Wide Web, and then renamed Yahoo a year later. Yahoo reported fourth-quarter 2015 revenue of $1.27 billion, an uptick from $1.25 billion in the year-earlier quarter. Operating earnings totaled 13 cents a share, which squared with Wall Street forecasts. However, Yahoo investors earned 30 cents per share in the fourth quarter of 2014.
In search, Yahoo has continued to struggle since Google claimed market dominance 15 years ago. Yahoo captured only 2.1 percent of the $94 billion worldwide search market in 2015, and eMarketer said it expects the company to stay flat in that category this year.
The company ostensibly is being forced by activist investors who don't believe in the competitiveness of Yahoo anymore to sell off its main business and keep the corporate identity of Yahoo as a shell to manage the rest of its assets—which consist mostly of its $30 billion stake in Chinese online retail sales site Alibaba.
Mayer, who took the helm at Yahoo back in July 2012, has made many changes at the company—from banning employees in February 2013 from working from home to shuttering the AltaVista search engine in July 2013.
Mayer was brought in as CEO and president to try to put Yahoo back on track as a leading, growing and stable Internet company. She hailed from Google, where she was one of that company's first 20 hires in June 1999 and was the company's first female developer when it was just getting started.
Mayer was hired by Yahoo after an embarrassing and distracting string of three CEOs came and went in a seven-month span.


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Summer by the Sea - Disabled Snorkelling program Altona (for Participants)
Sales Have Ended
Sales Have Ended
Summer by the Sea is Victoria's annual celebration of the coast. Run by Coastcare. Summer by the Sea hosts free family friendly events along the Victorian coastline.
DDA will be participating in Summer By The Sea on Saturday 19th January 2019 at Altona Beach. The program will run 2 sessions from 10:00am to 11:00am and 12:00pm - 1:00pm with 6 clients in each session.
DDA will provide a Disabled Snorkelling program, providing people of various abilities the opportunity to experience a day at the beach in a new light. People with disabilities will be able to gain confidence in accessing the beach and water environment with the assistance of DDA. This event is designed to inspire and give people with disabilities the opportunity to put the fun back into life.


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Recently we stumbled upon the Tumblr "Gnome Life," which tackles the trials and tribulations a millennial gnome faces after moving to New York City. Hilarious, right? A gnome in New York City? But after we laughed about gnomes, because gnomes are funny, and perused the many photos of the gnome doing things around the city (hailing cabs, shopping at Duane Reade — also funny), we were plagued with questions.
Who was this gnome guy anyway? What was his aim in all this? We got in touch with Mr. Gnome, and what we found surprised us. (It's not just a shtick, exactly…and he's not after a book deal.)
The gnome, by the way, who's a little bit Yoda, a little bit Deepak Chopra, did not break character throughout our interview.
Hi gnome! How did you come up with the idea for your Tumblr?
Everyone who has moved to New York City knows what it is like to feel small and lonely and full of wonderment. The gnome gives a unique perspective to these shared experiences, and allows people to look at New York City, the culture, the people, the trends, and all the elements without any traditional preconceived expectations.
Is it challenging to be a gnome in New York City?
I come from a community of gnomes. In the garden I was comfortable, but I always felt that my life was destined for something else. I spent happy years in the garden trying to find a sense of purpose and self, but ultimately I knew that in order to become who I needed to be, I had to leave the garden.
In the city I am among people who share my journey, but none of them will end theirs alongside mine. My journey is in one sense common, but it also unique. Day to day, life in the city can be hard.
What did the other gnomes think about you moving to the city?
In the garden the gnomes try to support each other as much as they can. I can't help but think that most of the gnomes thought I would return home in a few days. I can only hope that the other gnomes understand my journey, and why I had to leave.
Do you have a hard time shooting photos while people are around?
When the gnome is out getting his photo taken, he certainly draws attention. Many people comment, and sometimes yell, as they are walking or driving by. Other people ask questions. But the real New Yorkers seem to pass by without breaking a thought, conversation, or stride.
Are you trying to get a book deal out of this?
No, although no one knows exactly where and what this gnome's journey will lead to.
Hm. We all remember the difficulty of trying to figure out the bus schedule or the subway for the first time, and we all deal with the dual-pronged wonderment and horror of facing everything this city has to offer each day. "New York moves quickly and in strange ways," the gnome told us, adding, "I am learning something new about the city and myself everyday." Hey, we're right there with you, gnome. Minus the pointy red hat.
More:New York


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Where Does The Name Bethany Come From?
Bethany is a village on the south eastern slope of the Mount of Olives, less than two miles from Jerusalem, remembered by Christians as the home of Mary, Martha and Lazarus in the New Testament. Jesus lodged there after his entry into Jerusalem, and it was from Bethany that he parted from his disciples.
Today the place is known as El Azariah, meaning "Place of Lazarus". It is reported that the modern village was centered on the cave that was associated with the raising of Lazarus which had become an early pilgrimage site. For centuries visitors have been shown the house of Mary and Martha and Lazarus in the present location.
What Is A Lutheran?
A Lutheran Christian is a person who believes the truths of God's Word, the Holy Bible, as they are correctly explained and taught by the Lutheran Confessions. To do so is to confess the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
The central focus of the Lutheran Church is "justification by grace through faith." We stress the Biblical teaching that people are justified, or put right with God, only by God's undeserved grace which no one can earn or deserve, but which can only be received by faith.
Who Is Jesus?
For more than two thousand years people have asked the question, "Who is Jesus?". For those of us who were not around when he was on this earth, we have the record of his birth, life, death, and resurrection found in the Bible. God's Word enables us to find the answers.
So, Who Is Jesus?
Jesus is the Son of God.
Jesus is both God and man.
Jesus is Love.
He loves us in spite of every hurtful thought, every harmful word, and every wrongful action. These are all a result of sin, which contaminates everything we do. It is behind every broken home, every empty life, every infirmity, every damaged emotion, every sorrow and grief. And as the Bible says, the end result of sin is death. But Jesus Himself was sinless; only He could pay the penalty for our sins.
Because of his love, He suffered, died, and rose again for us.
"One Solitary Life"
He was born in an obscure village
He never held an office
Nineteen centuries have come and gone and today
All the armies that ever marched
have not affected the life of man


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she had left wet footprints across the courtyard floor, which was bone dry, despite the falling rain. A transformation was happening at knee-height. She watched a raindrop break there prematurely, shattering against the thin air. Then the shape of its suspended splash became that of spread insect wings, [loc. 2045]
Following the death of her stormchaser father and an unwanted marriage proposal, Elsa flees New York for Thunderstown -- a small, isolated settlement surrounded by mountains, streets laid out in a spiral that, from the air, calls to mind a weather system. Elsa first saw Thunderstown from the air, from a plane, and became obsessed with visiting. But she couldn't have expected the town's oddities. There are wild dogs with sky-coloured eyes: she sees one killed by Daniel Fossiter, the Culler. Kenneth, who runs the B&B, tells her about the myths surrounding the mountains, and explains that the streets are named after aspects of the town's mining history. She learns of Old Man Thunder, a local legend blamed for the town's weather-related mishaps. And one day, walking in the mountains, she sees outcast Finn Munro do something utterly inexplicable.
There is a great deal of doomed love in this novel, from Daniel's helpless adoration of Finn's mother Betty to the attraction Elsa feels for Finn. Nobody in Thunderstown (with the possible exception of the nuns of St Catharine) seems especially happy: Elsa, busily ignoring her mother's gifts to her and indulging in solitary wanderings, seems intentionally disconnected from the world. The townspeople are narrow-minded and fearful, rejecting the magic around them. (They're also, to my jaundiced eye, somewhat stereotypical: cricket-mad West Indian, eccentric but jolly nun, repressive councillor.) As I recall, everyone is single: nobody loves.
It's almost as though love and weather are the same thing ...
The world Shaw describes is beautiful and tragic. There is some marvellous prose herein: and yet I can't say that the characters engaged me as much as the setting. True, Daniel becomes somewhat more likeable, and Finn has some interesting observations on human life and love: but I felt there was a two-dimensional feel to The Man Who Rained, and I didn't enjoy it as much as The Girl with Glass Feet.


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Offside books and 'Poetry of many worlds' take great pleasure in inviting you to the launch of CHIAROSCURO – a collection of poems by Chetana.
Chetana lives locally, and has enchanted attendees of our regular poetry meetups with her poems. She is now launching a collection of her poems on Sunday 2 July at 3pm to 5pm.
Space is limited so RSVP to 020 7624 9340 or email@example.com


text: Here's a wee sneak preview of what I was getting up to this past weekend...my Topshop Xmas night out! These are just a few of the beauties that I work with :). Every ones outfit were rocking and they looked amaze! Had such a fun night letting our hair down...these are some of the nice pics...we were all proper boozehounds later and the photos well.....NOT so nice!! My oversized beaded playsuit that I wore was from ASOS last year....I still absolutely love it!! I teamed it with my Jeffrey red velvet litas!


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(SEYMOUR) - A Seymour man has been charged with felony theft in the recent disappearance of a Bartholomew County church's air-conditioning units.
A probable cause affidavit filed in Bartholomew County Circuit Court indicated that Joseph M. Ault, 34, removed air conditioner coils from Ogilville United Methodist Church on July 9 and 12.
Loss of the air-conditioning units left the congregation scrambling to stay cool with outdoor temperatures hovering around the 90-degree mark this past week.
Have a question or comment about a news story? Send it to firstname.lastname@example.com
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This poem has always stuck in my mind because of the brilliant way de La Mare leaves the beginning of the story to the imagination. "The Listeners," by Walter de La Mare, 1912 'Is there anybody there?' said the Traveller, Knocking on the … Continue reading
Tag Archives: Poetry
My taste in poetry runs to the old and traditional, but I've found a modern poet whose work I enjoy so much that I'm making my way through her website at the rate of one page every Sunday morning – because I don't want … Continue reading
While reviewing the notes for my walking tour of sculpture at Washington Square and Sheridan Square, I was reminded of how much I love the rhythm and the surprise twist of this poem. An intro would spoil the fun, so here … Continue reading
Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936) – poet, short-story writer, and novelist – was also a journalist and editor. When he became famous, his fellow journalists constantly badgered him. His recently rediscovered poem "The Press," written in 1899, perfectly describes the sort of journalism often … Continue reading


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No, it isn't my real name. I would have stabbed myself with a unicorn or something if my parents had named me that. My birth name is Tracie Crystal (middle name), yet at the age of 4 it doesn't help to have a cousin with a slight lisp who can't pronounce your name and she tells everyone your name is "Frakey Frickel" and then people laugh and think its cute and they start making stupid poems like "Frakey Frickel had a nickel...went to the store and bought a pickle" and you are running around looking for a unicorn to put to good use and for the rest of your life people ask you why you want to stab things.
Anyway, one summer my parents decided to take my two cousins and I on a vacation to Hot Springs, Arkansas. To date, I am not really sure what their expectations were.
I truly impressed myself that day. And then the moment came for me to jump. Here is the thing. When I plummet, I totally monopolize the air. It belongs to me. I become a superhero, so to speak, as I can probably grab an endangered kitten from a limb as I hurtle perilously towards the Earth. I love being a superhero, however, in an ironic twist of fate, there were no kittens that day.
As swimming is the most boring thing on the planet, I decided to one-up my own jumping event from the balcony and do a running jump/flip off of the side of the pool.
Initially, I lay in the pool completely unaware that my nose was gushing blood and laughing because the water was turning red for some reason.
And who turned on the red shower spray that was spraying all over me? Why was everything turning black around me? Oh, magic stars!
I felt one of my cousins pull me to the side as the world started spinning just for me. That is really a special feeling when the world does that for you. I then came to the realization,though, that the force of gravity was not as much as a friend to me as I thought it was. It quietly made my enemies list that day.
To me, jumping is like ballet, except there is no music, no choreography and the ground likes to punch me in the face hard. Some jumps go really well. I am like a champion, perfectly proficient in the art of jumping. I could be on all of those Wheaties boxes. I could own Wheaties. I'm not even sure why they haven't called me already to be a spokesperson. They will, though, they will.
I received stitches on my nose and made a few more trips to the hospital before our vacation was done. Fortunately, we were on a bulk services discount plan, so my parents saved lots of money because of me. I never asked them to thank me. To date, they still haven't, but I don't hold a grudge.
I am quite sure that they realized just how lucky they were to have me.


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Legionella-compost link warning from health experts
A team of health experts have recommended warning labels be put on bags of compost because of the risk of Legionnaires' disease.
A further case of Legionella longbeachae connected to compost has been identified as part of an outbreak that began in August.
It brings the total number of people affected to five. The latest victim is being treated in hospital in Dundee.
Scotland has seen 15 cases of longbeachae since 2008.
This has made it the second most common strain of legionella and led to a recommendation from Health Protection Scotland and NHS National Service Scotland that the Scottish government investigate warnings labels on bags.
"We did make a recommendation to government that they should examine this," said Dr Martin Donaghy, medical director of Health Protection Scotland.
"This form of the disease is the most common form in Australia and New Zealand, and the authorities there have taken steps to make sure than warning labels about good hygiene practice are put on bags of compost."
Wood-based compost
In Australia, cases of compost-related Legionnaires' disease fell following the introduction of warning labels in 2003, although the same effect was not seen in New Zealand where cases actually rose following the introduction of warnings in 2005.
Bags of "growing media" carry prominent warnings to tell gardeners to avoid breathing in the dust, to wear gloves and wash their hands immediately after use.
In the UK, these recommendations form part of a statement regarding "safe handling and use" but are not displayed prominently.
No particular brand of compost has been identified as particularly risky, although experts speculate that the rise in cases of legionella longbeachae may be linked with manufacturers switching from peat-based mixes to wood-based compost. In Australia and New Zealand compost has always been based on pine sawdust or bark.
Another aspect of the outbreak baffling scientists is why Scotland has seen so many cases in the last five years when the rest of the UK is relatively unaffected. Over the same period only one other case has been identified, in England.
Warm weather
The Incident Management Team concluded that patients admitted to hospital with pneumonia undergo more stringent testing for Legionella in Scotland.
"Part of our investigation has involved discussions with our colleagues in England particularly about where we are employing a different testing regime in Scotland," said Dr Donaghy. "It appears that we are, but we're reviewing that situation further."
In terms of the product itself, there seems to be no particular risk factor, especially as much of the compost sold in Scotland comes from England or Northern Ireland.
Although Legionella longbeachae is probably here to stay, the risk to gardeners remains low.
The current outbreak occurred during warm weather when thousands of people were working in their gardens.
In the NHS Lothian area, two patients are continuing to be treated in intensive care after falling ill with the disease last week, while two other people have been treated and released from hospital.
The advice for anyone using compost is to always wear gloves, avoid inhaling dust from compost particularly in enclosed environments like a shed or greenhouse, and to make sure you wash your hands after handling compost and before smoking or eating.


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Richard asks: I do not have a comment section on my web site and I am doing articles and sending Back links with Anchor texting, Do I need a blog comment system on my web site for articling and commenting to other web sites to be effective? Or when they reply it really does not matter, even from the EDU or GOV sites?
Paul responds: you do not need to have a blog comment system on your website for article marketing and or commenting on other websites to be effective. The main reasons to have a comment system on your website are;
- When you allow others to comment you are increasing the likelihood that you will be found in a Google search because Google search engine results pages pay close attention to content and the more content you have the higher you will rank.
- Having a comments system is an effective way to increase social interaction. People often give their opinions and ask questions allowing you to create trust, credibility and respect as a leader and an expert.
- Finally, because you have a comment system the general perception is that you are open to sharing and this increases the likelihood that people will read what you've written and comment on it.
I'm not sure what you mean by EDU or GOV sites because you are commenting on those sites does not necessarily mean that they will be commenting on yours and relationship between the two is for the most part irrelevant.
When you allow comments you increase the conversation between you and your audience. I highly encourage everyone to have a common system and the one that I likely would recommend for you is the DISQUS comment system which you can find on their website.
Paul Tobey
CEO, Training Business Pros


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Anderson Silva
… for Drag Queen Tribute
Here's Anderson Silva like you've never seen him before — dressing in drag and twerking like his life depends on it to pay tribute to a huge Brazilian pop star … and we gotta say, dude's got moves!
The UFC legend shared his crazy dance routine on social media — explaining that it's a tribute to fellow Brazilian Pabllo Vittar, a singer/drag queen who famously collab'd with Major Lazer last year.
"In the spirit of Carnival I pay tribute to my illustrious peer Pabllo Vittar," Silva said. "Keep giving joy to those who enjoy your sound."
Clearly, the heels ain't slowing Anderson down.
Fun fact: Silva is dancing to Vittar's track, "K.O." — get the fighting reference?
As for Pabllo — she's a big fan of exposing more people to the drag world, previously telling Billboard.com, "The drag art is growing. We have drags on ads, TV shows, novelas, movies. People now have more access to knowledge about it and less prejudice."


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These 1st Fridays of the month are coming around way too fast ... good thing they are a great night out/in! Thanks for hosting Cheryll.
Look what all the beautiful rain has done for my garden. A shame these roses were 1 week late to enter in the show but I still get to enjoy them.
This little lady is now 10 1/2 weeks old and loves being out and about outdoors. As you can see the rain makes the weeks grow too.
Happy Friday night sewing. >^..^<


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Though Project:Rooftop seems to have just started up again, I'm still going through with the submission for the fan started Spider-Man & Villain Redesign contest. I've just finished good ol' Spidey, with the villain coming up this weekend. (Update, see below)
The premise behind this is that all the components are readily available to a high school kid. It always bothered me how Peter could whip up a Spider-Man costume over night. This was especially evident in the first film, when one day he's in a poorly constructed wrestling costume, and the next he's in a professionally made spandex costume with rubber webbing and a honeycomb pattern. This all looks beautiful, but a nerd with no fashion sense pulling this out of nowhere at the last moment seemed like a big stretch to me.*
So to rectify that problem, I've decided a costume where everything is commercially available from things a high school nerd would have access to. Places like Target or Amazon.
This consists of:
Hoodie, jeans, gloves, and a ski mask & cup googles. All readily available. I couldn't see Peter making all the line work for the full web pattern (at least at first, Reed Richards or someone with technology/money/skill could always give him the classic costume later) but a kid sharpieing in a giant spider on a hoodie? That seems doable. I wasn't going to have the pattern on the ski mask, but its just so damned iconic, I needed to have it. He's just not Spider-Man without it.
Protective gear, helmet, shin guards, motocross chest guard, and obligatory athletic cup. The idea of a teenage geek fighting crime in a concrete jungle without something to at least help with the inevitable scrapes and bruises.
Web shooters. These are gauntlets originally designed to hold shotgun shells. Here they house the web fluid. Paired with carpal tunnel gloves, which have a pocket on the inside of the wrist, usually for a splint, but with the splint removed, make an excellent pocket for the shooters themselves. Conductive thread on the middle and ring fingers of the gloves let Peter's trigger the device without it going off every damn time something touches it (this is the same science behind why the iPhone only works with your fingers, and not a stylus). Perhaps Peter set it the trigger is set to his specific genetically enhanced Spider-Man biometrics, so no one else but him could use it.
Last but not least, Gillies. Irish dancing shoes. I was looking for something for him to wear that was thin enough for his powers to work through, but not something as simple as socks. Something that will hold up better. A ballerina friend of mine suggested these, thin leather shoes perfect for Spider-Man. (Thanks Erin)
Costume can be worn with hood up and zipped for full effect, or down and unzipped for a more casual look. Everything here could fit in a backpack for easy transport/hiding.
So ta-dah, let me know what you think in the comments.
*I'm aware the whole idea of getting spider powers from a bite is a big stretch in and of itself, but that's the whole conceit of the plot. Magic fashion powers, however, are not part of the package.
*Update* KRAVEN!
This one has far less explanation than Spidey, simply, this is a darker interpretation of Kraven. He has tattoos of every animal he's ever hunted, (notice how the lion tattoo references the classic, but somewhat hokey, vest) with a special place reserved for our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.
Also, kickass Lemmy style manscaping.
I wish I had time to paint it up like I did for Ol' Webhead, but I just didn't have time. I do have a whole lineup of a brand new Sinister Six, so maybe I'll re-upload this when I'm done the others.
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Friday Fives1. If you could retroactively erase one TV show from the history of entertainment, which one would you choose?
I guess this is censorship, but it would be the "O'Reilly Factor". The reason is this > it is the number one cable 'news show'. O'Reilly isn't news, I think even he will admit that. He is newstainment®, with a strong right bent. I don't mind the right bent, we are all politically motivated. What I do mind is how he pretends to be neutral or says 'no spin'. Dude is a righty who pretends not to be, and that insults me. It also worries me that people are getting their news from him thinking it is objective.
You people know me, I am far from objective. I am a liberal progressive bleeding heart ACLU card carrier. No hidden agenda. I lay it out honestly, I hate Republicans. Ok, Bill... your turn.
2. Are you more like your mother or your father?
physically and genetically, I am absolutely identical to my father. I am a replica of old man. As for emotionally and spiritually, I would say my father. Short example: my father votes Republican. Yeah, it kills me. I called him on election night to say hi and he answered the phone 'Bush victory campaign headquarters'. Now you see why I am in therapy.
3. If you could take a year-long vacation, what would you do?
Mexico, baby. Gimme two hours to pack and I am gone. I don't even need a plane ticket. I'll bus to the border and hitchhike to the coast. Mexico is my happy place. What is a 'happy place'? A happy place is where my therapist tells me to go mentally whenever I remember that my dad is a Republican and my brother is a Wal Mart apologist. Looks like it is just you and me, Grainger.
4. Would You Rather… Fight Me -or- Make Sweet Love? (Things to consider: I might be a 16 year old Homecoming Queen; or I might be a 43 year old postal worker who enjoys anal play.)
Well, I know you well. You are a 40 year old dude who lives with his sister... so I am going to take the 'make sweet love' choice. I bet you are a tender lover.
5. Can you think of a reason not to answer this question?
um, no


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Reporting by Naomi Kaplan
Congratulations to Coca-Cola Amatil on winning 7-Eleven's Supplier of the Year.
The event showcased the suppliers who had provided outstanding support to the business in 2016.
7-Eleven Head of Marketing Julie Laycock told Convenience & Impulse Retailing that suppliers are integral to helping 7-Eleven realise its ambitions.
"We set bold shared business goals to deliver growth, which has been achieved," she said.
"The commitment from Coca-Cola Amatil at all levels of our business has been excellent – thank you so much to all of the CCA team."
A spokesperson for Coca-Cola Amatil said it was an honour to win the award.
"Over the last twelve months we worked to align with 7-Eleven's key business priorities. So this award is great news and we're honoured to receive it. Thanks to everyone at 7-Eleven for this recognition."
Coca-Cola Amatil also won the 'Best New Product Launch' for its Powerade Silvercharge.
"The success of Powerade Silvercharge was a contributing factor to us winning the overall award which aligns to their key pillars," said Coca-Cola Amatil spokesperson.
The other winners were:
• Account Manager of the Year- Luke Golding, Active Display
• Outstanding Branded Category Growth Initiative- Krispy Kreme Innovation Original Filled, Krispy Kreme
• Innovative Thinking- 7-Eleven Fuel App Product Development, Tigerspike
• Outstanding Service Non-Merchandise Services- Voice of the Customer Dashboard, The Realise Group
• Supply Chain Excellence- $2 Sandwich Campaign & Supply, Swire and Azura Fresh
• Best Customer Experience- Slurpee $1 Launch Campaign, Leo Burnett
• Best New Product Launch 7-Eleven Brand- 7-Eleven Still Spring Water 600ml, Nu-Pure (QLD, NSW, VIC) and Aussie Natural Water (WA)
• Best New Product Launch- Powerade Silvercharge, Coca-Cola Amatil


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the 12-Step Buddhist
Free Step Series: Steps 1-12
For March 9th – Step Two – Aspects of Self: Basic Sanity and the Addict. Guest speaker – Larry Christensen, Ph.D, founder of the Zen Center of Portland.
No experience necessary. All are welcome. No sign up necessary. Drop in to any session. The course is 12 weeks long and goes through all 12 steps from a Buddhist perspective.
Based on the new book, the 12-Step Buddhist. You can get a signed copy of the book for $15 at the workshop. Or you can get it at New Renaissance, Powells, on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Snow Lion, Booksamillion.com.
Format: Guided and silent meditations based on the book the 12-Step Buddhist, group discussion and optional writing exercises. Guest speakers.
Who Should Come: This course is open to addicts and the people in their lives. All ages are welcome! Treatment professionals and spiritual teachers are also welcome.
Mondays, 7-8:30pm
March 2nd-May 18th, 2009
Zen Center of Portland
Cost: There ain't no stinking cost. But you can make a donation to ZCP if you like.


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A frail 89-year-old woman was forced to wait almost an hour for an ambulance as she lay on the ground in driving wind and rain in Sheffield city centre with a broken wrist.
The pensioner fell over on Castle Street in Sheffield city centre on Wednesday, at about 1pm.
Passers-by and police officers came to her aid – but an ambulance did not arrive until about 2pm.
Yorkshire Ambulance Service said it had been 'a very busy afternoon'.
Andrew Pugsley, a teaching assistant from Rotherham who helped the woman, said those at the scene had not wanted to move her, because they feared she had a broken hip.
Instead, they covered her with coats and put an umbrella over her while they waited for an ambulance to arrive.
The woman told those helping her she had also had another recent fall, breaking her ribs after falling off a tram.
Mr Pugsley, aged 32, said several calls had been made by members of the public and the police to the ambulance service while they waited.
He said she was eventually taken to the Northern General Hospital for treatment.
* Read today's other stories:
Transport housing and skills powers handed to Sheffield in devolution deal
Sheffield pupils target tests success
Rotherham sham marriage bride avoids immediate jail term
Missing Sheffield man returns home after nine days away
Mr Pugsley said: "With the wind and rain, we put coats on her and kept her warm.
"She was complaining of a wrist injury and lying on the concrete floor.
"She was complaining of pains in her hip and we didn't want to move her.
"This poor lady was getting quite upset and the pain in her arm was getting worse and worse.
"We had an umbrella to try and shelter her from the wind and rain coming down."
Lyndsay Naylor, from the Sarni's shop on Castle Street, said she had also helped the woman.
She said: "I was disgusted. I think it is terrible for a lady of that age to be laid in the rain on a pavement for that long, but I'm not blaming the ambulance men – it is not their fault."
Mr Pugsley said the paramedics had apologised for the wait when they arrived.
He said he could not understand why it had taken so long to get to someone in a central location.
He said: "It was in the town centre so not hard to reach. She was waiting all that time – me and another lady there were first-aid trained but we could only do so much."
The delay comes after it was revealed this week the ambulance service has been fined more than £200,000 by the Sheffield Clinical Commissioning Group for delays in reaching seriously-ill patients with possible life-threatening injuries.
Ben Holdaway, locality director of the Emergency Operations Centre at Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust, said: "We are sorry to hear the bystander who came to the aid of the lady who had fallen is unhappy with our response to the 999 call.
"We aim to reach all of our patients as quickly as possible and our records show an ambulance arrived at the scene of the incident within 50 minutes. It was a very busy afternoon for the service and we would like to thank the bystanders for their kind actions in caring for the patient until our arrival.
"We would like to reassure members of the public that patients' needs are at the heart of everything we do and providing a safe, responsive and high quality service to the people of Yorkshire is our main priority."


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Log In needed $10,000 · WANTED: Ham Radio Equipment. Are you looking to downsize?Report Ad
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RenewedMarch 20, 2018
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Everyone knows I LOVE BAGS!! Cynde's Place is a wonderful shop on Etsy with bags of different sizes, table runners and hair clips. I was totally thrilled when Cynde contacted me about having a give away here! Now - if only I could enter :)
*Where are you from? Tell us a bit about yourself.
I am originally from Idaho,but now reside in Grant, AL with my husband, two children, two dogs, a cat and two chickens. I work part time for as a receptionist for an Eye Surgery Center, and the rest of my days are spent in my sewing studio. I loose all track of time when I enter my studio, it is my happy, whimsical place.
*How did you decide on your shop name?
My retail business is officially run out of my studio at the house as hipchic designs, (that's right no capitals)When I decided to open online with Etsy there was just too many shops with too similar a name. I didn't want any confusion so cyndesplace just seemed to fit.
*What types of items do you have?
Cyndesplace is full of bags and accessories. I really enjoy quilting and adding quilted items when I have time.
Do you have something new you will be adding? I am working on a baby line and possibly a new label for it. I also plan to do more with accessories and fashion.
*What's your supply addiction; is there a specific color or type of supply you just can't pass up?
I am hopelessly addicted to fabric, just about any kind and in every color!! Embellishments are also a weakness of mine....buttons, beads, yarn, embroidery you name it I can find some kind of use for it.
*Do you have a blog?
I love to blog....http://hipchicdesigns.blogspot.com/ this has become my second most fun creative outlet. I share a little about life, family, fun, sometimes a little stress, oh and lots and lots of sewing projects. I make so many things that never make it into cyndesplace and my blog is where I show it all off. I always joke about writing a book...well then I realized my blog has become my online book.
*What motivates or inspires you to create?
Everything around me seems to inspire some kind of creativity. Many times it is the fabric itself that does the inspiration....it is as if the fabric tells you what to make out of it....you laugh, but if you are addicted to fabric you know of what I speak!
Cynde will be sending one lucky woman this amazing bag!
Butterfly Batik Canvas Tote is a perfect carry all tote bag that you can take anywhere. The outside is demin and the lining is a batik canvas.
The front pocket gives it some personality, and is perfect for your keys, cellphone or anything you want kept handy. There is also a row of 3 poctets on the inside.
Size: 13" tall
17" wide
4" bottom base
Audrey's Country Crafts is in no way responsible for the mailing of the prize. After the name is drawn I will contact that person. They have 3 days to respond before another name will be picked! The name and address will be forwarded.
Thank-you for entering!!


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I started to write about using pool noodles two weeks ago. I had bought some noodles over a year ago but could not figure out a use for them. I had installed a base for another apparatus and when I looked at it, I thought that it would be a perfect base for the noodles. The base consisted of a crate taped to a sturdy wooden tray that spanned the width of the table.
The pool noodle on the left emptied into the clear toddler sensory table. I drilled holes in the vertical noodle and the long, flexible noodle on the right. Since both of these noodles were tape shut on the lower ends, water poured into them would exit through these drilled holes.
Children are rarely content to just pour and catch the water. Instead, they experiment with modifying the holes any way they can (see axiom #5 in the right-hand column of this blog). The child pictured below decided to use the funnels to modify the holes in the vertical noodle.
That same child modified the hole at the end of the noodle that emptied into the clear toddler table. He found a plastic nozzle of a watering can that was on the shelf next to the table and stuck it in the end of the noodle. Watch.
Filling his bowl. from Thomas Bedard on Vimeo.
The nozzle dispersed the water coming out of the noodle so his pan filled more slowly. As the water slowed to a trickle, he grabbed the nozzle and pushed it in. Was he thinking that he could get more water out of the nozzle by pushing it in further? It just so happened that as he pushed the nozzle, someone on the other end of the noodle poured more water in. That made more water squirt out and he subsequently had to re-position his bowl to catch the water. What we have here, and something he will eventually figure out, is corresponding coincidences, not cause and effect.
Axiom #6 states that children will block the flow of any medium in the table whenever possible. Well, it was possible with the pool noodles. The child in the video below discovered that the tip of a baster fit nicely into the hole of one of the noodles. Watch what else he discovered.
Baster fun from Thomas Bedard on Vimeo.
I was pouring the water into the funnel that fed the pool noodle. The child was holding the baster in the hole of the noodle thinking he had blocked the water from coming out. But he heard water coming out somewhere. He was not sure if it was from the noodle or from where I was filling the noodle so he kept looking around for the source of the water. He then pulled the baster out and to his great surprise and amusement, the water squirted up and out of the noodle. His expression tells it all.
As the children played with the holes in the noodles, the holes became larger just from the force of different things being inserted in them. Later in the week when an older group had their turn at the apparatus, the bigger holes made for the "best" play. Watch.
Gusher from Thomas Bedard on Vimeo.
One child had actually filled the noodle with water through the large red funnel. He filled the noodle so full that water was spilling out of the funnel. (Remember this noodle was blocked on one end.) That child gave a signal that the noodle was full. At that point, the child holding the basters pulled the two basters out at the same time. It was a gusher, a dual gusher. In the video, the child can be heard saying: "This is the best."
By the way, the water was gushing so much that the water was going on the floor. A parent who was volunteering in my room saw that and quickly moved to the other side to position a bucket to catch the water. The children now had a new purpose to their play: Can we get it in the bucket?
When I set up the pool noodles, I envisioned that the children would pour water into the top of the noodles and catch it wherever it came out. That was the extent of my imagination. As the children played with the apparatus, they showed me a myriad of other possibilities for this apparatus. Their adeptness at exploring and experimenting gave me a chance to carry forward those experiments to other classes, which in turn allowed other children to build upon the previous knowledge created by other children to generate even more explorations and experiments.
If you are going to the Washington AEYC conference at the end of October in Seattle, you can see my presentation on sand and water tables on Saturday
morning the 29th from 9:00 - 10:30. If you are going to the NAEYC
national conference in LA, you can see my presentation on Thursday
afternoon November 3rd from 1:00 - 2:30.
This is a blog for early childhood teachers looking for ways to expand and enrich play and learning in and around their sand and water tables with easy-to-make, low-cost apparatus. It may also be of interest for anyone who appreciates children's messy play.
About Me
- Tom Bedard
- Early childhood education has been my life for over 30 years. I have taught all age groups from infants to 5-year-olds. I was a director for five years in the 1980s, but I returned to the classroom 22 years ago. My passion is watching the ways children explore and discover their world. In the classroom, everything starts with the reciprocal relationships between adults and children and between the children themselves. With that in mind, I plan and set up activities. But that is just the beginning. What actually happens is a flow that includes my efforts to invite, respond and support children's interface with those activities and with others in the room. Oh yeh, and along the way, the children change the activities to suit their own inventiveness and creativity. Now the processes become reciprocal with the children doing the inviting, responding and supporting. Young children are the best learners and teachers. I am truly fortunate to be a part of their journey.
Saturday, October 15, 2016
More pool noodles
Posted by Tom Bedard at 10/15/2016
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Pets, Pets, Pets
Does your birthday effect how susceptible you will be to heart disease? It may with dogs, according to a recent study from the University of Pennsylvania (UPenn). Dogs born June through August are at higher risk of heart disease than those born other months, rising to the highest risk in July.
Researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at UPenn published their findings in the May 2018 Scientific Reports. A correlation to outdoor air pollution may be the culprit. This study supports earlier findings in humans pointing to the role of early gestational exposure to fine air particulates and increased risk of heart disease later in life. Dust, pollen and soot are examples of air particulates.
The next finding puzzled me. Researchers said: "Breeds not genetically predisposed to cardiovascular disease, such as Norfolk Terrier, Berger Picard, American Staffordshire Terrier, English Toy Spaniel, Bouvier, Border Terrier, and Havanese were found to be at highest risk. Also, breeds born frequently in July--Norfolk Terrier and Berger Picard - were at increased heart disease risk."
I am tuned into English Toy Spaniels (ETS) because of my 15-year-old Charlotte born in a Lindenhurst hoarder house. I am convinced her sire was the purebred ETS among the 33 dogs in this neglectful situation. In fact, this week marks the 15th anniversary of the SPCA and Babylon Shelter raid and seizure of the 27 surviving dogs and 10 cats abandoned at this Greene Street address. Charlotte was one of the older puppies at that time. There were several litters. Most of the young puppies died because of the neglect.
I'm surprised ETS were included in the study breed list because English Toy Spaniels, like Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, are prone to heart disease, especially mitral valve disease (MVD). This is a degenerative condition caused by a weakness in the mitral valve, which allows some blood to flow backward in the heart. In both breeds, dogs as young as seven or eight years can suffer from MVD which progresses. We were fortunate. Charlotte didn't show symptoms until a year ago, and now is on four different cardiac meds twice a day. Her younger sister Minnie succumbed to the same disease at 13.
Back to the UPenn study- Overall, dogs have a 0.3 to 2 percent risk of developing heart disease depending on breed. The research team found that risk climbs to the greatest level in dogs born in July, who have a 74 percent greater risk of heart disease than would typically be expected.
"It's important to study dogs because the canine heart is a remarkably similar model to the human cardiovascular system," said Mary Regina Boland, PhD, an assistant professor of Biostatistics "Also, humans and dogs share their lives together and are exposed to similar environmental effects, so seeing this birth season-cardiovascular disease relationship in both species illuminates mechanisms behind this birth-season disease relationship."
The Penn team studied data from the Orthopedic Foundation of Animals on 129,778 canines encompassing 253 different breeds. Since the significant association between birth season and cardiovascular disease was found in dogs that are not genetically predisposed to the condition, the authors say the effect supports an environmental mechanism.
This period between June through August is also a peak period for exposure to fine air particles - such as those produced by factory pollution - a finding echoed in a September 2017 Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association human study reported on in the Penn Medicine News Blog.
For both dogs and humans, outside air pollution during pregnancy and at the time of birth appears to play a role in later development of heart disease. In the prior study, the team investigated data from 10.5 million patients from around the world, including the United States, South Korea and Taiwan. One key finding was a link between first-trimester exposure to fine air particulates and nine percent increased risk of the heart rhythm irregularity known as atrial fibrillation (Afib) later in life.
Afib afflicts two percent of people under 65 in the United States - a total of 5.5 million people. In the human study, people exposed to peak air pollution during the first trimester of their mother's pregnancy were found to be at a nine percent higher risk than usual.
Taken together, the two study findings lead the authors to suggest pollution is a possible mechanism for the increased risk. Because dogs' pregnancies are shorter than humans (lasting only 2 months), the proposed mechanism is still thought to be through the mother's inhalation of air pollution effecting the uterine environment, which in turn effects the developing cardiovascular system of the baby or puppy.
Only breeders who chose to provide their dogs' data publicly were included in the study. (Some breeders and owners may choose not to disclose this data). Also, some variables that influence cardiovascular disease risk, such as diet and exercise, were unavailable in the data.
The researchers note future studies may be valuable in shedding light into why specific breeds are more susceptible to cardiovascular disease, as well as further work on the effects of birth season on later risk of specific diseases.
For Adoption: Speaking of heart disease- Simba was adopted from Babylon Shelter as a kitten but his owner ran into health problems so the shelter took Simba back a year ago when he was two. Simba has been diagnosed with heart disease and is doing great on his daily medication. Simba takes his meds each morning in a pill pocket treat. he loves to be pet and does well when loose with the other cats during free time. Call Babylon Shelter at 631-643- 9270.
Faith is a loving and well-behaved Basset mix, about 1 year-old, at Last Hope in Wantagh. She came from a crowded Kentucky shelter, and did quite well at the LI Vette Car Show last Sunday. Call Last Hope at 631-946-9528.


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Free Download Ocean Raft Survival Simulator Android
Ocean Raft Survival Simulator Android for Free on APK Download.
Ocean Raft Survival Simulator! Today i'm plays simulation game 2017 (Android / iOS Gameplay & Walkthrough) by Rogue Gamez.
My rate for this a game: 3/5.
About "Ocean Raft Survival Simulator" game app:
Experience the best of true craft raft survive game at the palm of your hands. Find food, raft craft, build survival tools and put up a shelter, try to survive in an epic water raft survival game; It's time to begin the ultimate ocean survival simulator adventure on the survival island and the sea.
A small flaw in the helicopter engine and a massive crash leaving you the lone survivor on the sea. Improvise and get to the job of raft building; travel by water raft down the oceans as you scrounge for resources and craft survive tools, trying to evade the dangers of the wilderness; Try to survive & Do whatever it takes to leave the island as survival is your only option.
Use your ocean survival skills to stay alive, battle against the angry shark and try to escape from the shark attack. Hunt wild animal for safety and food, swim the ocean while being on the lookout from the shark attack and try your best to find a way to escape from this wilderness survival island game. With Ocean Raft Survival Simulator, it's time to upgrade your animal hunting, angry shark battling, raft building and survival skills and try to find a way back home.
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/de…
YouTube: https://goo.gl/HAZV4e


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Few TCU players love being on the field more than defensive end Ross Forrest. And no Horned Frog has overcome more obstacles in the last couple of years to see that joy realized.
Forrest, a reserve defensive end, was sidelined in 2009 after an elbow injury in the opener at Virginia. Last year he missed time because of a shoulder injury. Now, in his junior year, the Odessa Permian graduate has come to exemplify coach Gary Patterson's call for depth. He has four tackles through two games, including one for a loss at Air Force.
"To be able to go out there and contribute is amazing," said Forrest, who had five career tackles before this season. "When you're hurt, it's such a humbling experience. Now, to be able get a shot at playing again is so much fun and you don't take it for granted. It's something you appreciate; being out there with all my teammates is the best feeling in the world."
Patterson restated his mantra during Tuesday's news conference about "older players need to show younger players how to practice."
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"That's what has made us special, besides having good players," he said.
That rings more true with former starters Ed Wesley and Tanner Brock being taken off the depth chart this week because of injuries. It seems unlikely they'll play when the No. 23 Frogs (1-1) meet Louisiana-Monroe (1-1) at 1 p.m. Saturday at Amon G. Carter Stadium.
"I'm always trying to teach and learn and contribute as much as I can," said Forrest, who played in 11 games as a freshman walk-on in 2008. "If I can help another guy learn, or if he can teach me, I'm always open."
Because of graduation and injuries, TCU has had to rely on its depth more than in recent years. Players such as redshirt freshman Antonio Graves and Travaras Battle have made an impact on special teams and young offensive linemen such as Michael Thompson and Eric Tausch had to spell starters who were under the weather at Air Force.
"When you have a younger team, every seven days seems like two months," Patterson said. "One day is a good practice, one day is a bad practice. And you don't really know what you're going to get on Saturday because they're not veteran enough where you say, 'Aw, they'll do it then.' Like you, I'll show up on Saturday and see what team shows up."
Patterson probably has a better grasp of his team's psyche than he's admitting, but the younger players, including a group of freshman receivers, have already made an impact. David Porter has three receptions and two touchdowns and Brandon Carter and Cam White have shown glimpses of the future.
"The first-team guys are so supportive of us when we get on the field, and we're so supportive of them," Forrest said. "It's so family oriented, and so much chemistry that it's easy for us to go out there and play. They don't see us as a drop-off."
To the contrary. Walk-on Jon Koontz made a huge stop on fourth down against Air Force that changed the momentum. Patterson said Koontz was in at left end instead of starter Stansly Maponga for a reason. Same goes for Forrest when he's in for starter Braylon Broughton at the right end.
"Braylon is such a leader for us and he works so hard, and is somebody I can look up to," Forrest said. "I encourage him and he encourages me. And it's the same on the other side with Stansly and Koontz. Those guys really push each other."
It's the cycle of turnover Patterson has preached around TCU: You're only as good as your reserves.
Anyone expecting a drastic drop-off this season with TCU missing Andy Dalton, Jeremy Kerley and Tejay Johnson hasn't been paying attention.
"I think it would be natural for people to think that, but what we preach around here now is we're not good teams, we're a good program," fullback Luke Shivers said. "And good programs find people to replace people. It doesn't matter if it's Andy Dalton or Jake Kirkpatrick, the next person has to step up and fill the role."
Follow TCU athletics on Twitter @FollowtheFrogs
Stefan Stevenson


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Xyron featuring Pebbles
Ohh it's the most magical time of the year and time to think about trimming the tree and getting gifts for family and friends. How about a twist on the gift wrapping and make them a cracker box instead. I love this Silhouette Studio Christmas Cracker die cut pattern by Sophie Gallo. It's perfect with these super cute papers and elements from Pebbles and of course so easy to assemble with Xyron Adhesive Products.
Christmas Cracker Die Cut File #23623 by Sophie Gallo
Silhouette Studio
1. Cut out the Cracker and fold along the perforated creases.
2. Put the Xyron High Tack Tape along the tabs.
3. Join the tabs to the underside of the opposite edge to form the cracker.
4. Fill with your gift and close the ends using ribbon.
Use the Xyron 3" Sticker Maker to add the die cut topper.
5. Add the Pebble Decorative elements
Xyron products are available in the UK through Crafter's Companion
Thanks so much for stopping by today, make sure to follow Xyron on Facebook
I'm also on facebook and if you want to stop by and say hi !
See you again soon.


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by Julia
I have a 1 1/2 year old female budgie. Since we got her she has been on some sort of medication. She's been on enroflixin, clavamox, amphotericin b, diflucan and sulcrate. I may have missed a few. If she is not on the diflucan she has seeds in her droppings. But now recently she has been on medicine and she then starts vomiting which we give her metocloprimyde.
We have been to our avian vets at least once a month, she had two X-rays which showed a slightly large proventriculus. Blood test came back with elevated white blood cells. I know this is a lot but anything comments or feedback would be great.
Comments for Budgie is always sick.
Click here to add your own comments


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Our goals in introducing this task are:
Parser Evaluation using Textual Entailments (PETE) is a shared task in the SemEval-2010 Evaluation Exercises on Semantic Evaluation. The task involves recognizing textual entailments (RTE) based on syntactic information. Given two text fragments called 'Text' and 'Hypothesis', Textual Entailment Recognition is the task of determining whether the meaning of the Hypothesis is entailed (can be inferred) from the Text. The PETE task focuses on entailments that can be inferred using syntactic information alone.
Important Dates:
Here are some links for publicly available parsers that can be used in this task. You do not have to use any of these parsers, in fact you do not have to use a conventional parsing algorithm at all -- outside the box approaches are highly encouraged. However, to get a quick baseline system using an existing parser may be a good way to start.
Further Reading:


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by Freddy Tran Nager, Founder of Atomic Tango + Beer Commercial Connoisseur…
'Tis St. Patrick's day, so what better way for a marketing blogger to celebrate than to write while totally drunk share a classic Guinness commercial:
As another Guinness campaign used to say…
Not only is the video fun to watch, it hits all 3B's of my marketing promotions framework:
- Brand: It makes the Guinness brand distinctive, likeable, and, at least for me, memorable.
- Buzz: Millions of views on YouTube alone.
- Behavior: The ad includes the call to action "Round up your mates for a Guinness" (positive), but doesn't include a link to a website (negative), yet it compelled me to drink a Guinness in gratitude (sales = ultra-positive).
Beyond all that, the commercial does a BRILLIANT! job of presenting what real competition looks like…
Your Competitors Aren't Who You Think They Are
When asked to evaluate their competitors, most marketers think of direct competitors: similar companies selling nearly identical products or services to the same customers. But in many cases, the real competition consists of completely different activities that your target customers would rather do than buy from you
So in this Guinness commercial, the competition depicted is not another pub — which might be in the next village over the hill, so we never have to worry about it. The real competition is watching TV on the couch at home (which may be the biggest competition to everything in the United States), dining in an Indian restaurant, watching dancing girls, or taking an important phone call. Those all place strong, enticing demands on the time and attention of our target customers. Unfortunately, most of us don't have sheep dogs to keep them in line.
We 21st century marketers face the same problem, but the competition for time and attention is infinitely more intense.
For example, if we write a business blog (like this one you're reading), the real competition isn't another business blog. It's videos on YouTube, shopping on Amazon, chats with friends on Facebook, and don't forget the dancing girls. They're always stealing our customers — damn them! All those temptations are just a few clicks away.
I face that challenge while teaching my classes. My competition isn't another class at another school — my students have all paid to attend mine, so I should have a captive audience. But I don't, even if they're physically present in the classroom. If I my lecture is lackluster and doesn't provide value, students won't pay attention or participate. They'd rather spend their time and attention elsewhere, like catching up on their email. I have to be engaging and informative, or at least show more Guinness commercials.
So if we want our target customers to spend their time with us — and for many people time is more valuable than money — then we must offer clear benefits and rewards and even entertainment value. We need to fight to get their attention, to entice them off their couches, and to keep them engaged. That's why being personal and even entertaining in marketing is so critical, particularly online.
Our blogs, social media, and other content are guaranteed to fail if all we do is talk about products in a boring, conservative way. That would be like inviting our friends to attend a business sales pitch instead of going to the pub. Who would join us? Now if we're smart, guess where we'd hold our sales pitch, and how we'd do it so we won't get ignored or even thrown out?
Hint: rounds of Guinness on us with ads on the pint glasses and on the coasters. And maybe some dancing girls. Hey, if you can't beat them…
Cheers, mates!


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The sociopath is often times a very compelling character in fiction. However it is almost always a destructive mindset in real life. However, nowadays we have safety nets with which extreme cases can be identified and hopefully assisted with their condition. However at the time and setting of Taxi Driver (1970's New York), acquired mental conditions such as PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder) were only recently getting attention and medical research due to veterans of the war in Vietnam coming home displaying symptoms, one such Vietnam veteran being Travis Bickle (Robert De Niro).
Travis has clearly been through traumatic experiences as this fantastically intricate film shows us, his upper torso is disfigured and he cannot sleep at night. His honourable discharge coupled with his injury suggests he faced heavy combat at least once, and he has clear ability with firearms. He was a soldier, but like so many others, he had to re-adjust to civilian life, so now he is a taxi driver.
A side character states to Travis that you are what you do, but it seems you can take the man away from Saigon, but not Saigon out of the man. Travis cannot interact with other people properly. This was a well documented problem with how Americans treated their fighting men coming back from the war, the shift to liberalism, at the time, drove the population to treat the veterans unfairly, somehow blaming them for for unethical military policy in Vietnam. Disenfranchisement with the America they came back to was par for the course for many veterans returning home to a seemingly thankless American public.
So, the movie shows his attempts at civilian life, he charms a woman to come on a date with him in a rather awkward fashion. He does what he can to tell her what she might want to hear, to like and support the same things. However he has been away a long time, he admits he has no great knowledge of anything. So he takes her to a cinema that shows porno movies, the few avenues of entertainment that would have been found in the service. This is too much for her so she leaves, Travis can't interpret what went wrong and pursues her later, being turned away once again.
This is where the psychosis begins to show, literally even. Martin Scorsese and his editor,in a stroke of genius, set the president for how psychosis would later be portrayed in the visual mediums. They use an editing trick where they loop footage back and forward for a second or two, with some kind of sharp sound effect to accompany it. A look at the character's warped perception of what is happening. A nod to the acting brilliance of Robert De Niro is necessary at this point, he delivers a truly damaged character with mannerisms that reflects the mental state of Travis perfectly.
Travis thinks, with no malicious intent, that women are objects that need to be saved from the filth he sees in every alleyway and at each street corner. So he rejects civilian life again, throws on his iconic marine corps jacket, buys a bevy of handguns from a traveling salesman and sets to work preparing for his new role as a vigilante.
The film makes a shift in tone from here on in, up to this point the film has been stifling the watcher with the uncomfortable character that is Travis, I sympathise with him deeply, but his life and his interaction with the world around him is always off putting. The lighting is almost always dark and the cinematographer lingers on silences and distressing images, helping to keep my stomach churning.
The tonal shift announces itself, as Scorsese films often do, with a explosive outburst of violence. Travis shoots a man who happens to be robbing the store he frequents. This is somewhat of a justifiable killing if you are that way inclined, but is Travis a hero? Travis failed a hooker who earlier tried to get away from her pimp in his taxi once before, he must track her down so he can atone for his earlier inaction.
And that he does, pays her for her service and she takes him to a nearby motel. However, Travis has no interest in the sex that he paid for, its questionable if he knows what emotional function sex serves at all. He thinks this young woman needs to be rescued from evil men. She insists she does not need saving, her employers are shown to be rather pleasant, for criminals. But the vitriolic disdain for everyone, even the hooker he wants to 'save', manifests itself further into his delusional new ego as a vigilante. There will be blood.
So, he kills the pimps in a mighty tension-releasing bout of gunpowder and adrenaline fueled violence, with the poor young woman bearing witness to it all. In the end he lies wounded as the police crowd in, shocked at what lies before them.
Travis survives, somehow. Newspaper clippings on Travis's apartment wall proclaim him a hero, surviving his mortal wounds. A letter from the young woman's parents thanks him for saving their child, with no excerpt of how the young woman feels about all this. I got an impression she is not necessarily better off now, she is still trapped, but in a more socially acceptable sort of way.
Socially acceptable, what does that mean anyways? Travis goes back to his civilian job, his vapid friends. The woman he was infatuated with earlier comes back to him, but he flips her off. Perhaps she was a figment of her imagination so he could continue his paranoid viewpoint of people, perhaps the whole film was a fantasy played out within his damaged mind.
When he loses the ability to interpret reality, and his empathy is lost, can anything the psychopathic Travis says or does be taken at face value? Am I in anyway like Travis? Is my moral compass pointed in the right direction? Is my sense of righteousness tainted by contempt?
I believe there is a bit of Travis in all of us, and that is why I think Taxi Driver is such compelling viewing. It lets us indulge in our least civil thoughts. In any case, this is one of the pinnacles of the silver age of cinema, a must see. Thank you for reading.
This was a reupload from another blog I have with a friend, ditto for for True romance.


text:
- Home
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In The News
New Orleans to Host – NAE 2011 Free Enterprise Forum
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What's New
© 2010 NAE. All Rights Reserved. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners. NAE is not responsible for content published on Web sites accessible from this site or for content received from third parties.


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Market Place
Our dedicated team have worked in the industry for many years. We understand ecommerce best practice and how to implement a winning ecommerce strategy to drive growth and sales. So what does this mean in reality?
Through face-to-face consultations we like to really understand what your business is ultimately trying to achieve and make sound recommendations to make sure you smash those goals.
Our experts work with organisations on how to get the most from the web, both today and in the future. Our experience is from successfully running and growing ecommerce retail businesses from the ground to multi-million pound organisations.
So what's the first step? We would work with you to provide a full analysis, plan and recommend solutions, by way of a face to face consultation*. We take into consideration hundreds of permutations that may affect your marketplaces to provide an accurate report with simple steps you can follow to achieve success!
If you need more help… just ask Andy!
Frequently Asked Questions
Why Choose Us?
My name is Andy Cornwall and I have been trading on many online Marketplaces and my own websites for over 10 years now. My most recent business was started with just £5000 and after 4 years had an annual turnover in excess of £2m. I have spent all of my time mastering the best techniques to use and of course understanding every facet of these marketplaces. I am therefore in the perfect position to help you do the same and ultimately be as successful as I have been.
What's The Process?
We will set up a FREE face-to-face consultation with you to discuss your business and how I can help you. If your location is not within our boundaries then this can be done via FaceTime or Skype.
What Happens If We Go Ahead After The Consultation?
We then analyse and advise! This entails us looking at hundreds of different factors within your marketplace accounts (way too many to list here) and we then determine what you need to do to improve your offering, better your competitors and increase sales and profitability.
How Much Does It Cost?
Our prices vary from case to case depending on the size of your company, your level of online presence and the time it will take to compile our full report. We believe you will be surprised at how little it will actually cost and how quickly this money can be recouped through using our report and advice. Prices start at £275.
Where Is The FREE Consultation Held?
Face-to-face consultations are usually held in a location convenient for yourself – a boardroom, office, local coffee shop, etc. If you are not located within a 50 mile radius of our BB2 Postcode then we can set up a Skype call with you.
How Long Does It Take For The Report?
What Are Your Payment Terms?
After we have agreed the price we require a 50% deposit, payable by cash, cheque or BACS. The remaining 50% is payable upon completion.
Andy was really easy to deal with from the off. The initial process was quick and easy for us! Andy got us to focus on some key details that in our busy trading environment we'd simply overlooked. I'd say even if you think you're doing everything right, get this guy in – he can work wonders.
Samantha F.
Market Place Expert called us, and to be honest we're glad they did. We got a comprehensive evaluation and some SMART actions, which we have implemented with relative ease. I can say with confidence that Market Place Expert have helped us increase sales.
Claire B.
Contact Information
Andy Cornwall,
Marketplace Expert,
22 Elswick Gardens,
Mellor, Lancashire, BB2 7JD
07468 527986


text: For a couple of weeks I am regularly getting 'stmp error' in the outbound log of my Linksys internet router (no I am not writing sMTp wrongly, it definitely says sTMp!). I never had these before. The message is in both the log fields "protocol" and "destination". The "source" field is empty: Date-------Time-----Protocol----Src-----Dest 2008/08/15 06:55:22 stmp________________stmp error A Google lookup hardly gives anything (besides lots of typos in SMTP). STMP seems to stand for "Sequence and Topology encoding for Multicast Protocol". I don't use Multicast in my network. I have no clue where this comes from. Does anyone else have this too or does someone know if this can be ignored? Could this even be a typo in the Linksys software itself and be related to SMTP after all? Thanks, Rob


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Drop that Line over the Counter
Today I would love to talk to you about fonts in general.
You all know by now, that fonts can be classified into major systems. We have serif fonts, we have grotesques or san serif fonts, we have slab fonts, we have script fonts and we have dingbats and we have something I would call fun fonts.
But all fonts have something in common, even dingbats, although they don't come along with letters but signs.
All fonts are aligned at a kind of typographic line system.
We have four general "help"lines – maybe they remind you of the time when you learned how to write. I used to have these lines in my exercise book.
The lowest line is called descent. The descender, the part of a letter that extends over the baseline, will end at that line. Letters with descenders are g, j, p, q, y. Descender space is also used for J and Q. Sometimes it depends on the font you are using. When you look at my example picture you will see that the descender of g in the serif font is more elaborated than the one of the san-serif-font.
The next line is called baseline. As the name says: this is the basic line of writing. Sometimes when you buy notepaper with lines, you will never have all four lines, but the one line that the notepaper industry uses to print, that's our baseline.
Baseline is the line for all letters without descenders. This line is like a comfy chair for your letters.
Above the baseline you will find the mean line. The space between baseline and mean line is called median or x-height. The small letter x usually fits comfortable in between. Certainly it depends on the design of the font if it actually fits in.
In my example I used Garamond. And all small letters fit perfectly between base and mean line.
The space above the mean line is called ascender height – the parts of the small letters that are taller than x-height. Letters with ascenders are: b, d, f, h, i, j, k, l, t.
Capital letters are sometimes a bit smaller than ascender height, also depending on the design of the font. The line that restricts the space for capital letters is set up some points below the ascender line. This part is called cap height. Since the space is for capital letters, I guess it is menu-driven: A B C ……
There is more that letters have in common.
The area that is enclosed by the letters – entirely or partially – is called counter. That's the part that usually won't print.
Letters with closed counters are: A, B, D, O, P, Q, R, a, b, d, e, g, o, p, q. Examples of letters with open counters: h, m, n, s, u …
Ever wondered why a serif font is called serif font?
Yes it is because of the serifs … ha. The serifs are tiny little details at the edges of the font. They are relicts from a time when written products haven't been created with a computer, and not even with a printing press. At that time letters and books have been written by hand with a quill or brush.
A serif font has its baseline somehow in its pocket. The serif helps your eye to hold the line.
The way a serif is elaborated – straight, concave, rounded – helps us to classify the font.
But that will be next weeks story!
Liked what you read?
Than join my newsletter today – your privacy will always be respected!
or like me on facebook
All Text and Graphics, if not mentioned otherwise are


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You might not think it, but we're nearly in May. The nice weather I'm experiencing as I write this is far too teasing for my liking – I'll close my eyes for a second and when I open them it will be back to freezing winds and driving rain.
Planning for summer seems a bit foolish when you still find yourself in need of a winter coat. Although you know that if you don't, the weather will change all of a sudden and you'll be the silly idiot wearing jeans and a jumper whilst everyone else around you is in shorts and loafers.
I've always found summer footwear to be a particularly tricky facet of my wardrobe. Finding a versatile, comfortable and style appropriate all-rounder is something I've really struggled with, usually just resorting to my Vans or soft structured loafers. Sadly, neither of these fills the gaping hole in my footwear collection and the perfect crossover shoe continues to elude me.
However, I think I have found the solution. A shoe that fulfils all of my personal requirements and that I feel is also worthy of serious consideration by you guys. All the typical summer footwear: boat shoes, espadrilles, desert boots and sandals have their pros and cons, but I don't think any silhouette adapts as well as the suede Derby.
A Good Foot Forward
For me the suede Derby is the perfect crossover shoe, serving both formal and casual styles in equal measure and looking just as good with a pair of rolled up jeans/chinos as they do with your tailored shorts. Suede is particularly good at bridging the smart-casual divide because it doesn't have the rigid formal connotations of leather.
Suede is also much more temperature appropriate, being lighter and more breathable than leather. You should still invest in some invisible socks though – stinky feet are never attractive.
Couple all the above with the fact that you can purchase the suede Derby in a wide variety of colours and you've got yourself one extremely versatile shoe that will integrate flawlessly into your existing personal style.
However, bear in mind that not all suede Derbies are the same. The shape of the shoe will dictate heavily which end of the aesthetic scale they sit. Whilst more streamlined, sharper shapes will suit European, tailored dressing; the chunkier, more substantial styles might be more appropriate for the whole American prep/collegiate look. Both would be a fantastic investment but for maximum versatility you might want to look for something that offers a happy medium.
Whichever style you choose, below you will find a current lookbook and example outfits to give you some inspiration.
Suede Derby Lookbook
Look 1
I will always and forever maintain that it's the simplest outfits that work the best: nothing fancy, nothing wild, just good solid basics, put together well. Our variable weather requires some clever layering and a casual sweatshirt under a denim jacket is a great place to start – it's light enough to deal with a bit of heat but still warm enough to tackle the morning chill or the evening drops.
A pair of light coloured chinos are a wardrobe essential and will offer you more choice with your style of footwear. A pair of shoes in blue suede are almost as versatile as brown but, being a fairly underused colour, will help give your outfit a shot of individuality. Look for interesting details like the fluorescent soles on this pair from Topman or inject some colour via accessories:
- Sunspel Loopback-cotton Sweatshirt
- Asos Denim Jacket With Acid Wash
- Allsaints Charge Chino
- Topman Fluro Suede Desert Shoes
Look 2
Never underestimate the power of a well fitting t-shirt and a good pair of shorts. Summer is coming and the temperature will rise – you won't want to be wearing trousers all year round, so act now and find solid summer basics.
Neutral coloured shorts allow you to experiment freely with your upper half, and if you've invested wisely then you will find that it's super easy to switch from structured and formal to relaxed and casual at the drop of a hat.
Navy chino shorts look great with a soft coloured tee and grey suede Derbies. As previously mentioned, be aware of the shape of your shoes – chunkier styles will look out of place because they will overwhelm your feet, making the outfit appear disjointed:
- Ymc T-shirt With Pocket
- Topman Indigo Chino Shorts
- Asos Canvas And Leather Backpack
- J.crew Kenton Suede Derby Shoes
Look 3
The bomber jacket is one of this season's key pieces and suits a more subtle (perhaps more European?) take on preppy. Find one in a good anchor colour, like navy or brown, and you can wear it with pretty much everything and anything in your wardrobe without hassle.
This jacket from AllSaints pairs well with lighter coloured tailored trousers, creating an interesting mix of aesthetics, and is rounded off by a basic blue shirt and some statement green suede Derbies.
Keeping the outfit fairly muted allows you to play around with statement shoes, which can be a really good way of marking yourself out from the crowd. Whilst we are often inclined to stick to basic browns for our footwear, the more unconventional colours shouldn't be completely discounted.
- Allsaints Redondo Shirt
- Allsaints Kogan Bomber Jacket
- Reiss Alsace T Cotton Linen Mix Trousers Stone
- Oliver Spencer Suede Contrast-sole Derby Shoes
Men's Suede Derbies
- Topman Ralphy Fashion Lace Up Shoes
- Sanders Dirty Crepe Sole Archie Gibson Boots
- Topman House Of Hounds Tennison Derby Shoes
- Barbour Bolingbroke Derby Shoes
- Topman Fluro Suede Desert Shoes
- Church Fulbeck Micro Derby Shoes
- Topman Burgundy Suede Desert Shoes
- He By Mango Suede Derby Shoes
- Gucci Suede Lace-up Shoes 147366
- Selected Theo Derby Shoes
- Mark Mcnairy Contrast-welt Suede Derby Shoes
- Paul Smith Shoes & Accessories Walterlight Suede Derby Shoes
- Kurt Geiger Noah Derby Shoes
- Stitchdown Derby Bespoken Brown
- Burton Grey Suede Desert Shoes
Final Word
So there we have a short round-up of the suede Derby, my personal choice of footwear for the spring/summer 2013 season. Such a versatile style would effortlessly integrate into any man's wardrobe and they are definitely worthy of your consideration. When everyone else is pulling out their TOMS or boat shoes you can be confident in stepping out in something completely different, knowing that you've made a great choice.
As always I want to know what you think – are suede Derbies something you might consider?
Let me know in the comments section below…


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I turned five last week. It was a great day.
I went to bed worried that it would be a bad day.
I went to bed with the worst sore throat, the day before I turned five. I had a fever all day.
I also got a black eye from running in to my sister, a few day before.
My mom says to stop running around the house.
I was in bad shape.
but, when I woke up on my birthday my fever was gone and my throat felt a little better.
I woke up to a booby trap. My mom had booby trapped me in my room.
I thought that was so funny.
I also had a nice note on the door, written on sticky notes.
For breakfast, I wanted cake batter waffles.
I still didn't feel like eating, but I pretended for my mom.
Tess liked the cake batter waffles.
When I came downstairs, the room was filled with balloons.
Each balloon had a letter. Jex helped me figure out what they spelled.
They said, "pop me."
So I used a pin, and popped all five balloons.
Each one had a dollar in it. Five dollars for five years old.
I laughed and laughed.
I also love seeing all the decorations just for me all over the house.
And then my mom let me….
…open a gift.
I think she knew I would play with it all day.
Jex helped me put the lego set together.
…and all I wanted to do was play.
My mom did make me take a few pictures.
She said, "you can take a few with your cars." I wanted to have Jex in them, because he helped me build them.
She keeps saying, "I can't believe your five, you were just my baby like five minutes ago ."
I like being five.
I didn't feel like eating lunch, so my mom took me to get a milkshake.
(taken with mommy's iphone)
That was a yummy lunch. Did you notice my black eye?
…and we played some more.
In the evening, we had to go to the school to meet my teacher.
It was fun to see my classroom, and meet my new teacher on my birthday.
It happened to be right during the time that we should be having my special birthday dinner.
My mom new it would be too late when we were finished, so I picked a special place to eat instead of a special meal to have at home.
I picked chick-fil-a. Yum!! I actually felt like eating. My throat was feeling much better, thanks to the special medicine daddy called in for me.
Thanks dad!!
After dinner, we went home and opened a few more gifts.
I like presents.
Then it was time for cake.
I wanted a blue dragon cake.
I like the way it turned out, my mom worked really hard on this.
I helped by putting the candles in, and then I made a wish.
It was a great day.
It was fun to be the birthday boy, and get extra hugs and…
We love you Isaac!!
Happy Birthday!!
"I still can't believe you are five, you were just my baby like five minutes ago."