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EU Child abduction alert system to be adopted in the UK
In 2006 from the European Commission on «Children - Violence against children»
Within the framework of the protection of children, the Commission adopted a Communication on 4 July 2006 entitled "Towards an EU strategy on the Rights of the Child". It aims at establishing a comprehensive EU strategy to promote and safeguard the rights of the child in the European Union's policies and to support Member States' efforts in this field.
The Communication, whose main goal is to underpin the existing legal structure, follows on from other measures taken in the area of violence against children, such as combating trafficking in human beings and sexual exploitation of children, child sex tourism, child pornography, and civil society's contribution to finding missing or sexually exploited children.
Measures listed in the communication that have already been taken in this area include the "116000" hotline phone number for missing children and reflections on how to implement an alert system for missing children throughout Europe, such as the "Child Alert" system recently launched in several European countries, with has been a resounding success .
From the European Commission Press Release system, on 25 May 2009
On International Missing Children's Day, organised by Missing Children Europe, Mr Barrot took part in launching a high-profile publicity campaign for the 116 000 hotline. He expressed the Commission's encouragement for the initiative and its willingness to continue working closely with associations active in the field of protecting children's rights. He expressed his personal commitment to encouraging the adoption in each Member State of an "abduction alert" type of system, which could save lives. He regretted that the 116 000 hotline to social support services for missing children and their families was only operational in five Member States and found the delay difficult to explain. In his view, it showed the importance of resolute action to ensure that the EU's instruments produced practical results on the ground.
On the same occasion, the President of Missing Children Europe, Sir Francis Jacobs, said: "While establishing one and the same telephone number for missing children across the EU sounded quite ambitious and farfetched at first, it is now becoming a tangible reality. With the launch of the campaign in 10 EU Member States, we look forward to reaching out to many children and parents across the EU, through the immediate support granted by our member organizations operating a 116 000 hotline at national level. Every member of society is encouraged to call the number immediately if they know or even suspect that a child is missing or abducted."
To show solidarity with all parents and missing children, Mr Barrot asked European Commission staff to express their support for families affected by a disappearance by wearing a forget-me-not: missing children must not be forgotten.
116 000
A Commission Decision of 2007 requires the EU countries to make the number available but does not require them to assign it to a service provider or operate these services. This calls for a firm commitment on the part of the national authorities. The Commission has repeatedly urged the Member States to make this number operational as soon as possible. So far this has been the case in five Member States: Greece, Hungary, the Netherlands, Portugal and Romania.
As of today, 25 May 2009 - according to information received by the national organisations concerned - the number is also operational in France, Belgium, Poland, Italy and Slovakia. This headway is undoubtedly due to the awareness-raising campaign conducted throughout 2008 as part of a Commission-funded project under the Daphne III Programme which was designed to encourage the EU countries where the number is not yet in use to assign and operate the 116 000 hotline.
"Child abduction alert" system
The Commission has adopted a working paper on best practices for launching a cross-border child abduction alert, which was welcomed by the JHA Council on 27 and 28 November 2008. It has published a call for proposals totalling €1 million as support for the Member States that have not yet adopted a "Child Alert" type of system.
Combating trafficking in human beings and the sexual exploitation of children and child pornography
In March this year the Commission adopted two proposals containing new rules to step up the fight against trafficking in human beings, the sexual exploitation of children and child pornography. These new proposals will guarantee greater assistance for victims and harsher measures against the criminals responsible for the sexual exploitation of children and trafficking.
As of 29 June 2009 the EU Child Alert System was implemented in Portugal, as reported in this blog entry :«Portuguese Child Alert System in Action»
As of today, Portugal has a child abduction alert system that will allow to gather, immediately after the crime, elements that can help quickly locate an abducted child.
A protocol that will be signed today at the Polícia Judiciária Superior School in Loures will associate several tens of public and private entities, including Lusa agency, which are apt to broadcast the message of abduction alert, with the judiciary and police authorities.
The creation of the national child abduction alert system follows the proposal that was presented during the Portuguese Presidency of the European Union at the Justice and Home Affairs Council informal meeting, which took place in Lisbon, where Portugal proposed the creation of a Europe-wide mechanism.
Today the UK News Agency Press Association reports:
Kidnap alert system to be unveiled
Police will unveil a new nationwide alert system for enlisting the public to help them rescue abducted children next month.
Officials have been working behind the scenes for months to iron out bureaucratic hurdles to broadcasting sensitive information.
Kate and Gerry McCann have campaigned for such a system to be introduced since their daughter Madeleine disappeared in Portugal in May 2007. They emphasised how the first hours after an abduction are crucial and that an alert would spread information more quickly.
The new network, comparable to the amber alert system in the United States, will be compatible with other European countries for the first time.
As a result a continent-wide alert could be issued in circumstances where youngsters may be taken across national borders.
Although some 100,000 children are reported missing to police each year, senior officers expect the national alert to be used extremely rarely.
The upgraded child rescue alert system will use new computer software to handle the anticipated deluge of calls from concerned members of the public.
Similar alerts in France provoked 600 calls within the first three hours, leaving investigators struggling to prioritise information.
Regional and national television and radio stations will broadcast messages, in some cases interrupting scheduled programmes. Those behind the system also hope to eventually use internet and text messaging as well as motorway information signs.
The system is being co-ordinated by the National Police Improvement Agency (NPIA) and any national abduction will be led by Greater Manchester Police.
Related: British Media: How lies are spun, grown and perpetuated «Again the British newspapers keep perpetuating the myth - the McCanns did not have the idea nor did they campaign for the EU Wide Child Alert System, at best they opportunistically obfuscated the real protagonists of the EU Child Alert System: Justice and Home Affairs Commissioner Franco Frattini, who was the among the first ones promoting this project, along with Ludmilla Putin, Margarida Sousa Uva Barroso - link to an article of 2005, Laura Bush, and a few European Union MEP's.»


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By Risdel Kasasira, DAILY Monitor, OCT/18/2015, SSN;
When UPDF deployed in South Sudan 22 months ago, three reasons were given for intervention, including evacuating Ugandans caught up in the fighting.
The second reason was that UPDF had been invited by a legitimate government to ensure order and the third reason was that the regional bloc, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (Igad), had sanctioned the intervention following a request by the UN secretary General, Mr Ban Ki-moon.
What government didn't say was Khartoum's invisible hand in the conflict and also the need to protect Uganda's economic interests.
According to military sources, President Omar Al-Bashir has been close to Riek Machar whom the regime in Kampala sees as an adversary.
Despite the war, South Sudan remained the biggest market for Ugandan products such as cement, beverages and agricultural produce.
Therefore, it was not a surprise that as the conflict escalated, Ugandan troops started fighting on the side of forces loyal to President Salva Kiir.
In the end, UPDF become a protagonist in the conflict and was accused of propping up Kiir's regime. And indeed, If UPDF had not intervened, President Kiir would probably not be president to date.
What next?
However, with UPDF leaving, are Uganda's security and economic interests protected? Is President Kiir's interest to remain president secure?
Answers to this question depend on the internal political, economic and security dynamics in South Sudan, regional and international community interests.
But majorly, its regional and internal politics will be critical in determining the internal politics in world's newest nation.
"There is a very big shift in geopolitical interests. President Museveni has reconciled with President Bashir who has been hostile to Uganda.
Therefore, even if Machar comes to Juba as President, his government may not be hostile to Uganda," says Hassan Kaps Fungaroo, the Shadow minister for Defence and Internal Affairs.
Historical relations between Uganda and Sudan have been tense, with both countries backing armed proxies fighting over the status of South Sudan.
But in September this year, President Museveni made a rare visit to Khartoum that represents a significant shift in the relations between the two countries.
It was a smart diplomatic move by President Museveni to reach out to President Bashir because Kampala will now have less control over events in South Sudan without a presence in Juba and other parts of the country.
If regimes in Kampala and Khartoum are close allies, they can easily compel Juba to do what they want because South Sudan majorly depends on the two countries for survival.
LRA issue
South Sudan's economy entirely depends on oil with the refineries located in Sudan and almost all food and other goods like beverages consumed coming from Uganda. Therefore, reconciling with Khartoum is not only good for Uganda but also for South Sudan and Sudan.
Anyone who wants to economically and politically distabilise Uganda will first distabilise South Sudan for it to be a safe haven for negative forces like the Lord's Resistance Army rebels under Joseph Kony.
Northern Uganda is peaceful because South Sudan is Uganda's buffer zone and that's why Kony who was allegedly getting support from Khartoum was pushed out and later fled to the Central African Republic (CAR).
Some have previously argued that LRA can come back and attack Uganda and South Sudan with the help of some hostile regimes but no government or regime would want to be associated with a person like Kony who is being hunted by Americans and also wanted by the International Criminal Court.
Another critical factor that will determine South Sudan's security situation is the 12,600 strong-UN force that is replacing the UPDF.
The force will be deployed under Chapter 7 of the United Nations Charter and it authorises the force to use "all means necessary" to protect civilians and deter violence.
If "all means necessary" includes carrying out targeted offensive operations to neutralise parties that violate the peace deal like Force Intervention Brigade in DR Congo, the UN force could help to bring peace.
But the challenge with such UN force is that it's drawn from different countries with different interests and it's not always cohesive.
"It might be business as usual where you have these UN troops getting good salaries and all the benefits but the local people are suffering.
It has been happening in DR Congo and other parts of the world," says Sam Mwebaze, a Master student of International Relations at Makerere University.
It should also be understood that President Kiir in January 2014 accused the UNMISS, which is replacing UPDF of supporting the opposition, an allegation the UN strongly denied and dismissed.
Even last week South Sudan's information minister Michael Makuei Lueth, told reporters in Juba that Salva Kiir was not attending the September 29 UN meeting because the UN had been treating Kiir like a "schoolboy."
Role of UN
Therefore, there is already lack of trust between the UN and president Kiir.
More worrying, Juba is supposed to be demilitarised, and all government forces, according to the Addis Ababa agreement signed on August 26, are supposed to move 25km out of the capital and therefore president Kiir will be majorly at the mercy of this UN force.
However, Mr Ateny Wek Ateny, the government spokesperson, says the president will remain with about 5,000 presidential guards, fire brigade, police and wildlife warders.
"There will be no security vacuum. With these presidential guards and police, the city will be safe and the president will also be safe," he said.
Mr Ateny also says government has more than 100,000 soldiers that can be deployed to defend their country.
But what he does not explain is why the government has failed to defeat Machar who now controls a swathe of territory with an intact fighting force.
A UPDF retired captain, who doesn't want to be named because of the sensitivity of the matter, currently working for a European security firm in South Sudan, describes SPLA, as " a disorganised and poorly trained force".
"They cannot stand and fight an organised force," he says
He says when UPDF deployed in December 2013, it was not only fighting Machar but also reorganising the SPLA at the frontline.
"They have guns needed to fight any war in this terrain. But they are disorganised. They are poor at command, planning and war execution. They really need training," he says.
Another problem president Kiir is facing is the ailing economy. And with this big number of soldiers, it might be hard for him to raise the money to pay the soldiers.
In May this year, Mr Kiir acknowledged in his speech that South Sudanese have been hit hard by the ailing economy.
He blamed the fighting and falling crude prices for hobbling his country's oil industry, which is South Sudan's economic lifeline.
In the same month, a team of South Sudan officials led by vice president Wani Igga was in Kampala to seek financial help but government sources say Uganda only promised it would offer financial advice.
With these changing dynamics, Mr Fungaroo argues that the regional leaders are "ditching" President Kiir because he has failed to solve governance problems within SPLA/M and they are tired of continuously supporting his government from falling.
"There is a shift in geopolitics. Salva Kiir is being ditched" he says. But spurning President Kiir would not be easy.
It's also risky because edging him out would be opening another frontline that could divide the country that is already ethnically and tribally divided. END

subset: commoncrawl


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The Storm worm has got to Geocities, Yahoo's Web page hosting service, embedding malicious JavaScript code.
An excerpt from PC World | Computer World:
Security researchers observing the botnets reported that the bots were loaded with a new template to spam links to sites on Geocities.
The latest trend at the Storm worm front is it masquerading as a codec download. This method has led several users to click on download links for the codecs, installing Trojans on their systems.
More information:
Storm worm spams its bots with pop-up (Secure Computing)


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Thank you for your interest in adding to our Visit Twin Cities calendar! We know the metro area is teeming with activity, and we would love to show our visitors all of the things they can see and do while they're here. To add to our event calendar, follow the instructions below.
Step 1: Creating an Account
For your first event submission, you will have to register for an account. Create whatever username you prefer—your username must be unique and cannot be changed. You will need to enter an email address you have access to. Only one account can be attached to each email address. Once you register, an email will be sent to your email address to confirm your account and allow you to create a password.
Confirm Your Account
Click the link in the confirmation email. You will see a webpage with a pre-filled, randomly generated secure password. You can replace this password with whatever you like. We encourage you to use a combination of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers and characters for security; however, this is not a requirement. Feel free to keep the generated password. If you forget your password, you can recover access to your account by using the "Forgot password?" link.
Login and Update
Login to your account using your username and password. When you first login, fill out your profile. The only required fields are username (set when you registered), email address and password. However, you may also add additional information, such as your first and last name and a description.
When you are done filling out your profile, click "Update Profile." The page will reload, and you will see a message at the top of the page confirming that your account has been updated.
Step 2: Submitting an Event
Add Your Event
To submit an event, log into your account and click on the Events tab at the top of the page and click "Add Event." Put the title of your event in the first text box at the top of the page, enter a description of your event in the section below, and add other event details into their appropriate areas (e.g., date, price, location).
For the location and organizers, you may add a new location or organization if the correct one does not exist already in the dropdown menu. Locations and organizations must have unique names. If you use a location or organization that already exists, please confirm that the details of that location or organization are correct. You can check this by clicking the Venues or Organizers tab on the left side of the screen. If any information is incorrect, please notify the visit-twincities.com administrators at firstname.lastname@example.com, and we will update the information as quickly as possible.
If you have a photo you would like to include for the event, please email it to firstname.lastname@example.com with the subject "Photo for [insert event name] Event Submission."
You do not need to fill out any additional information on the page below The Events Calendar section of this page.
Save a Draft
At any point before submission, you may save a draft of your event by clicking "Save Draft" at the top of your event page. To return to edit your event later, log in to your Visit Twin Cities account, go to the Events tab at the top of the page and click "Edit Events" in the dropdown menu. You will see a list of all of the events you have entered on Visit Twin Cities.
Hover over the titles of events and you will see links to Edit or Quick Edit each event. Clicking "Edit" takes you to a full page where you can change the event title, description and all event details. Clicking "Quick Edit" allows you to change the title, date and category of the event
Preview and Submit
Before submitting your event, consider previewing it by returning to your event form, and clicking Preview above the Submit for Review button. This will allow you to see your event page exactly as it will appear once published.
Once you have finished adding information about your event, scroll back up to the top of the page and click "Submit for Review." Once the event is successfully submitted, the page will reload with a confirmation message at the top of the page.
Step 3: The Review Process
Wait for Approval
Events will be reviewed for approval once per week by Visit Twin Cities administrators. The best way to ensure that your event is approved is to include as much information about the event as possible, select one appropriate tag for the event and tailor your description to the Twin Cities visitor market. If the site administrators have any question, they will send them to your account email address.
Check Status
To check the approval status of your events, log in to your account, go to the Events tab at the top of the page and click "Edit Events" in the dropdown menu. You will see a list of all of the events you have entered on Visit Twin Cities.
When and if your event is published by Visit Twin Cities, you will no longer be able to edit it and it will appear on our events calendar. Please ensure that all information is correct before submitting your event for review.


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Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Day 9 & 10 of 21: the dungeon...I mean laundry room!
8 comments:
- Bry and Rach said...
WAY.TO.GO!!!! Looks fantastic! Great job! I love those shelves. I have some in espresso from Ikea in my living room! Love them. I don't know if I would love them for yarn though. You could just keep it exposed, but that would be a lot of work to keep it looking nice. Or you could do totes with labels. But that might be hard to keep track of. Just my thoughts :) Excited for you to get your counter for the room!
- January 18, 2011 at 10:27 AM
- Krug's Eco-Logic said...
I love it !!! GREAT JOB !! Love the honesty, too ... you don't want to see my laundry room ;-)
- January 18, 2011 at 10:28 AM
- Crystal said...
Great Job!!! Wish I was that organized now! LOL
- January 18, 2011 at 10:28 AM
- Tenille Gates said...
again...you deserve mad props for showing us what your house really looks like sometimes! Now i need to grow some and post my messy room befores and afters ;0)
- January 18, 2011 at 10:41 AM
- Crystal said...
WOW great job!!! Looks great!
- January 18, 2011 at 11:03 AM
- Jess said...
Finally a REAL Blogger! I think its looks great! I too had a laundry room that looked like that, we were able to do it in 6 loads though.
We have now started a load a day routine which helps. =]
- January 18, 2011 at 11:11 AM
- curtandjenb said...
AMAZING! You have just given me the biggest boost of motivation! I love the blue walls...great choice!
- January 18, 2011 at 12:16 PM
- Aidan and Evan's mommy said...
I'm wanting to build a cubby system I saw at Knock-off Wood to put all of my yarn in. Right now it's all split up in 3 or 4 big rubbermaid boxes. I don't know what I have so I just keep buying more as I need it. It's terrible. I'm glad my house isn't the only one that's unorganized but, what a great job you've done! With little ones sometimes you just have to decide what's more important- a super clean house or happy kids. :)
- January 18, 2011 at 2:53 PM


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Invasion V
ABC has ordered a pilot for a television series based on the 1984 science fiction series "V," about an alien invasion of Earth. The original series was based on a miniseries and ran for 19 episodes and spawned several novelizations.
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SENECA, S.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oconee Federal Financial Corp. ("Oconee"), the holding company for Oconee Federal Savings and Loan Association ("Oconee Federal"), announced today that John W. Hobbs has been appointed to the positions of Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Oconee and Oconee Federal, effective April 3, 2017.
Mr. Hobbs, a Certified Public Accountant, previously served as the Chief Financial Officer of Greer Bancshares, located in Greer, South Carolina, where he worked beginning in 2011. Mr. Hobbs has served as the Chief Financial Officer for multiple financial institutions and their holding companies located in South Carolina as part of a career that has included nearly 30 years in the banking industry.
Curtis T. Evatt, Oconee's President and Chief Executive Officer, said, "We are excited to add John Hobbs to our management team. He brings extensive experience in public company accounting, with a special focus on the banking industry."
About Oconee Federal
Oconee Federal Financial Corp. (NASDAQ Capital Market: OFED) is the holding company of Oconee Federal Savings and Loan Association. Oconee Federal Savings and Loan Association is a federally chartered savings and loan association founded in 1924 and headquartered in Seneca, South Carolina. Oconee Federal Savings and Loan Association is a community oriented financial institution operating seven full-service branch locations in Oconee County, South Carolina, Stephens County, Georgia and Rabun County, Georgia.


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Lawmakers Doubt U.S. Agency's Assurances After Anthrax Scare
Legislators aired doubts over a U.S. health agency's pledge to remedy problems tied to its management of disease agents, Reuters reports.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee is weighing the creation of an autonomous auditor for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the news agency reported on Thursday. The medical agency came under congressional scrutiny after a June safety breach initially spurred fears that dozens of workers could have been exposed to anthrax at its Atlanta headquarters. The incident preceded the discovery of numerous additional violations of rules for handling infectious pathogens.
The Energy and Commerce Committee reportedly is also considering the establishment of new, nationwide laboratory guidelines that one federal entity would be responsible for overseeing.
CDC Director Thomas Frieden last week said the center was moving on its own in reaction to the internal incidents. Its response, he said, included designating an official to oversee issues concerning laboratory safety, as well as planning the creation of an independent advisory board.
Frieden promised similar actions in a two-year-old letter released on Thursday by House Energy and Commerce Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.).
"Why should we believe this time that things will be different?" Upton asked at a Wednesday hearing.
In the September 2012 communication, Frieden said the center had "designated a senior official who will report directly to the CDC director regarding concerns or complaints related to safety at CDC's laboratories." The agency was also inviting input from independent security analysts, he said at the time.
Legislators aired doubts over a U.S. health agency's pledge to remedy problems tied to its management of disease agents, Reuters reports.


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In 1999 Lance and Kristen Armstrong presented the President of the United States with one of his Tour de France yellow jerseys and a Trek bicycle.
10/23/12 CINCINNATI, OH. (AP) During a Tuesday campaign event in Cincinnati, Ohio today, former president Bill Clinton held a town-hall format Q&A-session and he was asked for his thoughts on pro-bicycling's Armstrong Scandal. He spoke of standing in the Rose Garden in 1999 and receiving a jersey and bicycle from the bicyclist who had brought the trophy home to America. "I'll have to return that bicycle and the jersey", the former president said. "The jersey certainly never fit me and, I've got to say, I just could never stand a cheater."


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I received an email from a man asking me how I came to believe sex was so important in marriage and asking me if I could convince his wife to share my belief. The email made me laugh and also tugged at my heart.
Marriage is hard work. It's not all lovey-dovey, cutsey-wootsey, snuggley-buggley warmth. There are some very cold, distant caves hidden in wedded bliss; some caused by mistakes and some just by a lack of time, communication and priority. It takes commitment on every level. You have to give your body, your mind and your heart; not just one, but all. For a marriage to thrive, both partners must be ALL in, ALL invested, ALL of the time.
Sex is one part of what makes up a good marriage. It is one form of intimacy, and it should be noted that ALL forms of intimacy are necessary to keep the engine humming.
Years ago, my marriage was stagnant. My husband and I weren't connecting and I didn't feel as close to him as I had previously. We weren't fighting a lot, but we had grown apart and there was a distance in our hearts. He was traveling a lot and I was exhausted with my job and the kids… by the time we got any time together we were, quite frankly, too tired to connect, physically or emotionally. Neither one of us was content or fulfilled.
We decided to conduct a little experiment. While talking over Margaritas and nachos we devised a jump-start plan of action. Determined to re-connect with one another, we made a sexual commitment. We vowed to make-love every day. Every day for one month. (He traveled so we weren't able to hit the every day mark, but we did have sex every day that he was in town.) We began this experiment in August and during that first month we had sex 24 of the 31 days.
Our relationship was taken to a new level! We were talking more, laughing more, enjoying our stolen moments and looking forward to our time together. We liked it so much that we extended it to another month, and another month, and another month until we completed one full year.
It was this experiment that taught me the value of the physical manifestation of love between partners. See, sex isn't just about the act or the climax…it's about the bonding and the intimacy. Sure, the orgasm is fun, but that's short-lived. The lasting emotional connection that comes from the sexual interaction is what matters most.
It is difficult, almost impossible, to make-love to someone and simultaneously stay angry at them. If you don't believe me, try it. In your next argument with your partner, try getting naked and laying close while you're fighting.
Nakedness is not just physical, but it is symbolic of emotional openness. Complete exposure and disclosure. It's about acceptance and excitement.
Many couples don't engage in sexual activity because they are ashamed of their own bodies, or they think they're not good enough at it, or they get too tired and too lazy to make the commitment. The butterflies in the stomach are dead and sex becomes just another chore on the to-do list. After all, the touch is the same, the movement is the same, the panting is the same…. over time, it gets redundant, for both men and women. Welcome to marriage. Your job is to commit to spicing it up in and out of the bedroom. Your commitment to each other is to make the marriage not only work, but thrive. Attention to detail matters. Knowing what your partner likes and dis-likes matters, both in and out of the bedroom, and then applying that knowledge is crucial.
Get creative! It all starts with communication.
Talk to each other about things you want to do, places you want to go, elements of your marriage you wish you could change. Then, incorporate intimacy into that. For example: If you can't afford a trip to Paris, bring Paris to your bedroom. Buy some French Champagne, light candles all over, put up a poster of the Eifel Tower, and make French kissing the theme of the evening. In between conversations, lean over and just start kissing…and don't stop.
Buy a book on sexual positions and commit to one another that within the next six months, you're going to try every position in the book. Then, get ready to laugh and laugh hard because some of the things you're going to see will look downright impossible. But, it's fun to try and it gives you and your partner a little private joke to share. ("Honey, remember the time you broke your collar bone trying to ….") Seriously, though, be careful.
Have a Touching night. The rules are simple, you're both blindfolded and you are forbidden to speak. The object is to guide one another's hands to wherever you want them to go. This is a great way to tell your partner what you like without having to say it or face him/her. I'm from the Show-Me State, and trust me, sometimes actions speak a lot louder than words. (Safety tip: Remember to remove your blindfold before you get up to use the bathroom!)
Buy some magazines or look up some websites/articles on some of the more outlandish sexual activities. Explore submission and dominance. Try handcuffs, straps, whipped cream, etc. Find out together what appeals to you and to your partner. If you don't like something, you don't have to do it again. But the act of experimenting together heightens your trust in one another, acceptance of one another, ability to be open and honest about your feelings going forward and strengthens your bond as a couple. The word "bondage" starts with "bond" for a reason. J
Role play. It seems silly and people drop their heads and blush when it's mentioned but role playing is a natural, human trait. When we are children we are not taught to pretend, we come by it naturally. The human imagination is a powerful tool, so use it to strengthen your marriage. Is he the sexy fireman that comes to rescue you with his hose? Is she the flirty nurse who comes to give you a sponge bath? Let your imagination run wild and then have fun with it.
These are just some quick ideas off the top of my head… I'm sure you can come up better ones. The point is, do something, anything. Marriages die because people stop trying. Sex is not the answer, but while you're naked, lying together, you just might come face-to-face with the solution. Talk. Act. Listen. Love. It's a T.A.L.L. order, but the juice is worth the squeeze. ~


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Home | Contact
Turks & Caicos Aggressor II
Captain's Log
25 February – 4 March 2017
Air temperature: 70° - 80° F
Water temperature: 79° F
Visibility: 50 – 80 feet
Captain: AMANDA SMITH
2nd Captain: CHRISTY WEAVER
Engineer: ROB SMITH
Photo Pro: CONOR FERRIN
Chef: CHRISTY BROWN
Stewardess: EVA ROMAN CASTILLO
Caroline & Jule, Martin, Jay, Maryjke, Diane & Gary, Karen & Dallas, Diane, Bernard, Hedrick, Sandy & David, Barbara, Chrissea, Lauren & Scott
Dive Sites
Sunday - Thursday: Silver Bank, Dominican Republic
Scott & Lauren were the hosts of this week's charter. Friends made through travel invited and bringing their own friends to share in this adventure. Introductions made, briefings delivered and preparations made for the crossing to the Silver Bank and at midnight we set off to see the humpback whales.
As the sun rose, we entered the Silver Bank and immediately started seeing whales moving around the Bank. As we maneuvered the coral heads to approach our mooring, the guests were entertained by the activities of mothers and their calves, rowdy males and single adults.
Once the yacht was moored our preparations to set our tenders into the water took place and in no time, we had briefed the logistics, filled our guests stomachs and set out to see what experiences that the humpbacks were going to offer this week.
Mothers and calves are always great to watch, in particular when the female is teaching her young. Our first afternoon was filled with a mother showing her calf how to spy hop. She would raise just the tip of her rostrum out of the water to display the delightful white striations on her vented pleats. The calf would copy what he had seen and lift his pure white chin plate out of the water and then proceed to spin gently around. This he repeated for most of the afternoon, with the mother alternating between spy hopping and logging in the sun. Once this couple ventured away from the Bank we were then accompanied back to the yacht by another calf that breached about thirty times.
We also had the opportunity to observe mother and calf from in the water. As the mother rested the calf would swim up to the surface every three minutes to breathe, circling around the mother's nose and returning to nestle under her rostrum.
Sleepers, were the order for the remainder of the day. Three different pairs allowed us to share their slumber with them. For one of the couples, the female would stay resting for twenty-five minutes at a time, whilst the male was more active and would swim around and disappear for a few minutes at a time before returning to the female and settling for a short while. As they both came to the surface they would pass close to our snorkelers with eyes shut and just half of their brains shut down to allow the other side sufficient consciousness to breathe. For two hours this cycle continued until cocktail hour called the guests back to the yacht and an evening of Peach Fizz, conversation, supper and a slideshow of whale anatomy and behaviour.
A number of mothers, with their calves, allowed for us to spend some time in the water with them. One such mother hung in just fifteen feet of water, as the calf nestled under her chin plate and then swam around the mother's rostrum to the great delight of the guests. In another instance, the calf changed behaviour when introduced to the snorkelers. To begin with, the calf simply swam around the mother's rostrum whilst she rested below, but as our guests were introduced in to the mix, the calf became curious and sought out the line of observers. Turning, twisting and rolling, she watched our line of guests as they floated between pectoral fin and rostrum of the mother below. For the entire breath cycle of the mother the calf lingered with our eager onlookers. This lasted until the mother was ready to rise slowly to the surface to breathe, accompanied by an escort male, who decided that the mother need not rest, and nudged her along by jabbing her flukes with his rostrum and so the three of them moved away.
The dancing of a male and female is always a delight to see and this week we were again privileged to swim with a male and female engaged in a valentine for a short while. Spy hopping and languid slapping of the pectoral fins are a sure sign together with swimming around the tender or observing snorkelers. As the courtship developed a pair of rowdy males decided to join the encounter and soon a rowdy group has reemerged and the four stepped up the energy levels and cut a swathe across the Bank.
Our final day, brought a variety of in water encounters. Starting with a mother and calf, nicknamed Mrs Potts & Chip, allowed us to watch as the calf playfully rolling and peck slapping in full view of the snorkelers. As the encounter was settled, all the passengers on both of our boats had a chance to swim with this delightful pair until a couple of mischievous juvenile humpbacks burst through to see what was going on and the mother chose to move the calf to somewhere a little more relaxed. We did not come across them again, but it did lead us to another interesting encounter.
Two adults appeared near a coral head, moving slowly. As they dived beneath the surface, one flipped its flukes into the air and with a languorous flick disappeared below, but not so deep that we were able to see her brilliant white pectoral fin from the surface. She spotted the tender and rose very slowly immediately beneath us, just inches from the hull, but never touching and laying width ways. As she swam forward, she blew and then she swam backward to blow again on the other side of the tender. She proceeded to spy hop and roll under the boat, still not coming into contact at any point. Eventually the guests were able to get in the water and enjoy her movement from the ocean. We drifted for a while with this lovely female hovering close below. During this time the male hung out beneath her coming to the surface to breathe and show the badly scarred and damaged dorsal fin. In time, the fascination with the tender passed and they moved on.
Our last afternoon was spent with another mother and calf. Today seemed to be the turn of the playful calf and from the surface we watched as the calf artfully swam amongst the guests, twisting and turning but touching no-one. From then on, pectoral fins were raised and the flukes elevated with great care and finesse. The afternoon passed with our tenders taking turns to put our snorkelers in the water to enjoy this encounter.
Our departure from the Bank, was accompanied by our friends as we bod them farewell and even out of the Silver Bank we encountered a single male slapping the surface of the water, as if waving us goodbye.
We were back to Puerto Plata for the late afternoon, a cocktail party and a night out in Cofresi and reflection upon the awesome week with the humpback whales.


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The Julie Mesaros Educational Endowment Fund at the Muskingum County Community Foundation was established to benefit Muskingum County students through scholarships.
If you would like to make an online donation to this fund, please enter the amount and relevant information below and click on the "Submit" button.
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If you would like more information about this fund before making a contribution,
contact us


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The DAR, founded in 1890 and headquartered in Washington, D.C., is a non-profit, non-political volunteer women's service organization dedicated to promoting patriotism, preserving American history, and securing America's future through better education for children. DAR members volunteer more than 250,000 hours annually to veteran patients, award thousands of dollars in scholarships and financial aid each year to students, and support schools for underserved children with annual donations exceeding one million dollars. As one of the most inclusive genealogical societies in the country, DAR boasts over 175,000 members in 3,000 chapters across the United States and internationally. Any woman 18 years or older-regardless of race, religion, or ethnic background-who can prove lineal descent from a patriot of the American Revolution, is eligible for membership.
The first DAR chapter in Alaska organized in Sitka in 1903. Currently there are five chapters in the state: Alaska Chapter - Fairbanks, Colonel John Mitchell Chapter - Anchorage, Sleeping Lady Chapter - Eagle River, Natalia Shelikof Chapter - Kodiak, and Inside Passage Chapter - Juneau. The Inside Passage Chapter was organized and confirmed April 12, 2014.
Our chapter meets the first Saturday of the month in January, February, March, May, August, September, October, November, and December. Prospective members are always welcome! Please contact us to attend.
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Albert A. Lange
Service Directory
Albert A. Lange, 82, of Temple, passed away peacefully after a long illness, Sunday, July 2, 2017, in The Woodlands, surrounded by his family.
Albert was born Jan. 15, 1935, in Cameron to A. W. and Minnie (Pick) Lange. He grew up in Buckholts and received his B.S. and M.S. in Education from Southwest Texas State Teachers College. He married La Rita Ruth Danneberg on July 13, 1957. Albert taught and coached in Garden City, Llano, Ennis and retired from Clear Creek High School in 1990 where he was the Head Guidance Counselor.
He is survived by his wife of 60 years, La Rita R. Lange; daughter, Susan (Michael) Welbes; son, B. Scott Lange; brother, Kennard Lange; and grandchildren Sarah and Rachel Welbes and Matthew and Emma Lange.
The family wishes to express their deepest appreciation to the loving staff of Silverado Memory Care and Silverado Hospice.
Services are pending with Marek-Burns-Laywell Funeral Home of Cameron.


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7th Anti-Corruption Compliance Asia Pacific Summit 2018
6th Dec 2018 - 7th Dec 2018
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The 7th Anti-Corruption Compliance Asia Pacific Summit 2018 gathers industry leaders and policymakers from around the world, to discuss the latest developments in the field of anti-corruption compliance in Asia Pacific region, including the enforcement environment in key jurisdictions, strategies for working with the authorities, insights into local cultures, and best practices related to risk management, internal auditing, whistle-blowers, and establishing a compliance culture.
You will achieve firsthand experiences in business operations compliance, strategies for enhancing internal investigation capabilities, techniques for navigating business courtesies, best practices for third party due diligence and risk control and authoritative advice from leading compliance professionals.
No agenda available at this time
No venue information is available at this time.
Coming soon...


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Nancy Grant's field studies include much more than birds. As a field naturalist, she's been investigating the plant and animal communities at her home farm near Louisville, Kentucky, for more than two decades, identifying more than 600 living organisms at the species level. Her field notebooks and nature journals include hundreds of photographs and drawings of individual specimens observed throughout each season of the year. Grant also travels extensively throughout the Ohio River Valley and the eastern United States to study birds and explore the habitats they use during migration and their breeding seasons.
By special arrangement, Grant leads nature rambles in public parks and for private groups in other locations. She is available to give custom presentations to civic groups and other organizations to introduce people to the natural history of the Ohio River Valley, with a special emphasis on places to go exploring in publicly accessible areas in the metro Louisville and southern Indiana area.
Grant is now booking the following presentations for 2018, and welcomes inquiries.
Please call Nancy Grant at 502 641-9614 to reserve your date now.
On the feathered trail. Bird apps and field guides and binoculars, oh, my!
If you're just getting started watching birds you might be overwhelmed by all the information that's out there. How do you sort through it all to find what you really want to know?
Designed for beginners, this friendly presentation keeps things fun and exciting, with practical tips for enjoying the birds you see in any season, and plenty of time for questions and answers. Let's go birding!
What's going on outdoors today? Exploring nature at the pace that suits your physical abilities
You don't have to be a long-distance hiker to enjoy the plants and animals in our area. Indeed, you don't have to walk at all—you can have fun outdoors while sitting still. Many of our public parks have ADA-compliant observation areas that are easily accessible to all. Whatever your abilities or mobility level, there are plenty of places in the Louisville metro area and southern Indiana where you can get up close and personal with cool critters and pretty plants.
This presentation highlights where to have the most fun, and no previous outdoor experience is necessary. Whether you have twenty minutes or three hours to spare—you can get involved at whatever level suits you.
Shhh! The secret worlds of nature in the Ohio River Valley. Do you know how many different kinds of habitats exist within fifty miles of downtown Louisville?
This insider's guide to the astonishing variety of birds and butterflies and beetles that live in the Ohio River Valley will surprise you. You'll enjoy an overview of the differences among the plant communities in local forests, swamps, fields, and marshes—and a peek at some of the animals who live there during each season of the year.
*All Photos by Nancy Grant unless otherwise credited.


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We couldn't help but appreciate "Hope Springs" after a summer of 3D action movies. Meryl Streep and Tommy Lee Jones play a couple as ordinary as your own parents. We've never seen Tommy Lee play a role like this and he is understated and brilliant. After 31 years of marriage they've grown apart, and Kay is unhappy and Arnold is oblivious. Kay forces her husband into marriage therapy with embarrassing and fascinating results. Many longtime marrieds will see themselves in these realistic characters (the script was written by a woman – Vanessa Taylor) It's smart and funny and makes you think – it should be required viewing for anybody who wants to stay married.
Posted by Janet on August 7, 2012
3 Comments so far
By Noblecascade
On August 8, 2012 at
That's funny, my mom told me she wanted to be sure and see this movie because it was about her and my dad…..
By Patrick
On August 8, 2012 at
My wife makes me put my roger on the counter and then smacks it with textbooks to keep me in line.
By PerezSux
On August 8, 2012 at
This movie SUCKS!


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This story has been corrected. See details below.
An 1,100-pound statue honoring hundreds of thousands of women taken as sex slaves by the Japanese Imperial Army decades ago is traveling by boat from South Korea and is just days away from arriving in Glendale, where it may become the first statue honoring the so-called "comfort women" on public property on the West Coast.
The memorial, like others on the East Coast and in Korea, has sparked controversy as opponents from Japan have emailed dozens of letters to City Council members in an attempt to block the statue from being placed in Central Park near the Adult Recreation Center.
A group of Japanese nationalists deny that soldiers took about 200,000 Korean, Chinese and other women as sex slaves during World War II, but supporters of the memorials say the atrocities are well-documented.
Chang Lee, a member of the Korean Sister City Assn., which paid for the monument, said the memorial is not about pitting one country against another. Rather, it's meant to raise awareness of a dark time in history and learn from it, Lee said.


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I thought it would be fun to talk about how my makeup/nail/everything beauty obsession started. So I figured I would go ahead a do it.
But first...let me just mention I made my first tea latte today. A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. Why have I never had one of these? I'm not into Starbucks. I've had like two drinks from them...and they were both meh. The Caramel Macchiato and the Strawberries and Cream Frappaccino (tastes like Nestle Strawberry Milk..yuck). This beats both of those. It's a Pumpkin Spice Brûlée Latte made with Teavana Tea. Heaven. So I'll be blissfully sipping this...writing this post.
My earliest memory of nail polish has to be when I was around four years old. Somehow I had gotten my hands on a bottle of pink nail polish. But I didn't use it to paint my nails. Nope, not me. I used it to paint my bed pink. I had always wanted a pink bed...and in my four year old mind, that was how I was going to get one. I didn't get very far (but far enough), when I had gotten caught. Boy, was I in trouble. Wish I had pictures. I was a little go getter.
The next memory I have was when I was around six. I used to go to JC Penny with my mom. They had this little tinker belle set that I remember begging for. And my mom got it! I was sooo happy. I don't remember much about the set, except the perfume. I don't remember what I thought at the time, but I kept that bottle for years and years and still remember the scent. It stank! It was horrible. But it was my first perfume!
My first bottle of nail polish that I bought was from a Beauty Supply Store in Jersey when I was around the fourth grade. I chose...white. And I used to hate wearing it because I could never get it smooth. So it just sat there.
I had various kids press on nails. Waste of time and money. They never stayed on more than ten minutes, if that. I learned my lesson quickly with those. I soon graduated to various bottle of Wet N Wild Nail polishes. I always seemed to have the blue shade for some reason. And lots of glitter top coats which I didn't know was used as a TOP coat. So I always used them alone and wondered why they looked so sheer and ugly. Haha.
I almost completely forgot about my obsession with Lip Smackers. That started...maybe around kindergarten or first grade? I wanted them all. I had a couple different ones which I always piled on my lips every two minutes. Most of them would end up lost in my toy box. Poor lip Smackers. I eventually graduated to the Lip Smacker lipsticks. And I had a lip smacker scented nail polish too- I still remember what it smelled like!
My first brand of makeup was Jane. I had a dark blue polish, a frosty lilac eyeshadow (had no idea how to use it), and the berry lipstick that smelled like grapes.
I owned body glitter, a crimper, and scrunchies too! Every now and then I was lucky to get some Bath and Body Works products. The packaging was so different to what it was now and I wish they would go back to it for old times sake. Just on a couple products.
What do you remember using? What were your favorite products?
Now it's about time for me to go make another latte. I'm looking sadly at the bottom of my glass.


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Mudirajas are also known as bants (buntlu) in some parts of western Andhra Pradesh. But bunts are quite wide spread in Karnataka and they are quit dominant peasant community in tulanad. All Mudirajas must know about Tulu and kannada speaking Bunts as Mudirajas were also in the profession of soldiers just like bunts during mediveal times and both were closely associated with the great Vijayanagar Empire from the day of its foundation till the last day of its survival. It is quite apparent from the fact that Mudirajas are also known as Bunts in Western Andhra Pradesh clearly indicates that bunts of Karnataka and A.P are not different from each other and both belong to one single block of people. It is also a fact that the name and fame which the great Vijayanagar Empire earned not only in India but in the entire world was due to the great contribution of the great warrior soldiers of bunt-mudiraj people of South Indian Peninsula.
If there is any difference between the Mudirajas (Muthurajas) and the Bunts, it is very minor due to their regional adaptation for survival. The people who spread to Tamil and telugu speaking eastern part of South Indian peninsula came to be known as Mudirajas (Muthurajas) and the people who spread to Tulu and Kannada speaking Western part of South Indian peninsula came to be known as Bunts. While some bunt-mudirajas in some regions switched over to agricultural farming and some others in some other regions taken over fishing and fish farming for survival after the collapse of kingdoms due to establishment of colonial rule by East India Company. Here is some information which is extracted from one of the web sites of Bunts for the benefit of Mudirajas of Andhra Pradesh and Tamilnadu.
Bunts are known to be one of the ancient and aboriginal communities of Suth Asia. About the origin of Bunts, no definitive records are available. But in the earlier centuries, some Tuluva households ruled some smaller kingdoms or areas under the kings and in some instances they were the rulers under smaller kings (e.g. Pallavas, Kadambas, Chalukyas, Kalachuryas and Hoysalas). These smaller rulers had frequent clashes, with the kings, who gave birth to a group or community of warriors who were called BHATARU in Kannada, which means able warriors. In due course, the same community was called as BUNTARU or BUNTS. Even today, "bunta" word is commonly used in Tulu language, particularly in cockfight. The winning cock is called "bunte kori".
Mr. H.A. Stuart, a Historian of South Kanara district has written that like Nairs of Kerala, bunts also, originally belong to the warriors group. As centuries rolled on they became the landlords of their own area. "The Kingship Organization of India" a book authored by Dr. Iravathi Karve, reveals that buntaru means warriors and the Naadaavas, residing in the northern part of South Kanara district (from Brahmavar to Baindoor) are also a branch of Bunts community, but instead of Tulu they speak Kannada. The origin of word "naadava" is derived from the Kannada word "naadu", which means village or native place. As they used to fight for the land or "naadu" they were called as "Naadabunta" and because they were also the administrators of "Naadu", "Naadavaru" word came into practice.
The important point to be noted here is that in ancient Kerala and Tulunaadu, people had a special interest or bent of mind towards military or being a warrior. (In the olden days, service in the army was made compulsory for every able man by the ruling kings.) Likewise, large number of bhataru who served in the armed forces gradually became "Bhantaru". Rest of the community was divided according to their profession such as carpenter, blacksmith, goldsmith, potter etc.
As the kingdoms came to an end, together with it, other smaller kingdoms also became weak and lost their existence. But smaller rulers of Tulunaad such as Bhangas of Bangadi, Chautas of Puthige, Bairarasa of Karkal, Maramma Heggade of Yermal, Tholahas of Sooral, Rajas of Kumble, Kadambas of Kadaba, Saamanthas of Simanthur, Moolas of Bailugadi, Ajilas of Venur, Heggades of Nelyadi, Kundaheggade of Yellur and Marda Heggade of Kavu still remember their political history.
The living pattern of the citizens changed with the political pattern. Due to the end of kingdoms, wars stopped and the so-called Bhataru or Bunts lost their position and jobs. But as Bunts are born fighters, they did not lose their fighting spirit. Instead of fighting for the king or kingdoms, they had to fight for their very existence. Fortunately, the land given to them by the kings in appreciation of their bravery, selfless service and loyalty to the Kings came to their rescue. They diverted their tireless spirit of fighting, towards cultivation and became "sons of soil" thereby improved their living standards. They became landlords and agriculture became their main occupation. Bunts being born fighters, were also gifted with an adventurous nature, risk taking habits and leadership qualities. They moved to other parts of the world looking for better opportunities and greener pastures and excelled where ever they went and in what ever they did.
Mr. M.W.Hunter wrote in his book that Bunts or Naadavas of South Kanara and Nairs of Kerala belonged to the rich class. Originally they did not cultivate the land, given to them as gifts by the kings, by themselves, but got it done by other communities. This showed their managerial ability even during those days.
As per the opinion of Historian Mr. E.Thurston, "men and women of bunt community belonged to a beautiful race of Asia". Men had a broad forehead and parrot nose. Mostly they were of fair complexion. Even today they are of an independent nature, short tempered, self respected and have muscular body, which tells about the history of belonging to warrior families.
Divisions in Bunt community:
Maasaadika Bunts: They are the common bunts of Tulunaad who have mostly settled in the southern part of South Kanara, stretching from Udupi to Kasargod.
Naadavas or Naada Bunts: They are Kannada speaking people from northern part of South Kanara (from Brahmavar to Baindoor)
Parivaara Bunts: They are normally from the northern side. Their ways and culture are similar to the other divisions but matrimonial relationships are restricted with other divisions. They follow Brahmin culture unlike the Naadavas or Maasaadika bunts.
Jain Bunts: Basically they are a smaller division, influenced by Jain kings and religion. Their population is far less in comparison to other divisions.
Family system of Bunts:
As per Dr. Karve, Bunts mainly follow the matriarchal family system. Mostly the family property rights rested with the lady and all rights were centralized on her. Even today, some of the surnames of bunts come from the mother's side. The name of mother's ancestral house normally became the prefix or suffix of one's name. The reason for this may be that as the men went to the battlefield, the wife took all the responsibilities of the family, so she became the decision-maker. Though they followed the matriarchal family system, men had respectable and important position in the family, may be because they were the bread earners. All important positions and responsibilities always rested with men. But the surprising fact is that from the ancient days, the position of women in the family or society was not so important.
Matriarchal family system gave more importance to the mother's side. The respect given to the maternal uncles were not normally given to the paternal uncles. Another reason for this may have been, to keep the family property intact. To support this, "aliya santhana" system came into practice and was followed by every one with the belief that it was an ancient practice.
But with the change in the present day society pattern and Indian law, "Aliya Santhana" system lost its importance. So now the Bunts mostly follow the patriarchal family system and instead of mother's surname or house name, they use father's name and surname. The most important quality of a BUNT is that though he was influenced by other cultures, societies and countries, he retained his original qualities of leadership, fighting spirit and risk taking, which made him to rise above the common man.
Bunt worship :
It was generally believed that bunts were originally spirit worshippers (bhoota). They started believing in and worshipping puranic gods like Shiva, Krishna, Rama, Janardhana, etc. much later, maybe after the Brahmins settled and started spreading their influence in Tulunad. But as per my opinion bunts were originally cobra (NAGA) worshippers, much before they started worshipping spirits (BHOOTA). The Cobra, a mixture of beauty and fear must have made them to bow down and worship. Later, they must have started the practice of worshipping cobras by installing cobra idols carved in stone, in the nagabanas, a place where trees and vegetation was allowed to grow and that area was reserved for the nagabana. Gradually, when the Brahmins settled in this area and started performing pooja in temples with Vedic mantras, bunts must have also started performing pooja rituals for cobras through Brahmins with Vedic mantras.
In Tulunad, cobra worshipping was there in existence much before the arrival of Brahmins that is why it may have been called as NAAGARAKHANDA. If Tulunad was known as NAGARKHANDA, (Naga continent) we can imagine how deep-rooted the cobra worship was. Even today, one can see the rural populace of Tulunad identifying themselves with one or the other of the original places of cobra worship. They usually ask, "which is your ALADE?" which means where do you offer pooja or milk to NAGA, or in other words NAGABANA. Normally, each family has its own NAGABANA, , which is usually situated in the original house of that family. Though we are in the 21st century, with all the advances in science & technology, we find people going in search of their nagabana (moolasthana) to perform naagapooja. Even today one can see people performing nagapooja in their new houses, in spite of having moved from their ancestral houses.
Later bunts moved towards spirit worship. But even today, one can see those spirits (bhootas) praising nagas, existence of nagabanas near the temples of spirits, performing pooja to cobras before the pooja to spirits, which has become the common practice. Today such nagabanas near spirit temples are worshipped as brahmasthana (Naga Brahma). In such places daily poojas are performed by Brahmin priests. In the next stages, Vedic Brahmins came to Tulunad and spread their worshipping of Vedic gods on a wider scale. As a result the bunts also adopted such religious practices. In many places we accepted the responsibility of the management of such temples. Despite the strong influence of Brahmin culture and beliefs, we did not leave our original cobra and bhoota worship. Even though worship of Vedic gods reached its peak with all its grandeur, belief in the cobra and spirit worship never faded out. Our original type of worship influenced vedic god worship culture. Due to this influence, later some nagabanas became temples. We can name Subrahmanya and Kudupu temples as examples of this. Not only that nagabanas were created near Vaishnavite temples and nagapooja became the regular ritual together with the main temple festivities. Hence NAGARAKHANDA name became more appropriate to Tulunad.
Bunts had major roles in cobra worship of Tulunad. Important beedu, guthu, baalike, parari and houses of bunt families perform nagapooja in their respective nagabanas even today. Not only in Tulunad, cobra worship is found in many other parts of the world. But the depth of belief in naga worship in Tulunad, is not found in other places. Naga worship was with us much before spirit (bhoota) worship, which is evident from the paddhanas (folkloric songs sung in praise of bhootas) for some of the spirits. There are many more evidences to prove that Bunts or rather primitive Tuluvas were originally only NAGA worshippers.
Historians believe that Nagas were non other than the aboriginal dravidians of South India. There are innumberble villages, and towns in Deccan and South India having the name of NAGA such as Nagpur, Nagapattanam, Nagulapadu, etc. There were also some reference in Mahabharata where Arjua was said to marry a damsel of Nagas. Even the Nagas of North East India were the aboriginal Indians with back ground of Nag worship. All these people used to worship Shiva who is considered to be the God of all Gods and whose necklace is a living Cobra. The association of Cobra, Bull, lion, moon and Himalaya mountains with Shiva and partvathi is also a strong pointer to the orientation of dravidians and aboriginal Indians to nature's worship.
The worship of spirits commonly seen in Bunts can also be seen in Mudirajas and kolis. There are some Mudirajas who worship the spirits of martiyars in the name of " Veerla Kolupu", while some other Mudirajas worship Gods in the name of "Devara Kolupu". The Kolis who worship martiyars are known as "Veerkar" and the kolis who worship Gods are known as "Devkar".
For more details on bant / bunt origins of mudiraj people, please read chapter on "bant / bunt origins" in the webpage "origins" in this website.
Our Caste Names & Subcastes : Mudiraj Muthuraj mudhiraj Mudiraja mudhiraja Muthuraja mudduraja muddhuraja mudduraju muddhuraju Mutharacha Mutharasu Mutharasi Mutrasi Mutharayar Mutharaiyar bunt bant bantulu bantlu Aryar Arayar Araiyar Aryan Arayan Araiyan valavan valayar valaiyar Ambalakkarar gounder koli koliyan kolian raju rajulu Bedar Ramoshi Valmiki Tenugu Tenugolu Tenugollu Tenigolu Tenigollu


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C is hosting this challenge for the Paper Dolls. She wants us to create a card using Fall as our inspiration.
This card was so easy to make thanks to the wonderful products from Papertrey Ink. I die cut Mat Stack 4 from Summer Sunrise and cut it in half. After stamping the leaves on the white panel, I placed a half of the Mat Stack on each end and covered the seam with twill ribbon. I also impressed the card with my Woodgrain Impression Plate.
Here's a picture of the die-cut leaves. I love the way they look like they just fell off the tree.
If you have a chance, stop by the Paper Dolls and play along!
All supplies used are from Papertrey Ink unless otherwise specified.
Stamps: Leaf Prints, Embellishments (sentiment)
Paper: Terracotta Tile, Summer Sunrise, SS White
Ink: Terracotta Tile, Simply Chartreuse, Summer Sunrise, Orange Zest, Rich Cocoa (Memento)
Embellishments: Terracotta Tile twill ribbon
Tools: Woodgrain IP, Mat Stack 4 die, Leaf Prints die


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Today I am thankful for coffee...strong coffee! It's about 5:30 in the morning and I just returned a little bit ago from dropping Ashlyn off at the airport. She is travelling with a friend to Frisco, Texas to see her JMU Dukes battle it out in the National Championship game! The game is Saturday so the girls will have a little time for sightseeing around Dallas....Now, more coffee!
Linking with Michelle's Thankful Thursday


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Bill Hack Chief football correspondent
Don Fabio Capello will test Rob Green's mental state ahead of England's World Cup encounter with Algeria by subjecting him to hours of personal torture before delivering the biggest news of his career seconds before the game.
The goalkeeper's place in the starting XI is under pressure following his disastrous mistake against the United States in the opening game.
Don Fabio is refusing to reveal whether the goalkeeper will play in tonight's game as he continues to examine Green's mental state.
"We will give him a late fitness test," Don Fabio confirmed. "If the shock of playing against Algeria gives him a heart attack…. then he won't play.
"It will test his strength, his balls, his cajones. I will push his nerves to breaking point and if they snap I know he is not my man."
David James and Joe Hart are waiting to replace Green in the starting XI if the West Ham goalkeeper has to be taken to the mental asylum.
But with hours to go before the encounter, Green insisted his mind was right and he was 100% ready for the game.
"I'm f-f-f-f-f-f-fine thanks," Green confirmed. "Mentally, I'm 1005 settled. I'm relaxed and calm.
"Why what have you heard? Am I going to play? You'd tell me, right? You know something, don't you? You know something. Tell me. Tell me now!"
Meanwhile Don Fabio insisted he had confidence in his goalkeeper.
"I have confidence in my goalkeeper," he said. "I just don't know which one that is yet."
* This is constructed from fiction.


text:
One meal that Carlo first made for me in the early days of our marriage was pasta topped with a simple sauce made from sauteed onions, chopped fresh tomatoes and a little olive oil and garlic. It is by far the most delicious pasta I have ever had...nothing can compare to the delicate, yet rich flavour of this dish.
Every summer Carlo grows a vegetable garden in our backyard, with tomatoes, (hot) peppers, cucumbers and herbs. Unfortunately there is not a lot of room for more - he has worked his gardening magic and landscaped it into a mini oasis - but we still look forward to the dog days of summer so we can harvest our "crop" and indulge in the fruits of his labours.
One year when we first moved in to this house, and the girls were very young, he planted a lot of tomatoes. I had no idea what to do with all of them - mind you, Sara and I both love eating fresh tomatoes, and as a little girl Sara would munch on them like they were apples until her little cheeks would be bright red like a doll's painted-on cheeks.
So, I decided to use up these tomatoes and make Carlo's sauteed tomato and onion pasta. The girls devoured it! Sara especially loved it, and would ask for it time and time again. Soon enough this dish became known as Pasta a la Sara.
As we approach the middle of August and fresh tomatoes are readily available and inexpensive, Pasta a la Sara has re-emerged as a staple dinner, appearing on our table at least once every other week, and always quickly devoured with appreciation.
The best part about this dish? There are so many - it is economical, healthy, delicious and can be prepared and on your table in less than 30 minutes! Oh, and it's pareve (neither dairy nor meat) too!
From my family to yours, I hope you enjoy this dish as much as we do.
Until next time, I wish you a wonderful day filled with family, fun, friends and fantastic food. B'Tayavon and Buon Appetito!
|Dice your onions
|Add diced onions and garlic to olive oil in large skillet
|Dice your tomatoes
|Add diced tomatoes to onion and garlic mixture in large skillet, saute
|Keep cooking those tomatoes!
|Toss and voila - pasta a la Sara!
Pasta a la Sara
- 6 to 8 large tomatoes,cored and diced (12 if you're making a 950g bag of past
- 1 large onion, diced
- 1 clove of garlic, peeled and whole (or 1 tsp minced will work fine)
- 2 to 3 tbsp olive oil
- sea salt, to taste
- 500g package of pasta (any shape you prefer, although the sauce clings better to smaller shapes)
Put a pot of water on the stove to boil. Heat olive oil on low-medium heat. Make sure to use a large skillet/saucepan, because your sauce will end up in this pan. Add diced onions and garlic and saute until translucent. Then add tomatoes and salt, stirring occasionally. Allow sauce to simmer for at least 15 minutes (longer if you like), then add drained pasta, toss and serve.


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You need to watch One Day at a Time buff.ly/2GCOxEh https://t.co/LeMF5pxhtI
I'm sitting home today with severe back pains, yay for old age, and I am making random observations as I see a part of TV I never see…weekday television!
– Schick now has a 5-blade shaver named the Quattro. One side has 5 blades, flip it over and there is a single blade for the harder to get to spots. Folks…if you need 5 blades, you may as well consider getting a lawn mower.
– The questions are starting to pick up in the Dick Cheney shooting situation. It was a full 15 hours before the media was alerted, and the President was not alerted until much later. What was going on? Why was it left to the ranch owner to alert the Corpus Christi, TX after their Sunday paper had already been released? Why did the Secret Service prevent the country Sherriff from questioning the Vice President? Why was his Deputy Chief Of Staff left out of the loop? Why was the White House press corps not notified? There are far more questions swirling here than was first suspected.
– Dr. Phil annoys me…greatly.
– How do you know when you've watched too much of the Olympics? Seriously, I want to know. When I found myself going out of the way to watch Team USA vs Team Norway in Men's Curling at 2 AM this morning, I began to wonder.


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April 1980: As U.S. special forces abandoned their staging base deep in the Iranian desert, tragedy struck. A Marine helicopter hit an Air Force C-130 loaded with fuel. The giant fireball killed eight. The attempt to rescue 50 American hostages in Tehran collapsed in failure and humiliation.
The secret mission had stretched the Marine helicopters to the limit. They were not the best tool for the job, but they were the best the military had. Anticipating some miscues and mechanical failures, the Pentagon had dispatched extra ships, but it wasn't enough to overcome the challenges encountered.
The Desert One debacle was almost a decade in the making. The military had ramped up for Vietnam without building up. Units in Europe were gutted to fill platoons in Vietnam. Major equipment modernization programs were jettisoned to help pay for the war. And as soon as hostilities ended, Washington took a "peace dividend," eviscerating the Pentagon's budget.
America's military went "hollow." It looked fine on the briefing charts and sounded great in congressional testimony, but the services lacked the manpower, training, readiness and equipment to protect U.S. interests worldwide. By 1980, even our most elite outfit — the super-secret Delta Force — lacked the stuff it needed to do the job. The fires at Desert One were a beacon of unpreparedness.
When ordered to cut spending quickly, militaries have few options. Manpower and equipment purchases consume the lion's share of the budget. But troops can't be let go at the drop of a hat, and even weapons contracts can't be terminated overnight. (And terminations usually involve huge penalty payments anyway.) The Pentagon will have to resort to cuts in training, missions, maintenance and other accounts. Such cuts quickly degrade military capabilities.
The Army could well become the hollow force poster child. After 9/11, the service had to build up what it calls Army Force Generation — ARFORGEN. It added troops, equipment and training so it could rotate fresh, trained units and have them ready for worldwide deployment. ARFORGEN was built to keep the Army from burning out like it did in Vietnam. The initiative cost U.S. taxpayers some $40 billion. By and large, it has worked well.
Now in the name of fiscal responsibility, the Army is supposed to "share the burden" of reducing federal spending. The belt-tightening could well force the Army to abandon ARFORGEN. This would be like abandoning one's house after the mortgage is already paid off on the grounds that the electric bill is too high. Is it smart to walk away from a home worth $200,000 to save a few bucks a month on utilities?
President Barack Obama insists on reducing the readiness of the military forces needed to protect us. Yet at the same time he insists that Congress must pass "now" a new $447 billion jobs bill that will add little to the economy other than more debt.
"Defense on the cheap" is neither wise military policy nor smart economics. Moreover, job No. 1 of the presidency is to assure the security of U.S. citizens, safeguard our sovereignty and protect our interests around the world.
Squeezing money from the troops while spending it on corporate cronies (think Solyndra), political allies (think unions) and other special interests is no fair trade for America's military security.
James Jay Carafano is a senior research fellow for national security at The Heritage Foundation.
President Barack Obama's Afghanistan strategy places a premium on getting our troops out rather than finishing the job. A premature drawdown would badly hamper the military's capacity to deal with many threats in the region — the Jalaluddin Haqqani Network, to name just one.


text:
Yesterday I found this post on Steve Spangler Science all about how to make crystal snowflakes using just Borax and boiling water.... simple enough, huh? Plus, I found this really short and easy to understand video.... I was all set!
A couple of tips:
1. Use pipe cleaners of several different pastel colors. I sent my husband and teenage son to Walmart to get pipe cleaners......they came back with red. Yeah, because red totally screams winter snowflakes. {Sigh} If you want it done right, you gotta go do it yourself. So, I made a trip to Michaels and found some beautiful pastel blues, green, purples......
2. Buy the wooden dowels. I tried to make due with pencils.... they weren't long enough. Again, another trip to Walmart.
Once I had the things I needed, this project was super easy!
- Borax Laundry Booster
- Pipe Cleaners (I used white and pastel blue, purple, green)
- String
- Wooden dowel
- Large Container
- Boiling Water
- Scissors


text:
Mar 13,2007
Oregon, national gas prices surge
by Bend Weekly News Sources
Oregon prices increase more than 25-cents in two weeks, state is now third highest in nation; San Francisco average is at $3.26/gallon
In mid-February, gasoline prices in Oregon were in the early stages of moving upward; by month's end, the statewide average price for a gallon of regular stood at $2.52. Since then, the average price has soared to $2.77, gaining slightly more than 25-cents per gallon in two weeks. That compares to the national average which rose from $2.37 to $2.54 in the same time period. Of Oregon's four measured metropolitan areas, Portland recorded the greatest two week price jump—almost 29-cents per gallon.
"Much of the price increase can be attributed to steadily rising demand for gasoline," said AAA Oregon Public Affairs Director Elliott Eki. "In addition, a number of major refineries are down for routine maintenance or repairs. They should be back on-line in the next few weeks, which is good news for most of the country."
Once those refineries are back in service, analysts with the Oil Price Information Service expect pump prices will level off. For the remainder of this month, however, they say motorists likely will see pump prices increase modestly.
Although the current national average price is well ahead of where it was one year ago, it's not expected to break the $3 barrier. California's statewide average already surpassed that mark and is currently $3.11. In San Francisco, a gallon of regular averages about $3.26.
At $2.77, Oregon's average gasoline price ranks third highest in the nation. California has the highest with Hawaii following at $2.90. Nevada's statewide average is $2.76; Washington's is $2.75; and Idaho's moved up 12-cents to $2.41. Wyoming has the lowest statewide average price at $2.31. During the past week, the national average diesel price rose to $2.74 per gallon. Idaho's average diesel price rose to $2.83, Nevada's went up to $2.86, Washington's moved up to $2.89, and California's rose slightly to $3.08. Oregon's average diesel price is $2.76.


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The theme for Paper Smooches Sparks Challenge is Ocean! Even though you don't see an ocean you know the fish and boat are on and in the Ocean.
Thursday, July 4, 2013
Happy Birthday America & SimonSays/ Paper Smooches
The theme for Paper Smooches Sparks Challenge is Ocean! Even though you don't see an ocean you know the fish and boat are on and in the Ocean.
20 comments:
Super cute Marybeth and I LOVE how you were able to use the die cuts from inside the die to make your banner! perfect! Happy 4th Marybeth!ReplyDelete
Love this card Marybeth! Every time I come to your blog (which is daily), I am getting closer to ordering those stitched dies from Lil Inker. Happy 4th of July!ReplyDelete
I love how you have cut out the fish and the star and then the banner!ReplyDelete
Happy 4th of July Marybeth...I bet you are spending it with some of those grandchildren of yours! This is a really cute card, that is an adorable sailboat and I love the sentiment stamped on the stitched flags, adds a cute nautical touch!ReplyDelete
Love your card!ReplyDelete
And the banners are just great!!
Very patriotic and suits the occasion so well. :-)
The tiny fish and sea stars are darling cute!!!
Happy 4th of July!
Hope you'll have a wonderful time together with all your loved ones!
Oh this is SO CUTE, love the banner!!! HAPPY 4th of July Marybeth and may God bless you too ;)ReplyDelete
I still need this die...
every time I see I want it!
And LOVE these fabby colors! ;)
Happy 4th! :)
Marybeth, your fish banner has to be the cutest thing I've ever seen! What a lovely card! Happy 4th of July!ReplyDelete
Such a cute and sweet card. Your banner is such fun, and I love how you have cut those shapes out of the sail of the boat.ReplyDelete
Marybeth, this is just so fun! Love your sweet sailboat and those adorable little "gold fish" cracker type fish hanging on your banner, just too cute.ReplyDelete
very cute!! love your little fishy banner!ReplyDelete
what a great nautical card Marbeth! love that fish banner!!ReplyDelete
DARLING, Marybeth! Especially LOVE the fish and star banner!ReplyDelete
So pretty! LOVE your color combo! So glad you played along with us this week at Paper Smooches SPARKS challenge!!!ReplyDelete
I can't get over that adorable fish banner! So stinkin' cute, Marybeth!ReplyDelete
So cute!! Love that adorable fish banner!ReplyDelete
hello Mary Beth.i hope you had a wonderful 4th of july.ReplyDelete
i love the fish banner and the cards are beautiful and pretty design.
hugs to you.
I'm a little behind but hope you had a wonderful holiday! Love your adorable card! That sailboat is the cutest die and the cutouts make a fabulous banner.ReplyDelete
Ooo, love this one, too. Your little fishy banner is the cutest! :) So sorry you lost your 1st post...I only wish I couldn't relate to that frustration. Hopefully that won't happen again any time soon....never would be even better. :)ReplyDelete
I looooooooooove the colors of this card-- and I LOVE that fish banner! LOVE the sailboat die too!!! You rocked this trend! THANKS so much for joining in the fun and playing along with the Paper Smooches SPARKS TW Ocean challenge!!! I hope you will try our sketch challenge this week <3ReplyDelete


text:
These days, online jobs are really very popular among the college students. The internet has opened up a world of opportunities where students can earn handsomely by working just a few hours everyday. This way they can pay for their college fees themselves even if they don't qualify for college scholarships or a student loan consolidation. Online jobs for college students are better option than student credit cards or online banking accounts. This is perhaps the best way to pay down your student debt without knowing how to write a grant. More importantly, for these online jobs, you won't have to leave your home and you will be able to devote time on your studies as well.
If you are looking for a source of income to pay for your college fees, then you need to explore the internet world for finding various money making options. Today, online world offers an extensive range of earning opportunities to the motivated students. There are always fair chances that a student can take advantage of these opportunities to make earnings. Here a list of online jobs for college students that they can accomplish from the comforts of their own rooms.
1. Freelance Writing Jobs - Online world is always hungry for good quality content. If you are good at writing and love researching on different subject areas, freelance writing can be a good way to make money online. There are many content development websites that offer online jobs for college students. Just make a Google search with the keywords "freelance content writing" and a number of opportunities will be displayed on your screen. You can grab those which you will find suitable to your interests.
2. Graphic Designing - If you think you are a creative person who loves to play with designs and colors, online graphic designing jobs are just for you. There are many websites that offer jobs like logo designing, brochure designing etc. You must be skillful in using different graphic designing software such as Adobe In-design, Photoshop, Corel Draw etc to accomplish the graphic designing jobs perfectly. Moreover, you need to have conceptualization power to think over unique designs and concepts. Graphic designing jobs are very good online jobs for college students who want to earn handsomely in just few hours.
3. Online Tutoring - With internet, everything has taken a virtual route and even young kids love to earn tuitions online. This can be a good opportunity for a college student. For just a couple of hours per day, students can earn some money to take care of their college expenses.


text:
(7.5% povidone-iodine)
Antiseptic Non-Sterile Scrub
Bactericidal/Virucidal Sudsing Skin Cleanser
Povidone-iodine, the active ingredient in Betadine® products, works against a broad spectrum of pathogens in vitro.1
Betadine® products are for external use only. Single use will reduce the risk of infection from extrinsic contamination with products not labeled as single use only. Do not use in the eyes or if you are allergic to povidone-iodine or any other ingredients in this preparation. Stop use and ask a doctor if irritation, sensitization, or allergic reaction occurs. When using these products, prolonged exposure to wet solution may cause irritation or, rarely, severe skin reactions. In preoperative prepping, avoid 'pooling' beneath the patient. Keep out of reach of children. Please read full product label before use.
Betasept® products are for external use only. Single use will reduce the risk of infection from extrinsic contamination with products not labeled as single use only. Do not use: If you are allergic to chlorhexidine gluconate or any other ingredients; in contact with meninges; in the genital area; as a preoperative skin preparation of the head or face. When using this product keep out of eyes, ears, and mouth. May cause serious and permanent eye injury if placed or kept in the eye during surgical procedures. May cause deafness when instilled in the middle ear through perforated eardrums. If solution should contact these areas, rinse out promptly and thoroughly with water. Wounds which involve more than the superficial layers of the skin should not be routinely treated. Repeated general skin cleansing of large body areas should not be done except when the underlying condition makes it necessary to reduce the bacterial population of the skin. Stop use and ask doctor if irritation, sensitization or allergic reaction occurs. These may be signs of a serious condition. Keep out of reach of children. If swallowed, get medical help or contact a Poison Control Center right away. Warning: This product contains a chemical known to the State of California to cause cancer. Please read full product label before use.


text:
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text:
I too participated in last fall's Westknits MKAL.
What: Building blocks / Stephen West
How: Circular needle 3.75 mm
From: Yarngrimoire Dandy Sock + lanitium ex machina Merino Single + Madelinetosh Sock + DyeForWool Merino/Silk, 70 + 92 + 50 + 75 g
The mystery works such that you buy the pattern without knowing what the shawl looks like. In the beginning there's just some basic info about the yarns you will need to get you started. The pattern is revealed one piece a week and at the end of the month, you will have a finished shawl. Or would have, I had kept up with the pace. I really enjoy MKALs because of the mystery - at least if I trust the designer. It forces me out of my comfort zone and makes it impossible to try to control anything. It's good the do something out of the box every once in a while.
This year's mystery shawl comprised of blocks as the name suggests. Each block had different color combinations and different pattern stitches, garter stitch and brioche to name a few. I knitted the largest size and boy, is this huuuge. The edges are wavy due to the changing direction of decreases and increases in the shawl.
Last year's Westknits mystery was such a wild card you never knew which direction you would be knitting next. This time the pattern was very predictable and many people criticized it because of that. I didn't mind the predictability. The shawl turned out beautiful and chic. It has just a bit of an edge which makes it interesting. Knitting it might not have been that thrilling but it was a nice knit.
The most fun part was picking the colors for a shawl you hadn't seen yet. I ended up with three shades of grey and to add some color, I selected this turquoise merino silk yarn. It was from an Alice in Wonderland club, named after Absolem. These colors aren't for me but they do look beautiful together. And I knew just the person to give this to.
In addition to watch my colors play together, I enjoyed checking out other knitters' color combinations on Instagram. They all look so different. If I was to knit this again, I would definitely make it in marshmallowy pastel colors.
I recommend to write down which color is A, B, C and D. I didn't and I messed up. Luckily it doesn't matter that much in a shawl like this.


text:
I like vegetables, I really do. BUT, if it weren't for these green monsters, I would definitely not be eating enough.
If you've got a child who doesn't eat his/her veggies (or you don't) this is the perfect way around it.
I promise you, you can't even taste the spinach in this. If it helps, you could always close your eyes while you drink it. 😉
Your kids will probably think it's cool. Remember when Heinz came out with green ketchup? I remember when it first came out, I was so excited and I just had to get some. I felt pretty cool eating it.
This is the same concept… only a smoothie, not ketchup.
Don't be scared, it's just spinach.
Banana Oatmeal Green Monster
- 1 frozen banana, cut into pieces
- 1 cup milk of choice
- 1 huge handful of spinach
- 1/2 cup oats
- Sweetener, to taste (I use Stevia)
- Ice cubes to desired consistency
- Blend all ingredients in a blender. Easy.