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Earth Day 2001 Award: American Chemistry Council
"We lied. We covered up. We broke the law. We poisoned our own workers." Those are statements you probably won't hear at the American Chemistry Council's (ACC) Responsible Care Conference in Orlando, Florida, which tees off* on Earth Day, April 22. Instead you'll hear something to the effect that "we've done nothing wrong and we'll never do it again. And to prove it, let's all go out and partner with green groups."
|These are actual xrays of BF Goodrich worker Bernard
Skaggs' hands. The company knew that PVC would
cause bones to dissolve, but lied to workers.
Am I exaggerating the bizarreness of chemical industry logic? To answer that question, take a look at the controversy around "Trade Secrets," the Bill Moyers expose of corporate malfeasance that aired recently on PBS. The program gained access to a cache of industry documents, obtained during the discovery portion of a lawsuit against vinyl chloride manufacturers. The documents prove beyond doubt that the chemical industry covered up information about the harms of vinyl chloride and other chemicals, misleading its own workers, the government and the public.
After the program, ACC Vice President Terry Yosie dared to come on the air to discuss the show with Moyers. Amazingly, he expressed not a hint of regret to the victims shown in the film. Yosie thought Moyers should have pointed out that chemicals are needed for certain products that Americans buy and enjoy and are part of modern life. That was just one of many disturbing facets of the industry response to the Trade Secrets program.
Students of corporate environmentalism may have noticed three other industry reactions as well, all tried and true greenwash techniques.
In its response to the Moyers program, the American Chemistry Council is:
Using phony partnerships to cover-up.
In his opening statement, the Chemistry Council's Yosie referred to the industry's "...major partnership with one of this nation's leading environmental groups, Environmental Defense..." Yosie used the "major partnership" to bolster his suggestion that all chemicals on the market now are fully tested and safe.
This blatantly misleading point prompted Council's supposed partner, Environmental Defense, to write them demanding a retraction In reply, ACC President Fred Webber further obscured the topic by admitting Yosie was partly incorrect on a technical point, but failing to correct his essential misstatement. See: http://www.environmentaldefense.org/pubs/Filings/ACCletters.html
With all kinds of public/private partnerships in vogue, from local school boards to environmental non-profits to the United Nations, this exchange should provide a warning to all would-be partners of corporate polluters. When the going gets tough, these companies are ready to hide behind the cover of their non-profit partners. Environmental Defense Senior Attorney David Roe says there was no official partnership with the ACC. He acknowledges, however, that the two groups collaborated (with EPA) on the design of a major testing program for chemicals. Roe points out that the collaboration was sparked by Environmental Defense's report "Toxic Ignorance," which showed that most chemicals had in fact not been tested, at least not to public knowledge. In other words, the collaboration was entered only when the industry needed it to fend off criticism.
Environmental Defense's name has been used, and the word "partnership" abused, by an industry trying to cover a multitude of sins. But Environmental Defense has also unwittingly invited this sort of abuse through its own openly pro-business approach to environmental regulation. Unfortunately for them, some of the damage to Environmental Defense's integrity is done.
Claiming that voluntary initiatives are the solution.
A September 15, 1992 memo from the Chemical Manufacturer's Association, as the ACC was then known, reveals the real strategy behind voluntary programs:
"A general CMA policy on voluntary development of health, safety and environmental information will...potentially avert restrictive regulatory actions and legislative initiatives."
Moyers' Trade Secrets program further explains:
The idea of a chemical company voluntarily testing its product is not unlike efforts to voluntarily regulate their products. It is an attempt to pre-empt effective government. It is an attempt to try to stop the government from doing its job by doing half-baked measures and then claiming that we're protecting the public.
The ACC's main voluntary program is the 12-year old Responsible Care, developed in response to the disasters of Bhopal, and Love Canal, among others. But Responsible Care has profound flaws. It contains:
no timelines or measurements
no external monitoring or verification
a lack of industry awareness
The Environmental Working Group has shown that voluntary initiatives on right-to know questions, championed by Chemical Council, "always fail."
The ACC says Responsible Care is about chemical safety. And for that, says Environmental Defense's David Roe, we need "testing and disclosure." The ACC misled the public about those very issues on national television.
Taking credit for legislation it opposed.
The Chemical Council has set up an entire website, www.abouttradesecrets.com, to counter the Moyers program. On that website, and on the American Chemical Council Homepage, they list an aray of US legislation designed to control pollution and protect public health from toxic chemicals. But as Ken Cook of the Environmental Working Group points out, the newly released documents confirm that the industry has opposed all of those pieces of legislation.
Bill Moyers gave the ACC's Terry Yosie the last word on his discussion program "I think you all know that what happened 40 years ago is no reflection of the kind of industry that we represent today" asserted Yosie.
At last, an indirect admission that there was something unacceptable about past poisonings and cover ups. But after Mr. Yosie's performance on PBS, we should ponder his last statement carefully. Most commercial chemicals -- a toxic soup of which are in all our bodies -- still have not been tested, at least not as far as the public knows. The chemical cover-up continues as of today, Earth Day 2001.
* Note to our readers in Florida: On Sunday April 22nd (Earth Day), the Repsonsible Care Conference attendees start off at 8A.M. with an "exciting networking opportunity," i.e., a golf outing at the Orange County National Crooked Cat Course in Orlando. We suggest it might be appropriate to greet them and ask them to convene a Responsible Care Chemical Industry Truth and Reconciliation Commission for next year's Conference.
- 102 Greenwash Awards


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A few days ago I posted a set of Christmas tree lights that flashes to the Star Wars theme song. I initially did not include a sound output intentionally because the tree sits in our dining room and it'd be annoying to have a song playing whenever we had the tree lit. I decided later that as long as I could turn the sound off, it'd be a fun addition to the project, so I added a small piezo buzzer between pins 8 & 9 of the MSP430 and made the software changes necessary to output the song on the buzzer as well as on the lights. I soldered a couple female headers onto my protoboard so that I can plug the buzzer in (to have sound) or take it out (for lights only).
In order to add the sound, I had to go back to the music and re-transcribe it with the actual note values (I ignored flats/sharps before because you couldn't really distinguish them on the lights...but it matters more with the sound). I looked up the frequencies of those notes here. The notes in the song range in frequency from ~294 Hz to 880 Hz. I tried to keep the structure of my code as similar to the first version as possible, so the audio PWM is handled in software in the interrupt routine that fires when Timer A reaches the end of its period for the LED PWM. I bumped up the DCO frequency from 1Mhz to 8Mhz to provide finer resolution for the musical notes, but the rest of the changes are pretty minor. An updated version of the source code is available at https://sourceforge.net/projects/starwarsxmasled/.

subset: commoncrawl


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- Offers
- Best of British Break at 2 of the finest properties in the UK
- 3 Nights for 2
- 4 Nights for 3
- Kids stay free throughout the school holidays
- A Taste of Chewton Glen
- Soufflé, Steam & Stay
- 7 Nights for 5: Be a jetsetter
- Cruise and Stay Package - Pre and Post Your Cruise
- New Year New Adventures
- Winter Wellness
Cruise and Stay Package
Pre and Post Your Cruise from £275pp
For the perfect pre or post cruise hotel break in one of Hampshire's most wonderful five star hotels, Chewton Glen is conveniently located only 35 minutes from Southampton. This package aims to accompany guests who are planning a cruise from Southampton Dock.
The luxury pre and post cruise hotel package consists of:
- Overnight hotel accommodation in your chosen luxurious room or suite
- Full English breakfast
- Full use of the award-winning spa and leisure facilities
- Return chauffeur transfer from/to Southampton Dock by private car
- Complimentary car parking during your cruise (*)
Midweek Departures (Sunday to Thursday)
Prices from only £275.00 per person per night, based on two people sharing a Garden Room with Shower.
- Garden Room - £550.00
- Classic Room - £640.00
- Estate Room - £775.00
- Croquet Lawn Room or Junior Suite - £870.00
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Weekend Departures (Friday and Saturday, two night minimum stay)
Prices from only £312.50 per person per night, based on two people sharing a Garden Room with Shower.
- Garden Room - £625.00
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- Estate Room - £825.00
- Croquet Lawn Room or Junior Suite - £925.00
- Courtyard Suite - £1105.00
Tel: 01425 282212 / Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Prices are per room per stay, based on two people sharing. Single Occupancy rates are available upon request. Subject to availability and not valid in conjunction with any other offer or promotion. Please note a minimum two night stay is required at Weekends, however single nights are sometimes available.
*Maximum length of complimentary parking is one month.
Chewton Glen's Official Cruise Partner is Cunard.


text: In its commitment to develop both safer seating for ambulance personnel and to solve the challenges of safely restraining children in emergency vehicles, Serenity Safety Products has designed the Guardian Safe Seating System. For years, EMS providers have struggled to find a quick, safe and effective method of safely restraining children during transport in Emergency Vehicles. Although there have been other child seats and restraint systems targeted at EMS, none have been convenient, simple to use, or able to accommodate the entire range of Pediatric passengers...until now.


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by MMAWeekly.com
MMAWeekly has obtained the fighter salary information for three recent events in Las Vegas: the Feb. 2 UFC 81, the Feb. 1 Tuff-N-Uff/Bodog Fight event, and the Jan. 23 UFC Fight Night.
(Tuff-N-Uff was the licensed promoter for the Feb. 1 event, but it was promoted as a Bodog Fight event.)
The following figures are based on the fighter salary information that promoters are required by law to submit to the state athletic commissions, including the winners' bonuses.
Although MMA fighters do not have collective bargaining or a union, the fighters' salaries are still public record, just as with every other major sport in the United States. Any undisclosed bonuses that a promoter also pays its fighters (specifically pay-per-view bonuses, fight of the night bonuses, etc.) are not included in the figures below.
In the listings below, " Main Event Fighters" are defined as fighters who compete in the main event of a show. "Main Card Fighters" are defined as fighters whose fights appear on the main card, but not in title fights or in the main event. "Preliminary Match Fighters" are defined as fighters whose matches take place before the live broadcast goes on the air, regardless of whether or not those matches end up airing on the TV broadcast.
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< UFC 81 MAIN EVENT FIGHTERS -Brock Lesnar: $250,000 (lost to Frank Mir; win bonus would have been $200,000) -Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira: $200,000 (defeated Tim Sylvia; win bonus was $100,000) -Tim Sylvia: $100,000 (lost to Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira; win bonus would have been $100,000) -Frank Mir: $80,000 (defeated Brock Lesnar; win bonus was $40,000) UFC 81 MAIN CARD FIGHTERS -Nathan Marquardt: $52,000 (defeated Jeremy Horn; win bonus was $26,000) -Ricardo Almeida: $40,000 (defeated Rob Yundt; win bonus was $20,000) -Tyson Griffin: $36,000 (defeated Gleison Tibau; win bonus was $18,000) -Jeremy Horn: $25,000 (lost to Nathan Marquardt; win bonus would have been $25,000) -Gleison Tibau: $11,000 (lost to Tyson Griffin; win bonus would have been $11,000) -Rob Yundt: $5,000 (lost to Ricardo Almeida; win bonus would have been $5,000) UFC 81 PRELIMINARY MATCH FIGHTERS -Chris Lytle: $24,000 (defeated Kyle Bradley; win bonus was $12,000) -Kyle Bradley: $4,000 (lost to Chris Lytle; win bonus would have been $4,000) -David Heath: $6,000 (lost to Tim Boetsch; win bonus would have been $6,000) -Tim Boetsch: $12,000 (defeated David Heath; win bonus was $6,000) -Terry Martin: $12,000 (lost to Marvin Eastman; win bonus would have been $12,000) -Marvin Eastman: $14,000 (defeated Terry Martin; win bonus was $7,000) -Robert Emerson: $16,000 (defeated Keita Nakamura; win bonus was $8,000) -Keita Nakamura: $5,000 (lost to Robert Emerson; win bonus would have been $5,000) UFC 81 DISCLOSED FIGHTER PAYROLL: $892,000 <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< TUFF-N-UFF/BODOG FIGHT MAIN EVENT FIGHTERS -Nick Thompson: $20,000 (defeated John Troyer; no win bonus) -John Troyer: $5,000 (lost to Nick Thompson; no win bonus) TUFF-N-UFF/BODOG FIGHT UNDERCARD FIGHTERS -Seth Baczynski: $2,000 (defeated Chris Kennedy; win bonus was $1,000) -Chad George: $1,500 (defeated Richard Screeton; win bonus was $500) -Angela Magana: $1,500 (defeated Lynn Alvarez; win bonus was $500) -Bryan Humes: $1,250 (defeated Ryan Murray; win bonus was $500) -Chris Kennedy: $1,000 (lost to Seth Baczynski; win bonus would have been $1,000) -Ryan Murray: $1,000 (lost to Bryan Humes; no win bonus) -Sara Schneider: $1,000 (defeated Kaitlin Young; no win bonus) -Richard Screeton: $1,000 (lost to Chad George; win bonus would have been $500) -Aaron Simpson: $1,000 (defeated Scott Dingman; no win bonus) -Kaitlin Young: $1,000 (lost to Sara Schneider; win bonus would have been $500) -Lynn Alvarez: $750 (lost to Angela Magana; win bonus would have been $500) -Scott Dingman: $750 (lost to Aaron Simpson; win bonus would have been $500) TUFF-N-UFF/BODOG FIGHT DISCLOSED FIGHTER PAYROLL: $38,750 <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< UFC FIGHT NIGHT 12 MAIN EVENT FIGHTERS -Mike Swick: $20,000 (defeated Josh Burkman; win bonus was $10,000) -Josh Burkman: $10,000 (lost to Mike Swick; win bonus would have been $10,000) UFC FIGHT NIGHT 12 MAIN CARD FIGHTERS -Nathan Diaz: $30,000 (defeated Alvin Robinson; win bonus was $15,000) -Patrick Cote: $28,000 (defeated Drew McFedries; win bonus was $14,000) -Thiago Tavares: $18,000 (defeated Michihiro Omigawa; win bonus was $9,000) -Drew McFedries: $10,000 (lost to Patrick Cote; win bonus would have been $10,000) -Alvin Robinson: $7,000 (lost to Nathan Diaz; win bonus would have been $7,000) -Michihiro Omigawa: $5,000 (lost to Thiago Tavares; win bonus would have been $5,000) UFC FIGHT NIGHT 12 PRELIMINARY MATCH FIGHTERS -Kurt Pellegrino: $20,000 (defeated Alberto Crane; win bonus was $10,000) -Corey Hill: $16,000 (defeated Joe Veres; win bonus was $8,000) -Gray Maynard: $16,000 (defeated Dennis Siver; win bonus was $8,000) -Matt Wiman: $16,000 (defeated Justin Buchholz; win bonus was $8,000) -Jeremy Stephens: $10,000 (defeated Cole Miller; win bonus was $10,000) -Cole Miller: $8,000 (lost to Jeremy Stephens; win bonus would have been $8,000) -Dennis Siver: $7,000 (lost to Gray Maynard; win bonus would have been $7,000) -Justin Buchholz: $4,000 (lost to Matt Wiman; win bonus would have been $4,000) -Alberto Crane: $4,000 (lost to Kurt Pellegrino; win bonus would have been $4,000) -Joe Veres: $3,000 (lost to Corey Hill; win bonus would have been $3,000) UFC FIGHT NIGHT 12 DISCLOSED FIGHTER PAYROLL: $232,000


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How to identify weaknesses in your writing
Self-editing isn't easy, but you can easily weed out unclear sentences, clichés, passive voice and other bad habits by asking yourself these eight questions.
This story was originally published on PR Daily in November 2014. I spoke with a coaching client last week about bad writing.
Here's what we decided:
- Most writing is neither bad nor good. The majority lies somewhere in the middle. Whether you, the reader, like it, boils down to taste. In matters of taste, we're all experts.
- Still, in that vast middle area, there are likely some bad sentences. The skilled self-editor has a vocabulary for describing them.
Here's how you can identify bad writing:
1. Are your sentences too long?
People often freak out when I ask this question, but isn't it harder to read a long sentence than a short one? (Raise your hand if you survived the 958-word first sentence of "Remembrance of Things Past." I didn't.)
Sentence length is often a placeholder for other problems:
- Are you unduly wordy?
- Do you have any misplaced modifiers?
- Are you sure your "sentence" has a subject and predicate?
It's easier to miss these issues in long sentences. In short ones, they stand out like shorts at a funeral.
In our TV- and Internet-modulated society, readers respond best to sentences that are, on average, 14 to 18 words. Note I said average; don't make all your sentences the same length.
2. Are your sentences are too similar ?
Most schools don't teach grammar these days, so I'll keep this basic. Consider this sentence:
Madison went to the store.
It begins with a subject (Madison) and includes a predicate—a.k.a. a verb—(went) modified by an adverbial phrase (to the store).
If all of your sentences are this simple, you'll bore your readers. Use variety. Perhaps begin with a dependent clause (Although she was very tired, Madison went to the store), an infinitive phrase (To please her mother, Madison went to the store), an adverb (Quickly, Madison went to the store) or a participial phrase (Hoping to find some ice cream, Madison went to the store). Don't bore your readers, or yourself, by always saying things the same way.
3. Are you too abstract?
Readers like writing that engages the mind's eye. If I write the word "dog," you will immediately picture an image—perhaps of your own dog or a friend's. But if I write the word "existence," what do you picture? If I push myself, I see a globe (I'm not sure why), but that takes real effort. The word doesn't lend itself to images, which makes readers weary.
Instead of writing about abstractions, include more stories, anecdotes and examples. This will excite your readers and make them more enthusiastic about your writing.
4. Do you use too many unclear antecedents?
I know, "antecedent" is a scary grammar word.
An antecedent is a word that gives meaning to another word. Consider these two sentences: Daphne wrote this column. She wanted to remove the fear of antecedents.
"She" is a pronoun. "Daphne" is the antecedent.
When I read stories, I notice writers place pronouns like "it" or noun markers like "this," "that" and "these" too far from their antecedents. It's OK to use pronouns, of course, but be clear about the antecedents they refer to.
If you tend to be vague with your antecedents, develop the habit of doing a search (command + F) for "it," "this," "that" and "these," and double-check to ensure they're clear.
5. Do you use too many clichés?
I read a New York Times obituary on newspaperman Ben Bradlee last week. Imagine my chagrin when I encountered the following sentence about Bradlee protégées Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein: Soon they were working the phones, wearing out shoe leather and putting two and two together.
These aren't horrible clichés (like "the nick of time"), but they're worse than I expect from the Times. When you self-edit, spend at least part of your time extinguishing clichés. If you have trouble finding them, use the Cliche Finder, an imperfect but useful tool.
6. Do you fail to use connectors or transitions?
I know I'm in the hands of a sophisticated writer when I see words or phrases like "on the other hand," "or here for example" or "similarly." These transitional words ease readers' way, letting them know what to expect in the next sentence.
Beginning writers almost universally fail to use enough connectors or transitions.
7. Do you use passive voice?
Passive sentences hide the leading actor. If that doesn't make sense to you, this sentence is a classic example: Mistakes were made.
Who made those mistakes? We don't know. That's why the sentence is passive. Identify the actor, and you have an active sentence that's easier for the reader to visualize. For example: The Canadian government made mistakes.
Not all passive voice is simple to identify, however. That's why I suggest using the Hemingway app. This fantastic tool is the best non-human editor I've ever met, and it will highlight your passivity in bright green.
(Note: Passive voice isn't uniformly bad, but if you can't recognize it, you shouldn't be allowed to use it.)
8. Do you have too little to say?
This is the most serious problem of all, and one I see frequently in blogs. The writer doesn't have enough interesting, new or useful material. Don't waste your readers' time. Know your point or angle, and give it succinctly.
Your writing may be in the middle, but aim for excellence. Excellence is not an accident. You achieve it through habit.
What kind of bad writing do you watch for?
A version of this article originally appeared on Publication Coach.
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text: Le primidi 11 prairial, an CCXX, Pavel Koshevoy a écrit : > I have some concerns regarding timestamps. In my opinion this > filter should not change the timestamps. Timestamps should be, as far as possible, consistent with playback duration. If the filter is set up to change the pitch and not the speed, the timestamps should be unchanged. If the filter is set up to change the speed, the timestamps should be scaled accordingly, IMHO. Regards, -- Nicolas George -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: application/pgp-signature Size: 198 bytes Desc: Digital signature URL: <http://ffmpeg.org/pipermail/ffmpeg-devel/attachments/20120531/af151c97/attachment.asc>


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|Sunday, 5 Jun
|12:00 pm
Election Climate Action Rally 5 June, Bicentennial Park Tamworth, 12 noon
Come along and add your voice and your concerns. Many SLA members have already decided to attend.
The speakers will include:
- Anika Molesworth, Young Australian Farmer of the Year
- Rob Taber: Independent Candidate for New England
- Mercurius Goldstein: Greens Candidate for New England
- Tony Windsor: Independent Candidate for New England
- The organisers are still hoping Barnaby Joyce (Nationals Candidate for New England and current Deputy Prime Minister) will accept their invitation to speak.
- Adam Blakester: Regional sustainability and social change
- Robin Gunning and Emma Stilts: rally organisers and environmental activists
What are the options and visions for New England? What are the candidates' policies to ensure a sustainable future for our children and the region?
Armidale Train: Many people plan to take the train down and back to emphasise the event
- Departs Armidale at 8:40 arriving in Tamworth at 10:27
- Departs Tamworth at 3:37 arriving in Armidale at 5:35
If you drive, try to fill your car. If you need a ride or have space, contact: email@example.com
11:00am, prior to the rally
- Listen to Voices of New England Choir and learn a few rounds
- Make props and posters
- Grab a cuppa and chat: there will be food and coffee throughout the day
12noon Rally
Workshops following rally
- How to combat climate deniers: ways to identify and counter climate deniers and strategies to help undecided people understand the issues. (Robin Gunning: The Climate Reality Project)
- A new wind blowing: the largest regional investment project in New England. The bright future of wind generation and other renewable projects for our region. (Adam Blakester: New England Wind and Starfish Enterprises)
- Voices of New England Choir: Sing rounds in the sun.
Close 3pm
Contact. Robin Gunning:{mobile phone prefix oh for}19986467
By: Robin Gunning


text:
Optometry Giving Sight is proud to acknowledge the support of its top individual donors, all of whom generously support the organization with a minimum donation of $12,000 per annum. This eminent and very select group of people with big hearts and an unwavering belief in optometry's ability to change the world are called the Chairman's Club. Their contribution is having a significant impact on our efforts to eliminate refractive error blindness throughout the world and we thank them for their support.
If you would like information about joining the Chairman's Club please contact us. You can also sign up for a recurring monthly donation of $1,000 or make an annual equivalent gift via our donate page.
Dr. Juan Carlos Aragón's gift this year is made in the memory of his late beloved son Bernardo. Dr. Aragon is President of the Speciatly EyeCare Division at CooperVision. He completed his optometric training at the Superior School of Medicine of the National Polytechnic Institute in Mexico City, graduating with a high honour degree in 1984. Over his 33 year international career within the eye-care industry, in addition to CooperVision, he has occupied multiple executive management positions at Bausch & Lomb, CIBA Vision and Ocular Sciences. Dr. Aragón has been actively involved in supporting eye-care educational initiatives around the world, focusing primarily on developing countries. Dr. Aragon is the global Chairman of Optometry Giving Sight.
Dr. Pearl lives and practices in suburban Los Angeles and volunteers frequently at the LA Free Clinic. He is the Immediate Past President of VOSH International. He has led or participated on 40 week-long VOSH missions to Venezuela, Costa Rica, Columbia, Peru, El Salvador and mainland Mexico. Although Dr. Pearl's greatest interest now is raising funds to establish sustainable eye clinics and to support optometry schools in developing countries.
Dr. Gutierrez has been in private practice since 1990. He is the administrator for 21 San Antonio Vision Source offices. Dr. Gutierrez's was one of the first Vision Source offices in the country, and started and founded Vision Source in San Antonio. Other Honors include: TLC Laser Center Advisory Board Chairman, Director/CEO of Marrand Productions, Inc., President of VS Specialty Labs, LP. General Manager of VS Specialty, LLC., Co Chair of Texas Optometric Association Third Party Committee, Vice President of N2 Eyes, LLC, Board member of EssentiaPharma, LLC, and he is the principle and founder of 2MEye, LLC Consulting.
Dr. Bobby Christensen, O.D., F.A.A.O., is Senior Vice President Vision Source L.P. past President of Heart of America Contact Lens Society; Diplomate of Cornea and Contact Lens Section American Academy of Optometry; past President of Oklahoma Optometric Assoc; Benedict Professor, University of Houston; one of "Top Ten Optometrists of the Decade" selected in Optometric Management 12-99. Mrs Jayne Christensen, R.D.A is a registered dietitian dedicated to wellness and improving eating habits, graduate of University of Houston, residency at Houston VA Hospital; administrative assistant for Vision Source L.P., volunteer for Literacy Link and TEEM ministries, former chairperson personnel committee Wickline Methodist Church.
Isthmus Eye Care and their patients believe in the possibility of accomplishing more. First established by the late Dr Victor J Connors, and now passing on that sense of responsibility to each Doctor, staff, and patient that comes through their door in Madison and Middleton WI. "To be able to have this opportunity, and help provide something so essential is beyond rewarding. Sharing this with our community, through their donations with each pair of glasses has truly been a gift."
Dr. Ronald Cooke graduated from the University of Louisville in 1965 majoring in chemistry. He received his Doctor of Optometry degree from The Ohio State University in 1969. He is a founder, partner and active Board member of Opticare Vision Centers with multiple locations in Greater Cincinnati, Ohio. Dr. Cooke has served as President of various professional and business organizations. These include The Vision League of Ohio, Cincinnati Optometric Center, Zone 8 of the Ohio Optometric Association, Eastern Hills Jaycees and the Eastern Hills Exchange Club. He is also a life member of the American Optometric Association. In 1977, Dr. Cooke became one of the founding partners of Cincinnati-based Diversified Ophthalmics, Inc. He served as its President and CEO from 1977 to 2016. Diversified was innovative in providing independent eye care providers across the U.S. with a single source for needed optometric goods and services. Diversified consistently ranked in the top five soft contact lens distributors in the United States. In addition to receiving the prestigious Transitions' Lab of the Year Award multiple times, Diversified was regularly recognized as one of the Top 25 Independent Ophthalmic Laboratories in the U.S. The Cincinnati Enquirer included Diversified among the "Top 100 Privately Owned".
Howard B. Purcell, O.D., F.A.A.O., Dipl. Dr. Purcell currently serves as Senior Vice President, Customer Development for Essilor of America. He has been part of the Essilor team for 10 years. Prior to joining Essilor he spent 13 years as Senior Director of Professional Affairs for Johnson & Johnson Vision Care. A graduate of the New England College of Optometry in 1984, Dr. Purcell participated in a group optometric practice for eleven years with his father in Miami Beach, FL. Beginning in June 1991, Dr. Purcell joined the faculty of Nova Southeastern University College of Optometry. During his career at the college, he was a principle in the development of the Department of Cornea and Contact Lenses. Reaching the rank of Associate Professor, Dr. Purcell was responsible for both the didactic and clinical components of the program, serving as the Deputy Dean of the college. Dr. Purcell is a Diplomate in the Cornea and Contact Lens Section of the American Academy of Optometry His energetic and enthusiastic style has made Dr. Purcell a popular lecturer internationally. Purcell's unique philosophies and practices have often attracted the media to focus attention on current optometric issues and research in the industry.
Anthony Thomas is one of Australia's leading Construction barristers. His focus is on large mining and infrastructure disputes, particularly those which involve complex contractual interpretation, extensions of time and delay claims. He appears in the Supreme Court of NSW, Victoria, South Australia and Western Australia, and in IAMA and JAMS arbitrations. Tony is also ranked by the (peer-reviewed) publication Who's Who Legal 2015-16 as one of the world's leading business crime defence lawyers. He undertakes pro bono work, with a special focus on the rights of litigants who suffer from a psychiatric disability.
We proudly remember and honour our founding Chairman, Professor Brien Holden


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Over 35 Years of Excellence
Always Diving is your scuba diving expert in Cancun. We have been helping both beginner and experienced scuba enthusiasts explore the world underneath the waves of the Yucatan Peninsula. For over thirty years, we've been organizing diving expeditions from Cancun to Cozumel, to the cenotes around Riviera Maya.
We are PADI-certified instructors and dive masters with many years of experience. If you want to learn to scuba or interested in getting a diving certification, Always Diving offers scuba courses starting from the basics all the way to the Advanced and Specialty courses. We guarantee by the time you finish each course, you'll come out more skilled and prepared to take on challenging dives.
To be positioned as the best diving operation and recognized for the safety, the treatment and the excellent service we provide to people every day.
To put our knowledge, our experience, effort and passion, making each person live one of the best experiences of their life, in an atmosphere of trust, security and friendship.
EMPATHY: We know that people learn in different ways and rhythms, we adapt the teachings and training considering the learning skills of each person, giving them the attention and PATIENCE they require.
PROFESSIONALISM: Putting our passion, experience, knowledge and good mood at the service of people.
RESPONSIBILITY: Training to be the best in what we do. Being PUNCTUAL and fulfilling to the fullest the quality and international standards of security in the service we offer.
Come & visit us today and let's go on a fun scuba diving expedition!
Cancun Dive Sites
Always Diving will take you to the best scuba diving sites in Cancun:
Angelita Cenote
Pit Cenote
Underwater Museum (MUSA)
Minesweeper Wreck
Playa del Carmen
Cozumel Reef
VIP Service -- Above and Beyond Expectations: Wow -- Talk about a personalized SCUBA experience! I described my interests to Alvaro, and he provided a dive package that proverbially blew my socks off.
Tom Connare
Without a doubt, we had the best experience with Always Diving in Cancun. If you are wanting personal attention, a great experience, and years of experience, you should choose Always Diving.
Kent Risk
Álvaro was excellent. Lots of experience and skills in and out of the water. He bent over backward to give me the dive experience I was looking for. He is an excellent diver and an honest businessman.
Michael Wing
I highly recommend Always Diving! Hat's off to Alvaro, he is an excellent teacher and a great friend.
Carlos Rechy
The dives are safe, Alvaro will take care of you. Plus, he is really funny.


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Magazine article American Forests
Trees Take Center Field
Article excerpt
Sunday, September 8, was a perfect day for baseball. As a breeze wafted the smell of peanuts and hot dogs onto the field and the grounds crew prepared for the game against the Detroit Tigers, the Yankees took the field ... to plant a tree.
Relief pitcher Steve Karsay, first baseman Ron Coomer, and left fielder Rondell White represented the team in accepting a memorial plaque and a coral burst crabapple to be planted in Yankee Stadium's Monument Park on the first anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. White later obliged fans with the game-winning homer.
The crabapple was the first of AMERIcAN FORESTS' Memorial Trees to be planted in New York; one tree will be planted for each of the victims and heroes who died at the World Trade Center. Memorial plantings will also take place in Virginia and Pennsylvania.
"It was amazing to be standing in front of thousands of screaming fans to present the tree to the city of New York," says AMERICAN FORESTS' senior vice president Richard Crouse, a lifelong Orioles fan who admitted to backing the Yankees for that one day. "Many people came up after the ceremony to thank us for planting trees for their friends and family. It was a touching experience."
Accompanying Crouse on the field for the pregame ceremony were Elise Gourley and Mariann Dicarlantonio, district directors for retailer Eddie Bauer, which is sponsoring AMERICAN FORESTS' Memorial Tree Groves campaign; deputy city parks commissioner Liam Kavanagh; and baseball fans Chris Fedor, 5; Ethan Fedor and Charlie Nelson, both 7; Guy Steward, 9; and Corey Fedor and Matt Wheelright, both 13. …


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Mission of the
Procure Biobanque
Respond to an urgent clinical need by providing biospecimens and data of the highest quality and scientific value to better understand prostate cancer, diagnose it earlier and treat patients in a precise and targeted way.
Our participants –
Thank you for your gift of self
At the time of its creation in 2007, the PROCURE Biobank's first objective was to recruit 2,000 participants for its project, a goal achieved as early as 2012! For the past 10 years, the Biobank has been home to thousands of biospecimens including tumor and normal tissues collected during prostatectomy, blood and urine collected during during the participants' medical follow-up visits and as well as clinical, pathological and socio-demographic data.
These donations are invaluable to the scientific and medical community. This is why the PROCURE Biobank wishes to thank the 2,000 patients who have generously accepted to participate in the project.
For researchers
The goal of the PROCURE Biobank is to provide researchers with biospecimens and data of the highest quality, with the aim of advancing prostate cancer research and improving the quality of care provided to men affected by this cancer. All spheres of biomedical research will benefit, both for the identification of biomarkers in the blood, urine or tumors themselves and the identification of genetic, environmental and other risk factors, and for the development of targeted treatments.
Thanks to the 2,000 participants who have already agreed to collaborate in the Biobank project, as well as the physicians and teams in place at the Quebec University Health centres, the Biobank has accumulated thousands of biospecimens, as well as clinical and socio-demographic data on patients with prostate cancer. These biospecimens and data already contribute to advancing science on this cancer, particularly in the areas of identifying new risk factors, refining screening and diagnostic methods, improving treatments and slowing the progression of the disease.


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Create your pictures, sounds, feels in life. The body has an amazing ability to create new cells, new pathways and new connections even into old age. Awareness is the property of the whole organism: the mind, the body and emotions. Great performance (including the "ZONE") in golf is defined as a state of heightened sensory […]CONTINUE READING
Rose colored glasses, dark glasses, fun glasses and prescription glasses all have a different look and feel. Consciously or subconsciously, we are choosing our glasses for golf every minute. Regardless of what is going on in the outside world or the inside world for that matter, we always have a choice of which glasses to […]CONTINUE READING
Golf is a game with a long history and many traditions, but over the last few decades it has evolved considerably in terms of technology. Balata golf balls and persimmon woods have been replaced with multi-layered urethane balls and optimally engineered 460cc drivers. Instead of buying clubs "off the rack", most major golf retailers can […]CONTINUE READING


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Here is our report from Day Three of Celebration Orlando, with a recap of Day Two, and a discussion of the inaugural Galactic Nights, located at Disney's Hollywood Studios. Aaron Harris and Dave Modders join us as we share immediate reactions to all of the Star Wars Rebels announcements. We also have more conversations with Star Wars fans at Celebration Orlando. Live from the Convention floor, this is the podcast you're looking for!
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I had a strange dream the other night. In my dream Jesus came to visit our church to see if he could find a few disciples to help him with some work he seems to want to do in our town.
Of course, Jesus didn't look like all the pictures we see in our Bibles---a long white robe and soft shining hair. He was wearing jeans and a jacket. He arrived a few minutes early while folks were standing around in the breezeway between the sanctuary and the church hall. The church folks were busy having fellowship with each other and didn't notice the stranger until he was about to open the door to the sanctuary.
"You can't go in there; the choir is practicing," said a woman standing near the water fountain. Then she turned and continued her chat with some of the church folks.
Just then a hard looking character stumbled in from the cold. The church folks looked at each other with eyes which seemed to say, "What is this, an invasion?" Fortunately the pastor arrived and was greeted warmly by everyone. The pastor noticed Jesus and the hard-looking man standing over by the far wall and approached them.
"Welcome!" he said and shook their hands. The pastor then pulled the water fountain lady aside and asked, "Who are they? Did they come in together? That man in the jeans seemed to recognize me, but I'm sure I've never seen him in my life."
During the service Jesus and the hard-looking stranger sat together halfway up the nave. The pastor's sermon was entitled AMAZING GRACE, and he assured the congregation once again that the Cross Event took care of their sins, washed away their past and put them on a secure footing with the living God. In my dream I kept watching Jesus to see what he would do with this comforting message. In fact I found myself getting a bit angry with the Lord for sitting there like a wimp.
In my heart I was saying, "Lord, are you going to let these half-baked Christians sit there and feel smug, while they're told everything's okay? Why don't you do something? Why don't you stand up and remind them that they need to repent? " But the Lord just sat there and let things take their course.
In my dream I began asking myself, "Is this really the Lord Jesus? Is this the same Lord who shook up the smug and offended the complacent? How come he just goes with the flow? How come he doesn't remind them of judgment, as he did so often in the gospel accounts?"
After the service, as the congregation filed past the pastor, the hard-looking street man gave the pastor a big smile and told him to keep up the good work. But when Jesus got to the pastor, he was held for a minute as the pastor looked into his face and said, "I get the impression that you know me, but I have to confess, I don't believe I've ever seen you before."
"As a matter of fact, I do know you. And perhaps one day you'll remember where we first met," responded the Lord. "I came here today hoping to find a few people to work with me on some things I plan to accomplish. Perhaps if I return next week they'll turn up. Meanwhile, I think I'll stick with my new friend that I met here today. The two of us should be able to make a good start."
Just then my radio alarm woke me, and I've been puzzling ever since on the meaning of this dream. Was it the bananas I ate last night, or is God trying to tell me something?
Rev. Richard Bieber
Our Saviour, Dartmouth, NS


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The Fraserburgh Sea Cadets is investing in a new harbour facility after receiving a donation from a North Sea oil company.
The Broch Sea Cadets has been awarded £2,000 to replace their portakabin at Sandhaven harbour by oil producers Nexen Petroleum UK Limited.
The facility currently provides the cadets with changing facilities and classroom space.
Craig Trail, Commanding Officer at Sea Cadets in Fraserburgh, said: "We're extremely grateful to receive this generous donation from Nexen.
"It means we can replace the unit's much-needed Portakabin at the harbour, where we plan and run a range of nautical adventures and training for our cadets.
"All of which is to help the youngsters learn new skills that can be applied throughout their lives and boost self-confidence in a fun and interactive way."
The Fraserburgh Sea Cadets currently has over 30 members ranging from 10 to 17 years old.
Francesca Ray, Nexen's Donations Committee Chairperson, said: "By providing new and interesting outdoor experiences, the Sea Cadets really supports and makes a positive difference to young people across the UK."


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Designer_8521 needed a new icon or button design and created a contest on 99designs.
A winner was selected from 28 designs submitted by 16 freelance designers.
Cnectd is a cross-platform messaging application for mobile devices. Cnectd provides real-time messaging with push notifications so that you can keep in touch with your family, friends and colleagues without paying the costs of SMS text messaging. See https://www.facebook.com/CnectdApp
We require emotion (emoji) styled icons for use within our mobile messaging application Cnectd (https://www.facebook.com/CnectdApp).
I have attached a document which specifies the emotion icons we require and the corresponding symbol for each emotion (e.g. :) shows a 'Happy' emotion styled icon). We are looking for the 26 icons as specified in the attached document.
Please give us 6 sample designs as a first draft and await our feedback.
With the new high resolution screens becoming available the icons should be 64x64 pixels for use on super hi-def tablets. However; the icons may be scaled down to as small as 12x12 pixels so please ensure that the icons render properly at this resolution.
The icons must be static (no animation).
Designers are strongly encouraged to use their creativity to create a set of icons that are colorful, unique and fun.
We are looking for great designers to work with again in the future on various different design elements.
Any questions? Please email email@example.com


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Indian cell phone company Lava has launched two new phones in India dubbed Lava A51 and Lava A76+. These new phones are an expansion to Lava's budget-friendly Android smartphones. Talking about Lava A51, the phone comes with a 4.5-inch screen featuring 800 x 480 pixels FWVGA resolution. Powering this phone is a 1.2 GHz Quad-Core processor. However, Lava has not revealed the exact chipset.
The Lava A51 has a highly limited 512MB of RAM, something which is no longer common when it comes to memory offerings. As far as the internal memory is concerned, there is a minimal 8GB internal storage which is expandable up to 32GB. On the camera front, it houses a 5-megapixel rear snapper with LED flash. Thankfully, Lava could offer at least a VGA camera on the front so that selfie lovers will not miss opportunities. Finally, there is a 1700mAh battery inside. This phone lacks 4G support which is surprising considering the ongoing Reliance Jio trend.
On the other hand, the Lava A76+ sports a display which is similar to that of the Lava A51. It also embraces 8GB of internal storage which is expandable up to 32GB. This phone is powered by a 1.5GHz quad-core processor coupled with 1GB of RAM. You will get a 5-megapixel rear snapper and mated with a 5-megapixel front-facing camera. This phone packs in an 1850mAh battery. Fortunately, the Lava A76+ supports 4G, unlike the Lava A51.
Both the Lava phones run Android 6.0 Marshmallow operating system with a standard Android user interface on top. Other connectivity options include microUSB, Bluetooth, and GPS. The Lava A51 and Lava A76+ are priced at Rs 4,199 and Rs 5,599 respectively. At the time of writing this, there is no information regarding their availability. Stay tuned to Pricebaba for more such updates!
Key specs of the Lava A51
|4.5-inch (800 x 480 Pixels)
|1.2GHz Quad-Core
|Internal storage
|8GB (Expandable Up To 32GB Via microSD)
|5MP Rear / VGA Front
|Operating System
|Android 6.0 Marshmallow
Key specs of the Lava A76+
|4.5-inch (800 x 480 Pixels)
|1.5GHz Quad-Core
|Internal storage
|8GB (Expandable Up To 32GB Via microSD)
|5MP Rear / 5MP Front
|Operating System
|Android 6.0 Marshmallow


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The Hinds
Walking in a waking dream
I watched nineteen deer
pour from ridge to glen-floor,
then each in turn leap,
leap the new-raised
peat-dark burn. This
was the distaff side;
hinds at their ease, alive
to lands held on long lease
in their animal minds,
and filing through a breach
in a never-mended dyke,
the herd flowed up over
heather-slopes to scree
where they stopped, and turned to stare,
the foremost with a queenly air
as though to say: Aren't we
the bonniest companie?
Come to me,
you'll be happy, but never go home.
The title of Kathleen Jamie's lively new collection, The Bonniest Companie, published this week by Picador Poetry, is tucked away in The Hinds, third line from the end. As the poet's note tells us, the words are an allusion to the Scottish Border Ballad, Tam Lin.
In the ballad, the young knight and virginity-bandit Tam Lin is rescued from enchantment by an intrepid, aristocratic young woman, Janet, whom, luckily, he has made pregnant on their first encounter. At the end of the tale, the Queen complains angrily of Janet that "she has ta'en awa the bonniest knight / in a' my companie". The phrase "bonniest companie" has an inclusive resonance for the new collection, whose poems mark the natural cycle of the year, and were written, Jamie records, at the rate of one a week during 2014, drawing on the "tremendous energy" generated in Scotland at that time.
In the poem, of course, "the bonniest companie" are the nineteen hinds, met in "a waking dream", who thereby acquire an aura of magic – dangerous magic that will engulf the one seduced: "you'll be happy, but never go home". A couplet in the wonderfully mystical poem, Less and Less Human, O Savage Spirit by William Carlos Williams, seems pertinent: "It is the human that is the alien,/ The human that has no cousin in the moon." Confronted by stunningly beautiful animals, simply and powerfully at one with their environment, we may placate our sense of alienation with fantasy connection: might we not run away and join them? Do ancient tales of Faery enchantment and entrapment draw on such fantasies?
The hinds are real animals, of course, probably red deer, and the poem recreates their wiriness and agility in its own wiry shape and agile lines. The verbs-in-apposition that tie them to their upland location suggest controlled energy: poured from, filing through, poured up. Two well-placed "leaps" compress the mass movement (governed by "I watched") into the individually see-able: "then each in turn leap, / leap the new-raised/ peat-dark burn." That the "burn" is "new-raised" may suggest recent effects of rainfall: the burn is full and fast. Does "peat-dark burn" carry a tiny echo, perhaps, of "wine-dark sea?" If so, it recalls a thought memorably expressed by the Irish poet, Patrick Kavanagh, defending the Homeric significance of local matters in his war-haunted poem, Epic.
Jamie's sound-effects range from the subtly consonantal, like "leap", with its echo of watery hoof-plopping, to the full chords of rhyme: "pour/floor", "turn/burn", "ease/lease", "this/distaff", etc. The labials of lines eight and nine ("alive/ to lands held on long lease") evoke the fluidity of the animals' movement on their own ground. A triple "e/ie" rhyme towards the end, where the boldest hind utters her seductive invitation, is like a simple animal mating-call transcribed into human.
The old-fashioned euphemism "distaff side" marks one of several moments of self-amused anthropomorphism. Jamie's line-break on "this" signals an emphasis, light-hearted though it may be, on the animals' gender. Her phrase intimates the social world of the ballad. The hinds also live in a rigidly gendered society, even if their actions hardly seem comparable to the monotonous subservience of ladies spinning the flax. They're more like Janet, who's more like a modern woman, free to rove and range.
"Lease" is a loaded word. The deer's "lease" on the land may well stretch back a long way, but the term that implies temporality and may foreshadow a less settled future. So far so good, perhaps, unless the un-mended breach in the dyke denotes a neglect that won't always prove benign.
Plain, solid nouns build the mimetic topography: "ridge", "glen-floor", "breach" , "dyke" , "heather-slopes", and the wonderfully onomatopoeic "scree". "Heather-slope" is a good compound, evoking the depth and layered springiness of heather so thick it seems to be the actual substance of the hill.
Almost suddenly, the poem pauses its flow. Line 15, lengthened a little beyond the others and slowed by its monosyllables, marks the change. From now on, the hinds are standing still, emboldened by distance, perhaps, looking back on the speaker. "Queenly air" is finely judged, and, again, there's a touch of humour in the conscious anthropomorphism, apparently extended to the almost flirtatious challenge issued by the alpha female.
There's a characteristic combination of delicacy and brawn in Jamie's poetry, and both are at work in The Hinds. In its supple energy, the poem might be a riposte to those stiff and gloomy oil-paintings with their antlered images of nationhood, and frequently bearing the title, "Stag at Bay".
The magic of Jamie's nineteen hinds is that they are not magic. They're free and easy and glad-to-be-female, with no hunter – not even a rutting stag – to bother them, or not in the quicksilver moments of the poem. And yet you might read a hint of almost Rilkean challenge in the deer's invitation: "Come to me,/ you'll be happy, but never go home". In other words, perhaps, "You must change your life."
- The Bonniest Companie by Kathleen Jamie is published by Picador in paperback, priced £9.99. Buy it from the Guardian bookshop for £7.99.


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My husband gets credit for this one. It rained pretty hard the other day and afterward, he got this picture of a double rainbow outside. The second rainbow is hard to see, but if you look closely you'll see it very faintly above the first one.
For more SOOC Saturday, visit Slurping Life.
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sold out
2018 Christmas Cards – Pack B
Cards are 350gsm gloss and printed in full colour. They are 183mm x 117mm, folded.
Each one is blank on the inside and has the Fetching Dogs logo and mission statement on the reverse.
White envelopes included.
100% of the profits from the sale of this diary will be donated to Fetching Dogs.
sold Out


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Weight Watchers 3Q beats expectations
NEW YORK (AP) — Weight Watchers International Inc.'s shares jumped in after-hours trading Monday after the company reported that third-quarter earnings fell but still easily topped expectations.
The company is increasingly seeing its business shift from in-person meetings where members weigh in publicly and get tips on weight loss to an online service and forum.
Weight Watchers said that it earned $67.4 million, or $1.20 per share, for the period that ended Sept. 29, versus $80.7 million, or $1.09 per share, in the third quarter of last year. The company's total revenue was nearly flat at $430.6 million versus $428.4 million. Online business improved — with the number of active online subscribers up nearly 20 percent to 2.05 million — but that was offset by pressure on its meetings business in North America and the U.K.
Higher costs for marketing, interest and selling, general and administrative expenses crimped profits in the latest period.
But results still beat analysts' expectations for profit of $1.05 per share on revenue of $422.8 million, according to FactSet.
Shares of the company jumped $5.08, or nearly 11 percent, to $52.56 in after-hours trading. Its stock had fallen 35 cents to close regular trading at $47.48.
Weight Watchers said that Superstorm Sandy and recent investments to help promote its business ahead of the key New Year's weight loss season would impact its fourth quarter. The company cut the top end of its 2012 earnings guidance range to $4.10 per share, versus a prior range of $4 to $4.20 per share.
Analysts, on average, are expecting earnings of $4.11 per share for the year.


text: God Has Great Things In Store For You From the staff and management of AM1580 WVKO The Praise….The Voice of the People Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV) – 11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Share this:Tweet Related 2014 New Year staff wvko Share ! tweet


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You are here
1994 - L.M. Montgomery and Her Works
The 1st Biennial Conference, L.M. Montgomery and Her Works, was held in June, 1994 and was the first major event for the newly formed L.M. Montgomery Institute. The programme featured ten papers by international scholars on a wide range of topics, with a speech delivered by Adrienne Clarkson on how Montgomery's writing helped her learn about Canadian culture.


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HADD Ireland's Parenting Courses (Parents Plus for ADHD):
HADD Ireland runs parenting courses for parents of younger children who have had a diagnosis of ADHD and others for parents of teenagers who have ADHD. These are designed by Dr Carol Fitzpatrick, who is the co-developer of the award winning Parents Plus Programmes, which are practical and positive, evidence-based parenting courses (www.parentsplus.ie). Carol developed an adapted version of this excellent program for parents of children with ADHD.
They are also facilitated by an experienced representative from HADD, who either has ADHD themselves and/or is a parent of a child or adult with ADHD.
All courses have been very successful and this is some of the feedback we received :
"Thanks so much for being so brilliant through the hard days and helping us in more ways than you know"
"Thank you so much for time, love and invaluable advice"
"A thousand thanks, this has been the first respite as a mum"


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Liverpool have been one of the best teams in the Premier League so far, and have won two huge games of late, against Leicester City and Chelsea. The Reds, in such form, are always going to be a huge force in the third round of the EFL Cup, where they are scheduled to face Derby County on Tuesday.
With such wins under their belt, one would have thought Liverpool would take it easy against Derby and play some fringe players, and test the squad. But manager Klopp has some other plans despite possessing a stronger team on paper in the EFL match, as he wants to feature a strong line-up.
Brazilian Roberto Firmino has been one of the sensational players for Liverpool, but missed the last match due to minor groin injury. The star player is expected to feature against Derby, while goalkeeper Loris Karius could start in goal for Liverpool. With Liverpool performing well, and Klopp not eager to make much changes all the players will be trying to put their best feet forward against Derby.
Liverpool would not have many problems against Derby, who are struggling in the Championships as well at 20th position. Despite their position in the League, these Cup matches are hard to predict, one bad game, and you are out of the competition. Belgian international Divock Origi does not want to take their third round opponents lightly, and is keen to see his team move into the next round with a win.
"For us, it's a tough game and in a cup everything can happen. You have to be strong physically, go into it with the mind of a fighter and play our football. That will be our aim," LFC's official website quoted Origi as saying.
"We have to go into it with a lot of positive energy and try to outmatch them in every way. That means also in the physical part – I think that is very important. In games like this, things can happen fast. We will try to do everything to get the win. We want to win this game and be competitive in all competitions," he added.
Liverpool have had no trouble in scoring goals. They already have four or more in three games in all competitions this season. Liverpool set up a date with Derby after hammering Burton Albion 5-0 in the second round, while Derby County won a thrilling penalty contest, where they emerged victorious 14-13.
Derby must be aware of the huge task that waits them at Pride Park Stadium. Midfielder Will Hughes hopes to create a huge upset in the third round of the EFL, and defeat Liverpool.
"Everyone knows we're going into the game as underdogs but stranger things have happened than us beating Liverpool at home and there are always shocks in most rounds of this competition. Hopefully that can be us," Liverpool Echo quoted Hughes as saying.
"We're not going into the game to take part, we're going into it to win the game. If we got the win it would be up there with the best results of my career," he added.
Matej Vydra and Ikechi Anya are cup-tied and will not be available for Derby, but striker Andreas Weimann could feature in the match.
Watch Derby County vs Liverpool live
Derby County vs Liverpool EFL Cup is scheduled for 7.45 pm BST (12.15 am IST, 2.45 am ET) start. TV and Live streaming options can be found below.
No live TV coverage in UK and India
UK audience can listen live on radio: BBC Radio 5 Live
Middle East, US: TV: BeIN Sports . Live streaming: Bein Sports Connect
South Africa and Sub Saharan Africa: TV: SuperSport 7. Live Streaming: SuperSport Live Video.


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At first glance, life insurance and RRSPs seem very different. One provides a tax-free death benefit while the other provides taxable retirement income.
Let's compare and contrast. We'll use cash value permanent life insurance as an example because term life insurance doesn't offer tax-sheltered savings.
Both give you tax-sheltered growth and withdrawals are taxable.
An RRSP's value increases over the years as you make more contributions and your investments grow. Life insurance is worth more today since the death benefit is much larger than the premiums. As you live longer, the return on investment drops. That's a trade-off you're likely willing to make.
With an RRSP, you get a small tax deduction on your contributions. This allows your savings to grow in a tax-sheltered account. The price is the tax on your withdrawals, which are treated as income. If you're in a lower tax bracket during retirement, this trade-off looks good.
The biggest tax on an RRSP is at death. If you have a spouse, you can defer the bill by having your assets transfer to your spouse at your death. The tax is then due when your spouse dies.
With an RRSP, you're forced to make taxable withdrawals whether you want to or not. An RRSP takes decades to grow to a large amount. That also leads to a big tax bill at death.
With life insurance, you're not required to make withdrawals and the death benefit is generally tax free. Also the death benefit is huge relative to the premiums.
Life insurance is generally protected from creditors. However, RRSPs are generally subject to claims by creditors in Ontario unless purchased from a life insurance company.
Life insurance can provide tax-free income by leveraging (for example, you can assign your contract to a bank, get tax-free income via loans, get the interest added to the loan, and have the tax-free death benefit repay the loan).
RRSPs have the same fixed contribution limits for everyone. With life insurance, the maximum deposits depend on your age, health, and the face amount (the amount of money paid out when the person dies).
Consider both
Why not get both? If you've reached your RRSP and TFSA contribution limits, cash value life insurance lets you save more.
Life insurance can supplement an RRSP during the accumulation phase. If you want to provide retirement income for your partner, you could use term life insurance.
If your partner will need to depend on your RRSP for retirement income, your death harms them. Life insurance provides a tax-free lump sum to replace the contributions you couldn't make while term life insurance is a cost-effective solution.
During retirement, life insurance can prefund the taxes at death on RRSPs and other taxable investments. In this case, you'll want permanent coverage.
Get your custom life insurance quote by completing this form.
Also read:
- How to Make a Life Insurance Claim
- The 5 Lamest Reasons for Not Getting Life Insurance
- When to Buy Both Term and Permanent Life Insurance
Flickr: Got Credit


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Experienced Abdominoplasty Plastic Surgeon in Miami
If you are one of the people living with a tummy that makes you feel fat and ugly, or just uncomfortable, it is in order that you get the services of a plastic surgeon in Miami. Know that if you need tummy tuck Miami, Dr. Ramiro Morales is the go to surgeon. It is not right that you continue living in doubts of your looks when you can unleash the inner beauty in you through our simple cosmetic surgical solutions.
What Abdominoplasty Entails
The process involves the removal of excess fat and skin within and around the abdomen. It also involves the restoration of weakened or separated muscles. The procedure involves lifting the skin which allows for the repairing of the underlying weakened abdominal muscles. The skin is then tightened over the abdomen and then sutured or closed using skin adhesives, tapes, or clips. The result of this is a flatter tummy with a firm abdominal contour. This leaves you with a well proportionate abdomen that seamlessly matches your body type and weight.
What Causes Abdominal Muscles to Sag?
While most people will not automatically have a pot belly or a sagging abdomen, at some point in their lives, due to hereditary reasons, some will unfortunately develop this condition. However, aging, past surgery, pregnancy, and significant fluctuations in weight are also some of the factors that will lead to a sagging abdomen. Needless to say, this is not a condition anyone would love to live with and this is why we provide the services for tummy tuck Miami.
Why Should You Choose To Settle For Tummy Tuck?
It is no secret that everyone loves wearing their swim suits in total confidence and to flaunt their flat gorgeous looking tummies. No need to worry if you are nowhere near this description because this is exactly what our plastic surgeon in Miami can give you. With our unmatched artistic talent topped up with vast knowledge and years of experience, it is our sole goal to always achieve a first-rate result.
Contraindications for Abdominoplasty
What most surgeons won't tell you is that not everyone is cut out for this procedure. This procedure is not recommended for anyone who is planning on having future pregnancies or planning a substantial weight loss. This is because these situations will ultimately cause your skin to revert to its initial drooping state at least to some extent. Our first concern is for the health of our patients and so we ensure that you have all the necessary information about abdominoplasty for you to make an informed decision on whether the procedure suits you or not.
For more information, you can schedule an appointment with Dr. Morales who is one of the leading plastic surgeon in the Miami area.
ABDOMINOPLASTY Patient #1 - front view
ABDOMINOPLASTY Patient #1 - side view
ABDOMINOPLASTY Patient #2 - front view
ABDOMINOPLASTY Patient #3 - front view
ABDOMINOPLASTY Patient #4 - front view
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Chris Hemsworth is one lucky guy. Not only does he have a beautiful family and a superhero physique that other guys would kill for, but he also has a massive Hollywood bank account to boot.
Over the course of his career, the 35-year-old actor has gone from making a few scattered Australian TV appearances to playing a Marvel leading man. But just how much money has Thor, God of Thunder, been able to rake in? Well, let's just say he could buy himself a pretty nice place in Asgard.
Here's everything we know about Chris Hemsworth's net worth.
Chris Hemsworth made $37 million in 2014.
The Australian actor began his career in his home country in 2002, where he made minor appearances on various television shows before becoming a series regular on Home and Away from 2004 to 2007.
His first big Hollywood break came in 2009, when he appeared as George Kirk, Captain Kirk's father, in Star Trek. He became a bonafide household name two years later, when he wielded his hammer as the leading man in Thor. The film made more than $65 million its opening weekend, and has gone on to gross nearly $450 million worldwide.
In 2014 — the year after Thor: The Dark World hit theaters — Forbes reported that Hemsworth raked in $37 million, making him one of Hollywood's highest-paid actors of the year.
Chris Hemsworth made $27 million in 2015.
It may have been a dip from his 2014 earnings, but $27 million was still enough to earn him 15th place on Forbes' list of the highest-paid actors in Hollywood that year.
Hemsworth dropped off the list in 2016. But don't worry: He made a comeback.
Chris Hemsworth earned $31.5 million in 2017.
In 2017, Forbes named Hemsworth the 11th highest-paid actor in Hollywood. By that point, he had a host of Marvel movies under his belt, including Thor: The Dark World and Avengers: Age of Ultron.
Chris Hemsworth earned $64.5 million in 2018.
Yup, you read that right: In 2018, Hemsworth more than doubled his salary from the previous year, according to Forbes. It didn't hurt that Avengers: Infinity War shattered more box office records than we can wrap our heads around.
Chris Hemsworth's net worth is probably between $60 and $90 million.
Reports vary as to Hemsworth's total net worth. CelebrityNetWorth.com places it at $90 million; The Richest at $71 million; and Bankrate at $60 million. (Hey, they all sound good to us.) And with plenty more movies to come, odds are the estimates will keep getting higher.


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|Source: Someecards
Sounds random, but it's somewhat related if you think of the Hype-Machine.
February 5, 2013
Same New, Same New: Social Media, Hype, Book Discoverability, ARCs and Blog Homogenization
34 comments:
Great post, Brie! It's so true how we see the same books over and over again... and just as true that our traffic can take a hit on lesser known books.ReplyDelete
Sometimes I play around with pairing a popular new release with an indie or lesser known book on the same day. Even then, the less trendy book doesn't get the same kind of pageviews. I understand why, but it's hard not to think about it when I am planning my posts.Replies
Thanks, Jen!Delete
It's interesting because a book like Hopeless, that has thousands of reviews on GR and I'm sure every other blog reviewed it, became one of my most reads reviews, in part because Smexybooks linked to it, but also through Google search. Whereas a book like Irregulars, one of my favorites of last year, faded into oblivion. It can be frustrating, not because I want people to read my blog (although that's also part of it, and anyone who says otherwise is not being completely honest; a blogger that selfless would keep a reading diary instead of a blog), but because I want people to read the books.
Great article, Brie! I do think there are more deliberate efforts to promote books and authors than we realize. Every book has a promo schedule attached to it, and authors and bloggers are a big part of that. If we only had spontaneous tweets and blogs and discussions, I think there would be less out there.ReplyDelete
I agree, though, that NetGalley and the expanded ARC distribution more generally has focused the chatter in ways that didn't happen before. I kind of dread Tuesdays now because it's just a round of release promo on Twitter.Replies
I think the balance is hard to achieve. Social media and the internet has changed the way authors, publishers and readers relate to each other. But speaking strictly as a blogger, I think promotion should be a by-product of blogging, and not the end. When it becomes the end, and I'm guessing that's part of what you mean by more deliberate efforts, things get muddy and problematic.Delete
It's always going to be this way. There are always a ton of books released the last and first weeks for the month. The more popular authors are the books you want to feature right around release day. It's just the way it is. But that doesn't mean smaller authors don't get notice either. It does make me LOL sometimes going through google reader and seeing a dozen reviews of the same book. But obviously it's a book A LOT of people will be reading...so you can't ignore it either.ReplyDelete
I make an effort to accept a lot of self-pub or unknown author books...honestly, many of these books don't even make it to the review stage but I'm always looking for that book that no one has heard about that turns out to be really good. Or searching blogs for those recs (like most recently Painted Faces and Escorted). They are out there..just have to weed through the big reviews to find them.
Did I ramble enough?Replies
I'm always waiting for you to find the new unknown awesome book, so I can read it!Delete
I admire bloggers willing to take chances with unknown books and authors. But I don't fault those who play it a bit safe. This is not a job, and no one can force anyone to read something they don't want to read, just to have different content to offer. Hell, I play it so safe, 75% of my reviews are contemporaries. Maybe I review a variety of contemporaries, but I'm still reading my favorite sub-genre.
What's important is that the only motivational force behind the books we choose to review, should be desire to read that particular book.
You know, I've heard a lot of people echo your statement that reviewing new, highly-buzzed books really gives traffic a boost. Strangely, on our blog our most popular posts are those about lesser-known and older books are far more popular than those that are about the highly-promoted books. We may be an outlier because Clear Eyes, Full Shelves doesn't focus on a single category or genre and our audience is a bit different than most book blogs. I don't know how to interpret that radical difference in my own experience, but I do think it's interesting.ReplyDeleteReplies
I have a good example of how popular books drive traffic and get more attention. It wasn't a review, but it's quite interesting.Delete
Last month we had two giveaways that ran fairly close together:
The first was for Molly O'Keefe's new book. It came with an awesome guest post, that I thought was better than the giveaway and in fact got some great comments. I tweeted about it all day and I'm sure Molly also help spread the word. This is an author I love, giving away a fantastic book, and it got 11 entries.
The second was a quick giveaway of Lisa Kleypas' upcoming release. I've given poor reviews to that series, but Kleypas is one of the biggest names in romance. I only tweeted about it once, the day the post went live and early in the morning, and I doubt the author even knew about the giveaway. It got 33 entries, including an attempt at cheating.
To be perfectly honest, I don't review highly-buzzed books because of the potential traffic; I do it because I wanted to read them and found the time to review them. But it's something that does factor in some bloggers' decisions to review. This is not me judging, it's just what I've seen and heard.
It's interesting what you say about your own experience. Can you predict which review will have more comments? Or is that also unpredictable?
Ah, just now seeing this reply...Delete
Commenting is less predictable for me. There's this weird correlation with reviews where a review will get a ton of traffic but get no comments. (This just happened with The Reece Malcolm List, which is still getting hits like mad--and the sources are all over the place--but it has two comments.) Then, less popular reviews may get a lot of comments.
I really can't get my head around what the trigger is that prompts comments on reviews, aside from that reviews published on Tuesdays seem to get more, but that may be a coincidental.
Honestly, as our traffic has grown, it seems like comments on review posts have gone down in general, but comments on list posts and opinion-type posts have gone up. I think this has more to do with that people know the blog for these two things more than the reviews. But I really don't know and can't get anything meaningful out of crunching the numbers.
LOL. Now I'm worried that this little cluster of posts considering social media hype is going to be an over-hyped phenomenon of its own!ReplyDelete
I do care about my page view numbers to some extent (I'm human), but not much. I want *some* audience, or I wouldn't be blogging, but I am happy with a small, engaged audience, because I started blogging for the conversation. The few times a post of mine has gone very modestly viral, I haven't entirely enjoyed the extra traffic. I try not to get caught up in caring about the numbers and letting that drive my blogging. The only thing I have ever given away is a used Charlotte Lamb paperback, I don't accept ARCs and review copies, I couldn't care less about "cover reveals," because it's what's inside that matters. I tend to stay away from blogs that do a ton of giveaways, reveals, author guest posts, etc. because they do seem to be mostly about buzz (I think you're well on the right side of that line BTW). I don't mean this as a criticism of other people's choices, but I find their content is not as interesting to me so I avoid it. That cuts down on the hype feeling. I just read whatever, and of course sometimes it's something "everyone" is reading and I enjoy being part of the crowd, but sometimes the feeling of crowd-following turns me off.
I have been thinking about authors' part in this. I know they're expected to promo, but how many tweets about their release and RT'd reviews, and the same for their writer-BFFs' books, do I need to see? I pretty much follow writers because I have ALREADY liked their books, and they seem interesting on Twitter. So I do want to know they have a new book coming out but I don't need to know 25 people gave it 5* to be persuaded to buy it. Maybe I am unusual, but I would think most people who are following an author are already inclined to buy her books. I think some authors--including authors I enjoy engaging with, so don't want to unfollow--kind of don't get that. Your followers are your fans. Don't give us the hard sell. And doing your promo while simultaneously saying you hate doing it is annoying. It's your job. We know that. Put on your professional pants, tweet some promo with meaningful content (what is this awesome book about anyway? What made Betty Blogger give it 5 stars?) and let it alone.
In other cases, authors who do little promo but are interesting to talk to on Twitter have sold me their books by being themselves. That is in fact part of promo, not just the "fun part" of Twitter. I think authors are still figuring this out, like bloggers. But social media marketing is really not about advertising your wares non-stop.Replies
I don't care about numbers or audience as long as it keeps growing so I can eventually take over the world. As I told Jen, any book blogger who says they don't care if no one reads their blog, is lying, otherwise they would keep a journal instead of a blog. But there are degrees of caring. Some put a lot of pressure on themselves. Take a look at all the plagiarism scandals, and the awards, the numbered ARCs, free e-readers etc. Sometimes it feels like a competition, especially for new bloggers who wish to stand out. And that's when things get problematic, because some might think that getting the attention of authors and publishers can be a shortcut to recognition.Delete
The Twitter conundrum is something I keep thinking about. I just don't get why some authors feel the need to over-promote. Aren't their followers already fans? I mean, I follow because of the books, but stay because of the personality. I already know I like their books, so I don't need 99999 5-star reviews to remind me of it. The only author I follow whose books I haven't read is Moira Rogers, and I find her so funny and interesting that sometimes I feel like getting all her books, even though I'm not really into Urban Fantasy.
- AnonymousFeb 5, 2013, 4:25:00 PM
Hi Brie, First of all can I just say I read Molly O'Keefe's post and loved it. I feel sorry now I didn't leave a comment - I was so busy on the day, but it's made me realise if I love a post I should take time to say something - even if it's just "Great post!" I loved this post, too, and the thought-provoking comments. You're right: it's hard to strike the balance between reviewing popular new releases - which will get you hits, and which you want to read anyway - and going out on a limb to review a new author. I subscribe to a lot of romance review sites - and from today that will also be subscribing to Clear Eyes, Full Shelves :)- and, from a personal point of view, I prefer the reviewers who mix it up a little to include older releases and lesser-known authors that I would otherwise never come across. Sometimes I get tired of seeing the same names bandied about on Twitter and blogs, almost to the point of not wanting to read them any more.ReplyDelete
Please do continue to review contemporary romances. I think I have commented on your site before that it is so hard for us romance readers to find decent reviewers. Any other genre - sci-fi, crime, etc - gets critically reviewed in the mainstream. I've had to scour blogs in trial and error until I find romance reviewers I can trust. In fact, my blog got a hit today from someone searching for "reliable romance sites"! That shows how hard it is, so I really appreciate the thought and time you and other romance bloggers put in to your reviews.Replies
Oh, please! No need to comment or to feel bad for not commenting. I wish I could comment in every interesting blog post I read, but it would take all day!Delete
I think that just bloggers takes some time finding their voices, readers take time finding those voices that better fit them and their necessities. So how reliable a blog is depends on what the reader needs and wants.
I will continue reviewing contemporaries! In the meantime, everyone who commented on this post has amazing blogs, so you should check them out ;-)
Good points, all. I've been thinking about what I called "the Netgalley effect" for a while; it does get tedious seeing the same books all over the place. But I certainly don't turn down an e-arc of one of my favorite authors, because damn it, I wanna read it!ReplyDelete
I just reviewed a book which I happened to get from the library and thought interesting enough to review (an interracial Harlequin historical -- you don't see that every day.) And I've had several comments thanking me for reviewing because the commenter hadn't heard of the book. Just luck, really. But satisfying in a way that reviewing the latest craze isn't.
Great post Brie. Yes to all of it.ReplyDelete
To be honest it's never occurred to me to read/review a particular book because it will get my blog more hits. I'm still at that naive stage where I think "do people do that?" and I get a kick out of every comment (they aren't that comment) and getting more than 20 hits on a post is a success! LOL.
Of course I blog because I want people to read what I write but I'd be a very sad girl if I wanted the acclaim of Romance Stadium.
I read what I want to read. I accept review books and get books from NetGalley and half the time I'm late to the party anyway so I review books where the buzz has already been and gone. I must get better of keeping track of when the books are releasing but a lot of authors who contact me are "whenever you get to it" so that's what I do.Replies
"the acclaim of Romance Stadium" (!!!) I'm going to steal that from you and use it!Delete
I liked your review of Reaper's Property, and that's a good example of how a new take can offer great insight into a book that's getting a lot of buzz. Same with the way Liz reviewed The Other Side of Us. There are ways to get around the echo.
Thx Brie :)Delete
I often see my blogger friends finding something different about a book. And, when we find basically the same thing (as with Back to the Good Fortune Diner) the discussion was great fun so I don't mind the echo myself :)
Oh, my goodness. This drove me crazy last week. It was all Molly O'Keefe, Shannon Stacey and Ruthie Knox ON EVERY BOOK BLOG. I stopped reading for a couple of days. I read blogs to find new books/authors I've never heard of. I used to get a lot of that a few years ago and a LOT less of that now. I'd spent some time thinking about this last week and chalked a lot of it up to NetGalley.ReplyDelete
Many bloggers are pulling from the same pool of books. (My publisher refuses to use NetGalley or Edelweiss so I feel slighted in that realm - but that's just personal).
I also thought a lot about the reader vs. blogger/viewer angle as well - and concluded that folks can do whatever they want on their blogs. But I do feel like I'm in the same predicament I was a few years ago - how do we find new books?Replies
I think we find new books through bloggers who speak to us (as in we like their voices and trust their views, even if we don't always agree), that way even if they review the same book everyone is talking about, we might get a different take and make us get over the annoyance.Delete
But I agree, sometimes it takes me forever to find new books. The problem is that one week hearing about the same books feels like forever to someone who reads two or three books a week.
Oh, so true. I feel that way whenever people are talking about romance conventions, which I have very little interest in. It's just freakin' everywhere and you can't escape it.Delete
I'm sick - so let's see if I can muddle my way through a coherent comment!ReplyDelete
Piggy-backing on Willaful's comment on "the NetGalley effect" - I have a hard time putting too much stock in that. Why? Because there's a lot of stuff I see on NetGalley and Edelweiss that I don't see getting reviewed tons of places. It really seems to be a select group of authors - truly. So yeah, good on them that they've tapped into an audience but admittedly if I'm not already juiced in? Like Sylvie mentioned - I did a A LOT of blog skimming last week ;)Replies
Twitter no doubt plays a big part as well, but I do think books with e-arcs/review copies get a lot more exposure. (For obvious reasons.) I don't think it's just about the author, because I've seen things go in waves even with the same author -- for example, Susan Mallery's "Sweet" series was all over the place, but her next series sank without a trace in my google reader feed. I may not read as many blogs as others do, though.Delete
Dude! What blogs are you reading so I can add them to my Google reader? Those Susan Mallery Fool's Gold books are all over the place (including this blog, BTW) and the worse the books got, the more love they received! It's awful, she's about to publish books 10, 11 and 12. 12!!!!! I can't take it.Delete
You just proved my point! The next series wasn't Fools Gold, but the Texas sisters one. That series just did not make a mark in the blogosphere.Delete
Ahhh! Now I remember. That's the one with the sister and the evil brother that wasn't that evil. Yeah, no one talked about those books. I think after that she reinvented herself a bit, and created the Fool Gold's series that's almost like a marketing exercise with the cheerleaders, and the website, the magazine, etc. The books seem secondary.Delete
Wendy and Willaful,ReplyDelete
I think you both are right, and the reason why is in Willaful's comment:
But I certainly don't turn down an e-arc of one of my favorite authors, because damn it, I wanna read it!
There's a shit-ton of books on NG that no one reviews, books that have to compete with popular authors or talked-about books. I'm more likely to take a chance with an unknown author when I can get the book free through NG, but if next to that author is a book I'm dying to read, guess which one I'm requesting? So as much as I want to say that I shouldn't force myself to read anything, maybe it's time to be more conscious about what I get from these websites and try give better chances to new, different book.
That's why I said that NG and Edelweiss make coveted ARCs more accessible and widespread; coveted being the operative word. So when Wendy says good for the authors who tapped into an audience, they didn't do that on NG, they did it outside of it and before those books were made available on NG.
Having said that, how many people were talking about Molly O'Keefe and Ruthie Knox a year ago? I've been reading O'Keefe for years, so now that I see her get so many reviews I feel happy and excited instead of annoyed. So there is a good side to the repetition and noise, and what we need is to find a better balance.
Very nice post, Brie :) I used to be concerned about being part of the hype... However, my book-buying habits have changed and I'm so back-logged lately, that I haven't managed to review anything near its release date except for Did You Miss Me? by Karen Rose.ReplyDelete
I gotta say though, the hype definitively has reached new levels lately... and it's made blogland a bit boring.
"... as we keep our honesty we should be fine." = TruthReplyDelete
It only takes not being part of the buzz (whether because we disagree with the majority or because we aren't familiar with the subject) to notice how annoying it can get. Nice thought. I really appreciate to the blog owner for a wonderful information.ReplyDelete
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OSMF & Local F4M Files
The Open Source Media Framework (OSFM) doesn't respond well when you pass it a local F4M file path for playback. Playing back local HDS fragments is an edge case, but enough people have encountered this problem that I think it deserves a little attention.
Fixing the IndexHandler
The basics involve extending the HTTPStreamingF4FIndexHandler then overriding the constructFragmentRequest() method & removing the requirement that HTTP be part of the URI.
So, after you've created your new class that extends org.osmf.net.httpstreaming.f4f.HTTPStreamingF4FIndexHandler, add the following override:
[actionscript3]override protected function constructFragmentRequest(serverBaseURL:String, streamName:String, segmentId:uint, fragmentId:uint):String
var requestUrl:String = "";
requestUrl += streamName + "Seg" + segmentId + "-Frag" + fragmentId;
return requestUrl;
The original constructFragmentRequest() method looks like:
[actionscript3]protected function constructFragmentRequest(serverBaseURL:String, streamName:String, segmentId:uint, fragmentId:uint):String
var requestUrl:String = "";
if (streamName.indexOf("http") != 0)
requestUrl = serverBaseURL + "/" ;
requestUrl += streamName + "Seg" + segmentId + "-Frag" + fragmentId;
return requestUrl;
So you can see we just removed the "http" requirement.
Now you need to get OSMF to use your adjusted IndexHandler. This means you need to create a custom NetLoader, that creates a custom StreamingFactory & then the Factory creates your IndexHandler. Once you have all of this done, you can then create a custom MediaFactory (I usually just extend DefaultMediaFactory) and create a MediaFactoryItem that can handle your local F4M file resource, & specify your new NetLoader for the element that is returned.
Convoluted eh? Let's break it down.
Creating the Factory
Since we are dealing with HDS content extend org.osmf.net.httpstreaming.f4f.HTTPStreamingF4FFactory & override the createIndexHandler() method. In this method set the indexHandler property equal to an instance of your IndexHandler (mine is named "LocalFileStreamingF4FIndexHandler").
[actionscript3]override public function createIndexHandler(resource:MediaResourceBase, fileHandler:HTTPStreamingFileHandlerBase):HTTPStreamingIndexHandlerBase
indexHandler = new LocalFileStreamingF4FIndexHandler(fileHandler);
return indexHandler;
Creating a NetLoader
Now we need our NetLoader – this is where the Factory is created. I extended org.osmf.net.httpstreaming.HTTPStreamingNetLoader & created an override for the createHTTPStreamignFactory() method.
[actionscript3]override protected function createHTTPStreamingFactory():HTTPStreamingFactory
return new LocalFileStreamingF4FFactory();
Creating a custom MediaFactory
Now we need to be able to injet this NetLoader into the system. So extend the org.osmf.media.DefaultMediaFactory & add a MediaFactoryItem that return a new VideoElement. Pass in an instance of your NetLoader to the the VideoElement constructor.
[actionscript3]localFileStreamingNetLoader = new LocalFileStreamingNetLoader();
localHDSFileNetLoader = new LocalHDSContentNetLoader();
addItem( new MediaFactoryItem( "com.realeyes.osmf.elements.video.httpstreaming", localHDSFileNetLoader.canHandleResource,
return new VideoElement(null, localHDSFileNetLoader);
Specifying the canHandle and passing in the NetLoader
You can also see in the previous bit of code that the MediaFactoryItem asks for a canHandleResource function. This is where conditions are added to make sure the you're working with the right type of media. For this situations you can default to the super's canHandleResource() which checks the resource HTTP Streaming metadata.
Now you have a setup that can handle a local F4M file and the downloaded fragments. There are a couple of considerations you'll need to keep in mind:
- The fragments and F4M file must reside in the same directory. OSMF looks for the fragments in the directory that they F4M is in.
- Multi-bitrate won't work, unless you can download the fragments for all the bitrates and work out storage for them.
The provided examples is the least obtrusive way to get local HDS content to play. Alternatively you can edit the HTTPStreamingIndexHandler and compile an OSMF swc to use for a quick and dirty fix.