text:
Finding Aid of the Grell/Colefax Collection on Russian Ballet 0315
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Ambassador International Cultural Foundation Presentation of Kirov Ballet, Shrine Theatre 1986
American Ballet Theatre--Swan Lake 1988
The Bolshoi -- Big Ballet: A Company Like No Other 1980
Bolshoi Ballet--London Performances--Clippings, Venue Information, Itineraries 1986
Bolshoi Ballet--1975 Tour 1975
Bolshoi Ballet--2000 Tour 2000
Bolshoi Ballet--2002 Tour 2002
Bolshoi Ballet--The Bolshoi on Home Video: 1953-1987 (Clipping) 1987
Bolshoi Ballet Documentary, WYES-TV, New Orleans 1976
Bolshoi Ballet Letters 1985
Bolshoi Photo ID Re: Soviet Weekly Undated
Dorothy Chandler Pavilion--Seating Chart and Floor Plan 1989; Undated
Civic and Cultural Affiliations 1985-1994; Undated
Colefax, Sonya 1939-1997; Undated
Computer Files Undated
Exhibitions--Notes and Planning Undated; 1983-1990
Exhibitions--Pointes of Light Student Cultural Program 1990
Exhibitions--Text Panels Undated
Exhibitions--Text Panels Undated
Expenditures and Receipts 1994
Film Screenings--From the Film Collection of Dwight Grell--Theatre Vanguard 1974-1977; Undated
[Film Screenings?]--Title Designs [1976?]
Film Screenings--Title Designs, Ballet of the Bolshoi Theatre--For Film Presentation--Taken in Moscow 1976 1976
Films (Contents) Undated
Fundraising--Bolshoi Theatre Archive Collection 1987
Grell, Dwight--Appointment Book 1975; Undated
Insurance Appraisal--Nancy Fontaine
International Ballet Competition 1986
Kirov Ballet--Materials Concerning 1999-2002; Undated
Loans--Documentation 2002
Notes and Planning 1987-1977; Undated
Overview and History of the Archive 1985-2000; Undated
Overview and History of the Archive--Albums Undated
Maya Plisetskaya--List of Materials Loaned to Ambassador Foundation and Brief Career Outline Undated
Program of the Performance--Coronation of Nicholas & Alexandra, May 17, 1896--Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow Undated
Proposal for a Museum of Russian Ballet in Culver City Undated
Stars of the Bolshoi Ballet 2001
Stationery Undated
Tour Schedule--Bolshoi Ballet 1999
Travel Documents 1994
US-USSR General Exchanges Agreement 1985
1960s 1966-1969
1970s 1970-1979
1980s 1980-1989
1990s 1990-1999
Bolshoi Ballet
Plisetskaya Dances (Film) 1960
Bolshoi Ballet Stars--Slides Undated
Unidentified Ballets Undated; 1959-2005
AIDS Hospice Benefit, Pasadena, California [1990-1991]
Angara 1976; Undated
Anyuta 1985-1986
Assel Undated
Ballet School 1962-1974; Undated
La Bayadere 1982-circa 1999
Biographies of a Life / Fragments of a Life/ Fragments of a Biography 1983-1984; Undated
Bolero 1975-1978
The Bronze Horseman 1950-1958
Carmen Undated
Carmen Suite 1968-circa 1980
Chopiniana circa 1960
Coppelia Undated; 1972
Don Quixote Undated
The Dying Swan 1958-1987
Esmeralda 1957-1961
Etude (Liszt) 1960
La Fielle Mal Gardee 1973
The Firebird 1964-1966
The Flames of Paris 1933-1950; Undated
The Fountain of Bakhchisarai Undated; 1950-1965
Giselle Undated; circa 1950-2000
Hamlet (Film) 1960-1979; Undated
Homage to Ulanova 1982-1984; Undated
The Little Humpbacked Horse Undated; 1960-circa 1970
MacBeth Undated; 1980-1983
The Old Tango (Television Show) 1979
Pharaoh's Daughter 2000
Porgy and Bess 1984
Preludes and Fugues 1971-circa 1975; Undated
Pro and Contra 1972
The Rite of Spring / Le Sacre du Printemps Undated; 1965-circa 1972
Romeo and Juliet Undated; 1940-circa 1998
Spartacus Undated; 1962-1975
Spartacus 1971-1989
La Spectre de la Rose Undated; circa 1968-circa 2000
Stars of the Bolshoi Ballet / Les Etoiles du Bolchoi Undated
Swan Lake Undated; 1901-2000
Les Sylphides Undated; circa 1958-1995
These Enchanting Sounds Undated; 1978
Tristan and Isolde Undated
Walpurgis Night Undated
Mounted and Oversize Photographs
Kirov Ballet
Assorted Ballets Undated
Mounted and Oversize Photographs Undated; 1993-1995
Other Companies
American Ballet Theatre 1990-1999; undated
Young Ballet of Alma Ata 1979; undated
Ulanova, Galina Undated
Romen Theatre (Moscow Gypsy Theatre "Romen")--Photographs and Booklet Undated
Novosibirsk Opera and Ballet Theatre 1960; undated
Moscow School of Choreography 1978
Chabukiani, Vakhtang 1965; undated
Bolshoi Theatre Choreographic School Undated
Unidentified Companies
Identified Ballets Undated
Mixed Subject Matter--Slides 1965-1972; undated
Portraits and Candids
Bolshoi Ballet 1900-circa 2003, Undated
Bolshoi Ballet--Assorted Ballets 1899-1989
Anianshvili, Nina 1987-circa 1989
Bessmertnova, Natalia Undated; 1966-1975
Chabukiani, Vakhtang Undated; 1926-1935
Dimitrieva, Larissa 1966
Fokine, Mikhail 1906
Godunov, Alexander Undated; 1974-1988
Grigorovich, Yuri Undated; 1986
Lagunov, Valery Undated; 1955-1972
Lavrovsky, Leonid 1956-1967
Lavrovsky, Mikhail Undated; 1955-1969
Levashev, Vladimir 1966-1969
Liepa, Maris Undated; circa 1960-1981
Makarova, Natalia Undated
Malakhov, Vladimir Undated
Maximova, Ekaterina Undated; 1957-1977
Messerer, Asaf Undated
Mukhamedov, Irek Undated; 1987
Nureyev, Rudolf Undated
Pavlova, Anna 1901
Pavlova, Nadezhda Undated; 1973
Plisetskaya, Maya Undated; 1955-2006
Semenyaka, Ludmila Undated; 1975-1986
Sorokina, Nina Undated; 1960-1975
Struchkova, Raisa Circa 1940-1988
Timofeyeva, Nina 1967-1968
Ulanova, Galina Undated; 1946-1986
Zhdanov, Yuri 1950-1986
Grell, Dwight--Solo Undated
Grell, Dwight--With Dancers and Others Undated; 1966-1999
Dwight Grell--With Dancers and Others--Slides [1971]-[1995]
Other or Unidentified Companies Undated; 1964-1965
Solo/Group With Captions or Signatures Undated; 1964-1981
Russian and Soviet Undated; 1917-1941
Mounted and Oversize Photographs
Rehearsal and Instruction
Bolshoi Ballet Undated; 1955-circa 2000
Bolshoi Ballet--Identified Ballets Undated; circa 1954-1986
Maya Plisetskaya Conducting Master Classes in New York 1987
Maya Plisetskaya Conducting a Master Class, California Circa 1990
Other Subjects
Autographed Photographs
House on the Road (Television Film) Undated
Russian and Soviet Dancers Undated; 1899-1963
Stars of the Russian Ballet (Film) Undated; 1955
Travels and Tourism--Slides and Negatives Undated; 1972-1983
Venues Undated
Venues--Mounted and Oversize Photographs Undated; 1959
Exhibitions--Photographs Of
Bolshoi Ballet '67 [1967]
Debbie Allen Dance Academy Undated
Home of Sonya Colefax Undated; 1980s
Theatre Vanguard Undated; 1975
Dorothy Chandler Pavilion 2000
Other Companies
Postcards 1989
Ballet of the 20th Century / Bejart Ballet Undated; 1974-1981
Ballets Russes 1912-1916
Donetsk Ballet Undated; 1989
Leningrad Maly Opera Theatre 1962
Long Beach Ballet Company Circa 1989
Moiseyev Dancers Undated
Moscow Classical Ballet 1980
Moscow Grigorovich Ballet 1994
Moscow School of Choreography 1968-1978
Novosibirsk Opera and Ballet Theatre Undated
Perm Theatre of Opera and Ballet 1974
Petrograd Opera and Ballet Theatre 1922
Romen Theatre / Moscow Gypsy Theatre "Romen" Undated
Royal Ballet Company 1979
State Ballet of Georgia / Tbilisi Opera and Ballet Theatre Undated; circa 1950-[1983]
Mixed Subject Matter--Mounted and Oversize Photographs
Programs-- Non-English
Art Exhibition--Valery Kosorukov Undated
Ballet Nacional de Cuba 1959-1999
Bolshoi Theatre 1999
Exhibitions 1976-1987
Bolshoi Ballet 1968-2000; Undated
Film Screenings 1961-1986; Undated
International Ballet Competition, Moscow 1989
Kirov Ballet 1989-2002; Undated
Liepa, Andria 2000; Undated
Other Companies 1986-2002; Undated
Return of the Firebird (Film) 1997
Posters and Photographs (oversize) Undated; circa 1960-1989
Moving Images
Videotapes and DVDs
Noncommercial videos Bulk, 1970-1989 1960-2000
Assorted Films and Supplementary Materials Undated; circa 1970-1985
Arthur Rubinstein n.d.
Ballet Folklore of Mexico n.d.
Children's Films n.d.
I Am A Dancer - Nureyev n.d.
About the House 1987; 1988;
American Ballet Theatre 1947; 1950; 1973; 1976; 1978; 1983; 1989;
The Australian Ballet 1970
Ballet News 1980
Ballet Review 1975-1976
Bolshoi Ballet 1980
Coast - FM 4 Fine Arts 1971
Connoisseur 1987
Dance Australia 1986; 1989; 1990
Dance & Dancers 1967; 1972
Danceletter 1985
Dance Magazine 1968; 1970; 1971; 1973; 1974; 1976; 1978; 1979; 1983-1989; 1990-1994; 2004-2005
Dance News 1968; 1970; 1973; 1974; 1976; 1977
Dance Perspectives 52 1972
English National Ballet 1989
Entertainment the Tribune 1988
Greek Theatre 1978
The Hollywood Reporter 1974; 1981
International Ballet Competition - USA 1980
Life 1971, 1985
Los Angeles Times 1984; 1988
Miscellaneous Serials
National Ballet of Canada 1974
National Geographic 1978
National Magazine of Entertainment 1973
The Newsletter of the International Dance Alliance Ltd. 1987
Newsweek 1988
The Old Couple 1993
The Paris Opera Ballet 1988
Revue 1991
The San Diego Union 1988
Saturday Review 1968, 1975
Soviet Era Magazine 1969-1970
Sports Illustrated 1998
Time Magazine 1965; 1985; 1988; 1989
Theatrical Pages 1994-1996
Variety 1995
Vogue 1968
Interview Only 1980
Soviet Life 1985
Serials -- Non-English
Pieces of Stages
Ephemera-- Hawaii and Polynesia
Coins, Medallions, and Jewelry 1981; undated
Calendars--Oversize 1987-2002
Assorted Items Undated
Film projector
Slide projector and carousel
Exhibit Captions
Ballet slippers
Wall hanging commemorating the 200th anniversary of the Bolshoi Theatre, 1976.
Banner, La Muse Eternelle exhibit, 1995
Red fabric
Cassettes and Compact Discs
Subject Files
Drawings and Sketches Undated; 1984-1999
Mixed Materials Undated; 1997-1999
Academy Awards 2001-2004
Ballets Russes Celebration--New Orleans, Louisiana 2000
International Ballet Competitions 1977-2001
Soviet Ballet [Overview]--by the Photo Service of the Union of Soviet Socialist Societies for Friendship and Cultural Relations with Foreign Countries 1974
Clippings, 1950s-1960s
Clippings, 1971-1975
Clippings, 1976-1979
Clippings, 1979 oversize
Clippings, 1980-1986
Clippings, 1987-1989
Clippings, 1990-1993
Clippings, 1994-1999
Clippings, 2000s
Clippings, Miscellaneous and Undated
Clippings, Rudolf Nureyev


text: My husband was a member here long time ago. He was Bobs'Dad. Bob is our scruffy mutt, but this post is about Ginger - our Beagle. Dan gave her a bath this morning and she looked normal. Just now I noticed that her back right hind quarter is swollen - almost twice the size of her left thigh. She doesn't seem to be in any pain and is not limping - and we really did not notice it this morning (seems like it it were this big, we would have). She really doesn't like her baths and fights to get out of the tub. Do you suppose that she might have strained it or pulled while getting her bath and it is just swollen? Any suggestions or input would be greatly appreciated.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
The Joy Of Watching Comment Spammers Scramble To Try To Delete Links After Google Demoted Them
from the it's-kind-of-fun dept
Hi,There are a number of variations on this. My favorite is the following, which ridiculously implies that that we were working with them and they "appreciate the support."
We noticed that your site https://www.techdirt.com is linking to our site [redacted] on the url [Techdirt article URL]
Unfortunately [our company] has been hit by an Unnatural Link Penalty and we are now trying to get all links taken down where possible, rather than disavowing them.
If you could spare 5 minutes to take this link down we would be extremely grateful. Do not hesitate to contact me with any questions.
Hello Webmaster,One time, we got one that insisted that if we didn't remove the link, Google would punish us as well. Every time we get these (and it's been happening with increasing frequency), there's a bit of an internal dilemma. We don't delete comments unless they're spam. That's our general comment policy around here. But, these are clearly spam, and it's annoying they got through our spam filter. If we had discovered them on our own, we would have deleted them. But, just the fact that these jackass comment spammers are getting in trouble for them... makes us pause and think a bit. It feels somehow wrong to abide by the wishes of these comment spammers who littered our site.
My name is Matthew Victor and I'm a SEO specialist with [redacted], first off I want to thank you for linking to our site from https://www.techdirt.com/, we appreciate the support over the years.
Unfortunately, it has come to our attention that this link may be viewed by Google as a violation of the Google's Webmaster Guidelines.
It is important for us to bring our website into compliance, so we are requesting that you remove our link from this page and any other page on your website.
To assist you in the process of removing these links from your site I'm including a list of the pages we have been able to identify as linking to us.
[URLs redacted]
We would greatly appreciate your prompt response to this request and removal of these links along with any others on your site.
It appears that we're not the only ones dealing with this. Apparently, Google's algorithmic changes over the past year or so have hit those who abused comment spamming quite hard, and plenty of blogs are getting these kinds of emails. The folks over at The Awl have a nice article about it, in which they quote Boing Boing's Rob Beschizza going through the same debate we did, and ending up with the same conclusion:
This isn't only happening in The Awl's inboxes, either. "The funny thing is, we don't actually want that spam lurking around in old comments," Boing Boing's Rob Beschizza wrote to me in an email. "But we obviously like seeing the spammers suffering as a result of their own misbehavior."The Awl did some digging and found out that the changes to Google's algorithm have really hit those comment spammers hard, which is something worth cheering.
"So we just leave it up," he wrote, "even though we don't want it, in the hope that Google may penalize them further."
"The average drop was from page one to page five in Google," [the "SEO" guy trying to remove comments that The Awl contacted] said. In some cases they even dropped as low as page ten. How often do you find yourself on the fifth—much less the tenth—page of Google results? If you've gotten that far, you're better off just refining or revising your search terms.The Awl notes that it, too, has received emails from those trying to remove comment spams saying that Google will punish them as well. However, the first time we got one of those, we reached out to people at Google who told us that we were fine. First of all, all of the links in our comments automatically have rel=nofollow appended to them, which means that Google already does not use them as authoritative (though, I do wonder if they use them to help demote certain links...), and knows that we've "disavowed" the links. Also, our general page rank and reputation likely protects us from having the algorithm think we've suddenly turned into link spammers.
"We needed to delete all of the bad links," he said. "It was a big list—a few thousand, even ten thousand links. We just moved one by one: this is a toxic link, we need to delete it; this is a good, natural link."
"We had links from the Daily Mail, Huffington Post, and we had links from profiles in shitty forums or small websites that we didn't want to get the link from," he said. Apparently by that he meant... us. So the goal clearly isn't to remove all spam links. Just the least-good ones.
As we mentioned just recently, whenever I've brought this up on Twitter, some people have suggested we should offer to charge for the removal of those spam comments -- and at times that's tempting. But, in the end, the companies that spewed that spam deserve whatever crap they get. If they didn't realize it was evil to post comment spam, then they're not the kinds of organizations worth doing business with in the first place.
Now, if only the message that comment spamming is dead could make its way to the folks who are still hitting us with 1,000 or so comment spams per day...


text:
Cider Wassail Recipe
Popular Videos
- 2 quarts apple cider
- 1-1/2 cups orange juice
- 3/4 cup pineapple juice
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
- 2 cinnamon sticks (3 inches)
- Dash ground cinnamon
- Dash ground cloves
- In a large saucepan, combine all of the ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 20-30 minutes. Discard cinnamon sticks. Serve hot in mugs. Yield: 10-12 servings (2-1/2 quarts).
Reviews forCider Wassail
My Review
Average Rating
"Love this wassail....great taste and easy to put together in the slow cooker. I float fresh cinnamon sticks and slices of orange on top when ready to serve!"
"Great flavor! I put this in my slow cooker to keep it warm over the course of a few hours."
"I made this for Christmas morning. The aroma was wonderful in the house while it was simmering. It tasted primarily like hot mulled apple cider. It did not have the nice, light orange color as shown in the recipe, rather it was a darker brown. I'm not sure why is was too "apple" flavor-wise."
"I made this for Christmas day and it was delicious! I thought it could be a little sweeter so I put in 6 tablespoons of brown sugar instead of 2 and it was just right for us."
"We had this on Christmas morning and everyone loved it! I made way too much and have been enjoying it on my own... I'm going to be sad when I run out!"
"this was a pretty close match to the wassil I drank years ago at the Christmas tree farm we went to every year! I just added a bit more cloves and nutmeg."
"I often make this in the winter, easy yet tastes wonderful!"
"This is an easy recipe and it makes the house smell wonderful."


text:
For the second time this season, a PAT by Stephane Todeschini was a game-winner for Bedford, which beat visiting Concord-Carlisle, 35-34, in overtime Thursday.
On Oct. 5 against Somerville, a kick by the French exchange student was the difference in a 42-41 overtime win.
The Patriots got the ball in the first overtime and Shane McCloskey ran for a 6-yard TD. The 2-point rush failed, leaving the door open for Bedford (8-3, 3-1 Dual County Small). Christian Boivin ran it in from 2 yards to tie it and Todeschini's kick gave the Buccaneers a win.
McCloskey had all five TDs for the Patriots (4-7, 2-2).
Dual County (Small)
Wayland 35, Weston 7 — Robert Williams rushed for four TDs. Wayland (8-3) plays Westwood Tuesday in the playoffs.
Hopkinton 41, Ashland 12 — Hank Rudden tossed four touchdown passes — two to Shaun Palmer — to lift the Hillers (9-2). Rudden (18 TD passes) and Palmer (11 TD receptions) set school season marks.
Division 3A
Bishop Feehan 32, Bishop Stang 0 — Matt Allen ran for 152 yards and a touchdown. The Shamrocks (8-2) play Dighton-Rehoboth Tuesday.
Wareham 52, Bourne 12 — Darien Fernandez scored four times for the Vikings (9-2). The senior tied the school record for rushing TDs (22) in a season.
Greater New Bedford 10, Diman 7 — Justyn Soares hit a 23-yard kick in OT to clinch a spot in the Large School Vocational Super Bowl for the Bears (5-6).
Division 4
Catholic Central (Large)
Bishop Fenwick 23, Austin Prep 22 — With 30 seconds left, James Traversey hit Fran Hannon from 35 yards, leading to Rufus Rushins's 2-point run that was the difference for the Crusaders (8-3).
Commonwealth (Large)
Greater Lawrence 42, Whittier 12 — Cristian Rivera rushed for 208 yards and five TDs on 15 carries for the Reggies (8-3). Whittier finishes 7-4.


text:
ARARAT - 'It was just one of the best things I've ever done' those are the words Jane Jantzen has used to describe her time on The Biggest Loser.
Jane was evicted from the house during last week's episode of the weight loss program in what was an emotional elimination for all the 'Ararat Champions'.
In recent weeks Jane had formed a close bond with the three other remaining female contestants, Sharon Basset, Katrina Pianta and Toni Stockwell.
The 42-year-old AME Systems' employee denied the 'Awesome Foursome' as the group of girls became known was an alliance out to pick off the other contestants.
"I wouldn't call it an alliance, it was just a deep seeded friendship that was brought about by four females having the same goals," Jane said.
"Being up for elimination alongside Sharon certainly wasn't one of the finest moments of the show, it was close to home. I was just hoping it didn't ruin the friendship, which it definitely hasn't."
Jane was one of The Biggest Loser's strongest participants, having lost 26.7kg during almost three months in the Sydney house.
Despite falling just short of making it to the final four, Jane wasn't upset to be sent home and said she just enjoyed to rollercoaster ride that the experience brought.
"I wasn't disappointed because I went on the show to change my life and the way I felt about myself," she said.
"I felt I had done that, so I was quite happy to leave. I never went on there because I wanted to make the finale.
"Pretty much each week it was a struggle to lose a decent number, so one of my proudest moments was when I lost 5.7kg at the weigh-in. I had gone from Commando's diet over to Shannan and just that jolt gave me a new life in the house.
"Walking on fire was one of the hardest moments for me, because last year one of my nieces' house caught fire and her two kids were home with their dad at the time so it could have been devastating. I've also got a friend that was badly burnt by fire, so I just associated it with pain.
"To overcome that and actually walk on fire was one of the toughest things to do.
"I didn't realise it was going to be such a mental journey as well. It is just as much about learning to accept what you've done in the past and to appreciate yourself as it is about losing weight."
Jane, who first weighed in at 121.7kg, said family was the motivating factor behind her decision to apply for The Biggest Loser.
"I have a lot of young nieces and nephews and I just wanted to have the energy to do the simple things in life with them, whether it was riding bikes or going to the park and not just sitting on the sidelines," she said.
"My goal was always to lose between 30-40kg and I just have to work hard to try and get there."
With Kerry Stockwell eliminated on Friday night Jane said she would be happy to see Katrina, Toni, Sharon or Craig Booby take out The Biggest Loser title at next Sunday's finale.
"Anyone of those four would be worthy," she said.
"They have all done the hard work and I am friends with all of them."
With life now returning to normal for Jane, she said she wanted to take an opportunity to thank everyone involved for the support the contestants have been given.
"There were a lot of people who wanted to have a go so to be one of the 14 selected was pretty special," she said.
"To walk down the street and be stopped by strangers who tell me that I've inspired them because they didn't think they were capable either, it is very touching."
See Friday's edition of The Ararat Advertiser where Kerry Stockwell will share his experiences on The Biggest Loser as well as a recap before the two-hour finale.


text:
Viewmasters Toastmasters Club Meeting
Metropolitan Club of Chicago
Friday, March 17, 2017 from 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM (CDT)
Event Details
This club meets on 1st, 3rd and 5th Friday of the month. Please select the date you wish to join us from the above menu and register for building security.
If you are joining us on the 3rd Friday, you are welcome to stay and join the informal networking for the upcoming independently organized TED Event starting at 5 pm. This requires a separate registration, details, MeetTheAlliance.EventBrite.com/
Increase your probability of success.
Improve your public speaking ability, communication skills, and networking opportunities. Please come join us for the fun, laugh and learn.
If you are interested in self-improvement, communications, and leadership, and willing to observe some common sense ground rules, see below, you are most welcome. The meeting room is available by 11:30 am. Members typically arrive early to network.
You are invited as our guest to attend Viewmasters. We meet on the 1st, 3rd and 5th Friday, from 11:45 am to 1 pm. You DO NOT have to be a member of the Metropolitan Club nor a current Toastmaster member to attend. This is an open community Toastmaster club.
Each complimentary Guest Pass is good for one entry. Please have your companion register separately. The direct link to this page is ChicagoViewmasters.EventBrite.com/
When you enter Willis Tower, let the receptionist on the ground floor know that you are attending Toastmasters Club meeting at Metropolitan Club. After showing your federal ID, you will receive a visitor pass and direction to go up to the 66th floor and find the meeting room list near the escalator.
We look forward to seeing you.
Do you have any questions?
Two Ground Rules
1 If you are not early, you're late. Please allocate extra time for the building security, elevator ride and room navigation. It is highly recommended that you arrive at Willis Tower by 11:30 am.
2 If you arrive after the meeting is in session, please observe the late arrival protocol: follow the sign posted on the door for entry, silence your smartphone and take any empty seat.
Use your own favorite app for Direction & Parking. Here is additional help.
(312) 876-3200
233 South Wacker Drive, Chicago, IL 60606
Contact Us
ViewMasters Toastmasters Club #1933228
sponsored by Metropolitan Club at Willis Tower
2016 - 2017 Club Officers
President: Joann Sondy
VP Education: Bruce Chambers
VP Membership: Amy Segami, DTM
VP PR/Mentor Program: Jonathon Danko
Treasurer: Rick Kroner
Secretary: Linda Lamb
Social Secretary: Sima Dahl
Sergeant at Arms: Marti Konstant
President Emeritus: Kamaria Campbell
Other resources
ViewMasters Club #1933228
Area 12 Division B; District 30 in Region 5 of 12 worldwide
* Established in 1924 by Dr. Ralph C. Smedley, Toastmasters International is a non-profit educational organization that teaches public speaking and leadership skills through a worldwide network of meeting locations. Headquartered in Rancho Santa Margarita, California, the organization has more than 313,000 memberships in more than 14,650 clubs in 126 countries. You will find valuable resources on line. Toastmasters.org
** You are invited to attend and sample the contest and conference, in addition to the club meeting. D30Toastmasters.org/
In the Chicago area, District 30, there are two major conferences and competitions held at each fall and spring.
Fall: Humorous Speech and an Evaluation Speech Contest
Spring: Table Topics and International Speech Contest, April 28 & 29, 2017
All members who meet the criteria are welcome to participate as contestants. The winners move onward to the next level: Area, Division and finally the District. Consult your home club for details.
Typically, all members receive a complimentary pass to attend both conferences, in addition to several educational sessions.
When & Where
Metropolitan Club
233 S. Wacker Dr
Friday, March 17, 2017 from 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM (CDT)
Add to my calendar
Metropolitan Club of Chicago
Located on the 66th and 67th floors of the Willis Tower, The Metropolitan Club of Chicago encourages professional and social networking through a variety of special events and Club Committees.
In 1974, Mr. Arthur M. Wood, former Sears Roebuck & Co Board Chairman, championed not only the development of the Sears Tower but also the establishment of the tower's Metropolitan Club. Since that time, the West Loop has flourished, and The Metropolitan Club has become known as the place to conduct business and meet Chicago's "who's who," and has developed a reputation as Chicago's finest business club. Understanding that the executives of today are vastly different from decades past, the Club provides our Members with the atmosphere, amenities and personalized service they seek. We encourage you to join in the celebration. Visit The Metropolitan Club and discover an extraordinary Member experience.


text:
Sports Business
Jacksonville is goal-oriented
Jacksonville pulled off an unlikely coup last year when 45,000 soccer enthusiasts showed up to watch the U.S. men's team defeat Scotland at Jacksonville's EverBank Field — a state record for a U.S. Men's Team international friendly game.
City officials touted the showing — no easy feat in the football-fanatical South —to secure a three-year deal to bring Major League Soccer exhibition games to EverBank Field in February, when the stadium isn't needed by the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The effort is part of a campaign promise by Mayor Alvin Brown to bring more athletic events to the city. Brown hired a sports and entertainment director, Alan Verlander, with orders to maintain the city's existing sports events — such as the Players Championship golf tournament — and attract new ones.
Since Brown's election, the city has secured the Davis Cup tennis match, both men's and women's professional soccer games, an Orlando Magic preseason game in the fall and the Navy-Marine Corps Classic basketball game.
Jacksonville has long struggled to compete for tourists against Orlando's theme parks and Miami's celebrity-soaked beaches. "We're not viewed as a destination for vacationing," Brown says. "It helps us brand the city in a different way," he says.
Verlander says the fact that the city doesn't offer a lot of other tourism distractions actually works in its favor. "We don't just treat you as another event in town. We make you king or queen for the week."
Major Sporting Events in Jacksonville (2013)
- Davis Cup (tennis)
- Philadelphia Union vs. Montreal Impact (Major League Soccer)
- 26.2 With Donna marathon,
- half-marathon and relay
- ESPN Friday Night Fights (boxing)
- U.S. women's national soccer team vs. Scotland
- Moe's Lacrosse Classic
- Florida vs. FSU baseball game
- Tigres de Monterrey vs. Cruz Azul (Mexican soccer)
- The Players golf championship
- MLB Alumni Clinic
- Florida Sports Hall of Fame induction ceremony
- Orlando Magic vs. New Orleans Pelicans (NBA)
- Florida vs. Georgia football game
- Disson Ice Skating competition


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The PanBlast™ Coupling Gaskets are designed to be located within the pot and hose coupling and provide a seal between the connections.
Manufactured from moulded natural rubber, all PanBlast™ Coupling Gaskets feature a pliable, yet durable, hardness of 65-70 Shore.
All PanBlast™ Coupling Gaskets are supplied in packs of ten (10) pieces and are suitable for use with most OEM couplings available today.
BlastingParts.com is not affiliated with, nor endorsed by any of the manufacturers mentioned on this page with the exception of Panblast. The product depicted above is manufactured by Panblast and sold via BlastingParts.com in it's capacity as online e-commerce distributor for Panblast products.


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[ Sun Plus Nanotechnology: Can Solar Energy Get Bigger by Thinking Small ]
Thursday, May 9, 2013 | By National Geographic News | No Comments
Nanotechnology could boost solar energy efficiency and cut costs. A slew of recent research is aimed at better capturing energy from the Earth's biggest power source.
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text: Antibiotic use in food animals will be the topic of a symposium, "A One Health Approach to Antimicrobial Use & Resistance: A Dialogue for a Common Purpose," to be held at the Hilton Polaris Hotel in Columbus, November 13-15. Hosted by the National Institute for Animal Agriculture, the event is open to all who have a stake in engaging in meaningful dialogue and creating successful strategies to preserve antibiotic efficacy. Speakers will include Ohio State University President E. Gordon Gee; Lonnie King, DVM, dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine; and Kurt Stevenson, MD, MPH, associate professor of internal medicine and epidemiology in the College of Medicine and the College of Public Health. View the agenda.


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The electoral ouster of French President Sarkozy sent the euro into quite a tailspin on Sunday evening and that development helped the US dollar push aggressively towards the 80.00 mark on the trade-weighted index. The breach of the $1.30 level against the greenback by the sliding (to a three-month low) euro made the opening quotes in precious metals fall into the red column fairly swiftly. Declining metals prices were accompanied by a near 3% fall in the Nikkei Average, a slide in crude oil to four-month lows, and by a generalized retreat in risk-taking sentiment.
Spot gold bullion traded at lows near the $1,635 level in Sunday night trading, while the news from Paris also engendered bid-side quotes at near $29.90 for silver. Considering the fact that the second largest economy in the EU has just been handed over to Socialist control (for the first time in 17 years), and that the advent of Mr. Hollande's tenure is likely to give rise to deeper rifts with previously stated German economic and budget deficit policies, the damage to the euro was relatively contained.
Albeit somewhat more stable, the metals markets opened to the downside in gold and in silver and with modest advances in platinum and palladium on Monday morning in New York. The action reflected a decline in the US dollar after last night's surge to the round resistance level and the return by the euro to a level just above the $1.30 pivot point.
Spot gold lost $5 on the open to start the new week with a bid at $1,637 the ounce. Silver fell 20 cents to the $30.14 mark per ounce. Platinum climbed $5 to $1,528 while palladium rose $2 to $651 the ounce. No changes were noted in rhodium at $1,350 per ounce. In the background, crude oil was hovering under the $98 level per barrel down about 0.75%.
The most recently available CFTC positioning reports indicate that net speculative length in the yellow metal remains feeble amid lacking bullish confidence. In silver, the longs shed some more tonnage but so did the shorts, which could at first blush appear positive. However the substantially large short position of nearly 1,600 tonnes continues to reflect a similar lack of confidence in the white metal's ability to stage a serious recovery and is, in the words of analysts at Standard Banks (SA) "a cause for concern."
Platinum speculators built up hefty new long positions but their move was still being countervailed by a relatively sizeable short position being held by similar players who hold opposite convictions. Palladium positioning continued to improve but the longs still have some way to go before they can convince more players that there is cause of favoring platinum's close relative in terms of a short-to-medium term play.
Most analysts concur with that view as certain car markets, despite being slower than they were last year, continue to consume robust amounts of the noble metal. Consider for a moment, the fact that a new car hits the road in China every 2.3 seconds (!) on average. Palladium is indispensable in that process.
That said, commodity speculators do get it wrong, on more than just one occasion. For example, as a group, hedge funds lifted their bullish commodity bets for the first time in a month-and-a-half just prior to the complex experiencing its largest…drop since last October. Oops. Meanwhile, investors pulled $357 million out of commodity funds by last Wednesday and they pulled $349 million out of precious metals.
Then again, such bets-gone-sour are not the exclusive domain of hedge funds. Retail investors have been pummeled by holding on to a wide range of gold mining shares. The old view that the miners offer "leverage" to the price of the yellow metal they mine has actually turned out to be true of late; in the opposite direction, that is. While gold lost nearly 10% since February's high, the mining shares have fallen by some 21%. Marketwatch's Peter Brimelow writes that "lagging gold shares have been the albatross following the great post-millennium gold bull market. Gold stocks have historically been tremendous money makers in bull markets and a rebound has been several times forecast." Frankly, we have lost count of how many "several times" represents at this juncture. But, one of these days, who knows?
For mega-investor John Paulson that day cannot come soon enough. In April, his Advantage Plus fund lost 6.7% as the cratering in gold mining shares made its impact felt. Mr. Paulson is pedaling hard, trying to reverse the spectacular (record) losses he incurred last year. Commenting on the divergence between bullion and the miners, Mr. Paulson could only underscore the obvious as he addressed investors via a letter that must have been difficult to compose: "This disconnect has caused a large discrepancy between the gold spot price and the implied valuation of gold through gold equities."


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The Joplin Globe has long been one of the state's most conservative newspapers. But sometimes it suffers from a sort of political schizophrenia.
This week was a perfect example.
Today the editorialist lamented Obama's big budget numbers, arguing:
To keep on spending some $3.5, $3.6 or $3.7 trillion a year does not come close to limiting that government. Everyone wants to "share the wealth" in good times. We wonder who will agree to "share the pain" in times of need, locally and nationally.
"We wonder who will agree to share the pain"? Remember that. Although these are times in which government stimulus is needed to keep the anemic recovery going, the Globe speaks of sharing the pain of big budget cuts, even the local pain of budget cuts.
Yet on Sunday, the Globe editorialist wrote:
Typically we believe that less government is more. But, in the case of airport subsidies, we need to apply some common sense.
Uh-oh. By "common sense" the Globe means, "we think your airport subsidy should be cut, but we want the Joplin airport subsidy to continue." But, but, but…what about the pain? "We wonder who will agree to share the pain?" Remember?
Or take Monday's editorial, in which the Globe (rightly) lectured Missouri Republicans on why it was simply unacceptable to return $189 million dollars of federal money, which didn't arrive in time to stop most school districts from cutting jobs. Keep the money! said the Globe, ending with this:
We hope Missouri's Republican lawmakers in the General Assembly remember that they were elected to represent Missourians, not the entire country. We need them to do what's best for the Show-Me State, not try to address national political talking points.
"Do what's best for the Show-Me State"? But, but, but…what about the pain? "We wonder who will agree to share the pain?" Remember?
It's only Wednesday, so stay tuned for more suggestions the Globe has for "sharing the pain" while simultaneously arguing, "Do what's best for the Show-Me State" and the local Joplin economy.
It's a good thing other cities and states don't feel that way or we would have a massive public debt.


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It's not just champagne linking US diva Mariah Carey and Aussie actor Sophie Monk, who were both invited to the New Year's Eve bash at Jupiters Hotel and Casino at the Gold Coast.
The two have a real estate bond. Monk, a Gold Coast native, is living in Carey's old house in Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles, where she lives when she's not visiting Australia. Carey lived there three years ago with her husband, America's Got Talent host Nick Cannon.
Chatting to S at the singer's first Australian concert at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre, Monk joked she was planning to deliver Carey some of her old mail: ''I can't believe I live in the house she lived in only a few years ago. It's surreal!''
Monk has long been a fan of the singer. As a girl with a big voice, dreaming of stardom while she paid her rent singing at Dreamworld, Carey was her idol, she told S.
''I had to come to the show because the little girl in me would never have believed I would have had the opportunity to see Mariah Carey in concert.''
Monk, who is filming two television shows in the US and co-hosting Sea FM summer breakfast radio in Surfers Paradise, was given tickets to Tuesday night's concert by Carey's manager and fellow American Idol judge Randy Jackson.
Monk met Jackson through Idol host Ryan Seacrest, whom she briefly dated several years ago.
They were seen greeting each other in the audience affectionately and tweeting pics with each other.
Jackson dined with Carey and her husband at the Sea Temple's Seaduction Restaurant in Surfers Paradise, where she ate grade 9 wagyu beef prepared by executive chef Steve Szabo.
Carey flew into Sydney last Wednesday night before her Thursday night show and her twins, Moroccan and Monroe, were seen with minders at Darling Harbour's Sydney Aquarium.
The super-cute pair were wheeled out on stage during the Gold Coast concert, where mummy got them to talk into the microphone, introducing them as Roc and Roe and laughing: ''It's bedtime. Night night – I love you, kiss mummy.''


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HILLSDALE � Jail time will be served by all three men who pleaded guilty to a series of fires last year in Camden. Jason Walston, 34, Robert Bennett Jr., 18, and John Bennett, 23 each received five years probation and various amounts of time in jail during sentencing Monday morning in Hillsdale County Circuit Court. All three men pleaded guilty in February to one count of arson of a real estate property.
Walston received the longest sentence as he will serve 13 months in jail. His lawyer , public defender Barry Poulson said his client started a fire at on 205 North Main St. in Camden on Ju�ly 30 after being dared to do so. Judge Michael Smith admonished Walston for his reckless and life-threatening behavior.
�It�s a wonder those volunteer firemen weren�t hurt or killed,� Smith said.
Poulson said his client has always shown remorse for his crimes and that showed when he confessed his crimes to authorities before they ever arrested him.
Walston will not have to pay restitution on the damage to the property as the mortgage company never filed a claim for restitution.
John Bennett received 11 months in jail and restitution costs around $13,000. He admitted to starting a fire in a barn located at 147 North Main St. in Camden. A former volunteer firefighter in Camden, John then stuck around and helped other firefighters put out the fire.
Smith didn�t understand how someone with no prior criminal record and who was a volunteer fireman himself would commit such a crime.
�You shouldn�t even be here. It would appear this is an aberration of your behavior,� Smith said.
His lawyer Rhonda Ives said he was alone when he started the fires and that a personal dispute between he and Walston caused Walston to �throw him under the bus,� in regards to the charges.
As part of the probation sentence, Walston and John may not speak to one another or to each other through other people. John may also not volunteer or work for any fire department during the duration of his probation.
Robert Bennett will spend nine months in jail and must pay $25,000 in restitution for starting a house fire at 121 Jasper St. in Cam�den on Aug. 13. With no prior record, Smith was again astonished at how Robert ended up in this position.
�Much like your brother, you shouldn�t be here. Talk about a bad period of decision making, this is it,� Smith said.
His lawyer Kimberly Burger said her client was not alone at the time of the fires and was trying to fit in with Walston.
�He�s very young, he�s pretty scared at this point, not knowing what�s going to happen,� Burger said.
All three men had a charge of arson of a dwelling or house dropped as part of a plea bargain. They faced up to 10 years in prison for the arson of a real estate property charge. They were remanded to the Hillsdale County Jail to complete their sentences.


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Homework Help
Listed below are library and online resources for various subjects:
- Library Databases
- Library Books on Art History
- Timeline of Art History - From the Metropolitan Museum of Art
- Library Databases
- BBC Historic Figures
- PBS Biographies
- Portrait Gallery - A selection of portraits of historical figures from the University of Texas at Austin.
- National Women's Hall of Fame
- Presidents of the United States
Books & Authors
- Library Databases
- Native American Authors - From the Internet Public Library
Dictionaries & Encyclopedias
- Library Atlases
- Index of Countries - From the Library of Congress
- Facts about the United States - From the Internet Public Library
- CIA World Fact Book
- Library Databases
- Library of Congress - Search the digital collection of American history
- Our Documents - Explore 100 milestone documents of American history
Language Arts
- Absolute Shakespeare - A great source of information on William Shakespeare's life and letters.
- Cliffs Notes - Study guides can be read for free
- Khan Academy - Library of videos that covers K-12 math and science topics such as biology, chemistry, and physics.
- Web Math - Webmath is a math-help web site that generates answers to specific math questions and problems, as entered by a user, at any particular moment.
Performing Arts
- Library of Congress - Research resources for dance, theater, and music.
Poetry & Quotations
- Library Databases
- Bartlett's Familiar Quotations - Over 11,000 searchable quotations from the 1909 edition of Bartlett's quotes.
- Poets.org - The Academy of American Poets
- Library Databases
- Library Books about Science Projects
- Khan Academy - Library of videos that covers K-12 math and science topics such as biology, chemistry, and physics.
- Encyclopedia of Earth - Find news and information on everything under the sun.
- Encyclopedia of Life - Find basic, or detailed, information on every known species.
- PBS NOVA - documentaries about science from PBS
Test Preparation


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Assets managed by sovereign wealth funds around the world rose 11 per cent to reach US$3.98 trillion (US$1 = RM3.03) at the start of 2011, alternative assets research provider Preqin said.
The proportion of state-backed funds investing in alternative assets is likely to rise further this year as they pursue higher returns and seek greater diversity, Preqin said in a release. "Following global economic stabilisation, many sovereign wealth funds that had delayed plans to diversify their holdings as a result of the economic downturn have now resumed these plans," it observed…………………………………….Full Article: Source


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Omega-3 fatty acids cut pain and risk for drug treatment side-effects in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and the herb cat's claw reduced RA pain, two new studies reveal.
In RA, the immune system mistakenly attacks the joint linings, causing pain, stiffness and swelling. There is no known cure for RA and in this study, researchers wanted to find a safer alternative to the most common treatment, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS). NSAIDS can cause serious side effects in the stomach, intestine, heart and blood vessels, and those at risk in these areas should not take them. About 60 women and men with RA, aged 37 to 78, took 10 grams of cod liver oil—containing 2,200 mg of the omega-3 fatty acid eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA)—or a placebo, for nine months. Participants kept track of NSAID doses, which they tried to reduce starting at 12 weeks on EPA. The goal was to cut NSAIDS by at least 30 percent, which nearly 40 percent of those in the EPA group were able to do and 10 percent of those in the placebo group were able to do. Doctors concluded that omega-3s can help those with RA reduce the use of NSAIDS and the risk for stomach, intestine, heart and blood vessel side effects.
In a cat's claw (Uncaria tomentosa) study, 40 participants with RA who were taking immune-suppressing prescription drugs also took cat's claw extract or a placebo. After 24 weeks, those who had taken cat's claw had 53 percent fewer painful joints, compared to 24 percent for placebo. In a second phase of the study, all participants took cat's claw for another 28 weeks. Those who had taken a placebo in the first phase had fewer painful joints with cat's claw, and those who took cat's claw in both phases continued to improve.


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By Michael Aneiro
Some more solid incoming economic data this morning is putting a dent in bond prices. Treasury yields just jumped midmorning Tuesday after the Conference Board reported that its consumer confidence index rose to 85.2 in June, up from 82.2 in May and beating consensus estimates of 83.5. This comes shortly after the Census Bureau reported that sales of new single-family homes rose by 18.6% in May tp 504,000.
Treasuries had been gaining earlier this morning following some downbeat data on home prices, and while they retraced some of those gains bond prices are still a bit higher on the day overall. The 10-year note is up 3/32, per Tradeweb data, to yield 2.608%, up from an intraday low 2.590%. The 30-year bond is up 13/32 to yield 3.425%.


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Michelle Rae Davis, 14, a beautiful, living, breathing angel, died peacefully on Tuesday, April 23, 2013.
Michelle was born in Oak Bluffs, and enjoyed its special pleasures and, later, those of lovely Vineyard Haven as well. Indeed, she was a part of the entire Island community. While she has departed in body from the loving arms of her mom, Ann (Pankow) Davis, her dad, T. George Davis, and younger sister, Simone, and will leave forevermore a large hole in their hearts, her beautiful spirit surrounds them at every moment.
Michelle had the sweetest and most endearing temperament, and it touched everyone who met her, even those who did so fleetingly, but especially the many entrusted by her grateful family to assist with and provide her care, and with whom Michelle formed extraordinary and lasting bonds. She endured the myriad travails that living with complex medical complications entails, with a measure of courage and grace that will surely remain a legacy among the countless doctors, nurses, and others who were with her throughout her life.
Michelle attended the Oak Bluffs School for five years and was an integral and beloved member of that wonderful community. Beginning in September 2007, Michelle resided at the Massachusetts Hospital School in Canton, where she was truly adored by her expert medical team, teachers, aides, therapists, and especially her amazing peers, and all at MHS will surely miss her quiet but strong and beautiful presence.
The names of those the family would like to thank personally for the devotion and dedication they happily gave to Michelle are far too many to list, but Ann, George, and Simone hope and trust that each and every one of them is aware that the family is profoundly grateful for all they have done for their darling Michelle.
In addition to her beloved mom, dad and sister, and so many others whose lives she touched, the multitude of aunts and uncles and cousins will be forever influenced in a beautiful way, with Michelle a very special part of a large and loving family.
Michelle leaves behind no one. Her memory shall endure in the hearts of all those who knew her. And the loving grandparents who left this world before her were surely awaiting with great joy the time she would run into their arms, laughing, talking, singing, dancing, freed at last from the shackles of all that was required to keep her with us in her all-to-brief time on earth.
Rest in peace, Michelle. Your presence shall be with us always.
A memorial mass for Michelle will be celebrated on Saturday, May 11, at 11 am in St. Augustine's Church, Franklin Street, Vineyard Haven with the Rev. Michael Nagle officiating. All are invited to join the family in the parish hall located below the church following the memorial mass. Donations in Michelle's memory may be made to the Massachusetts Hospital School Foundation, c/o MHS Board of Trustees, 3 Randolph Street, Canton, MA 02021. Arrangements are under the Chapman, Cole and Gleason Funeral Home, Oak Bluffs. Please visit www.ccgfuneralhome.com for online guest book.


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Just Something new to post in until Monday
Im wit the obvious Felton, Kidd, Shumpert, Anthony, Chandler starting 5, keep JR/Stat off the bench
Have at itBy Ian Begley | ESPNNewYork.com
With Iman Shumpert back and Raymond Felton getting closer, Mike Woodson is going to have some interesting choices to make regarding his starting lineup.
Shumpert started Thursday because Woodson didn't want the second-year guard to tighten up after warmups.
Iman Shumpert made his season debut Thursday in London.
Many believe Shumpert will eventually start for the Knicks anyway. But what happens to Jason Kidd when Felton comes back? Does he go to the bench?
What about Amar'e Stoudemire? Will he eventually return to the starting lineup?
Below, we present a few potential starting fives for the Knicks, once everyone is healthy.
Felton, Kidd, Shumpert, Anthony, Chandler: Assuming Woodson wants J.R. Smith to continue coming off the bench, this is the best starting five in my opinion, although that comes with a caveat*. This lineup allows Carmelo Anthony to stay at power forward, where he can take advantage of mismatches. And it keeps a two-point-guard configuration on the floor, which the Knicks have had success with.
(*The Knicks, though, would benefit from bringing Kidd off the bench after Felton gets back. Kidd has been playing too many minutes with Felton out, and bringing him off the bench would allow Woodson to keep him fresh for late in the regular season and the postseason.)
Felton, Shumpert, Smith, Anthony, Chandler: This is the Knicks' best five-man unit, in my opinion. It's unlikely to be the team's starting five, though. Woodson likes to have Smith's scoring off the bench. Though it's worth noting that, of the Knicks' five-man lineups that have played at least 50 minutes together, two of the top three in terms of projected win percentage have Smith at shooting guard, according to 82games.com. This is the lineup that will likely be finishing games once everyone is healthy.
Felton, Shumpert, Anthony, Stoudemire, Chandler: This lineup inserts Stoudemire back into the starting five. The issue here, as has been discussed, is the spacing between Stoudemire and Anthony -- and, more importantly, Stoudemire and Chandler. On Thursday, Stoudemire looked extremely strong off the bench, and it appears he'll have continued success taking advantage of overmatched defenders in opponents' second units. So I think he should continue to come off the bench.


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Drummer Vinny Appice Says Black Sabbath Invite Would Be 'A Hard Thing To Say No To'
We recently had the pleasure of interviewing former Black Sabbath / Dio / Heaven and Hell drummer and current Kill Devil Hill stickman Vinny Appice. One of the topics we discussed with Appice was the current drama surrounding original Black Sabbath drummer Bill Ward's threat to drop out of the band's reunion and the rest of Sabbath's decision to continue without him.
We asked Appice whether or not he would accept Ward's spot as Black Sabbath's drummer for the reunion if he got the call."Well obviously it would be a hard thing to go, 'Nah, I don't wanna do it,'" laughs Appice. "First of all it's not just the opportunity. I love Tony and I love Geezer. I just played with Geezer in December at a Dimebag benefit – me and him played 'The Mob Rules.'
He continues, 'They're like family in a way and I know Ozzy pretty well – we haven't played together much but it's part of my history and part of my family, too. It would be a hard thing to say 'no' to. I just wouldn't want it to affect my band [Kill Devil Hill]. If it happened we'd be have to incorporate it and make that a springboard for Kill Devil Hill too, you know? Make it work both ways."
He adds, "I'm shocked by all the news too – I don't know what's going on. I thought Bill [Ward] was in and I thought it was a great thing. It's kind of sad to see it have an issue like this. So I don't know any more than everybody else knows. I don't know what they're really thinking. My main concern is for Tony [Iommi]. When I heard about [his leukemia diagnosis] it devastated me – and losing Ronnie [James Dio], you know, I'm still getting over Ronnie."
In the meantime, rumors are swirling that Ozzy Osbourne's drummer Tommy Clufetos might be filling in Ward's slot if the original stickman doesn't return to the fold.
Stay tuned for our full Vinny Appice interview, in which he talks about Kill Devil Hill, Tony Iommi and more.


text: Deacom, Inc., producer of the Deacom Integrated Accounting and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Software System, has been named a 2010 Hot Companies finalist by Network Products Guide. The Deacom ERP Manufacturing Software is designed to simply manage all areas of a building component, modular building, pharmaceutical, specialty chemical, adhesive and sealant, cosmetic, food and beverage, and paint and coatings manufacturer in one software system. The enterprise software solution is configured to handle complex business processes, such as production, inventory control, accounting, sales order entry, purchasing, labor tracking, and retail Point-of-Sale (POS), without costly customization.


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Lou Piniella to throw out ceremonial first pitch at Yankees Opening Day
Gates will open to fans with valid tickets beginning at 11:00 a.m., with festivities slated to begin at approximately 12:30 p.m. with the introduction of both teams on the baselines. The Yankees ask their fans to please budget ample time when planning their trip to the Stadium and urge their fans to use public transportation.
Lou Piniella, who will be honored with the "Pride of the Yankees Award" at the 2013 Homecoming Dinner following the Opening Day game, will throw out the Opening Day ceremonial first pitch. He will become the 12th former Yankees player to receive the Opening Day honor. A Tampa native, Piniella played his final 11 Major League seasons with the Yankees (1974-84) and was a pivotal piece of their World Series Championship teams in 1977 and 1978. He also managed the Yankees from 1986-87, and took over as the Yankees' general manager for the 1988 season and also resumed his manager's role in June of that year.
As previously released, the Yankees and the Red Sox will stand together in dedicating the 2013 Opening Day game to the victims of the Sandy Hook school shooting, their families and the greater community of Newtown. Pregame ceremonies will feature joint honor guards of Newtown police and firefighters, along with a moment of silence, during which a list of the Sandy Hook victims' names will be recognized on the center-field video board.
The Yankees and Red Sox will also wear a special ribbon on their uniforms for Opening Day to honor those lost and those affected by the tragedy.
Constantine Maroulis, Tony nominee and star of the Jekyll & Hyde Broadway musical scheduled to open on April 5, will sing the national anthem. In addition, a giant American flag will be unfurled by 75 West Point Cadets.
During the seventh-inning stretch, Alli Mauzey of the Broadway hit Wicked will perform "God Bless America."


text: "Golden rice," a genetically modified grain that incorporates beta-carotene, has recently shown to help "convert vitamin A" in humans. This finding suggests that golden rice could help prevent vision loss and blindness in people suffering from vitamin A deficiency, especially those in poor, heavily rice-consuming countries. Many poor countries also suffer from high cases of… Continue reading


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Latest update : 2012-10-25
Science v. Justice: Italian newspapers lament court ruling
Italian newspapers are outraged at a court's decision to jail a group of scientists for failing to predict an earthquake. In Russia, Pussy Riot are still in the headlines, as two of the young women are sent to remote labour camps, far from their families in Moscow. And an Israeli poll says many Jews want more segregation from Arab Israelis.
Justice and science are on a collision course, says Il Sole 24 Ore, referring to a court's decision to jail scientists for failing to predict an earthquake. La Repubblica sees science as the unfortunate scapegoat in a country that celebrates both religious miracles and technical advances.
Also, Pussy Riot are back in the headlines: one band member walks free while two others are being sent to remote prison camps. One specialist likens these institutions to 19th century jails.
Finally, most Israelis would accept a form of apartheid – a controversial new poll says many would prefer segregation among Jews and Arab Israelis. Haaretz is disgusted by these findings.


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Win big with VH Steamers – The Annual Red Carpet Contest is here!!!
Awards Season, as I've been saying, is to the celebrity calendar what the playoffs are to sport. Nominees campaign HARD: talk shows, interviews, all the kids and the grandparents come out; if there's a secret father hidden somewhere, he might get recruited too. This is our High Season. And it's also when celebrities go all out on fashion, when we gorge on red carpet fashion. Because fashion is a matter of taste, our partner this year for the annual Red Carpet contest is a perfect fit.
VH Steamers (the little black dress of meals) has added two new flavours to their line-up of yummy Asian dishes (see below for details) and want to celebrate by putting up for grabs our biggest Red Carpet contest prize ever! How big? You could win a $5000 Visa cash card and, as always, a designer bag valued at $1490 that I picked out last weekend. Prada. You'll like it. I promise.
Click here to go to the contest page and submit your entry. Once there, please read the instructions carefully because once you make your selections and submit your ballot, you cannot modify your choices. And we are allowing only one entry per email address, so make your selections carefully!
The contest will be open until midnight Pacific on February 23rd, 2013 (the night before the show). As always, the winner will be the person who makes the most correct predictions (and meets all eligibility criteria). In the event of a tie, the tie break will go to the person who meets all eligibility criteria who submitted their ballot earlier than the individual or individuals with whom they are tied. Full contest rules and regulations are here.
Now a little bit about our partner…
VH Steamers are a line of delicious frozen entrées that offer full-flavoured Asian taste in just a few minutes. Thanks to their DuoTray SteamCooker™ technology that keeps the sauce separate from the ingredients, it guarantees freshness with none of that soggy, blended taste you're use to with other frozen foods.
The two newest flavours are Sweet and Sour Chicken (with rice, pineapple, and red & green peppers in a sweet and sour sauce) and Sweet and Spicy Dumplings (with rice, carrots, green beans and water chestnuts in a sweet and spicy sauce). Please. All you need to say to me is dumplings. Every meal could be dumplings for me. Not into those? (WHY NOT?!?) There are enough other options to have something different every night of the week and more. Check their site for the full menu.
Visit here for the full line-up of dishes and to read more about their love of all things with good taste.


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Relations with Georgia
Georgia aspires to join the Alliance. The country actively contributes to NATO-led operations and cooperates with the Allies and other partner countries in many other areas. Support for Georgia's reform efforts and its goal of integration in Euro-Atlantic institutions is a priority for cooperation.
During a visit to Georgia in August 2015, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg inaugurates the NATO-Georgia Joint Training and Evaluation Centre at the Krtsanisi Military Facility
- Shortly after Georgia regained independence in 1991, the country joined the North Atlantic Cooperation Council (1992) and the Partnership for Peace (1994).
- Dialogue and cooperation deepened after the "Rose Revolution" in 2003, when the new government pushed for more ambitious reforms.
- Allied leaders agreed at the 2008 Bucharest Summit that Georgia will become a NATO member, provided it meets all necessary requirements – this decision was reconfirmed at NATO Summits in 2009, 2010, 2012, 2014 and 2016.
- Following the Russia-Georgia crisis in August 2008, the Allies continue to support Georgia's territorial integrity and sovereignty within its internationally recognised borders and call on Russia to reverse its recognition of the Georgian regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia as independent states.
- The NATO-Georgia Commission (NGC) provides the framework for close political dialogue and cooperation in support of the country's reform efforts and its Euro-Atlantic aspirations.
- At the Wales Summit in September 2014, a substantial package of measures was launched to strengthen Georgia's ability to defend itself and advance its preparations for membership. Further steps to help strengthen Georgia's defence capabilities were taken at the NATO Summit in Warsaw in July 2016.
- Georgia has provided valued support for NATO-led operations in Kosovo and Afghanistan, as well as contributing to maritime situational awareness.
More background information
Key areas of cooperation
Security cooperation
Thanks to regular participation in Partnership for Peace (PfP) training and exercises, Georgia has been able to contribute actively to Euro-Atlantic security by supporting NATO-led operations.
Georgian troops worked alongside NATO troops in the peacekeeping operation in Kosovo (KFOR) from 1999 to 2008, providing a company-sized unit as part of the German brigade and an infantry platoon within a Turkish battalion task force.
Georgia was one of the largest non-NATO troop contributors to the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan, which completed its mission in December 2014. It is currently one of the top overall contributors to "Resolute Support" – the follow-on NATO-led mission to train, advise and assist the Afghan forces. Moreover, Georgia continues to provide transit for supplies destined for forces deployed in Afghanistan. The Georgian government has also pledged financial support for the further development of the Afghan National Security Forces.
Georgia participated in NATO's Operation Active Endeavour, a counter-terrorist maritime surveillance operation in the Mediterranean, primarily through intelligence exchange. The country continues to support NATO's maritime situational awareness in the context of maritime operation Sea Guardian, which was launched in 2016.
Moreover, Georgia currently participates in the NATO Response Force (NRF).
The country also has a mountain training site, which is accredited as a Partnership Training and Education Centre and offers courses and training to Allies and other partner countries. Moreover, over the years since first hosting a PfP military training exercise in 2001, Georgia has hosted a number of multinational exercises involving NATO Allies and partner countries.
At the 2014 Wales Summit, NATO adopted a Partnership Interoperability Initiative to ensure that the experience gained by Allies and partners from over a decade of working together in Afghanistan is maintained and further developed. As part of this initiative, Georgia has been invited to participate in the Interoperability Platform that brings Allies together with 24 partners that are active contributors to NATO's operations. Georgia has also been identified as one of five countries that make particularly significant contributions to NATO operations and other Alliance objectives, which will have enhanced opportunities for dialogue and cooperation with the Allies.
Defence and security sector reform
NATO supports the wide-ranging democratic and institutional reform process underway in Georgia. Particularly in the area of defence and security sector reform, NATO and individual Allies have considerable expertise upon which Georgia can draw.
Cooperation in this area was given a significant boost at the 2014 NATO Summit in Wales, where Allied leaders endorsed a Substantial NATO-Georgia Package (SNGP), including defence capacity building, training, exercises, strengthened liaison, and opportunities to develop interoperability with Allied forces. These measures aim to strengthen Georgia's ability to defend itself as well as to advance its preparations towards NATO membership.
As part of this package, more strategic-level advice is being provided to the Georgian defence ministry and general staff. A core team of advisors is embedded in the defence ministry and complemented by experts in over a dozen specific areas of work. As of June 2017, some 41 advisors from NATO member states and partner countries are providing generous support to the package. Essentially, all NATO Allies are currently supporting Georgia through the SNGP in the form of expertise and/or resources.
Moreover, a Joint Training and Evaluation Centre has been established together with Georgia to host live and simulated training and certification for military units from Allied and partner countries. NATO exercises open to partners are conducted in Georgia periodically. The most recent one took place in late 2016 and the planning for the next iteration is to start shortly. A defence institution building school has been established to make benefit of Georgia's experience in reforms.
At the NATO Summit in Warsaw in July 2016, new steps were taken to intensify cooperation to help strengthen Georgia's defence capabilities, interoperability and resilience capabilities. These initiatives include increased support for Georgia's training and education, strategic communications, and the development of Georgia's air defence and air surveillance. Bilaterally, Allies are also implementing programmes to enhance Georgia's self-defence and resilience. Allies also decided to deepen their focus on security in the Black Sea region.
Georgia's participation in the PfP Planning and Review Process (PARP) since 1999 has helped its forces develop the ability to work with NATO and is also providing planning targets that are key to security reform objectives in several areas. NATO support has, for example, helped Georgia build deployable units (according to NATO standards) that are interoperable with Allied forces. Georgia's defence reform objectives within the PARP have facilitated improved financial management in the ministry of defence, assisted in reforming the intelligence structure of the armed forces and ensured that a credible Strategic Defence Review was conducted.
An important priority for Georgia is to ensure democratic control of the armed forces, including effective judicial oversight and appropriate defence command and control arrangements.
Improved education and training are also essential for Georgia's defence reform efforts. NATO is leading a tailored programme for Georgia – the Defence Education Enhancement Programme (DEEP) – with the support of the PfP Consortium of Defense Academies and Security Studies Institutes, the Partnership Training and Education Centres and Allied defence institutions. The DEEP programme with Georgia started in 2009, focusing on assisting the National Defence University (NDA) and the four-year Military Academy, and supporting the Non-Commissioned Officer Training Centre.
NATO and Georgia launched a Professional Development Programme (PDP) for Civilian Personnel in the Ministry of Defence and other Security Institutions in 2009. The PDP provides training with the aim of strengthening the capacity for democratic management and oversight in the Ministry of Defence, as well as other security sector institutions. Training and education provided in the framework of the PDP are closely aligned to Georgia's defence and security sector reform objectives. Current priorities are to support Georgia's civil service reform and enhance Georgia's own capacity for providing training to security sector civilian personnel.
Georgia also participates in the Building Integrity programme, which provides practical assistance and advice for strengthening integrity, accountability and transparency in the defence and security sector.
Another important focus of cooperation has been to support demilitarization projects in Georgia through the Partnership Trust Fund mechanism, which allows individual Allies and partner countries to provide financial support to key projects on a voluntary basis. Over the years, a number of such projects have helped to address problems posed by stockpiles of surplus and obsolete weapons and munitions, and promoted their safe disposal. A three-year project with a budget of Euro 1.15 million, which was completed in November 2017, helped to clear mines and unexploded munitions from the ammunitions depot at Skra.
Civil emergency planning
Georgia is enhancing its national civil emergency and disaster-management capabilities in cooperation with NATO and through participation in activities organised by the Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre (EADRCC). The Centre helped coordinate the delivery of hundreds of tonnes of relief items to Georgia in the wake of the August 2008 conflict. It also coordinated assistance to Georgia in 2005 when the country experienced some of the worst flooding in its history, in 2006 when forest fires broke out in southern Georgia, and after a major earthquake in 2009.
Georgia itself hosted a major EADRCC consequence-management field exercise in the town of Rustavi in September 2012, which was organised in cooperation with the Emergency Management Department of the Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Security-related scientific cooperation
Georgia has been actively engaged within the framework of the NATO Science for Peace and Security (SPS) Programme since 1994. The SPS Programme enables close collaboration on issues of common interest to enhance the security of NATO and partner countries. By facilitating international efforts, in particular with a regional focus, the programme seeks to address emerging security challenges, support NATO-led operations and advance early warning and forecast for the prevention of disasters and crises.
Today, scientists and experts from Georgia are working to address a wide range of security issues, notably in the fields of energy security, cyber defence, support to NATO-led operations and advanced technology (including nanotechnology). A recently approved SPS multi-year project looks for example at the risks to the Enguri Energy Infrastructure in Georgia and Georgian experts have contributed to a hands-on cyber defence training course based on their national experience and expertise. The SPS Programme is also promoting regional synergies and during 2015 Georgia hosted a training course on "Cooperative Solutions to Critical Security Issues in the Black Sea Region". (More on Georgia's ongoing cooperation under the SPS Programme)
Public information
The NATO Liaison Office conducts public diplomacy programmes in Georgia in support of the Georgian government's efforts to inform the public on NATO and in cooperation with local non-governmental organisations and state authorities. Activities include seminars, conferences and workshops. "NATO Weeks" and summer schools are organised on an annual basis to reach out to youth audiences.
Groups of opinion leaders from Georgia are regularly invited to visit NATO Headquarters and the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) for briefings about the Alliance, and NATO officials regularly travel to Georgia to speak at public events. Senior NATO officials – including the Secretary General and the Special Representative for the Caucasus and Central Asia – also regularly visit the country for high-level consultations. The Permanent Representatives to the North Atlantic Council, NATO's principal political decision-making body, paid a visit to the country in September 2008 (in the immediate aftermath of the Georgia crisis), in November 2011 and again in June 2013.
The Office of the State Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration has established an Information Center on NATO, which has its main office in Tbilisi and various branches. Working in close cooperation with NATO's Public Diplomacy Division and with the NATO Liaison Office in Georgia, it is an important tool in raising public awareness about the Alliance in the country.
Response to the Georgian crisis
At an emergency meeting of the North Atlantic Council on 19 August 2008, NATO foreign ministers called for a peaceful and lasting solution to the conflict based on respect for Georgia's independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity. They deplored the use of force, which is inconsistent with the commitments to the peaceful resolution of conflicts that both Georgia and Russia have made under the Partnership for Peace as well as other international agreements. The Allies expressed particular concern over Russia's disproportionate military action, which is incompatible with Russia's peacekeeping role in the breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia and called for the immediate withdrawal of its troops from the areas it was required to leave under the terms of the six-point agreement brokered by the European Union.
At Georgia's request, the Allies agreed to provide support in a number of areas: assessing the damage to civil infrastructure and the state of the ministry of defence and armed forces; supporting the re-establishment of the air traffic system; and advising on cyber defence issues.
On 27 August 2008, the North Atlantic Council condemned and called for the reversal of Russia's decision to extend recognition to the South Ossetia and Abkhazia regions of Georgia as independent states.
The Allies continue to support Georgia's territorial integrity and sovereignty within its internationally recognised borders. NATO does not recognise elections that have since taken place in the breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, and has stated that the holding of such elections does not contribute to a peaceful and lasting settlement. NATO equally does not recognise the signature of so-called treaties between Russia and the breakaway regions.
The Allies welcome Georgia's efforts to seek a resolution to the crises with South Ossetia and Abkhazia through peaceful means. They strongly support Georgia's current strategy of engagement with the two breakaway regions, which envisions a constructive way forward through fostering economic ties and people-to-people contacts to build confidence.
The Allies also welcome the steps Georgia has taken unilaterally towards Russia in recent years, including the removal of visa requirements for Russian citizens, the agreement on Russia's membership of the World Trade Organization; as well as the direct dialogue that has been initiated with the Russian government by the Georgian government.
Framework for cooperation
Created in September 2008 in the wake of Georgia's crisis with Russia, the NATO-Georgia Commission (NGC) provides the framework for cooperation, serving as a forum for both political consultations and practical cooperation to help Georgia advance its Euro-Atlantic aspirations. Since December 2008, the work of the NGC is taken forward through the development of an Annual National Programme (ANP). The ANP lays out Georgia's concrete reform objectives and includes specific timelines and benchmarks.
In addition to Georgia's contributions to Euro-Atlantic peace and stability, key areas of cooperation under the ANP include political, military and security-sector reforms. Priorities for Georgia include transforming its public and private sectors in order to promote democracy, good governance, the rule of law and sustainable social and economic development, as well as reforming the defence and security sector. NATO agrees to support Georgia in these reforms by providing focused and comprehensive advice and activities in several frameworks (both civilian and military) towards its reform goals.
In parallel with the establishment of the NGC, the Military Committee with Georgia was created as a format for meetings focused on military cooperation. The principal aim of NATO-Georgia military cooperation is to assist Georgia with the implementation of military and defence-related issues of the ANP, strategic planning and defence reforms, and to increase interoperability in support of Georgia's contributions to NATO-led operations. The Military Committee with Georgia Work Plan defines key areas and objectives for military cooperation between NATO and the Georgian Armed Forces. The Work Plan comprises activities that help achieve the goals set in the ANP and PARP.
A NATO Liaison Office was established in Georgia in 2010 to support the country's reform efforts and its programme of cooperation with NATO. A new exchange of letters establishing the status for NATO personnel in Georgia was signed in May 2017 and will replace the original exchange of letters from 2010.
Georgia also cooperates with NATO and other partner countries in a wide range of other areas through the Interoperability Platform, the Partnership for Peace (PfP) programme and the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC).
Milestones in relations
1992: Georgia joins the newly created North Atlantic Cooperation Council (succeeded by the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council in 1997).
1994: Georgia joins the Partnership for Peace (PfP), a programme aiming to increase security and defence cooperation between NATO and individual partner countries.
1995: Georgia signs the PfP Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) between NATO and partner countries – it addresses the status of foreign forces while present on the territory of another state in the context of cooperation and exercises under the PfP programme.
1999: Georgia joins the PfP Planning and Review Process (PARP) to help its forces develop the ability to work with NATO and to improve defence planning.
1999: Georgia starts contributing peacekeepers to the Kosovo Force (KFOR).
2002: Georgia declares its aspirations to NATO membership and its intention to develop an Individual Partnership Action Plan (IPAP) with NATO to sharpen the focus of cooperation on reform efforts.
June 2004: At the Istanbul Summit, Allied leaders place special focus on the Caucasus – a special representative and a liaison officer are assigned to the region.
2004: Georgia becomes the first country to agree an IPAP with NATO.
2005: NATO and Georgia sign a transit agreement allowing the Alliance and other ISAF troop-contributing nations to send supplies for their forces in Afghanistan through Georgia.
2006: NATO offers an Intensified Dialogue to Georgia on its aspirations to join the Alliance.
April 2008: At the Bucharest Summit, NATO leaders agree Georgia will become a member of NATO, provided that it meets all the necessary requirements.
August 2008: Allies express deep concern over the armed conflict between Georgia and Russia, calling for a peaceful and lasting solution to the conflict based on respect for Georgia's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity. They agree to support Georgia's recovery in a number of areas and also propose the establishment of a NATO-Georgia Commission (NGC) to oversee the implementation of support as well as supervise the integration process set at hand at the Bucharest Summit.
September 2008: The North Atlantic Council pays a two-day visit to Georgia. The Framework Document establishing the NATO-Georgia Commission is signed and the inaugural meeting takes place in Tbilisi. In December, NATO foreign ministers agree to develop an Annual National Programme (ANP) under the auspices of the NGC.
12 March 2010: Agreements are signed to launch a new project that will help Georgia safely dispose of explosive remnants of war.
April 2010: Georgia signs an agreement with NATO to contribute to Operation Active Endeavour, NATO's maritime counter-terrorist operation in the Mediterranean.
August 2010: The North Atlantic Council decides to enhance NATO-Georgia relations through effective military cooperation (this leads to the development and implementation of the first annual Military Committee with Georgia Work Plan in 2011).
October 2010: The NATO Liaison Office is inaugurated in Tbilisi during the NATO Secretary General's visit to Georgia, where he meets the Georgian president, prime minister and senior ministers.
April 2011: NGC foreign ministers meet in Berlin and adopt, for the first time, a joint statement which reaffirms the basic principles of NATO-Georgia cooperation.
November 2011: The North Atlantic Council pays a visit to Tbilisi and Batumi.
October 2012: Georgia doubles its contribution to ISAF, making the country one of the largest non-NATO troop contributor nations.
26-27 June 2013: The North Atlantic Council visits Georgia.
September 2014: Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili attends the Wales Summit, where NATO leaders endorse the Substantial NATO-Georgia Package to help Georgia in its efforts to improve its defence capabilities and to achieve its goal of NATO membership.
24 November 2014: In a statement, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg underlines that the Allies do not recognise the so-called treaty on alliance and strategic partnership signed between the Georgian region of Abkhazia and Russia. He reiterates the Allies' call for Russia to reverse its recognition of the South Ossetia and Abkhazia regions of Georgia as independent states and to withdraw its forces from Georgia.
January 2015: Following the completion of the ISAF operation in Afghanistan in December 2014, Georgia starts contributing to the follow-on NATO-led mission ("Resolute Support") to train, advise and assist the Afghan security forces and institutions.
5 February 2015: NGC defence ministers meet in Brussels to take stock of the implementation of the package of measures launched at the Wales Summit to improve its defence capabilities.
18 March 2015: The Secretary General states that NATO does not recognise the so-called treaty on alliance and integration signed between the South Ossetia region of Georgia and Russia on 18 March.
8-22 July 2015: Georgia hosts military crisis-response exercise Agile Spirit involving over 700 troops from Bulgaria, Georgia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania and the United States.
27 August 2015: During his first visit to Tbilisi, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg inaugurates the NATO-Georgia Joint Training and Evaluation Centre at the Krtsanisi Military Facility.
2 December 2015: In a statement on NATO's "open door" policy, NATO foreign ministers meeting in Brussels reiterate their decision at Bucharest and subsequent decisions concerning Georgia. They welcome the progress the country has made in coming closer to the Alliance and express their determination to intensify support for Georgia.
8 July 2016: During the NATO Summit in Warsaw, Allied foreign ministers meet their Georgian counterpart to discuss progress and priorities in cooperation between Georgia and NATO, as well as current international security issues. Allies welcome the significant progress in implementing the Substantial NATO-Georgia Package since its launch at the 2014 Wales Summit. They also decide on new steps to intensify cooperation to help strengthen Georgia's defence capabilities, interoperability and resilience capabilities, including in the areas of training and education, strategic communications, air defence and air surveillance. Allies also agree to deepen their focus on security in the Black Sea region.
7-8 September 2016: During a two-day visit to Georgia, the North Atlantic Council reconfirms the importance of its partnership with the country.
10-21 November 2016: A 10-day exercise involving 250 personnel takes place at the NATO-Georgia Joint Training and Evaluation Centre in Krtsanisi to hone the ability of Georgian staff officers to work alongside Allied counterparts in planning and executing crisis response operations. It is the first exercise where Georgia's general staff led a multinational crisis response exercise.
2-3 March 2017: During a two-day visit to Georgia, the NATO Military Committee receives a progress report on the Substantial NATO-Georgia Package; visits the NATO-Georgia Joint Training and Evaluation Centre and observes a pre-deployment training demonstration of Georgian troops; and visits the Administrative Boundary Line.
May 2017: Georgia hosts the spring session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly.
August 2017: Following a request for assistance, NATO Allies and partners help Georgia contain a major forest fire in the Samtskhe-Javakheti Region.
6 December 2017: At a meeting of the NATO-Georgia Commission, NATO foreign ministers reaffirm their practical and political support for Georgia as well as their commitment to Georgia's eventual membership of the Alliance. They underline NATO's strong commitment to Georgia's security and territorial integrity, calling on Russia to end its recognition of the Abkhazia and South Ossetia regions of Georgia and to withdraw its forces from Georgian territory.


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Would you spend $40 a pound for a killer cup of Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee?
I asked myself that question when Chadwick Conte of C&C Specialty Coffee asked me if I wanted to do a taste test/review of his Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee, apparently one of the most expensive coffees in the world. Being a coffee fiend, and overall foodie, I said sure. We don't normally do "reviews" on the blog, but we do write about things we like outside of politics, and I thought it might be fun to explore the word of super-duper gourmet coffee. So here goes.
In a nutshell. I liked it. I'll be buying some as gourmet Christmas gifts. But I'm not sure I can afford the price tag for my daily drinking.
Now, a bit more detail.
I googled Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee, and apparently it is a big deal. And an expensive big deal. $40 a pound is not cheap, and while they have it cheaper at Costco, it sounded to me like Costco's might be a blend of beans and not pure Jamaican Blue Mountain (curious if anyone has the deets on that).
So Chadwick sent me the medium roast and the dark roast to try, and he advised me, and I also found the same noted online, that this coffee is lighter, and has less caffeine, than regular coffee. And he was right. And that's what makes this a great afternoon coffee, for me at least, but not a great morning coffee.
I need a caffeine punch in the gut in the morning, and this stuff isn't it. But for the afternoon, when I feel like a big cup of Joe, but don't want to be bouncing off the walls any more than I usually am, the Jamaican Blue Mountain was great. The caffeine was subtle, gave me a little buzz, but nothing like my favorite dark roast from Paris, Carte Noire (oddly, made by Kraft, but not sold in the US), which you get in 8 oz bags and isn't terribly cheap (Paris isn't cheap), or my second-runner up, Peet's Major Dickason's Blend, which goes for around $8 for 12 oz, which is 3/4 of a pound.
So, over the past several weeks, I've been giving the Jamaican Blue Mountain a spin. The first day, I made the mistake of making it for breakfast. Oh the headache that afternoon when my body realized it hadn't gotten its daily dose of caffeine! But for some people, the low caffeine content is a plus, not a negative.
Chadwick sends beans, he insists they preserve the flavor better, and I have a Siemens grinder I think I've had for 20 years, it's a workhorse. So I ground my own beans, which is always great for scaring the dog and filling the air with a wonderful aroma. Some folks online recommended that you grind it especially fine, so I did.
For brewing my morning coffee, I like to use an old Italian cafetiere that my mom might have gotten in Italy decades ago. The thing is as much a workhorse as my grinder. I piled it extra high, as folks online had suggested, and set it atop my stove.
Pretty soon, I had coffee brewing up.
I've tried the Jamaican Blue Mountain coffees two different ways. First, as a cappuccino:
And then, in a manner which the Italians taught me when I was in college. with sweetened condensed milk, which can be a tad too sweet, but is just decadent (it's like drinking a coffee-flavored seven-layer cookie):
The coffee was good. Interestingly, I found that the dark roast, when I added sugar to it and nothing else, was quite drinkable as is. And I don't drink black coffee, ever. I'm a milk and sugar guy. But it was that yummy with just sugar (didn't have the same sense from the medium blend).
Drinking it with the sweetened condensed milk was a joy. It's more subtle than my French coffee, which can sometimes even overpower the sweetened condensed milk. This stuff does not.
Then as a cappuccino. The Jamaican Blue Mountain held its own, though I still probably prefer my French coffee's overpowering flavor for my cappuccio. But the Blue Mountain wasn't bad. Contrast that to a Nespresso machine I got recently as a gift. The thing couldn't make a strong enough cup of coffee if it tried. Or rather, the coffee is strong, but the servings are so small that I need to use two of those 60 cent coffee pods for each of the two morning cappuccinos that I normally have each day (totaling $2.40 a day for my morning coffee, which is a bit insane for coffee made at home).
So is the Jamaica Blue Mountain worth the price? As a gift, certainly. I'l be buying a few bags for family members for Christmas as "gourmet" gifts – I like the idea of giving people pampering things they might not give themselves. But for myself, because of the low caffeine content, and the price, it's probably not the coffee I'd go for for my daily blend. (Though I could see keeping a pound around for something "special" to serve at dinner parties – again, makes a nice gift for any foodies that you know.)
So there you have it. You can visit Chadwick's online store and peruse the goods here.


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Gapyeong is in Gapyeong-gun, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea.
Gapyeong is a small town, famous all over Korea for pine nuts(찻) and Nami island(남이섬). In October, Gapyeong hosts the annual International Jazz Festival on Jara island(자라섬).
Get in
By Subway
Gapyeong Station is located on the Gyeongchun line(경춘선) of the Seoul Metro system. This line starts at Sangbong(상봉역) on the northeast of Seoul, and runs all the way to Chuncheon(춘천역). The train leaves Sangbong approximately 3 times per hour takes 55 minutes to get to Gapyeong. From Chuncheon it takes about 20 minutes. A journey on the Seoul Metro costs from 1,050 won to 2,050 won depending on the length of the journey. A typical journey to the center of Seoul from Gapyeong on the on the Seoul Metro involves 2 to 4 line changes and takes between 90 minutes and 2 hours.[3]
By Train
The ITX departs Yongsan(용산) Station on the hour every hour and stops at Cheongnyangni(청량리), Pyeongnaehopyeong(평내호평), and Gapyeong stations on the way to Chuncheon(춘천). From Yongsan it takes 55 minutes and costs 4,800won to reach Gapyeong. In the opposite direction, the train leaves Chuncheon every ten minutes past the hour, takes 17 minutes and costs 3,000 won to reach Gapyeong Station.[4]
By Bus
Many intercity buses going to Chuncheon departing from destinations in Gyeongi Province will stop at Gapyeong bus terminal(가평버스터미널). Also the red 1330-3 bus runs between Cheongnyangni(청량리) in Seoul and Gapyeong costing 2,200 won with a T-money pre-pay card.
Get around
Korean BBQ
Fast Food
Get out


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Comments about Womens ASICS Abby Warm-Up Hooded Jackets:
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