text:
The European Institute of Peace engages in mediation, facilitated dialogue, and private diplomacy in Europe's neighbourhood as well as inside Europe. Our flexible structure allows us to act swiftly and engage in complex negotiations to prevent and resolve conflicts. We tailor our interventions geographically, or thematically. Geographic interventions apply one or more of the abovementioned conflict prevention and resolution techniques. Thematic interventions such as addressing violent extremism, preventing electoral violence, and natural resources-based conflicts, are coupled with additional technical thematic expertise. Our approach to mediation and facilitated dialogue is informed by principles such as consent, impartiality, and inclusivity. Learn more about our interventions…
Geographically-tailored interventions:
Middle East and North Africa Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Libya
Western Balkans to Caucasus Macedonia (fYROM), Belarus, Black Sea
Thematically-tailored interventions:
Addressing violent radicalisation
Understanding effects of war economies on peace processes
Natural-resources-based conflicts
Methodological snapshot:
Integrating Inclusion and Gender
Geographically-tailored interventions:
Contributing to a political settlement in Syria
EIP continues to contribute to peace efforts for Syria by generating innovative solutions to the conflict and helping to maintain momentum for a political settlement. As such we seek to (i) contribute to a more favourable environment for a political settlement by discreet dialogues with influential Syrians and with regional actors; (ii) broaden the inclusion of Syrian voices in the peace process; and (iii) facilitating coordination between the UN-led official peace negotiations and peacemaking organisations working on Syria at international, national and local levels. EIP considers it essential to support the UN and European Track 1 actors in keeping the need for a political solution in Syria on the table, and sourcing Syrians' perspectives to feed into Track 1 processes in a bid to make these as rights-based and sustainable as possible. With many decisions being taken outside of the Geneva framework, with minimal genuine involvement of Syrian men and women, we have dedicated efforts to anticipate outcomes of Astana, Riyadh and Sochi to identify opportunities to strengthen these outcomes for the rights-based benefit of Syrian men and women and the ultimate goal of a political settlement.
Avenues of work include Arab-Kurdish dialogues, to mitigate the risks of ethnic strife in eastern and north-eastern Syria and contribute to the overall resolution of the conflict; consultations with Syrians for post-conflict planning on issues related to housing, land and property, and conditions for the safe and dignified return of refugees and IDPs; and developing workable policies on Security Sector Reform which enable voluntary return of displaced persons and free-and-fair elections together with representatives of the Syrian people. In addition, EIP conveys perspectives from our interactions with Syrians and powerful actors in the region directly to Track 1 actors to serve as a reference for their peace efforts.
Supporting Stabilisation and security in Iraq through increased Inclusion in the political process
Stability in Iraq is not only important for its citizens, it is also imperative for regional stability. EIP's strategy is to contribute to stability and security by increasing the inclusion of marginalised groups. EIP is bringing together key Iraqi leaders for a practical discussion of policies that can be implemented to stabilise liberated areas, to prevent resurgent extremism, and to advance political inclusion in the medium term. These leaders include the main Shi'a political figures in government and Sunni leaders currently inside and outside of the formal political process. Other population groups may be added at a later stage.
A More Inclusive Peace Process in Yemen
Upon request in 2015 of the UN Office of the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Yemen (UNOSESGY) EIP assisted the UN-led mediation process seeking to bring an end to the conflict in Yemen. EIP continues to (i) engage the leaderships of the Ansar Allah and the General People's Conference (GPC) alliance, and to help them convey their positions and approach for the peace process back to the UNOSESGY. In the context of rapid fragmentation of southern Yemen, EIP (ii) supports an informed understanding of the issues and actors that affect the south of Yemen by ensuring that Track 1 can call on southern leaders to participate in the official peace process.
In line with EIP's commitment to inclusion and gender, we have a dedicated women's track – southern women for peace – which has emerged through our strategic dialogue process. The women's track is fostered by EIP and will receive direct support from the UN for their peacebuilding plans. The UN has committed to work with several of the Yemeni groups which EIP engages with and to include Track 2 and Track 3 roles in the UN peace plan.
Bridging national and sub-national peace efforts for stability in Libya
EIP has been contributing to a more conducive environment for nationwide peace in Libya by increasing Kufra District's stability and readiness for the implementation of a comprehensive national peace agreement. This includes (i) mediation to resolve a sub-national conflict along the south-eastern border of Libya (Kufra District); and (ii) connecting Libyans from Kufra District to the Track 1 peace efforts by convening meetings with the UN, European and international diplomatic community. While oft-forgotten, Kufra is of direct importance to the national peace process and Libya's economic recovery: it hosts vast natural resources (oil, water, minerals, agricultural products) which pre-war supplied the coastal urban areas of the country and instability has been exacerbated by the presence of Haftar-affiliated militia forces in the region. For Europe the zone is critical as it is an important transit route for migrants from East Africa, as well as for illicit trade and trafficking. It is a playing ground for proxy warfare and regional tensions.
To date our efforts have contributed to a ceasefire and we continue to accompany this sub-national peace and reconciliation process. Meanwhile, UNSMIL and the humanitarian community are increasingly integrating Kufra in their planning, thus contributing to greater inclusion.
EIP's first interventions in the Horn of Africa and West Africa have focused on preventing and mitigating violent extremism in three countries in the Horn, and in coastal West Africa. This is described in more detail in the section Addressing Violent Radicalisation. We have furthermore used our analyses and preventive diplomacy to contribute to electoral violence prevention, for instance by scenario-building and contingency planning recommendations. The relationships and reputation developed through these interventions will underpin future conflict prevention and resolution in the region.
Management of Inter-Ethnic Relations in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
As part of EIP's preventive diplomacy efforts, EIP supported social cohesion in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (fYROM) by helping the country manage ethnic diversity in the context of political tensions. This comprised support to the Government in generating the participatory qualitative review of implementation of the Ohrid Framework Agreement, which was completed in 2015. Since then, we have been following-through with the Government for the formal adoption of the report findings and the implementation of recommendations towards greater cohesion within society.
As part of positioning EIP for preventive diplomacy and peacemaking in the EU-Russia neighbourhood, EIP prepped to establish cooperation with the Belarusian diplomatic and academic community. EIP will facilitate peer-to-peer experience-sharing of good practices in conflict prevention and mediation in the Eastern European geographic and cultural space. This initiative will inspire knowledge exchanges with other countries in the region, with a view to further enhancing conflict prevention and response capacities.
Black Sea Security initiative (closed project)
The Black Sea has emerged as a fragile and high-risk security space that brings together a complex set of challenges including rising asymmetric warfare, militarisation, and hybrid threats. In-depth and triangulated understanding are essential to help shape governments' and institutions' response to these challenges. At the end of 2016, EIP combined its diplomatic access and mediation expertise with the research expertise of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). EIP designed an intervention to improve conditions for transparency and risks reduction to promote peace and security in the Black Sea region. Having completed phase one of the project in March 2017, in which EIP and SIPRI gathered preliminary information on Romania, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Russia, Turkey and Georgia, as well as international staff at NATO and the EU, EIP stepped back while SIPRI conducted further research. Findings were presented at a conference in Stockholm in December 2017 and will be published in 2018.
Thematically-tailored interventions:
Knowledge-sharing on preventing electoral violence
On a case-by-case basis, EIP supports the process design, and provides expert opinion to international actors on the role of political mediation and dialogue in the prevention of electoral violence. This includes reflection on the timing of elections as part of conflict resolution; and matters such as integrated approaches, and collaboration between intergovernmental actors as the EU, UN, IGAD, and specialist entities such as democratic support institutes and peacemaking organisations. In many peace processes and post-conflict settings, elections are introduced as a means of legitimising leadership. This is often done prematurely, to the detriment of its stabilising potential.
Direct involvement in stabilising the electoral context
In certain countries the electoral climate is so fragile that pre-emptive dialogue is advisable to avert tensions. EIP therefore constantly scans socio-political climates to gage the need for preventive diplomacy and mediation. This can range from forging inter-party codes of conduct, to agreements on how to deal with disputes over election results, and mediation in electoral crises. In cases of extreme violence, EIP can accompany former armed groups to disarm and for movements to transform into political entities. Other preventive action includes tailored briefings to Electoral Observation Missions. Given the highly technical nature of the electoral process, EIP calls on experts on democratisation and elections to support us in this work.
Addressing Violent Radicalisation: better targeted approaches for preventing and mitigating violent extremism
In 2016, EIP conducted participatory research in Molenbeek (Belgium) to analyse the social patterns which enabled violent radicalisation to take hold, and to provide data for the design of an integrated approach to the prevention of violent radicalisation at the local level. The analysis of radicalisation drivers and resilience undertaken in May-December 2016 furthermore demonstrated that without a granular knowledge of the local context and of the conducive environment that permit radicalisation to grow, intervention to prevent and counter violent extremism (PCVE). The methodology, the research findings, and policy recommendations published in June 2017, have been endorsed by PCVE experts and continue to generate interest from local, EU and US institutions. Policy recommendation and actions recommended by respectively the Molenbeekois and the EIP, were conveyed to local and national authorities, local civil society, EU institutions, the Radicalisation Awareness Network (RAN), and the media. Building on the recommendations from the participatory research, EIP intends to set up a new cadre of local peacemakers or insiders able to serve as trusted intermediaries to help restore confidence and dialogue between the citizens, and also with the political sphere.
EIP also assists in strengthening PCVE efforts in Europe on a case-by-case basis: for instance, in 2017 we hosted USIP's CVE Directorate and senior representatives of the Albanian and Kosovo Governments for peer learning on PCVE. This focused specifically on reintegration of foreign terrorist fighters. EIP assisted the city of Milan (Italy) on developing a PCVE coalition with other European cities seeking EU funding for reconciliation: engaging families of victims of terrorism with families of radicalised individuals. We also continue to serve as a sounding board and give advice to Belgian authorities tasked with dealing with violent extremists.
Addressing violent radicalisation in the Horn of Africa
Upon the request of the EU, EIP is providing support to three governments to overcome violent extremism. The programme assists these governments through providing advisory services and technical expertise related to preventing radicalisation and countering violent extremism. We help deepening and broadening understanding of radicalisation and adopting or enhancing appropriate responses to all forms of violent extremism at senior political levels, to foster political buy-in for tailored, holistic PCVE approaches. The movement of people linked to extremist groups is particularly pertinent for both the security and stability of the region. Consequently, we aim to build a better understanding and response to people moving across the region as part of, or to join extremist groups. The service will contribute to enhancing the stability across the Horn of Africa region, promoting cooperation and coordination between states, and emphasising a whole-of-government, whole-of-society approach within states.
Curbing violent radicalisation in coastal West Africa
The rationale of our PCVE approach in West Africa is to reduce the threat of regional destabilisation linked to the growth of religious fundamentalism in coastal West African countries. With preventive diplomacy, we have helped prompt early action by Governments in coastal West Africa on what is driving the spike in religious fundamentalism. Advice was given on how to equip themselves with a thorough analysis of what is contributing to violent radicalisation locally to inform in-country and regional steps to address it. We furthermore offered peer and experts' advice to tailor PCVE approaches.
This diplomacy also culminated in request for support from Togo (ECOWAS President in June 2017-May 2018). In response, EIP designed a methodology to support ECOWAS with technical advice and support on mobilising political will for preventing and countering violent extremism (P/CVE). This would help ensure high-level political buy-in and regional coordination to reinvigorate West African approaches to overcoming violent extremism and include ensuring complementarity with the efforts of others such as the Sahel G5 and entities offering bilateral PCVE support in the ECOWAS region. Togo announced the plans for an Extraordinary ECOWAS Summit on radicalisation and violent extremism adopting EIP's recommended roadmap and methodology. We are now providing technical expertise on PCVE to inform policy discussions and decisions at the Extraordinary Summit of ECOWAS.
EIP is a strategic network partner of RESOLVE; a global consortium of researchers, research organisations, policymakers and practitioners committed to empirically driven, locally-defined research on the drivers of violent extremism and sources of community resilience. Herein we contribute to effective and innovative approaches to extremism, and sharing of lessons learned.
Understanding effects of war economies on peace processes
War economies take root in any society at conflict. Mediators need to know how to manoeuvre the peace process so that those in control of the war economy, and those that rely on it, are taken into account. With this in mind, EIP has been analysing the effects of war economies and criminal networks on the reconciliation process in Kufra, Libya. The aim is to (1) refine recommendations for EIP's reconciliation work in Kufra, as well as UN and EU efforts in Libya (whether related to conflict negotiations, migration, or border management); (2) contribute to the EIP's work on curbing violent radicalisation in West Africa, and; (3) assess how a more systematic understanding of the dynamics of war economies can be integrated into peace-making strategies and inform mediation practice.
Similar analysis has begun for the Yemen peace process and potential for enhancing security in the Red Sea region. In Yemen a particular focus is on how to ease access for humanitarian aid, and how war economies can positively and negatively impact humanitarian access.
Natural-resources based conflicts
Regional Energy Cooperation in the Eastern Mediterranean (closed project)
Seizing the opportunity of the discovery of natural gas in the Eastern Mediterranean, EIP in 2015-16 sought to encourage regional cooperation. Of specific interest was to use this as an avenue for constructive engagement between the Republic of Cyprus and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. Following shuttle missions, EIP convened a group of international energy experts from the two parts of Cyprus, Israel and Turkey. The workshop and consultations culminated in a roadmap with concrete steps for natural gas management through a regional dialogue process which were followed-up with further shuttle diplomacy. Given the resumption of UN-led talks on Cyprus, EIP opted to halt its Mediterranean Gas project at the start of 2016 so as not to influence the negotiations.
Methodological snapshot
Integrating Inclusion and Gender
EIP's approach to inclusive peacemaking: We try to challenge mediation practices to make them more inclusive and through that more sustainable, by:
• challenging current political norms and rethinking who is seen as eligible for inclusion;
• trying to ensure that the voices of groups and individuals who have been excluded from the peace process are being heard;
• acting as a bridge between those excluded actors and the official processes, thus anchoring the process in the wider population.
EIP Programmes have adopted internal peer-critique to enhance programme methodologies, including integration of inclusion and gender. Dedicated programme design and monitoring tools have been developed.
EIP applies mediation, facilitated dialogue, and preventive diplomacy techniques throughout its programmes. Yet for preventive diplomacy we have bolstered existing EIP capacity with the Preventive Diplomacy Group (PDG). To help address the gap between early warning and early action, this group of senior diplomats – together with EIP staff – increase, refine and enhance preventive diplomatic efforts of Europe. The PDG identifies and executes timely and precise diplomatic interventions to prevent and contain violent crises; it also disseminates executive analyses of conflict risks and possible responses by policy makers as the EU and its Member States.
The Preventive Diplomacy Group is currently composed of ambassadors Gerard Stoudmann, Bruno Joubert, Pieter Feith, Anders Bjurner, and Sir Derek Plumbly. Female members are actively sought.
Previously, EIP has applied its preventive diplomacy techniques in Coastal West Africa, Gabon, Ethiopia, the Black Sea Region, Macedonia/fYROM, and the Mediterranean.


text:
Chevy Volt Attacks
Conservative Media Slammed By Conservatives for Attacks on Chevy Volt
GM's Former Vice Chairman, Bob Lutz, slammed GOP media pundits yesterday for spreading "pure fiction" about the Chevy Volt and other electric vehicles.
Conservative commentators— led by Rush Limbaugh and Fox News— have taken every opportunity to tear down the Chevy Volt, calling it "crappy," a "Fred Flinstone car," and an"exploding Obamamobile." They've even called Volt drivers "dorks."
The attacks have gotten so intense, hardcore Republicans are now slamming the onslaught of ludicrous comments. Lutz, a Republican who once called climate change a "total crock of shit," has become increasingly critical of fellow conservatives who have undertaken a vicious media campaign against the Volt.
Speaking yesterday at the Hudson Institute, a conservative think thank, Lutz called out the "knee-jerk" pundits who have tried to turn the Volt into a political joke. E&E News reported on his comments:
"The unfortunate thing is that because electric cars are very associated with the left-wing environmental green movement to combat global warming and reduce [carbon dioxide], the idea of vehicle electrification triggers this visceral reaction on the part of conservatives — which is, if it's electric it must be a product of the left-wing, Democratic enviro-political machine, therefore we hate it," said Lutz, a self-described conservative.
"This is an unfortunate, knee-jerk reaction because what the Volt and other vehicles like it are about is … shifting portions of the American mobile sector onto a more efficient and domestically produced power source," he said.
"No electric vehicle has ever caught fire [in use], and yet the right is constantly talking about the flammability, overheating, fire hazard of the electric vehicle," he told the conservative audience. "Folks, it's pure fiction. Please get it out of your heads."
Last month, Lutz wrote a column in Forbes lamenting that "all the icons of conservatism are (shock, horror!) deliberately not telling the truth" about the Volt.
Lutz called Charles Krauthammer— his former "hero-figure on the Right" — a member of the "the list of right-wing pundits I no longer take seriously" for claiming that the Volt was an example of Obama's "interventionist policies."
In fact, the Volt has been in development since 2006 — two years before Obama was even elected.
Lutz isn't the only conservative who is roiled by the GOP punditocracy's campaign against electric vehicles. Last month, Lee Speckerman, another self-professed lover of Fox News, went on the network's morning show to bash its commentators' "fetish for demonizing the Volt." Speckerman argued the Volt was "the iPhone of the American automobile industry."
Despite the continued attacks and a cycle of very sluggish sales, March was GM's best sales month ever for the Volt.
** Stephen Lacey is a reporter/blogger for Climate Progress, where he writes on clean energy policy, technologies, and finance. Before joining CP, he was an editor/producer with RenewableEnergyWorld.com. He received his B.A. in journalism from Franklin Pierce University. The original version of this article can be found here.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Thank you for visiting our website
We are Fairyfaye Publications Ltd; a team of professionals who work together to write, illustrate, print, publish and promote children's history books. We specialise in combining our unique style of witty verse, visually appealing illustrations and historical content to introduce children to history that not only engages, entertains but more importantly educates the young reader, and it works.
To date we have published 12 historically accurate titles that sell not only in every county here in the UK, they are also growing in popularity in both the USA and Australia. Our UK based representatives are Heritage Books and our distributors are Central Books. In the USA we are represented by none other than iPG and in Australia we are represented by Woodslane, giants in the industry.
Representing Us
Central Books
Visit Website
Heritage Books
Visit Website
Small Press United
Visit Website
Visit Website
Portfolio Group
Visit Website
Our clients include, NASA, RAF Museums, Bigging Hill Airport, Brooklands Museum, City Museum Birmingham, Discovery Centre Newcastle, IWM Duxford, Aviation Museum Pearl Harbour USA, EAA Museum USA and many many more nationally and internationally.
We have enjoyed 5 best-selling Kindle and 1 UK top-selling Amazon best-sellers. Our books have been sold to more than 12 countries and our first animated film, 'Tales From The Clock Tower' was a huge hit, animation number two, 'Life As A Medieval Peasant' is still popular today. Our books educate, engage, entertain and teach children subjects that are only covered later in school years.
Ms Beerling and Gareth Bowler are the first author, illustrator team, anywhere in the world on record to write about Amy Johnson for young children.
Please get in contact with our team if you would like more information
Some of our previous titles
Keep up to date with our new releases
If you would like to be kept up up date with our latest releases please sign up using the form below.
Copyright ©2019. Fairyfaye Publications. All Rights Reserved.
Website designed by DesignsByEmma
Terms and Conditions / Privacy Policy / Cookie Policy


text:
Autoresponder header
These recipes are very basic and meant for beginners wanting to learn and make natural handcrafted handmade products of their own creations. The ingredients and their various properties are the very things that you need to research and learn about if you want to create natural handcrafted, handmade products of your own. These recipes do not include soap making recipes. The various natural properties are the very things that you need to learn about, research and learn about so you can make your own recipes and make creations that you can claim as your very own.
Happy mixing, experimenting and creating your own recipes for handcrafted, handmade personal products.
E-mail address and any comments you may have, then click submit. Your Free Recipes will be sent to your E-mail address.
Free Recipes Form


text:
Thac Bac waterfall in Sapa (Vietnam)
Thac Bac waterfall in Sapa (Silver waterfall) is a popular destination, this water fall from the top of mountain with its height about 100m.
Standing at the foot of waterfall, you will see the beautiful nature image and mountains and I'm really sure that you will feel so small when seeing wonders of nature. Thac Bac waterfall in Sapa is far from away the center of town about 7.5 miles. from the canyon, the water was falling violently, the foam is so white so this waterfall is called "Thac Bac" (Silver Waterfall). From a distance, you will hear the sound of the waterfall, it make tourists feel wild and mysterious, This natural beauty attracted many visitors when travelling to Sapa. This waterfall is near highway, it's very convenient for tourists, so you can go by yourself or hiring a tour guide if you need.
After a half hour to pass over the winding road, listening the birdsong,…with cloud and fog go arround this place make visitors can feel they are in Penglai. Climate in this place is so cool, even though in summer it's also cool, it is suitable with visitors like cool weather.
You should visit at Thac Bac waterfall in Sapa in Sapa in Summer or Autumn, because in another time, this waterfall is usally shallow, can not express the magnificent beauty. If you go in summer, you can see the rainbow in the top of waterfall, a rar natural beauty which you never seen before. Visitors can look at themselves in a cool stream, besides, they can relax and forget many concerns and you sad is floating away by Thac Bac waterfall in Sapa. Don't forget to take photos to save this memories and great sightseeings.


text:
Home / Injectables / JUVÉDERM VOLUMA™ XC
For years, our patients have been using JUVÉDERM® XC to reduce the natural signs of aging, smoothing fine lines and wrinkles for a more youthful appearance. Now the makers of this popular dermal filler have developed a new type of injectable that not only stimulates collagen formation, but can be very effectively used to create more volume in the cheeks. JUVÉDERM VOLUMA™ XC is the only FDA-approved, hyaluronic acid-based filler approved to enhance volume in the cheeks, lift the cheek area, and simultaneously minimize mid-facial fine lines and wrinkles. Depending on your aesthetic goals, JUVÉDERM VOLUMA™ XC can be used for the non-surgical augmentation of the apple, apex, or the hollow of the cheek. The treatment can be very beneficial for patients who are experiencing lost volume and "hollowness" in the cheeks. Most of our patients at Bella Derma Medi Spa return to their daily activities immediately after treatment. This innovative injectable is approved for men and women over the age of 21, and the results of a JUVÉDERM VOLUMA™ XC treatment can last up to two years.
To learn more about how JUVÉDERM VOLUMA™ XC injections can help to achieve your aesthetic goals, please contact our office today.


text:
1 small winter squash split in half (long wise) and seeds and yucky stuff scooped out
1/3 cup of brown rice cooked
1/2 packet of tempeh
1/2 large onion, or 1 small onion
Braggs Liquid Aminos to taste salt and pepper to taste
1 ripe avocado mashed
I split the squash (you can use acorn, sweet dumpling or butternut) and laid them cut side down in a baking dish in a little bit of water, and set the microwave to bake one potato. Dice onion and smoosh tempeh into little bits splash Braggs on to taste and saute till the onion are cooked through. So your using the 1/3 cup of rice after its cooked. Toss rice with tempeh and onion add pepper to taste. Scoop out the insides of the squash being careful to keep the shell intact. Moosh squash and rice and tempeh and onion together and put back into the squash shell. bake at 400 till it brown. After cooling for a minute or so top with mashed avocado. Sprinkle a touch of salt. Yummy.


text:
A Mosque In Space
One day Muslims might be living in outer space! But where will they pray?
Imagine what a space mosque might look like and the features it might need to protect the people inside. Try to think of unique space technologies your mosque might have to make it easier for Muslims to worship!
Ages: 4+
Group size: Individual or small groups
Skills: Creative thinking, drawing skills, design
You'll Need: Paper, drawing materials, YouTube
Let's Get Started!
1. Check out these videos to learn about the planets:
2. Choose a planet you want your space mosque to be on. It can be a planet that already exists, or you can create your own! What will your new planet be called? Why might Muslims want to live there?
3. Think about what you have learned about your chosen planet from the song (you can revisit it if you'd like!) Will any of these facts influence your space mosque? Is there anything that would make it hard to build a mosque and pray on that planet, and if so, what clever things can you think of to get around it?
4. Draw your space mosque! Throughout history, Muslims have proved to be some of the most talented architects and designers in the world. Watch this video to see twenty examples of beautiful mosques around the globe. What designs are your favourite? Remember your favourite features, and then put a cool new galactic spin on it!
5. Email your finished activity to firstname.lastname@example.com - we'd love to see what you've created.


text: DigitalREPORT: Facebook To Account For 21.7% Of Global Mobile Ad Market In 2014Market-research outfit eMarketer projected that Facebook will account for 21.7 percent of the global mobile ad market in 2014, up from 17.5 percent in 2013 and just 5.4 percent in 2012.By David Cohen|March 19, 2014 ShareBy David Cohen|March 19, 2014 ShareMarket-research outfit eMarketer projected that Facebook will account for 21.7 percent of the global mobile ad market in 2014, up from 17.5 percent in 2013 and just 5.4 percent in 2012.Google still commands the lion's share of the sector, with eMarketer pegging it for a 46.8 percent share in 2014, and attributing its drop from nearly 50 percent in 2013 to the social network's growth.eMarketer also predicted a modest gain for Twitter, to 2.6 percent in 2014, from 2.4 percent in 2013 and 1.5 percent in 2012.For the sector as a whole, eMarketer projected that mobile advertising will jump 75.1 percent in 2014, to $31.45 billion, accounting for nearly one-quarter of total worldwide digital ad spending.The research firm said in a release announcing its findings:The rapid pace in which mobile has taken over the company's ad revenue share indicates Facebook's mobile future. In 2012, only 11 percent of Facebook's net ad revenues worldwide came from mobile, and last year, that figure jumped to 45.1 percent. In 2014, eMarketer estimates that mobile will account for 63.4 percent of Facebook's net digital ad revenues. Mobile accounted for 23.1 percent of Google's net ad revenues worldwide in 2013, and eMarketer estimates this share will increase to 33.8 percent this year.Readers: Did any of the findings by eMarketer surprise you?Image courtesy of Shutterstock. Sharehttp://adweek.it/2jGCwkv copy Adweek Adweek


text:
Hamerik: Symphonies 3-4
During his lifetime Asger Hamerik was the best known Danish composer after Niels W. Gade outside Denmark. He studied in Copenhagen with Gade and J.P.E. Hartmann, in Berling with Hans von Bülow and finally in 1864-69 in Paris with Hector Berlioz. In the years 1871-98 he worked in the USA as director of the consercatory of the Peabody Institute in Baltimore. His oeuvre includes four operas, seven symphonies and a series of Nordic Suites.
Asger Hamerik
Symphony no. 3 in E major op. 33 "Symphonie lyrique" (1883-84)
1. I. Largo-Allegro molto vivace 11:02
2. II. Allegro grazioso 3:48
3. III. Andante sostenuto 9:51
4. IV. Allegro con spirito 9:56
Symphony no. 4 in C major op. 35 "Symphonie majestueuse" (1888-89)
5. I. Largo-Allegro impetuoso 13:27
6. II. Adagio espressivo 10:01
7. III. Allegro moderato 5:04
8. IV. Maestoso e solenne 9:44


text:
FIVE more days (through 8/4) to get a FREE $10 Gift Card to Amazon, Walmart, Target, iTunes, and more with a $10 purchase at Kroger! You must sign up and register for Plink, (new members only) which is a free service that you can use to earn rewards when you shop and eat out, in order to receive the offer.
This should be pretty easy for all of you Kroger couponers out there, 🙂 so be sure to sign up if you have not already to get this freebie!
I did the free $5 offer when it first came out and it worked great for me, so I definitely recommend signing up if you have not yet.
Here's how to get your $10 Gift Card:
1. Head over to Plink HERE to get started.
2. Link the debit or credit card that you would like to use with your account (see below for privacy and security info).
3. Spend $10 at Kroger by August 4th at 11:59pm EST with the card you registered.
4. 1000 points will be added to your account within 7 business days after your purchase.
5. Log back in to your account after seven days to pick the $10 gift card of your choice!
And as a side note Plink has been awarded the TRUSTe Seal "signifying that this privacy policy and practices have been reviewed by TRUSTe for compliance with TRUSTe's program requirements including transparency, accountability and choice regarding the collection and use of your personal information," so they are a trusted company with handling your private information. As I said before, I signed up with them a few months ago when this first came out and have not had any issues. Check out their privacy page for more info on security.


text: Last weekend I visited Canada's Wonderland for the first time with some friends. Although roller coasters and scary rides terrify me, it was still fun! I went to the water park, got a sunburn, and enjoyed the amusement park atmosphere. Best of all, I brought my camera with me and got to explore while my friends rode said scary rides. A bonus of living in Toronto is going to this place!


text: Would you like to save some time during your appointment with Dr. Keven R. Mills? Then we invite you to complete our new patient forms before your visit with our friendly dentist in Granite Bay, California. You can choose to submit your completed forms directly online, or download, print, and fill out your forms, then bring them with you for your appointment. If you have any questions about our forms or paperwork, please do not hesitate to call our office. Our knowledgeable dental team is ready to help!


text:
Conamara Gaeltacht Láir Connecting people, culture, business and activities in Central Conamara
Ag nasc daoine, cultúr, gnó agus imeachtaí i gConamara Láir
[email protected] 095 32688
Maoiniú faighte, le buíochas, ó M.F.G. Teo.,Funding recieved, with thanks, from M.F.G. Teo.,
Cashel in Gaelic An Caiseal means fort.
Cashel is a small coastal village located in Connemara on the west coast of Ireland. It has scenic views of both sea and mountain. Climbing to the summit of Cashel Hill gives you stunning views of the surrounding countryside and coastline. It is located approx. 64.2km/40 miles from Galway City and 24.6km/15.3 miles from Clifden Town. It is an area rich in Irish music and dance.
Sites of historical intrest are the remains of the ring fort for which the area is named and a megalithic tomb dating from the Stone age/ Bronze age which is known locally as Altoir Ula. This site is also thought to be a mass rock, folklore has it that mass was celebrated there during penal times when practicing the catholic faith was outlawed.
The Cashel Connemara Pony Show is in August.
Rásaí na mbáid is held in July- traditional boat races. scenic walks, horse riding and fishing are all but a few activities that can be enjoyed locally.
Two Hotels (The Zetland Country House Hotel) and (The Cashel House Hotel), B&B's, self catering accommodation and Riding Stables.
If you are the site owner, please renew your premium subscription or contact support.


text:
DW Collector's Series Snare Drum 6x14"
Best Snare Drum Overall
Expert Review
DW is one of the most famous makers of high-end drums. DW's Collector's series drums are used by top professionals because of their superior quality and amazing sound. Available in several different shell types, I prefer the Collector's Series All-Maple Snare Drum as it's one of the best sounding wood snare on the market. The 10-ply shell is made from North American maple and has a 6-ply reinforcement hoop to retain a pure tone. The drum has a 60 degree bearing edge which helps to produce its superior sound. This snare is capable of generating a strong attack while maintaining a lot of warmth.
The interior of this drum is actually lacquered to give it a unique sound while the hoops and hardware are some of the finest around, being made to be much more durable than other high-end snare drums. I actually find the strainer is a bit more solid than some of its competitors. This drum can be customized to your personal taste with plenty of options for shell and hardware finish. These drums are available in countless different sizes and quite frankly they all sound great; personally I prefer the 6x14 inch size because it has a full, versatile sound.


text:
You've clicked a link that gets you a special discount at checkout.
Discount will be shown on final checkout screen and will not work with other coupons or deals.
Ultralight protective rain/dust camera cover.
This site uses cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our Privacy Policy


text:
Focused on your Success
DIARECT is one of the leading suppliers of antigens for autoimmune diagnostics and infectious serology. Providing customers with products and services of constantly high quality is its philosophy. We are well aware that key components have an immense impact on the development and success of immunodiagnostic test systems. DIARECT's goal is to provide quality products and services which meet its customers' current and future expectations.
Therefore, all products are developed, produced and distributed according to a Quality Management System that is certified for compliance with EN ISO 9001 and 13485 standards. In addition, since 2002, DIARECT has been listed as a manufacturer of human recombinant antigens for autoimmune testing in the database of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Follow this link to view DIARECT's FDA registration data (search Registration Database using DIARECT as Establishment Name).
Production facilities of Surmodics IVD, manufacturer of protein stabilizers / blockers and BioFX® substrates and accessory reagents, operate in an environment in accordance to the ISO 9001 and ISO 13485 standards as well.


text:
I was this close the other week (see how close I'm holding my index finger and thumb here? That's very close, it really is) to calling time on a story and consigning it to the Crematorium forevermore. It's an old story (not a trunk story, just old) that I've recently spruced up with a little spit and polish. Like most stories, it gathered a rejection or two, but I'm happy to say it's since been picked up by Cindy Rosmus at Yellow Mama.
It's a pretty dark tale and fittingly enough it's slated for the Halloween issue. Fantastic acceptance letter too, so I couldn't have asked for more. A big thanks here to Cindy, by the way.
So, to get back to the point, why was I so close to slamming the door and lighting the fire on this one? The thing is, it's a weird story, a very weird story, and I really don't know where it came from. I was starting to think maybe it was a little too weird and that maybe I should retire it, especially as it doesn't necessarily fit in with my normal style – if I even have one, that is.
That being said, it's a story I wanted to tell, a story that has its own merits, its own failings and I'm glad it's found a home.
It would have burned to dust and ash kicking and screaming anyway.
Monday, 23 March 2009 Back from the Brink
2 comments:
- Rebecca Nazar said...
Congrats, L. R. A big hazzah for too weirdness! Yellow Mama is quite the market--edgy, daring. Very nice.
- 23 March 2009 at 15:56
- L R Bonehill said...
Thanks Rebecca - they all count, I guess.
- 24 March 2009 at 09:35
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


text:
Coconut- 1 cup(grated)
Boiled rice- 100gms
Oil- 2 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1tsp
Urad dhal- 1 tsp
G.chillies- 2ea
Red chillies- 2 ea
Cashewnuts- 20 ea (crushed)
Curry leaves- 2 sprig
Salt - to taste
Asafoetida- a pinch
Heat oil in pan. Can use coconut oil to add in extra flavour.
Make tempering using mustard seeds, urad dhal,curry leaves & chillies.
Add in the cashewnut & fry till golden brown.
Add in the coconut(grated) and cook till flavour comes out.
Add in the boiled rice & mix well so that the coconut flavour endures wholly.
Serve hot.


text: Services Get in touch with us! Interested in hosting our poker social club? We are looking forward to speaking with you! Contact Us Email Your Details Let us know how to get back to you. First Name * Last Name * Email Address * How can we help? Feel free to ask a question or simply leave a comment. Comments / Questions *


text: Earth Day will soon be here! It serves as a reminder to care for the Earth every day and teach our children to do the same. A powerful way to get kids to appreciate and care for Mother Earth is to get them outside and build their love of nature. Kids enjoy the fun and […]Continue reading


text:
Our Providers
The team of providers at Dermatology & Laser Center of Chapel Hill (DLC) works to provide our patients with careful, customized treatments for their medical and cosmetic dermatology needs. We use cutting-edge technology and treatment options to ensure the best outcomes for our patients.
To learn more about our providers, you can click on the portraits below to be taken to each provider's biography page.


text:
I think it's amazing that our man baby president elect is complaining about a recount in an election where he lost the popular vote by 2 million. After all, he's the one who was saying that the election was rigged, and I believe him. But it was rigged in his favor.
I have decided I'm not accepting the election result that Trump won. Trump said before the election that he wouldn't accept the result if Hillary won and he never accepted that Obama won claiming that Obama wasn't born in America. Trump was helped by Russian hackers and our new first lady will be America's first Soviet born Communist raised first lady. So the results of the election are meaningless to me. I intend to give Trump all the respect he gave Obama.
I have a hard time believing that women voted for a pu**y grabbing playboy, that Christians voted for someone who referred to his daughter as a "piece of ass". There comes a point where it's just too weird to believe and so I don't. Trump is a dunce and a clown and he's incompetent. America is in deep deep trouble regardless of what you believe.


text:
It doesn't matter where you are heading on holiday- packing space is always a consideration. Fashion items that fold neatly, and miniature beauty products reign supreme on our shopping lists. We've rounded up the best compact travel essentials for you to pack for your vacation.
These foldable ballerina slippers, that come in a handy drawstring bag, are beyond cute and comfortable. Whether you want them to keep your feet cosy in a hotel room, or for comfort on a plane trip, these little gems are perfect. The come in a variety of colour-ways; but the light denim and baby pink is definitely our favourite, and they are only £15 from Bedroom Athletics.
We all know that shaving our legs is a pain, and having to pack a full-size razor securely is even more so. The Gillette Venus Snap With Embrace razor (£9.99 from Boots) has solved all of our travel de-fuzzing woes- the adorable miniature 5-blade razor comes in a very helpful plastic box. You can literally take this anywhere for whenever a stray hair may appear.
Yes, you can de-pot your favourite moisturisers and cleansers into mini temporary containers; but how handy would it be to have a complete miniature skin, body and hair care line-up already made up for you in a handy clear pouch. You get 8 brilliant products in the REN Grab & Go Kit for just £20. It contains more than enough to see you through your vacation, and includes their Rose Centifolia Cleansing Gel, Vita Mineral Daily Supplement Cream, Vita Mineral Lip Balm, Vita Mineral Active 7 Eye Gel, Oat & Bay Shampoo, Pro-Vitamin Conditioner, Neroli & Grapefruit Body Wash and Neroli & Grapefruit Body Cream.
All hotel rooms have hairdryers now, or you can just let it dry naturally in the sun; however, where your hair usually comes-a-cropper on holiday is in the straightening department. Heat can do terrible things with frizz. These small and slim compact BaByliss Pro 200 Nano Hair Straighteners, £15 from John Lewis, are fuss-free to take away with you.
There is nothing worse than tangled necklace chains, an there is no neater and more convenient way to store them when travelling than in a space-saving jewellery roll-up. The Ted Baker Opulent Bloom Travel Jewellery Roll is £25,49 at Flamingo Gifts. It has a gorgeous print, and has pierced earring holes, zip pouches and a ring holder.


text:
I remember waking up one morning a couple of years ago after reading so much information on dietary theories and nutrition, that I simply didn't know what to eat. Should I have eggs, a smoothie, porridge, a steak!? With so many 'rules' and conflicting information out there, I felt overwhelmed and lost touch with listening to my body. I think we can all be guilty of this with the distractions and stresses daily life can put on us. Now as a qualified holistic health coach, I believe that stressing out over what to eat just isn't healthy – and unfortunately, there's not one miracle diet out there for everyone.
Your ideal diet is completely unique to you and can only be discovered when you start listening to your body. It's also constantly evolving and changing as we go through different stages of our life. I found my way back to balance by breaking down some of these healthy eating rules.
1. The 'eat breakfast, lunch and dinner' rule
How many times have you been told that "breakfast is the most important meal of the day", "skip it at your peril!"? See, breakfast IS one of my favourite meals of the day, so this actually is true for me, but not everyone is the same.
Maybe you can't stand the thought of food before 11am, especially if you eat late at night. This is your body telling you something, so don't force yourself to eat at the crack of dawn if your body doesn't want to, enjoy a late big brunch instead.
Lifestyle factors can affect this rule too. I am generally busiest in the middle of the day so having the time to sit down and eat a big lunch just isn't always possible for me. I work better eating little and often throughout the day. So decide what works best for you and your lifestyle and don't feel you have to eat just because it's a normal meal time.
2. The 'ignore your cravings' rule
Craving carbs and chocolate at a certain time of the month? I hear ya! And I give you permission to listen to those cravings because your body is simply communicating its needs to you.
The key to keeping those cravings under control is to find a way to satisfy them without going overboard – a little bit of what you fancy does you good!
Try to deconstruct the craving first. Is it for something sweet, crunchy, fatty? This will help you choose a healthier option. For instance, crunchy carrot sticks over crisps or avocado on oatcakes over a sausage roll. There is a wide range of sausage that get natural and artificial sausage skins from DCW Casing, but I prefer sausage with natural casings.
3. The 'Cheat Day' rule
You're stuffed after a huge pub roast but still shove down dessert just because, hey, it's cheat day! If you want to fall in love with looking after your body, mind and soul forever then a cheat day, to me, doesn't sit well.
I'm all for balance but if you're generally eating well, listening to your body and not depriving yourself then you shouldn't feel that you need a cheat day to pig out. I expect most people end up eating way more than they would if they hadn't mentally noted the day as a 'cheat day' and end up feeling pretty crappy afterwards.
This is another way people are getting out of touch with their bodies. If you eat intuitively every day you won't feel the need to cheat.
4. The 'go to bed hungry' rule
You may have been told that eating before bed will make you fat but if you're tummy is grumbling and you go to bed hungry, you're more likely to wake up in the night and be ravenous in the morning.
Mmmm, pancakes…
There is so much information out there telling us how important sleep is for our wellbeing and even for weight loss. Sleep affects your metabolism and a small healthy snack of the right food can promote a great night's sleep. People with sleep apnea often need to use Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machines but in some cases eating foods high in fibre before going to bed can be effective.
You don't want to go to bed on a full stomach OR an empty stomach, so try something like half a banana with almond butter, carrot sticks and houmous or some berries and yoghurt half an hour before you get into bed.
5. The 'diet is the only thing that matters' rule
When I was at a very low weight during dance college, I believe I suffered from Orthorexia Nervosa, which is when healthy eating becomes extreme and obsessive. I remember not going for meals with my friends because I was too worried about what I'd be able to eat, but now I know that my happiness is just as important to my health as the food I eat. Eating a delicious, hearty meal with friends and family brings me so much joy and happiness, instead of eating a plain piece of cod and greens alone.
For a lot of people, sticking to a diet and putting everything else in second place is the only way to succeed and while I do agree with this to a certain extent, I also believe other factors affect weight loss and the health of your body both inside and out.
Remember factors such as stress, relationships, career and physical activity all play a huge role in your health. Find work you love, create lasting loving relationships, move every day and keep your stress levels under control. Your diet is just one segment of your health.
Love, Lottie x


text:
Twitter Celebrates Fifth Anniversary of Its Launch
Half a decade ago, we all thought tweeting was for the birds. Today marks the five-year anniversary of when Twitter opened to the public and introduced us to "tweeting"something Twitter users now do over 200 million times a day.
You may recall that Twitter just celebrated a five-year anniversary in Marchbut that was the anniversary of when co-founder Jack Dorsey and team started programming Twitter. The micro-blogging service, then called Twittr, didn't open it to the public until July 15, 2006.
In honor of the occasion, the company offered some interesting stats today, illustrating its progress over the past five years. "There were 224 Tweets sent on July 15, 2006. Today, users send that many Tweets in less than a tenth of a second," the company tweeted. And yesterday, Twitter saw more than 600,000 signups, while the company says it took it more than 16 months to reach the first 600,000 Twitter accounts.
At the end of June of this year, the company announced that Twitter users are sending 200 million tweets per day. It also revealed that it took three years, two months, and one day to get to its first billionth tweet, and users now send one billion tweets every five days.
Showing how the Twitter ecosystem has expanded, the company announced this week that Twitter now has more than one million registered apps, up from just 150,000 apps a year ago, with a new app added every 1.5 seconds.
To see some of the most important tweets that the service has seen so far, check out "Ten Tweets that Shook the World."


text:
Please feel free to download an application, fill it out and return it by Email to: firstname.lastname@example.com
Or Mail it to: CARE of DC – P.O. Box 4, Wappingers Falls, NY 12590
Our DOG and CAT Online Applications Links are below and might be more convenient for some.
Please feel free to contact us with any questions.
The Application information is requested so that we can assist you in the selection of your new pet. The animal's welfare is our foremost consideration. The consultation process is designed to help us determine if the adoption is in the animal's best interest, and to assist you in finding an animal most compatible with your lifestyle. Our adoption fee includes: spay/neuter and any medication that may be needed. We also have a seven day health guarantee.
The animals available for adoption came here from a variety of sources. All animals are examined upon entry and their health is routinely monitored while at our rescue. There is always a chance that an animal is incubating a disease without showing any clinical signs. After the seven day health guarantee, any adopted animal is the sole responsibility of the adopter.
The adoption fee is $350. That includes the dog being spayed or neutered, up to date on all shots and microchipped.
Our adoption fee for cats/kittens is $150. That includes being spayed or neutered, up to date on age appropriate vaccines, and feline and aids tested.
Submit Online Applications
Online Dog Application
Online Cat Application
Downloadable Applications to Print and Fillout
Adoption-App-Rabbit – Guinea Pig


text: Hello. I just purchased a license, and I am working with a developer on setting up my forum. (I'm converting from another software.) I'm trying to work with the colors and pull together an attractive scheme. Is there anywhere a view various examples of current xf forums for ideas. I realize that I can play with the color palette option but I not getting the results I want at the moment. Thanks very much.


text:
Conserving Endangered Species on Construction Sites – challenges and opportunities
Transmission lines are integral for getting the energy produced around the country to the grid, however linear projects such as power lines and pipelines have a whole suite of environmental impacts which need to be mitigated by the project team. On this particular project the impact on an eagle species, more specifically the Martial Eagle, was a new challenge.
The Gappa-Kappa B 765kV transmission line follows an existing 400kV line across the Great Karoo, to the Gamma substation, located South of Victoria West in the Cape. This line passes through the Laingsburg Local Municipality, the Prince Albert Local Municipality and the Beaufort West Municipality of the Western Cape and into the Northern Cape where it passes through the Moordenaars Karoo and the Karoo Highland Local Municipality. The line passes through many large sheep farms, onion seed farms and game farms. It also happens to be a chosen spot by Martial Eagles to nest and breed.
Martial Eagles (Polemaetus bellicosus) are the largest eagles in Africa, with a length of 96cm and a wingspan of up to 2.6m. Weighing in at up to 6.2kgs, they are also the fifth heaviest eagle in the world on average. Most importantly, they are considered an Endangered Species which must be carefully protected. They mate for life and return to the same breeding location annually. As apex predators they have extremely keen eyesight and prey on dassies and other small animals and have, on occasion, been known to hunt small buck like Klipspringer or Steenbok. Nests are circular in shape and their size can be up to 3m x 3m. Bones and the remains of small animals can determine the activity of a nest, as well as the preferred diet.
The Construction Impact
Nests were noted on the 400kV line whilst constructing the 765kV line, resulting in the contractor having to stop works to identify the presence of other nests and potential breeding sites in the construction footprint. There was little information available to the team from avifaunal specialists in the EIA and specialist report, so EWT was asked to offer advice on the way forward to reduce the environmental impact on these birds. Mitigation measures such as the education of construction teams on how to identify martial (and other) eagles as well as the correct reporting lines. All is well that ends well and the project saw the successful breeding and fledging of one chick.
Lessons learned:
A large part of the problem lay with outdated information provided in the EIA causing delays in the commencement of the project. A further delay in the project would have led to a more significant impact on the birds, as it would have meant construction in the middle of the breeding season of the eagles (from May to November). The time it took to identify breeding sites on the existing line was time consuming, and ideally should have been done in the pre-construction assessment of the project.
Although the project team does involve Environmental Managers, they are often not involved in the project early enough to identify and mitigate risks before these risks become reason for stopping works. This often results in the Environmental Team seen as a hindrance more than a help. Realistically though, the risks need to be mitigated and so the involvement of an Environmental Manager from the beginning is integral to reduce risks and stoppage time, and for the project to be successfully completed in an Environmentally conscious manner.


text:
This is by far one of the coolest dresses I've worn. I picked it up from this Parisian website called www.cestmarobe.com
You all know my obsession when it comes to dresses and this website is like heaven. They store stunning dresses from many luxury brands and people can hire them out. Such a good idea if you want to wear a stunning dress just for one occasion. This gives you the possibility to just wear it and give it back instead of buy it completely and never wear it again.
We shot these photos at the Palais Royale in Paris and im so happy with the results.
Hope you guys enjoy!


text:
An IDF military court north of Jerusalem sentenced four terrorists from the Hevron area to life imprisonment Tuesday evening. The four killed six Jews in a series of attacks.
The terror squad was created by Baher Shakib Awiwi, a clothes vendor, along with Moussa Ibrahim Wazuz, who was employed at an office supplies store, and Kassem Farid Jaber. A fourth member, Muhammad Julani, was recruited later. They purchased a Kalashnikov assault rifle and two Karl Gustav guns and trained on their own.
On June 24, 2005, the terrorists murdered Aviad Mantzour and Avichai Levy at a bus stop near Beit Haggai, not far from Hevron.
On July 22, 2005, they fired at an IDF force in Hevron, causing moderate and light injuries to two soldiers and killing an Arab passerby.
On October 16, 2005, they murdered Matat Rosenfeld Adler and Kinneret Mandel of Carmel, as well as Oz Meir of Maon.
On December 16, 2005, they murdered Yossi Shok of Beit Haggai.
They were arrested by the IDF's elite Duvdevan unit on January 21, 2006 and sentenced at the Ofer army base, near Givat Ze'ev. There is no death penalty for terrorists in Israel.
Gil Ronen contributed to this report


text:
Apple is still in the early stages of testing a television, sources at the company's suppliers told the Wall Street Journal. The paper says the company has been testing TV prototypes for "a number of years".
Tim Cook, Apple's chief executive, told Bloomberg last week that television was an area of "intense interest" for Apple. He said: "When I go into my living room and turn on the TV, I feel like I have gone backwards in time by 20 to 30 years."
The Journal reports: "Apple could opt not to proceed with the device and how a large-screen TV fits with its overall strategy for remaking watching TV remains unclear."
So far, Apple's only experiment with a TV product has been the Apple TV set-top box, which was first released in 2007. An update in 2010 removed the hard drive that had been a feature of the original version and refocused the box on streaming from the iTunes Store.
Apple has consistently described the Apple TV as "a hobby". Despite that, rumours have been circulating for years that Apple would eventually release a television set.
Those rumours increased significantly a year ago following the publication of Walter Isaacson's biography of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs. Jobs, who died in October last year, told his biographer that he had "cracked" the problem of television.
Isaacson did not elaborate on the remark, which led to speculation about what exactly Jobs meant. Everything from a full-size, stand-alone television set to an iPhone-based remote control was floated as a possible plan.
Earlier this year the Wall Street Journal reported that Apple was in talks with cable companies in the US about how an Apple television service might work.
Last year, 'industry sources' were quoted as saying that Apple would launch 32-inch and 37-inch television sets in 2012.


text:
Shoes & Hope Community Assessment: El Maguey, Zacapa, Guatemala
Date: 7/21/15
Today we were able to meet with 5 members of El Maguey's COCODE (village leaders). Pictured above from left to right: Oscar, Nilss, Diego, Alejandro, and Moses.
From the meeting, we definitely got a sense that they have a strong leadership there, who are good examples for their village. They volunteer for their positions, but then are elected for 2 year terms. Once their term is up, they can volunteer again, and be up for re-election. There is a Mayor (or Leader), Vice- Mayor, Secretary, Treasurer, and then different representatives for certain aspects of their community. Nilss has been mayor for 3 years so far (as of July 2015), and has about 1 year left. The COCODE get official cards stating their position, and here is an example of one:
Oscar (pictured in the middle above) is the Vice-Mayor. Their village is about an hour from Gualan, back towards Zacapa. It is kind of like a suburb to Zacapa City. Its terrain is very similar to Gualan and Los Limones, where it is flatter than where we're used to working. There are some hills, but it's mostly flatter. Nilss will be our point of contact for this project. Their population is roughly 850 people, with 260-275 families there presently, but about 280 families being served in total. We were told that some find work in the US, and send money back to Guatemala for their family to build a house. They have a multi-generational household population, with an average of 3 to 4 people, which seemed lower than we were expecting. Their rainy season is May through October. This year there has not been much rain yet, and crops are definitely suffering. We've heard that from multiple villages, and from the CALMS workers. El Maguey's primary employment is agriculture, so when the crops suffer, the village suffers. Their village also has jobs in cigar-making, and during cantaloupe harvest season there is some extra work as well.
Their village does have electricity, a church, and a school. They don't have a clinic, but there are 2 that are fairly close. The bigger of the 2 is in Zacapa city, which is about 10 to 15 minutes away. The smaller one is in El Terrero which is about 5 to 10 minutes away. It is only for smaller things, like shots, basic medicine, etc.
We asked them about diseases that affect their community, and they said that everyone there was very conscious of contaminated water, so there are not many issues with disease caused from their water. They did have a break-out of Chikungunya which is transmitted through mosquitos (a couple of months ago). It affected everyone, but especially the young and elderly.
They have latrines in both their homes and schools. Handwashing with soap is taught in the schools and clinics, and they have a lot of signs in public places about hand-washing as well. They don't have the specific WASH program though. We did not ask about their menstrual hygiene management, because there were no females from their village leadership there.
Their primary foods eat are corn and beans. Corn and bean empanadas are popular. They don't have many gardens, but they have easy access to vegetables from the market since they are close to the city. Also vegetable trucks come to their village to sell their produce as well. They are able to grow la roco, which is a flower that they use for juice or soup. The children are part of an Incaparina program funded by Carmel Lutheran.
They have 2 sources of water. Most of their water comes from a spring, but they also have a well. Their spring water is distributed by gravity. Their distribution tank is up high. Water comes to their homes from the well, which is clean, not contaminated. They have well water 2 hours every other day. Their village is divided into 12 sections- 7 sections have water at one time, and then 5 sections have the water the other days. Since they are so limited on their use of well water, they buy water to drink. It is delivered to their homes for 10 Qs for a 5 gallon tank of purified water. They have easier access to having water delivered because they are so close to Zacapa city. They currently have no method of treatment or purification. They are looking into the cost for that and how to do that best. Right now their spring water is often contaminated from people throwing their grey water into the river, which feeds into the spring. In the rainy season, they don't use the spring at all. If they had a filter, they would be able to use.
The impact of this project would be more water pressure, and more water getting to the families. Currently they have an overflow in the tank, so that's why they want to replace pipes to bring more water to families. We would be replacing existing pipe that was replaced roughly 15 years ago. This section of pipe was originally put in for 10 families, but they have grown, so now this section of pipe serves about 30 families. Right now there is 3 inch pipe to the distribution tank, which is overflowing, and only 2 inch pipe in the village which is short on water. As they've been replacing the pipe, they have been replacing the 2 inch pipe with 3 inch pipe, to get more water to the families of the village who need it. The village has already saved and replaced a lot of the sections of pipe, but this is the last section that needs to be replaced.
They pro-actively walk their pipes to make sure there are no leaks or other problems. Everybody puts in money to replace the pipes, which the Treasurer of the COCODE is in charge of collecting on a monthly basis. With this money, they also hire someone in the village to maintain their water system, and they pay the electric bill for the water pump for the well. During the summer, it's about Q35 ($4.67 USD), and during the rainy season, it's about Q60 ($8 USD), because they use the well only, which makes the electric bill for the water pump higher. The men in their village have more regular jobs than in some of the other villages, so they can't always dedicate their time to repair the pipes.
The timeline would be ASAP. They will be paving roads soon where the pipe needs to go, and it would be more difficult to do that once the paving is done. El Maguey already has asphalt on their main streets. The village of El Terrero, where the clinic is, is putting asphalt on their streets. El Terrero uses the same spring as El Maguey, and they are basically waiting for the water project to be finished before they can pave. El Maguey has already exhausted their resources to get the water project to this point. The project is estimated to take 1 month or shorter to complete.
The cost of the project is Q18,415 ($2456 USD). The labor will be completed by the men of the village which will save Q8,500 ($1,133 USD). Please see "Materials Sheet" for pricing breakdown of the materials.
Here are some pictures of our meeting with the El Maguey COCODE:


text:
With March out of the way, it's a little crazy to think we've already arrived at the 4th month of the year. So in light of the upcoming holiday, we've got a few little Easter surprises wrapped up for you below. Read on for the latest web-goss that's happened in the last month.
Google Stuff
- The 'Fred' Update
The beginning of March saw rise to a new Google algorithm update, dubbed 'Fred' by Google employee Gary Illyes. The Fred update, finally confirmed by Google, has been wreaking havoc amongst those sites with much advertising and little content. The algorithm changes were first noticed at the beginning of February when site rankings dropped for those who had a get-rich-quick thirst for advertising income without first catering to their audience with relevant content. But given that your website's priority is to serve the needs of your audience, there should be very little to worry about. The update focused mainly on weeding out irrelevant and spammy websites to make room for more serious agendas.
- The Customer Journey
Any structured business model should be taking into account the steps which the customer goes through, from start to finish, when interacting with your business. From the moment the customer becomes aware of your product or brand, you should have a plan in place to meet them at every level of involvement. The digital world is great for this; by allowing for a personal and interactive relationship with the company, one can tailor and segregate relevant products, services and content to the specific interests of individual customers. Read more from Econsultancy here.
- Website Hack Prevention
Last year saw a huge 32% increase in hacked websites from the previous year. Not to worry though – we have some handy information to help you keep your website safe from sneaky invaders straight from Google's Webmaster Central here.
- Google Optimize
Launched last September, Optimize is a product from Google herself that helps a business to test and (as the name suggests) optimise its website. For those unfamiliar to the concept, it could be thought of as an extension for Google Analytics, as the end goal is to deliver a better user experience and help to iron out the wrinkles that might otherwise be difficult to diagnose. Read more here.
- Google Maps Ad Traffic
Google Maps has gone from a practical, everyday tool, to a platform for businesses to maximise their exposure. Read more about the latest developments and opportunities on Search Engine Land here.
Non-Google Stuff
- Elon Musk's Brain Slugs
Okay, they're called 'neural laces', not brain slugs. More explanatorily, they hook up computers to your neural transmitters. Elon Musk – entrepreneur, space pioneer, electrical innovator, and now brain-pirate – is launching a company called Neuralink. The concept behind this new project is to connect thoughts and computers via electrodes implanted in the brain. Not your cup of tea? He already knows.
- Facebook's a Copychat
Facebook's set about going head to head with Snapchat's 'story' feature. The new update allows a user to create special camera filters, overlays, and image manipulation to follow the trends that Snapchat and Instagram have been one step ahead with – until now. Awesome utility or abyssal time-waster? You decide.
- Feeling Emojional?
In the last few years we've been blessed and cursed by the range of emojis across most messaging apps. Part of the curse however, is that it's near impossible to select the right one from the millions on offer. Now, this strenuous task has been called upon to be streamlined. Kate Knibbs wants to improve on Apple's predictive emoji-ing by adding a search function. Read what Kate's got to say here.
Want more information about the above points or think we've missed something important in the Digital space? Get in touch!


text:
Sonja Rasula is a woman for whom creativity and entrepreneurship go hand in hand. The founder of Unique Markets, CAMP, and the Unique Space, she's a one-woman band for the importance of supporting independent businesses and following your intuition. We're so pleased to have her in our family of Joybird Ambassadors.
When Sonja Rasula decided to leverage her 401K to launch her vision for a truly unique marketplace that supported local artisans, her closest friends and family told her she was crazy. Fast-forward nine years and this savvy entrepreneur has created an empire around empowering other artists and providing the space for creative people to succeed. Named by Los Angeles Magazine as one of LA's Top 10 Most Inspiring Women, Sonja brings enthusiasm and originality to every project she tackles, including the decor of her office space and her own home.
"I think people have a view of LA as being flat with freeways but that's not my Los Angeles," says Sonja with an easy laugh. Her home, which she shares with her husband and two dogs, is nestled in the hills of Echo Park. The house, surrounded by trees, and ensconced away from the LA hustle and bustle, has a serene quality that perfectly contrasts her busy lifestyle.
Sonja started Unique Markets in 2008 – a tradeshow style market that brings together hundreds of artists and designers. Seeing how the markets were successful in bringing together a large and diverse population of both sellers and buyers, Sonja decided to expand the brand further. She launched CAMP, a creative business conference held in the mountains of Southern California each May. This four-day program brings together around 200 creatives and entrepreneurs to exchange ideas, learn new tools, and get inspired.
Her most recent project was the opening of The Unique Space, a beautifully designed office and event space with tenants including Bustle, Girlgaze and Blue Bottle.
In addition to being a former journalist and creative director, Sonja also worked as an interior designer for HGTV, so she clearly has the skills to create a "put-together" space. Yet she often relies on her own creative intuition when designing. Her Echo Park home is bright and open – with windows on nearly every wall and an open floor plan that lends a casual, flowing feel to the entire space.
"I think as someone who loves design so much, it's hard for me to choose one style to decorate in because I love elements of everything." – Sonja
Sonja has opted to fill her personal space with a chic minimal look, that's at once hip, strong, and intelligent – much like herself. Books from her favorite authors are scattered throughout, and things she and her husband have collected over the years, make up the bulk of the decor. A fan of textiles, Sonja balances the open feel of her home with weightier boho rugs to add dimension and color.
"I think for me, home is the place you go to relax. It should be filled with love, memories, and happiness," she confesses. At the same time, Sonja shares that she's created something of a second home at The Unique Space, with intelligent, minimal design that's at once functional, communal, and fun, with touches of humor most poignantly seen in the various typographical posters and small details of the space. Every design choice is aimed at inspiring everyone who walks in to do their best, feel good, and be their own #GirlBoss.
"We've had ups and downs but all the business are thriving and I think part of that is because I truly think when you want to do something with your life led by passion and love, you won't fail," says Sonja. And we simply couldn't agree more.


text:
AB Fluid Power supply pneumatic, electronic and electro-pneumatic components and systems for automatic machines and production equipment. The range encompasses a broad palette of standard products and application specific solutions.
Components and systems are available for applications as diverse as offshore and handling technology.
AB Fluid Power's UK operation provides many of the services you would expect from a leading pneumatic supplier, including in-house design, panel manufacture and installation. Their pneumatic team is dedicated in delivering a level of customer service that surpasses other suppliers. AB Fluid Power's team are all engineers, which means they contribute to the engineering discussion rather than just supplying components. It also means that when you want to discuss specific technical issues, you can call AB Fluid Power who will know your application.
Optimised Functionality
In pneumatics, AB Fluid Power get things moving with air. With pneumatic, electronic and electro-pneumatic components and systems for automatic machines and production equipment, the range encompasses a broad palette of standard products and application-specific solutions. Cost-effective solutions are developed in co-operation with you using standard products and customer-specific applications. The use of new technologies, continuous innovation, as well as the integration of electronics in all products, optimises functional features and performance capabilities.
Industry know-how
AB Fluid Power appreciate that trust in a supplier is built on their credentials and application knowledge. With AB Fluid Power you have a wealth of know-how in industries as diverse as Automation and food and packaging through to the textile industry and electronics production.
In addition to standard products, AB Fluid Power can deliver a range of engineering solutions through in-house services. AB Fluid Power designers ensure the solution fits your needs, both technically and dimensionally before passing the design to the production team. The production team builds and tests the units before arranging final delivery or installation to your site. Other advanced simulation or environmental test services can also be provided if required.


text:
Noonan's proposal for Nama to build homes 'will have little effect'
Nama's new role as a house builder is not likely to have much of an effect on the housing crisis and will do little to spur additional demand, according to industry experts.
Finance Minister Michael Noonan announced in the Budget that Nama would build 20,000 homes between now and 2020. More than 90pc of those will be in Dublin.
The new role for Nama has raised fears that the State bad bank may distort the market because it has such a huge portfolio of development land.
However, both trade groups and developers believe it will do nothing to spur construction from the private sector because of the lack of finance available in the market and cost of new construction.
Activate Capital - a fund backed by the Government for housebuilding - offers finance at 14pc. Most other lenders are offering similar rates, while the banks will only fund at most 60pc of a development.
The Construction Industry Federation said that until financing was addressed, then the Nama plan would have little effect.
Meanwhile, the deputy governor of the Central Bank has strongly defended its restrictions on mortgage lending, saying they were already taking the heat out of the property market. Stefan Gerlach, who is stepping down from his role as deputy governor at the end of the year, told the Society of Chartered Surveyors annual conference that it was too early to say if the rules have had a direct effect on mortgage lending. But the rules have already had a major indirect effect on the sector.
The rules demand house buyers have a 20pc deposit and restrict lending levels to 3.5 times salary.
"The measures may have removed the speculative element [from the property market]," Mr Gerlach claimed.
"This is most evident in the moderation of future house price expectations which has occurred since the introduction of the measures, as reported in survey evidence.
"Episodes of rapid house price increases have typically a speculative element. For instance, buyers may enter the market simply because they believe that prices will rise rapidly for some time so that capital gains can be reaped by entering the market," Mr Gerlach said.
It was too early to say if the rules have cut bank lending yet, but by cutting out speculative buyers, he claimed the banking system was already safer.
He added that it was not the job of the Central Bank to fix the housing crisis.
Irish Independent


text:
3rd-Party Inks: Can You Read the Fine Print?
- Fresh Prints
- Personal Ink Jets
- Multifunction Printers
- Photo Printers
- Personal Lasers
- How We Tested: Someday My Prints Will Come
- 3rd-Party Inks: Can You Read the Fine Print?
No doubt you've seen the alluring ads for third-party ink, promising fantastic savings. The numbers are certainly impressive. Buy a replacement ink cartridge from someone other than your printer's manufacturer and you could save 50 percent or more. But will third-party inks deliver quality equal to that of the more expensive products sold by Canon, Epson, HP, or Lexmark? Can they harm your printer?
The bottom line: If you're looking to save money and you can sacrifice some quality and color compatibility, you may want to consider third-party ink. But if high quality and color accuracy are important to you, even the third-party ink providers themselves suggest you pay full price for ink.
Using three brand-new Canon S330 Color Bubble Jet Printers, we tested three alternatives: the original Canon BCI-24 black and tricolor ink cartridges ($26.98 direct), cartridges from Carrot Ink ($13.45, www.carrotink.com), and cartridges from TopInkjet.com ($8.40). We printed several types of files (including those with solid color blocks, text, graphics, and photos) on both inexpensive, multipurpose paper and expensive, glossy photo paper. We then ran the printouts through the following tests.
Quality. We printed a 300-dpi image on both multipurpose and glossy photo paper, using Canon's recommended configurations for best quality. Our expert panel then scrutinized the output under D50 illumination (a color temperature of 5,000 degrees Kelvin that's a standard in the graphics industry) on a GTI Graphiclite D5000 viewing table. We considered this subjective analysis a reality check, to ensure that colors and lines didn't look wrong.
Color fidelity. Next, we directed Microsoft Word to print blocks of 100 percent color on glossy photo paper with each type of ink. Using an X-Rite DTP22 spectrophotometer and running X-Rite's ColorShop 2.6, PC Magazine Labs took colorimetric measurements to compare colors generated by the third-party inks against the Canon ink. Results are recorded as deltaE (delta-error) scores, a standard for measuring the difference between two colors.
Objective analysis. Finally, we sent the output to ImageXpert (www.imagexpert.com), an independent lab based in Nashua, New Hampshire, that uses highly specialized equipment to analyze image quality. It studies such characteristics as negative and positive dot and line quality, solid-area mottle, and intercolor bleeding.
Our quality test's panel of experts ranked Canon's output best, followed by Carrot Ink and finally TopInkjet.com, but all three were considered acceptable on plain paper. When printing black to photo paper, however, both third-party inks fared poorly. Solid blocks of black from TopInkjet.com's tanks had a noticeable tinge of blue or purple. On this type of media, manufacturers often direct the printer to output a process black, combining cyan, magenta, and yellow inks with black to reproduce at maximum density.
In practical terms, poor delta-E scores indicate that colors will not appear as intended by applications. This may not matter to you, but for people printing photo images, or anyone else who cares about color accuracy, it's significant. Representatives from both Carrot Ink and Sky Town (which manufactures TopInkjet.com's ink) pointed out that the Canon S300 line of printers is still relatively new. The companies further emphasized that the longer a printer is available, the more compatible with it their products will be. But for now, high deltaE numbers essentially invalidate a printer's color management and ICC (International Color Consortium) profiles, making the ability to print accurate colors extremely difficult.
On our objective analysis, ImageXpert and PC Magazine Labs found few differences among the three inks when printing on high-quality photo paper, but on general-use, multipurpose paper, intercolor bleeding was clearly evident on both third-party products (see the images). On these tests, Canon's ink was again the clear winner and TopInkjet.com's the clear loser.
Issues not covered by our tests are how third-party inks hold up over time and how they might affect your printer's performance over timea very controversial issue. The third-party ink sellers say there is no risk to using their products. But representatives from Canon and Hewlett-Packard warn that if a third-party ink cartridge damages a partclogging a printhead, for examplethe warranty for that part would be void. Let the buyer beware.
Thanks to Kate Johnson of ImageXpert and Raymond Cheydleur of X-Rite.
|Click here to view the results of our 3rd-party ink tests.


text:
Guided Tours of Howth Castle
Private tours can be arranged and tailored to the requirements of the group. Organisers of any groups interested in a tour should contact us through this website. We welcome schools and organisations that help educate young people at a reduced rate.
We can also look after people with reduced mobility but need some advance warning to make it easier for them to gain access to the Castle.


text:
One of the most accesible places for learning to shoot snowboarding and skiing photography is the terrain park. It allows any photographer to capture great shots even if they don't have athletes to work with yet. On top of that, it will help you land athletes to shoot with for future shoots.
Terrain parks are accessible to most ability levels of skiers/boarders from beginner to expert. They are also safer to shoot in than the backcountry because there is no risk of avalanche, and no sketchy lines that you would have to ski to get to the shot. The only risk here is bad athletes, or standing in bad locations….
Park jumps are great for learning this type of extreme photography. They allow you to take off your skis or board, walk around, and shoot 360 degrees with ease. This way you can really start to understand what angles work best relative to the sun. They also allows you to compose with the best possible background to really show off the resort and the athlete. The other advantage is that most resorts will have a constant stream of fairly talented athletes hitting the jumps so you can keep shooting for hours!
Here are some tips/techniques that will help you nail the best shot.
– Get in close and go wide. Going wide will help show just how big a jump is, and if it's really small, can make it look bigger! By being close the athlete will still retain a large part of the image.
– Don't stand too close to the landing and centered. Athletes drift in the air depending on their angle of takeoff. If you get too close to the middle in the landing zone you might get landed on.
– One angle that almost always works, is by standing at the edge of the landing (knuckle) and off to the side. This showcases the athletes more head on, and will capture the takeoff and landing of the jump with a wide lens.
– Not finding any good shots by being wide and close? Go zoomed and far away. Shoot between tree branches way off to the side and above to frame the athlete and background. Shoot from the middle of the next or previous jump in the line to compress the jump and show takeoff through landing. Explore all options!
– Try not to only shoot the first angle you like. If you have time, walk around with your lenses and take a quick snap from different angles. Some will look much better than others and you can review them all on your LCD!
– For focusing, we like to use Back-Button AF. It works well to set your focus in auto or manual, and then lock it in by switching (or retaining) manual mode. This way it won't change when you start to shoot. Focus on any point that is similar to the distance the athlete will be away from you. Remember that they are going to be way up in the air so really think about how far they will be. Continuous AF can work as well, but only if you have a clear view of the athlete before they leave the ground, and don't mind moving the camera to retain focus (which may blow your composition). Continuous seems to work best with telephotos where you won't have to change composition as much to retain focus.
– Shoot in continuous mode to get the shot at the right moment. Even a fraction of a second will make an athletes position look better or worse.
– Composition wise, park jumps are like anything else. Generally try to keep the athlete off center, and not have your horizon right in the middle of the frame. This will make the shot look more dynamic.
– "Guy in the Sky" shots went out in the 80's….. They may be fun to mess around with, but never look as great as a shot that TEL's (Takeoff-Environment-Landing) the full story… Showcase all three details or at least 1-2 and you will create a much more interesting and exciting image.
– Shoot into the sun at f/16 to make a star. You'll need to compensate for the closed aperture with high ISO so you can retain shutter speed and have light on the athlete. Read this article to learn the starred out sun technique.
– Always think about the background!!! An athlete in dark clothing against a dark background can be tough to spot. Shoot with a white backdrop (snow capped mountain) behind the athlete, or the sky. If they are in bright clothes, shoot them against trees across the valley. This is when you're telephoto can really help.
– Keep that shutter speed up. To get that much air takes a lot of speed. You don't want a bunch of slightly-blurred images.
– Talk to athletes that drop by while you're shooting. Making contacts will really further your photography. Try and get shoots with specific athletes and you can work with them to coordinate whatever trick will look best from the angle you want to shoot. Working with athletes will always have a higher success rate for shots.
– If you want to break into shooting professional and amateur park events, checkout this article to get you started.
– Add a flash into the shot. Make sure it's powered up pretty high, and keep the aperture low to get all the power you can from it. You'll need to shoot at 1/250th shutter since that's the sync speed most flashes allow, anything above that switches the camera to high speed sync mode and you won't have enough power to shoot in broad daylight when the lifts are running. Hypersync mode with pocketwizards will let you shoot higher shutter speeds. More on shooting flash in park in an upcoming article so stay tuned….
The park is a great place for experimentation. Don't just post up in one spot all day like soo many other photographers do, move around, explore, and get creative! Once you are confident in your shots, bring out the flash and take it to the next level.
This article is part of the snowboarding and skiing photography series on APS. Below are more articles in the series:
10 Basic Tips for Successful Skiing and Snowboarding Photography
10 Tips for Shooting Night Skiing Photos
Capturing Classic Powder Shots
Shooting Cliffs: Snowboarding and Skiing Photography


text:
Dupont Limited Edition Prestige Leonardo da Vinci Vitruvian Man Ligne 2 Lighter
Leonardo da Vinci was as much an engineer as he was an artist. With this new Limited Edition, S.T. Dupont illustrates the philosophy it has followed since 1872: combining technical perfection and the creative inspiration of its craftsmen in the same melting pot. The new Limited Edition collection is duty-bound to reproduce the same potency as the original drawing that was produced with pen, ink and wash on paper. It combines the warm Havana hues of the placed natural lacquer with precious yellow gold. Adorned with Leonardo da Vinci's famous drawing engraved in yellow gold, the Ligne 2 lighter features a double cigar flame with the perfect 'ping', a sound instantly recognized by those in the know. Each piece is presented in an an exclusive gift box and limited to 1,492 numbered pieces.


text:
Memories to last a lifetime
Darren's goal for most of the day is to be a photojournalist.
I look for interactions between people, to show the places and decor, mostly to find and photograph special moments. I am trying to create more than just interesting photographs; I am looking for the key emotions and moments that tell your story. Making photographs of spontaneous actions is about anticipating and preparing for what will happen next.
Darren's other goal on your wedding day is to create a collection of great posed photographs as efficiently as possible, AND have fun doing it!
I spend many pre-wedding hours thinking about and planning the posed portraits to give you more time to enjoy your wedding.
Before wrapping up in the evening, I often like to do sunset or night photography. It is a great way of doing a few directed pictures of the two of you when the time is less critical and the light is stunning. It often only takes about 15 minutes, but it is time very well spent. Whether you choose to do sunset or nighttime photography often depends on the time of the sunset and events planned during your reception. For questions about the sunset and "Golden Hour" photography, connect with me below.
Mandy's goals for the day are to assist Darren with gear, second shoot your memories, and help make your wedding day go as smoothly as possible.
I like to joke that my wedding day job as Darren's wife and the second shooter is to carry stuff, but my role is so much more than that. As Darren's wife and because I love him, I look out for his well-being. Is he drinking water so that he doesn't get dehydrated? Do I need to hold the ladder to keep him from falling into the lake/pool/pond, etc? Because I care about you, I watch out for our couples too. As the second shooter, I photograph "ninja-style", run the family photos, do my best to keep everyone on schedule, create the same-day edit slideshow, and watch for ways to serve you and your guests.
In my backpack with my camera gear is my "Mary Poppins Emergency Kit". It gets a lot of use, and I'm happy to help in other ways if I'm not focused on photographing a moment of your day or helping with gear for Darren. My wedding day resume is pretty diversified. I've steamed and safety pinned dresses, made lemonade, filled a tire on the getaway car with air, picked up sandwiches, delivered letters between the bride and groom, played security detail, and a few other things; some of which should not be mentioned! Simply put, I'm a 'jill-of-all-trades' and love that I get to serve our clients alongside my husband.


text:
Can you tell that it was over 80 degrees in these photos? It was! In mid-December! I've grown up in California and this weather surprised even me. I was so glad to have a nice day, especially having a young-kiddo out in the elements. We did the session at a great park in Temecula. Aren't they an adorable little family?? ...this may be my last post before the first of the year since I am on VACATION! Okay, not yet...I have my last wedding of the year tomorrow in Reno (have to drive through a snow storm to get there...wish me luck!) and my last portrait session of the year will be with my favorite clients on Sunday! Then, it's time to enjoy my family and cap the holidays off with a 4 day vacation to Oceanside in my parent's timeshare!
What a wonderful year it has been - see all of you sooooon!


text:
You may recall the website whattheheckhasobamadonesofar.com (there's also the R-rated version here) that was launched back in 2010 by Barack Obama supporters to remind people of the president's accomplishments.
Now, just as Seattle's mayoral race kicks into high gear, two Seattleites are doing the same to show their support for Mayor Mike McGinn.
Inspired by the aforementioned Obama website, Graham Klym and Andrew Cole just debuted wtfhasmcginndone.com to show people exactly what McGinn has done in his three-and-a-half years at the city's perch.
The website is pretty simple. You can click through each accomplishment of McGinn's, which includes a link to a news story that goes into more detail. The buttons offer clever phrases like "I could do that in my sleep," or "Big deal. What else?" or "I'm unimpressed."
We came across a couple GeekWire links: One about the city's plans to develop an ultra-fast broadband network with Gigabit Squared, and another regarding the Earth's "greenest building" in Capitol Hill:
Klym, an executive assistant at Perkins Coie, said he met Cole, a software developer, through Seattle's pinball community. The two are big fans of McGinn and just wanted to develop a creative way to show their support.
"I've run into a lot of misinformation about how effective Mayor McGinn has been," Klym told GeekWire. "I wanted to create an easy, fast, fun way to share accomplishments and sources with as many people as possible. The WTF Obama folks had a brilliant template for it, so we couldn't help ourselves to model our site after theirs."
Currently, there are about 25-35 links up on the website but the Klym said there will be around 70 after a big update coming shortly. There's also a Twitter account created for the website.
"The Mayor's in a tough re-election battle, but he's been an incredible, productive, progressive advocate for the city and its citizens," Klym said. "This is our opportunity to share that with folks who may not be paying such close attention to what he's acheived."
Previously on GeekWire: Seattle launches new initiative to support entrepreneurs, hoping to build a startup kingdom