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There are few nationalities that are noted for wedding days, in fact the only one that I know of, and have heard tales of time after time is the olden Italian wedding days.
The traditions of the families who attended these events were filled with characters in their own rights.
The father of the bride usually spent the week before on his job, working hard and thanking God that she was finally off his hands, although she should have done better. He scrubbed the night before to rid the telltale signs of his labor. The mamma was all-abuzz: with the preparations and planning, including the cooking and cleaning, in case someone dropped by after the reception. Running shotgun over the wedding dress, that it was full, neat and in perfect alignment with her daughter's movements, nagging and interrupting the flows of conversation, annoying the bride.
Her other children basked in the glory of the day by either being in the wedding party or getting their cheeks pinched by errant relatives who all said: "Momma Mia, how you've grown!" Of course there were 20 bridesmaids, all cousins: God forbid you left one out!
|Getting aunt Rosa up to dance!
If you were the groom, chances were your friends gave you unsolicited advice about what to expect in that first marital bedroom hour and rode you right up to the altar, as hard as you might try to stay steady, avoid their getting you drunk and teasing you about your lost liberty. "Eh, Gino, if it don't work out, send her to me!" This was not necessarily Italian in custom, but slick back hair with pointy shoes and cigarettes rolled up in the t-shirt sleeve. (Basic white, of course)
Back in the 50's and 60's the ceremony was usually held in a big old church, with white columns and vaulted ceiling that swallowed the mass of people who attended. As the bridal party made its way down the aisle, the little flower boy distracted and not really wanting to be part because no one bothered to take him to the bathroom before, the flower girl with her forced curly hairdo, tossing flower petals too many too soon, to the oohs and ahhs of her side of the family.
There was of course the father of the bride who would escort his daughter down the aisle one last time to give her away. His mindset was one of "Let's get down to the altar and get this over with before I cry in front of everyone!" Clumsily he lifts the veil and kisses her one more time as his daughter and awkwardly retreats to the safety of his wife, who is running more water from her eyes that an open spigot on a hot day!
Of course there is the grandmother, usually without her husband who passed 20 years ago because he wanted to, dressed: in mourning black of course. Rings on her fingers, hair cemented in place and bosom propped over the bench in front of her, along with (His) grandmother on the other side of the aisle, same attire, same position and same stern look of the matriarch.
The crowd turns as the bride marches down the aisle with her veil, an important sign to the gossipers!
Now what Italian wedding would be complete with a 5 piece band to provide the Tarantella, and cause most of the guest to not only raise their voices, by their hands as they spoke to be heard over the music? We talk of course of the Italian 'Football' wedding, where there are three or four distinct platters of piled high hero or submarine sandwiches, separated by choice of cold cuts, wrapped in white paper and ready to toss across the room.
"Eh, Nunzio, uh cappacola?" Looking ceiling ward you would see the sandwiches on their way to their destinations. You better provide a bottle at each table and make sure it was filled for a certain uncle or grandfather (if he was still living), that the band played and played what the crowd wanted. Such songs as: Mala Femina, The Tarantella (played twice), Funiculi Funicula, and of course: Volare!
The most important thing in the wedding plan, the thought that went into the food, band, catering hall and booze was of course the verdict. They came with a certain amount of money in their envelope, and depending on the critique they gave, the men retreated to the Men's Room and subtracted money for such demerits as bad food, being ignored lousy music or who they sat with that they weren't talking to.
Of all the relatives, usually an aunt would interview each of the cousins of marital age and ask: "But when are YOU getting married?"


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A Trip To DogPatch
Well, the folks down at Al Capp's DogPatch have gone and done it now. They've started exportin' Kickapoo Joy Juice and let me tell you, it certainly brings back the memories. This yellow/green, lemon lime concotion not only takes you back to a better time in soda history it does it via the combined ingredients of HFCS and/or sugar and caffeine. This reminds me of what Mountain Dew used to look and taste like when I was a kid.
The Soda is not overly carbonated but the taste of citrus, from the grapefruit juice and other citrus flavours just comes right out and is enjoyable. I don't particularly care for grapefruit in most forms but this is one I can get behind. It's not too tart and not overly sweet. The most telling thing I can think of to say is that Kickapoo Joy Juice tastes like the 60's. If the people who overproduce Mt. Dew could taste this then they'd know what they should be shooting for.
Kickapoo Joy Juice is being bottled for the US market by the good people at Real Soda under license from Monarch Beverage Co. and this is a darn good partnership as far as I am concerned. Bringing back Real Soda for real people who remember what a Soda should taste like! It is refreshing, as a good soda should be. The bottle itself is a shout out to retro, as well. No twist off cap here, brother. You have to break out an honest to goodness bottle opener to get at this Soda! Nice touch, guys!
The ingredients listed on the bottle are:
Carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup and/or sugar, citric acid, sodium benzoate, concentrated grapefruit juice, caffeine, gum arabic, sodium citrate, natural falvor, EDTA, brominated vegetable oil and yellow 5 and it is 180 calories, if you care about that sort of thing. I don't.
Kickapoo Joy Juice is a blast from the past and well worth the buck or so I shelled out for it. It tastes good from the bottle and in a glass and every sip screams time travel back to a better day in Soda history in my brain. On a hot summer day I'd definitely buy another of these bottles of refreshment over many other Sodas which are currently on the market.
Kickapoo Joy Juice gets a solid 8/10! And that's pretty good!

subset: commoncrawl


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richmond hill
Richmond Hill Monday Night Volleyball Drop-Ins is BACK!
Hey Fellow Spikethru-ers,
It's that time again as school's in full swing, so is Monday night volleyball. We will be starting Sept 18th, 2017 and running until June 11th, 2018.
There will be a few minor changes as follows:
- Slight price increase to $3.50 per person
- Advance payment can be made for the full year, which is 32 sessions at a discount rate (message for more detail)
- Format will be 3 teams of 6 players (no subs) and games up until 21 points
The first event will be posted on Monday September 11th and the first event will take place Monday September 18th starting at 8:00pm. Please come on time and early, so we can start right away once everyone is warmed up. Thanks.
Monday night volleyball back again: Event posting & Drop-in start date
Hey SpikeThru-ers,
School's about to start but that's good news for us because SpikeThru's Monday night volleyball will be up and running again from mid-September until mid-June.
There will be a few minor changes as follows:
- Price will be increased to $3.00 due to an increase in the school permit fee.
- Due to the amount of interest in attending and crazy sign ups at 11pm, 12 spots can now be reserved for half the year or for the full year with an advanced payment (message me for more details). This means you no longer have to sign up at 11pm on Monday nights. The spot will be there for you every Monday but we'll still require you to let us know ahead of time if you can make it or not.
Format will stay the same 4 teams of 6 and games up until 15 points.
The first event will be posted on Monday September 12th and the first event will take place Monday September 19th at 8:15pm so be sure to mark your calendars!
Where to play indoor volleyball in the summer
It's summer time – schools are closed and beach volleyball isn't your thing. Here's a list of locations uptown and a few downtown of where you can go to play indoor volleyball until September.
Majority of them will be from community centers, which ranges from $3 – $4 per person, for privately hosted indoor volleyball they'll be $5+. Benefits of hosted volleyball events: you can register to reserve a spot and you'll know how many people are going, but this will come at a cost premium.
For community centers, its first come first serves, you can't reserve and you may not even get a spot. If you want to go drop in at a community center, make sure you arrive half an hour early to line up.
Follow this link to get a list of updated drop in locations: https://spikethru.wordpress.com/summer-events/
Markham Drop-In Locations
Angus Glen Community Centre
Map – https://goo.gl/maps/KdcBBsmNgc12
Cost – $3.75 per visit
Time & Day – 8:30 pm to 10:30 pm (Wednesday)
Cornell Community Centre
Map – https://goo.gl/maps/n2qZW8EJSJo
Cost – $3.75
Time & Day – 8:00 pm – to 10:00 pm (Wednesday) / 6:15 pm to 8:15 pm (Friday) / 8:30 pm to 10:30 pm (Sunday)
Armadale Community Centre
Map – https://goo.gl/maps/QkGSp2bUiKy
Cost – $3.75
Time & Day – 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm (Sunday)
Ronin Volleyball
Map – https://goo.gl/maps/WTnrj1czpot
Cost – $17 per session or $110 for 10 sessions
Time & Day – Refer to schedule – http://www.roninvolleyball.com/training/training-schedule/
Richmond Hill Drop-In Locations
Bayview Community Centre & Pool
Map – https://goo.gl/maps/YDptzhKt2U82
Cost – $5
Time & Day – Starts July 10 until Sept 4 7:30 pm to 9:30 pm (Sunday)
Elgin West Community Centre & Pool
Map – https://goo.gl/maps/h4a1cZi2T6D2
Cost – $8
Time & Day – 7:30 pm to 11:00 pm (Thursday)
Link – http://www.meetup.com/INTERMEDIATE-ADVANCE-VOLLEYBALL-Richmond-Hill-Meetup/
Willowdale Community Christian Assembly Gymnasium
Map – https://goo.gl/maps/LxqcLfHC2n12
Cost – $15
Time & Day – Refer to link – http://www.meetup.com/canadian-activity-network-can/#upcoming
Downtown Drop-In Locations
James Culnan Catholic School
Map – https://goo.gl/maps/GHUWir2enLA2
Cost – $5 first time or else $7
Time & Day – 8:00 pm to 10:00 pm (Tuesday)
Link – http://www.meetup.com/Toronto-GSN-Indoor-Beach-Volleyball-Meetup/events/231560906/
St. Mary's Secondary School
Map – https://goo.gl/maps/iLwXPV9iQtz
Cost – $10 + HST
Time & Day – 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm (Sunday)
Link – http://www.meetup.com/Toronto-GSN-Indoor-Beach-Volleyball-Meetup/events/231560906/
Miles Nadal JC
Map – https://goo.gl/maps/i25YSZzchCw
Cost – $10
Time & Day – 3:30 pm to 5:30 pm (Sunday)
Link – http://mnjcc.org/images/MNJCC/Schedules/Gymnasium/Gymnasium__Schedule_June_2016.pdf
If I'm missing any, please let me know so I can add it to the list. Sharing is caring, and we all want to get in some indoor volleyball time.
Have fun, enjoy summer!
Interested in summer volleyball events? Like this post for a show of interest please.
It's 11:00pm and it feels weird not to routinely post a SpikeThru event!
As many of you know, tonight was the last SpikeThru volleyball drop-in as the school term ends but not to worry, we'll resume again in September 2016!
SpikeThru would not have been so successful without your support so many thank yous to everyone who has participated or spread the word – I hope everyone had a great time every Monday night.
Not wanting the fun to end, I want to organize a few beach volleyball events or find other indoor courts we can play at in the interim. To keep things simple, please like the Facebook post or this blog post so I can gauge interest.
Again, thank you all for the awesome year and hope to see everyone sooner than September! 🙂
Becoming a Better Volleyball Player – By Watching YouTube Videos?!
As I mentioned in my previous blog post, YouTube played a big part in my development. Watching is much easier than reading. I can spend hours and hours watching volleyball games, trying to analyze what the players are doing, watching videos on hitting, passing, and blocking. What I learned from these videos, I took to my volleyball clinics or drop-ins. I came across a few that have helped me the most so far so I thought I'd share them with you.
In my research, I stumbled across Coach Donny on YouTube. His videos are very elaborate and detailed, not too long to be dull, but long enough to get the points across. He provides great tutorials and breaks everything down to the basics, so it's easy to understand and apply. Coach Donny not only provides various volleyball tutorials, he also does videos on improving your vertical jump, spiking power and highlights from 9 man tournaments.
Learning about passing.
This video really helped get me started. Coach Donny goes into the fundamental of passing in volleyball and he breaks it down to 3 parts: the ready position, platform, and passing motion. A few keys points he discusses for each part are listed below:
Ready Position
- Feet should be shoulders width apart
- Feet staggered, normally with your dominate foot in front
- Knees bent
- Shoulders forward
- Arms in front and ready to form the platform, being neutral and fairly relaxed
Forming Platform
- Locking the fingers, palm over palm with the fingers overlapping each other
- Thumbs parallel with one another and pointed down for a flat surface
- Have the elbows locked and keep them straight
- Form everything together in one motion, so there's no wasted movements
- Contact the ball just above where you wear the watch, which is also known as the "sweet spot"
Passing Motion
- Knee, waist, sternum – Get the platform ready at the knees, contact the ball at your waist and finish your pass at the chest
- Power and control is with the arms mainly as legs tend to add too much power and lacks control – Legs are used for positioning
- Keep it simple and fluid
Just a few points I'd like to add is to square up to where you want to pass, the quicker you square up to the setter the easier it will be to pass the ball accurately. A few common mistakes players make when performing the pass:
- Not moving back away from the ball, cushioning and absorbing the ball
- Lifting your arms and using too much of your legs
- Not square up to the setter
- Not following the ball to your arms
I do advise for you to take professional clinics to ensure you're actually doing everything properly. Hope you had a wonderful Christmas and in the new year, join us Jan 4th to work off that turkey!
Volleyball, sportsmanship and team building
When I first started to become interested in volleyball, I found myself missing a few opportunities to play because my friends couldn't make it. I hear that a bit sometimes too from others and it's completely understandable – playing with people who are unfamiliar to you can cause a little anxiety. But this is what I've found with our group of players at SpikeThru.
- We have a sociable crowd of players who are always keen to meet new people
- Every player is extremely respectful of each other's skill level
- Like every sport, after each play, players encourage each other with a simple pat on the back or a quick high five
- At the end of each game, we congratulate the opposing team for a good game
These are honestly all the small things that makes volleyball great, and why I truly enjoying playing with the SpikeThru crowd.
In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has participated once, twice or every single week and also thank you to those who have no yet had a chance to play with us but have supported us through Likes, Follows, Shares and Invites.
We'll see you all on Monday October 26th at our next drop-in.
Top 10 Health Benefits of Volleyball
I recently came across this article on Health Revolution Fitness and thought this would be a great place to share why I got into playing volleyball.
"Whether you play indoors, on the grass, or on a beach, volleyball can be a great way to stay healthy and fit. It's also a great way to stay involved in social activities, as it can be played with a single partner or with and entire team. Here are the Top 10 Health Benefits of Volleyball:
- Burns calories and fat: One of the primary benefits of volleyball is that it helps you burn calories, which is an important component of a weight loss or maintenance program. Harvard Medical School reports a person can burn between 90 to 133 calories during a half-hour game of non-competitive, non-beach volleyball, depending on a person's weight, while a competitive gym game of volleyball burns between 120 to 178 calories. An hour-long game of volleyball on the much less stable ground of sand can burn up to 480 calories.
- Tones and shapes the body: The physical activities involved in playing volleyball will strengthen the upper body, arms and shoulders as well as the muscles of the lower body. Playing volleyball also improves the cardiovascular and respiratory systems.
- Increases metabolic rate: Playing volleyball enhances your energy level and improves your overall performance in other sports and workouts.
- Improves hand-eye coordination: Volleyball is all about hand-eye coordination. When you serve, you must follow the ball with your eyes, and strike the ball at the right point. On defense, you must react to where the ball is going and get in position to make a play. While setting, your hand-eye coordination helps you see where your hitters are, to make sure to give them a good set.
- Builds agility, coordination, speed, and balance: Due to its quick changes of pace and direction, volleyball places a large number of demands on the technical and physical skills of a player. During the course of play, players are required to serve, pass, set, attack, block and dig the ball. These skills require flexibility, good balance, upper and lower body strength and speed in order to be played effectively.
- Heart healthy: By getting your heart rate up, your body will circulate more blood and nutrients throughout your body, which improves your overall health.
- Builds muscular strength: Volleyball requires a strong chest and core muscles for nearly every play. When you pass, you mimic a squat, and you must use your legs to generate power. When you set, you must use arms, legs, and hands, especially your thighs. When the ball is coming to you, you need to load your legs and arms, and push up. Your hands need to be strong to prevent injury.
- Increases aerobic ability: According to Well Source's Aerobic Mile Chart, you expend the same amount of energy playing an easy, slow-paced game of volleyball for 20 minutes as you would jogging one mile. You expend the same amount of energy spent jogging a mile by playing a vigorous 12-minute game of volleyball.
- Improves interpersonal skills: Volleyball requires that teammates work cooperatively, and at a fast pace. A June 2008 study of adult men who engage in regular team sports found that team members developed better networking skills than men who were less involved in team sports, reports the Centre for Economic Policy Research. Leadership and cooperation skills as well as practice handling wins and losses appropriately provide valuable characteristics that transfer to dealing with others in many other situations.
- Boosts mood and increases drive to succeed: Your involvement in volleyball can improve your mood, reduce stress and encourage pride in your accomplishments as a team member. The activity can also improve your self-confidence, self-esteem, your body image and make you feel happier about life in general. Involvement in volleyball can also improve your motivation and ability to succeed. As a team player, your cooperative efforts lead to the success or failure of the team. Team members encourage one another during practice and in the game to give everyone the confidence to keep on trying to master and perfect the necessary skills to win."
SpikeThru offers volleyball drop-ins on Monday night, opened to all skill levels for these very reasons!
Special thanks to Health Fitness Revolution for letting us use this article! Check out their other Top 10 Lists here.


text: The Highlander's Touch resonated with me. No wait, let's be more specific. Lisa resonated with me. Her experience as a carer is so accurately portrayed I have to wonder if Moning has ever been one. Many times I read something and said, "Yes. This is what it's like. Exactly." So thank you for that. What an unexpected to surprise. This is the reason for the 'favourites' shelf. I appreciated Cicernn's knight-in-shining-armour routine, his understanding Lisa's refusal to enjoy herself while her mother lay dying and alone, and feeling she didn't deserve to be happy having had no reason to feel much positive emotion in years. Everything else...was okay, worthy of a 3-3.5★ rating, but a solid 4★ for what this meant to me personally. Moning's author note is a stark warning for all women to ensure they attend regular cervical smear tests.


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I dusted off my King Arthur cookbook and used the pancake recipe. I bought this book years and years ago. Pre-marriage years ago and last night was the first time I used it. I'm glad I finally did. I need to use it more often.
Here's a picture of the extras ready to go in the freezer
Basic Pancakes
adapted from King Arthur Flour Cookbook
- 4 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
- 2-4 Tbs sugar
- 1 Tbs baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 4 eggs
- 1 quart buttermilk, yogurt or sour milk
- 1/2 c melted butter (optional)
In large bowl, mix the dry ingredients thoroughly.
In second bowl, beat the eggs and buttermilk together until they are light and fluffy. Add the butter or oil. Take about 20 seconds and blend this mixture into the dry ingredients.
I didn't make it exactly. I used 2 c all purpose flour, 2 cups white whole wheat flour. I didn't have buttermilk so I used milk+vinegar instead. I used 3 Tbs sugar & 1/4 c butter.
Overall these were great pancakes. They were light and fluffy, great texture, not heavy at all. That's what I look for in a pancake. A thought they were better than Bisquick pancakes. I thought they tasted a little plain. They needed something extra. DH doused his with syrup and the kids had mini chocolate chips in their pancakes, so they didn't complain about the bland flavor.


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PS: I can't stop watching it.
Thicker Looking Hair
I love this commercial.
PS: I can't stop watching it.
PS: I can't stop watching it.
3 comments:
- Nikosmommy said...
Oh to have thick, luxurious hair!!
This ad always makes me laugh...
P.S. Katy's gone and I've thrown up some Royksopp on my player. Especially for you! Happy Tuesday!
- November 8, 2010 at 10:45 PM
- Deborah said...
This one makes me laugh and laugh!
I have to admit that TiVo has sooooo limited my commercial watching and this irrationally makes me sad.
- November 9, 2010 at 4:57 AM
- You're Lucky I Don't Have a Gun... said...
NIKO- i just went to your page- luvluvluv it. that's one of my top two fav royksopp songs. <3
DEB- since moving back in with my mom, i haven't had the luxeries of TiVo, so i've been forced to watch commercials again. -it's like living in the Cave Man Times.
- November 9, 2010 at 11:29 AM
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After all the blogging I've done this week (including the challenge and instructions for the beads I'm about to show you), I need a quick one! A truly quick one, not like yesterday's longer-than-I-anticipated quick post.
Today I made another Polka Dot beaded bead using the Pastel Light Sapphire Super Duos and the cream (#421) 11/0 seed beads to match one of my first samples. Using the 11/0s means I can put a headpin through the middle and make quick earrings using my one-step looper:
I'm really looking forward to playing with these beads more and making lots of projects with them! For full instructions on how to make the beads and the accompanying rope, click here.
Saturday, March 15, 2014
Polka dot earrings
Posted by Traci Otte at 3:29 PM
Labels: 2014 projects, beading, beads
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Thanks for your incredible work with James+James. These last two years working with you have been the best years of my working history, with no exception.
I thank God for every single day we got to work together as brothers, and I attribute a huge volume of our growth as a company to your hard work, relentless serving, leadership, decision making and relationship growth.
Each time you walked into the office it was very clear that you were setting the tone for the rest of the team -- whether you knew it or not -- and it was a very calming, honest attitude you brought with you. This was very important, as it set the culture for many of our management's interactions and how they processed through issues with each other.
During most meetings whether formal or informal, you shared focused emotions and took the time to ask very specific questions that helped guide our team towards becoming more successful together.
One of the traits that set you apart and made you extremely good at your job was your inability to ignore the nuances of someone's statements. You would pursue how someone felt past the situational context, really listening to who they were and what their needs at that moment might be, asking penetrating questions to ensure you were responding in the most appropriate manner.
You have an excellent leadership voice, one that meets those around you at their level and challenges each individual in very specific ways.
Throughout the difficulties with managing a crew, learning and gathering financial reports, training, and purchasing, you were able to establish the right levels of energy and passion. This proved essential in connecting with the team, accomplishing your goals, and working through the growing pains that were heaved on you from time to time.
Often rather than lecturing or trying to teach a member of our company, I would overhear you telling them a story instead. Rare was the time you would simply tell an employee "do it this way because I asked you" as you understood that was a poor way to manage. Instead you would encourage them with an example or narrative, bringing you together rather than making a top-down demand.
In whatever you pursue next, brother, I hope you will continue to lead and serve in the same way you did with our team here in Northwest Arkansas.
Hebrews 13:7 "Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith."
Your brother,


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This is the official page of Future In Sound Records.
Originally created by Alexander Olenga (Red Circus & Logea) and Zak Oudrhiri (Komp Sci), their network began as a place to share and find different electronic sounds. Growing in size and artists, it became a label on which various shades of electronic music are challenged. Future In Sound is a department, putting out forward thinking music, whether inspired from older sounds or today's beats.
All music produced and released is a property of Future In Sound Records and holds to the agreement made between the artist and the record label. The use or misuse of any property belonging to the label without the consent of both label and artists is not accepted.
General Manager – Alexander Olenga


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1. the quality of being patient, as the bearing of provocation, annoyance, misfortune, or pain, without complaint, loss of temper, irritation, or the like.
2. an ability or willingness to suppress restlessness or annoyance when confronted with delay: to have patience with a slow learner.
3. quiet, steady perseverance; even-tempered care; diligence: to work with patience.When she woke up this morning at 3:33 a.m. crying because she wanted to sleep in my bed I held my ground and didn't let her, no matter how long she cried.
When he continued to ask me to play on the computer at 7:30 a.m. I told him in a firm clear voice that he could go to sprout online later.
When I woke up and found that my phone was turned off (even though it's my only way to connect with people who may be interested in hiring me) I didn't flip out I just gave my potential employer my home phone number and kept it moving.
I'm learning patience and it's not easy. I can be a VERY impatient person. When driving I am that person who is "cussing" (I don't really curse I say things like big dummy and seriously) my fellow road warriors out. When things aren't going my way I have to walk away before I hurt someone. Patience is not something I can honestly say I possess. I must be honest and share that this time of unemployment and being home with my children is really teaching me how to be patient. I like the second definition of patience above "an ability or willingness to suppress restlessness or annoyance when confronted with delay".
I know that as a Christian I must have patience because is it one of the fruits of the spirit. I want to live a life of patience and I guess I have to be tested to see how far off course I am. I am determined to win this test.
As a parent do you struggle with any of the fruits of the spirit?
Until next time...


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What's the takeaway? Because we lack the political will for the better system (cuz, you know, socialism), what we got is about what we had to get.
Start with the proposition that we don't want our fellow citizens denied coverage because of preexisting conditions — which is a very popular position, so much so that even conservatives generally share it, or at least pretend to.
So why not just impose community rating — no discrimination based on medical history?
Well, the answer, backed up by lots of real-world experience, is that this leads to an adverse-selection death spiral: healthy people choose to go uninsured until they get sick, leading to a poor risk pool, leading to high premiums, leading even more healthy people dropping out.
So you have to back community rating up with an individual mandate: people must be required to purchase insurance even if they don't currently think they need it.
But what if they can't afford insurance? Well, you have to have subsidies that cover part of premiums for lower-income Americans.
In short, you end up with the health care bill that's about to get enacted. There's hardly anything arbitrary about the structure: once the decision was made to rely on private insurers rather than a single-payer system — and look, single-payer wasn't going to happen — it had to be more or less what we're getting. It wasn't about ideology, or greediness, it was about making the thing work.
Hopefully, what we're getting will be a step in the right direction. After all, the single most successful subsystem of American health care is Medicare, which has its faults but that everybody seems to agree works pretty good, which is a single payer system.
But thanks to politics, echo chambers, and the seeming disconnect between the stakes of the game and the game itself in some circles, we can't just move to the smarter, more efficient, more humane system right away.
Okay. Guess we'll just have to take a deep breath, steel ourselves for the long slog up the hill, keep up the pressure on our duly elected representatives, and keep winning the war of evidence and ideas.
I think these words of Churchill's, though used in a different context, might prove instructive:
The United States invariably does the right thing, after having exhausted every other alternative.


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CCP | Your Catering People
-Enjoy Our Hospitality at USQ, Toowoomba & Beyond-
CCP | Your Catering People provide the best catering and event hospitality service in the Toowoomba region. Whether you are catering for a staff function, formal, wedding or a completely different type of event, we can make sure everything runs like a dream.
CCP also bring you fantastic food, service and coffee in USQ's R Block, with the USQ Food Court, USQ Uni Bar and the Espresso Lounge. We offer delicious, top quality meals at the best value.
We are accredited by Restaurant & Catering Australia with the Caterer's Gold License, placing us in Australia's top echelon of catering providers.


text:
I was making his bed.
My son, Sam is 8-years old and by all accounts old enough to be making his own bed...but I do it, every morning.
Mostly, because I'm a control freak and like the way the bed looks when I do it and also because the little bit of time we have before getting out the door for school doesn't seem to merit it.
But the other day, I was up on his bunk bed (he inhabits the top) and he was laying on the floor lamenting getting out of his pj's and into clothes for the day.
"You know when you go to college, you'll have to make your own bed. You want to keep a clean space for your roommate. And who knows? Maybe your best friend will end up going off to college with you."
"I'm not going away to college," he says matter-of-factly.
"Going away is a blast. Both papa and I did and had so much fun. You get to meet new people, see new things, and have really cool experiences."
"Nope. I'm staying right here."
While biting my tongue, I let it go. All of it. My desire to scream at the top of my lungs that going away to college is so important. That traveling abroad, studying another culture, language, and religion changes you in a way that is almost indescribable. Getting outside of your comfort zone and having to clean up your own messes literally and figuratively is transformational.
But in that moment, my 8-year old just wanted the creature comforts of home and I get that. But sooner, rather than later, I pray that he sees the power and benefit of leaving the nest. Not simply to inhabit one that is a short car ride away, but one that is many moons away that requires time, effort and money to get to.
After sharing this dialogue with my husband, he retorted with..."You know, he might just want different things out of life. And that's okay."
To which I thought, want different things out of life? How can you know what you want out of life until you go and explore what the world has to offer? How can you know who you are in your own skin until you're stretched farther and thinner than you thought possible?
Nope. I think I'll draw a line in the sand with my three kiddos. They'll be required to go away and do something for at least a year. And then, if they miss Omaha and the comforts of our home, well, then, we'll talk.
Maybe I'm being a hard ass or maybe I'll be singing a different tune when they're in high school and want nothing to do with me...but I feel that I'd be remiss if I didn't encourage them to fly the coop.


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ExactTarget is a global Software as a Service (SaaS) leader that powers all types of interactive marketing messages.
Spring Metrics solutions increase revenue for online merchants through automated, real-time customer interaction at the point of customer conversion. Based on behavioral targeting of site visitors, Smart Offers from Spring Metrics increa...
ExactTarget is leading in Top 10K Sites, Top 100K Sites, Top 1M Sites and The Entire Web.
In terms of market share, Spring Metrics is clearly lagging behind, losing to ExactTarget in all segments.
ExactTarget has better usage coverage in more websites categories. Including Business & Industry, Internet & Telecom, Shopping, Email and 170 other categories.
Spring Metrics is leading in Car Buying, Products & Shopping, Cycling & Biking, Consumer Electronics and 6 other categories.
ExactTarget is leading in most countries, including United States, Australia, United Kingdom, Brazil and 108 other countries.
Spring Metrics is leading in Palestinian Territories, Barbados, Venezuela, Cape Verde and 8 other countries.


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As promised here is the other wreath I made. I originally had it like this but decided to change it up a bit.
I'm in love with how it turned out. The best part? I didn't spend any money. I used things I already had around the house. :)
Your creativity is so AMAZING. Love how the wreath turned out. You really have an eye for color.ReplyDelete
gorgeous wreath! love the colors!ReplyDelete
I adore the colors you chose! They are springy yet subtle. And you I love that it's free!! Thanks for linking up with DIY under $5!ReplyDelete
I looooove this! Definitely will try it! TfsReplyDelete


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Trump Signs Order Granting Steel Import Sanctions On "National Security" Grounds• http://www.zerohedge.com, by Tyler Durden
The order will revive a decades-old, rarely used law to explore imposing new barriers on steel imports, in this case aimed loosely at China.
Trump will sign the memorandum related to section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 at an event in the White House that will include leadersd of several U.S. steel companies; the law will allow the president to impose restrictions on imports for reasons of national security. Trump's directive will ask Ross to conduct the probe "with all deliberate speed and deliver the results to the president with his recommendations."
An official cited by Reuters sad that there are national security implications from imports of steel alloys that are used in products such as the armor plating of ships and require a lot of expertise to create and produce.
The move is another step in Trump's "America First" policies in which he has tried to boost U.S. manufacturers and preserve American jobs. It comes as he tries to coax China into taking a more active role in reining in North Korea's nuclear and missile programs.


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Here is an article I wrote a while back. It provides a list, statistics, and description of the most common disabilities seen in babies/ children.
The Most Common Infant Disablities and How to Recognize Them
It also provides links to books on some of those particular disabilities.
Friday, June 4, 2010
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We bring in a highly experienced team of staffing professionals having closed over 1000s of requirements for various clients across the US. The team has been able to successfully meet the needs of clients in short time frames. Be it deploying 6 Java EE professionals in less than 6 weeks or 2 .NET professionals within 1 week or a CRM Expert in 3 days, the team has been able to successfully deliver any challenge that our clients have thrown at us.
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Nalashaa's onsite team helps us build a blended delivery model which has been a huge success among our clients. The blended delivery team consists typically of a technical lead or a small technical team onsite supported by the offshore team. The onsite manager or team working at the client location ensures smooth coordination with the offshore team while also being the local development team for the client. The model has been used by some of our clients successfully to build effective delivery teams both onsite and offshore.
Some of the key skills that we have helped our clients to get resources for include
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|Oracle Java Stack
|Java / J2EE (JSP, Servlets, JDBC, EJB, MVC / Struts Framework, XML, Hibernate, IBatis, Spring, JSF), Design Patterns, Web Services, SOA, SOAP, Web Logic Application Server / Portal, IBM Websphere Application Server / Portal, JBoss Application Server and Apache / Tomcat Server.
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|Windows Azure, Amazon Web Services


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I have never been travelling that much. Therefore this trip I planned was a big challenge for me. And that's exactly what EVS is about – challenging yourself and trying out new things.
It is a bit paradoxical that my EVS (and first ever!) blog is about travelling because travelling was not the reason why I went for my EVS. I would rather say that one of the reasons why I decided to go for my EVS was because I was always afraid of travelling. To be somewhere far away from your home, from your parents and friends, from everything that you know so well, from your comfort zone.
During the months living in here, the capital of Lithuania Vilnius, volunteering in organisation I have ever wanted to, I have gained new experiences with travelling. I have travelled with my new friends – other EVS volunteers from Lithuania and also with my old friends from Slovakia that came to visit me here all around the Lithuania. We travelled by bus, by train, by ferry, using Blablacar, we hitchhiked, we rented the bicycles, we did canoeing. We were camping at the lakes, visiting other EVS volunteers and sleeping overnight at their places, finding accomodation through AirBnB. It seemed enough to finally plan a trip on my own.


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Thursday, April 19, 2012
Thursday's Tony Gwynn: Take That, Giants!
The most dramatic of Tony's seven batting titles was his fourth, when he edged out Will Clark on the final day of the 1989 season. Members of both clubs had one prime objective; "We'd already clinched and it was the last day and we were doing whatever we could to get Will that title," said then-Giants third baseman Matt Williams. Williams and the rest of Clark's cohorts were unsuccessful as Tony went 3-4 while Clark managed just a single in four at bats. "You'd just feel defenseless. You're standing there with a glove, but for what purpose? What good was a glove doing you with Tony Gwynn at the plate?" mused Williams; "That day, he just did to us what he did to everybody. And he did it for 20 years."
Labels: Tony Gwynn
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Well, there is absolutely no rest for the wicked, and school is back with a bang.
|Detail of the box clasp
This semester I am continuing my studies with jewellery and I am undertaking 'Advanced Techniques' which is mainly gem setting, but it also includes making complicated clasps, including the box clasp.
As well as creating a box clasp that 'clicked' when it closes, our brief was to design a bracelet that integrated with the clasp.
Of course, I made a large one and it is approximately 2.5cm long x 1.5cm wide. Making it larger also made it harder, for some strange reason.
|Detail of the chain
I used commercial chain and threaded lengths of silver through the chain to replicate a fence like structure. It also started to look like a spine, musical notes, or the DNA structure.
Box clasps are incredibly tricky to make, and quite fiddly. Its most likely my first and last box clasp I ever make!


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Sixteen bidders: Tourism Dept. prepares to award contract for advertising
The aliens' days could be numbered.
The creators of the scaly salesmen, who have been touting the wonders of New Mexico to potential visitors, are nearing the end of their four-year contract with the state's Department of Tourism, and they are facing increased competition this year.
M&C Saatchi unveiled the "Best Place in the Universe" campaign in 2007. It brought a mix of reactions here. But officials with Saatchi and the Tourism Department say the campaign has been successful in leveraging the state's paltry marketing funds to cut through the media clutter.
Saatchi is among 16 firms vying for the Tourism Department's new advertising contract, which starts with the state's new fiscal year on July 1.
A review committee of eight people, whose names were not made public, will announce the winner in mid-April. The crop of contenders includes some of the top firms in New Mexico as well as many from outside the state. (See below.)
The presence of so many out-of-state agencies is new, said Martin Leger, advertising manager with the Tourism Department.
He sees two factors at work.
"We had hired an out-of-state agency and that sent a message to those outside New Mexico that we are amenable to having an outside agency," he said.
It's unusual for state tourism offices to use an out-of-state agency, he added.
"It's also the economy," Leger said. "A lot of agencies are stretching their boundaries to find work."
Before Saatchi got the current contract, it had been held for 14 years by Rick Johnson & Co. of Albuquerque.
"We're excited to try and win it back," said Erik Lohmeier, CEO of Rick Johnson.
The Tourism Department's advertising budget is contingent on the decision of the Legislature, but the request for proposals lists the annual budget at about $3 million. It's not huge, but there are many who would like to see the contract return to a New Mexico firm, which means the agency fees would stay here as well.
The state specifically asks for strategies that would secure private sector partners to leverage the Tourism Department's budget. Several competitors for the contract say they're up to the challenge.
"We're very good with limited budgets," said Bart Cleveland, creative director of McKee Wallwork Cleveland.
The local McKee Wallwork is the agency of record for the Albuquerque Convention and Visitors Bureau. Another competitor for the contract, Aristotle Inc. of Arkansas, has worked with the ACVB on its Web site. Another Albuquerque competitor, Vaughn Wedeen Kuhn, has the ad contract for the Santa Fe Convention & Visitors Bureau.
Meredith Vaughn, president of Vladimir Jones of Colorado Springs, said her firm worked with a very small budget at the Colorado Department of Tourism and increased the return on investment to $215 for every $1 spent. She declined to reveal how the firm did that — at least not this early in the bidding process. Vladimir Jones also represents Sandia Resort & Casino.
Dave Hayduk, principal for Hayduk-King Advertising in Santa Fe, said his firm has been involved in tourism around the state for years and made the final four the last time the contract was bid.
Shelley Gregory, owner of Media Matched in Albuquerque, said this is her firm's first time bidding on the contract, but her creative team has tourism experience.
"We thought the state would need to go into a different direction, given the economy," she said.
Dale Lockett, president of the ACVB, was one of the more vocal critics of the current alien campaign. He appreciated the creativity, but was concerned that it had limited reach and did not dovetail with other efforts, such as the focus on authenticity by the ACVB. He would like to see the Tourism Department work more closely with ACVB, which has an advertising budget of $1.3 million.
"It would just be really nice if the agency selected by the state would take advantage of all the research that ACVB's agency has conducted on what drives consumers to our destination," he said.
The following firms have filed proposals for the Department of Tourism's advertising contract:
- Aristotle Inc., Little Rock, Ark.
- Esparza Advertising, Albuquerque
- Hayduk-King Advertising, Santa Fe
- Hill & Co., Edwards, Colo.
- Imagery Creative, South Miami, Fla.
- M&C Saatchi, Santa Monica, Calif.
- Maya Advertising, Hermosa Beach, Calif.
- McKee Wallwork Cleveland, Albuquerque
- McMurry Inc., Phoenix
- Media Matched, Albuquerque
- New West LLC, Louisville, Ky.
- Rick Johnson & Co., Albuquerque
- SullivanPerkins, Dallas
- TKO Advertising, Albuquerque/Austin, Texas
- Vaughn Wedeen Kuhn, Albuquerque
- Vladimir Jones, Colorado Springs, Colo.


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Download Internet Optimizer
Please wait... contacting c-privacy.com download site.
If your Internet Optimizer 1.1 download does not start, choose a mirror below:
Destination Internet Optimizer 1.1 file extension : [exe]
Detected file type : DOS or Windows executable program or self-extracting archive
All rights for Internet Optimizer are belong to the developer, c-privacy.com. Please be aware that we do NOT provide Internet Optimizer 1.1 keygens, cracks, serials, warez torrents or any form of pirated software downloads.


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Shop Announcement:
I love giftwrapping, and will happily gift-wrap your purchase for you!
If you want me to send an item direct to your recipient, just let me know... and if there's a message you'd like me to include, I will put that in a card for you too!
Big copper-green boat
This lovely big boat is glazed in a tin-White glossy glaze, which has reacted beautifully in the kiln with the wash of copper-oxide I brushed over the sides to create a lovely bright mottled green.
It measures approx 20cm across.
It has a lovely texture and the deck has a nice big cabin and jaunty funnel!
Shipping & delivery
This item will be posted to you by Helen Komatsu within 3 days of receiving payment.
|Shipping destination
|Additional items
|United Kingdom
Italy, Greece, Cyprus, Germany, France, Spain, Finland, Belgium, Portugal, Poland, Ireland, Sweden, Denmark, Netherlands, Austria, Latvia, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Isle of Man
|USA and Canada
|Rest of the World
Returns Policy
You have 14 days, from receipt, to notify the seller if you wish to cancel your order or exchange an item.
Unless faulty, the following types of items are non-refundable: items that are personalised, bespoke or made-to-order to your specific requirements; items which deteriorate quickly (e.g. food), personal items sold with a hygiene seal (cosmetics, underwear) in instances where the seal is broken.


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Discussion in 'Hire a Freelancer' started by cynthiahanz, Feb 13, 2014.
Any takers???
PM your country & price.
i'll sort it out for you.
Hey I m interested send me PM....fro ...India
United States. Get in touch.
E-mail: [email protected]
Skype/AIM: artizhay
India pm me for price
From Pakistan
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From India
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Separate names with a comma.


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Welcome to First UMC Bastrop's website, we are so glad you've dropped by to see us!
We've got great things happening in mission and ministry at First UMC Bastrop, and we'd love to see you in worship. We've got a long ministry history of bringing people into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ — going all the way back to 1826. Come on by South Washington for a visit, we're just down the road to the south from the Morehouse Parish Courthouse on Washington Street − we'd love to get to know you and your family.
You can find all you need to know about our ministry happenings right here.
Come Worship with Us!
First United Methodist Church | 222 South Washington | Bastrop, LA 71220
Office: (318) 281-2872 | Fax: (318) 281-2874
11:00am | Traditional Worship
9:45am | Sunday School
8:30am-12:30pm, Monday — Friday | Church Office Hours


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Easter weekend took us to Opryland Hotel in Nashville, TN, for the annual Lads to Leaders Convention we attend with our church family. We were so thrilled this year to have more of our friends join us along with my mom and dad who usually make the trip to support the Grans. One of the best things about the weekend is seeing the kids interact with each other and helping each other with whatever needs to be done. While I went to judge scrapbooks, Mom and Arika took the kids around the hotel to see all the sights.
Another thing I love about L2L convention is seeing all the support that is given. Here you see the support for the K-2nd graders who did Oral Bible Reading. Thanks, Tucker, Rhett and LB for showing your support!
This was the kids first year to do puppets and they loved it!! Technically, Carter was not old enough, but someone had to drop out and he was asked to fill in. They had a great time and their team did a great job!
After puppets, LB changed clothes quickly and took off to do her Oral Bible Reading. She improved her score from last year, so we were thrilled with her! She is growing into such a lovely little lady!
A proud Gran with her granddaughter
I love my girl!
Our congregation took 140 plus people to convention and we always try to get a group picture - TRY being the key word!!!!
What a day and we had not even gotten to the awards ceremony that night!


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Development and evaluation of nutrient expert for wheat in South Asia
Published in Better Crops With Plant Food 96 (3) : 29-31, 2012
Mirasol Pampolino, Kaushik Majumdar, M.L. Jat, T. Satyanarayana, Anil Kumar, V.B. Shahi, Naveen Gupta, and Vinay Singh
Nutrient Expert (NE) for Wheat, a new nutrient decision support tool, is based on the principles of site-specific nutrient management (SSNM) and recommends balanced application of nutrients based on crop requirement. The tool was a joint development of wheat stakeholders in India including representatives from national research and extension system, private industries, International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), and International Plant Nutrition Institute (IPNI). It enables crop advisers to rapidly develop field-specific fertilizer recommendations for wheat using existing site information. Field evaluation showed that the location-specific nutrient recommendations from the tool increased yield and economic benefits of wheat farmers as compared to the existing practices.
Tags: Nutrient management, Plant nutrition, wheat
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Take advantage of this digital camera's Super SteadyShot optical image stabilization and Smile Shutter mode to ensure that photos and portraits look their best.
What's Included
- Sony Cyber-shot 10.1-Megapixel Digital Camera
- Rechargeable lithium-ion battery, battery charger
- Multiconnector USB 2.0/A/V cable
- Lens cap
- Software CD_ROM
- Owner's manual
Product Features
- 10.1-megapixel CCD
Captures high-resolution images up to 3648 x 2736 pixels. 1/2.3" Super HAD CCD allows more light to each pixel, increasing sensitivity and reducing noise.
- 10x optical zoom/2x digital zoom
For capturing sharp, detailed images. Smart Zoom intelligently crops into the central portion of the photo, helping avoid image degradation. Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar lens for professional-quality shots.
- 3" Clear Photo Plus LCD screen
With 230K pixels for excellent visibility to help you compose, shoot and view pictures even in bright sunlight.
- Super SteadyShot image stabilization and high sensitivity (ISO 3200)
Minimizes blur due to hand shake, low light conditions or times when flash is not possible. Variable noise reduction settings for clear, sharp low-light shots.
- Face detection technology
Tracks faces within the frame and automatically focuses and optimizes exposure. Smile Shutter mode with antiblink function allows you to shoot automatically when your subject laughs, smiles or grins.
- Scene modes
Include auto, beach, high sensitivity, landscape, snow, soft snap and twilight. Intelligent Scene Recognition mode detects different types of scenes and selects the appropriate setting.
- Burst mode
Captures up to 100 shots at approximately 1.8 fps.
- 9-point autofocus
Evaluates your shot at 9 points instead of 5 for great results even with off-center subjects. Monitoring and flexible spot AF and AF illuminator light also help you take sharp, detailed pictures.
- D-Range Optimization powered by the exclusive Bionz high-speed processing engine
Preserves image data in bright highlights and reveals more detail in shadows or backlit areas for great results in difficult lighting conditions.
- White balance settings
Include auto, daylight, cloudy, incandescent, flash, one push, one push set and 3 different fluorescent white balance controls for natural tones under different lighting conditions.
- Flash modes
Include auto, forced-on, forced-off and slow synchro for great images no matter what the lighting.
- In-camera effects
Include soft-edge, partial color and fish-eye filters. Also includes red-eye correction. Happy Face effect uses photo retouching to put a smile on faces. Color modes include vivid, sepia, natural and black-and-white.
- High-quality video clips
Record high-definition 1280 x 720 video at 30 fps or 640 x 480 video at 30 fps with audio and capture fast-paced action.
- 11MB internal memory
Supports Memory Stick Duo and Memory Stick PRO Duo cards (not included).
- >> Store more photos! Find compatible memory cards in our Memory Center!
- Simple controls
With easy access to common menu options for convenient control.
- High-definition output (cable not included)
Lets you display high-definition photos and create an HD slideshow using Photomusic with music and graphics when connected to your compatible high-definition TV.
- PictBridge compatible
Connect your camera to a compatible printer and print photos directly without using a PC. USB 2.0 port allows you to connect to your computer.
- Picture Motion Browser software
Provides a simple way to transfer, manage, archive and share your images.
- Via:bestbuy.com


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Takeshi's Castle Game Shows Programs Television
Player's attempt nearly impossible physical tasks. The series first aired in 2002.
Top: Arts: Television: Programs: Game Shows: Takeshi's Castle
- Keshi Heads - Details of the games and characters, and an game shows episode programs guide.
- "Takeshi's Castle" (2002) - Cast, crew and production information, as well as programs viewer comments.
- Wikipedia: Takeshi's Castle - Article about the series, its characters, and the takeshi\'s castle various takeshi's castle re-interpreted versions.
MySQL - Cache Direct


text: I have received my concealed carry permit and for last few weekends I have been doing an experiment in CC my Glock 20 which is a very large gun. Nobody has said anything and the few that I have asked don't realize that I got it on me the one friend who her and her husband are gun collectors I noticed that she was looking at my hip so I'm pretty sure she knew I was carrying. I think the only people that notices are those that have guns themself.


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With the approach of mothers day I have had some things on my mind lately. I am a stay at home mom. I don't want you to think this is going to bash working moms. I have been that too, but I am lucky enough that I get the choice to do what I want. My heart is truly here in my home with my babies and my husband. I am a home body at heart and it isn't for everyone, but it is for me. :) That being said I have had some people lately act as if what I do is nothing and even implied that I sit on my butt all day in not such nice words. Even was appalled that my daughter would want to do what her mom does when she grows up!!! Because I am unemployed and do nothing!!
I don't buy that and someone who would say something like that has one never spent a day with me, and has never done what I do. I have known stay at home moms who don't stay at home, and who aren't there to take care of their home and children. (mine being one) We always had a filthy house (she was a hoarder) and We never had clean clothes, If we were home sick she had better places to be then to stay home and care for us, to say the least. When your moms a hoarder there are no sleep overs ,or play dates, or birthday parties. I could tell you stories that would curl your hair. We were the children who fell through the cracks of the system and lived in a unsafe home with a mentally unstable mom who beat us. So I know not all stay at home moms are great.
I am a stay at home mom. I keep a clean home (beds made, floors clean, laundry washed, bathrooms wiped down, dishwasher unloaded, clean, organized home). I feed my children, I cook and bake and we go out to eat maybe once a week for a break for me. We have library day on wed, when the kids have a short school day. We eat every meal at the table together as a family. We have special family time on the weekends to do things like swim bonfires sleep overs what not. I love my children and I am glad I get to be here to see them get on the bus and am the first person I see when they get home. I bake at least once a week, so they have a special treat to come home too. I make them warm drinks on cold icky days.
I have been lucky enough to stay home and snuggle this sweet lovely baby every day of his live thus far and see every thing he is learning. I didn't always get that choice with my girls. I did work at points in their life and I missed things that I can never get back.
Yes my family could use a extra income besides my part time job (I am a breast feeding peer councelor). We aren't wealthy we live paycheck to paycheck (when we are lucky) but you know what, I will budget, I will clip coupons, I will scrimp, and do what ever it takes to be here while my kids want me here. I know all too well those days are short and I want to be there for them.
Every day isn't peaches and cream. We have days that are ugly and there isn't enough coffee in the world some days. (that is how my coffee carafe made it in the cupboard the other day)
We have days where it seems like all we do is fight. I do expect my children to clean up after them selves and have chores and responsibilities, because they need to know how to take care of things in the real world when they get older. Some day they will under stand why I have rules and expectations. I am a hard ass but it is because I love them.
You don't get sick days you don't get thank yous allot of the time. what you do gets over looked and the meals you work hard to cook are "gross" or go half eaten. There aren't bonuses or promotions. but I want them to know I will be there to dig them out of the situations they get them selves into..
I am not bragging or complaining. I am just saying there are lots of moms out there who work their butts off to make sure that their husbands have a clean house and warm meal to come home to and their kids have memories with their families playing at home when they grow up. If any of my children are lucky enough to stay home and care for their kids I would be proud and thrilled and take their kids for a night to give them a break because god knows I can't remember the last time I got one lol.
To all you mamas working hard to make more good memories then bad and fighting off the ever growing mountain of laundry that always looms over you head. No matter if you work outside the home and deal try to juggle this on your days off or work hard from home like me I appreciate you and I hope you get enough hugs and love on mothers day that your cup flows over :) hugs.


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Robert Pattinson surprised a bunch of teenage deli workers when he showed up at Maxwell's Market in Baton Rouge, La., over the weekend. Pattinson, who is in town filming the next installment in the Twilight Saga, Breaking Dawn, showed up at the locally owned supermarket to pick up a sandwich, causing a mob scene but also giving some good press to the market. Pattinson is not the only celebrity who has been seen around Louisiana over the past few years. Many celebrities have been flocking to the state because more producers are choosing Louisiana as the place to film their movies. The reason why Louisiana has become so popular is become of the tax credits that the state offers to production companies that chose to film in the state. The cities of Baton Rouge, Shreveport, and New Orleans have all had movies filming there this year. Could this be the answer to all of Louisiana's financial problems?
Visit HERE for full article


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Spode Christmas Tree Christmas Ornament
Limited Warranty Included
Select your options to see availability
Spode Christmas Tree Christmas Ornament
Product Description
- Light Bulb Type: Led
- Base Material: 100% Dolomite
- Care: Hand Wash
- Country of Origin: Imported
webID: 7865072
General Information
Protection Plan Terms & Conditions
Small Appliances,Equipment and Protection Plan details See details
Shipping & Returns
Same Day Pick Up
Need it right away? Confirm availability & buy online, pick it up at your store.
Convenient Shipping Options
Not available at your store? We can ship to you directly or to your favorite JCP location.
Easy Returns
Shop with confidence. Read our full, common sense


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Contact Us
We would love to hear from you regarding our programming. Whether you were enthralled, enlighten, moved, inspired, angrier, aroused, grossed out or just bored!
Also we want you to know where you saw our programming, on what channel, in what city and country, and at what time period. Currently our programming is being broadcasted in over 75 countries worldwide, and online via Hulu, Itunes, Amazon, and others so let us know where you live and you thoughts.
Email us your comments at email@example.com
Contact Information
Monarch Films, Inc
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Windham, NY 12496
Phone (518) 734-4596
Please fill out the form below to send us information about your film!


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September 26 - November 4, 2008
"Return, America, to the Lord your God." - Hosea 14:1
Intercessors for America has produced a repentance and prayer guide for you and may be freely copied, posted, and distributed.
Click here for prayer guide. Click here for additional information on prayer and fasting.


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Sideburn Japan T-shirt - Black
This is the same design as the t-shirt we've been giving away free to anyone who signs up for an eight-issue subscription. But it's black.
The Japanese script translate as - Go Fast, Turn Left
Two colour front design screenprinted in the UK, on a 100% cotton T-shirt.
Or get a FREE navy blue version by subscribing to eight issues (while stocks last).
Sizes S - 2XL


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With the speed at which biotechnology is progressing, it seems very likely that by the end of the decade, we'll be able to grow meat in laboratories at a price that is competitive with meat grown in ranches. It is already possible to produce it, but as of now it is horrendously expensive and has the texture of runny eggs. Not exactly appetizing. Scientists have learned that they can manually "stretch" the cells in a laboratory to mimic the muscle movements of a live animal. By the end of the decade, it is likely that scientists will have the ability to produce lab-grown versions of meats like hamburgers and hot dogs, for which texture is not as important. It will probably take several years longer before we get to taste any lab-grown steaks.
New Harvest is a non-profit dedicated to the research and development of in vitro meat. PETA has offered a $1 million reward for the first team that can develop lab-grown chicken with the taste and texture of real chicken (although their 2012 deadline makes it highly unlikely that anyone will claim the prize). How would the world change if we switched from farm-grown meat to lab-grown meat? The benefits of this are hard to overstate.
The environmental impact will be enormous. Every pound of beef requires 30 or more pounds of crops to feed the cow. Pork and chicken aren't quite as crop-intensive as beef, but nevertheless consume a very large amount of resources. This is a huge drain on our water supplies and farmland. If our meat was grown in a lab, it could completely eliminate these problems, freeing up our land and water supplies to be used for other productive things or returned to nature. Along with solar energy, this is the emerging environmental technology that I am most excited about.
The health impacts of lab-grown meat could be very large too. As it stands now, red meat is extremely unhealthy. It has been linked to heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and cancer. Growing our meat in the laboratory would enable us to tinker with the genes to make it more nutritious, and to control how much fat is in the meat. Imagine eating something that tastes like a cow, with the nutritional content of a fish. We would be able to eat some of our favorite foods as often as we wanted, without any guilt or negative health consequences.
Furthermore, those with moral or religious qualms about eating meat could sleep easily at night, knowing that no animal was killed just so that they could eat dinner.
I think that right now, the "yuck" factor might dissuade people from trying it. But this is really just a matter of how the lab-grown meat was marketed. If it had the same taste and texture of actual meat, I definitely could see this becoming very popular. And after it became commonplace, the "yuck" factor would disappear on its own. What do you think? Would you eat lab-grown meat, assuming it had the same taste and texture of regular meat, at a reasonable price? I certainly would. It could save the world.
(Donations to New Harvest are tax deductible under US law, and are spent on university research on in vitro meat. It's a great cause with enormous potential to transform the world.)
By 2022 - Lab-grown hamburger (with the taste and texture of real hamburger) is sold commercially, for the same price or less.
By 2029 - Lab-grown steak (with the taste and texture of real steak) is sold commercially, for the same price or less.


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Portugal's parliament on Friday approved a law that legalizes same-sex marriages in the country, but does not give gay couples the right to adopt children.
The bill provides gay marriages with the same rights as heterosexual marriages, except the right to adopt children. The measure extends the rights on taxes, inheritance and housing to gay marriages, just like those currently enjoyed by married heterosexual couples.
The law was opposed by Rightist parties, who had demanded a national referendum on the issue after collecting a petition signed by over 90,000 people. Their demand, however, was rejected.
"It is a small change in the law, but a very important and symbolic step to fully realize values that are pillars of open, tolerant and democratic societies; freedom, equality and non-discrimination," Prime Minister Jose Socrates said in his address to the parliament ahead of the vote.
Despite the opposition of the Rightist parties, the measure was approved on Friday in the Portugal's parliament with the support of Prime Minister Jose Socrates's Socialist Party and other allied leftist parties.
The measure will now be reviewed in committee before coming back to the parliament for a final vote. It is expected to gain the final approval before Pope Benedict XVI, who opposes gay marriage, visits Portugal in May.
The adoption of law legalizing gay marriages would mark another forward step towards modernization by Portugal, a predominantly Catholic country, following the legalization of abortion in 2007 despite strong objections from the Catholic Church.
If the measure gets signed into law by President Anibal Cavaco Silva, it would make Portugal the sixth country in Europe to allow same-sex marriages. While Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Norway have already legalized same-sex marriages, several other European countries like Britain, France and Germany permit same sex civil partnerships.
by RTTNews Staff Writer
For comments and feedback: email@example.com
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"The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, the world and they that dwell therein..." Psalm 24:1
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Lately on the Farm
3 comments:
I love purple tomatoes. I had never had any till Aimee grew some a year or so ago. This year I have purple plum tomatoes, yellow cherry, yellow romas, and an heirloom who name I can't remember.
So far the ants haven't got them and they are totally caged from the deer. The raccoons haven't struck yet. We have harvested quite a few of the little yellow cherries. I am taking them as soon as they show color so the raccoons won't notice them.
BTW I have been told by several sources now that Irish Spring soap hung near a bush the deer want to eat will keep them away. Haven't put mine out yet but will do it today.
Looking forward to seeing you soon.
- June 10, 2010 at 8:24 AM
- The Skeptical Vegan said...
Wow that mushroom fungus is interesting but beautifully unique. I love how you have your own garden and horses! What a wonderful way to live :)
- June 10, 2010 at 1:02 PM
- Linda said...
Thank you, SV; it really is a blessing.
AR, would you believe deer have never been a problem here? But, I just noticed ants for the first time. They were on the beans. Do you have a good solution for combatting them? I use natural sprays, and need to check if they cover ants.
- June 10, 2010 at 10:48 PM


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There is a probe By Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan into alleged misdeeds in the $100,000 grant to build a garden, that has never been built, that was awarded by Barrack Obama to friends and a campaign volunteer. From the Sun-time:
A $100,000 state grant for a botanic garden in Englewood that then-state Sen. Barack Obama awarded in 2001 to a group headed by a onetime campaign volunteer is now under investigation by the Illinois attorney general amid new questions, prompted by Chicago Sun-Times reports, about whether the money might have been misspent....The garden was never built. And now state records obtained by the Sun-Times show $65,000 of the grant money went to the wife of Kenny B. Smith, the Obama 2000 congressional campaign volunteer who heads the Chicago Better Housing Association, which was in charge of the project for the blighted South Side neighborhood....Smith wrote another $20,000 in grant-related checks to K.D. Contractors, a construction company that his wife, Karen D. Smith, created five months after work on the garden was supposed to have begun, records show. K.D. is no longer in business....Attorney General Lisa Madigan -- a Democrat who is supporting Obama's presidential bid -- is investigating "whether this charitable organization properly used its charitable assets, including the state funds it received," Cara Smith, Madigan's deputy chief of staff, said Wednesday.
Read Here:http://www.suntimes.com/news/watchdogs/1184049,CST-NWS-watchdog25.article
Is Chicago political machine corruption trying to go national....hope not


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Author Note: I wrote this story back in September as a birthday gift for my good friend Evil Chibi Kitten. She's kindly agreed to let me post this as part of this collection and I'm very grateful - thanks dude! She's a major Bunny fan and I was racking my brains trying to come up with a plotline, as I'd never written the pairing before. This is a little odd, but I hope you all enjoy it.
"I've been having the strangest dreams lately," says Butters, seemingly out of the blue. To Stan, who has been waiting for him to spit out whatever it was bothering him, it's an invitation to ask for more. Stan, who took numerous psych courses before finally deciding to go into veterinary science, has never been able to resist analysing his friends. Some think it makes him a good listener and a fountain of advice, others think it makes him a pain in the ass, Stan sometimes thinks it his own way of coming to terms with the mark their odd childhoods have left upon them all.
He pours Butters another drink; they are in the apartment he shares with Kyle although his room mate is gone for the moment, visiting his brother at college. Butters showed up unexpectedly, the first sign of a problem. Butters is not the kind of person to drop in unannounced unless he has good reason, in fact Butters is more likely to try to book a conversation a week in advance. After all this time, he still does not truly feel that he belongs.
"I-it's Kenny," says Butters after a few careful questions, staring into his glass and swishing the wine around. "I dream about Kenny."
Stan is unsurprised. He too dreams frequently of Kenny, who out of all of them was always the strangest before he vanished into the realm of memory and uncertainty. Kenny could walk the line between life and death, Heaven and Hell; he had seen things that most mortals would never imagine and he always returned seemingly unaffected by the experience. Except in those eyes, those almost-hidden blue eyes that showed the depths of his experiences.
In Stan's dreams, which have been plaguing him since Kenny disappeared into myth, Kenny tells him that he is trapped. The location changes seemingly without meaning, but the message remains the same. He has always thought it his minds own way of coping with not knowing, that he is struggling to hold on to his friends memory.
"I dream about him," adds Butters redundantly, his voice low.
"Start from the beginning," suggests Stan, who is already looking forward to poking holes in the tapestry of Butters imaginings and letting shine through the light of rationale. "What do you dream?"
He dreams, explains Butters, that he is walking to Starks Pond at night, the light from the town hidden and only the moon to guide him. It twinkles from the ever-present layer of snow, in this landscape unspoiled by trespassers, and the night is silent, silent. The wind tugs at his hair, chills him through the thin layer of clothing he has chosen for this fools errand, whatever it may be. Perhaps once he arrives he will know more, for the moment he is clueless.
The pond comes into view through the trees, frozen over, a thousand times more beautiful in the imagination than reality could ever make it. This place, where Butters has played and skated and swum in that brief annual week of summer, seems familiar and yet unknown, an enchanted place through the eyes of another.
There is a fallen tree that does not exist in reality, lying close to the edge of the pond and upon it, he sees the familiar silhouette of a young man, his arms wrapped around himself, breath escaping his body in silver clouds as moisture meets freezing air. Butters heads forward to speak with him, but timidly, he does not wish to intrude on what might be a personal moment. He is sure the sound of his footsteps crunching on the snow will distract the boy, but there is no sign that he has heard and it is then that Butters realises there are no footprints leading to or away from the fallen tree, as if the boy has materialised there out of nothing. For some reason, this insight does not cause him fear and he sits on the log beside the boy, giving sideways glances, unable to see his face due to the ever-present hood. Several strands of blonde hair escape the confinement and dance in the breeze.
Kenny, whispers Butters.
Kenny turns to look at him for a moment, revealing those deathless blue eyes before turning away. Butters can see the dark shadows beneath them, that his skin is pale, but all other evidence that something is wrong is hidden behind the hood, as it always has been.
There is thick rope coiled around Kenny's feet, but Butters cannot see if it is attached to him or if the boy has dropped it from numb fingers to fall as it has.
It's cold down here, Kenny tells him, his words muffled by the hood, his voice sounding thick and wrong.
Butters reaches out to touch Kenny's arm and almost withdraws; his coat is soaked through. It is only the part of Butters that is kind that allows him to move closer, to keep from pulling away. In this snow, as wet as he is, Kenny must be close to death. But then, Kenny and death have always come as a package.
The dead should not come back, says Kenny in that new, strange voice. It's an abomination, an atrocity, an offence. So I'm bound. Trapped. Cold...
No longer able to bear the hopelessness and lack of life in Kenny's voice, Butters scootches further along the log and pulls Kenny into his arms. The water from Kenny's clothes dampens Butters shirt immediately, the thin fabric clinging to him. But he refuses to let Kenny go. It is as if Kenny has become some kind of vacuum, sucking all the heat from Butters body and leaving him frozen, but still he refuses to lessen his grip.
Kenny turns again to look into Butters eyes, the blue that once danced with secrets and life now appearing glassy and unreal. For the first time, Butters feels fear.
Help me...
"And that's where I wake up," Butters finishes, a long way from the chill of Starks Pond, but he shivers anyway. "I wake up cold."
Stan tries to look merely interested, but he is unnerved. It's the use of that word, trapped, all too similar to his own bad dreams. "Don't tell me you wake up soaked in water."
Butters gives a short laugh. "Well gee, if I did, I'd know it wasn't just a dream."
Stan's lips twitch up into a slight smile, he had forgotten that sometimes, Butters can cut right to the heart of an issue without seeming to have that intent. "It was only a dream though Butters, you know that, right?"
"Yeah," replies Butters, but he sounds unconvinced.
"There's too much wrong with it," continues Stan, suddenly needing to prove to himself if no one else that there is no chance it could be anything else. "I mean, how long has it been since anyone saw Kenny?"
"Two years," replies Butters gravely. Stan hears the reproach and cringes a little, but he doesn't really need to be told, the question is strictly rhetorical.
"Right. And he hadn't worn the hood all the time in at least five years before that. It's a hangover from childhood, not a literal representation. And you said it wasn't his voice, that he didn't talk like himself."
Butters looks candidly back at Stan. "They were his eyes."
"They're just the part of him you remember most," replied Stan. "It'd be hard to forget them."
Frowning, Stan pours them another drink. Neither of them are usually big drinkers, at least not when they're together, but the conversation has made them both uncomfortable, with the subject, with their unanswered questions, with their inability to do anything but talk and drink and wonder.
"He's never been gone this long before," says Stan abruptly. It's the truth, one spoken in the recesses of everyone's mind but rarely said out loud, in case the words carried the weight to change the virtue of hope.
Butters nods, not looking up at Stan, seemingly refusing to acknowledge what he has said. "My dad used to say that dreams want to be real. He said that when we wake up, they hang on to our minds and try to escape into the real world. The strongest ones can last for as long as half a day and that's why I should only have pure thoughts, so I could only have good dreams."
Stan finds this idea typical of the Stotch parents brand of child raising, using the implication of fear to control everything about Butters, even his thoughts. He refrains from saying Butters dad is an asshole though, because although the idea is patently ridiculous, he also finds it quaintly awful.
"Did he ever say what happened if they did escape?"
Butters plays with the stem of his glass. "He said that the good ones never do. And the bad ones eat you alive."
"Oh, nice."
Lost in their morbid discussion, neither notices the time until it has gotten very late and both have had rather too much to drink. Stan insists that Butters takes Kyle's room rather than taking the fifteen minute walk home and Butters agrees without putting up much of an argument, thinking that Stan is deluding himself if he thinks even Butters could be fooled by calling the rarely used room Kyle's – it is clear to anyone who cares, and even those who don't, exactly where Kyle sleeps and the extra room is purely for show. Or as Kenny once said, I don't know who those two think they're foolin', or why they even bother tryin'. We all know they got a karmic-chi-love-thing goin' on.
Butters thinks back to the way Kenny spoke when he said that, teasing and affection in his voice, no trace of malice, or the despair that has infected the words he hears in his dream. He can remember Kenny's melodious tone that day, his mouth curled into a confident smile, his eyes meeting Butters as if to impart some great secret that he hadn't spoken of, sparkling with life and hope and good humour. The memory of that look that is Butters last conscious thought before sleep claims him.
But with sleep comes the dream and the dream is always the same.
It's Stan who shakes Butters awake, dark hair mussed but there is no sign of sleep in his eyes. Butters sits up hurriedly, his eyes adjusting to the dark thanks to the thin strip of light coming from the hallway and recognises Stan, the surroundings that comprise 'Kyle's room'. He shudders, wrapping his arms around himself in an attempt to lend himself heat, although he feels as though he will never be warm again; the chill has set into his bones.
"I-I'm okay Stan," he says shakily, surprised that his breath does not fog the air when he speaks. He feels as though the air he exhales is spitting out the frost within.
Stan runs a hand through his hair in distraction. "You were shouting," he says by way of explanation. "About the cold... was it Kenny again?"
Butters nods slowly, rubbing at his arms. "It's always Kenny," he says in a low voice, reminding Stan of the times he and Kyle have speculated there is more to the relationship Kenny and Butters have – had – than meets the eye. What that might be he doesn't know; Kenny was always full of secrets but he doubts that he would have kept something like that to himself, while Butters was and still is an open book. For the most part at least, there is something in Butters eyes that tells Stan he is not sharing everything.
"It's like..." Butters looks up at Stan through weary eyes. "Like he's trying to tell me something. But he won't just come out and say it."
"It's just a dream Butters," says Stan uneasily. "Get some more sleep. You'll feel better about it in the morning."
"I've been thinking that since the first morning Kenny disappeared," replies Butters with a humourless laugh, but he settles back down beneath the covers, drawing them around himself for comfort.
"Seriously?" Stan frowns. "You've been having this dream for that long? But we didn't really start worrying about him for a couple of weeks."
"Maybe you didn't," says Butters, closing his eyes. "Because Kenny always comes back. But this time he didn't – because somewhere, he's trapped."
Stan hesitates, wanting to see if there's more, but Butters begins breathing slowly and regularly and he realises that in spite of the nightmares, Butters is too exhausted to let sleep elude him for long. Quietly, he leaves the room and returns to his own, wishing more than anything that Kyle were here to help him work out what is happening.
What Butters might have said, had he not fallen asleep, was that back then the dream was rare, coming once every few weeks, allowing him to function from day to day. But recently, it has become more frequent, until every time he closes his eyes, all he sees is Kenny, cold and lifeless and lost.
Butters finds himself once again at Starks Pond, Kenny wet and shivering in his arms. He pulls the other closer, trying to lend him warmth but feeling only as if Kenny is draining him, until he must become as frozen as the boy he is trying to help.
Still, Butters cannot let him go. He has never been able to, even though it feels like hanging on will kill him.
Kenny leans back, allowing Butters to see his face, eyes without hope.
Help me...
Butters gasps, fear running through his body as rapidly as the heat is leaving it. He fights against the instinct to flee, the sheer exhaustion he has been subject to of late the only reason he does not succeed in jerking himself from sleep. And still, he holds on to Kenny, feeling the sodden clothing beneath his arms leeching him of strength.
Kenny's mouth opens as if to speak again, vomiting out a mouthful of water that makes Butters cry out in disgust and shock. The water is cold, so cold that it almost burns as it douses Butters, making his shirt almost as wet as Kenny's own clothes.
And then Kenny is choking on the water, struggling for breath, his eyes looking back at Butters helplessly.
Butters grabs Kenny around the chest, trying to remember what he should do for someone who is drowning – Heimlich? Turn them over? But Kenny is drowning without dying and Butters starts to panic.
"Kenny, I – I'll help you, just hold on, I'm..."
Kenny slumps in his arms, water spilling from his mouth in a seemingly unending torrent, although there cannot possibly be this much in his stomach. His chest hitches feebly, as if fighting to fill his lungs.
It is his own scream that drags Butters from the recesses of sleep and he sits bolt upright, heart pounding heavily in his chest, hearing Stan hit the floor in the other room with a hasty thud. He shivers uncontrollably, but he does not bother to try to warm himself. Heat may or may not return later, for now, there are more important things on his mind.
Stan throws the door open and stares into the room, blinking owlishly at Butters. "Holy shit, are you okay?"
"...So cold," murmurs Butters to himself. "It's so cold down there."
Butters rouses himself, looking up at Stan through wild eyes, scrambling in his hurry to get out of bed. "Come on, we've gotta go."
"Go?" Stan looks so bewildered that Butters almost laughs. "Go where?"
Butters pauses in the middle of dragging on his clothes, looking Stan dead in the eye. "We're going to free Kenny."
"Those people, the ones who said Kenny was – well, wrong." Butters stares out of the window as Stan drives, unsure as to why he is facilitating this delusion, but wracked with the feeling that something is very, very wrong. "That cult that tried to recruit a bunch of folk in town. You remember them?"
"Like I could forget." Stan changes gears, focusing his vision on the road. "An abomination, they called him. As if the cycle was something he had any control over."
"Yeah." Butters pauses, considering. "After Kenny went missing, they got awfully quiet about it. We just thought it was because he was out of sight. I thought..." He laughs, but there's no humour in the sound. "I thought maybe he'd left to get a little peace from them."
"Just another bunch of crazies," says Stan. "They're long gone."
"I know."
Stan looks over to Butters. "You think they did something, don't you? You think they found a way to keep him dead."
"No." Butters shakes his head emphatically. "I don't think they kept him dead. I think they found a way to keep him from staying alive."
Stan frowns. "I don't get it."
They pull up at Starks Pond and Butters is out of the car almost before it stops. Stan jumps out after him, grateful that in the early hours of the morning, there is no one to see them, they probably look crazy themselves.
Butters hurries to the edge of the pond, staring at its waters as if he has never seen them before. It is close to summer and the ice has melted, but the water is still terribly cold.
"What if Kenny came back to find there was no air?" asks Butters, his voice sounding distant even to his own ears. "That his first breath sucked in nothing but water? He'd drown Stan. And he'd die. And then he'd come back, only for the same thing to happen, again and again and again..."
Stan pales in sudden, horrified understanding. "You think Kenny's down there."
"I don't think so," replies Butters. "I know it. Kenny told me."
Stan thinks how it must be to be Kenny, to be trapped in the cycle of life and death, finding himself being killed before he can draw breath. He thinks of the pain of drowning, dark, cold water filling airless lungs. Of how hopeless it would feel to wake to that over and over, without the chance of salvation or an end to suffering.
He fumbles for his phone, almost dropping it in his need to get someone there who can help them. The pond is deep in the centre and the townspeople have lost their children to it before, small bodies falling through thin ice and vanishing into the depths. The local authorities are equip to deal with such tragedies.
He calls to tell them there is a body beneath the water.
Butters stares out over the water, his heart feeling like a lump of ice within his chest. The scene is peaceful, quiet, the trees casting shadows, the moonlight reflecting on the still pond. In his mind, he can see what lies beneath the calm, at the very bottom of the pond where none of them have ever managed to dive to. Rusted cars, dumped there rather than junked, the floating debris of everyday life that has been dropped there, weeds struggling through the mess. And Kenny; his feet tied to something too heavy to be moved or buoyed by the water, his hair floating around his head in a halo, face pale and untouched by sun. Butters envisions those blue eyes opening, hands reaching for the surface even as the body takes an involuntary gasp that brings nothing but rushing, choking death.
"I'm here Kenny," he says quietly, the cold seeping into his bones. "We're coming for you. Don't give up."
He takes a step forward as if to enter the water, dive beneath the surface and head down as fast and as far as he can, to ignore the way the water hurts his eyes and hunt out Kenny, try to tell him they have found him. Stan reaches forward and catches his wrist.
"Don't," he says in a voice that is supposed to be stern, but comes out more shaken than anything. "You can't make it. Stay here."
"But it's cold down there," says Butters, almost whimpering the words.
And then the police arrive and the calm is shattered.
The officers are used to such strange occurrences and although a close eyes is kept on the men, there are surprisingly few questions about how they can be sure there is a body in the pond. There are however, graphic threats about the consequences of playing a joke. Stan tries to reassure them that this is no joke, that time is of the essence. But Butters ignores them all, his entire attention on the rescue attempts.
Daylight is touching the trees when a diver emerges from the lake, summoning the attention of the officer watching from a boat. A moment later, the boat radios in a message to those waiting on the banks.
They have found a body.
Butters closes his eyes and wishes for the whole thing to be over.
They are commendably quick, the diver taking a heavy rope into the depths in order to pull the corpse out of the water – as Butters has known all along, there is something trapping it, preventing it from surfacing. By the time dawn arrives proper, they are winching their find from the pond. It is hard to see from where they are, but Butters notices a flash of faded orange as they struggle to pull the body into the boat. The hardest part is the anchor, what appears to be a cinder block still tied to the body. They cannot remove it until photographs have been taken, evidence of murder catalogued.
The boat returns to dry land, the body itself on the floor, laid on tarpaulin to prevent further evidence from escaping. There is an ambulance awaiting it, but the sirens are dead, mute testimony of the futility of hurrying. There is no need, there is no life to be saved.
Butters and Stan attempt to get closer as the body is loaded with some difficulty onto a stretcher, the concrete block that had weighted it down still attached. Stan tries to explain but these are cops, cops do not listen to reason if there is any way they can avoid doing so. And there is no need for the young men to see the corpse, although it is worryingly fresh, it is not something a civilian needs in the memory.
It is Butters who notices the movement first and breaks free from the officer attempting to hold him back. He dodges a second cop with an ease no one who knew him would ever have guessed at, almost crashing into the stretcher and staring down at the form lying there. Kenny, as he knew it would be, still and pale. His clothes are tattered and faded, even his hair seems to have been bled of colour. His lips are blue, his eyes closed. He does not look peaceful.
His chest hitches.
Kenny opens his eyes wide, revealing the same blue that Butters remembers so well, the same as they have always been, the only true colour remaining in him. He gasps, sucking in a lungful of air and choking it back out, as if the mere act of breathing is agony. He takes in a second breath, noisy, struggling, his face a mask of panic.
Butters takes one of Kenny's cold hands in his own, trying to lend a little warmth, a little comfort.
Kenny's panic fades to confusion as he pants a little more easily, staring up at Butters questioningly. His eyes rest on Butters face, registering tentative hope as he realises he is no longer trapped, no longer drowning. That he might finally have been saved.
Sitting up on the stretcher, Kenny reaches for Butters, pulling him into an embrace and resting his head on the man's shoulder. Butters has not realised he is shivering until Kenny does so, affected by the chill in the early morning air. Kenny is soaked and cold, just as he remembers from his dreams and just like he has dreamed of doing for all this time, he pulls Kenny closer, using his own body to heat Kenny's.
For the first time in a long time, both of them are warm.