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And Tango makes three
This week in English we have started our new topic for the final weeks of term. The book is called 'And Tango makes Three' written by Justin Richardson. The book is about two penguins that are in love and want a baby. Unfortunately, they can't have one as they are two boys, so find a rock and sit and sit but nothing happens. One day the zoo keeper notices and finds an egg for them to keep. They look after it and one day it hatches and they name it Tango, as it takes two to tango. The children have been acting out the story and writing their own family trees, answering comprehension questions and researching different animals that hatch eggs so they can use them in their own version of the story. Next week we will be planning our own version of the story and home learning this week is to make their own version of one of the characters.
In Maths, we have been looking at decimals – adding decimals together, subtracting decimals, ordering and rounding. It has all been very busy! The children have enjoyed doing this. Next week we will be looking at methods of mental and written multiplication of 2 and 3 digit numbers and our 11 and 12 times tables. The children will be continuing their Wednesday mental maths tests. If you wish to know how your child's doing, please don't hesitate to ask.
In Topic we have started planning and preparing our presentations on Power point to present to another year group. This is based on one of the topics we have already covered on the Vikings: Gods, Villages, Names, Jobs, and Weapons etc. The children are in groups of 3 and will be researching, planning, preparing their own resources and making their own power points that they will then write reflections on.
A massive thank you to all parents who came to Parents evening.


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Al Khumrah is the largest existing WWTP site, located in the southern part of Jeddah City in the industrial area of Al Khumrah District in the Kingdom of Saudi-Arabia.
St Marys Advanced Water Recycling Plant is one of the biggest water recycling plants in Australia. The latest extension project includes the design, supply, manufacture and commissioning of:
Capable of both containment and road transport, those 20m3 SPIROTAINER® are a durable and efficient solution when you need to store and transport screening, grit or sludge close to metropolitan areas.
22-23 May 2018, NEC Birmingham, Explore the product range SPIRAC has to offer.
Meet our screening, grit and sludge experts and learn more about :
For more information about the exhibtion click here.
The Prefabricated Inlet Works Plant was designed such that it can be supported on galvanised steel support beams above ground level, to enable flows to gravitate through downstream process units.
These impressive CHAINGUARDTM screens are coarse screens with a total of approximately 11m length laid flat (10.6m installed height) and 2.2 m width.
They are designed for screening activities in deep channels and will be operated in conjunction with a SPIROWASH® Compact 280, which washes out the organic material and compacts screenings. We are committed to provide you with the best screening equipment available. If you have got any questions please let us know.
The official BANDGUARDTM screen test results from the National Screen Evaluation Facility (NSEF) have been released and if you are looking for the best performing band screen in the market don't look any further.
Check out our latest solution to load difficult flowing materials in a bin evenly. Material with a poor flow pattern will build up underneath an outlet resulting in a conical stack and as a result of that a reduction of live storage.
Relentless efforts from our newly formed screen team, with more than 80 years' screen experience between them has meant that after only six months and after completing a series of tests and inspections in SPIRAC's screen workshop, FINEGUARDTM is now being tested at the National Screen Evaluation Facility (NSEF) at Chester le Street.
Prior to dispatching to the testing facility Yorkshire Water's Chris Fell visited our Assembly facility in Sheffield to have a look at our innovations and he was very impressed with what he saw.

subset: commoncrawl


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Medical Cannabis Legalization Philippines
Medical Cannabis Legalization Philippines in under way. Under the Republic Act of the Philippines, 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act 2012, cannabis is illegal. The laws forbid anyone from using or selling. If caught, you will face criminal charges that can result to life imprisonment.
Medical Cannabis in the PhilippinesLast May 26, 2014, Rodolfo Albano, Isabela's First District Representative filed House Bill 4477 or the Compassionate use of Medical Cannabis Legalization Philippines. After taking a month talking to advocates about cannabis, medical cannabis legalization was drafted. This year Risa Hontiveros, submitted a revised bill 180 or the Philippine Compassionate Medical Cannabis Bill, which also aims for medical cannabis legalization Philippines for medical use, not recreational use. It's now a Senate Bill, but until now, the President of the Philippines has no reaction with the bill.
Medical Cannabis Legalization PhilippinesThese are some of the Philippine group of Cannabis advocates, mostly patients, and parents of children in need of medical marijuana.
- Philippine Cannabis Compassion Society – PCCS
- 420 Philippines
- Moms for Marijuana
- Can be used as a Pain reliever
- Can help those who have PTSD
- Treating nausea and vomiting
- Can add appetite
- Helps in controlling asthma attack
- Can cure insomnia
- Can cure cancer – it can stop cancer from spreading
- Treats Epilepsy
- Can calm your panic attack
- Can cure glaucoma
- Prevent seizure disorder
- It will slower the progression of claimers disease
Recognized Types of Cannabis Strains in the PhilippinesMost of the cannabis users in the Philippines only recognizes two types of cannabis: The sativa and Indica.
- Sativa Cannabis
Types of Sativa Cannabis in the Philippines
- Bukidnon Gold
- Baguio Gold
- Cebu Gold
- Tinglayan Hybrid
- Ifugao Heirloom
- Local Purple Haze of Benguet
- Local Jilly Bean and Elusive Sensimilla of Sagada
- Indica
- Pollen
- Kush
- Hash
- Brix
- Joint
- Pipe
- Vape
- Using Bong
- It can add energy to the users.
- Add a positive feeling.
- Munchies or craving for food
- Can be used to treat different sickness
- Can be used as a food source
- It lowers crime rate – theirs is no crime made with the influence of marijuana compared to other most common known drugs
- Can make you more productive
- It can make you more creative
Most common Negative side effects of Marijuana in the PhilippinesIf the user smokes a lot of marijuana, it can sometimes lead to this negative effects.
- Dry mouth
- Dizziness
- Memory Impairment
- Lack of Motivation
- Aggressive in sex
- Different lung problems because of the smoke
- Can make brain feel tired
- Mental health problems
- Dubi
- 420
- Weeds
- Joint – this is used with numbers describing how many joints they have or use.
- Smoke
- Ednis – When they want to ask someone to smoke with them
- Dew
- Doob
- Ganja
- Herb
- Magic smoke
- Pot
Posted in General and tagged Cannabis Legalization of Marijuana in the Philippines


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Last weekend I had the opportunity to join two friends and their families in celebration of their wedding at the beautiful Evans Lake near Squamish, BC. It was not your average wedding in the city: it was a three-day event, marked by wonderful people, a beautiful place and an incredible ceremony. The trip was a reminder of the rugged, natural beauty of British Columbia. Our camp at Evans Lake was situated in Paradise Valley and surrounded by a vibrant forest.
I arrived and found the families and friends roaming around near the calm lake, entertaining themselves with music and food. There were canoes and paddle boards available but I decided to sit by the water with a journal: I sat for hours writing amongst the trees and birds. On the second day, I found myself running around, swept up in the excitement of the upcoming ceremony. It took place at a beautiful forest amphitheater tucked in a natural clearing in the woods.
I felt honoured to contribute to the ceremony through Uproot's creation of handmade salvaged wood candle holders for the reception dinner centerpieces. Before the wedding, the Uproot team gathered material from John Hendry Park in Vancouver. The cuttings are a result of regular maintenance and pruning to the trees around the city but often these pieces of fallen wood go to waste. We gathered, cut and transformed these branches into beautiful pieces of artwork for the centrepieces at the dinner tables. I felt touched to contribute in a small way to the beautiful celebration.
It is easy to forget about the natural beauty that exists around us in British Columbia when living in the city, even one as dynamic as Vancouver. Evans Lake reminded me of what is worth protecting; it rejuvenated me in my love of the outdoors and my ability to play a small role in defending it. It reminded me to continue connecting, engaging and communicating with people so we can find ways to respect each other and our natural landscape. Next time you have an opportunity to stand for a moment, in the wonderful place that surrounds us, stop and think about how you can play your part in protecting it. As I considered the new family tree that had grown over the weekend, I thought it is also worth protecting, one branch at a time.


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Read Batman: Ego and Other Tails by Darwyn Cooke Free Online
Book Title: Batman: Ego and Other Tails
The author of the book: Darwyn Cooke
Edition: DC Comics
Date of issue: June 6th 2007
Language: English
Format files: PDF
The size of the: 8.63 MB
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Reader ratings: 7.3
Read full description of the books:
This is a collection of Bat-themed stories written and for the most part drawn by Darwyn Cooke, who collaborated with Ed Brubaker on his most excellent Catwoman run.
The title story finds Batman having a bout of the guilts when he feels responsible for the deaths of a Joker henchman and his family. So what does Bats do? He goes back to the Batcave and does the Tears for Fears thing and shouts, shouts, let all out because these are things Batman can do without. Come on, I'm talking to you.
Who is Batman talking to? His own worst enemy. Hisself!!
And Alfred's not around to fix him a hot toddy or caviar on toast (crusts trimmed), so it's self-psychotherapy the hard way.
Batman exploring the abyss that is his inner nutter psyche isn't anything new, but Cooke does a reasonably entertaining job with it.
The real star here is the Catwoman story, which is also available as a solo volume: Catwoman: Selina's Big Score.
Selina Kyle, the Catwoman, is presumed dead and broke and she's having no luck in Morocco, robbing museums, so it's back to Gotham in order to make a bundle the easy way – Stealing it.
Cooke gives some insight into Selina's past introducing some of her shadier acquaintances.
This one is Batman-free, although he does get called a Nancy boy by one character. Cooke stirs the brew with some fine noirish storytelling and some memorable characters. And a kick-ass Selina:
The rest of the stories are decent: "Monument" is a hoot and the other Catwoman/Batman story is cute.
Shelby's bottom line: Shelby keeps hoping for a Batman/Horsecock (from Crossed, Vol. 1) showdown and I keep telling her it ain't happening.
Boo hoo! You can stop whining now, Bruce.
Download Batman: Ego and Other Tails ERUB
Download Batman: Ego and Other Tails DOC
Download Batman: Ego and Other Tails TXT
Read information about the authorDarwyn Cooke was an Eisner Award winning comic book writer, artist, cartoonist and animator, best known for his work on the comic books Catwoman, DC: The New Frontier and Will Eisner's The Spirit.
In 1985, Cooke published his first comic book work as a professional artist in a short story in New Talent Showcase #19, but economic pressure made him leave the career and he worked in Canada as a magazine art director, graphic and product designer for the next 15 years.
In the early 1990s Cooke decided to return to comics, but found little interest for his work at the major publishers. Eventually he was hired by Warner Bros. Animation after replying to an ad placed by animator Bruce Timm.
He went on to work as a storyboard artist for Batman: The Animated Series and Superman: The Animated Series, and in 1999 he animated the main title design for Batman Beyond. He then worked as a director for Sony Animation's Men in Black: The Series for a year.
DC Comics then approached Cooke about a project which he had submitted to the publisher years earlier which eventually became Batman: Ego, a graphic novel published in 2000.
The critical success of that project led to Cooke taking on more freelance work, such as X-Force, Wolverine/Doop and Spider-Man's Tangled Web for Marvel Comics and Just Imagine... Stan Lee for DC.
In 2001, Cooke and writer Ed Brubaker teamed up to revamp the Catwoman character. They started with a 4 issue serial "Trail of the Catwoman" in Detective Comics #759-762 in which private detective Slam Bradley attempts to investigate the death of Selina Kyle (AKA Catwoman).
The story led into a new Catwoman title in late 2001 by Brubaker and Cooke, in which the character's costume, supporting cast and modus operandi were all redesigned and redeveloped. Cooke would stay on the series, which was met with critical and fan acclaim, up until issue #4. In 2002 he would write and draw a prequel, the Selina's Big Score graphic novel which detailed what had happened to the character directly before her new series.
Cover to DC: The New Frontier #6.
Cover to DC: The New Frontier #6.
Cooke's next project was the ambitious DC: The New Frontier (2004), a six issue miniseries which sought to tell an epic storyline bridging the gap between the end of the golden and the start of the silver age of comic books in the DC Universe. The story, which was set in the 1950s, featured dozens of super-hero characters and drew inspiration from the comic books and movies of the period as well as from Tom Wolfe's non-fiction account of the start of the US Space Program The Right Stuff. The major DC characters are introduced in "The New Frontier" in the same order that DC originally published them, even down to the correct month and year in the story's timeline. In 2005, Cooke won an Eisner Award for "Best Limited Series", and a Joe Shuster Award for "Outstanding Canadian Comic Book Cartoonist" for his work on the series.
Most recently, Cooke contributed to DC's artist-centric anthology project Solo. His issue (#5, June, 2005) featured several different stories in different styles with a framing sequence featuring the Slam Bradley character. In 2006, Solo #5 won an Eisner Award for "Best Single Issue."
In July 2005, it was announced that in 2006 Cooke and writer Jeph Loeb would produce a Batman/Spirit crossover, to be followed shortly afterwards by an ongoing Spirit series written and drawn by Cooke. Batman/The Spirit was ultimately published in November 2006, followed in December by the first issue of Cooke's The Spirit. In June 2007, Cooke and J. Bone won a Joe Shuster Award for "Outstanding Canadian Comic Book Artists" for their work on "Batman/The Spirit", and Cooke won "Outstanding Canadian Comic Book Cartoonist" for his work on "The Spirit".
In July 2006, it was announced that Warner Bros. Animation and DC Comics would release a series of direct-to-DVD animated movies based on important DC com
Reviews of the Batman: Ego and Other Tails
A charming book, a lot more!
Interesting read for true fans
A useful book to free yourself from negative emotions and joy.
An interesting book, Hard to tear down
Contradictory. On the one hand, it pulls in and on the other ...
Add a comment
Download EBOOK Batman: Ego and Other Tails by Darwyn Cooke Online free


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YouTube White Label Player.
Error connecting to WordPress.org.
Los Angeles WordPress Developer
YouTube White Label Player.
Error connecting to WordPress.org.
[…] YouTube White Label Shortcode allows your to generate a shortcode with the proper inputs with the simple to use generator […]
This is a great plugin, but it's not working for WP 3.1.3. The video never appears on the page. Any suggestions?
[…] of yours runs WordPress or not (of course, you don't need that for WPCandy!).Austin Passy announced his YouTube White Label shortcode plugin for WordPress.Deluxe Blog Tips created a Meta Box script for WordPress that'll help you […]
Hi, it seems that something isn't working. I uploaded the plugin and added a vid, but it won't show. I added the same vid below via JetPack and it works just fine. Any idea what the problem could be?
Just in case, here's the link:
Could you tell me what would be the HTML code if a wanted to use a vid as an element of a custom post or page rather than insert it into a post with a shortcode?
The plugin is great!
Could you please remove your rss feed from the dashboard? It's totally uncalled for.
And makes the impression of an untrusted plugin, if it does something, customers did not ask for.
Thank you.
Mick – the plugin is free, please don't look a gift horse in the mouth by complaining about an RSS feed. By all means I'm sure the plugin author would appreciate a donation if it's a plugin you are getting use out of. 🙂
Its it possible to Autostart AND MUTE?
I cant find a mute option?
where do i place the "remove_youtube_white_label_dashboard " to clean my dash,, i love the plugin. billgilberthomes.com
I having some trouble using the plugin. When I open a new post I dont have a button that will insert the code. have Atahualpa theme 3.7.3. please help
The "show info" and "branding" are set to "0" and they still appear on the video. Below is the code I am using right now for the player in question.
[youtube-white-label id="L6K7z55tJS0″ height="270″ width="480″ autohide="1″ autoplay="0″ controls="1″ branding="0″ hd="1″ rel="0″ showinfo="0″ thanks="0″ autosize="1″ border="0″ cc="0″ colorone="" colortwo="" disablekb="1″ fullscreen="1″ /]
Here is a link to where the video is on the website:
What am I doing wrong? Thank you.
Hey Austin,
Does this plugin still work with the current version of WP and any changes YT has made in the past year? Thanks-
Hi, thanks for the plugin, a little question though, the video gets the "an error occurred" message, checked everything but i can't make this work, any idea on what i might check ? Thank you !
Hi, I have installed the youtube white label shortcode plugin but I don't really know now how to use it because I just can't seem to make it work. Can you please share with me the steps to embeding a video from youtube without youtube?
Thank you
We are using this solution on PENSACOLA.COM


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Travel planning websites, forums and blogs are what first got me into the blogging world several years ago, and I thought it might be fun to share the (very detailed) trip report I wrote about our road trip. This only ever saw the light of day on a travel forum, but I tried to do a really thorough job with documenting our trip, so hopefully if anyone out there is looking to visit any of these destinations someday, you may find this useful. Or if not, maybe the pictures will be entertaining?
So here goes, our San Simeon/Grand Canyon/Las Vegas road trip details. This is going to be several posts worth (I told you it was detailed!), so bear with me!
April 11th: Drive to San Simeon
My husband (boyfriend at the time of the trip) had to go into work for a few hours before we could set off from the Bay Area, so I spent the morning getting gas and loading up the car. We left town around 1:30pm or so, to beat the Friday night traffic on highway 17, and drove down highway 1 with little traffic. We by passed most of Big Sur, since we'd been there a couple times before, but if you are making this drive I highly suggest a stop at Nepenthe for a meal, or just an appetizer (their smoked salmon is excellent). Since I was driving, I gave my DH the camera and told him to be on the lookout for condors. Last summer when we were in Big Sur, while driving down the coast on a very foggy morning, we spotted 5 or 6 California Condors just sitting on rocks near a viewpoint turnout. But I think that was a once in a lifetime opportunity, and didn't see any this time.
After we relaxed for a bit, we ordered room service, so we could eat on the balcony and watch the sunset from the room. My DH placed the order and the food came quickly, in about 25 mins. We had the crab cake appetizer, I had the fish and chips and my DH had the clam strips and chips. The food was a bit greasy, but that's to be expected with fried food. However, it was quite good, and the total was $34 before tip.
After dinner we watched the sunset from the balcony, and then walked down to the beach for a while. They were just lighting the fire pits on the bluff, but we decided to just go back up to the balcony, where we could see the fires anyway, since it was quite warm for April. There was also no wind, which was a surprise since I'd heard that April and May can be windy, and the temperature was about 80 degrees during the day, also unusual for April. We had a few drinks in the room while we watched the waves crash and the stars come out, and relaxed for the rest of our action packed vacation.
Several months before our trip I'd bought us the Hearst Castle tickets for tour 1 for $40 for the 10am tour (2008 prices). We left the hotel at about 9:20am, since the order confirmation had recommended getting there a half hour early. At about 9:30 we were parked and picking up our tickets (the Cavalier hotel is really close) and they said that we could go on the 9:40 tour instead of the 10am, so we said sure! We got in line to wait for the bus to pick us us, and it arrived right on time.
Anyway, we began the tour by going up some stairs, where you pause half way up and they give you the rules, basically, don't touch anything and no flash photography. Then we go up to a courtyard where there is a beautiful fountain and great views of the ocean and San Simeon Point and the pier down by Old San Simeon. After that it was on to the Neptune Pool, which was stunning.
So we got back in my car and drove back to San Simeon near our hotel to El Chorlito Mexican Restaurant for lunch. The service was quick since we were a little early for the lunch rush, and we were promptly seated near a window with a partial ocean view. Lunch was $30 before the tip (2008 prices), I had a chicken quesadilla and my DH had a crab quesadilla, plus two sodas each. El Chorito was just an average Mexican restaurant, nothing special but not bad, and it was quick, which was what we were looking for so we could continue with our day's activities.
After lunch we drove a few miles north of the Hearst Castle turn off to the Elephant Seal Colony. That place was amazing, we could see hundreds of seals in either direction, as far as we could see! They were so funny to watch, they'd flop/crawl about 5 feet at a time up on the beach, and then have to rest for a few minutes before they could go further up. And then they'd flip sand all over themselves, I'm guessing to warm up. They also made these cute half bark half burping sounds! I took a ton of pictures of them, and even got a neat shot of a gecko on a rock in the foreground and a huge seal in the background.
We put our name on the list for a seat out on the patio (no reservations taken) and had about a 20 minute wait at the bar. We were then seated, which was perfect timing, sunset that night was going to be at 7:36pm and we were seated at a few minutes after 7. I had already looked at the menu online and knew what I was going to get, and my DH made his decision quickly too. We started with the Sweet Potato Fries, which were to die for. I had the salmon with a fantastic walnut pesto cream sauce and my DH had a New York Steak with a cabernet sauce. I tried a bite of his and both were excellent, but I did prefer my salmon because of the sauce. I nearly finished the salmon too, which I almost never do, and was stuffed to the point of being in pain! But it was worth it. Dinner with two drinks each was $82 before tip (2008 prices).
Sunday morning we woke up, packed the car, and did the express check out. All we had to do was pick up the phone and hit the express check out button, and we were done! We headed out of town at about 8:45am, on to Arizona!
A few final notes about the Cavalier Hotel that I forgot to mention earlier, they had very nice toiletries, Neutrogena soaps, an in-room coffee maker, and also a wet bar in the bedroom area near the bed. Overall, it was probably one of the best values for the price on our trip, $351.20 including tax for two nights with the AAA discount (2008 prices).


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Wonder Lady
Sep. 09, 2017
Video trailer
Nonton film online Wonder Lady subtitle indonesia
Sinopsis film Wonder Lady :
Wonder Lady hides behind a civil identity. But suddenly, monsters began to attack the city. And by monsters I mean Jason from Friday the 13th, Terminator, Predator and the Joker. The Joker and Terminator are partners in crime. Both wants to rule the city and fuck Wonder Lady. Predator looks like and ally, but who can trust him?
Disqus: add shortname your comunity, more info


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"John, Thank you for being so efficient, thorough, and tolerant of our superstitions and sensitivities. I am sure the complicated 1031 Exchange of two relinquished for one replacement property, dealing with the private home-owners-association of our condominium, the working with the new tenet-in-common mortgage company, and the uncertainty of closing one of our previous rental property made for some teeth gnashing.
We appreciated the calmness in you steering the transactions with the ability to read in-between the lines, always looking out for hidden traps which might befall us. I am not sure my wife told you but the agent representing the seller on that very first house she loved in the Fall of 2015 said you were one of the few agents who read everything she provided. We appreciated your diligence.
Finally, thank you also for unlocking my wife out of the master bathroom on our newly acquired house. Sincerely, DJ" – Doug Joe
"We needed to sell our Bernal home-but we both lived in cities far away from SF. What are two busy, far-flung homeowners to do? John LePage to the rescue!
Working by phone and email he guided us through the steps to prepare and market our property, soothed our 1st time seller jitters, jumped in when neither one of us could make a decision or solve a problem, and generally became a trusted family member for the months it took to get our house on the market and sold.
In person he was just as patient, good humored and hard working.
John LePage knows his stuff and his reassuring manner and steady intelligence made the whole experience seem almost easy.
I'd recommend John with enthusiasm." – Ashley Wolff
"John represented us when we sold our 1 bedroom condo in the Mission in July of 2015. We did extremely well from a financial perspective, and I attribute much of our success to following John's advice. He was always thoughtful and thorough when responding to my many many questions. He is very organized and I always felt I could trust him. Aside from him being a sound advisor throughout the whole process, he went above and beyond what I would have expected from an agent.
When we began the process to look for an agent in early April, we had recently moved to Toronto, and our unit was tenant occupied. As we were also looking to buy in Toronto, my agent here sought out the best of the best in San Francisco and thankfully referred us to John. From start to finish, we managed to avoid having to make the trip to San Francisco once. Without being able to be onsite, we were unable to take care of many responsibilities that would normally fall to a landlord/seller at this time. John coordinated a kitchen remodel, the staging/painting, cleaning, a fridge repair, and even took some trips to the hardware store. By the end of it, I'd imagine he and my tenants were friends.
What more could a seller ask for in an agent than a kind, intelligent, experienced, responsible agent who goes above and beyond and in the end, manages to get you the best sale price possible? Look no further than John LePage." – Michael Nathanson
"John is excellent!!! — I recommend him most highly. We have been looking for a new house now for five years and finally closed on our new house thanks to John. He engaged with us — admittedly picky buyers — to hone in on what was worth seeing. He would scout out houses for us and then recommend seeing the ones that fit. Initially we had a few heated conversations driven by our frustration with the compromises required in this market. John took our feedback graciously and kept refining our search as he got to know us better and better.
Once we decided to bid on a house John was phenomenal. He is highly motivated and proactive, going above and beyond the ordinary in tracking down questions we had. He is highly communicative and had a great sense of compassion for us as we worked through the inevitable issues associated with buying property.
So in summary you won't find better than John. We had a great and successful experience with him" – Anthony Woolf
"Three words to describe John. Simply the best!
We bought our first home with John helping us every single step of the way. We'd heard horror stories about buying in San Francisco. Friends would tell us things like, "It's so expensive" or "we keep getting outbid" or "we've been looking for two years and keep losing out to all cash offers, well over asking price." On and on it went. It was intimidating and scary to hear so many unable to get into their dream home – or any home at all for that matter! Nonetheless, we were determined to find the right home and knew that a lot of it was contingent on finding the right Real Estate Agent.
After 5 Realtors, I stumbled upon Zephyr Realty and instantly liked John. He sat down with me (and my newborn son), pulled out a map of the city and walked me through various neighborhoods. John explained the pros and cons of each. He gave me a great overview. He also listened carefully to what I wanted, namely a place large enough to have room for my mother to live with us should she choose, my husband to have room should he need to get away and my son to have room to run, play and grow. Lots of room. In the city. Beautiful. Oh, and keep it within budget. It was a pretty tall order.
John didn't flinch. Within 24 hours, not only did I have listings in my inbox, I also had asking and selling prices for homes close to what we were looking for. This was terrific. It gave us a very good idea about what to expect in the market. What impressed me most however was that John listened. He sent us listings that accommodated what we were looking for; size, budget, neighborhoods. Other Real Estate Agents I worked with sent over what they thought would work for us. John sent what we wanted. Many of which were below our budget. That's integrity.
Low and behold as we were flipping through the listings one evening, there she was. The house of our dreams. WOW, she was a stunner. We knew this needed to be our home. John set us up for a showing the following day. Unfortunately, although we could view the home, offers were already in. The competition was on!
Within 5 minutes of being in the house, we were convinced that this needed to be our home. Game on! John called the listing Realtor and our Loan Officer right away. He was quick, he got the ball was rolling. Although, there were offers on the table, some higher than ours, John was tenacious. He worked on our behalf and persevered in working closely with our Lender. They were tigers.
As I said, we'd never bought a house before so had no idea what to do. We had a million questions. John was patient and walked us through everything. He never faltered. Things were happening so fast. Yet, John took time to make sure we understood everything and gave us a head's up about things we didn't know to ask.
John was truly a joy to work with. He proved that having the right Real Estate Agent is integral to getting into the house you want. We actually had fun learning about the buying process and going through the intensity of it. Low and behold, in less than 4 weeks after seeing our house, we moved in. Unbelievable.
Thank you, John! We love, love, love our home.
John LePage. Simply the Best." – Carol Grunberg
"John was a pleasure to work with and always on point.
He took the time to listen to what we needed and coached us through our first property purchase in the USA in a very professional manner.
He never pressured us or was tired of our endless questions or emails.
He was honest in his approach and advised us without ever making us feel clueless.
John was very responsive and easy to get a hold of (even after purchase when we had a lot of questions as first time buyers).
He felt dedicated to getting us a home and made time through his busy schedule even at a very tight view-offer-escrow-close of 30 days. I will be happy to work with him again in the future. Great work and a fine person :)" – Mirto Hamon
"John LePage is a true professional. As my listing agent John brought a level of professionalism of which I was thoroughly impressed and beyond completely satisfied with. My need to relocate to the East Coast was immediate and John was able to handle all necessary duties in my absence while keeping me completely informed, sometimes 4 or 5 times a day. From packers, staging, shippers, paperwork and inspections, John had everything completely under control and most importantly me confident in the sales process.
Upon my final trip back to San Francisco to deal the deal, John had every detail covered from cleaning, painting touch-ups and even all key, remotes, and other minute details covered ensuring a smooth and completely agreeable final inspection on the buyer's end as well! John's thoroughness even allowed me to enjoy my last two and a half days in San Francisco without a single worry.
Hats off to John LePage!!!" – Scott Ruhl
"My husband and I were going to remodel our house until the neighbors painted their house Pepto Bismol pink with teal accents and we realized our planed beautiful rooftop garden would be staring right at that.
On a whim we took a day to look at a couple of open houses. We met several competent realtors – I'm sure they would have been fine to help us but several blew us off or didn't take our inquiries seriously… Until we met John LePage.
He listened to what we were looking for, why the house he was showing didn't quite fit and then he offered to show us a few he thought might work for us and 'Did we have a realtor.'
We went from exploring but doubting to 'Yes! We're moving tomorrow!' In one afternoon.
John listened closely to what we needed, he came to our current house and noted what we loved and what we wanted improved, all before he presented the first houses for us to visit. He saved us from visiting the homes we've now termed the 'blandification of San Francisco' and presented homes with amazing personalities all within our budget range.
Even without there being much on the market, John worked doggedly and within two weeks we had found the perfect house for us. He guided us through the application process and helped us get our bid in before a war started on our dream house and to our amazement… We got the house!!
Before most of our friends knew we were considering moving we were the proud owners of a beautiful historic San Francisco home at a reasonable price.
The next step was selling our current house. John walked us through the little
tweaks and improvements and staging and boy did it all pay off!! We had a number we were dreaming of and John's knowledge roped us 500K above that!!! We couldn't believe the number of offers that poured in and we credit John for all of them. By the time we had finished we discovered we had traded our existing home for the same price as our new home and had gained 1,000 sq feet in a quieter neighborhood complete with all of the amenities we always dreamed of having.
I can't recommend John highly enough for his patience, competence and all around market knowledge. Wether you are buying or selling, do yourself a favor and hire the best, you won't regret it!" – Lee & Rebecca Jakrel
"John is a terrific real estate agent. I've worked with him as a listing agent and a buying agent. To be honest, at first I had second thoughts about listing with him. He is so easygoing that I was concerned that he might not be able to get a good price. I should not have worried. He provided advice on all aspects of the sales process — from staging to pricing. I listened to what he said, and we achieved top dollar, (and set the benchmark for the neighborhood).
As a buying agent he was tireless. You know how crazy the market is. We looked at countless properties, and he was always able to track down the information I needed to make decisions. I made offers on multiple properties, and each time he worked hard to get them accepted (when they weren't it had nothing to do with John). When I finally went into contract, there were several unexpected complications. John worked through them all and we were able to close.
Throughout the process, John was very easy to work with. He was always available — even returning calls promptly when on vacation — dependable and honest. I would highly recommend him as an agent." – Marc Jablonski
"John represented me in the purchase of my first ever home, and was a pleasure to work with. He was diligent, extremely responsive (email responses within minutes whether late at night or early in the morning), took the time to understand my likes and dislikes, careful to not waste my time showing properties I was unlikely to care for, and very knowledgeable about the nuances of San Francisco neighborhoods.
John knew my preferences well enough that he was confident that I would love the place I ended up buying, and was honest, thorough and helpful in negotiating the transaction for a hotly contested, brand new house.
I recommend John without hesitation and would definitely work with him again!" – Vineet Buch
"John is fantastic- I'd give him 6 stars if possible!
John helped me purchase a condo in San Francisco in 2012 and it was truly as enjoyable of an experience as real estate transactions can be. He was professional, attentive, diligent, knowledgeable, hard-working, and the list goes on. John's number one attribute in my opinion is that he is very honest….and that's not always the case in real estate.
John was impressive from the beginning- he patiently helped me narrow down my priority list and focus on the things I really wanted in a property. He guided me through the trenches of a hyper-competitive SF market with a calm, patient demeanor. His tremendous knowledge of the market, latest trends, value, and price points were essential in closing my home- a short sale at a good price. He also provided me quality referrals – from the escrow agent to the locksmith, everyone he suggested was of the highest quality.
I rave about John to everyone I know or meet who is contemplating real estate in SF, and plan to contact him for my next transaction whenever that may be. He has my highest respect and endorsement! You can't go wrong with John LePage!" – Julianne Wojciak
"I just closed on the acquisition of a great home and worked exclusively with John LePage on the search & acquisition.
John helped craft the offer with some aggressive seller leaseback provisions designed to show the seller we really wanted the home. As a result, the seller chose to work with just us as opposed to the other 2 bidders (whose bids were higher). John had great insight & advice on the neighborhood, and showed me a great number of properties. He quickly got an understanding of what I was looking for and was very focused in the properties he presented to me fitting my criteria. John was spot on in the amount we should offer. He knows his market extremely well & it shows.
John was extremely patient & calm even when others were not. Some parties in the transaction were frequently very difficult & unreasonable, but John would stay calm & focused on the goal of getting me the home I wanted. I told John he was a saint through it all & deserved a halo!
I have purchased a number of properties including 3 very recently. John's performance really stands out. On an earlier transaction a different realtor didn't listen to me and it was very frustrating. It is so important to have someone like John who listens and keeps it focused on what I wanted and never wasted my time. John is a consummate professional. I cannot imagine working with anyone else after this experience. " – L. Gregory Scott, CPA
"We just bought a property with John's help. While this is our third house, buying a property is never easy. John made it work. He is really easy to work with, flexible, very diligent, and most of all, honest.
This purchase was by far our most difficult because of unexpected financing complications as well as working with the short sale bank. John work tirelessly to make it happen. When we want to sell, we will go back to John"–Yang J.
"First off, I will like to say that John was the listing agent for the property I purchased. It is not usual for buyers to write listing agents a review, but if you read on, you will soon find out why I had to do it. My wife and I were first time home buyers in a crazy SF market. Usually listing agents we have dealt with were very aloof in this sellers market, not giving us the time of day. (We tend to tour open houses without our agent).John was the total opposite. He was really patient and understanding with our silly newbie questions. Even when we were in contract, he will come by to open the door for us, so that we could take measurements to make sure our furniture will fit. During the house inspection, he made sure to tell our inspector to go to the roof and ensure everything was okay. He also made sure that the inspector checked the state of the bathroom tiles, because he knew that another unit in the condo had issues with the piping. Wow, how often does the listing agent give recommendations to the buyer on what to look out for when buying? Finally, during the final walkthrough inspection, I noticed deep gouges in the brand new hardwood floor. This was probably done by the staging folks as they moved their furniture out of the unit. John volunteered without asking to take care of it and made sure we would not have to worry about it at all. I was completely floored by the level of his professionalism and service. If I were to sell or buy a property I would highly recommend him as an agent". – Tsu Chuang
"My boyfriend and I were moving across the country and looking to buy our first house together. John was recommended by a friend and for that we are eternally grateful. John introduced us to many neighborhoods across the city and helped us to narrow down the place that fit our needs and lifestyle. The process for finding our place took many cross-country trips and consisted of taking many weekends away from John. He was always willing to give us the extra time and to help us to weigh all of our options. This review is long overdue but I would recommend him to anyone who was looking to buy a house. We are very fortunate to have met John and very thankful to him for helping us find a home." – Scott Effler
"John did an amazing job helping me purchase a home in San Francisco in 2011. I'll be honest – I'm not the easiest buyer to work with – I had a long list of must haves and I was only open to a home in a couple very specific locations — but John saw me through the process. The reality is that San Francisco is a tough real estate market – most quality listings get multiple offers and it's pretty scary when you're bidding over asking to know if you're doing the right thing. John did the
research and actually counseled me a couple of times to bid lower than I was willing to go – he wanted to make sure I got a fair deal — he was not just interested in a sale at any price. It's a bummer when you get outbid and I got frustrated more than once but I'm glad I got a house that I love AND is a good investment. Bottom line, I will use him again in the future -that's the best recommendation I could give." – Greg Sugar
"This is my fourth home in San Francisco, and by far John LePage is the finest
most attentive professional person I have had the pleasure of dealing with.
John is amazing, always on his phone and email, and honest and fun to work
with!!!! How many people are professional enough you can trust handling your
negotiation, yet you can have a celebratory glass of champagne with. Again thank
you John for making the SF real estate market enjoyable and doable again. I
would recommend your services to anyone!!!" – Alex F.
"John LePage is one of the most effective real estate agents I've worked with during my 20 years of real estate investing. John recently helped me prepare, market and sell four TIC units in San Francisco. We were able to get top dollar for the units in a very challenging market. John is very thorough and extremely trustworthy – he always does what he says he will in a timely and professional manner. John gave excellent advice and was always available. I highly recommend John LePage for your real estate needs." – Paul Holm, The Holm Group
"We recently purchased a TIC with John LePage as our realtor. Although we have purchased real estate in the past, this was our first purchase in San Francisco. We were extremely fortunate to have John represent us and to help us navigate through the complexities of a TIC. John is the ultimate professional. No matter how many questions we had, he never made us feel that our questions were trivial. He consistently replied to my e-mails and phone messages within minutes and anticipated any problems that had the potential to arise. Unlike some realtors, we never felt pressured from John. In fact, despite the enormous amount of time John spent on our behalf, he reassured us that our comfort with the purchase was more important than his sale. We appreciate John's diligence and attention to detail. We have total trust in him." – Irene & Doug Joe
"We worked with John LePage for over a year as he patiently listened to our needs and guided us through the complexities of the San Francisco real estate market. John is exceedingly knowledgeable and helpful. He was able to figure out our needs and find a variety of properties for us to tour and consider. He was always accessible and gracious. From start to finish he was the consummate professional. When it came time to put in an offer, he helped negotiate a true bargain, assisted with arranging the financing, and made sure the closing was completed without a hitch. We recommend with the highest regard." – Dr. Tom Hyde & Paul Meyers
"Dear John, I was talking with someone the other day and mentioned Zephyr Realty. Without any hesitation I told them to contact you if they are looking to buy a home. You helped me pick out places to start my search for a condo, information about the neighborhoods, things to look for (and avoid!) in a home and most importantly, made the suggestion to consider buying a duplex with a friend as a way to get more bang for my buck. All of your hard work with a smile got me where I am today, sharing a house with a good friend and some fun projects ahead of us. And you managed to do it all while remembering that magical word "affordable"! You took your fair share of time with us to answer questions, ask questions we hadn't even thought of, and probably learning way too much about how to handle a pair of overly inquisitive home buyers with questions day and night. We can't thank you enough for all your help from start until finish. You stuck around with us even after the closing when we had some more questions and pointed us in the right direction every time. You can be sure your name comes up often when we talk to friends who are considering making a home purchase. Any time someone needs a calm, informed and friendly hand, we'll send them to John LePage!" – John & Jason
"Having owned a home before in the Bay area, and searching for one in SF/Oakland for the last two years, I've worked with many real estate brokers and strongly feel most offer absolutely zero value for money and are simply out to make a fast buck at your expense.
John stands out as a complete exception. He knew the market, and once we found a property, took time to appreciate our assessment and point of view, gave us realistic guidance, and then actively negotiated on our behalf from that vantage point to get us the best deal possible. He never tried to talk us out of our position, or simply go through the motions of putting an offer in without any legs…from the get-go, he was involved 100% and we truly felt he was on OUR side.
During the close process also, he was extremely pro-active in recommending what we research and personally accompanied us in reviewing permits etc. And even after we closed and moved in, he remained fully committed to making sure we were satisfied and happy with our purchase. In addition, he was highly personable, warm, and focused on excellent service. At no point did we feel this was simply another transaction for him to get in and out of quickly.
In short, money very well spent, and a pleasure having him on our side in this process. I'm already recommending him to those interested in looking for a place in SF." – Ashish & Namrata Gupta


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|Dresden Fans, polyester, unknown maker, Texas, c. 1975, 82" x 96"
Solid color fabrics can make a quilt look modern, but there's nothing new about that idea. Some of America's earliest geometric pieced quilts were made with all solid color fabrics. Solids came back at several points -- some folks would say they never really went away -- but they were back in full force in the 1970s, when this Dresden Fans quilt was most likely made.
The quilt came from one of my favorite online quilt dealers, Susan Watson, who found several of the great polyester quilts in my collection. Susan's sister, Marjorie Childress, is one of my favorite collectors. The fans quilt is polyester, machine pieced and machine quilted, backed and bound in off-white cotton muslin and embellished with red zigzag stitching. It is 82" x 96".


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The Weekly Weigh-In: January 21
January 21, 2012 at 10:00 am Leave a comment
Week #3
Loss this week: 2.2 pounds
Total lost since 12/30/2011: 2.2 pounds
I will admit upfront: this week I have not worked out once. I haven't eaten badly but I haven't eaten well. And I lost 2.2 pounds. The scale is a cruel mistress.
Somewhere this past week, I lost my mojo. My want-to mojo, that is. Somehow this third week of the year has kicked my mood and my energy levels all over the place.
Ashley isn't sleeping this week, which means I'm not sleeping this week. So all I want to do is lie down and take a nap. The thought of even putting my shoes on to go for a workout is exhausting. Tuesday & early Wednesday morning, she was also running a fever, which meant no Kids Zone for us those two days. Sure, I could have gone to the Y without the kids after Brad got home in the evenings, but I was in my comfy clothes and it was cold and I just. didn't. wanna.
Anyone need an excuse for not working out? Because evidently I have extra to spare.
One success I did have this week: I planned our meals. And I've stuck with the plan. Meal planning is good for both my waistline and our budget. I've also found that when I plan, it's not 5:30 and I'm stressing about what to fix for dinner. Instead, I've gotten meat out to defrost in the mornings and prepped supper in the afternoons. Then all I have to do is throw it in and let it cook. So much more organized than my usual last-minute scramble to get something on the table.
My goal for this week? Journal every single bite that goes into my mouth, even if it means I go over on my allotted calories. I have a tendency to quit writing stuff down if I see it's going to put my numbers in the red. Progress, not perfection. That's the goal.
Entry filed under: A weighty matter.
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Hi everyone! It's been quite a while since I've posted here. I'm getting a bit healthier, so I thought I'd show the last 2 posts from the Tuesday Stitchers blog, where I've been posting weekly.
Two weeks ago at our Guild meeting, we painted on fabric and then began to embroider the painted designs.
I used my fabric paints to add colour.
I finished both roosters on the tea towel.
Rooster #1
Rooster #2
The tea towel is now ironed and bagged ready for the Fiber Fest.
Then I completed the stitching on the flying plant. I may add a bit more colour, perhaps in a red- orange.
On the left is the original stencil painting in one shade of a greyed pink. This was done in a dry-brush technique.
As you look from left to right, you can see the different stages of painting with the markers.
I'm looking forward to seeing how it looks with all the stitching completed.
Two initials await needle and thread. They may become wee pin cushions.
I hope to get back to my wrapping cloth pieces soon, but there are a few projects I've been working on that must remain secret for now.
This sunset was outside my kitchen window a couple days ago. I love the warm glow!
Hope you've had a fun and creative week.
Thanks for visiting.
Hugs from Suz


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How to Identify and Choose Good Investments
Researching the stocks that you would want to invest in can be challenging for a new investor. It is not as complicated as may seem if you are conversant with statements of finance. Some starters in stock market are capable of doing good study and decide on what works to their advantage. To be able to make the right selections, you need to understand some facts about stocks and investments.
You should never choose to invest in stock without understanding the business. Owning stocks is equivalent to having a business. The companies that issue stock are supposed to produce and print public reports. Before investing, conduct a thorough investigation through the help of the public prints in the market.
Study closely the financial performance of numerous investment firms, that is available publicly, and decide on the areas you would wish to capitalize. At times it may be difficult to analyze the information provided in these reports, to be on the safe edge, seek the guidance of a trusted financial consultant. The consultant will guide you in understanding the public financial prints, and it will assist you in future It is possible to calculate the net worth of a company through their annual financial reports. It may challenge you in the initial stages on how depreciation, accounting goodwill and diluted shares outstanding apply in the stock market. But you will be able to interpret them in future.
Before you decide to invest, and you should be aware of the crucial issues. You should be able to understand when stock prices are valued fairly. Be able to predict the situations that will result to a downturn as well as knowing the human decision making process.
Stock value position can be dictated by the activities in the market. Before choosing to invest, you should compare stocks actual price versus its fair value. Combine the asset value of the company available in the balance sheet minus liabilities and devaluation to get the stock fair price. Apparently, you can choose to use find the intrinsic price of the business. It is however, essential to ascertain the true position of the stock price prior to spending.
Inside each person, there is emotional and logical component.When making investment decisions, understand that there is another person selling what you want to buy or buying what you are selling.Make sure you have the facts at hand to help you make the best and viable judgement.
Understanding the modalities of stock market operations, will assist you before committing to spend, the prices are never constant and vary from time to time. To be safe consider adding protection and be certain that the company you are investing in is worth. As a beginner, it will take you some time before you understand the stocks in the financial markets. Find a trustworthy persons for guidance.
A Quick Overlook of Stocks – Your Cheatsheet


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David's Song
Welcome to my blog April. Thank you for taking the time to answer a few questions about yourself, your book David's Song, and your business.
Q. Tell us about you latest work – title, genre, etc., - and why you wrote it?
A. By the latest work, I guess you mean David's Song. I have a hard time pinpointing a genre for this work because it's not traditional romance, even though it has plenty of romantic elements to it... But it also has some women's fiction elements as well. So I think it's some kind of blend. I wrote it after having an experience that made me think about choices I had made in my life and how those choices affected my future. Does that make sense?
Q. What draws you to you genre(s)? Why is this type of story compelling to you?
A. I love, love, love stories about relationships – and kind. Whether it's between parents and children, friends, siblings, or my favourite, between men and women, I love watching how relationships grow and change. The more I can get involved in a characters struggles and growth, the happier I am. I'd rather learn through their struggles than through my own mistakes.
Q. What is your writing process like? Do you map the whole thing out or do you just let it unfold?
A. When I start a project, I usually have an end in mind...something I want to accomplish. Then, I just start writing. At some point in the process I usually do map out where the story is going just to keep me from wandering off on a tangent. I do find that characters have minds of their own and the farther I get into a story; the more they like to surprise me. It's kind of fun! But sometimes I have to rein them in and direct them to the end I want.
Q. What kind of research was involved?
A. There wasn't really much research involved with David's Song . I used locations I was familiar with. I did do a little internet research on trends of the 80's and 90's.
Q. How much of YOU makes it into your characters?
A. This question made me laugh, because people believe Jeremy is based off of my husband. When in truth, both David and Jeremy have qualities that my husband possesses. As for me – I relate well to Annie and her shyness around men. I think she has done a better job of growing out of that than I have. I am still incredibly uncomfortable in a group of men. I just don't know what to talk about. I believe that every writer builds characters from people they know and from their own experiences.
Q. How do you balance the need to have time to write with the needs of family, society, etc.,?
A. I am fortunate that most of my family is grown. My two youngest children are in school full time. So I tend to organize my other responsibilities in the morning. Now that I've said that – if I get in a particularly intense moment in my writing, all bets are off.
Q. Have there been any authors in particular, that inspired your writing?
A. I can't think of any. Of course I love Jane Austin (who doesn't?), but I would never presume to compare my writing to hers. I also love Shakespeare – because he tells such compelling stories. I someday would like to be able to draw characters as compelling as his.
Q. Is there a story you want to tell behind or about your work(s)?
A. The seeds of David's Song began when I ran into a man who I had had a giant crush on in my early college days. We were casual friends, but nothing more ever developed from that friendship. When I saw him again (it had been nearly 25 years since we had last spoken) I was pleased that he remembered me. Of course, because I had had such a crush, I never forgot him. We only spoke for a few moments. I met his wife and his oldest son. And then I walked away wondering what would have happened if I had not changed schools all those years ago. In changing schools, I met my husband and we married. It was several years later when this old crush of mine finally married. The questions that arose from that meeting gave rise to Annie's journey in David's Song.
Q. What other projects re you currently working on or about to start?
A. Well, David's Song is the first of a trilogy. The next book in that series, Jeremy's Promise, I am hoping to publish later this year. The entire trilogy is written and in various stages of revisions and polishing. I also have another novel, entitled The Night is Gone, that is also being revised at the moment. The Night is Gone is a YA novel about a young man struggling to overcome a drug addiction. He's seeking a way to forgive himself and to find forgiveness from his family and God. I am hoping to submit that novel to a contest later this fall. I have two other novels in progress. One is historical in nature – a romance. The other is, not sure how to describe it – it's still in the beginning stages.
Q. Could you share some of your marketing strategies? Which ones are the most effective in your opinion?
A. This Bookblast/ Blog Tour is my first real attempt at marketing. I have done a couple Goodreads.com giveaways, but not much else. I'm just getting my feet wet in the marketing area.
Again, thanks April for taking the time to share your knowledge with us. We appreciate you and your work.Good luck with your current and future publications.
"Are you alright?" he asked. I couldn't believe that he was coming into perfect form and I was starting to fall apart. I couldn't answer him. I didn't need to. He could see the anxiety all over me. He took my face in both of his hands. "Annie, we're back in the classroom. We're just having fun. Winning doesn't matter." His smile grew wide, his blue eyes intense. "It's just for fun!"
I nodded and tried a few more deep breaths. Just for fun, I told myself.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, finalist number 241!"
I forced a smile as David led me to the long right corner of the dance floor. The crowd was cheering loudly. He stood before me in waltz position, his hand extended and inviting.
"Annie, do you want to dance?" he said quietly, a gleam in his eye.
I wanted to cry. "David, I would love to dance," I said, and I stepped into his arms. Suddenly the audience melted away. The judges, the competition disappeared. The lights above the dance floor that had felt so intense before began to narrow and drift far away into those radiant November stars I had dreamt about. David swept me into the trance of an exalted waltz. We were alone. Alone with the music. Alone with our steps. Alone in the grace of each other's arms.
A psychologically subtle, yet compelling tale about how the instinct and need for love overcomes self-doubt and personal inadequacy.
About Author
April R Talley was born and raised in the Rubber City, Akron, Ohio in 1959. She is the youngest of six children. She attended Brigham Young University for a time, but withdrew to work fulltime for Osmond Productions in Orem, Utah as a member of The Osmond production staff. After a brief stint working in television, she returned to Akron to finish her education. She graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Mass Media Communications in 1981. April later worked as vice president and part owner of a dance and sportswear boutique. Married in 1982, she is the proud mother of seven children and is deeply involved in volunteer work for her church. April spends her time working on future projects, caring for home and family, and traveling. David's Song is her debut novel and the first of a trilogy.


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It's been a great Sunday of getting organized, reading blogs, relaxing, Good Willing! I purchased 5 large frames, an entry way table, and 2 wall shelves for $20! All painted (or to be painted) and transformed to something adorable!
To be painted:
Imagine: wall hanging stacked with cute vases, pictures, and figurines! ($2.99)
These half moon tables are actually difficult to find — and when you do find them, they are at least $40-$50! I picked this beauty up for $10 today — still deciding what color to paint! Suggestions???
8 hours ago, this shelf/hook combo was a hideous brick red color and covered in sheep & teddy bears. One coat of paint later, instant modern & practical. ($4.99) Pink Vase ($.99)
Who doesn't love frames? I have them EVERYWHERE. Some with pictures, some with awesome textiles, and some…. just empty! I picked up 5 frames of different sizes today ($.99-$2.99). You just can't beat it if you're willing to take a couple extra minutes to paint. I picked up a couple other vases and candle stick holders also. Good day.
1 Problem: I get so consumed with these fun little projects that I
accidentally neglect things like… say… laundry & dusting… and showering (hence, the post title).
Yikes! 😮
I did, however, brush my teeth… that's good, right? 🙂 And cooked a slammin' meal!
Here's hoping for shorter/less stressful work days this week so I can make up for it! xo


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I design and facilitate engaging keynotes, workshops, retreats, and conferences
and consult on a variety of leadership and organizational development topics.
My Simple Business Blueprint
For the first five years I was a co-founder and partner (with Karyn Nishumura Sneath) of a leadership development practice called like minded people. Since 2002 I have been flying solo as the president and CEO of Idea Architects. And I have a confession to make.
I've never created a business plan.
I don't set annual goals or goals for any other timeframe.
I don't actively monitor current financial projections compared to the same time last year.
I don't spend any money on advertising.
I don't try to get a certain # of clients or hit certain revenue targets.
In other words, I don't do much of what many people would say is required in order to be successful in business. But after 20+ years, I'm OK with the approach Karyn and I initiated and that I've continued in my own work, a framework influenced by the many mentors and role models I've been fortunate to have in my professional career.
Do good work.
Price it fairly.
Be generous to others. Share.
Keep learning. Diversify sources.
If the contracting is painful, the work will be worse. Take a pass.
The best self-promotion is your work.
Don't discount price. Add more value.
Never violate core values.
Don't do work for/with mean people.
Contribute and help advance the profession and other professionals.
Be grateful.
Your mileage might vary, particularly if you have a need to make a whole lot of money fast. But if you want to be around for the long haul, you could do a lot worse than these principles.
3 comments:
- Bob said...
You can't lose with a business blueprint like that, Jeffrey. Congratulations!
- Dave C. said...
Jeffry -
Great stuff in your plan ..er.. I mean blueprint. ; ) The only hiccup I had while processing the list is sometimes the folks in charge of contracts can make it painful, but then they disappear during the project and you end up working with some pretty wonderful people.
- Jeffrey Cufaude said...
Dave: That's a really great point. Although I was referring more to the process than the person.
What I have found is that if getting to the work is a real pain (back and forth over legalese and the like) the work itself often mirrors that minutiae.
That said some projects (and some professionals) may require more significant contracting than what my work entails.


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Zumba Flat Rock Alabama
Looking for Zumba Flat Rock Alabama and the surrounding local area? Check out the links below for the best Classes and suppliers of Dance and Fitness Wear in the Flat Rock Alabama area...
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Bali, Bullfighting and the Big Red Design Myth
When we were in Bali I mentioned to Karen how It must be difficult for local businesses to survive over there for very long. On one hand you have the storefronts that line the streets, covered in loud banners and signage, all vying desperately for your attention. And on the other hand you have the the seemingly infinite lines of nameless market stalls that all appear to be selling the exact same thing. From a design standpoint, they're either screaming at you or they're saying nothing at all.
That got me thinking. Then just the other day, I had a conversation that went something like this:
Client: "Just one more thing. That part under the last box. Can we have that in red?"
Me: "Do you mean the part that's already bold and underlined?" (already in questionable territory at this point)
Client: "That's the one."
Me: "Do you mean you want it red instead?"
Client: "No we want it red as well."
Me: "So you want it bold and underlined...and red."
Client: "You got it!"
Me: "I see..."
I remember when I used to work for a local newspaper, ad requests would come through and the staff in marketing would make special note that the client wants the majority of the ad in bold, red text. They often also wanted some kind of red outline or a red band or a red button or something else that looked terrible...but it was always red.
Their thought process, I presumed, was that if their ad was as loud as possible then people would have to take notice of it. Except when the ad eventually reached the page, everyone else had the same idea. So all their shouting got lost in a mess of bold, red text and it just made you want to look somewhere else. There's a famous quote by designer Art Webb who said "If you make everything bold, nothing is bold". So true.
And why red? Why do we always default to the same colour? The problem lies in a common misconception about design which makes me think of a similar misconception about bullfighting. Yes, random, I know. This is unfortunately how my mind works.
People think that the colour red makes the bull angry, thus the reason they charge at the matador's cape rather than trampling the matador himself (as I wish they would since bullfighting is a terrible thing). But the colour of the cape has nothing to do with it. He's not going after the cape because it's red, he's going after it because it's moving when everything else is still. It's doing something different to get his attention.
It's the same with design. Every colour has its use, but there's not one magical colour code that flips a switch in the brains of your audience and demands attention. Regardless of colour, contrast is what draws the eye.
If everyone else is shouting, try a whisper.
Enjoy the blog? Like it, share it or leave a comment. We'll try not to let it go to our heads.


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Planning a visit to the Badger State? If so, be sure to visit the Escape To Wisconsin website. The official Web site of the Wisconsin Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus and your portal to Wisconsin's top destinations.
Our team of website developers are excited about the recent launch of the new, responsive website for the WACVB.
The Escape To Wisconsin site is a great place to start when searching for Wisconsin travel destinations, things to do in Wisconsin, visitor and travel guides and tourism information to make your vacation planning a breeze.
To see what else our team of web developers have been up to visit our website and check out our portfolio.


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Oh how I LOVE this sweet, adorable family! I have known them for a few years now, since Katie's (now) middle child, Victoria used to go to preschool with my son Aiden, they were best buds back then (Kindergarten and different schools has since separated them for now but I am sure we will be getting them together to play soon). Such a kind, loving family the M family is. When I heard about Katie's pregnancy with Dylan Daniel I was over the moon for them! What a blessing he is to their family.
I truly loved photographing them for Dylan's in-home newborn and family session in early January. He was only 13 days old then and what a little stud muffin too. At first he wanted to be wide awake for his photos, but toward the end I always win and just like with all of my newborn sessions, Dylan Daniel gave in to the wrap and white noise and was sound asleep for the second half of his session. I love that part the best, when they are curly and sound-fully snoozing. Their little faces and breathing is so mesmerizing and relaxing to me! Newborns are the best.
Thank you again M family for letting me capture this love! I hope you enjoy your photos for many years to come and I can't wait to see your family again soon. xoxo
If you are pregnant and would like to book a maternity and/or newborn photo session, I have some AMAZING packages just for you! You can either click on the Pricing tab above or email me at firstname.lastname@example.com or call me at (949) 355-3060 to get more information and a free phone consultation to customize a session that is perfect for YOU and your family. I typically book newborns while you are still pregnant (around 7 months along actually), if you are further along than that or JUST had your newborn please feel free to contact me to see my booking availability. Newborns are photographed between 4-14 days old usually. If you have any questions please let me know, I would love to be your family/newborn photographer.


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Have you ever thought that playing long format 501 is the key to improving your performance in tournament play? Does the best 2 out of 3, single elimination format leave you wishing you had more of a chance to prove yourself? Would you like to have singles events that prepare you for more competitive levels of play? Would you like see a better payout structure for dart events?
If you said "yes" to any of these questions you will want to look into participating in a Major League Darts local or tour event. There will be a Major League Darts Local Event at the Bench Warmer on Saturday April 2, 2011 @ 12noon. Online registration and other details can be found at:
Register early as there will only be 28 spots available.
Pass the word to about this event to everyone you know that plays darts.
Want to host your own local event? Visit:


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Did you know that we kidnapped Irina Nita? Now, before any of my Romanian readers call the police or ask Interpol to put out an all points bulletin, I hasten to inform you that Irina asked us to kidnap her. We only complied with her request by hijacking the Washington portion of the International Visitors Leadership (IVL) program that has just taken her to the U.S. for three weeks.
My readers outside Romania are probably asking, "Who is Irina Nita and what is this about kidnapping and hijacking?" Let me explain.
Irina Nita is executive director of ACCEPT, the Romanian national NGO for advancement of LGBT rights. I've had some involvement with ACCEPT for several months now, but I only met Irina about three weeks ago when I sat down to interview her for my U.S. Embassy report on the current situation and prospects for transgender individuals in Romania. At the end of our conversation, I asked if there was anything I could do for her, and she proceeded to tell me that she hopes to organize a specialist conference on transgender legal and medical issues in Bucharest next year. She said should would like to have American participation in this workshop but had no knowledge of or contacts in the U.S. transgender community. She asked if I could help her. She then added that she was about to travel to the U.S. on an IVL program sponsored by the U.S. State Department.
That was all I needed to get started on a hijack plan, but I knew I could not do it alone. I'm a beginner at this sort of thing, and I needed professional help for an operation of this sort. I turned to my "Oceans Eleven" team consisting of Anne Vonhof at the Office of Personnel Management, Chloe Schwenke at USAID, Shannon Doyle at MAGIC-DC, and my good Foreign Service friend Kay. They assembled the list of U.S. experts on transgender issues for Irina to meet. Gays and Lesbians in Foreign Affairs Agencies (GLIFAA) with leadership from Policy Chief Paul Kim anointed us an ad-hoc GLIFAA committee. With that title, I approached the Public Diplomacy office at Embassy Bucharest. I got a cool reception at first and was told that Irina's schedule was already fixed with little possibility for change. I insisted, however, and they sent on our list of additional meetings to the program office in Washington.
A few days later I received an e-mail from Meg Poole at Meridian House. Meg, it turns out, was in charge of Irina's program. Not only was the Washington portion of the program not fixed, Meg was having trouble reaching anyone to set up meetings during the summer vacation season. Anne jumped right in with names and telephone numbers for people she knew were available. Mara Keisling from the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) started calling Meg as well, saying she was ready to meet Irina at almost any time or place. Kay stepped forward to host a luncheon for Irina with a number of transgender activists and specialists in attendance. In the end, we got transgender-related meetings set up for Irina at the Human Rights Campaign, USAID, NCTE, the Whitman Walker Clinic, and at a number of other organizations and government offices.
Irina will also travel to Atlanta, San Francisco, Des Moines, Atlanta, and Albany, New York, on what will be mainly an LGB itinerary. The Washington component, however, now has a decidedly T shade that it would not have had otherwise. At Irina's request we successfully cracked our way into an existing USG program and rearranged the parts. Never before have I so thoroughly enjoyed being part of a hijacking.
Travel well, Irina. Drum bun. It's "wheels up" in Bucharest. We'll see you in a few weeks.
PS -- Anne Vonhof managed to open more closed doors for us in Washington than I thought possible. The next time I stand in front of a locked bank vault, I want Anne next to me to speak the magic words.


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ABC TV and radio news revamp
The ABC is changing its Queensland television and radio line-up.
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From next month, Karina Carvalho will be joining the Queensland team as presenter of the 7pm TV News on ABC1.
Karina is one of the ABC's most talented news presenters and joins ABC Queensland after presenting the 7pm news bulletin in Perth and more recently ABC News Breakfast, which is broadcast nationally from Melbourne.
Karina joined the ABC in 2007 after working for the BBC. She worked as a reporter in the Perth newsroom before presenting the Perth 7pm News for three and a half years. She will play a hands-on role regularly presenting the bulletin on location in Brisbane and regional Queensland.
David Curnow, who has been presenting television and radio bulletins from Brisbane, will remain a key part of the ABC's news presentation line-up in Queensland, leading the flagship afternoon radio bulletins and updating ABC radio audiences on developing stories.
David's skills, experience and strong bi-media background will be put to great use in a new role mentoring and working with regional journalists to get more local content into the major bulletins, while also generating his own cross-platform stories.
The ABC's strength stems from its network of journalists working across the state - reporters and crews working in their communities and understanding local issues. With a great team in Brisbane and strong coverage from the Gold Coast, Bundaberg, Sunshine Coast, Mt Isa, Mackay, Longreach, Gladstone, Cairns, Townsville, Toowoomba and Rockhampton, the ABC offers a breadth and depth of Queensland news coverage unrivalled by any other broadcaster.
In 2013 Queensland can look forward to even more reporting from the state's growing metropolitan areas, reinforcing the ABC's reputation as the top destination for Queenslanders to find out about the issues that matter to them.
The people of Queensland rely on the ABC's regional focus and local knowledge, coupled with the ABC's renowned nightly international coverage and award-winning news and analysis from Canberra.
These changes build on the ABC's continuing investment in Queensland as the home of ABC News Online, with a team that keeps Australians informed on breaking and latest news around the clock.
The ABC's priority is to ensure the best Queensland coverage is provided to audiences across the day through all forms of media.
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Many of Kentucky's small-business owners are leaving a huge chunk of change on the table this tax season.
And so the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development has reached out to area small businesses to remind them they could be eligible for Kentucky Small Business Tax Credits of up to $25,000.
If your small business recently hired at least one new full-time employee and invested at least $5,000 in new equipment or technology, you may be eligible for a credit.
Qualified applicants are eligible to receive a tax credit in an amount not to exceed the lesser of: 1) $3,500 per eligible position added; or 2) the total dollar amount invested in qualifying equipment or technology. Applicants are also subject to a $25,000 maximum tax credit cap per applicant for each calendar year.
"Last year, Kentucky businesses received less than a 10th of the money allotted for the credit because very few applied for it," says Mandy Lambert, commissioner of business development in the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development. "The Kentucky Small Business Tax Credit directly puts money back into the pockets of small businesses and helps them grow and create jobs. We're confident that if more small businesses know of this opportunity, they will take advantage."
The state can issue these credits until they reach a statutory limit of $3 million. According to state figures, then, our small businesses have left $2.7 million in tax credits unclaimed.
Call 800-626-2250 or visit this website for more info.