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Filed under: Crisis Communications
Lance Armstrong's confession to Oprah Winfrey that he used performance-enhancing drugs will air
tomorrow Thursday, and the speculation about what he said has become the media story of the day.
The coverage is taking a lot of different angles, but there is at least one singular truth about his story: Lance is a terrible person. A tremendous athlete, but a terrible person. And not because he used PEDs, but because of how he tried to ruin anyone and everyone who dared to speak the truth.
Sometimes terrible people do good things, maybe even because they need to cover up the fact that they are terrible people. And those good things can offer enough cover that blind loyalists continue to believe. Richard Nixon created the EPA, Mussolini made the trains run on time, and Lance created the Livestrong Foundation.
But I don't think for a second he founded his foundation because he truly cared about his fellow man. Lance reveled in the money and fame that came from being a world-class cyclist. And he was perceptive enough to recognize that Greg LeMond's celebrity dried up the second he quit cycling. So Lance did everything he could to make his celebrity last.
First, he took PEDs so he could remain competitive, and then when he realized even PEDs would not keep him relevant forever, he founded the Livestrong Foundation. It brought him an entirely new source of fans and endorsement money. A source he thought would last a lifetime.
Lance has received world-class PR counsel over the years, and until recently it allowed him to stay in front of the rumors and accusations. But, for the moment, it has all caught up with him. Lance is a survivor, literally and figuratively, and I wouldn't bet against the comeback for which he is desperately trying to position himself. But if his reputation does survive, don't ever forget the one true thing about Lance: he is a terrible person.
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Who knows what makes a person so good at lying. They have to be very detached from their feelings (which in the extreme is called psychosis), kind of like Schwarzenneger going on 60 Minutes, Jay Leno, etc. and talking about a devasting affair that might make someone in touch crawl in a hole for years. But instead Arnold goes on TV and writes a book. I'd bet a lot of money we will see a confessional book from Lance, and as you say maybe even a comeback. He is better than most at this game — and I don't mean biking.
From the 1992 movie Damage: "Damaged people are dangerous. They know they can survive."
Important to understand he was not a great athlete all a lie. 36 best place in TDF pre doping. 16 minutes back on mountain stages. 6 minutes back on TT all pre doping. He had a natural low hematocrit so he benefitted from EPO like rocket fuel. Vaughters on the other hand 48 hematocrit EPO hardly helped. LA is NOT a great athlete he did not work harder.
He was just a well backed sociopath who was given huge money and protection to run a mob and a huge scam for years. White collar crime.
Idiot. he was 36th against a field of dopers and due to his physique at the time. Lost upper body weight after cancer, allowed him to gain time climbing. He doped when he finished 36th too.
I completely agree. I'm a firm believer in "where there's smoke, there's fire," so I always figured that he and the other cyclists during that time doped. What they did was wrong. It's the way Armstrong attacked the people who called him on it and treated those who stood in his way, that make him not only a cheater, but a terrible person.
I agree that the LAF foundation was started for selfish reasons, but I've always believed that the whole foundation thing erupted in the sports world around the same time (Floyd, Tyler et al). As if some sports lawyers and accountants realized they could hide money in these charities and be rewarded for the philantropic nature as a bonus. I could be wrong but seems a lot popped up at around the same time.
Excellent post. If enough of us remember that he is a terrible person, it should help slow down any comeback he has planned. It was obvious from the two interviews that he never intended to come clean and that he doesn't feel bad about doping at all. He just wants to race again and is willing to do what it takes now to get back into the game.


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When you're destined to be the best,
The Gutter guarantees the hardest of falls.
The Gutter guarantees the hardest of falls.
Snowmen by Jay Butkowski
Vasily popped two little white pills in his mouth and swallowed them with a swig of Moskovskaya Vodka.
The screaming in his head had started again.
The pills didn't make the screams go away. If they did anything at all – and Vasily had his doubts – the pills only made him not care. For whatever brief effective period that the pills worked, Vasily didn't care about the dead: the slumped over bodies, the pieces of skull and brain matter pink and red against freshly-painted white walls, the wisps of blue-gray smoke dissipating in the air from where the bullet had torn through the body. He didn't care about the wails and whines of the loved ones who found the corpses, their anguished sobs and hysterics.
With the pills, Vasily was a stoic grim reaper: the efficient killing machine that the MVD relied on to silence enemies of the state. Without them, his hand shook so bad, he could barely aim downrange. Without the pills, the ghosts of the dead and the living overwhelmed him.
The assassin stepped out of his rented Honda Civic and walked to the trunk of the car. Inside the trunk, his trusted rifle was broken down into its component pieces. He opened the trunk and began putting the gun together like so many times before.
His mission was simple: eliminate the traitor Grigori Bellakovich, world-famous Russian ballet dancer and recent defector to the United States. Bellakovich was a bit of a dandy, with no strategic importance to the United States government. His value as an asset was pure propaganda, nothing more. He was such a low priority that when he did warrant a security detail, it was usually a State department cultural attaché that followed close behind.
Grigori Bellakovich was nothing more than a nuisance, but his open defiance and degradation of the Soviet way of life had to be answered. Vasily's mission was to silence the big mouth in such a way as to send an unambiguous message to others who would consider defecting, but with just enough wiggle room to let both countries continue their Cold War stalemate.
Luckily for Vasily, an opportunity to quietly deal with Bellakovich had presented itself.
Perhaps trying to overcompensate for those rumors that he had to stuff his ballet tights just to make a good showing on-stage, Grigori Bellakovich was a red-meat-eating macho man off-stage who liked to prove just how much of a man he was whenever he had the chance. He'd bragged about this hunting trip for a long time, told anyone who would listen how he was going to, "bring down a ten-point buck" in his best Russian John Wayne impression. It had never occurred to him who might be listening in on the conversation.
There were times when Vasily had to pull off the impossible. This mission was something other than impossible. This was going to be as easy as removing the head from a child's snowman. A slight breeze could do the job for you; minimal effort, maximum reward.
Vasily propped his rifle on the trunk lid of his rented vehicle and trained his sights on a nearby brook.
Three figures were making their way across the small stream. There was Bellakovich's State Department liaison, Bellakovich himself, and…
Vasily cursed in Russian under his breath.
The intelligence reports out of Moscow had said nothing about Bellakovich's son accompanying him on this trip.
Vasily had never known his own parents. They had been agitators, removed from their home when he was just a child. Vasily had been raised by the State to be cold, uncaring, calculated. Only one time in his life was someone able to penetrate his icy armor.
Her name was Marya.
They had been expecting a son when she disappeared in the middle of the night.
His handlers in the government had explained to him that Marya was a dissident who had seduced Vasily to make an example of him. That she had lied about being pregnant and fled before the government could catch her and expose the truth.
Vasily didn't know whether Marya had truly loved him, or if his government handlers were telling the truth. Vasily knew only one thing with certainty: he would have made a great father.
Vasily let out a long slow breath. He aimed wide and let loose a round nowhere near his intended target. He couldn't kill Bellakovich with his son as a witness.
Down at the brook, Grigori Bellakovich and his small party were crossing on wet rocks which had been coated with wet, slippery leaves. In the distance, the ballet dancer heard the crack and retort of Vasily's intentionally-missed round ricochet off a large tree in the woods. The distraction caused the sure-footed dancer to lose his footing.
Grigori Bellakovich fell hard, his temple glancing off a rock in the middle of the stream. The water started to cloud over with crimson blood.
Vasily looked on in horror at the scene unfolding before him.
Bellakovich's son screamed for help and tried to revive his father, who was unconscious, bleeding out from his head wound. They were too far away from civilization for any help to come. Grigori Bellakovich would die in the woods, the victim of a freak accident. Bellakovich's son would live out the rest of his childhood without a father.
Vasily wiped a tear from his cheek. The pills were already wearing off. He silently packed away his gun, got into his rental car, and drove off.

subset: commoncrawl


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|Price on Request
|Size of house
|320 m²
|Area Land
|1,400 m²
|Town / Village
Villa > Cannes
SUPER CANNES - Beautiful property of about 320 sqm with stunning views looking over the sea, the Estérel and the Lérins Islands, located in the heights of Cannes, just 10 minutes from the Croisette. Accommodating up to 10 people, this completely renovated family villa has three main bedrooms and an additional one on the garden level ideal for staff, an independent studio and a summer kitchen on the pool level. The main level consists of a beautiful reception area with lounge and dining room enjoying panoramic views around and down to the sea, a spacious fully equipped kitchen and a TV lounge. The villa is located on perfectly maintained plot of approximately 1,500sqm, surrounded by beautiful terraces; below there is a pool (16m x 5m) surrounded by a beautiful terrace with summer lounge under pergola and a dining area. This fully air-conditioned family home is ideal for a peaceful holiday near the beaches of Cannes but sheltered from the hustle and bustle of the French Riviera. Car shelter for 2/3 cars. Ref 652 -- Main Level: - Entrance with guest toilet. - Lounge / dining room with fireplace opening onto a terrace with sea views. - Fully equipped kitchen with central island and breakfast area opening onto this same terrace. - TV lounge. Ground floor: - Master bedroom with ensuite bathroom (bath / shower / WC). - Two double bedrooms (bed 200 cm) - Large independent bathroom with bath / shower / WC These three rooms open onto a beautiful terrace. - Laundry room with washing machine and dryer - Double bedroom (sofa bed 140 cm) with ensuite shower room / WC. Ideal for staff. Pool level: - Studio with independent access with a sofa bed, shower room and toilet - Equipped summer kitchen Swimming pool (16m x 5m- 2.30m deep) Summer lounge under pergola Car shelter for 2/3 cars. Additional services: Internet access, reversible air-conditioning, alarm system, gas BBQ, automatic gate, satellite.


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Car movie birthday party can be full of fun especially when you and your kid are ready to make better decisions regarding the venue among other plans. While many people would prefer hosting it at children theatre, others would take it to beach or Zoo or park or even family restaurant. All these places don't matter because even your living room can be a perfect place to host this kind of party. This article highlights some tips on this kind of party:
First of all, one has t think out of the box and choose only those things that you and your child like. Work on the invitations, these can be purchased or just made locally using papers as well as car tickets for decorating purposes. Then consider decorating the venue. How about looking into the themed tableware as well as variety of balloons? One can still achieve a fabulous car movie birthday party by using affordable decorations such as having the car movie playing on the background of the Television set.
Come up with party activities such as car party game, Hot Race Car, Toy car race and Pin the Tail on the Donkey to mention but a few. The game prize can be tattoos as well as car 2 stickers. It's now time to think about the foods hat your visitors will eat. There are lots of suggestions regarding this but still, ask your kid about what they eat when they attend the same parties. You can as well ask friends and relatives for more suggestions. Do not forget to work on a birthday cake. Some people prefer buying the cakes while others would make it by themselves. This can be quite delicate but do not be afraid, as long as you have the idea, all you have to do is purchasing quite a number of cars 2 movie toy cars and use them to decorate the cake and the rest will be history.


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Precision Medical
Precision Medical, Inc. is a global leader in the manufacturing and sale of respiratory devices and medical fittings, helping hospital facilities and homecare providers in more than 50 countries around the world achieve positive patient outcomes. Its innovative and lightweight product lines include oxygen regulators, aspirators, air compressors, flowmeters, oxygen concentrators, medical blenders and vacuum regulators. The company was founded in 1984 and is based in Northampton, Pennsylvania.


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Smooth delivery starts with good sustainable transport packaging. Royal FloraHolland has the packaging that suits your product and the needs of your customers. We have packaging for flowers and plants, recyclable packaging for one-time or multiple use, and for rent or purchase.
Code and price list for auction packaging
The code and price list for auction packaging offers an overview of all packaging codes and associated prices.Read more
Sustainable packaging
Royal FloraHolland is striving for a future-proof horticultural sector.Read more
Fust Fc588
Due to the increasing use of CC containers in the export trade and the transaction reduction, the trade requires a different multi-use flower bucket.Read more
Packaging catalogue
With our packaging catalogue, it is easy to find all the information you need about Royal FloraHolland's standardized transport packaging.Read more
Collecting and returning packaging
Packaging can be collected and returned at all locations. Check the opening hours, contact information, terms and conditions and services for each location.Read more
In the direct trade of cut flowers and plants, multi-use boxes and plant trays (except Floratino), containers, and support racks of Royal FloraHolland can be exchanged directly between grower and buyer, without going through the auction or packaging depot. This direct exchange is called subturn.Read more
Clean packaging
Royal FloraHolland has invested heavily over the past few years in better ways to clean containers. We can achieve even more throughout the entire chain, however. Ensuring clean packaging is everyone's responsibility!Read more
Transport levy for the box pool
Sivepo launched a pool for multi-use flower boxes in 2002. Unlike plastic flower and plant containers,...Read more
FAQ packaging card
As of 5 November 2018, the packaging card is obligatory at our three export locations. Read here the FAQ about the new packaging card.Read more


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Prior to his wife's illness, the assumption was that Secretary of State John Kerry would be returning to the Middle East this week for another round of shuttle diplomacy aimed at reviving the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians. But whenever Kerry does get back to wandering between Jerusalem and Ramallah, the same obstacles that have prevented peace will still be there. Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas knows that if he does as Kerry bids and negotiates with Israel and signs an agreement ending the conflict, he will be running up against the Palestinian reluctance to recognize the legitimacy of a Jewish state no matter where its borders might be drawn. But while the media continues to focus on the deadlocked talks about talks, they rarely devote much energy to determining what exactly is driving the Palestinian culture of rejection.
Part of the answer to that puzzle is supplied from those who, unlike the mainstream media, do pay attention to what is written and broadcast in the official Palestinian media run by Abbas's PA. Those wondering why the Palestinians would reject peace offers including an independent state (as they have three times since 2000), can do no better than to view this PA TV excerpt brought to our attention from Palestinian Media Watch in which two little Palestinian girls are asked to recite a hateful poem that refers to Jews in the following manner:
"Most evil among creations, barbaric monkeys, wretched pigs," condemned to "humiliation and hardship."
It also went on to say the following about the Jewish presence in Jerusalem:
Jerusalem vomits from within it your impurity
Because Jerusalem, you impure ones, is pious, immaculate
And Jerusalem, you who are filth, is clean and pure.
It is shocking that the official media of the group that Kerry considers a partner for peace would be broadcasting hate and using children to do it. But, of course, as anyone who follows the PMW website regularly knows, there is actually nothing unusual about the PA acting in this manner.
The PA media has broadcast a steady diet of hatred against Israel and Jews since its inception after the Oslo Accords brought it into existence with numerous examples of them employing children and broadcasts specifically aimed at youngsters to do so. One of the great tragedies of the last 20 years has been the way Israel's supposed peace partners have sowed the seeds of future conflict by inculcating their youth with doctrines that treat Jews as subhuman monsters with no rights or claims upon the land that both sides claim as their own.
There will be those who will argue that similar hatred exists among Israelis, as occasional incidents inside the green line and so-called "price tag" attacks on Palestinians in the territories indicate. But the difference between the two sides is actually illustrative of the way Israel has embraced the hope for peace while Palestinians have not.
The point is hatred of Jews by Palestinians is something that is officially endorsed by the Palestinian Authority while hatred of Arabs is incessantly condemned by the Israeli media and the government. Jewish prejudice against Arabs exists, but only as the actions of a minority, while mainstream Palestinian culture endorses hate. While Israeli schools adopted curricula seeking to promote "peace education," the Palestinian schools still use textbooks that are filled with the same kind of vile delegitimization seen on PA TV.
But such hatred isn't limited to just the Palestinians. As the Elder of Ziyon blog reports today, the American website Mondoweiss seems to be competing with the PA in the effort to delegitimize Jewish rights. In the course of a blog post alleging that Jewish settlers were infringing on the rights of Arab worshippers at the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron, Mondoweiss editor and contributor Annie Robbins made the following claim in response to a comment from a reader who pointed out that the Tomb is an ancient site of Jewish worship that even predates the Holy Temples in Jerusalem:
allegedly. there's no proof that was the location of some grand temple. maybe lots of jewish stuff retroactively lands itself right underneath islamic structures. did you ever think of that? jealous much?
For anyone commenting on the Middle East to not know that the Muslim Conquests involved the planting of mosques on top of the holy sites of other faiths in places like Turkey, India as well as Israel is to demonstrate historical illiteracy on an Olympic scale. The line that separates stupidity from religious prejudice in such assertions is nonexistent since the only possible motivation for these statements is malice rooted in anti-Semitic hatred.
But while we know that Mondoweiss represents the views of denizens of the fever swamps of the left, it is important to remember that it is quite common for Abbas to make similar statements denying any Jewish connection to Jerusalem or the existence of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah or the temple. So long as hate speech is mainstream among the Palestinians, peace with Israel is not something that can be conjured up by a hard working secretary of state.


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Option snowboards is proud to announce the latest addition to their all-star team roster with the signing of Finland's own, Jaakko Seppälä. Jaakko brings a new dynamic to the mix over here at Option with experience beyond his years and style that's a force to be reckoned with. Jaakko spent this past season riding for Burton and filming for Whiteout films' latest production "Wear it Well." With last season being Jaakko's first winter spent in the Whistler backcountry we can only imagine what he has in store for us this season.
"It's great being the Euro support on the Option Team. I'm excited to be a part of a brand I've always been hyped on. Stoked to represent Option and looking forward to some good times riding and hanging with the dudes," says Jaakko.
"Since the days of Robot Food to now, Jaakko has consistently been killing it. From the days of wanting to be just like him to today where I get to sign his checks, I am looking quite forward to having him around. His style is out of hand and it is for that reason that he will fit in superbly around here," Team Manager Jon Roth comments.
Look out for Jaakko this upcoming season, as he will surely be turning heads.


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Letterset, a popular Buffalo band, called it quits Saturday night.
After five years of performing and creating music together, the band, which had become one of the area's hottest bands, played its final show at Xtreme Wheels.
The band, which includes frontman Cameron Powell, bassist Ricky Needham, lead guitarist John Anstett and drummer Josiah LeRoy, went out in style with support from the very impressive up-and-coming band Rescue Dawn, which definitely got the crowd excited for Letterset.
Holding back tears, Letterset took the stage for one last time. The band played for more than an hour, presenting all the songs they created together.
When asked which show was their favorite, each band member gave the same response: May 7, 2009, at the Town Ballroom with All Time Low and Hey Monday.
Bassist Ricky Needham said playing there "was a dream come true." He said playing in front of more than 1,000 people, who reacted well to their music, felt like being a superstar band.
The band members also said that their favorite part of being in the band was playing with their best friends.
Powell said that "seeing people get excited about the music and quote the lyrics I wrote" was an additional thrill.
During its five years of success, Letterset's fan base continued to grow exponentially with each show it played, causing more and more people to appreciate the lyrics that Powell had put so much time into.
The band members said it was sad to say goodbye to the hundreds of fans that had come out to see them one last time Saturday night. However, they said that seeing the faces of all their friends and fans was truly a blessing.
Their final set included all the songs their fans have come to know and love.
"You've inspired me to take what I love to do to a new level," said LeRoy to everyone that has supported the band. "Never did I imagine that this would establish such a following. I am so humbled and honored to have played in front of you and I hope to do so again one day."
Whether these musicians continue on to new endeavors, they have made their mark on the Buffalo music scene.
As Letterset disbands, so too does a major influence in the lives of many Western New Yorkers. Their music and sound will live in every person they have touched.
Ed Slowinski is a senior at City Honors.


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S: Sujo 2010
FC: Sujo | 2010
1: 2010 | John and Susan Entwistle
2: Eli and Ethan's 10th birthday | Amberlie | Jim and Judy | Jenny, John and Molly | Jennifer | Eli and Ethan stacked presents | Jennifer and Matt | January 16th
3: Lulu | January | LIttle Bit helping with our wedding scrapbook | Jim and Anne both happened to visit at the same time so we decided we'd go out to eat at a Thai restaurant | Ollie in Salmon Creek | Gomez in his latest favorite spot on the sofa
4: Newport John and Susan | January | Oregon Coast Aquarium | Sunset from our motel room | Aquarium Village
5: February 1, 2010 First date anniversary John and Susan | Cafe Delirium | dinner at Edgefield | Edgefield Hotel wall murals
6: Alexandria and Leonidas | Crystal's new haircut-beautiful | February | Leo - 20 months Alexandria - 3 1/2 | almost 28
7: Our Valentine's trip to Long Beach | February | Painted crabs at Marsh's Free Museum | View from top of the hill in Astoria | The Astor Column | The Kite Museum | 2-14-2010 at home | Inn at Discovery Coast right on the beach | Old jail in Astoria across from the Flavel House
8: February | Jenny & Ambie's birthday celebration 2-28-2010 | Amberlie-17 | Matt & Jennifer | Max | almost 10 | Eli & Ethan | 10 yrs. old | Jenny - 39 | birthday Jan. 24th | birthday Feb. 25th | Ollie | Lulu | Little Bit & Gomez | LIttle Bit helping with our wedding scrapbook | John's toy room
9: John's birthday | We had Jim and Judy over for cake (which John made). Then just the 2 of us went to Claim Jumper | March | Jim and Judy | 3-22-2010 We had a party at Mark's house to celebrate John's and Max's birthday. Molly made a pie as John's birthday 'cake' | Luke with Dexter | Sarah | Max and Mark | Max's 10th birthday | John's birthday present. He'd always wanted to cover a birthmark on the back of his leg. Now John wears shorts all the time to show it off! | March 6th
10: March | I took this picture in hopes of getting a tattoo of Little Bit someday... on my foot looking up at me. | Adorable! Mikyla, Karissa, Lydia | Susan | Susan | 2 1/2 4 7 1/2 | Gomez | Flowers around the yard at Salmon Creek
11: April | At Anne's house | Making yummy Easter baskets. | Ollie | Luke's birthday party at Sheri's | Matt, Luke, Molly, Mark, Eli and Ethan | Lulu | John and Susan at the Woodland Tulip Farm | photo taken to sell the blue Ford Focus | Susan planting in the back yard | 4-4-2010
12: April | 4-22-2010 We were at Fred Meyer waiting for the Avatar DVD to officially go on sale at midnight - our favorite movie ever The blue tongue is from the blue frosted cupcakes they were giving out. | 4-28-2010 The Lilac Gardens were beautiful. It was pouring rain but we had fun. | beautiful mini bonsai lilac tree | Susan and Anne with their lilac bushes... (neither of the bushes survived) | April 30, 2010 date night. First anniversary of the day we got engaged. | Getting ready to watch Avatar 3D yet again! We think at last count, Susan saw it in the theater 6 times and John saw it 7 The first time Susan and Matt went. The next day all 3 of us went. | At the Gazebo , Fort Vancouver, where we were engaged. | The Old Spaghetti Factory
13: May | Susan's first tattoo (approx. 2001) top of left arm | Susan's back tattoo. (done in approx. 2001) It started out as a fairy, but was done very poorly. This cover-up is the beautiful result. | 5-2-2010 | We happened to look up to our bedroom (2nd floor) and saw 2 sets of kitty ears. Little Bit and Gomez loved looking out this window. | Lulu, Gomez and Ollie. It was very rare to have them in the same room, at that time, without a fight. | Lulu | Ollie | We had a great time at our first tattoo convention. We spent 2 days walking around the convention watching people being tattooed, as well as watching all the other people attending. It was great people watching! We watched one gentleman's tattoo in process... of his wife who had died. | Don't worry... she gave Susan a kiss on the cheek too! | Susan's hand tattoo, covering up a scar! | We were both so excited to get our wedding date added to the infamous name tattoo.
14: May | Mike's birthday celebration at Old Spaghetti Factory | May 22nd, 2010 Molly's 30th birthday party at Matt and Jennifer's house | Bessie and Carol | 5-10-2010 | Mother's Day - Susan and Anne | Jenny, Matt Mark, Molly and Luke | Crystal, Sally, Gary, Jenny and Amberlie | Carol, Max, Ethan, Amberlie, Eli, Molly, Luke, Scott | John, Mike, John, Patti and David | Mike | Susan
15: June | Fuchsia by the front door. | Clematis by the side of the house | California Poppy | Arches National Park 6-11-2010 | This was the first stop on a wonderful trip. After Arches we went to visit Crystal and her family, which included celebrating Lydia's 8th birthday and spending a day with Diane. Our next stop was Sedona where we celebrated our 1st wedding anniversary and got a tattoo. After that we headed to San Diego to visit Brian and Matt. | Moab, Utah | Flowers around the house | There were several of these lifelike animal statues by the visitor center.
16: June | at Crystal's | Susan Crystal | Karissa Lydia Mikyla | Crystal | Just arrived after 11pm. When we drove up we could see 3 little heads popping up in the windows. We were mobbed by 3 kids, 2 dogs and 3 cats. It was a wonderful welcome. | Lydia and Chico | Karissa and Princess | Mikyla and Roxy | John and Crystal | June 12th 2010 Lydia's 8th birthday party (born June 9th, 2010)
17: Diane McCune November 4th, 1930 to July19th, 2010 On June 13th we spent a great day with Diane. She was in good spirits and seemed to be truly happy with us all there. Crystal and her kids, and Crystal's brother David and his kids were there. John was accepted by all. Diane showed him how to cook corn in the microwave, and he spent time talking to Rusty and they got along well. Diane was perhaps the greatest lady I've ever known. She took care of everyone. She treated each person like they were important and was a friend to all. She had many animals she loved too. She was a mentor to me and I loved her dearly. She was a wonderful grandmother and role model to Crystal and Brian, as well as her other grandchildren and great grandchildren. | We had a good time preparing lunch together | Rusty made shish kabobs on the barbecue, by his place. Veggies for John and I and his special marinated meat for everyone else. | She may not realize it but Crystal is very much like Diane. She will carry on Diane's legacy. | Diane, Susan, Crystal and Lydia | Susan and John on Crystal's couch | Rusty, Crystal and Susan | Susan with Princess and Alice | Shrek
18: We celebrated our first wedding anniversary in Sedona, Arizona We arrived in Sedona on June15th and left on June 17th. | We had a spectacular view from the patio right by our room | The view from the chapel | One of the great restaurants in Sedona. This one had a huge menu. | The walkway to the Chapel
19: June 16, 2010 Our first wedding anniversary. Our time in Sedona was nearly magical. The views were spectacular, the weather was perfect and we had a lot of fun. It was a perfect romantic setting for our first anniversary. | We wanted to buy something to commemorate our anniversary but couldn't figure out what to get till we saw a tattoo shop... These hearts are a wonderful symbol of our love. | Cucina Rustica, June 16, 2010 | This was a sculpture at a really cool gallery.
20: At Sarah's house with Tucker | Ramona California June 18th | La Cocina. Matt's favorite restaurant in Ramona | Major and Mattthew's house We hung out for a couple hours to play pool | Packards This was Crystal's favorite 'hang-out' in Ramona
21: June 20th, 2010 Matt, Susan, John and Brian at the Del Mar Fair. It's actually called The San Diego County Fair, but our family (and most other people) still call it the Del Mar Fair | Plumeria | Brian's friend Michael, Brian and Matt | John in front of the La Mesa house. | Our favorite pizza place in San Diego. I discovered this place whenI was living in La Mesa. I tried it because it was very inexpensive. They make the best pizza anywhere, in my opinion. John likes it as much as I do. | On our way to Rosaria's we stopped at the place I used to live in La Mesa. | Brian in front of the Heart Attack Cafe at the Del Mar Fair | We had a great time at the fair, eating very bad food and shopping together. We even tried the fried butter...It was really, really bad! | Matt and John waiting for our pizza | June 19th
22: 'Grandma's House' in Yreka | Pea Soup Andersen's | On our way home from a wonderful trip. It was a great trip, but we were ready to get home to our kitties. | June
23: Through July and August we worked on painting the kitchen and family room. It looked great! | Gomez | Little Bit
24: July 3rd Matt and Jennifer's birthday party | Jenny John Matt Mark Molly Luke | Matt Jennifer Ethan Eli | Mark, Max, Molly, Jenny, Sarah, Susan, Ethan and Matt | Crystal, Jenny, John, Jennifer, Matt and the back of Max's head
25: July | Salmon Creek house | Crystal at her Dad's place with Lydia, Karissa and Mikyla | Gomez
26: Cruisin' the Gut Vancouver | Scott and Sarah's birthday party | July
27: 8-23-2010 We had fun going to Flying Pie with Ambie, Sarah and Max | OMSI September 6th | Susan's 'kids' tattoo finished 9-2-2010 | 8-5-2010 John's Dad with his car | 9-5-2010. My wonderful husband did this (no special occasion) | Outline
28: September 11th Multnomah Falls | Crystal with her friend Sarah and her daughter Ashlin as well as Lydia, Karissa and Mikyla | Us at Husong and Larry's
29: John's Dad's birthday party | John | Susan's birthday | The beautiful bottle my Mom gave me. I dropped it on the way out of the restaurant (Cheesecake Factory). The top of it shattered.I'm glad we got a picture of it. | David, Patti, John, John, Scott, Jenny, Mike | Blaine, Pam, Susan, Anne | Matt, John, John, Mike, Mark, Jenny Patti, Sarah, Amberlie | Eli, Ethan, Pam, Max and Molly
30: Halloween | Eli and Ethan Can't tell them apart.. Ha! | Salmon Creek house with Halloween decorations | Susan - Meow | November Checking out our 'house to be' 15314 NE 12th Way | Jeff-our realtor
31: We had started decorating for Christmas before we realized we'd be moving before Christmas | December | Gomez in his favorite place | Our new home!!! | John carrying Susan over the threshold | Hanging our 2010, First Christmas in our new home' ornament. | Our very pink bedroom! | 12-17-2010 | 12-17-2010
32: Moving Out Salmon Creek | Lulu queen of the hill | Ollie checking out the empty rooms | John saying goodbye to the home he had built and lived in for almost 18 years. | If you look closely you can see pink tint from the pink paint Susan spilled down the stairway | December 19th
33: Moving in 12th Way | Decemer 19th | Christmas eve | Finally got the Miata into the garage! | Dec. 24th | Christmas decorating for the 2nd time
34: Christmas at the clubhouse | Chloe, Paul, Maddy | Molly and Mark | Jennifer | Luke | Crystal and Andrew | Bessie and Susan | Annie | Diane and Carol | John and Sally
35: Christmas at Mark's house, then home | Mark | Molly | Matt | Jenny | Scott | Eli, Ethan, Max, Sarah and Dexter | Susan and Dexter | Anne | Sarah | The gift circle
36: Us in front of our new home | December 2010


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CONCORD, N.C. – Wednesday night, the NASCAR Hall of Fame came calling for Rick Hendrick.
It's an achievement well-deserved by a man who is currently second on NASCAR's all-time Cup victories list (1949-present) and leads all owners in modern-era wins (1972-present).
But it's also something Hendrick never would have imagined back when he founded All-Star Racing in 1984.
"I would have thought you were crazy," he said. "I was just trying to make it through the year."
Now, 242 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series wins – and an organization name change to Hendrick Motorsports – later, Hendrick is a NASCAR Hall of Famer.
He acknowledged that the first time he showed up at Daytona International Speedway he wasn't sure he fit in with the legends all around him. But he said that after more than 30 years as a team owner, he has plenty of teammates that helped him reach such lofty heights along the way.
"I'm going to accept this for all of the people from the very beginning in 1984 and all the guys like you who came in when you were what, 16, 17, cleaning up the shop and grew into being a crew chief and all the things you accomplished," he said to NBC Sports' Steve Letarte, formerly a crew chief at Hendrick Motorsports.
"I accept this for all the folks over all those years that worked so hard – the drivers, the crew chiefs, everybody that had a hand in it. And my wife for putting up with me for that long."
Hendrick pioneered the modern multi-car team model, and his organization has garnered a NASCAR-record 14 national series owner's championships and 15 overall – a record 11 in the Sprint Cup Series, three in the Camping World Truck Series and one in the XFINITY Series (driver's title only).
And those Cup championships came via three different drivers, making Hendrick the only owner to have that distinction.
"I never dreamed that I would go into the Hall of Fame one day. I'm humbled and honored."Rick Hendrick
While he's now a Hall of Famer, he's not finished adding to those totals.
"I'm very, very appreciative of the fact that I got voted in while I'm still racing," he said. "But I hope we can add a lot more to the resume and win more races and more championships. We've got a lot left to do."
His teams have won at least one Cup-level race each season since 1986 – the longest active streak – and averaged 10 points-paying wins annually over the last decade (2006-15).
Two drivers who raced for Hendrick will join the owner in the 2017 NASCAR Hall of Fame class – Mark Martin and Benny Parsons.
The three men with Hendrick Motorsports ties are joined in the Hall by active team owner Richard Childress and Raymond Parks, one of stock-car racing's earliest and most successful team owners.
"Boy, I'm in a great class along with a lot of great people," Hendrick said. "I'm extremely proud to go in with Benny Parsons and Mark Martin, who drove for me. And then Richard Childress, who is one of my closest friends in the sport. ... I was watching that Raymond Parks movie the other night and I sure think he needed to be in there, too. It's a great day."
Born July 12, 1949, in Warrenton, North Carolina, Hendrick said he has simply been "honored to be involved in this sport."
And now that he's among the pillars of the industry in the Hall of Fame, he's got some celebrating to do.
"I never dreamed that I would go into the Hall of Fame one day. I'm humbled and honored," he said. "It hasn't really hit home yet totally but I'm going to celebrate this with a lot of people – the list is going to be a mile long – that helped me get here."
"I can't really express what it means to me."


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BAMB Readers Awards
We're thrilled to announce that we are set to launch a new book prize to coincide with the annual Books Are My Bag (BAMB) campaign, asking readers to vote for their favourite books of the year across five categories.
The Books Are My Bag Readers Awards will ask the public to vote for the best books across fiction, non-fiction, biography and autobiography, children's, as well as voting for a "breakthrough author".
The awards, revealed at our conference
held at the University of Warwick today (12th September) is supported by National Book Tokens. The shortlist will be revealed on Thursday 6th October ahead of the Bookshop Day on 8th October. From that day, the public will be asked to vote in bookshops and online for their favourite books until 14th November, with the winners announced at a ceremony in London on 24th November.
Alan Staton, head of marketing and communications at the BA, said:
"We're delighted to be launching the Books Are My Bag Readers Awards. The feedback we have had from booksellers and publishers has been fantastic. It's a great way for Books Are My Bag to continue its engagement with the country's book lovers through the autumn and to put the bookshops curation at the heart of the process."
and #BAMBReadersAwards for the latest news.
Back to Latest News


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Research Issues on Medicines to get a Document
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Video of HBO's "First Look" at HBP
4 July 2009 at 21:19 GMT
HBO's "First Look" at Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince aired for this first time last night, and you can now see the show online here (part 1) and here (part 2). The show is about 13 minutes long, and contains plenty of spoilers. We'll have screencaps for your shortly. Thanks to our friends at SnitchSeeker for uploading the videos.
Tags: Half-Blood Prince Movie, Videos - Comments Off on Video of HBO's "First Look" at HBP - Permanent Link


text: Opened in 2010, south on the Gibihi Road (just 10kms approx. from town), the platform gives an up close perspective of the open-cut mine at work. You may be lucky enough to view a dragline and the massive trucks in operation. There are information boards that explain the mining process through it's various stages


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The Tangier Diaries
cover illustration by Ahmed Yacoubi
Rights Reverted
by John Hopkins
including photos by Robert Freson
first English language edition 1998
first published by
251 PAGES + 8 PHOTO PAGES ON COATED STOCK. 4½" x 7"
Diary entries chosen from a decade and half's worth give us an extraordinarily vivid portrait of Tangier, presenting a huge and dizzying cast of writers, painters, socialites, trance dancers, eccentrics, party-givers, magicians, aristocrats, confidence men and expat residents from the early sixties through the late seventies.
Princeton grad John Hopkins came to Tangier after adventures in Peru, a stint reading to the blind novelist, Percy Lubbock, on the Golfo de la Spezia, and a motorcycle trip from Munich to Mombasa, to take up a job at the American School of Tangier. In addition to the portraiture of the city and its inhabitants, John Hopkins' life in Marrakech and his trips on camel into Morocco's Sahara, plus his travels to Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Spanish Sahara, Mauretania, Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria, Togo, Cameroun, Swaziland and Mozambique are chronicled in entries rich with detail.
Along the way Hopkins tells us how he found his vocation as novelist in the midst of all the excitement of living in Tangier and befriending so many Tangerines and those who passed through its purlieus. The glamour, mystery, poverty and opulence of Tangier, the country of Morocco and Africa jumps from every page, with occasional brief asides in Amsterdam, Salamanca, Paris, and New York.
In choice entries tout Tanger comes suddenly to life: In sharp but sympathetically observed portraits one encounters Paul and Jane Bowles, Barbara Hutton, William Burroughs, Brion Gysin, Princess Ruspoli, Malcolm Forbes, Tennessee Williams, Mohammed M1rabet, The Hon. David Herbert, Ira Bilankine, Ted Morgan, The Countess de Breteuil and her fabulous mud castle in Marrakech, The Lady Caroline Duff, Jim Wyllie, Elizabeth Vreeland, Jean Genet, Elizabeth David, Alec Waugh, Alfred Chester, Margaret Lane, Louise de Meuron, Adolfo de Velasco, Marguerite McBey and countless others plus a host of people who floated through Tangier and Marrakech, during that bright period—from Vera Stravinsky to the fabled Arabian explorer, William Thesiger; Yves St. Laurent, Timothy Leary, Saul Bellow, The Beatles, Estelle Parsons, Josephine Baker, Angus Wilson, Paul Getty, Irene Pappas, Rudolph Nureyev and Geoffrey Wolff.
The diaries come to an end after Hopkins' marriage to Ellen Ann Ragsdale in Tangier's St. Andrews Church when they decide to raise a family in England, and Hopkins says his fond farewells to his many friends, Morocco, and its hospitable people—that special place where he lived for so long and became a writer.
The Tangier Diaries will be invaluable for anyone interested in Tangier and the myriad writers and artists who have lived there.
Photo insert includes photography never before published—including work by Ira Cohen, Cherie Nutting, Dfuf, Abdelouhid Boulaich, Brahim ben Abdelrahman, and Tessa Codrington.
Hopkins is the author of five novels including Tangier Buzzless Flies and In the Chinese Mountains.
Paul Bowles on The Tangier Diaries: "It's a beautiful work and I am only sorry that it's not longer. I'd be exceedingly proud to have written it."
William Burroughs has also weighed in with a trenchant opinion: "Every page drips with memories."
*The Tangier Diaries, 1962-1979, was first published as Carnets de Tangier, 1962-1979, by La Table Ronde in Paris in 1995.
About the Book
. . . a great, outlandish American Bloomsbury. Hopkins delivers all the expected goodies and more: the requisite desert meditations, the kif-censed evenings in the kasbah, the celebrity sightings. Beyond the usual literary suspects such as his friends Paul and Jane Bowles and William Burroughs, we have everyone from Malcolm Forbes to Tennessee Williams to the Beatles.
— Kirkus Reviews
. . . . During his time in Morocco, Hopkins managed to enter into two major romances, befriend fellow ex-pat novelists William Burroughs and Paul Bowles, and even write several novels. As Hopkins gains experience, the voice he uses to catalogue his life in Tangier changes, from his first perceptions as a perpetual tourist . . . to an insider's appreciation of the land and the culture . . . These musings . . . give the book some of the quality of an 18th century travelogue . . .
These Tangier Diaries offer a vivid picture of those years which followed the war in a city of relaxed morals where all was for sale, bodies and palaces, where death by overdose prowled. . . .
— Michel Mohrt, in "Carte Blanche"
MINUTE, Paris
. . . a veritable Who's Who of hipness. A 1998 winner of the coveted BookPage "I-read-it-in-one-sitting-because-I-couldn't-put-it-down" award.
— Bruce Tierney
In Hopkins' Diaries, the 60s are described by a young American who surged out of Princeton with a friend to Peru, Europe, and eventually on to Tangier. They bought a BMW motorcycle, named her the White Nile, and plunged into the exotic, sometimes squalid world centered on writers Paul and Jane Bowles. It's fun meeting up with the celebrities—Bellow, Burroughs, Nureyev, and the Beatles 'flat on their backs' at a party, but this is, above all, a literary journal in which Hopkins records his apprenticeship as a novelist and conveys 'the sheer glory and joy of being alive in this town.' A hit!
— Nancy Good
An unexpected treasure, Hopkins settles in Tangier and makes friends with Jane and Paul Bowles, William Burroughs, Brion Gysin and all the other expatriates. His accounts of his regular meetings with them adds greatly to our knowledge . . . a search for meaning in life in a culture that nearly forty years ago was almost like another planet.
— Kevin Ring
"She radiated a kind of twisted, broken beauty," is how John Hopkins remembers Jane Bowles in . . . The Tangier Diaries. Although Bowles is only one of a huge cast of characters—her husband Paul Bowles, William Burroughs, Brion Gysin, Mohammed M'rabet, Larby Layachi, Alfred Chester, Timothy Leary, and Tennessee Williams are just some of the others—she is a frequent touchstone for the young Hopkins, her deterioration and death offering a kind of shape to his diaristic account. The 1975 entry headed "Looking for Jane Bowles' Grave" is an especially moving one, a climax which seems to lead the maturing writer toward his eventual departure from the once magical Interzone. While occasionally self-indulgent as diaries can be, this first-hand account is a marvelous book, a portrait not only of life in Tangier but of the metamorphosis Hopkins underwent from Rimbaudian adventurer to ordinary human being.
— Eric Lorberer
Paul Bowles casts a long shadow over most writing about Morocco being done in English, so it's rare to find an original voice that casts the country and its people in the kind of light that approximates the intense sunshine that caresses the beach under Cap Spartel. John Hopkins is an American novelist who arrived in Tangier in the early 60s and stayed long enough to see how things changed . . . My favorite sections of the diaries contain a portrait of Tangier after the Beatniks left and the hippies arrived, a city with a louche population of expats . . . Hopkins also gives us priceless vignettes of Bowles, Brion Gysin and the rest of that wonderful gang, and seems to have a great deal of fun doing it. One of the best books about Morocco in years.
— Stephen Davis
THE BEAT, v. 17, #6
The Tangier Diaries transports the reader to a unique time and place populated by many of the artisitic and social notable of our time. At once a coming of age story and a chronicle of "literary Tangier", these entries paint sharp, but sympathetically observed, portraits of Paul & Jane Bowles, Barbara Hutton, William Burroughs, Brion Gysin, Malcolm Forbes, Tennessee Williams, Ted Morgan, Vera Stravinsky, Yves St. Laurent, Wilfred Thesiger, Josephine Baker, Paul Getty, Rudolph Nureyev, and many others.
MIDWEST BOOK REVIEW -INTERNET BOOKWATCH: April 1998
— James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief - Diane Donovan, Editor
These fascinating pages which trek invincibly from one year to the next are crammed with the gliterazia who once made up Tangier society . . . Wilfred Thesiger, the Arab traveller, Josephine Baker, Yves St. Laurent are just a few of the personalities who make these pages crackle with life.
— Richard Edmonds
Tangier has been a magnet for eminent diarists including Samuel Pepys, Cecil Beaton and Joe Orton: Hopkins is a worthy addition to this list.
— Michael Arditi
With The Tangier Diaries, longtime Morocco habitué John Hopkins, an American novelist and inveteratge wanderer, has produced a lively and intimate portrait of this unique time and place in the form of his own journals from that era.
— Steve Hellig
I read The Tangier Diaries in a rush and I was mesmerized. There is such intensity of thought and feeling in those sentences. Hopkins writes prose that has brilliant intensity of feeling and understanding, sensual seriousness. From that episode with the Greek painter in Pete's Tavern in '59, when Hopkins decides to become a writer, there follows a logic like the immutable logic of faith and I utterly believe in his belief, and in the cost of it. Hopkins is an unusual man with an unusual mind; the ferocity of his will to get deep into something that matters, together with his courage, quotidian, in the face of risk as well as intellectual—has left an extraordinary record in this book.
— Geoffrey Wolff
from the American Institute of Graphic Arts
Graphic Design USA: 20
The Annual of the American Institute of Graphic Arts
50 Books of 1998


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The contributions of African Americans in history would amaze you. From the red light to the gas mask that saves soldiers' lives, black people were there.
History has taught us that Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin. I hate to tell you, my friend, it was not he. It was his slave. Because slaves could not hold a patent at that time, the master took the credit.
Have you ever heard of the Fisk Jubilee Singers? They traveled the world to raise money for the university. They sung for kings, queens and world leaders around the globe. Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in baseball, but 90 percent of the players in the Negro League could easily have done the same. Satchel Paige was the best pitcher to ever throw a baseball.
I consider myself lucky for taking black history in elementary school. It gave me a self-confidence in myself as a black child. I played violin because I heard a Noel Pointer album. I played football because I saw Jim Brown run all over the Detroit Lions at Tiger Stadium. If they could do it then, I could do it, too.
The Negro divisions in World War II were decorated for battles they won. The Tuskegee Airmen have the best record for escorting bombers on missions in Europe.
I was not taught these things in school – but I was lucky. I had an aunt who was a librarian in the Metro school system. She was at John Early Elementary by the projects in north Nashville, where she worked for most of her career. She'd tell me, "There is nothing like watching the light bulb go off over a child's head. You know they got it." I am going to try to turn the light bulb on over your head.
Here is a list of black people that have done things they did not teach you in school:
Oliver Tambo – president of African National Congress, 1960-1990. Tambo was a leading figure in promoting international opposition to the apartheid regime in South Africa.
Frederick Douglass – a former slave and one of the most prominent black Americans of the 19th century
Sojourner Truth – a black woman abolitionist and women's rights campaigner. She gave a famous extemporaneous speech, "Ain't I a woman?" The speech supported equal rights for blacks and women.
Mary Seacole – a nurse from 1805-1881 who was on the same level as Florence Nightingale
Dr. D. B. Todd – a surgeon in Nashville who performed the first open heart surgery
Kofi Annan – the 17th Secretary General for the United Nations who was widely admired for his patience and diplomacy
Deratu Tulu – first black Ethiopian woman to win Olympic gold in the 10,000 meter
From Crispus Attucks to Barack Obama, black people have been there and done things to mold our world. Share this information with your children. You have a library in your hand or on your desk at home. Make a game of it; they won't realize they're learning.
Anthony G. is a vendor of The Contributor.
Nov 27 2019
Nov 13 2019
Nov 13 2019


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We provide advice to Posts that enables them to create an innovation-focused organization, generate employee / dealer engagement; grow their business via diversification and backward integration strategies; and implement cost reduction strategies such as self-serve kiosks integrated with web and mobile, postal franchising and consolidation of rural post offices in order to optimize parcel-mail volume and revenue at the lowest operating cost.
Unprecedented change
The Universal Postal Union (UPU) has acknowledged that the postal sector is undergoing unprecedented changes, characterized by rapid technological development, globalization of postal markets and increased competition. Postal administrations must seek new ways of doing business in order to remain relevant for our customers. They must modernize through technology, diversify and develop products that meet the changing needs of customers.
Our approach – leadership, innovation, strategic vision, cost reduction, self-serve
Leapfrog is an age-old, global children's game, where children jump over each other's stooped backs. Leapfrogging in the context of industrial organization, economic growth or business strategy means that you better your competitive position, shift the paradigm, and radically change the game to achieve an edge that allows you to get ahead in the business game.
What we propose
We propose leadership that motivates and leads by example vs hierarchies; volume-based strategies vs. margins; leapfrogging vs. progressive growth; diversification vs. mono-product; and coopetition vs. competition.
We help Posts move the organization from a traditionally hierarchical and political culture to an innovation culture. Posts need inspiring and inclusive leadership that listens, encourages ideas, leads by example, focuses on long-term growth and rallies employees and customers alike via an articulated, concise idea or vision that ignites excitement and expresses what the company wants to be.
We help Posts lower their operating costs by using postal franchises, self-serve solutions and consolidating rural post offices. More than 60% of Posts worldwide have some form of privatized post offices with varying degrees of viability. Post office franchises, located in privately owned businesses increase citizen access to postal and other services because they offer longer hours in more locations. They also have a lower cost-to-sell (10-20%) versus a corporate post office (50-60%).
40% of consumers prefer self-serve. It's is no longer a "nice to have". It's a necessity to providing a positive customer and small shipper (e- bay sellers and e-commerce retailers) experience. The second most important attribute to delivering a great customer experience is to provide consistency across all channels (kiosks-web-mobile) in one seamless ecosystem. We help Posts design, develop and implement of their technology strategy with respect to self-serve kiosks.
We help Posts create a strategic vision that incorporates not only diversification of products and services but also a backward integration strategy that allows them to create a symbiotic partnership with small / medium businesses that helps them sell and ship more products abroad.
Our areas of expertise
Leapfrog Business Consulting specializes in 7 areas of the postal industry: Technological Modernization, Postal Reform, Strategy Formulation, Effective Management, Cost Reduction (includingCustomer Self-Serve, Postal Franchising), Revenue / Economic Growth, and Social Responsibility.
Technological modernization
- We can address the end-to-end process
- We can advise you on Retail Point-of-Sale Software or work with your Software Provider
- Project Planning, Management, Records Management, Communication and Reporting to Steering Committee (Working with Post's Business Coordinator, Tech. Coordinator, Software Testing Team and Project Team)
- Postal Analysis Report (Postal strategy, 5 year plan, customer requirements, MSME environment and characteristics, competition, current postal export service, level of automation and connectivity, tracking system, meeting MSME needs, funding estimate, etc.)
- Definition of Key Performance Indicators and System Reports
- Postal Network Optimization and Automation Selection Plan
- Hardware Requirements Plan (Including electricity, cellular, solar, surge protection, disaster recovery, etc.)
- Asset Management
- Data Management and Administration Plan
- Documentation and Simplification of Processes
- Software Set-up to Post's Requirements
- Testing Scenarios / Scripts
- User Interface Documentation
- Training Manual
- Call-Centre Support Setup and Training
- Training of Administrators
- Train the Trainers
- Rollout of System / Software
Postal reform
- Policy, Roles and Reform
- Defining and Financing the USO
- Competition, Establishing a USO Fund and Drafting Legislation
- Strengthening your Postal Brand
Strategy formulation
Effective management
- Advanced Business Management (operations management, leadership, communication and marketing, strategic cost management, etc.)
- Organizational Design and Structure
- Quality of Service Key Performance Indicators (Standards and Measurement)
- Leadership and Employee Engagement Strategies
- Inventory and Product Management
- Post Office Design for Productivity and Sales Improvement
- Concept Store of the Future and Store Design
- Design of Shipping Container Post Offices
- Post Office Network Design
- Automated Parcel Rating and Induction Systems
- Printing Stamps on Demand
- Pre-Paid Shipping Boxes and Envelopes
- Documentation and Simplification of Processes
- Cost Allocation of Operations and Product / Pricing Strategy
- Postal Retailing and Sales Management (selling skills, online retailing, targeted communication techniques)
- International Mail (Terminal Dues) Accounting
- Transport Workshop (transportation, aviation security, EDI and impact of e-commerce)
- Parcels & Logistics Management
Cost reduction
- Postal Franchising (all components of the franchise system OR we can optimize your current financial model, establish a dealer value proposition, review your site selection evaluation process, etc.)
- Self-serve kiosks (design, development and implementation of your technology strategy, reviewing the financial impact of placing a self-serve kiosk in your franchises and developing a dealer value proposition for your postal franchisees)
- Integration of kiosk, mobile and web into one customer experience
- USO Fund (annual contributions by all postal operators / courier)
- Community Outreach – Consultative process for the consolidation of rural post offices
- Addressing for Delivery
Revenue / economic growth
- Postal Business Development
- Retail Selling Techniques
- Promoting Direct Mail
- E-commerce at-the-post-office service
- Implementation of Exporta Fácil (Gap Analysis, MSME Requirements / Associations, Strategy, National Coordination Team Participation, Postal Policy Reform, Technological Modernization, Promotion)
- Training: Counter Sales, Territory Management
- Agent Services: Public-Private Partnerships (Government, Retailers, Bank – Micro Loans, Mobile Money, Money Transfers, Competitor Products)
Social responsibility
- Implementation of Government Social Support Programs
- Implementation of Financial Inclusion Strategies
- Agent Services: Partnerships with NGO to provide products / services / information
Please click here to contact us for a free, no-commitment discussion.


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3586 Bunker Hill
(corner of US 31 N.)
Williamsburg, MI 49690
(231) 946-6600
Monday-Friday 10:00 a.m. -5:00 p.m
Saturday 10:00 - 3:00 p.m.
Sunday, Closed
Saturday 10:00 - 3:00 p.m.
Sunday, Closed
Full service, world class design studio and retail showroom.
Are you planning on building a new home? Remodeling?
We proudly offer project management, from new construction to remodel. We maximize comfort, designing efficient, livable spaces by installing furnishings and lighting for living the way you want to live.
I am Dale H. Campbell ASFD - Nationally Accredited Designer, Recipient of the Pinnacle Award, ADEX award and Best of Houzz three years running. Let my experience improve yours.


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Features: All features
POSTCARDS- Jessy Smith, Dance Artist and Artistic Director of POW Shows Us How She Raises Funds - BINGO STYLE
Advertise With Us
Make an impression - place an ad on The Dance Enthusiast. Learn more.
Your support helps us cover dance in New York City and beyond! Donate now.


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Virtual Merchant
Managing your all aspects of your business can be overwhelming and ineffective if you are spread to thin and unable to focus your efforts. Cirkular Solutions provides expertise in merchandising, buying, and inventory management through our Virtual Merchant program. We provide dedicated and/or augmented services, analyzing data, discovering insights, and providing the recommendations you need to make effective business decisions.
Learn more about this unique program by clicking HERE.
Understand what "omni-channel" means to your business. We specialize in these areas:
- B2B & B2C Strategy (separate and combined)
- e-Commerce & Mobile Commerce
- Brick & Mortar Retail
- Distribution & Fulfillment Strategy
- Sales & Customer Service
- Wholesale Strategy
How do you merchandise your company's product portfolio? We'll help you develop and manage your strategy, your products, and your planning & management tools.
- Historical Analysis
- Assortment Planning
- Product Development & Sourcing
- Vendor Relationship Management
- In-season Forecasting
- OTB (open-to-buy) Management
Business Operations
Do you have a business strategy in place? Need help with basic operations and long term planning?
- Business Planning
- Business Strategy
- Market Analysis
- Operational Analysis
Arthur Viente, CEO and founder of Cirkular Solutions, LLC, provides informative and entertaining presentations based on his extensive experience in both the retail and wholesale businesses. His primary areas of expertise revolve around merchandising & inventory management, e-commerce and the practical application of solutions in business (with emphasis on Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and Cognitive Computing), Traditional Retail Operations, Product Development & Sourcing, and General Business Management.
To discuss setting up a speaking event, please click HERE or the Contact Us link on the top navigation, and let me know your area of interest, possible dates, and a convenient time to connect.


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It's hard out there for Google Maps these days. Not only has the venerable service been booted from all new versions of iOS, it won't be appearing on the new version of the Kindle Fire either.
Amazon is reportedly adding GPS mapping to the next Kindle Fire, but instead of turning to Google it has decided to partner with Nokia. The Finnish phone maker has its own mapping initiative called Oyj that powers maps on Nokia Windows Phones like the Lumia 900.
The snub means that Google Maps is being increasingly isolated as a Web-based resource. Non-Android mobile users will soon find themselves cozying up to a growing number of alternatives. With mobile increasingly looing like the future of everything, that must make the folks in Mountain View pretty nervous.
[via TNW]


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You are currently browsing the monthly archive for August 2007.
I get a real kick of out stories like today's piece on Idaho Sen. Larry Craig . When it comes to the question of civil rights for homosexuals, I believe they deserve the rights of normal human beings –because they are.
With that said, I get a real kick out of guys who make their careers out of railing against the "homosexual agenda" and end up being queerer than steers themselves. In fact, they're often the epitome of the very negative stereotypes they rail against: they're into kids (er… pages), anonymous sex in my local international airport (see above), having drug fueled parties with gay prostitutes, or soliciting kids off the internet.
That's not to say being gay and Republican are automatically incompatible in the same way it isn't incompatible to be black and Republican –it just involves strong criticism on certain portions of your party (like a lot of normal people in any political party –at least, if you have a conscience). One of my best professors in law school was a prominent "homocon" as they are sometimes called, and that basically made him a Libertarian Republican –he was a major supporter of Lawrence v. Texas, writing an amicus brief– but that didn't prevent him from remaining a conservative on other issues.
So as for this Senator? Just another conflicted, closeted fag. Feel free to point and laugh, I am.
It's true, the wunderkind of the neoconservative right wing is leaving the administration.
According to anonymous White House sources, Rove simply ran out of evil things to do. One high ranking official told the Outer-Loop, "When Karl resorted to kicking over lemonade stands in Mclean, we pretty much knew he was out of evil things to think up."
Rove's propensity for evil first came to light during George W. Bush's 2000 Presidential campaign when Rove orchestrated an elaborate bait and switch operation whereby Bush campaign operatives replaced John McCain's adorable white child with an illegitimate black one, Rove's position within the new Administration was sealed.
Relations with the Vice President were rocky after Rove disagreed with Vice President Cheney's insistent calls to drop a tactical warhead on Paris, followed by Cologne in an effort to cover up the musky smell of nuclear fallout. Despite this initial rift with a fellow administration official, Rove's advice was used to cull support around the actual President's policies well into 2006.
In all seriousness, Rove, who has by now outlived his usefulness and can no longer win elections, even amongst the stupidest Americans, was little more than a lightning rod for criticism within the administration…so this isn't really a surprise. The White House simply waited for a slow news day so as not to satiate the snarling media.
The President is a lame duck, his administration has no positive domestic policy legacy to speak of, and Karl always left his lunch in the fridge, which really pissed everyone off.
Karl Rove, unemployed, whooptie-doo.
Riding the wave of popularity he's receiving in Iowa, Mitt Romney sat down for an interview with WHO's Jan Mickelson, whose parents obviously did not love him or his younger sister, Tyrone.
Anyway, Mickelson's show is apparently quite influential in Iowa's conservative circles and his show has been frequented by many of the other candidates running for the nomination, except for Giuliani who's running for President of 9/11.
The interview, which you can see below in all of it's youtube-ified glory, starts warmly. Romney catches a few softballs, drops the names of a couple of local restaurants that his personal assistants may or may not have briefed him on before hand, and basically pretends he isn't a multi-millionaire liberal elitist Latter Day Douchebag. However, as the questions get dicier, Romney does something I never thought he was capable of…he counters with reasonable and well thought out positions on his faith and his personal social policy.
Check out the action below, it's well worth a look.
The host, Elaine Mickelson, apparently felt slighted by Romney's previously concealed testicles and leaked the video to the media insinuating that he had just orchestrated the downfall of Mitt Romney.
Instead, Mitt comes off as opinionated but reasonable, and he alludes to the inclusion of Democratic and left-leaning personal friends of his who are not only in the upper echelons of his typically conservative church, but who actively espouse domestic policy positions that differ from his own. In other words, as Dolores Mickelson continues to accuse Romney of forsaking his faith because of his previous (bullshit) positions on abortion rights, Romney says, almost verbatim, that pro-choice does not equal pro-abortion and that the Democrats in his church are no less moral and sincere than he is.
I know what you're thinking, "But Romney isn't sincere. He flip flops like a pair of Reefs, but without the beer bottle opener in the sole."
Well you're right, but this glimpse of a more reasonable human being is exactly what is missing from the rest of the GOP field. If I had to pick any Republican to run this country, and I say this with as much hesitant bile and tar as American grammar allows, I would feel better having Romney in the White House than any other GOP candidate in the field.
Well, only if Tyrone Mickelson didn't want the job.
Thanks to The Politico for the tip.


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. . . is not so much that they destroy jobs, but that in at least 50 of 57 states you can't conduct transactions in Austrian, making it difficult to withdraw enough cash to spread the wealth around to Midwesterners, who then become bitter and cling to guns and religion and antipathy toward people who aren't like your doctor, who you can keep (if you like him) but you probably won't because for extra cash he unnecessarily performs tonsillectomies and amputates the feet of people from Kansas, where a while back 10,000 were killed by a tornado that also air-raided villages and killed civilians in Afghanistan, from which we need to begin withdrawing troops by July so we can use the funds to save or create jobs for people who don't use air pressure gauges to keep the tires on their cash-for-clunkers car properly inflated, requiring them to buy more gas than they otherwise would at $3.84 a gallon and thereby reducing their disposable income and causing them not to buy consumer products, resulting in slower GDP growth that can only be jumpstarted by another round of stimulus spending so the economy won't go into a double-dip recession that would result in layoffs and a higher unemployment rate than we had even after the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico that everyone knows was George Bush's fault.
Economics is hard.


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On the show this week: TOLLY'S PARENTS, Tom and Christi Moseley, what it's like to live in Austin, leave, and return 30 years later, Austin in the 80s, going to school while raising a toddler, bucket list suggestions for Austin in 2016, the holiday trees on 360, the first season of "Westworld," the holiday light show at Mozart's Coffee Roasters, "No Ordinary Time" about the Roosevelts by Doris Kearns Goodwin, "The President Versus The General" about President Truman and General McArthur by H.W. Brands. And maybe a little bit of gossip about Tolly as a teenager. (Not at all cringey and embarrassing.)
Y'all. It's happening.
Omar has been begging for months to have Tolly's parents on the show, and they agreed! In our first
segment, we talk about Austin in the '80s, how Tom and Christi juggled raising a toddler, going to school, and working jobs back then, what it's like returning to Austin three decades later (consensus: a little more traffic? Maybe a LITTLE more traffic), getting lost in nature preserves, eating at food trailers, the best hamburgers they've discovered, and so, so much more. They are super cute (full stop) and we are really grateful they agreed to do this.
That leads us to a Short Shot where we talk about our Austin bucket list items (Tom and Christi's #1: Master Pancake), and in our second segment, we talk about the holiday tree thing on 360 and Tolly's parents' favorites. In A Toast, Omar is all about the JJ Abrams show "Westworld," Tolly's delight rivals a 5 year-old's when it comes to the Mozart's holiday light show, Christi is reading "No Ordinary Time" about by Texas Book Festival alum Doris Kearns Goodwin, and Tom loves "The President Versus The General" about President Truman (note: his favorite president) and General McArthur by H.W. Brands.
How to listen:
Download the MP3 version here. (56 min.)
Download the beautifully enhanced AAC version. (56 min.)
And here's the RSS to subscribe to the podcast. (We're also on iTunes!)
Or listen on SoundCloud. (Also embedded at the top of this post)
Show rundown:
0:00 Intro
2:25 Segment 1: Tom and Christi Moseley on returning to Austin
28:29 Short Shot: Our individual Austin bucket lists
35:14 Segment 2: Tree decorating along Highway 360
45:20 A Toast (recommendations)
52:41 Outtro and how to reach us.
Show notes:
- You can find Kristy Owen's "100 Things to do in Austin Before You Die" on Amazon.
- Ken Herman was thankful a few years ago for folks who cleaned up the trees on 360.
- More from KXAN about cleanup.
- You can find out more about "Master Pancake" on the Alamo Drafthouse website.
- Check out these Austin Ghost Tours!
- More details on that "Detour" app featuring an Austin walking tour from Radiolab.
- After finishing "Westworld," Omar agrees with critic Alan Sepinwall that it could have been better.
- More on the Christmas lights show at Mozart's Coffee Roasters.
- The book "No Ordinary Time" is on Amazon.
- As is "The General vs. The President."
- If you need more holiday cheer, check out our episode featuring Santa Claus and our episode about holiday traditions.
- You can email us.
- We're on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube!
- Tolly, Omar, and producer Alyssa Vidales are all on Twitter. Tom and Christi aren't so much into social media but you CAN find them, IRL, at Hopdoddy's.
- The audio podcast is available through iTunes. Subscribe and rate us, won't ya? It's also on SoundCloud, Stitcher and Google Play Music Store.
- Want to leave a voice-mail? It's 512-445-3672.
- Omar blogs at 512tech and Terribly Happy.
- Tolly blogs at Austin Eavesdropper.


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Bob loves treasures. And this is natural because he is not an ordinary robot, but the robot-pirate. Sea adventures, battles, distant shore… Bob is absolutely not interested. All that he needs it's gold. Bob is very greedy robot.
The only problem is that he needs your help. Bob greedy and stupid, and gold does not add intellect to him.
Help Bob to fill his chest with gold coins. Solve puzzles, use a variety of items and tricks to bring all the gold that you find into the Bob's chest.
Vivid graphics, exciting levels and a sea of gold waiting for you!


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The Celestine Prophecy You have never read a book like this beforeThe Celestine Prophecy contains secrets that are currently changing our world Drawing on the ancient wisdom found in a Peruvian manuscript it tells you how
You have never read a book like this beforeThe Celestine Prophecy contains secrets that are currently changing our world Drawing on the ancient wisdom found in a Peruvian manuscript, it tells you how to make connections between the events happening in your own life right nowd lets you see what is going to happen to you in the years to come.The story it tells is a gripping one of adventure and discovery, but it is also a guidebook that has the power to crystalize your perceptions of why you are where you are in lifed to direct your steps with a new energy and optimism as you head into tomorrow.A book that comes along just once in a lifetime to change lives forever.
The Celestine Prophecy Jul , Through a mysterious set of coincidences, he finds himself on an adventure to Peru in search of ancient scrolls, known as the Celestine Prophecy The prophecy and its nine key insights, predict a new awakening that redefines human life and provides a glimpse into a The Celestine Prophecy An Adventure James Redfield The Celestine Prophecy is an easy, engaging read about a quest for knowledge wisdom A man journeys to Peru and discovers the meaning of life through Nine Insights, which are invaluable to living a spiritually enriched evolved life on Earth Each of the Nine Insights are explored within the novel, including practical tips for self realization. Celestine Vision The Official Author Page of James Redfield The Celestine Prophecy Inspiration Tour Events Are Underway The Celestine Prophecy Inspiration Tour Events are underway We just finished our first event in Chicago, at the Infinity Foundation NEXT, ORANGE COUNTY, CA, where we will hold an event at the Tustin Unity Church. The Celestine Prophecy Rotten Tomatoes The Celestine Prophecy is a waste of Celluloid This film shouldn t have been made and it was a poor execution of a popular book What The Celestine Prophecy is, is a film that tries to be The Celestine Prophecy Celestine Prophecy, by James The Celestine Prophecy, James Redfield The Celestine Prophecy is a novel by James Redfield that discusses various psychological and spiritual ideas rooted in multiple ancient Eastern traditions and New Age spirituality. The Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield, Paperback The story evolves around the fundamental belief of this prophecy that every aspect of the universe, physical and spiritual, is defined by this energy only enlightened people can see described like an aura If one can get past the religious advertising aspect of the Celestine Prophecy, it does contain some valuable themes. James Redfield The Celestine Prophecy Tour Join James on the first Celestine Prophecy Tour Something beautiful is HAPPENING In a effort to help a world gripped by hate and corruption on all sides, a growing wave of Consciousness is sweeping the Planet Learn techniques to expand your consciousness Join us The Celestine Prophecy Movie The Celestine Prophecy Movie The Differences Between Refrigerated or Insulated Containers When buying shipping containers for business, people are often confused which one would suit their requirements best Should they go for refrigerated shipping containers, also known as reefers, or choose insulated containers In this article, we will The Nine Insights of The Celestine Prophecy Pope Celestine IV
[PDF] Ê Free Download ↠ The Celestine Prophecy : by James Redfield ✓ 289 James Redfield
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Artist Talk with Kyle Bauer at the 39th Street Gallery
Artist Talk: Saturday, February 15 from 3pm to 5pm
Join the 39th Street Gallery for an artist talk with mixed media sculptor Kyle Bauer.
" I compose my sculptures by means of arranging, stacking, and piling – trusting the instincts of building. In many cases, I let the objects dictate their own forms." – Kyle Bauer
This event is free and open to the public.
Gallery Hours:
- Thursday and Friday: 7pm to 9pm
- Saturday: 12pm to 3pm
- and by appointment. For appointments contact Gateway CDC: 301-864-3860 ext. 3.
39th Street Gallery is located at 3901 Rhode Island Ave., Brentwood, MD (second floor, 39th Street entrance). For more information visit www.39thstreetgallery.org.