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'The Signal' Director Jacob Gentry on Moving from Horror to Sci-fi for the Band Broken Bells and Beyond
It's no secret that the movie industry tends to stick with what it knows, and what it knows is that if someone does something successfully once, then you have to tie that thing to them like an anchor and make them do it over and over and over again. In the case of director Jacob Gentry, that thing happens to be horror movies. He was one of the three minds behind The Signal, a smart, creative, experimental horror movie that was the kind of Sundance success story few artists ever experience. It was made independently for about $50,000, and then it sold at its 2007 world premiere at Sundance to Magnolia Pictures for over $2 million, so naturally studios wanted Gentry (and everyone involved with The Signal) to keep making horror movies.
And he did so for a few years, directing a fun trilogy of slasher movies for MTV called My Super Psycho Sweet Sixteen. But recently Gentry has been making inroads toward science fiction. It started when he directed The Ghost Inside, an inspired short film for the band Broken Bells starring Christina Hendricks as an astronaut making some very tough sacrifices on her journey toward a promised paradise. And now Gentry is back with a beautiful two-part short film for Broken Bells' new album After the Disco, starring Anton Yelchin and Kate Mara as two people whose fates are intertwined across space and time.
We recently chatted with Gentry about his sci-fi work for Broken Bells, how the creative process behind them is very different than a typical music video, and how it's all been feeding into the next stage of his career-- a career we think everyone would be smart to keep an eye on.
Movies.com: Your short films for Broken Bells aren't traditional music videos, they're more like a cumulative representation of an entire album. What's the development process like for that?
Jacob Gentry: I feel like Brian Burton's music projects always sound like soundtracks to movies that don't exist. So working with James on Broken Bells is a perfect example of that. We're trying to make the movie that would accompany that soundtrack. It's almost a reverse engineering in that way. It's sort of sticking with this universe we created in our video for the first Broken Bells record, the one with Christina Hendricks, and the album artwork. So we sort of conceptualized it like you would a movie, but we had a score for it beforehand that could inspire the themes and the storytelling. And then on this one, Brian came to me with this story he had come up with that was reflective of some of the themes on the record and the lyrical content, so I took that and worked with him and James, the designer who does the album artwork, to create an overall world of the band. It's not limited to just the record.
I feel the same way on the movies I work on. The trailer and the poster and the score are all part of the story, the narrative of the piece. I think, as amazing directors like Stanley Kubrick have shown, things like the poster and other bits of iconography are just as important as a lot of the elements of the movie itself. When you think of Full Metal Jacket, you can't help but think of the image of that helmet on the white background. That's essentially what we're trying to do, but the order is different. We had all this wonderful music and then tried to create the movie that would fulfill that.
But, it wasn't like a music video where you're confined to certain parts and rhythms of the song, it was more about telling the story, shooting it like a movie, using music as the inspiration, and then going back into actually score it with the music.
Movies.com: Is that process what attracted you to this project?
Gentry: Yeah, they approached me cinematically, and I'm really driven when making my movies by music. I'm always making playlists and soundtracks before I even write or shoot them, and listen all throughout the process. So music is always part of the storytelling. So using the artwork to tell part of the story, and then the music itself – because there's no lyrics in the movie – so you have that whole other side of it. It's really great to work with them, there's a lot of freedom in trying to take a cinematic approach instead of trying to stick it all in one box.
Movies.com: You're mainly known for horror, but between your work with Broken Bells and your new film Synchronicity, are you making an active effort to push toward sci-fi?
Gentry: Science fiction is hands down my favorite genre. It's what I've always wanted to do. I've been working mainly on horror films because after The Signal that's just where the road took me. But it's been great to work with Broken Bells because it's allowing me to make a little bit of a turn into science fiction. And since they're short form, I can try different things. The thing with their music is it feels like it combines different eras of pop music, and movie music, into its own unique thing, and so I tried to do that same thing with the videos. So for the first video, The Ghost Inside, I tried to take the aesthetic of films like Outland and Alien and mix it with old Hollywood, 1940s sci-fi notions. And it helped being able to work with Christina Hendricks, who is primarily known for 1960s imagery but is also known for Firefly and science fiction. Back when we made that, my favorite things were Mad Men and Battlestar Galactica, so it was fun being able to combine those.
For this one, we kind of went a different direction with the design. The first one was a bit more gritty and in the late '70s, early '80s era of science fiction. This one is a bit more psychedelic, late '60s early '70s, movies like Logan's Run, Barbarella and Zardoz -- that sort of thing. I wanted to take that as a design aesthetic and then tell a really sincere, authentic story inside of it. I think as far as the metaphorical aspects of it, it has a lot to do with dreams versus reality, and that dynamic stems from a lot of classic science fiction stories. I like science fiction that plays within the rules of our world, but has one element added – that's usually alien or robotic or time travel or something like that - whatever that element is, the best stuff usually uses it to hide that metaphor. And that's what we tried to do.
Movies.com: What else are you working on these days?
Gentry: A lot of science fiction or science fiction-horror stuff is in development, which hopefully you'll see. I just got done with this, so now I'm moving back to a few things that are in various stages. Nothing officially announced yet, but hopefully it'll be something where I'll be able to use what I learned from these short films and expand it into a feature film. Sorry to be so vague about it, we're just right in the middle of it.
Movies.com: After The Signal hit and put you guys on the map, did you move out to L.A.?
Gentry: Actually, it was right before it. I only had like three months of that sort of really poverty stricken, starving artist in L.A. kind of thing while we were finishing The Signal. I'd only been living here for a few months before we sold the film at Sundance in January, so it was very, very fortuitous timing as far as that was concerned. Before that I was just scrounging around trying to finish our little horror movie that, as far as we knew, was only ever going to be seen by a handful of people in Japan or something.
Movies.com: When you have a film blow up at Sundance, how immediately did it change things for you? How'd you navigate your career waters after that?
Gentry: I think a lot of it is just trying to find your footing as a filmmaker. I had an idea of what we wanted to do, but it wasn't like we suddenly were in a place where we could pick whatever we wanted to do. I ended up doing the Psycho Sweet Sixteen trilogy for MTV, so I sort of saw that like film school. They weren't big budgets, but they were significantly more than we had on The Signal and gave me experience working with bigger crews and dealing with a studio. I learned so much, and because those were basically like mixtape movies anyway – they were kind of like Girl Talk albums as movies – that I was able to try a bunch of things I'd want to do in movies later on. It gave me the chance for things like switching from a horror kill to a tender John Hughes moment I'd want to try my hand at, and so it was just a really great film school. I'm glad to have that experience because now I feel that, from a logistical level, I better know how to control a proper film set. So now it's just trying to find your voice.
Like I said, I've always wanted to do science fiction stuff. It's particularly true now, but if you do any kind of a genre movie that's even semisuccessful, or people like it, then that's kind of what they want you to do. You become the horror guy. And that's fine, because I love horror movies and I love making them, but all three of us had different paths we wanted to go down. It would have been different if we packaged ourselves as a threesome that were going to make people's movies, but we were all individual directors with our own ideas and scripts. So when we wanted to come off of The Signal, there was a time when no one was really sure what to do with each of us. We all have different projects in different stages. For myself, I've developed lots of things. I developed this karaoke samurai movie that was about to go, but then the economy collapsed and we lost our funding. So you never know how these things are going to go. That's the one thing I've learned: just go where your artistic notions are. Try to write and develop things you care about, and just hope they get made. It's about finding that rhythm, and finding your voice and what you want to do, and hope that you can find similarly minded people to help make it.
Broken Bells' "After the Disco" will be available January 14, 2014. Here's the two-part video for it:
And in case you missed it, here's The Ghost Inside starring Christine Hendricks.
And so you too can have dreams of the Jacob Gentry's karaoke samurai movie that almost was, here's the awesome pitch video for Honeysuckle Blues:
Movies.com, the ultimate source for everything movies, is your destination for new movie trailers, reviews, photos, times, tickets + more! Stay in the know with the latest movie news and cast interviews at Movies.com.
Copyright © 2019 FANDANGO MOVIES.


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IPO Report: Bluerock Residential Growth REIT (BRG)Francis Gaskins Follow |
Bluerock Residential Growth REIT (BRG) is an apartment REIT headquartered in New York, NY.
Ten other companies are scheduled for the week of March 24, 2014. The full IPO calendar is available at IPOpremium.
The manager and joint managers are Wunderlich Securities. The co-managers are BB&T Capital Markets, National Securities, Boenning & Scattergood, Inc. SEC Filings
BRGscheduled a $50 million IPO with a market capitalization of $65 million at a price range midpoint of $15 for Friday, March 28, 2014 on the NYSE.
BRG is an apartment REIT with a continuing negative operating cash flow, that expects to pay an annual dividend (payable quarterly) of 4.7%
Price /
Price /
Price /
Price /
% offered
Cap (mm)
in IPO
Bluerock Residential Growth REIT (BRG)
The rating for BRG is negative.
BRG was incorporated as a Maryland corporation on July 25, 2008.
BRG's objective is to maximize long-term stockholder value by acquiring well-located institutional-quality apartment properties in demographically attractive growth markets across the United States.
BRGseeks to maximize returns through investments where it believes it can drive substantial growth in BRG's funds from operations and net asset value through one or more of its Core-Plus, Value-Add, Opportunistic and Invest-to-Own investment strategies.
BRGis externally managed by its Manager, an affiliate of Bluerock. BRG conducts its operations through its operating partnership, of which it is the sole general partner.
BRG's revenue is derived from residents under existing leases at the apartment properties underlying its real estate joint ventures.
BRG's operating cash flow is principally dependent on the number of apartment properties in its portfolio; rental rates; occupancy rates; operating expenses associated with these apartment communities; and the ability of residents to make their rental payments.
BRG's ongoing operating expenses exceed the cash flow received from its investments in real estate joint ventures, and therefore, BRGhas continuing negative operating cash flow.
As of December 31, 2013, BRG's portfolio consisted of interests in six properties, all acquired through joint ventures, five of which were operational, and one of which was in development.
BRGdid not commence real estate operations until the end of 2009, when it made its first equity investment. BRG made several additional equity investments in 2010, made no investments in 2011, made additional equity investments in 2012, as well as one disposition, and made no investments, one full disposition and two partial dispositions in 2013.
BRGintends to make reserve allocations as necessary to aid its objective of preserving capital for its stockholders by supporting the maintenance and viability of properties BRG acquires.
If reserves and any other available income become insufficient to cover BRG's operating expenses and liabilities, it may be necessary to obtain additional funds by borrowing, refinancing properties or liquidating its investment in one or more properties. There is no assurance that such funds will be available or, if available, that the terms will be acceptable to BRG.
Dividend Policy
BRGexpects to pay an annual dividend (payable quarterly) of 4.7%.
BRGintends to continue to qualify as a REIT for federal income tax purposes.
The Code generally requires that a REIT annually distribute at least 90% of its REIT taxable income, determined without regard to the deduction for dividends paid and excluding any net capital gain, and imposes tax on any taxable income retained by a REIT, including capital gains.
To satisfy the requirements for qualification as a REIT and generally not be subject to federal income and excise tax, BRG intends to make regular monthly distributions of all or substantially all of BRG's REIT taxable income, determined without regard to dividends paid, to its stockholders out of assets legally available for such purposes.
BRG's board of directors has not yet determined the rate for its future dividends, and all future distributions will be determined at the sole discretion of BRG's board of directors on a quarterly basis.
BRG is subject to significant competition in seeking real estate investments and tenants. B
BRG competes with many third parties engaged in real estate investment activities including other REITs, specialty finance companies, savings and loan associations, banks, mortgage bankers, insurance companies, mutual funds, institutional investors, investment banking firms, lenders, hedge funds, governmental bodies and other entities.
BRGalso faces competition from other real estate investment programs, including other Bluerock programs, for investments that may be suitable for us.
Many of BRG's competitors have substantially greater financial and other resources than BRG has and may have substantially more operating experience than either BRG or BRG's Manager.
They also may enjoy significant competitive advantages that result from, among other things, a lower cost of capital.
5% stockholders
Page 154 "Principal Stockholders' only shows one person with a 6.6% of stock, units, etc.
R. Ramin Kamfar
This omission is enough of a reason to pass on the IPO
Use of proceeds
BRGexpects to net $44.4 million from its IPO. Proceeds are allocated as follows:
$582,000 to fund its acquisition of Fund I's indirect equity interest in the Grove at Waterford Apartments in its contribution transactions;
$3.5 million to fund its acquisition of Fund I's indirect equity interest in Springhouse at Newport News in connection with its contribution transactions;
$4 million to fund its estimated portion of the projected development costs for UCF Publix;
$14 million to acquire substantially all of Fund II's and Fund III's interests in Lansbrook Village;
$579,000 to pay acquisition related expenses in connection with its contribution transactions;
$556,000 to pay mortgage loan assumption fees in connection with its contribution transactions;
$7.6 million to repay in full the indebtedness to Fund II and Fund III, as co-lenders under the Fund LOC;
$2.1 million in offering expenses (exclusive of the underwriting discounts and commissions), including reimbursement of BRG's Manager for expenses and fees incurred on its behalf.
DISCLOSURE: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors, and do not represent the views of equities.com. Readers should not consider statements made by the author as formal recommendations and should consult their financial advisor before making any investment decisions. To read our full disclosure, please go to: http://www.equities.com/disclaimer.
Array ( [0] => [1] => [2] => [3] => [4] => [5] => )
Symbol Name Price Change % Volume Follow LHTCF Launch Tech Co Ltd Ord H n/a n/a n/a 0

subset: commoncrawl


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There's been huge anticipation for the meeting between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump.
Modi, on Sunday, met CEOs of top US companies, including Time Cook of Apple and Sunder Pichai of Google.
Trump has set a positive tone for the upcoming meeting by calling Modi a "true friend" in a tweet.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is currently in United States in the second leg of his three-nation tour.
However, this is his first visit to US after the Trump administration came to power.
A senior White House official told reporters that President Donald Trump's first working dinner with a foreign leader will be with the Indian Prime Minister.
The two leaders will meet at 3:30 pm EST on June 26, and will deliver a joint statement along with individual statements.
But there will be no press meet, "as preferred by both leaders".
The first face-to-face interaction between Mr Trump and PM Modi is expected to focus on three major areas ie, defence, terrorism and energy.
Modi, who is on a three-nation tour, will visit Netherlands after concluding his US visit.


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Chanel vs Forever21 vs bebe
Chanel jelly thong sandals were hits of previous seasons and sold out immediately. The price was about $350! Too much for jelly flip flop, isn't it? You can find blue at Bluefly for $220 (was $275), pink at eBay for $419.95. At the Spring-Summer Resort 2009 show Mr. Lagerfeld offered black and white camellia flower version with price about $350. Let's have a look at them all:
Well, if you don't wanna spend almost three hundreds dollars on it, then I have good news for you. Forever21 made me glad to know about completely the same jelly sandals, but for really LESS money $5.50 in pink, black and clear:
Do you still want to pay much for them?
Thanks to my reader Aly Rizzo for the hint!
UPD: I've just found in Kmart yellow, blue and red version of these nice jellys:
UPD2: you can also have a black and white version at bebe just for $29:
Comments are closed.


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May 11, 2017
Categories: Digital Marketing, Financial
Katie Hansen – VGM Forbin, Web Marketing Specialist
If you had to choose your largest issue as a financial marketer, I bet it would have something to do with measurement. Whether it's a bank president who wants to know how many conversions you've achieved, or one of your local customers who asks why more people don't like your Facebook page; measuring the progress of your marketing initiatives is a never-ending process. Today, I am happy to share HOW you can measure these Read More
Tags: Banking, Financial, KPI, marketing, Measurement
Top Suggestions
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"The good news is, there is no government program named The Dick Pic Program," said Edward Snowden. "The bad news is they are still collecting everybody's information, including your dick pics."
It's a pretty long but important (and entertaining) video, so if you have some time to spare, please check it out. It's pretty important stuff.


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Matt Damon New King of the Left-wing FlopsPosted: August 19, 2013 Filed under: Mediasphere | Tags: Barack Obama, Black Entertainment Television, Elysium, Jimmy Carter, JOHN NOLTE, Los Angeles, Matt Damon, National Security Agency 1 Comment
For those wondering how Matt Damon (or anyone) could take away the title of "King of the Left-wing Flops" from George Clooney, just look at the numbers below. Matt Damon is 4-for-4 — four left-wing flops in just four years. Not for lack of trying, Clooney has never achieved that. Clooney also mitigates the damage he does with mid-level budget films. Damon, on the other hand, likes his flaming balls of left-wing fail to be as spectacularly expensive as possible:
"Elysium" (2013): $56 million; $38 million worldwide – 3284 theatres – $115 production budget*
"Promised Land" (2012): $7.6 million; $8.1 million worldwide – 1676 screens.
"Happy Feet Two" (2011): $65 million; $150 million worldwide – 3606 screens – $140 million production budget*
"Green Zone" (2010): $35 million; $95 million worldwide – 3004 theatres – $100 million production budget*
*add $50 to $80 million for promotion and advertising, then double the total for the amount a film has to clear just to break even.
Damon officially stole the title of "King of the Left-wing Flops" Sunday when Box Office Mojo reported that director Neill Blomkamp's "Elysium" has zero chance of reaching $100 million. That is actually a pretty generous assessment of a film that will likely have to crack $400 million worldwide just to break even.
After two full weekends, "Elysium" has only cleared $56 million in North America and another $38 million worldwide, which puts it way behind such high-profile disappointments as "Cowboys and Aliens" and "Pacific Rim." Mega-flop "John Carter" (which would only clear $73 million in North America), was at $53 million domestic after its second weekend, only $2 million behind "Elyisum."
It is possible "Elysium" could stretch its worldwide legs to clear the magic $400 million number, but as of now no one really believes that.
What has to be especially galling to Sony is that Damon's presence might have hurt"Elysium." After two weekends and without the politically-divisive Damon as star, Blomkamp's "District 9" — which cost only $30 million and starred no one — had already cleared over $72 million.
Sony can at least take some solace in the fact that "Elyisum" will not be a write-off of "Green Zone" or "Happy Feet Two" proportions. After a dozen-plus films aimed at the Bush Administration flopped, the $100 million "Green Zone" practiced the definition of insanity and was dead on arrival. The $140 million "Happy Feet Two" (a Global Warming, pro-same sex marriage "children's" movie) probably cost the studio over $100 million.
All of this likely serves to explain why Damon was so shamelessly dishonest during his "Elyisum" promotional blitz. "I don't think it is trying to saying anything," Damon assured potential ticket-buyers as news of "Elysium's" left-wing agenda started to dribble out.
Obviously, Damon and Hollywood are determined to never learn the lesson that moviegoers are not interested in being preached to by hypocritical left-wing millionaires, but that doesn't change the fact that Damon's box office clout is waning fast:
His last solo smash was the 2007 sequel The Bourne Ultimatum, with his supporting turn in 2010's True Grit also flexing box office muscle. Other recent films, including The Adjustment Bureau, Margaret, Invictus, Green Zone, We Bought a Zoo and Promised Land, ranged from underwhelming to downright duds.
Don't worry about Damon, though, he still makes millions per film; more than enough for the high-profile public school advocate to send his own children to private schools.
Follow John Nolte on Twitter @NolteNC
via Elysium Tanks
Related articles
- YAWN: 'Elysium' Tanks: Matt Damon New 'King of the Left-wing Flops.'… (pjmedia.com)
- Matt Damon: 'Barack Obama broke up with me' (telegraph.co.uk)
- Public School Advocate Matt Damon Enrolls Kids in Private School… (breitbart.com)
- Matt Toomey reviews and chats with Matt Damon (about the new film Elysium) (blogs.abc.net.au)
- Matt Damon worries about money (contactmusic.com)
- Matt Damon's liberal hypocrisy on education (newsherald.com)
- Matt Damon Slams President Obama: 'He Broke Up With Me' (mediaite.com)
- Matt Damon: Obama 'Broke Up With Me' (sott.net)


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House Decor Has Become My Life: Fans
Seriously, it's been 2 months since we packed up our Toronto home to make the big move to Chicago, and since then we have been living in a state of limbo. We wanted to re-do the floors, paint the whole condo/townhouse from top to bottom and also take a couple of weeks to travel to Europe for a much needed vacation.
The floors are coming along nicely, the walls are finally painted, and now we need to unpack our countless boxes and finally move in. Along the way, we hit a couple of snags, had a few leaks and more than a few contractors that were less than reliable...
I have been itching to post before and after photos, but alas, there are no after photos yet. Give me a few more weeks, and I'll hopefully wow you with the changes that are going to take place.
For today's post, I am posting photos of some of the ceiling fans out in the market that I've had to familiarize myself with. I have always hated ceiling fans. They look dated, collect dust, and don't have the charm of chandeliers. Unfortunately for pretty chandeliers, our ceilings are just way to high, and they seem to trap air like a gassy belly after a night of binging on junk food. Fortunately for me, once I took down the dated, oak and brass fans that were already up, I was able to find a whole series of amazing ceiling fans that were both functional and full of charm.
The photo below is of the fan I found for our Master Bedroom. I picked this baby up at Lowe's for only $139 and lucky hubby got the chance to spend an hour installing it. I'll wait to give you the full bedroom reveal once the whole room comes together.
Be sure to stay tuned for the big reveal!


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New images of two strange stars, where one passes in front of the other to block its light periodically as seen from Earth, are beginning to give up the secrets of this puzzling stellar pair.
The star system, called Epsilon Aurigae, experiences the eclipse once every 27 years. For the first time, scientists have directly imaged the dark companion that blocks its companion's light.
Astronomers have been watching this pair of stars since the 1800s. Over time, they noticed that the main star appears dimmer than it should be, given its mass, and that its brightness dips even more for longer than a year every few decades. The system lies about 2,000 light-years from Earth (a light-year is the distance light can travel in one year).
Scientists had previously surmised that the bright star has a hidden companion that was blocking its light, and the new observations confirm that.
"Seeing is believing," said study leader John Monnier, an astronomer at the University of Michigan.
Astronomers have also wondered why this star companion was so difficult to see.
Some researchers have suggested that it is a faint star with a thick cloud of dust orbiting it, obscuring some of its light. But the alignment of the cloud, the star, its companion and Earth would have to be just right for this to be the case.
"This really shows that the basic paradigm was right, despite the slim probability," Monnier said. "It kind of blows my mind that we could capture this. There's no other system like this known. On top of that, it seems to be in a rare phase of stellar life. And it happens to be so close to us. It's extremely fortuitous."
The astronomers used the Michigan Infra-Red Combiner instrument, or MIRC, to combine the light entering four telescopes at the CHARA array at Georgia State University. The effect is a virtual telescope that is much larger than its four constituents.
The researchers detail their findings in Thursday's issue of the journal Nature.
© 2013 Space.com. All rights reserved. More from Space.com.


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|Photographed by
|Warren Bennett on Tue 5th Dec, 2017 and uploaded on Tue 27th Mar, 2018 .
|Male and female, looking for their next meal, dressed in rainbow colours.
|Nikon D810, AF-S Nikkor 200-500 1: 5.6E ED, f 5.6, 1/500 sec., ISO 450, 500mm. Handheld.
|Currimundi Lake entrance, Sunshine Coast., Queensland
|male, female
|You already have an outstanding request to download this image for non-commercial purposes. You may cancel this request by clicking on the button below and waiting for confirmation that your request has been noted. When you have selected all the images that you require, go to 'My Download Requests' (under Photo Gallery) and submit your request by clicking 'Add Request' and filling out the details. You will be advised of the result by email. Note that cookies MUST be enabled for this to work.
|You may request download of this image for non-commercial purposes. A request that meets the usage rights of this image will be automatically approved; a request that does not meet the usage rights will be refused, but may (at the Download Manager's discretion) be referred to the photographer. The usage rights of this image are: Any non-commercial educational or conservation use by any requestor, excluding personal use. For further details of image usage rights, see here. Request the image by clicking on the button below and waiting for confirmation that your request has been noted. When you have selected all the images that you require, go to 'My Download Requests' (under Photo Gallery) and submit your request by clicking 'Add Request' and filling out the details. You will be advised of the result by email. Note that cookies MUST be enabled for this to work.
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The Our People page, in the About Us section, contains email links to each of the committee members.


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String Sinfonietta
WCMS's new String Sinfonietta is ideal for intermediate level string players who are looking for an orchestral experience to supplement their school orchestra or string program. This ensemble has a nurturing environment to encourage students to achieve new levels in their playing while connecting musical peers from Winchester and the surrounding towns such as Medford, Stoneham, Woburn, Arlington, Burlington, Melrose, Wakefield, Reading, and beyond. Participants will perform a range of string orchestra repertoire. Concerts for family and friends are held in January and June, along with one outreach performance for the community in the spring.
Guidelines for Entrance: Students should be in the process of developing a beautiful sound, including comfortable use of vibrato, first through third positions, and fundamental bow strokes with varied articulations. Ideally, students should be playing repertoire equivalent to Suzuki Book 4 or ASTA grades 2-3.
Conductor: Vartan Aghababian
Spring ensembles begin: Week of February 3, 2020
Tuition: $495 per semester (14 sessions plus final concert); 10% discount for WCMS private lesson students
Day & Time:
|Vartan Aghababian
Audition Requirements: All students should prepare two contrasting solos pieces (slow and fast) and three major scales; at least one scale should be in three octaves and chosen from the following:
- Violins: G, A Bb
- Violas: C, D, Eb
- Cello: C, D, Eb
- Bass: prepare G, A, and Bb major scales in one or two octaves
In addition to the performance of prepared materials, all students will be required to sight read.
Placement auditions: Please submit an online inquiry below for more information.
- For returning students: If you are a returning student to String Sinfonietta, contact our registrar to enroll:
- For new students: If you are interested in joining String Sinfonietta, please submit an online inquiry and the instructor will be in touch with you:


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I really can't stand photos of me.
But I love this one of the two of us…
People, Planet, Peace > Profit
Of course, it's Minimalist Baker
Recipe type: Entree
Cuisine: Mexican, Vegan
Serves: 4
Make sure your plantains are deep yellow with brown spots and tender to the touch. Otherwise, their flavor won't be as developed and they can be chewy in texture.
FOR SERVING optional
Best when fresh. Serves 3-4 generously.
Glen Greenwald is spot on, as usual. Oh, and, of course the white kid trying to start a "race" war "isn't" a terrorist, Glen. Only white folks with unpopular views are terrorists.
"Yet another reason is that the specific forms of activism this movement has cultivated are shrewd and compelling: As is true for so many types of violence, the savagery, torture and sadism that makes these industries so profitable will be collectively tolerated only if we are not forced to confront their reality."
Lesbian, gay, bi and trans pride series part 20
By Leslie Feinberg
"The legal situation of GDR [East German] gays improved considerably in 1968 with the elimination of Paragraph 175," historian Jim Steakley concluded in his published research. He credited the abolition of the almost century-old Prussian anti-homosexual law to the pioneering work of Dr. Rudolph Klimmer, a gay communist physician.
This move, part of an overhaul of the criminal code, elevated the GDR to the same progressive level as Hungary, Poland and Czechoslovakia, which also decriminalized homosexuality in the mid-1960s. (Body Politic, December 1976-January 1977)
Writing in 1976, the Canadian researcher described an East German gay population characterized by long-term relationships, apparently more so than in West Germany or the United States. "The durability of such relationships may also reflect the relative lack of anomie and competitiveness in socialist society, yet the prevalence of gay couples is all the more striking in light of the fact that at 50 percent and still climbing, the GDR's divorce rate is the highest in the world.
"Although it deserves a more detailed analysis," he continued, "GDR citizens properly interpret the divorce rate as an index of women's emancipation rather than social collapse. In any case, the gay couples are seldom burdened by the ideology of pure monogamy, and affairs on the side as well as casual sexual encounters are standard.
"Parks, beaches (where nude bathing is widespread), and other public places have never been the locus of police entrapment, and arrests for public indecency are virtually unknown."
However, one last thorn of legal discrimination remained in the body of East German law. While the age of sexual consent was the same for same-sex and heterosexual minors, under the provisions of Paragraphs 150 and 151, homosexual adults penalized for relationships with under-age youths could be sentenced to three years behind bars, while heterosexuals only faced two-year sentences.
Steakley met with Klimmer during his research in the GDR. "Dr. Klimmer regards it as his greatest success," he reported, "that these paragraphs explicitly contain a provision allowing prison terms to be suspended in favor of probation, and court practice shows that this option has been widely adopted in cases which do not involve assault or coercion."
Before the GDR was overturned, even this legal inequity was removed.
Housing and employment, however, continued to be sites of struggles for equality after 1961. Partly this was due to lack of resources in the workers' state that made the early goal of socialism–equal distribution–difficult to attain. And age-old prejudice was also an obstacle.
Steakley gave voice to the frustration of gays with the GDR's governmental housing agency, which allocated space based on family size. This made it virtually impossible for single men to rent more than a studio apartment. But he did not examine this social crisis out of its economic context.
"Housing is still at a premium in the GDR, and it was only in 1975 that Berlin, for example, attained the per-capita level of housing that it had prior to World War II," he explained, "In order to keep the country from sinking below its current zero population growth, the government makes no bones about rewarding childbirth; and while abortion and contraceptives are freely available, premarital sex and unmarried motherhood are promoted in pop songs."
While the housing crunch Steakley described in 1976 constrained singles, he found that gays in East Germany were "optimistic that the GDR's ongoing, high-priority construction program will open new options within the next decade."
When examining the housing crisis in the GDR, it's important to reiterate that, by law, rent could not exceed 10 percent of an individual's income.
And when it came to jobs, Steakley stressed, "homosexuals are occasionally fired by a homophobic superior. But gays have successfully argued their cases in special GDR workers' courts and had their jobs restored with back pay."
Unlike a capitalist economic system, where wages are always in danger of being driven down by an "army of unemployed" competing against the employed, jobs are a right in a planned economy. Steakley stressed, "In a country with the right (not the obligation) to work and a serious labor shortage, job performance has become the sole criterion for hiring and firing."
Flowering of lesbian, gay subculture
In his 10 pages of results of a study of the lesbian and gay movement in the GDR, published in 1989, researcher John Parsons explained that during the 1950s and 1960s an underground gay subculture had developed. But, he continued, "The 1970s and early 1980s were a time when this lesbian and gay subculture grew and flowered, creating a broad self-consciousness and assertiveness." (OUT/LOOK, Summer 1989)
The Berlin Association for Homosexual Concerns (HIB) was established in the spring of 1972 by both women and men. They organized public and private discussion groups and programs, held film showings and book readings, and hosted speakers from the fields of medicine, psychology and sociology.
Steakley added an important point about the class character of the association. "Unlike most gay organizations in West Germany, the HIB is largely made up of workers and professional people rather than students." Two of the three members of the steering committee belonged to the Communist Party.
Parsons noted the role of women. "Parallel with these efforts, lesbians and feminists were organizing their own discussion groups centered on questions of women's liberation."
He added that although public discussion focused on male same-sexuality, "One fact that is striking, however, is that lesbian and gay cultural institutions and friendship circles in East Germany historically have been integrated much more across gender lines than those in either West Germany or the United States."
Steakley, writing closer to the period of the formation of HIB, said that while the organization waited until 1976 to apply for state recognition, "it by no means had an underground status during its first four years."
In its first year, the group approached the Ministry of Health to request public meeting space. But the HIB delegation angrily withdrew its request after a psychiatrist offered to turn those weekly meetings into group therapy.
So the group turned to the national labor union–the FDGB. Steakley reported, "The FDGB was unable to provide rooms but urged the HIB to continue its search, noting that gays had legitimate concerns and should not be required to continue meeting in private homes."
He added that activists protested a lack of protection from anti-gay bashers to the Berlin police "and the HIB got a positive response."
The group also lodged complaints with city administrators when one of Berlin's gay bars was closed in 1975. "Protests to municipal authorities brought assurances that the measure was not intentionally anti-gay but part of a larger urban renewal program designed to enhance the capital's 'cosmopolitan character' which would soon lead to the opening of several new bars 'for every taste.'"
And Parsons pointed out that during the 1970s, a number of gay-identified clubs and cafes opened up in major East German cities.
Answering the "Rat Man"
On June 1, 1976, HIB organized a very successful forum publicly sponsored by the Urania Society–a public education agency.
The event, a talk by Dr. Peter G. Klemm entitled "Sex Roles in Socialist Society," filled the meeting hall to capacity. Of the 500 who attended, only an estimated one-third were gay or lesbian.
Klemm's speech and the discussion that followed demonstrated a progressive current in a raging polemic against the work of Dr. Gunter Domer, a Berlin endocrinology researcher dubbed "Rat Man" by HIB activists.
Dorner claimed to be able to produce "homosexual" or "heterosexual" litters of rats based on injecting pregnant rats at different stages in the gestation period. Steakley emphasized, "Dormer's experiments raise the specter of pregnant women being tested for hormonal 'normalcy' and given booster shots if the results indicate that the fetus is 'homosexual.'"
East German gays and lesbians recalled all too well that under capitalism, the fascist eugenics wing of biological determinism rose to power with Nazism. But in the GDR, Dorner's theories and the faction of science he represented did not prevail.
Klemm argued against drawing broad generalizations about human sexuality based on animal research. His eloquent elaboration of this position, clarifying even today, appeared in a 1975 article in Fur Dich, a women's magazine with the largest circulation in the GDR.
"It is one of many human achievements to have liberated sexuality from its function as biological reproduction and to have made it into an independent source of pleasure and life enrichment. Once we have acknowledged this and accepted the fundamentally human, and therefore social, function of sexuality, we must also grant that the source of pleasure cannot be set by biological criteria; the 'wrong' taste in pleasure cannot be declared a 'sickness' in need of treatment.
"Homosexuals suffer only in an intolerant milieu! Homosexuality is a form of 'deviance' only in terms of traditional sex-role concepts! Any halfway imaginative heterosexual couple deviates from the 'natural'–e.g., the sexual behavior of rats–just as much as a homosexual couple.
"It is therefore quite proper to doubt whether the problem of bi-, homo- or hyposexuality can be actually solved with a shot of hormones in the fourth month of pregnancy, or even should be. Changes in the traditional concept of sex roles are certainly the more correct and above all the humane approach, and these remarks are intended as a contribution to that goal." (Body Politic)
Steakley concluded in 1976 that these views by Dr. Klemm were "a sample of the progressive psychological standpoint which is becoming increasingly influential in the GDR. It is perhaps significant that the founding of the gay movement has come since 1971, when the government announced that the GDR had achieved the level of a 'developed socialist society' and could now begin to lay the groundwork for the transition to communism.
"Not just experts but gay people from all walks of life are playing a role in the broad, democratic discussion of the socialist personality and sexuality, feminism and the future of the family."
That was East Germany in the 1970s. But by the 1980s, efforts by the Com munist Party and the state created a historic milestone for same-sex emancipation.
Next: 1980s East Germany: stunning social gains in workers' state.
Reprinted from the Nov. 11, 2004, issue of Workers World newspaper
This article is copyright under a Creative Commons License.
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Lesbian, gay, bi and trans pride series part 29
By Leslie Feinberg
Originally Published Mar 23, 2005 1:39 PM
In the inhospitable social climate of the Cold War, struggles were taking root in the U.S. that would later flower in the gay and trans liberation movement of the late 1960s.
How was it possible, some may wonder today, for gays to have resisted and organized in the 1940s and 1950s when state repression and a reactionary ideological offensive were at their height?
In the war between exploiter and exploited, oppressor and oppressed, the relationship of forces may change many times, but those under siege never cease to find ways to struggle for their freedom.
Much of the history of the struggle for homosexual and gender and women's rights in the decades of greatest political repression has been buried under the reactionary weight of the Cold War propaganda machine. Under standing how the early stirrings of the homophile movement of the 1940s and 1950s began serves to arm today's movement, which has much greater opportunities for resistance against political reaction.
Also, the 1969 Stonewall Rebellion and the mass political wave of struggle it unleashed can seem almost accidental or episodic without a general overview of the acts of resistance and attempts to organize that preceded the four-night-long uprising.
The choice of language to describe these earlier decades is difficult. Similar words may be used to describe sex, love and affection with regard to different historical periods, economic classes, nationalities, ethnicities and regions. However, the ways people saw themselves and each other and the ways medical authorities, police, courts and military brass categorized and criminalized people and their behaviors have undergone many changes.
The world of same-sex love among many blue-collar and oppressed people in the first half of the century in the U.S. was intertwined with gender and sex variance—or what today might be referred to as transgender and transsexual. It's also hard to separate bisexuality from the exclusive expression of same-sex love in early periods.
Here "LGBT" will be used, not to stamp the past with a modern acronym that has come to symbolize a united front coalition of sexuality, gender and sex minorities, but to show the inability to parse the population into distinct categories.
Centralizing force of capitalism
The rise of the 1940s and 1950s homophile movement itself is hard to fathom without taking into account the awakening of LGBT people in the 1920s and 1930s. Material developments in life under capitalism made this not only possible in those early decades of the 20th century, but necessary.
By the end of the 19th century, Northern industrial capital and banking had consolidated its victory over the Southern slave-owning landed aristocracy. The overturning of Black Reconstruction through lynch "law" and Jim Crow fascist conditions had brought a violent end to an unfinished revolution. This created huge shifts in the population from agriculture to urban areas in search of jobs. In these vast, anonymous cities and port towns, with same-sex boarding houses and parks and piers, nascent LGBT subcultures took shape.
U.S. capitalism, unable to satiate its hunger for profits through domestic expansion alone, emerged as an imperialist power, exporting war for empire and profits to Cuba, Puerto Rico and the Philippines in 1898. A decade and a half later the world's imperialist powers dragged the workers into a gory struggle over redividing the world's colonies in the first World War.
The military deployment and wartime industry also pulled massive numbers of women and men from rural areas, small towns and cities into same-sex living conditions and new social conditions that broke down the old order.
It was workers' revolution that scared the imperialists into finally ending the war. The Cold War really began in the U.S. after the workers and peasants of Russia rose up in the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution and established the first lasting workers' state. The revolution reverberated around the globe, lifting the heads of laboring and oppressed peoples in every part of the world.
The communist government in Russia immediately struck down the anti-homosexual laws. In the U.S., however, the capitalist government made LGBT people one of the early targets of repression, along with communists, anarchists, trade unionists and immigrants.
Military witch hunt
In the spring of 1919, the brass at the Newport Naval Training Center covertly sent a group of young enlisted men into the base and the nearby community to lure "sexual perverts" and bring back evidence about "immoral conditions."
After entrapment had provided the necessary "evidence," naval and municipal officials rounded up more than 20 sailors and 16 civilians. They faced naval and civilian trials.
It was one thing when the dragnet ensnared enlisted sailors, mostly from the working class. But when a prominent minister from the Episcopal Church of Newport got caught in the nets, and civilian and later military officials forced him to stand trial, all hell broke loose.
"Protests by the Newport Ministerial Union and the Episcopal Bishop of Rhode Island and a vigorous editorial campaign by the Providence Journal forced the Navy to conduct a second inquiry in 1920 into the methods used in the first investigation," historian George Chauncey Jr. wrote.
"When the inquiry criticized the methods but essentially exonerated the senior naval officers who had instituted them, the ministers asked the Republican-controlled Senate Naval Affairs Committee to conduct its own investigation."
The Republicans agreed, eager to attack the Democratic administration.
The Senate committee issued its report in 1921. It exonerated the minister. Although the report, Chauncey noted, "expressed deep anti-homosexual loathing, it condemned the conduct of the highest naval officials involved, including Franklin D. Roosevelt, President Wilson's Assistant Secretary of the Navy and the 1920 Democratic vice-presidential candidate." ("Homosexual Identities and the Construction of Sexual Boundaries in the World War I Era")
Smoke, lilies and jade
The mass migrations to large cities, port towns and military bases in the 1920s and 1930s had created the basis for larger and more concentrated subcultures.
Chauncey provides evidence that LGBT life flourished more in the first third of the 20th century, particularly in the 1920s and 1930s, than it did after World War II.
He described same-sex love and gender variance in New York, one of the capitals of LGBT life, as "a working-class world, center ed in African American and Irish and Italian immigrant neighborhoods and along the city's busy waterfront, and drawing on the social forms of working-class culture."
The most visible, organized and eloquent LGBT expression in the pre-World War II era came from the Black movement in the United States.
As the Great Migration from the South to the North burgeoned into Black urban capitals, LGBT expression became a part of their histories.
Thousands attended LGBT balls in Harlem, Chicago, Baltimore and Wash ing ton, D.C., which were widely reported on in Black community newspapers.
In New York the balls were held at the Rockland Palace, the Astor Hotel and Mad ison Square Garden. The most famous was the annual Hamilton Lodge Ball in Har lem, which dated back to 1879. The majority of those who attended were working class. About 800 took part in 1925; 1,500 in 1937. Attendance peaked at 8,000 in 1937 before police raids shut it down.
Harlem was the heart of one of the great cultural and political high-water marks of U.S. history—the Harlem Renaissance—which ran from the end of World War I in 1918 until the capitalist depression.
This flowering of literature, art, music and political organizing—all of which was influenced by aspirations for national liberation and hope for an end to dreams deferred, sparked by the socialist revolution in Russia—also gave voice to LGBT concerns.
Richard Bruce Nugent, a self-identified gay man, published the classic "Smoke, Lilies and Jade" in 1926. It was the first known work by a Black author clearly about same-sex love. He said about LGBT life in Harlem during that period, "Nobody was in the closet. There wasn't any closets."
Next: German Homosexual Emancipation Movement inspired 1920s U.S. organizing.
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By Leslie Feinberg
Winds of change will fill the banners of Lesbian Gay Bi Trans Pride this June, lifting them to new heights.
After decades of fierce and unrelenting struggle, same-sex love has been effectively decriminalized and many gains have been won. Organizing, rolling civil disobedience has helped push back state denial of equal rights of same-sex couples–a form of institutionalized discrimination that is a pillar of class society.
Millions of lesbians, gay men, bisexuals and trans people across the United States will take to the streets in Pride events in cities and towns this June, as they do each year to recall and honor the 1969 Stone wall uprising against police repression. And millions of people of all nationalities, sexualities, genders and sexes will line the streets to applaud and cheer these celebrations of individual courage and collective struggle. The 1969 rebellion in New York's Green wich Village was led by the most oppressed of the LGBT communities–people of color, teenagers, transgender and transsexual, homeless, impoverished and so marginalized in the work force that prostitution was the only source of income for many. The uprising was the spark that ignited a large-scale movement. It galvanized quantitative fighting back into qualitative mass resistance. It did not develop in social isolation. The Stonewall Rebellion–which marked the birth of what became the modern LGBT movement–rose in the wake of social upheaval against imperialist war and rampant racist repression.
Marchers will draw on the lessons of how the left wing of early gay liberation found its way into the anti-war movement, took part in and defended the national liberation struggles, helped develop women's liberation, and took part in labor battles from the shop floor to organizing in support of the Chicano farm workers' union drive.
If they look to accurate historical accounts, today's activists will also find that the young gay liberation movement received support from the most revolutionary sectors of the political left wing.
More than three decades later, revisiting this dynamic historical period of struggle is an activist contribution to today's movement.
But it is less known to many today that the Stonewall Rebellion launched the second – not the first – mass movement for LGBT liberation. The first great wave of struggle to demand sexual and gender emancipation had taken place from 1869 to 1935. It began in Germany. It was a dynamic, expanding movement that grew to be international. And it left its mark on other social and political movements, as well as literature and the arts.
The history of the struggle in that period, as well, is rich with lessons.
Why not in France?
Why did the movement appear in Germany? And why in that epoch? It's impossible to glean a broad understanding without examining the social and economic soil in which the German movement for sexual and gender emancipation was rooted.
The widespread, murderous counter-revolutionary pogroms against women, transgender expression and same-sex love carried out by the Catholic and early Protestant hierarchies had subsided as the Industrial Revolution began sweeping away the kingdoms of Europe. The momentous revolution in France at the end of the 18th century–in which the downtrodden and disenfranchised of the cities, including many women, played a vitally important part–had uprooted the vestiges of the feudal power of the kings and the Catholic Church.
The French Revolution established a legal code, Napoleonic Code, which remov ed homosexual acts from the list of criminal offenses. Of course, state and church bias and demonization were not eradicated by formally removing the laws. Variations of sexuality, gender and sex continued to be subject to a political policy of divide and conquer. And a class-divided economy itself continued to pit segments of the work force against each other.
But the Napoleonic Code was the enlightened act of a young capitalist class that saw its role as righting the wrongs of feudal backwardness. And this decriminalizing of homosexual acts had far-reaching effects on other European nations. Why did the French Revolution remove anti-homosexual statutes while the capitalist revolutions in England and the United States did not?
The French Revolution was later, and more thorough, for sure. But the French capitalist class also had to battle the powerful and tenacious Catholic Church and its ideology. That may have impelled the revolutionists to have to carry out a more thorough " of the Church's "moral" authority than in the other countries.
So why didn't a sexual liberation movement arise in France? Why in Germany?
Because anti-gay repression was much stronger in Germany.
Prussian expansion set stage for battle
Germany in the late 1800s had a powerful industrial base. But it was weakened by the remaining constraints of feudalism. Germany had few colonies as a result.
Other European powers were colonizing the world, plundering from Africa to Australia. Asia and Africa were conquered by the British, French, Dutch and Belgian imperialist powers.
In many of these cultures, women still enjoyed significant societal rights; variance in sex, gender and sexuality were accepted and respected. But with bullets and bibles, the imperial patriarchs of wealth at the pinnacle of capital's expanding power conquered militarily and ideologically with their cultural values and property relations.
In North America, the fierce clash between the expansion of slavery and the expansion of Northern industrial capital was about to break out in the bloodiest battle of the 19th century–the Civil War. The victory of the North would set the stage for U.S. capital to begin its merciless globalization in search of greater profits.
But Germany was not unified enough to be a colonial contender – yet. It was fragmented into almost 300 different countries.
While several of these had no laws against same-sex love, Prussia did. And it was Prussia that was devouring all the other German states except Hanover.
Next: The love that dared to speak its name
Reprinted from the June 3, 2004, issue of Workers World newspaper
Creative Commons License This article is copyrighted under a Creative Commons License.
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Well, I definitely need to make this about 350 times.
Roasted Sweet Potato & Chickpea Salad
Best when fresh, though leftovers will keep covered separately for 2-3 days.
Can we stop calling China a communist state, now, please? This is what barely-regulated capitalism actually looks like, in practice.
The evident disarray of Chinese policymakers, combined with a growth of labor unrest and discontent fueled by events such as the Tianjin warehouse explosion, is stoking concerns in corporate boardrooms and imperialist governments over the political stability of the regime, on which they have relied to ensure high profits based on poverty-level wages and intense exploitation of Chinese workers.


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JOHN 15:9-15 (NKJV) --JESUS is speaking--
9) "As the Father has loved Me, I also have loved you: abide in My love.
10) "If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love. 11) "These things have I spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. 12) "This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13) "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends. 14) "You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. 15) "No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from my Father, I have made known to you."
The above verses from the Gospel of JOHN, spoken by JESUS to His disciples (and to us) just before His crucifixion, say so much to mankind about what GOD wants for us, and it is not the least bit confusing is it.
- GOD loves His Son, JESUS.
- JESUS loves us in the same way.
- If we love THEM, we will abide in THEIR love by keeping THEIR commandments.
- JESUS told them (and tells us thru the Bible) what we need so our joy can be complete!
- The command is to love one another as JESUS loved us.
- That great love was shown in HIS giving HIS life for HIS friends.
- They (and we are) HIS friends if they (we) do whatever HE commands.
- We know (as did they) we are HIS friends because HE has made known everything HE heard from HIS FATHER to them (and us thru the Bible).
The love of GOD is what mankind needs to have true peace of mind and heart. His love enables us to face eternity with an assurance of joy in heaven with GOD, His Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Come worship and study GOD's revealed WORD with us. Our goal is be with God for eternity. Let's help each other reach that goal.


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tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3995806.post6215246737837251497..comments2019-12-13T22:07:37.344-07:00Comments on DearMYRTLE's Genealogy Blog: Myrt's Webinar: Blogging for Beginners 20 Oct 2010DearMYRTLEhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3995806.post-53612257080490709502010-10-10T15:00:33.935-06:002010-10-10T15:00:33.935-06:00DearCAROL, THANKS for your comment. I couldn't...DearCAROL,
THANKS for your comment. I couldn't agree more about the SHARING of info among genealogists.

By definition, a one hour class on any topic cannot possibly discuss ALL options. I am sorry you don't like the settings I've chosen using Blogger.com.

The really great news is that there is nothing preventing those who comment from inserting their name and URL with their response to a blog entry.

Myrt :)Myrthttps://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-3995806.post-41033103939848083782010-10-10T10:43:39.445-06:002010-10-10T10:43:39.445-06:00Pat, will you be teaching the new bloggers to enab...Pat, will you be teaching the new bloggers to enable ALL comment options on their blogs? They can still have comment filtering, but genealogy is much about sharing of information and if they limit who can comment and how, they might just miss out on connecting with a cousin or two. Wait! I can't even comment here with my name/url. Would you please enable firstname.lastname@example.com


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What does faith mean to you? Do you have a faith? (i.e. a religion, or something you believe in like karma)
I don't know… I understand that we are, and everything is fundamentally one. Faith is the trust in something with incomplete evidence. But what if we had an inherent knowing?
What does spirituality mean to you?
The idea of spirituality, at it's essence, is the encompassment of everything. It is all-that-is, put into a single word.
How do you bring it into practice?
By spittin' some serious truths to ya.
Two years ago from now where did you think you would be?
Finishing my BFA and hating life in the system!!!
How does that differ from where you are now?
Exactly two years ago, my life shifted so drastically it blows my mind. I live in california tryna save this damn planet but it's seriously hard.
Where do you think you will be in another year?
Wow I really couldn't say, my life is so sporadic
Are you who you want to be?
I'm constantly shifting, growing and changing; so yeah but I strive really hard for intense personal growth and accountability?? lol
Who is that person?
What does your work mean to you?
Ok I used to make dark, experimental films as I was "awakening" and was quite angry with the world. And now… I'm at the other end of spectrum.
How have you grown/learned from it?
It made me who I am today. I had a lot of experiences during high school as I majored in film, that were fundamental in my mental/emotional development.
What has been the best learning experience for you?
I feel like the people in my life are some of the greatest sources for my learning experiences
What are your expectations for yourself?
I have really high expectations, like, I try to own my shit. It's easy to point out the fault in others without doing your own accounting first. I try to be a demonstration of balance and take responsibility for my actions.
Do you meet them?
Not all the time, it's hard to catch yourself in real time.
How do you think people see you?
I used to intimidate people so much, I was quite unfriendly and standoffish. Now, I'll like smile at you on the street and try to always come from a place of genuine, nonjudgemental understanding. But I don't spend time around people who don't understand me.
What do you think are others expectations for you?
My mom wants me to go to school, and people all want me to do what THEY think is right for me. I have a pretty unusual life.
How do you see yourself?
I don't know… I'm honest and like to help people remember they're actually infinite beings of light, no big deal.
How does this compare to how you would like to be seen?
I don't want to be seen in any specific way; just see me for who I AM.
What do you consider your "flaws"? Why?
I can be defensive sometimes and I have shitty posture
How have they hindered you?
Honestly my back kills all the time
Do you think you're someone others can/do look up to?
Yeah I wanna save the world so
What are you passionate about?
Literally saving the world, filmmaking, cats, telling yo ass aliens are real and also I'm a cat alien.
What about yourself/your life are you most proud of?
I don't know… As a child I knew this world was upside down and have a really specific purpose in helping shift it
Do you think it is more important to try and make an impact in the world at large, or in your own world? Why?
Booooth. It sort of happens simultaneously
Do you believe that your work is making an impact on the world?
Just go look at Spirit Science
What are some of your dreams?
For everyone to live in crystal cities that grow from the Earth with a heightened awareness that surpasses the 3D. Yep.
Are they things you work towards, or things that you hope for?
Literally working towards it… Have to start at the bottom
What "words of wisdom" do you live by? Why?
Just be yourself™ Namaste™
Describe your relationship with yourself.
I make myself laugh
What do you think it means to love?
To surpass physicality, honestly.
Is this reflective of your experiences with your relationships (including with yourself) or based off an ideal you are working towards achieving?
I'm getting there 😉
What do you think it means to be kind to yourself?
To take a freakin' epsom salt and lavender infused bath every once and awhile and be real with yourself.
How does this compare to how we are kind to others?
We should definitely all take epsom salt baths together.
What do you want from your life?
I don't know if I want anything FROM it, but what I want to do with it is be an example of light in the world.
Describe your relationship with your art.
Art is subjective, it is literally anything, all you have to do is deem it so.
What inspires you?
Weirdos on the subway, people who create and have motion, and when people are passionate.
How has your art brought about an understanding of yourself/your world?
I like to get a reaction out of people, I like to see energy and make a connection with the audience
What, for you, is the hardest emotion? Why?
I think its hard for me and everyone to show a level of humility.
What for you is the significance of creating?
It's the sacred act of bringing down a concept from your imagination, the ether; and physically anchoring down on this plane as a demonstration of how powerful we are. ;)))
To see Lexie's videography work you can check it out here on our youtube page


text:
Winter season is just around the corner and with it blustery cold winds and drafty cold conditions. If your home's windows are not properly sealed then energy efficency suffers and uncomfortable conditions inside your home near the windows may exist. Some of your local home inspection companies can perform energy audits on your home's current energy performance. What is detailed in the audit report is where throughout the home energy loss is identified and what steps you can take to improve and remedy the situation. Today we are going to focus on what you can do if you know your windows are in need of some energy efficiency upgrades without the hefty costs of replacing windows.
The following are some tips from your local Home Inspector Albuquerque of one of the frequently often asked questions by our customers. How do I protect my windows from cold weather? Did you know that a properly insulated window can save you up to 15% on your annual energy usage? It will typically cost you 5 to 7 dollars per window to properly insulate for winter.
First, we will go over what you can do to inspect the outside of your windows. You will want to check where the window trim meets the wall around the whole perimeter. If there are any gaps present you are going to want to seal the gaps with a silicone based outdoor caulk around the window trim and wall. If you have storm windows in front of your normal windows you will want to check the integrity of the weather stripping on the bottom and top sills. If the stripping is brittle or torn in any place we recommend replacing that as well. Once the weather stripping is replaced shut the storm windows for the season. When both of these outdoor issues are completed we will then address the interior window.
Inside the house we will want to check again where the window trim meets the interior wall. If you feel any drafts or you see open gaps you will want to seal those areas as well. You can find paintable or clear silicone caulk for the interior of your home at the hardware store, if you you do not want to see the actual caulk. Next, we will want to check the weather stripping on the indoor sills and make sure that it's integrity is in good shape. If not, we will want to replace that interior weather stripping as well. There are a variety of weather stripping products out there that can be used, some last longer than others and some are more resilient. Most Albuquerque Home Inspectors have a general knowledge of which products may best serve your need and budget, all you got to do is just ask. Once the weather stripping has been replaced on the interior window sills then we shut the window and feel for any drafts that may still be coming from the sides of the windows where the windows meet the window frame. If so, then we recommend using a rope removable caulk that can be placed on the length of sides of the windows where they meet the window frame. Having taken these steps you should have a pretty well sealed window from any outdoor cold drafts.
There is one more step you can take to really lock in some energy efficiency. You can get a weather window kit also at your local hardware store that is inexpensive and easy to install over the whole interior window. Once this clear see through plastic covering is installed correctly over the window it creates a dead air space between it and your newly insulated windows providing the insulation protection and energy efficiency that will help save you money and keep you warm and cozy throughout the cold weather months.
For a more elegant and old school approach you can always purchase some designer drapes and insulated curtains to help with keeping the draft and cool air out of the living space. For more energy saving tips you may want to check out www.energystar.gov
Call 505-333-4041 to Schedule your home inspection TODAY! Or visit http://www.homeinspectoralbuquerque.com/contact.html
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Write something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview.
February 2019


text:
Transmissible Mink Encephalopathy TME
Gerald Wells: Report of the Visit to USA, April-May 1989
The general opinion of those present was that BSE, as an
overt disease phenomenon, _could exist in the USA, but if it did,
it was very rare. The need for improved and specific surveillance
methods to detect it as recognised...
It is clear that USDA have little information and _no_ regulatory
responsibility for rendering plants in the US...
3. Prof. A. Robertson gave a brief account of BSE. The US approach
was to accord it a _very low profile indeed_. Dr. A Thiermann showed
the picture in the ''Independent'' with cattle being incinerated and thought
this was a fanatical incident to be _avoided_ in the US _at all costs_...
snip...please read this old full text document !
Sunday, December 10, 2006
Transmissible Mink Encephalopathy TME Subject: In Confidence - Perceptions of unconventional slow virus diseases of animals in the USA - APRIL-MAY 1989 - G A H Wells
Gerald Wells: Report of the Visit to USA, April-May 1989
The general opinion of those present was that BSE, as an overt disease phenomenon, _could exist in the USA, but if it did, it was very rare. The need for improved and specific surveillance methods to detect it as recognised...
It is clear that USDA have little information and _no_ regulatory responsibility for rendering plants in the US...
3. Prof. A. Robertson gave a brief account of BSE. The US approach was to accord it a _very low profile indeed_. Dr. A Thiermann showed the picture in the ''Independent'' with cattle being incinerated and thought this was a fanatical incident to be _avoided_ in the US _at all costs_...
snip...please read this old full text document !
To be published in the Proceedings of the Fourth International Scientific Congress in Fur Animal Production. Toronto, Canada, August 21-28, 1988
Evidence That Transmissible Mink Encephalopathy Results from Feeding Infected Cattle
R.F. Marsh* and G.R. Hartsough
•Department of Veterinary Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 53706; and ^Emba/Creat Lakes Ranch Service, Thiensville, Wisconsin 53092
Epidemiologic investigation of a new incidence of transmissible mink encephalopathy (TME) in Stetsonville, Wisconsin suggests that the disease may have resulted from feeding infected cattle to mink. This observation is supported by the transmission of a TME-like disease to experimentally inoculated cattle, and by the recent report of a new bovine spongiform encephalopathy in England.
Transmissible mink encephalopathy (TME) was first reported in 1965 by Hartsough and Burger who demonstrated that the disease was transmissible with a long incubation period, and that affected mink had a spongiform encephalopathy similar to that found in scrapie-affecied sheep (Hartsough and Burger, 1965; Burger and Hartsough, 1965). Because of the similarity between TME and scrapie, and the subsequent finding that the two transmissible agents were indistinguishable (Marsh and Hanson, 1969), it was concluded that TME most likely resulted from feeding mink scrapie-infecied sheep. The experimental transmission of sheep scrapie to mink (Hanson et al., 1971) confirmed the close association of TME and scrapie, but at the same time provided evidence that they may be different. Epidemiologic studies on previous incidences of TME indicated that the incubation periods in field cases were between six months and one year in length (Harxsough and Burger, 1965). Experimentally, scrapie could not be transmitted to mink in less than one year. To investigate the possibility that TME may be caused by a (particular strain of scrapie which might be highly pathogenic for mink, 21 different strains of the scrapie agent, including their sheep or goat sources, were inoculated into a total of 61 mink. Only one mink developed a progressive neurologic disease after an incubation period of 22 mon..s (Marsh and Hanson, 1979). These results indicated that TME was either caused by a strain of sheep scrapie not yet tested, or was due to exposure to a scrapie-like agent from an unidentified source.
A New Incidence of TME. In April of 1985, a mink rancher in Stetsonville, Wisconsin reported that many of his mink were "acting funny", and some had died. At this time, we visited the farm and found that approximately 10% of all adult mink were showing typical signs of TME: insidious onset characterized by subtle behavioral changes, loss of normal habits of cleanliness, deposition of droppings throughout the pen rather than in a single area, hyperexcitability, difficulty in chewing and swallowing, and tails arched over their _backs like squirrels. These signs were followed by progressive deterioration of neurologic function beginning with locomoior incoordination, long periods of somnolence in which the affected mink would stand motionless with its head in the corner of the cage, complete debilitation, and death. Over the next 8-10 weeks, approximately 40% of all the adult mink on the farm died from TME. Since previous incidences of TME were associated with common or shared feeding practices, we obtained a careful history of feed ingredients used over the past 12-18 months. The rancher was a "dead stock" feeder using mostly (>95%) downer or dead dairy cattle and a few horses. Sheep had never been fed.
Experimental Transmission.
The clinical diagnosis of TME was confirmed by histopaihologic examination and by experimental transmission to mink after incubation periods of four months. To investigate the possible involvement of cattle in this disease cycle, two six-week old castrated Holstein bull calves were inoculated intracerebrally with a brain suspension from affected mink. Each developed a fatal spongiform encephalopathy after incubation periods of 18 and 19 months.
These findings suggest that TME may result from feeding mink infected cattle and we have alerted bovine practitioners that there may exist an as yet unrecognized scrapie-like disease of cattle in the United States (Marsh and Hartsough, 1986). A new bovine spongiform encephalopathy has recently been reported in England (Wells et al., 1987), and investigators are presently studying its transmissibility and possible relationship to scrapie. Because this new bovine disease in England is characterized by behavioral changes, hyperexcitability, and agressiveness, it is very likely it would be confused with rabies in the United Stales and not be diagnosed. Presently, brains from cattle in the United States which are suspected of rabies infection are only tested with anti-rabies virus antibody and are not examined histopathologically for lesions of spongiform encephalopathy.
We are presently pursuing additional studies to further examine the possible involvement of cattle in the epidemiology of TME. One of these is the backpassage of our experimental bovine encephalopathy to mink. Because (here are as yet no agent- specific proteins or nucleic acids identified for these transmissible neuropathogens, one means of distinguishing them is by animal passage and selection of the biotype which grows best in a particular host. This procedure has been used to separate hamster- adapted and mink-udapted TME agents (Marsh and Hanson, 1979). The intracerebral backpassage of the experimental bovine agent resulted in incubations of only four months indicating no de-adaptation of the Stetsonville agent for mink after bovine passage. Mink fed infected bovine brain remain normal after six months. It will be essential to demonstrate oral transmission fiom bovine to mink it this proposed epidemiologic association is to be confirmed.
These studies were supported by the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison and by a grant (85-CRCR-1-1812) from the United States Department of Agriculture. The authors also wish to acknowledge the help and encouragement of Robert Hanson who died during the course of these investigations.
Burger, D. and Hartsough, G.R. 1965. Encephalopathy of mink. II. Experimental and natural transmission. J. Infec. Dis. 115:393-399. Hanson, R.P., Eckroade, R.3., Marsh, R.F., ZuRhein, C.M., Kanitz, C.L. and Gustatson, D.P. 1971. Susceptibility of mink to sheep scrapie. Science 172:859-861. Hansough, G.R. and Burger, D. 1965. Encephalopathy of mink. I. Epizoociologic and clinical observations. 3. Infec. Dis. 115:387-392. Marsh, R.F. and Hanson, R.P. 1969. Physical and chemical properties of the transmissible mink encephalopathy agent. 3. ViroL 3:176-180. Marsh, R.F. and Hanson, R.P. 1979. On the origin of transmissible mink encephalopathy. In Hadlow, W.J. and Prusiner, S.P. (eds.) Slow transmissible diseases of the nervous system. Vol. 1, Academic Press, New York, pp 451-460. Marsh, R.F. and Hartsough, G.R. 1986. Is there a scrapie-like disease in cattle? Proceedings of the Seventh Annual Western Conference for Food Animal Veterinary Medicine. University of Arizona, pp 20. Wells, G.A.H., Scott, A.C., Johnson, C.T., Cunning, R.F., Hancock, R.D., Jeffrey, M., Dawson, M. and Bradley, R. 1987. A novel progressive spongiform encephalopathy in cattle. Vet. Rec. 121:419-420.
In Confidence - Perceptions of unconventional slow virus diseases
of animals in the USA - APRIL-MAY 1989 - G A H Wells
Title: Experimental Transmission of Transmissible Mink Encephalopathy (Tme) to Cattle by Intracerebral Inoculation
Subject: USA MINK FARMS AND TSE TESTING ???
Date: July 15, 2006 at 5:52 am PST
Pelt Production Up 3 Percent Mink pelt production in the United States in 2005 totaled 2.63 million pelts, up 3 percent from 2004. Wisconsin, the largest mink producing State, produced 778,000 pelts. Utah the second largest producing State, produced 600,000 pelts. The number of pelts by color class as a percent of the total U.S.production in 2005 is as follows: Black at 47.6 percent, Mahogany at 20.9 percent, Blue Iris at 11.3 percent, Demi/Wild at 6.3 percent, Sapphire at 4.0 percent, and White at 3.8 percent. The remaining color classes accounted for 6.1 percent. Value of Pelt Production Up 33 Percent Mink pelts produced during the 2005 crop year were valued at $160 million, up 33 percent from $120 million a year ago. The average price per pelt for the 2005 crop year was $60.90, up from $47.10 in 2004. .....snip.......end
3.9.11 Mink Producers Mink offal is now rendered with other species and will decline in value under the first four regulatory options.
2.8 PROFILE OF MINK PRODUCERS Mink are raised for their pelts and oil. Most mink farmers kill and pelt their own animals once a year near the end of November or in early December. Once the pelts are removed, the fat is then scrapped from the hide. This fat is used to manufacture mink oil that is sought for cosmetic uses because of its hypoallergenic qualities and in leather treatments. The total value of mink production in 1995 was $143 million, an increase of 72 percent from 1994. In 1995, 446 mink farms produced a total of 2.69 million pelts (NASS, 1996b). Mink producers vary in size but most are small operations. Mink farming is concentrated in Utah (130 2-11 farms), Wisconsin (77 farms), and Minnesota (52 farms). There has been recent consolidation within the industry, with the number of farms decreasing by 8 percent from 1993 to 1994 and 3 percent from 1994 to 1995. The market price for mink pelts is subject to wide demand fluctuations based on fashion and weather. Once the pelt and fat are removed, the entire carcass is then rendered. Mink carcasses sent to rendering (minus the pelt and fat) weigh an average of 2.5 pounds, so the total estimated offal produced per year is 6.7 million pounds. Mink farmers are reported to have difficulty with getting renderers to pick-up their material because of its low volume and the infrequency of offal generation.
WHAT sort of TME surveillance program is in place now, if any??? DO they test for TSE in Mink and what are these figures if so ???
ONE FINAL COMMENT PLEASE, (i know this is long Dr. Freas but please bare with me)
THE USA is in a most unique situation, one of unknown circumstances with human and animal TSE. THE USA has the most documented TSE in different species to date, with substrains growing in those species (BSE/BASE in cattle and CWD in deer and elk, there is evidence here with different strains), and we know that sheep scrapie has over 20 strains of the typical scrapie with atypical scrapie documented and also BSE is very likely to have passed to sheep. all of which have been rendered and fed back to animals or human and animal consumption, a frightening scenario. WE do not know the outcome, and to play with human life around the globe with the very likely TSE tainted blood from the USA, in my opinion is like playing Russian roulette, of long duration, with potential long and enduring consequences, of which once done, cannot be undone.
These are the facts as i have come to know through daily and extensive research of TSE over 9 years, since 12/14/97. I do not pretend to have all the answers, but i do know to continue to believe in the ukbsenvcjd only theory of transmission to humans of only this one strain from only this one TSE from only this one part of the globe, will only lead to further failures, and needless exposure to humans from all strains of TSE, and possibly many more needless deaths from TSE via a multitude of proven routes and sources via many studies with primates and rodents and other species. ...
Terry S. Singeltary Sr.
P.O. Box 42
Bacliff, Texas USA 77518
Labels: PRION, TME, TRANSMISSIBLE SPONGIFORM ENCEPHALOPATHY


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The life lab
Coaching session
1 "I need someone to hold me to account"
Sally* was a successful entrepreneur. She had been voted local businesswoman of the year and laughed as she told me she was a 'minor celebrity' where she lived. She loved life. She was 'happily divorced' and had great relationships with her adult children. She socialised a lot, had a penchant for Champagne, belonged to a walking group and did amateur dramatics. I was entranced by Sally. She seemed to have her life 'sorted'.


text:
Listen to this letter of apology:
"Dear Dog,
I am so sorry about you being sent to the dog pound for the broken lamp which you did not break; the fish you did not spill; and the carpet that you did not wet; or the wall that you did not dirty with red paint...
Things here at the house are calmer now, and just to show you that I have no hard feelings towards you, I am sending you a picture, so you will always remember me.
Best regards, The Cat"
The Old French root of the word "repent" is "repentir," which actually means to be sorry. The cat may have said he was sorry, but there is no sorrow here.
It reminds of me of the story of a woman with fourteen children, ages one through fourteen, who decided to sue her husband for divorce on grounds of desertion. "When did he desert you?" the judge asked. "Thirteen years ago," she replied. "He left 13 years ago? Where did all the children come from?" The woman looked sheepish. "He kept coming back to say he was sorry."
Again, no sorrow here, for if he'd been truly sorry, he'd have stayed. Sincere repentance always leads to change.
We need to learn how to make a GOOD APOLOGY -- one that is sincere and honest. One that gets the job done. Offering a good apology is not something many people do well. But we can learn.
It is well said that a good apology has three parts: I am sorry; it is my fault; what can I do to make it right?
I am sorry. Three short words that, when they are heart-felt, can be most difficult to say. But when uttered, they can change lives.
It is my fault. No excuses. No blame. Psychologist Carl Jung insightfully said, "The only person I cannot help is one who blames others." When we accept fault we have the power to do something about it. When we pass the blame, we are helpless to keep it from happening again.
What can I do to make it right? Unless we change something, nothing changes. A good apology is followed by action. Otherwise, it is only words.
If you are going to apologize, apologize well. Never ruin your apology with an excuse and back it up with action.
Learning how to make a good apology is too important to neglect. It's part of maintaining whole and healthy relationships. And it's something we can practice today.
– Steve Goodier
A Good Apology
Listen to this letter of apology:
Success Tax
I have learned something about success: I have learned that it comes with a tax.
Achieve your dreams, they say. Anything you want can come your way. Nothing to it, they say. Just follow a simple system and anything and everything can be yours. Not so. There is a tax you pay to get what you want, whether you want more income, healthier relationships, emotional satisfaction, spiritual growth or a well-lived life. It is called dedication.
Orson Welles once said, "My doctor has advised me to give up those intimate little dinners for four, unless, of course, there are three other people eating with me." Some people will tell you that you can lose 25 or 50 pounds in just weeks. It's easy, they say. Not so. Andy Rooney observed that the two biggest sellers in any bookstore are cookbooks and diet books. "Cookbooks tell you how to prepare the food and diet books tell you how not to eat any of it." If it were easy to lose weight, who'd buy the books?
Some people will tell you that you can have the body of an athlete, or the Incredible Hulk or a fashion model (assuming that's what you want). It's quick and simple, they say. Not so. It is never easy to succeed at difficult goals. There is a tax, and that tax is called dedication.
Do you want to excel at a sport, play a musical instrument well or become an accomplished artist? One man was lost in New York City. He poked his head into a taxi cab and asked the driver, "How do you get to Yankee Stadium?" The driver responded, "Practice, practice, practice." You want to become really good at something you enjoy? You probably can. But there is a tax to pay and that tax is called dedication.
Many of us would like closer relationships with a spouse or a child or with friends. There are never guarantees, but I promise that those relationships will suffer without dedication. When they were small, I wanted to figure out how to be closer to my young boys. And I noticed what the problem was...I wasn't spending enough high-quality, significant time with them. So, in addition to my other parental activities, I decided that I would take one of them out for breakfast every week. Just the two of us. For me it was alone time with one child. For my sons, it was a chance to get Dad all by himself -- with no distractions.
I scheduled the breakfast dates a few days in advance. Some weeks it seemed like more of a nuisance and I was tempted to skip. Some weeks we didn't have the money. Some weeks I had an unusually busy day ahead and believed I just didn't have the time. But it was a high priority. I dedicated myself to it and, regardless of good reasons to cancel, I made it happen anyway. (And if truth be told, my sons wouldn't let me skip -- they looked forward to eating food they usually didn't get at home.) As I now figure it, I had breakfast alone with one of my children over 500 times. It became a time for listening and talking and bonding; never a time for correcting and persuading (those were the ground rules). As I look back, I made plenty of mistakes as a father, but if I had it to do over again, I would still do the breakfasts.
We pay a tax to succeed at anything worthwhile. That tax is called dedication, and here's the most wonderful part. Once you pay it, once you truly dedicate yourself to something important, you'll find the price was worth it.
– Steve Goodier
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