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Letters To The Editor
From Issue #92
Snowed-in, in a small town, on a mountain
Love your magazine. wish it came out once a month. I'm 65 years old, raising my 5 year old adopted son, and live in the country on a small farm. We live the good life. Yes we have struggles but love living in a small town on a mountain looking down the valley. Winter's coming so we're getting stocked up for those snowed-in days. Just love them, it's so quiet and beautiful here snowed in. We're not rich but the two of us are so wealthy!
You're doing a great job. I home school Zac and love the articles on homeschooling.
A "git & go" pack made of pet food will be there during a real emergency
I just read your response to a reader who asked about "git and go" survival packs. Tell ya what I do—I keep a few of those big foil packages of meaty dog food and cat food in the trunk of my little car—you know the kind you open up and it's like ready-to-eat-beef stew? They're flat and easy to store. I have enough to last me about a week—and I know I'm not going to touch them unless it's a real emergency! I use to keep dried fruit, trail mix and freeze-dried camping food, but I would always end up eating it. I live in a little trailer house in the mountains east of San Diego, CA. If I ran a little short of food, it was too convenient to go out to my car for some snacks—plus, being two miles from the Mexican border, I've always got illegal aliens traipsing thru my property begging me for food and water. I always provide humanitarian assistance and point them in the right direction because, if they go the wrong way they could end up as human beef-jerky in the Anza-Borrego Desert—but, I offered my pet food to a few of them and they all pass it up! I just keep a gallon of water and a sleeping bag in my car with the pet food, I'm good to go!
Now, to be honest with you I don't believe that some revolution or Armageddon is coming that we have to be prepared for by being ready to head for the forest and snare rabbits for food. However, natural disasters do occur. For example in October of last year we had tremendous wildfires sweeping San Diego County. A couple of thousand homes burned and a couple of dozen people died. Thousands of people were without electricity for days or weeks, huge areas were without drinking water. grocery stores had tons of meat and frozen foods going bad. I had friends living by candle light for several days. This was just last year—so, we don't have to worry about End-of-the-World scenarios—the poop can hit the fan on a bright sunny day in paradise. So, it's only sensible to be prepared to survive for several days without electricity, running water, or help from anybody but yourself, no matter where you live.
Bravo for not being mainstream conformist
Bravo! I applaud the controversy that lingers months after your publication of Don Chance's horsemeat article. Story after story from people who also believe you made the correct publicist decision must instill pride. I personally enjoyed Chance's original article almost as much as the emotional outbursts it prompted, which by the way, is a vindication of your selection of articles to print. (Please stand firm!) Allow me to plead for more articles such as Mr. Chance's for they are the very core reason I am continuing my subscription to Backwoods Home.
If I want a mainstream, conformist publication, I'll subscribe to Reader's Digest, but I seek insight on out-of-the-ordinary topics of self-reliance. How about some more insect cooking recipes? I even would like to see a generic meat recipe which would work for most any feral animal and which animal meats specifically one should avoid.
I've got hundreds of beef, poultry, pork, fish, and venison recipes. Big deal! What about when those meats are unavailable? How about the unusual high protein meats like gator, snake, lizard, frog, and even rodent?
Don't eat your kids
In the November/December issue, you printed a letter from Jan D. of Albuquerque, NM. She writes the following account of her best friend's dinner menu: She served possum, porcupine, raccoon, muskrat, beaver, squirrel, rabbits, and I ate it as well as my children.
While I defer to others on the matter of eating horse meat, I will insist with my dying breath that in this country it is not, under any circumstances, permissible for humans to eat their own young. I have not yet checked with Miss Manners on the issue, but I am sure she would agree that even browned and basted with a lovely sauce, one must refrain.
Silveira/MacDougal should teach in schools
Enjoy your magazine very much. Especially enjoy the John Silveira/O.E. MacDougal articles. Those guys should be teaching in schools. At least their articles should be required reading. I find myself thinking of the term TANSTAFL—there ain't no such thing as a free lunch. Or as my grandfather used to say, everything has a price on it in one way or another.
Backwoods Home Mag is a breath of fresh air
Thought I'd take time to thank you and the rest of your staff for the most informative and enjoyable magazine on the planet.
Our entire family, from 4-year-old grandchildren to 34-year-old children on through to my 90-year-old Mom, find Backwoods Home articles educational, provocative, and yet balanced. You and John are doing a great job. Simply put, your material cultivates individual thought.
It's clear this controlling society and media are going to continue to attempt to quash individualism, independence, personal initiative, and accomplishment, and deny our personal freedom, "Dave, Your magazine is still a breath of fresh air."
Please for the sake of all of us who are desperately trying to get a handle on some type of hope for the future, don't stop being "just who you are" and stay the course, for it's surely the right one.
Dave, tell John or better show him this letter.
John, the message that comes through in your articles, are at times negative and you might offend some readers, but there is always an undeniable truth in your position.
We humans have a tendency to complacency, apathy, lethargy, and being uninvolved and unprepared. Your tough realism and that of Claire Wolfe and so many other authors you and Dave choose for the publication are an elixir of survival.
"We need to be jolted back to reality!!!"
One last thing John, I honestly disagree that the character and determination of our Founding Fathers can no longer be found in America.
When the time comes, and the need arises, as it surely will, true leaders will rise up and take charge of this country, as long as folks like you "hold your ground," for it is now that the seeds of our salvation must be planted, so that the mental substance of true freedom will be embedded and irreversibly rooted in the minds of our "future" framers and leaders.
So, God Bless you John Silveira!! You owly old bird, we appreciate you in spite of yourself.
Need info on making hydro-electric power
I have been a reader of your magazine since ASG went out. You are just what I have been looking for. I have enjoyed the 7th year anthology you sent with my subscription. I would love to buy the whole set if I could afford to. Maybe next year. My cabin is located in Northwest Florida. Very hot without air. With the help of my future son-in-law and two very wonderful grandsons (ages 5 & 2) I get a few things done in the cabin. The grandsons help me with the chickens and hogs. We just put in our first winter garden, so I hope it all goes well. I heat the cabin with a wood stove and kerosene heater. I'm almost finished with the installation. The kids help me with firewood.
Anyway, my comment, I really enjoy the articles on solar power. I don't know if it's for me yet. I have a stream 60 feet from my back door. (Nice in the morning or after dark.) It has never gone dry, even when the area was under drought conditions (a few years ago). Shallow wells went dry but my stream was fine. My question is could you please send me information or run an article on hydro-electric power?
Also I'm getting ready to butcher a hog, and a friend wants to do it for us. It's just the last time I had unprocessed bacon it was like eating fried pork roast. What can I do to make it taste like store bacon?
BHM's Whole Sheebang and the online Forum
I just received my shipment of the Whole Sheebang yesterday.What an awesome collection! I can't believe I waited this long to order it! Now, I can catch up on all the information and articles I've missed since I've been a subscriber for just one year now.
I wrote to you once before and you were kind enough to print my letter, but I just had to write and tell how wonderful the Whole Shebang collection is, and I hope more people will order it. It really is a wealth of information, especially for those of us who have not been subscribers for very long.
I love the cookbook too. As I write this I have pumpkin bread in the oven made from a recipe in the book.
I also wanted to thank you for recommending readers to check out the [Readers' Forum], (go to www.backwoodshome.com). It really is a great place. I've been using it for quite a while now and enjoy talking with people from all over the place and from all walks of life.
It's nice to be able to go online and see that there really are other people out there in this crazy world that think along the same lines as your magazine and are living the lifestyles too. It is very inspiring. It helps me to know that what we want from life is possible, we just have to get there. That'll happen soon enough, as long as we can keep on the path that we're on.
I was wondering if you could ask Jackie Clay how they chose Minnesota as the state they wanted to move to? Just curious.
BHM is a right-leaning, gun advocate magazine
Enclosed is a check for a copy of The Coming American Dictatorship.
I enjoy seeing magazines like Backwoods exist and get nourishment from them of a mental and spirited nature. Lately, however, I am noticing a right-leaning, gun advocate, possible paranoid streak in the magazine. I am neither left nor right nor anti-gun, but it was nicer when your magazine just kept to the business of living free, individually and fruitfully.
Depression relieved by tranquility of country
Thank you for your fine magazine that gets read cover to cover when it comes in our country mail box. We so enjoy reading about what others are doing and how they master the hurdles that are in all our lives.
We retired here 5 years ago this month. We live at the end of the road, thru the fence, on top of Cumberland Mountain. We have 16 acres, 5 kept like a park with our home on it and 11 acres of woods, some of which go sharply down the side of the mountain. We have left briar patches and sumac clusters for the birds and the deer to hide and bed down in. We are in hunting season at present, so the deer have migrated up to our place since we have hunting clubs on both sides of the mountain.
I ran a large restaurant in Memphis for most of my life and always dreamed of a place like this. It became available 4 months before we retired so we bought it. I am a cabinet maker and wood turner and we built a 30 x 40 shop so we could supplement our social security. It was tough starting, but slowly I have gotten local business while still doing wood turning for shops in Memphis and some repair work.
We have a wood stove that heats part of the house, and when "Ivan" the hurricane came thru it blew down 3 large oaks and I am busy blocking and splitting and stacking so it will be dry for next winter.
I guess the most amazing thing is what happened health wise to my wife. She had been in depression for 5 years when she arrived here. It took 3½ more years, but she is now free from depression. We have a good doctor in Huntsville, and this place the Lord has allowed us to live on has been the balm of Gilead for my wife. She has been free from the dismal cloud that hangs over you with this disease.
The peace and tranquility here are medicine for our souls. We love seeing the deer (sometimes 12-14 at a time) and the hundreds of birds that come out of the woods because they like sunflower seed. We do believe in self sufficiency. I have 7-8 cords of wood laid by, adequate food for several weeks, a thorough knowledge of hand tools and power tools, but almost no skill in bringing a garden to harvest. I have never tried raised beds for gardening so I will try that this coming year.
Thanks again for your fine magazine and the excellent work your staff does. May God continue to bless you and yours.
The pocket Constitution on our car dashboard
We really enjoy the magazine. It's helped open our eyes to the nation around us. My wife and I keep the pocket size copy of the Constitution on the dashboard of our vehicles.
I can see the day that we'll stop at a "road check," and some officer will say "Oh! A couple of Constitutional rights nuts" and assume we must be guilty of something!!
How to build a kid's push cart, and a story
Enclosed is $12 for ½ subscription to Backwoods. Also enclosed is a copy of one of my blueprints (printed at right) that you can use in your mag if you want to.
Also, a joke/story is enclosed (printed below) that you can use if you want to. Well, that's it for now and I really like your magazine.
… The joke/story is about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, and Nobody…
There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it.
Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. Everybody thought Anybody could do it, but Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn't do it.
It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done.
Signed by: Us all!
Making fire-starters
As always, the Jan/Feb 2005 issue was excellent. Mr. Yago did a great job in Practical preparedness planning. I would like to add one idea to it—a fire-starter.
How often have we been out camping and it rains making kindling too wet to burn? Well, if you were I, it happens every time you go out. To fix it we learned how to make fire-starters … that would be a boon if a fire is needed NOW, and everything is sopping wet from the storm that put you in the situation.
Here's how to make one. Use a double boiler, or a tin can in a frying pan of water, to melt paraffin down to liquid. Add to that as much sawdust as you can until you have a consistency like thin oatmeal. Take a spoon and fill up paper egg cartons, toilet paper rolls, anything made of paper or cardboard about the size of a golf ball. Let them cool down. That's it!
These fire-starters will each burn about 10 minutes. That's enough time and heat to start wet kindling for a fire. They are also waterproof, will never expire, and present no risk of exploding in your pack like I've had lighters do.
To make extra certain matches are waterproofed, go ahead and dip them about halfway into the wax. Seals and containers crack for any number of reasons so if every match has its own seal of wax, the chance of ruined matches is reduced.
Raising a family in the remote Alaskan interior
My husband and I raised 4 children in the Alaskan remote interior, 120 miles SE of Fairbanks. We built a farm out of the bush. A log cabin from the trees we cleared for the homesite, and an underground root cellar. My husband being born on an Alaskan homestead knew how to survive in the wilderness and I learned from him. We raise hay for horses and cattle, produce, and potatoes on a large scale, and truck farmed. We hook up power with a generator, and when it's off, have a propane back-up. When thats off, it's lanterns. Heat is wood and lots of homemade bread served with heaping amounts of love and low-bush Alaskan cranberry jam. Children are home-schooled, and we play board games & cards, etc…family fun. We hunt, hike, fish, care for livestock and gardens the Alaskan way—bundled up!
Don't blame us for social security mess
In regards to your editorial about social security, my Grandmother told me when I was about 13 (c.1944) that social security would never work because the people then getting it had not paid into the system, and this would go on, with people paying for what someone else would get. I've been wondering ever since why, if she could see it, no one else could.
It is not fair for you to blame us, today's retirees, for the mess social security is in, as we were not old enough to vote in 1935. The blame falls squarely on Franklin D. Roosevelt and his flunkeys in Congress. My parents opposed the social security bill, as did all the adults I knew. My parents refused to get social security numbers for many years, though finally were forced to. Many times I've hear my mother say that the only time the government could give her a number is if she went to prison. …
Evalyn L. Preblich


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New York City 1992 - bobb's journal
Bob Bain
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New York City 1992
[Feb. 24th, 2010|
06:35 am
Bob Bain
Current Mood
Direct Link to YouTube video
Of all the videos I have posted to YouTube this video of New York City 1992 amazes me. I wasn't going to upload it at all as I didn't find it terribly interesting but in the two years since I uploaded it the video has received close to 3,000 views and 17 ratings of 5 five stars with comments such as:-
"it's funny how most of the cars back then were so boxey looking lol i never noticed it back then when i was little"
Ah, 1992 was a good year. My wife and I had just gotten engaged and we used to drop into Manhattan every weekend. Better days back then--no blackberries, no annoying cell phones and, in the streets, no goddamn bulky-ass, repulsive-looking SUVs, either! Man, we miss those days..."
lol, 1992, the year i was born
Boy does this make me feel old (well I am - let's face it). This video was recorded in the good years when Reader's Digest was making huge amounts of money and as Systems Accountant I was sent on a first class trip to New York to learn about Commander FDC (a global consolidation package used by the company to quickly consolidate financial figures from around the globe). I flew first class (it was compulsory) and took a personal side trip to Mexico City on an invitation from Ivan (whom I met on a ship in 1976 just before I joined the Digest). Ivan migrated to Mexico to get married. I visited the HQ in "Pleasantville" and was driven from the airport to the five star hotel in a chauffeur driven limousine.
in the year 2010
Reader's Digest
is emerging from bankruptcy hoping to survive with what some are calling "junk bonds", is vacating it's premises in "Pleasantville" and has seen the UK company placed into Adminstration.
I uploaded this video to YouTube in December 2007 having transcribed it from the tape seized by the New South Wales police 13 years earlier. I explained to them it was nothing more than video taken on a trip to the United States. I explained that it was completely inoffensive to which they commented "that's for us to judge - not for you".
Of over 100 videos I have uploaded to YouTube the most viewed is a ten minute condensed version of the "RC" (once "R" rated) film
Salo - A film by Pier Pasolini (Condensed)
with over 141,000 views and 89 ratings. It is "banned" in Australia. This doesn't mean you can't legally own it, purchase it or view it in New South Wales. This is the Chinese version and being ethnic wasn't rated by the Classification Board of the OFLC. It cost $15 and the guy who sold it to me explained it was in Italian and the only subtitles were in French.
2010-02-24 09:52 am (UTC)
New York City simply has no equal anywhere else. when the aliens come to invite us to join the Galactic Confederation, they will immediately recognize that New York is the capital of the planet, in spite of conflicting political claims. and i have spent my entire life with NYC "just over the horizon", except for the times when i actually lived in the city. i'd forgotten, if i ever knew, that you had visited New York, but i'm glad to know that you did. everyone should see the city at least once in their lives!
i'm surprised how little has changed since 1992 - there are even still plenty of taxis that look like that. Rockefeller Center, where the skating rink is, is the same, except i think the big building that towers over the plaza - 30 Rockefeller Plaza - is now called the GE Building. i worked in that building from 1971 to 1973, at the now-vanished radio station WNBC, and occasionally at the NBC radio network.
you also took video of the Empire State Building, which is once again the tallest building in NYC. the Empire State Building has always been one of my favorite places in the entire world. they recently re-opened the upper "observatory" to the public (for an additional admission fee), and i have plans to go there sometime in the next few months. long ago, almost all the TV and FM-radio stations had their transmitters at the Empire State Building, in a little room above that topmost observation chamber. when the Twin Towers were built, they were a little taller and had more space available, so most of the transmitters were relocated there. after 9/11, though, the stations had to scramble to get back on the air, and many of them returned to the Empire State Building. they were using the observatory room for extra space. apparently, though, the need for that extra space is done with, so they re-opened it to the public. that makes me very, very happy!
of the scenes in your video, perhaps the area that has changed the most is Times Square. it got "cleaned up", decked out with neon, and turned into an attraction for tourists. the sleazier activities have all moved to other neighborhoods nearby.
always the same, always different, New York endures.
2010-02-24 11:29 am (UTC)
I know that I've been to New York at least three times Ace :-)
The first visit was in 1967 just a few weeks after I migrated to Toronto Canada and I went there for the jazz (and the major jazz clubs were still in operation in those days). I heard Archie Schepp at the Blue Note and one of my favourites - alto saxophonist Lee Konitz at a Sunday afternoon session at the Half Note cafe. I took in Sun Ra and his Arkestra on the lower East Side (I was the only white person in the club but they didn't seem to care. I was told that I shouldn't visit the lower east side but I did. I can recall that I stayed in a cheap hotel which claimed fame as being the or (a) home of American baseball (perhaps it was football). I also took a tour around the Hudson River and was staggered at the beauty of the river in the least polluted spots on "the other side" as I prefer to call it. The guy on the Canadian border looked at me with some suspicion noting that I'd only been in Canada as a migrant for a few weeks and already I was jaunting off to the United States. As a migrant to Canada with a "landed immigrant" visa I didn't need a visa to enter the United States and took advantage of the "right of passage" on numerous occassions while in lived in Canada e.g out to meet my uncle in Maine and his family (Saco), trips by VW down to Knoxville in Tennesee, and a couple of major trips including a Christmas period drive down through Detroit via Route 66 to San Francisco where I met up with a long time pen friend (who was nicer to write too than to actually meet). I tried to interest her in a trip down to the border of Mexico travelling through Central America but that was a long long time ago.... :-)
I believe the second trip was a year earlier than the 1992 video and I believe I may have explained to your sometime in the past that I took a train trip to Pleasantville station expecting to see the Reader's Digest building but it wasn't anywhere to be seen (not surprising as Reader's Digest hadn't had anything but a post office box in Pleasantville since about 1935 when they moved to the location they are currently vacating. I almost certainly went up the Empire State Building on that trip and climbed the stairway to the top of the Statue of Liberty and of course a 5 cent ferry ride to Statten Island (fare unchanged since 1967).
The 1992 trip was a luxury trip at the expense of Reader's Digest. I was taken to the actual Digest building and viewed their computer system and associated technology with awe. They had video screens of TV from almost everywhere in the United States and the computer was huge and didn't require computer operators to run. I was also shown the art work that hung on the walls and which the founders were proud of and met and had friendly conversations with my counterpart in Canada about the accounting systems we were using at the time.
The Digest arranged a gratis trip to watch Les Miserables off Broadway which was very nice of them (I thought).
And yes I ventured up the "twin towers" but not right to the top which was closed due to inclement weather and noted aircraft taking off and landing from the three airports which serve New York City (including Newark which had been upgraded since my trip the previous year - and much more luxurious).
There's some intersting video in that clip of Central Station which had recently been refurbished and I was present when the controversial mayor of New York opened it to the public. It appears they had cleaned the dirt and the grime from the windows and Central Station (in the video) was then allegedly the cleanest it had been in several years.
I had visions of aircraft crashing into skyscrapers for a few years after visiting the Twin Towers. My mind registered the fact that there was nothing but air space between the airports and the towers and I stood there thinking "what if..." but it was only a "what if..."
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2010-02-26 10:29 am (UTC)
Circle Line sightseeing cruises
are still very popular with visitors. while escorting out-of-towners in NYC, i have found that the Circle Line (the classic one that goes all the way around Manhattan Island) is a wonderful overview of the city, with the tour narrator supplying interesting bits of history and information about many world-famous landmarks. it's also good for people who may not have the stamina to trudge all over town; furthermore, you enjoy the entire experience while sitting down, in an enclosed space with heating or air conditioning as necessary, with rest rooms and a snack bar on the boat.
they've just recently re-opened the stairway to the top of the Statue of Liberty - after 9/11 they closed it to tourists, and you could only go inside the pedestal building, which contains a museum. i always felt that was not really worth the price of the ferryboat to the island. to climb up the statue, you have to order tickets in advance, and get there early. (i did the climb once, when i was 16.) i prefer the sight of our very own Goddess from any vantage point where i can see Her full height and magnificence. and, while many Americans know
of the poem on the plaque inside the pedestal - the part that begins, "Give me your tired, your poor...", which is the second half - i long ago memorized the entire poem, because i find the first half even more meaningful.
the Staten Island Ferry is also still going strong. for a long time, the fare for pedestrians kept pace with the subway fare (which was also 5 cents for quite a while); the ferry also carried cars, for a higher fare. i think they stopped carrying cars after the terminal building on the Manhattan side burned down, because that left them with no facility for moving the cars onto the boat. they rebuilt the terminal, but i guess there just wasn't very much need for a car ferry any more. but back during my mis-spent youth, a cheap date would be to ride back and forth on the ferry at night - in those days, you didn't have to pay each time you made the trip, if you just turned around inside the terminal building. in the summer, the topmost deck, exposed to the breeze and rather dimly lit, was a very pleasant place for young lovers.
i understand that most of the formerly open space inside Grand Central Terminal is now a "marketplace", with booths selling everything from bulk spices to designer neckties.
and, while the view of planes going in and out of all three major airports might have implied that planes could easily hit the buildings by mistake, in reality those airplanes are constrained to very precisely defined patterns. it was the deviation from the patterns, moments before impact, that finally made the air traffic controllers aware that something was very wrong.
(have you figured out by now just how fond of the city i am?)
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2010-02-27 08:11 am (UTC)
They still call it the "Circle Line" - Amazing. That's the mob that were running the cruises back in 1967.
I liked New York for it's jazz. Being a jazz fan the "Big Apple" was just that and nothing have prevented me from making a quick trip when I migrated to Canada.
It is also horribly cold in winter. In the video I posted I could hardly hold the camera even with thick gloves due to the cold and it wasn't even snowing.
I like Greenwich Village but was disappointed that they seem to have built some grotty modern apartments and a supermarket there which in my view destroyed (to some extent) the atmosphere of Greenwich Village. In a sense Katoomba here in New South Wales shares some of the same "feeling" as "The Village". They won't allow Maccers to build fast food outlets and Katoomba is a haven for artists.
New York is also known to me as being a town of a multitude of cultural activities (other than jazz) and of object wealth and poverty not seen here in Sydney.
I enjoyed my walk over the Brooklyn Bridge on one of the more recent trips.
I prefer it to San Francisco which is grossly over-rated and Los Angeles which is just "gross"
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2010-03-01 11:37 am (UTC)
as far as i know, it's been the "Circle Line" ever since it began. they also used to run the "Day Line", which was a leisurely ride up the Hudson River, making a couple of stops, up to West Point (where the US Army academy is), where the boat would turn around and go back downriver, making the same stops. the stop before West Point was Bear Mountain State Park, which is very scenic, and has picnic areas, a "lodge" with a restaurant and other facilities, and hiking trails for those who are so inclined. i don't know when the Day Line stopped running, but it was a
time ago.
though Greenwich Village is picturesque and "bohemian", even bohemians need to buy groceries. and New York is always changing... an old building gets torn down, a new and very different one gets built, or an existing place changes owners and instead of a hair salon, it's an Ethiopian restauraunt or a place that sells hand-made jewelry.
and that is also related to the incredible diversity of cultural experiences one can find in New York. there is, of course, Broadway, and the symphony and the Metropolitan Opera, and too many museums to mention, and jazz, folk, rock, and less easily categorized forms of music - and don't forget dance! and poetry readings. and street festivals of every imaginable ethnicity... and restaurants of every imaginable ethnicity. (there are at least two Tibetan restaurants that i know of.) this diversity is why i consider the city the capital of the planet.
New York is in the "temperate" climate zone, which means it's too hot in the summer and too cold in the winter, but spring and fall can be wonderful ;-)
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2010-03-01 06:54 pm (UTC)
We have culture here in Sydney too !
We have the Sydney Opera House where one of my favourites jazz saxophonists is playing at 8pm on Sunday 7th. March (Wayne Shorter)
I booked yesterday morning via TicketMaster - %57.50 in the circle Row W which is just two rows in front of Row Z which is about as far back from the platform as it's possible to get :-)
Still I don't wish to see his wrinkles - just listen to his music.
Sydney is (very) hot in Summer and (quite) cold in Winter too. Here's some recent nude art which took place in front of the Opera House. I'll use the Twitter short URL spread around by Phil Argy (former president of the Australian Computer Society). It appears to be followed by the recent Gay and Lesbian Mardis Gras which has become as much a symbol of Sydney as the Opera House or the Harbour Bridge.
Mr. Argy's tweet :-
Oh and he seems to agree with me about Kevin Rudd. I retweeted him and he retweeted back to the
I realise bohemians have to aat but they shouldn't be frequenting grotty supermarkets. When my brother was "bohemian" it was frothy coffee and anarchy. BTW: Alan's cat Charlie died on Saturday and I rang Trevor on Sunday to get an update. Trevor had placed Charlies remains in ice and has decided to have Charlie cremated and the ashes returned to be with "Twinkle" - one of Alan's older cats who died some years ago. Trevor said he didn't have the strength to bury Charlie.
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2010-02-25 09:52 pm (UTC)
I might add that the NSW police had some vague intention of reporting the contents of the New York and Mexico videotapes to Interpol (sigh).
Filming in at or around railway stations can be considered an offence !!
I am not now nor have ever been a terrorist.
A year ago I had to explain to a police office (Parramatta) that my attempted filming of the local court at the Parramatta legal complex (it's huge) didn't mean that I had criminal intent with regards to terrorism.
Fortunately he accepted my explanation and walked away giggling !
There's an entry in this journal regarding the Parramatta legal complex somewhere in this journal. It was at that court that cartoons of the Simpsons were judged to be criminally offensive under New South Wales law.
In any case it's possible to view the whole Parramatta legal complex via Google Earth these days (sigh).
) (
2010-02-26 10:33 am (UTC)
yes, photographing almost any major landmark from close in is likely to garner unwanted attention from the police (and/or "Homeland Security" personnel). the idea is that if you take pictures of bridges, court buildings, important skyscrapers, and the like, you will be able to scrutinize the pictures to determine the best places to put your explosive devices. buy the picture postcards instead - they're usually much better photos anyway.
oh, and Google Maps/Google Earth blur out some especially "sensitive" spots, or deliberately show them at slightly incorrect locations.
) (

subset: commoncrawl


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BERLIN (Reuters) - Leading economists from France and Germany on Wednesday weighed in on the politically heated debate about making the euro zone more resilient during any future crises by calling for new fiscal rules and the creation of a virtual euro-area "safe asset".
The proposals are meant to bridge German demands for more fiscal discipline and France's insistence on more risk-sharing as the euro zone's two largest economies try to inject new momentum into their stalled efforts to reform the bloc.
"These reform efforts can only succeed if Germany and France pull together," said Marcel Fratzscher from the DIW economic institute, one of the authors of the 33-page policy paper. "2018 is the year in which these reforms must be tackled."
The question of how to improve governance of the 19-member single currency bloc will also be discussed when Germany's acting finance minister, Peter Altmaier, welcomes the new Eurogroup president, Mario Centeno, for talks in Berlin on Wednesday.
Altmaier, one of Chancellor Angela Merkel's closest allies, will then travel to Paris for talks with his French counterpart, Bruno Le Maire on Thursday.
The 14 economists from France and Germany call for an overhaul of euro area fiscal rules, the creation of an independent fiscal watchdog, a joint euro zone fund and a new, synthetic "safe asset" that offers investors an alternative to sovereign bonds.
It would effectively be a derivative of weighted sovereigns.
"Implementing these reforms would be a game-changer for the euro zone, significantly improving its financial stability, political cohesion and potential for delivering prosperity to its citizens, all while addressing the priorities and concerns of the participating countries," the economists said.
"Our leaders should not settle for less," said the experts, who include Ifo institute president Clemens Fuest and Jean Pisani-Ferry, a former adviser to French President Emmanuel Macron.
The economists want to replace current fiscal rules, which focuses on the structural deficit, by an expenditure rule and a long-term debt-reduction target.
"A rule of this type is both less error-prone than the present rules and more effective in stabilizing economic cycles, since cyclical changes in revenue do not need to be offset by changes in expenditure," the group said.
They recommended that compliance with the new fiscal rules should be monitored by national watchdogs that would be supervised by an independent euro zone institution.
The idea of a synthetic euro zone bond is likely to draw a rebuff from Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives, who are skeptical about creating new tools for more risk-sharing.
But the economists insisted that introducing such assets in parallel with a regulation on limiting sovereign concentration risk would help "smooth the transition away from excessive concentration on home-country government bonds".
"It will be a challenge for the German government to reach a point where one is ready to implement the full concept and not only some elements that alone would not work," Fuest said.
Merkel's conservatives and the center-left Social Democrats last week agreed on the blueprint for a governing coalition. The draft raises the prospect of an "investment budget" for the single currency bloc, a nod to Macron's call for a budget to help the euro zone cope with external economic shocks.
It also calls for the ESM bailout mechanism to be turned into a full-blown European Monetary Fund under parliamentary control and anchored in EU law.
Centeno called the euro zone reform proposals agreed by Germany's two biggest parties "very encouraging" and urged Merkel's conservatives and the SPD to quickly agree on a full-scale coalition deal.
"Europe needs the government as soon as possible," Centeno told the business newspaper Handelsblatt in an interview published before his meeting with Altmaier.
Reporting by Michael Nienaber; Editing by Jeremy Gaunt, Larry King


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Mount Rainier has many opportunities for volunteer service for both individuals and groups, including single-day projects, full-time positions, and long-term commitments that can be adjusted to fit your schedule. Whether you're looking for a one-time experience, a residential position working alongside National Park Rangers every day, or an ongoing assignment that requires a flexible commitment of a few days per month, you'll find many opportunities to participate in the stewardship of your national park.
Many short-term volunteer opportunities are available! Even if you only have a day or two to contribute, we have plenty of opportunities for you to participate with us in the stewardship of your national park! Most projects occur during the summer months (between June and September), and are appropriate for either individuals and organized groups. To keep up with current projects:
- Follow our Volunteer Blog or Facebook page for the latest news about our program.
- Check out our volunteer project calendar.
- Find the answers to Frequently Ask Questions about volunteering.
- Read through our complete list of current volunteer opportunities, listed below.
- Sign up for our mailing list. We send out updates roughly once a month during the summer and as opportunities arise year-round.
- If you represent a group that would like to volunteer, contact us to let us know what you're interested in, when you're available, how many people are in your group, and their age range. We'll do our best to match you up with a good project.
Thanks for your interest in helping out!
If you're interested in long-term or recurring volunteer opportunities, here's a list of projects for which we're currently recruiting:


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Windmills Financial Windfall
by: Maryalice Demler, Anchor/Reporter
The big battle in the Town of Sheldon is who's benefiting from a project to bring wind turbines to the small rural Wyoming County town.
A wind energy company wants to create a state of the art wind farm there that could save taxpayers up to a million dollars a year.
But three town board members, who vote on the fate of the project, will get a wind turbine on their own property or a family member's property.
[originating website has a link to video report]
This article is the work of the source indicated. Any opinions expressed in it are not necessarily those of National Wind Watch.
|Wind Watch relies entirely
on User Funding


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Mining on the Cold Mountain
Ice Rock's mining facility is located in a former soviet military bunker. It's natural constant temperature is 12 celcius, this reduces power costs dramatically as we do not need to cool the facility. Moreover, our power costs are .03 cents per kilowatt hour, a very low cost of energy. We have no mortgage or rent to pay on our facility as it is owned free and clear by Ice Rock's ceo, Malik Murzashev. These cost savings and other operational efficiencies ultimately result in lower fixed costs which enable us to increase investor ROI. Right now is an exciting time in the mining space, if you are bullish on bitcoin, mining provides you with a generous return and full upside exposure. For those who have considered starting their own mining operation, Ice Rock provides you with similar returns without the operational headache.


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Double Standards Anyone?
Lets see if I understand this. Howard Dean specifically calls out Republicans and proceeds to go on about how they're the evil party. For many Dem's this was okay while the Repub's wanted an apology. Karl Rove mentions liberals, he doesn't use party names, and the Dem's get up in arms about wanting an apology and now the Repub's are saying his comments were okay. So it's okay for Dean to label Republicans specifically as bad but it's not okay for Rove to say liberals? And last I checked, given the demonization of the word liberal by the right, most Dem's had tried to distance themselves from this word so why the anger at Rove's comments? Unless of course they hit a little too close to home.


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08-556 063 50 LinkedIN Twitter
With the introduction of the new Horizon 2020 Work Programme 2018-2020, the SME Instrument funding scheme has undergone several important changes. In this article you will learn what is new.
Food security is one of the global challenges which affects us all. According to the World Bank our food demand is projected to rise by at least 20 percent globally over the next 15 years.
A biopharmaceutical, also known as a biologic(al) medical product, biological, or biologic, is any pharmaceutical drug product manufactured in, extracted from, or semi-synthesised from biological sources.
The SME Instrument is a highly competitive programme with a limited budget. Convincing the experts evaluators about your idea is a very demanding task (only a few percent of projects receive a grant)
This is the perfect time to apply for funding for the development of orphan therapies. In this article you will learn about orphan drugs and where to find EU grants to finance research that specifically targets treatment of rare diseases.
Research shows that R&D projects are becoming increasingly complex, owing to, for example, cross-functional teams, globalization and shorter product life cycles.
Even if the SME Instrument application only resulted in a Seal of Excellence (SoE) it is important to remember the following. As long as there is a true innovative core and a significant business potential in the project, there is a variety...
Planets, stars and galaxies have always fascinated human imagination but only recent generations can boast about living in the Age of Space.
The impact of innovation is visible in many aspects of life – but what ensures that innovative ideas can become realities? Funding.
"We are leaving the European Union, but we are not leaving Europe - and we want to remain committed partners and allies to our friends across the continent." – Theresa May.
Behind every successful project there is a detailed project plan that was carefully developed during the proposal preparation stage.
"Horizon 2020 (H2020) is the biggest EU Research and Innovation programme ever, with nearly €80 billion of funding available over 7 years, from 2014 to 2020."
SME Instrument is a fantastic funding opportunity for small and medium-sized companies from a variety of fields and industries.
After a long period of intensive work, the proposal is finally sent to the European Commission. A feeling of relief, soon to be replaced by many questions.
The SME Instrument funding is not easy money, as the success rate is rather low; 8,4% for Phase 1 projects and 5,4% for Phase 2 projects.
When I finished my studies, I felt an irresistible desire to get to know the world a little better.
To win the bid in the H2020 SME Instrument you need to compete. By competing, I mean preparing the perfect proposal, one which will help you "beat the competition".
Almost without exception, clients are always a backer of their own idea and hence their worst reviewer. Therefore, writing a project is a struggle between two opposite points of view.
The word "Innovation" comes with many names. In today's technology-driven world, it is probably one of the most overused terms describing a product, service, process, or any other phenomenon that appears to be new for a given set of stakeholders.
Getting an application granted within the SME instrument means receiving huge amounts of money and gaining a lot of prestige. It is therefore no wonder that so many SMEs want to apply and try their luck.
That one eureka moment, which gives birth to a truly innovative idea, is a rare phenomenon. An Idea with the potential to disrupt the status quo.
In an almost Eurovision song contest-like manner, there is a table listing all the countries affiliated with the evaluators.


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~What~ :S
News is that there is a White Puffle in Club Penguin! It seems to be that it DOES exist. If you find this creature you click on it and you can get it! It is free, rare, and special! Even non-members can get it too!
Congratulations to Jou1489 for finding the White Puffle! I wish you can tell us where you found it!
Uhhh… this is the pic he wanted Flabby99 to put on his site ….i guess he didn't want us putting a pic of his white puffle on the web….. uhhh…… here is the pic……
Weird… very…… Weird….


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The Farleton Dress // Farmers Market Tote // The Lakeside Flat //
Skinny Leather Belt // Bands of Time Watch
I came across this adorable sailboat printed dress when I was in the Jack Wills store in Philly this afternoon and was completely in love! Unfortunately, the price was way out of my range (my range, of course, being $3 at a thrift store...). But I couldn't help daydreaming of wearing it.
When it comes to prints (escpecially during the summer) I like to go simple and classic! White and leather accessories and a nice big bag perfect for throwing your beach towell in:)
Are there any particular pieces of clothing that have inspired you lately?


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Skipton Building Society is searching for a potential buyer for its third-party mortgage servicer subsidiary HML, Money Marketing understands.
It is understood that Skipton has issued a prospectus detailing its sales terms. It is not known if there has been any interest from potential buyers. Sources suggest Skipton has been looking to offload its non-core businesses in recent years.
Money Marketing revealed last August that Skipton was in talks with LSL Property Services over a deal for Pink Home loans, which eventually completed in October for £1.59m.
HML has had two high-profile account losses since the end of last year. In December, Money Marketing revealed GMAC-RFC had decided to bring administration of its £3.6bn mortgage book in-house. In January, Nat-ionwide Building Society decided to administer its own £2bn combined mortgage book.
The account losses have brought HML's assets under management down from £44.5bn to £39bn.
HML has also cut around 550 jobs since March 2010, bringing its total workforce to just under 1,500.
Skipton and HML refused to comment.
London & Country head of communications David Hollingworth says: "Skipton is clearly going to keep everything in the group under evaluation and is reconciling which bits it does and does not want to keep."


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Brighton and Hove Albion are the new favourites to win the Championship title.
Second-placed Newcastle United trail Chris Hughton's league leaders by two points after Saturday's disappointing 2-1 defeat to Sheffield Wednesday.
Rafa Benitez's side, however, remain 10 points ahead of third-placed Huddersfield Town, also beaten at the weekend.
But the result at Hillsborough was compounded by the latest hamstring injury suffered by Dwight Gayle, the club's leading scorer.
Here is your daily briefing:
Gayle is today being assessed by United's medical team.
The striker – who returned from a previous hamstring problem last month – limped off the pitch with 29 minutes gone at Hillsborough.
Gayle had felt his other hamstring, and his reaction told its own story.
We might not see him again this season.
Asked if the 27-year-old would miss the rest of the campaign, Benitez said: "It's too early (to say). It could be, but it's too early."
Newcastle could issue an update on Gayle today.
Benitez is looking for "fresh legs" for the club's five remaining games.
Meanwhile, Gayle has been pipped to the EFL's top award by Brighton and Hove Albion's Anthony Knockaert.
Knockaert was last night named the Sky Bet Championship Player of the Season.
"The award means a lot to me, and I am happy that I have achieved an award like this in my career," said the winger, who was a target for Benitez last summer.
"I will keep on working hard for the rest of the season and keep on doing what I have been doing."
Benitez was unhappy with the mistakes that littered Newcastle's performance against Wednesday.
Put simply, United's manager felt his players lost their heads.
Newcastle managed to get to the break without conceding a goal, but it seemed only a matter of time before Carlos Carvalhal's side would break the deadlock.
The home side's breakthrough came from a needlessly-conceded free-kick, and Tom Lees and Steven Fletcher beat their men too easily for their goals.
Benitez will go through the game with his players before starting preparations for the Good Friday home game against Leeds United.
"You must analyse the two or three things that you can improve," he said.
"You can do nothing about the things you cannot improve, but what you can improve you must, and as soon as possible.
"As soon as possible will be the training session on Monday. We must prepare in the training sessions to do good things and make sure we do these things in the games too."
Benitez also revealed what he told his players after the game.
Building for the future
There was some significant news today from the Newcastle United Foundation.
The charity, which works with 50,000 young people in the region every year, has revealed plans today for a new sporting and education hub for the city.
Murray House, a short walk from St James's Park, is to be converted into a community facility.
The building was originally built in the 1930s to provide leisure and training opportunities for those made unemployed by the decline of shipbuilding. It was rebuilt in the 1970s and continued to be used as a community centre.
And the new multi-million pound development will include a sports hall, football pitch and classrooms as well as meeting space for the wider community.
Former United striker Shola Ameobi was a regular at drop-in sessions at Murray House when he was growing up in the city.
"Murray House was a big part of my life growing up," said Ameobi. "It was a big part of our community. We didn't have anything like Newcastle United Foundation in the city back then. I wish we had.
"When you start out with very little, it can be difficult to believe that you can achieve your dreams, but the Foundation, through the power of football, is helping thousands of people. I am incredibly excited about Murray House's future in their hands."
Newcastle managing director Lee Charnley added: "Murray House represents the next vital step in the exciting journey of our Foundation, who have already achieved so much."
Miss the Cutt?
Leeds are sweating on the fitness of former Sunderland midfielder Liam Bridcutt ahead of their visit to St James's Park.
Bridcutt missed Saturday's win over Preston North End with an Achilles problem.
Leeds manager Garry Monk said: "Liam picked up a knock on his Achilles. I don't think it's serious and it's soreness more than anything, not a complete injury. But at this stage you need players who can give 100% and push themselves physically, and Liam wasn't able to do that."
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Serum apelin and nesfatin-1 levels in depression patients and their relationship with treatment
Sahap Dede, Musa Sahpolat, Mehmet Hanifi Kokacya, Mustafa Ari, Cem Sesliokuyucu, Zafer Yonden
Full Text
Article No: 5 Article Type : Research
Objective: This study was designed to investigate the molecules apelin and nesfatin-1, their relationship with depression before and after treatment, and whether they can be used as biomarkers.
Method: Forty-seven depression patients referred to psychiatric outpatient clinic who were not on treatment and 47 normal healthy volunteers were enrolled in the study. The Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I Disorders (SCID-I), the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D), and the Clinical Global Impression (CGI) Scale were administered to all participants. Peripheral blood samples were collected following a 12-hour fasting at the beginning and three months after the start of treatment. Serum apelin and nesfatin-1 levels were measured.
Results: Of the 47 depression patients, 35 (74.5%) were females and 12 (25.5%) were males. Thirty-one (66%) of the 47 volunteers were females and 16 (34%) of them were males. Age, marital status, occupation and Body Mass Index (BMI) did not differ between the groups. Serum apelin level was significantly higher in the patient group than in the control group. There was no significant difference between the patient group and the control group in terms of serum nesfatin-1 levels. There was no significant difference in serum apelin and serum nesfatin-1 levels after 3 months of treatment.
Conclusions: Serum apelin levels were significantly higher than healthy controls at the time of admission and there was no change in apelin levels after 3-months of treatment (antidepressant, antidepressant + electroconvulsive therapy, antidepressant + therapy) despite clinical recovery. Serum nesfatin-1 levels in the patient group were not different from the control group at the time of referral and at the end of 3 months treatment. There was no relationship between serum apelin level and BMI in our study. Serum nesfatin-1 level and BMI were correlated at the time of admission.
Keywords :
Apelin, depression, nesfatin-1
Dusunen Adam : The Journal of Psychiatry and Neurological Sciences : 2017;30:39-47
Full Text:
Depression is one of the most common psychiatric disorders. It can be seen at all ages but is more common in the middle age and especially ages 25 to 44. The life time prevalence of major depression is reported to be between 4.4% and 19.6% (1). Women are twice as likely to have depression as men (2). The life time prevalence is 10-25% for women and 5-12% for men (2,3). With regard to life time prevalence, age of onset, and its impact on work power and functioning, depression is considered as an important public health problem. Several studies have found a link between depression and metabolic diseases such as diabetes, stroke and heart disease (4). Obesity has been found to be highly associated with mood symptoms in some studies (5). Epidemiologic studies have reported more obesity in depressed patients than in the general population (6). It is suggested that the mechanism underlying the relationship between mood disorders and obesity is caused by a hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis abnormalities (7,8). Besides energy storage, adipose tissue are secretes biologically active peptidic substances called adipokines. It has been suggested that adipokines may be associated with metabolic changes seen in depressive disorders (9).
Nesfatin-1, a recently discovered peptide hormone, has been described in various regions of the brain (10). Nesfatin-1 is considered to be associated with appetite regulation and some related metabolic events in the hypothalamus (10,11). Appetite and metabolic changes (sleep-wake, immunologic, stress hormones, sexual hormones, etc.) are common in depression and the pathophysiology is not yet fully understood. It is thought that various neurotransmitters and peptides may have an effect on both appetite and mood (12). Nesfatin-1 administered intracerebroventricularly to rats was found to reduce eating behavior (10). In another study conducted by intracerebral injection of nesfatin-1, behavioral changes due to anxiety and fear were observed in rats (13). In a study in which nesfatin-1 was measured in venous blood of depressed and non depressed subjects, nesfatin-1 levels were significantly higher in the patient group (12).
Apelin which is found in the brain at high levels is a recently identified bioactive molecule in the adipokine group (14). In 1998, it was first isolated from bovine stomach extracts and then from hypothalamus and fat tissue–organs related to hunger (14,15). In a study conducted by injecting apelin-13 into the rat brain, apelin-13 was found to induce depression-like behavior in rats (14). In another study conducted in rats, it was mentioned that apelin may have a neuroregulatory role in the neuroendocrine response to stress (16). Apelin-12 and apelin-36 levels were found significantly lower in women with eating disorders compared to healthy women (15).
As is the case with many other psychiatric disorders, lack of specific laboratory testing and imaging methods are among diagnostic difficulties (3). Therefore, studies on markers that can facilitate the diagnosis of depression are gaining interest. Because of their practicality and lower cost, biomarkers of depression that can be checked in peripheral blood take particular interest. On the way to DSM-5, the need for a biomarker that can be measured in peripheral blood in order to facilitate diagnosis of many psychiatric disorders, including depression, is emphasised (17).
Apelin and nesfatin-1 have been associated with a variety of psychiatric disorders in recent years (12,14,15). We aimed to investigate pre-treatment and post-treatment levels of these molecules, which could be measured in clinical practice, in depression patients.
Ethical approval was obtained from Mustafa Kemal University, Tayfur Ata Sökmen Faculty of Medicine Ethics Committee. Forty-seven patients who referred to Mustafa Kemal University, Tayfur Ata Sokmen Faculty of Medicine Research Hospital, Psychiatry outpatient clinic and who were diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder according to DSM-IV diagnostic criteria, were included in the study. Patients with depression who have not received any psychiatric treatment for the last 3 months constituted the depression group. The control group consisted of healthy volunteers. Patients with comorbid psychiatric disorder, severe neurological disease, severe medical disorders such as obesity, hypertension, diabetes or other neuroendocrinopathies, any other chronic illnesses, substance or alcohol abuse and pregnant were excluded from the study. Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) and Clinical Global Impression Scale (CGI) were administered to the study subjects. All of the interviews were done by one of the authors. Patients were informed about the study at first, and those who agreed to participate, signed the "informed consent form".
Sociodemographic Data Form: This is a semi-structured questionnaire of 18 items developed for use in this study to determine the age, gender, marital status, education level, employment, height-weight, smoking status, presence of mental illness in the family, previous psychiatric treatment, hospital admission, suicide and ECT histories.
Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D): It is a scale based on the scoring of the rater used to measure the severity of depression in patients. It was published by Max Hamilton in 1960 (18). It is a commonly used tool to measure the degree of depression. It allows to document whether the symptom in each item is present in the patient and if present then to comment on the severity of the symptom. Questions in each item are addressed to the patient and the answers are marked by the evaluator. The sum of item scores gives the total score of the scale ranging from 0 to 53. The higher score indicates the more severity of the depression. The highest score on the scale is 53 points. 0-7 points indicate no depression, 8-15 point mild depression, 16-28 point moderate depression, 29 and over indicate severe depression. The validity and reliability study of the scale for Turkey was carried out by Akdemir et al. (19).
Clinical Global Impression Scale (CGI): CGI was developed by Guy et al. (20) to assess the clinical course of all psychiatric disorders at all ages. CGI is a three-dimensional scale and is filled out during the interview conducted by the physician to assess the response to treatment in patients with psychiatric disorders. Based on his general experience about the disease, the clinician grades the severity of the disease or the degree of improvement between 1 (not at all ill) and 7 (among the most extremely ill patients). 1=normal, not at all ill; 2=borderline mentally ill; 3=mildly ill; 4=moderately ill; 5=markedly ill; 6=severely ill; 7=among the most extremely ill patients.
Blood Analyses
Peripheral venous blood samples were analyzed during depressive period before the treatment was started and on the third month of the treatment. For this purpose, on the first day of the study and in the third month, following 12 hours fasting, blood samples were drawn from the forearm veins at 08:00 am. On the days when blood was drawn, the patients' routine psychiatric examination was performed and HAM-D and CGI scales were administered. Blood samples were centrifuged for 15 minutes (3000xg) within two hours and the sera were stored at -70°C. The same sampling was made for the control group. Apelin and nesfatin-1 levels were measured by ELISA using appropriate kits (Apelin Elisa Kit/CUSABIO; Nesfatin-1 Elisa Kit/BIOVENDOR) after the 3rd month samples were collected.
Statistical Analyses
Statistical analyses were performed using the SPSS 15.0 software. Descriptive statistics are calculated for all the data in the study. Since apelin and nesfatin-1 levels were not normally distributed, nonparametric tests were applied for comparisons. Mann-Whitney U tests were used to compare the data between independent groups. The Wilcoxon test was performed if the same variable was repeatedly measured, in related group comparisons. A value of p<0.05 was considered statistically significant.
Forty-seven patients (Female=35, Male=12) diagnosed with depression on admission to the Mustafa Kemal University, Tayfur Ata Sökmen Faculty of Medicine, Psychiatry outpatient clinic who met the study criteria were included in the study. In addition, 47 healthy volunteers (Female=31, Male=16) who met the study criteria were included in the study. There was no difference between the groups in terms of age, marital status, occupation and BMI (Body Mass Index) (p>0.05).
There was no significant difference between the initial BMIs of patient group and the control group (p=0.153). No significant difference was found between the waist circumference of the depression group and the waist circumference of the control group (p=0.270). There was a significant difference between pre- and post-treatment BMIs (26.81kg/m2 and 27.28kg/m2 respectively, p=0.009) in the depression group. There was a significant difference between the pre- and post-treatment waist circumferences in the depression group (89.87cm and 91.25cm respectively, p=0.01). Serum nesfatin-1 and serum apelin levels of the depression group, measured at the referral were compared with their BMIs. There was no correlation between serum apelin level and BMI (p=0.874). A moderate negative correlation was found between serum nesfatin-1 and BMI (correlation coefficient r=-0.35; p=0.016). An association was determined in the linear regression analysis with ANOVA (p=0.016). This finding can be interpreted as: independent of the depression itself and its treatment, the greater BMI is, the lower serum nesfatin-1 level gets.
All the patients (n=4) who were hospitalized (at least once and at most 3 times) in the depression group were female. The remaining (n=43) patients had never received inpatient treatment, 12 of whom were male and 31 were female. Two of the inpatients (4.3%) had ECT at their previous hospitalizations. In the depression group (n=47), the number of patients who had never been treated before (antidepressant/psychotherapy) was 30 (63.8%). In the depression group the duration of past depression treatments was not correlated with the initial serum apelin levels (p=0.726), whereas it was correlated with serum nesfatin-1 levels (p=0.023).
There was a positive correlation between the duration of the past treatment and the mean nesfatin-1 level at the time of admission. However, in patients who had been treated longer than 3 years, the mean nesfatin-1 level was found to be lower than all treatment duration subgroups.
There was no correlation between having a history of suicidal attempts (at least once, with any method) and serum apelin and serum nesfatin-1 levels at the time of admission (272.73pg/ml, p=0.819 and 0.258ng/ml, p=0.951, respectively).
There was a significant difference in the initial serum apelin levels between the depression group and the control group (324.04pg/ml, 135.86pg/ml respectively, p<0.05). Since the results were not normally distributed, the Mann-Whitney U test was performed. There was a significant difference between serum apelin levels of depression group (282.38pg/ml) and control group (97.73pg/ml) (p<0.001).
No statistically significant difference was found in the initial serum nesfatin-1 levels between the depression group and the control group (0.552ng/ml and 0.729ng/ml, respectively, p=0.705).
After 3 months of treatment, serum apelin and serum nesfatin-1 levels were re-measured and compared with pre-treatment serum apelin and serum nesfatin-1 levels using the Wilcoxon test. Apelin levels were found to be increased in 28 patients (59.5%), decreased in 18 patients (38.3%) and unchanged in 1 patient (2.2%). Nesfatin-1 levels were increased in 17 patients (36.1%) and decreased in 30 patients (63.8%). No statistically significant difference was found between and pre-treatment and post-treatment serum apelin (p=0.416) and serum nesfatin-1 levels (p=0.105) of depression group.
There was no correlation between the change in pre- and post treatment serum apelin levels and the change in pre- and post treatment BMIs (p=0.32, r=0.15). No correlation was found between the change in pre- and post treatment serum nesfatin-1 levels and the change in pre- and post treatment BMIs either (p=0.827, r=-0.33).
No correlation was found between HAM-D scores at admission and initial serum apelin levels (p=0.574, r=0.085). There was no correlation between the HAM-D scores at admission and initial serum nesfatin-1 levels (p=0.264, r=0.16). At the end of the 3 months treatment period, there was no correlation between the change in HAM-D scores and the change in apelin levels (p=0.576, r=0.085) or the change in nesfatin-1 levels (p=0.82, r=0.034).
In this study, it was aimed to compare serum apelin and nesfatin-1 levels of depression patients with healthy controls and to investigate the effect of depression treatment on apelin and nesfatin-1 levels.
There was a statistically significant difference in serum apelin levels between the patient (324.04±183.7ng/ml) and control (135.8±112.7ng/ml) groups. In a study performed with rats, central (ICV) apelin-13 administration resulted in the release of CRH and VP from the hypothalamus similar to the stimulation of the stress axis (21). Based on apelin's relation with eating behavior and its receptor intensity in specific brain regions related to emotions, in a study that apelin-13 administration to mice intracerebroventricularly resulted in a depression-like pattern (22). In another study on girls with anorexia nervosa, blood apelin-12 and apelin-36 levels were significantly lower in the anorexia nervosa group (15). Apelin expression was found to decrease in the rostral ventrolateral medulla (RVLM) following acupuncture in rats with stress related increased blood pressure (23). There are studies showing neuroprotective functions of apelin (24). The finding of high serum apelin level in depressive patients, one of the main results of our study, indicates–consistently with the literature–the common origin of emotional and physical symptoms of depression. This information may suggest that apelin may be a component of the cascade in the endocrine response to stress, or may have a protective role as a reactive peptide.
In our study, serum apelin levels were reassessed after 3 months of treatment and compared with pre-treatment serum apelin levels. Apelin levels were increased in 28 patients (59.5%), decreased in 18 patients (38.3%), and there was no change in 1 (2.2%) patient. When pre- and post-treatment serum apelin levels were compared in the depression group, no significant difference was found. When pre- and post-treatment apelin levels were analyzed in female and male subgroups, there was no significant change in apelin neither in male group (n=12, p=0.08) nor in female group (n=34, p=0.09). In our study, antidepressant treatment for 3 months did not affect serum apelin levels. This observation can be interpreted as: the apelin level did not fall as fast as the clinical improvement with antidepressant treatment; or the 3-month treatment period might not have been enough to decrease the serum apelin to healthy human level.
At the time of admission and in the third month of treatment, HAM-D was administered to observe the severity of the depression and the clinical course objectively. There was no correlation between HAM-D scores and initial serum apelin levels. No correlation was found between third month HAM-D score change rates and apelin change rates. According to our findings, we can say that there is no relation between the severity of the disease and the serum apelin level.
Studies investigating the relationship between serum apelin levels and BMI are present. In a study investigating the effect of weight loss on serum apelin levels, a correlation was found between the decrease in BMI and the decrease in serum apelin levels (25). In a study involving anorexia nervosa (n=87), healthy (n=61) and simple obese (n=30) women, a positive correlation between serum apelin levels and BMI was reported (15). It has been reported that there is a significant decrease in serum apelin levels after obesity surgery (26). In another study, it was reported that the serum apelin level decreased from 369pg/ml to 257pg/ml in 20 women whose BMIs decreased from 32.2kg/m2 to 29.8kg/m2 with low-calorie diet (27).
There was no statistically significant difference between the pretreatment BMIs of depression group and the control group in our study. The difference in the mean BMIs of depression group before and after treatment was statistically significant (26.81kg/m2 and 27.28kg/m2, respectively, p=0.009). This may be the result of the increased appetite due to drugs used in the treatment of depression or due to recovery of appetite as the depression improved. However, there was no correlation between the change in pre- and post-treatment serum apelin levels, and the change in pre- and post-treatment BMIs. A significant number of studies in the literature have been performed in women; and in our study, we did not find a statistically significant result when we re-analyzed the pre- and post-treatment apelin change in male and female subgroups. When the reasons for the difference between our study and the literature are evaluated, the variety of methods used during treatment (various antidepressants, antidepressant + electrocunvulsive therapy [ECT], antidepressant + cognitive / behavioral therapy) and the fact that the change in BMI in our study was not as wide as other studies might have been associated with the lack of significant change in serum apelin level.
There was no statistically significant difference in serum nesfatin-1 levels between the patients (0.552±0.850ng/ml) and controls (0.729±1.040ng/ml) in our study. One human study investigating nesfatin-1 levels in depression has been found in the literature (12). In this study, which compared serum nesfatin-1 levels of healthy controls and patients with depression, unlike our study the patients' nesfatin-1 levels (4.22±2.16ng/ml) were significantly higher than the control group (2.13±1.52ng/ml). A study comparing brain NUCB2 mRNA expressions between healthy controls and men and women with depressive disorder who attempted suicide, found higher levels in males and lower levels in females compared to the control group (28).
A study comparing serum nesfatin-1 levels in generalized anxiety disorder, which was formed with 40 patients and 34 healthy subjects, found significantly decreased mean serum nesfatin-1 levels (0.350±0.037ng/ml and 0.630±0.080ng/ml, respectively) (29). Contrary to this finding, Hofmann et al. reported an increase in serum nesfatin-1 level as anxiety scores increased in obese women with anxiety disorder (30). In a study in which pre-treatment nesfatin-1 levels of mania patients were lower than the control group, serum levels of nesfatin-1 after treatment (ECT + antipsychotic) were significantly elevated (31). In another study, serum nesfatin-1 levels were significantly lower in patients with restrictive type anorexia compared to the control group (32). All these studies related to nesfatin-1 levels were designed in different patient groups and in different patterns. More comparable studies are needed to make comparative interpretations.
Serum nesfatin-1 levels were reassessed after 3 months of treatment in our study and compared with pre-treatment serum nesfatin-1 levels. No significant difference was found between pre- and post-treatment serum nesfatin-1 levels. Nesfatin-1 levels increased in 17 (36.1%) patients and decreased in 30 (63.8%) patients. Pre-treatment and post-treatment levels of nesfatin-1 were distributed into female and male subgroups and re-analyzed, no significant change was detected in male (n=13, p=0.814) and female (n=34, p=0.033) subgroups.
In our study, 3-month antidepressant treatment did not affect serum nesfatin-1 levels. We did not find any other study examining the change of nesfatin-1 level with treatment in patients with depression.
At the time of admission and in the third month of treatment, HAM-D was administered to observe the severity of the depression and the clinical course objectively. There was no correlation between HAM-D scores and initial serum nesfatin-1 levels. No correlation was found between third month HAM-D score change rates and nesfatin-1 change rates. According to our findings, we can say that there is no relation between the severity of the disease and serum nesfatin-1 level.
There was no correlation between the change in pre- and post-treatment serum nesfatin-1 levels, and the change in pre- and post-treatment BMIs (p=0.827, r=-0.33). In our study, BMI increased significantly in the depression group but there was no associated change in nesfatin-1 level. A correlation between initial serum nesfatin-1 level and initial BMI was found (p=0.016). A moderate negative correlation between serum nesfatin-1 and BMI was observed, with a correlation coefficient of r=-0.35. An association was determined in the linear regression analysis with ANOVA (p=0.016). There are studies suggesting, parallel to our study, that nesfatin-1 is lower in those with higher BMI, as well as studies with contrary results. Some studies have investigated the relationship between serum nesfatin-1 levels and BMI. Stengel et al. (33) reported that Nesfatin-1 decreased food intake and obesity. In another study, cerebrospinal fluid/plasma ratio of nesfatin-1 was reported to be negatively correlated with obesity (34). It has been reported that orexigenic peptide ghrelin is decreased whereas, the anorexigenic peptide nesfatin-1 is elevated in response to increasing BMI (35). Various genetic variations of nesfatin-1 has been reported to be associated with weight and BMI (36).
In the depression group, a relation between the duration of previous depression treatment and initial serum nesfatin-1 level was determined. There was a positive correlation between the mean duration of past treatment and the mean nesfatin-1 level at the time of admission. However, in patients who were treated longer than 3 years, the mean nesfatin-1 level was found to be lower than all treatment duration subgroups.
In conclusion; our study is the first in the literature with its characteristics and having several new findings. We consider that because of several factors in both apelin and nesfatin-1 studies such as, the design varieties (psychiatric disease type, racial difference), low number of studies, and the differences in methods used (human/animal studies, storage conditions), there is need for more studies in order to determine the association of these molecules with psychiatric diseases, and if there is an association, to assess the level of this association.
Conflict of Interest: The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest regarding the publication of this paper.
Financial Disclosure: The authors acknowledge that they have received financial support from the Mustafa Kemal University Scientific Research Support Fund for this study (project number 11302 ).
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Datasheets indicate that the SE7200F5545P is compatible with the SED-WIN-P-5045 but changes in the switch are not being recognized by the SE7200.
SE7200 wireless version
The SED-WIN wireless window switch was confirmed, as of the date of this article, as NOT compatible with the SE7200 controller model.
Compatibility will be available at a later date.
If necessary, use the VT7200F5014P-2624 controller with the SED-WIN-P-5045.
This controller has a Honeywell cover but it's functionally equivalent to the SE7200F5545P. Just swap covers.


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I've spent the weekend at home to celebrate my ma's birthday. Time seems to slow down a little in Norfolk; we drink tea, sit by the fire and play boogle!
My sister and I did manage to ice a cake. A bit garish but looked fun, all complete with bright pink geraniums.


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I am a postdoctoral researcher with major interests in Liquid Crystals and functional nanocomposites. I studied chemistry at the University of Paderborn from 2004 - 2009 and finished my PhD Thesis in 2013 in the Group of Prof. Kitzerow about nanoparticle doping in nematic liquid crystals. Since 2015 I work as a PostDoc in Jan Lagerwall's Experimental Soft Matter Physics Group at the University of Luxembourg.
I am specialized in the physical and electro-optical characterization of liquid crystalline materials, my assets comprise dielectric- and microscopic techniques. In my latest project I am investigating the impact of polarization effects in liquid crystalline nanocomposites on their electro-optic performance.
A summary of my publications and a short CV can be found following these links.


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Dear Marriage Supporter,
Pope Francis gave a historic address to Congress and other political leaders in Washington just minutes ago and made it clear in his own words that the overall theme of his visit to America is that he wishes to uphold the family, and support marriage. Here's what he just told our political leaders:
"I will end my visit to your country in Philadelphia, where I will take part in the World Meeting of Families. It is my wish that throughout my visit the family should be a recurrent theme. How essential the family has been to the building of this country! And how worthy it remains of our support and encouragement! Yet I cannot hide my concern for the family, which is threatened, perhaps as never before, from within and without. Fundamental relationships are being called into question, as is the very basis of marriage and the family. I can only reiterate the importance and, above all, the richness and the beauty of family life."
The crowds that surround Pope Francis wherever he goes — with a multitude of people travelling long distances just for the chance to see him — is a testimony to the truth of his message. In our hearts, each of us knows that the family, one made up of a mother and a father united in marriage, is what holds the fabric of society together.
While we share Pope Francis' deep concerns about efforts to redefine marriage and the family, we also share his joy to proclaim the universal truth that men and women were made by God to complement each other and in their marital union children experience the ideal relationship created for their flourishing.
Please continue to follow Pope Francis' visit to America, especially his comments relating to marriage and the family, by checking our blog frequently. And if you share our optimism in the truth of marriage and family, please consider making a donation to NOM today, which a generous donor has agreed to match dollar for dollar and will immediately put to work in support of preserving marriage, family and religious liberty.


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bonFire web co was founded by a couple of business professionals who saw a need to help small and medium sized businesses with creating or updating their web presence. bonFire web co, LLC is a web design and development company that has in-house talents to meet all your needs. We are here to help you get the most out of your web presence. We pride ourselves on excellent customer service and the ability to create long lasting relationships with our clients. Some services include: custom web design and development, social media integration, e-commerce, email marketing and many more. Come sit around the bonFire with us and we can tell you all about it.
Design, social media, website design and photography for advertising


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I read, review and Fangirl about books on my blog! danasquare.blogspot.com
Currently reading
A Game of Thrones
George R.R. Martin
The Lost Sun
Tessa Gratton
Sean Cummings
Eleanor & Park
Rainbow Rowell
Some Quiet Place
Kelsey Sutton
The Burning Sky
Favorite books
Recently added
The Vincent Boys
8:00 pm 27 December 2012
The Vincent Boys has been one of those hyped books that I wasn't sure if it was worth it. I was expecting not to like this book just because I am more of a fantasy or science fiction reader but I loved it. The Vincent Boys has a really fantastic love triangle which for some reason is something that people aren't enjoying lately. What makes the love triangle in this book special is that both boys represent apart of the narrator Ashton and she has to decide whether she knows who she wants to be. Sawyer is the good boy and the guy that Ashton's father who is a Pastor (I am not sure if that is the correct terminology) would approve of. Beau, on the other hand, is the town's resident bad boy. They just so happen to be cousins that Ashton grew up with. Beau and Ashton were always closer when they were young, up until Ashton started dating Sawyer. There was never a doubt for me that Ashton belonged with Beau. Beau was a fantastic character for me he was funny and brooding. I wasn't the biggest fan of Sawyer more towards the end of the book once people found out about Ashton cheating on him with Beau. I felt that what he did or really didn't do was horrible. But once everything was resolved and we got our happy ending I liked him again.What I love about this story is that it is set in the south. As a native New Yorker it is always interesting for me to read about how different life can be in one country. The Southern setting to me just gives a book a different feeling examples Beautiful Creatures and All of Nicholas Spark's novels.The Vincent Boys has a lot of qualities that remind me of a Soap Opera mainly the fact of the real family connection between Beau and Sawyer. That to me was cheesy. Another thing that I wasn't a huge fan of was the reaped phrase that Ashton and Beau kept saying. Ashton referred to the part of her that wanted to be with Beau as her inner bad girl which said once isn't that annoying but over and over was just irritating. Other than that this story is absolutely amazing.The Vincent Boys is an incredible love story that will leave you dying for more. You will definitely be wanting Beau to be a real life guy!
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I'm loving the Olympics right now.
I didn't think I was that interested in it coming this time. I didn't feel there was much hype about it or build up.
I have great memories of past Olympics. All the way back to the 'Moscow..Moscow…tra la la la la la la' theme from the 1980 Olympics (I was 4), to the efforts of Dean Lukin, Glynis Nunn in LA in 1984 to Debbie Flintoff-King and Duncan Armstrong at the 1988 Barcelona games. It's still burnt into my brain.
I love the surprises that the Olympics always seem to throw up. Canoeing, Tae-Kwan-Do, Archery. Those obscure sports that you only think about every 4 years.
Channel Seven's coverage has been pretty ordinary and blasted all over the place, but at the end of the day there are a shitload of events to cover and unless you can watch all day and spend time with every sport, you've got no chance, so you have to settle for the highlights they show in prime time.
What shits me though is the pronunciation of Beijing.
Am I wrong in thinking that it has always been pronounced as 'Beige-ing'?
Why is it that ALL the Seven commentators have obviously been told to pronounce it as 'Bay-Jing'
It sounds like how Kath & Kim would say it. "Let's sit down with a bottle of 'cardonay' and watch the 'Bay Jing' Olympics"
Edit: Ok…I have gone and googled the pronunciation and apparently it's said right by the commentators, but it still sounds STUPID
Anyway, GO THE AUSSIES. Let's being home at least 10 golds and celebrate another successful games. We can't expect to get another 17 this time!


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POHATCONG TOWNSHIP, NJ (Warren County) – A New York man was charged after he was allegedly found with marijuana and fraudulent credit cards following a traffic stop Tuesday.
Divione Shaw, 28, from the 100 block of Hazelwood Drive in Westbury, NY was charged with multiple counts fraudulent use of credit cards, shoplifting, theft by deception and possession of marijuana.
On October 17, an officer observed suspicious activity in the Walmart, Wawa complex on Route 22, police said.
A motor vehicle stop was conducted and when the officer approached the vehicle he could smell raw marijuana. The officer observed multiple credit cards in the hand of Shaw and in the center console, police said.
A search of the vehicle revealed 15 fraudulent credit cards, a fraudulent Pennsylvania driver license, two bags of marijuana and store merchandise that was purchased with the fraudulent credit cards, police said.
Shaw was released pending a court date of October 18 at the Superior Court of Warren County.
For more Northwest Jersey's News, tune into 92.7FM, 104.7FM, 1510AM, wrnj.com or on the TuneIn app.
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Naomi Woods ~ Lastnight ~ Family Therapy / Clips4sale ~ SD 540p
***Continued from What You Want *** It was around 1am when I woke up and went to the kitchen. I was only wearing panties. My brother was awake too and looking in the cabinets for something to eat. Of coarse he told me I shouldnt be walking around half naked. I love messing with him. He gets so stressed out. Hes always saying we need to be careful, its like he thinks I want to get caught or something. I just like pushing the limits a little, thats all... I told him to relax and kissed him. I grabbed his dick and he didnt stop me. My brother fucked me right on the kitchen counter where Mom makes dinner. It was so hot knowing our parents were asleep in the other room and my brother was inside me... It was perfect... Until Alex fucked everything up by telling me he got accepted to a school out of state, and hes leaving in a few days. I cant believe he waited to the last minute to tell me... And let me have sex with him first. I hate him, how can he just leave me here? Were in love. Its not supposed to end like this.... ***Starring Naomi Woods***
Porno Video: Lastnight
Release date: 05.31.18
Porno Studio: Family Therapy / Clips4sale.com
Quality: SD 540p
Duration: 00:17:31
Video: MPEG-4 Visual, 960x540, (16:9), 30 Fps, 2485 Kbs
Size: 332.66 Mb