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In our recent UK consumer survey we uncovered evidence of a quiet revolution in retail banking: 1 in 4 under 37s have confirmed they are using digital-only challenger banks and 14% of UK bank customers across all age groups have at least one mobile-only digital banking provider.
The market for current accounts is highly active, with many people having two or more bank accounts and being open to trying out more. Banks which offer easy account opening and a high-quality mobile user experience stand to attract customers away from any incumbents which lack offerings that appeal to digitally demanding modern consumers.
The rise of new challengers in banking cannot be ignored, since they are fast to gain market share and represent a direct competitive threat to all three kinds of current account provider already in the market:
- The larger established UK banks have been accustomed to owning the lion's share of retail current account business, but their dominant position is being rapidly eroded. For example, Barclays have 7 million active mobile banking users, but Monzo, which received its banking licence in April 2017, already has 1.3 million users, having more than doubled in the past year;
- Smaller UK banks and building societies are looking at digital services to streamline their business model and attract new customers: however, the bar has been raised a lot higher by the digital challengers;
- Established international banks looking to build market share in the UK are facing consumers with expectations around user experience that are often more demanding than found in their home markets.
Here are three strategic insights we've developed from our market research in order to guide our clients in addressing the challenge and becoming more competitive.
1 – Banking is now a consumer brand battleground.
With an explosion of choice and plenty of options offering rapid app-based onboarding, the bank account has now been pulled into the mainstream of consumer marketing. New customers can be attracted to sign up on impulse, making branding and incentives highly influential.
But customers who sign up quickly, perhaps only out of curiosity or chasing perks, need to be given reasons to stick around. Banks and financial services will need to keep customers engaged and aware of the benefits they get from loyalty, since they are getting ever more demanding and more fickle.
How can banks improve? Integrate product design and development with marketing, with a shared aim of understanding customers better, and establish a technology stack that enables you to get new solutions to your customers faster and learn from their feedback.
2 – Banking is not an exclusive brand relationship.
Banking is starting to look less like a lifelong brand choice, and more like consumer products, with quality and perks determining how long people stay loyal. Even in the best cases, consumers aren't going to view all their money matters as naturally exclusive to one "main" bank any more.
Empowered by plenty of new options, people are picking and choosing the best they can get out of a range of financial services, including non-bank fintechs. Digital specialists are offering focused customer experience improvements in a whole range of areas where customers traditionally went to their bank, e.g. mortgages, savings, and flexible investments.
For the retail banking user, it's getting easier to take a modular approach, and there are more advantages to flexibility than there are to exclusivity.
What strategy should banks adopt? Don't design features and services on the assumption that you are the customer's "main bank" where you own all their mind space. Accelerate efforts to use open banking APIs proactively to offer high-quality integrations. Look at the fintech ecosystem as an opportunity to enrich customers' experience with the bank.
It seems paradoxical, but the more a bank tries to hold on to its customers in a closed experience, the less loyal they will become, and the opposite is true. Customers will appreciate a bank that offers a flexible open banking platform in which they can orchestrate their financial life with an individual mix of third party services.
3 – A customer's oldest bank account is not their "main" bank account if they are not actively using it.
What is a customer's "main" bank account? It's not clear any more that this means the same thing to everyone. Traditionally, a "main" current account is defined as where someone gets their salary paid into. But if all their daily transactions are made and tracked through a mobile challenger account, maybe this is better viewed as their "main" account, if we judge by engagement. Engagement is what matters when it comes to having a profitable customer base.
Engagement means data. If a bank's customer is constantly logging in to check balances, make payments, and calculate savings goals, the bank has a better chance of understanding who they are and what they need. Customer understanding is a prerequisite to delivering a customer-centric service and thus delivering offers and services that are profitable and keep customers loyal.
Competitive strategy shift: Don't measure customer base by a simplistic count of how many accounts are open. Consider how actively the accounts are being used. Measure growth and retention of banking customers by frequency and quality of engagement with mobile and digital services.
Your digital banking platform should enable you to look at this using anonymous aggregated analytics, and peer group benchmarking so you can personalise notifications and offers based on users' financial means and lifestyle.
Building a competitive strategy on an open banking platform
At CREALOGIX, our clients partner with us in order to gain an edge in the increasingly competitive consumer space of digital banking:
- Keep existing clients loyal by providing the digital user experience they expect.
- Match the competitive attraction of new challenger / fintech services by bringing features to market quickly and effectively matched to individuals' lifestyles and preferences.
- Lead the market by establishing a platform on which you continuously bring to market forward-thinking and creative solutions centred on customers' needs.
To find out more about how CREALOGIX creates digital leaders in retail banking, visit https://crealogix.com/uk/sectors/retail-banking/ and contact us to set up a call.


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Fédération Ski Nautique et Planche Québec
2019 Membership Application
When: Tue, 01-Jan-2019 - Tue, 31-Dec-2019
Québec Waterski and Wakeboard Federation
2019 Membership Application
For detailed information about membership benefits, please visit the association's website at www.skinautiqueetplanchequebec.qc.ca
Individual Membership: $ 45.00
Family Membership: $ 70.00
Membership fee includes insurance with Waterski and Wakeboard Canada.
If you have any questions, please contact the association at the number or email address listed below.
The Federation and CRS offer:
Join and Save with a boat insurance!
Insurance P. Morin: 514-634-7115
Exclusive to members: "Smart Tow" smart pull "
Just call for a quote!
Click 'Sign Up Now' to Proceed.
Sign up before:
Tue, 31-Dec-2019 22:00
Fédération Ski Nautique et Planche Québec
Tel: (514) 252-3092
Email: Click here
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subset: commoncrawl


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Grow your own organic garden!
Event has passed
Grow Your Own Organic Garden
Sponsored by MOFGA
Instructor: Mary Linda Raplye
Are you interested in learning how to grow your own vegetables in a sustainable manner? Join us for a one-night workshop on how to grow organically. We'll talk about the basics of soil science and how to enrich your soil to produce healthy, high-yielding plants. The course will also cover the fundamentals of making and using compost, the principles of crop rotation, and how to incorporate green manures to manage nutrients in the garden. Other topics will include how to tell the difference between cultivated plants and weeds, basic weed control strategies, and cultural methods of dealing with pests. The instructor is an experienced gardener and will send you home with free seeds! All are welcome, from first-timers to experienced gardeners who want to experiment with new techniques.
April 3 5:30-8:30 pm
call Adult Ed at 633-3224 to enroll


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With this step-by-step recipe, you can easily prepare a homemade flatbread pizza to enjoy at lunch or dinner or to serve as an appetizer.
This simple flatbread pizza crust is prepared with wholemeal flour, extra virgin olive oil, and unrefined brown sugar.
To make the flatbread pizza crispy you just need to heat a drizzle of oil in a skillet and cook the flatbread for at least three minutes until golden on both sides.
This flatbread dough recipe is very simple, and it requires just one hour to rest under a cloth to rise into a soft dough.
Once you have prepared this wholemeal flatbread, you can use different ingredients as toppings and here we suggest using smoked salmon strips and basil pesto. You can get ready-made pesto, but we recommend you make your own pesto as it's super simple and it will taste so much better.
This smoked salmon and pesto flatbread pizza is a healthy and balanced meal with 300kcal, fibres and good fats like omega-3 from salmon and monounsaturated fats from olive oil.
You can store the wholemeal pizza crusts in an airtight container for 3 days.
NOTE: the default ingredients yield 3 flatbreads and one serving consists of one flatbread.


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Problem solve
Get help with specific problems with your technologies, process and projects.
Mobile Synchronization
Know when to allow mobile device backup
Mobile devices enrolled in MDM platforms should only be backed up in certain situations. Here's a rundown of what IT should allow in COPE, BYOD and COBO scenarios. Continue Reading
What problems occur with Intune app protection for Outlook?
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How to track mobile app performance metrics
Developers that don't track mobile app health will get little insight into the user experience. Learn these effective strategies to track and understand mobile app performance metrics. Continue Reading
Pop quiz: Do you know the best mobile security techniques?
Do you know the significance of changing from a four-digit passcode to a six-digit one? Test all your IT knowledge on this mobile security quiz. Continue Reading
Modern Mobility Innovation Awards: Four mobile projects triumph
The Modern Mobility Innovation Awards recognize four creative and successful enterprise mobile projects. These initiatives took advantage of everything from managed services to advanced app development techniques to mobile backend as a service. ... Continue Reading
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Telstra's implementation of Kony wins a Modern Mobility Innovation Award because it relied on user feedback to build a productivity-boosting HR mobile app.Continue Reading
Three ways to help users access mobile data
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Three ways to provide mobile data access
Mobile workers need access to corporate data, and every business must choose a method that meets its users' needs. Questions about security and offline capabilities are at the core of any discussion about providing mobile data access. Offline or not...Continue Reading
EFSS combats consumer cloud storage risks
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Mobile content management software, EFSS protect data in the cloud era
Thanks to mobile and cloud computing, the number of potential repositories for corporate data have increased exponentially. Traditional file storage systems, content management software and device-centric security measures can only do so much to ...Continue Reading
MBaaS links mobile apps with legacy infrastructure
In this podcast, we chat with the CEO of MBaaS provider Kinvey about why he thinks MBaaS is key to keeping up with modern mobility.Continue Reading
Deploying cloud file-sharing services: Five steps to success
Start your file-sharing implementation by doing a pilot and testing other systems that integrate with your cloud service.Continue Reading
Why authentication, registration are keys to cloud-based file sharing
When you implement cloud-based file sharing, make sure to establish authentication controls and register user devices.Continue Reading
Making consumer cloud storage work for your business
With these three models of cloud storage, find the best way to implement file-sharing services in your corporate environment.Continue Reading
What Dropbox for Business has to offer admins and users
Dropbox for Business gives IT granular control over users' file sharing and storage without hindering employee productivity.Continue Reading


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Below is a picture of Rhoda and Sarah's new puppy. He is the puppy on the left, his brother the red and gold one already has a new home.
We awoke to -4 degrees and a fresh layer of snow on top of all that ice. Mark is still not feeling well so stayed home. Mom, Emily and I drove to church. The drive in to church was bad. The washer fluid was frozen and as each truck passed us the front window became more smeared and filthy making it hard to see the road. We had 2 visiting ministers today both named Brad. Brad Eisenmann the beginning of the morning service followed by Brad Bauer. The afternoon was our Sunday school Christmas program. Mom and I sat up in the balcony so we could see everyone. They were so enthusiastic.
Molly's daughter Eden and Joan's daughter Faith sang a special part for the Bible class. After church was the Sceggel Christmas which was held at Phil and Anna's house. The puppies were a huge hit.
Today is Nolan's birthday so Sarah brought a cake and candles.
The opening of gifts is always exciting and fun to watch.
Trying to get a picture of all 9 of my grandchildren at the end of the evening didn't go very well. For some reason Taunya didn't want to put her baby bump in the picture. You see number 9 is due in April 2017. The rest of the grandchildren cooperated pretty well.
We sure all had a good day. To see the rest of the evening's pictures click HERE.


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ANTeach is an award-winning web-based platform designed for private educators.
ANTeach is a web-based platform designed for private educators. It was developed as an entry for the 2013 "Battle of the Brains" competition at Suffolk County Community College. There it won as the best web application for education.
ANTeach was designed to give private educators a robust yet easy to use system to manage their lessons and students. Additionally it provided tools for the user to track their income and expenses for reference while filing taxes as well as the ability to create invoices and bill parents. In future versions ANTeach would allow students to access a portal where they could communicate with their teachers, view lesson content and submit homework.
A many-to-one database structure allowed Teachers to not only store important information about their students including phone numbers and allergy information, but it allowed the addition of "emergency contacts" for that student as necessary. In the event the teacher would need to contact a member of the students' family they could simply enter the students' record to find any phone number they had on record.
The Time & Billing page allowed teachers to generate invoices simply by entering a time record for the student they had a lesson with. The bill would be calculated using the rate entered in the students' record or a custom rate for the lesson could be entered.
ANTeach allowed teachers to publish lesson material for individual students as well as classes. Teachers could upload assignments in the form of PDFs or Word Documents or publish important information using the built-in word processor. Categorization ensured the right information would always be easy to find for both students and the teachers.
Catering to the common needs of private educators, ANTeach gave them a way to track expenses and follow income for reference while filing taxes. Teachers could also log distance traveled to meet with students. Using Charts.js, ANTeach constructed beautiful graphs to visually represent trends for the teachers' business.
A task manager was also included to store reminders such as calling parents or purchasing supplies.
I discontinued development of the software shortly after the contest ended in April 2013 and I currently don't have any intentions to release the software for public use. Many components such as the contact manager, lesson creator, finance manager and object-oriented function libraries however have made their way into future projects including a system I use to manage my own business.


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Welcome to Jan's CardsI personally create bespoke invitations and cards by hand for all occasions, at affordable prices. Whatever design you have had in mind for that special occasion, I can make it a reality without breaking the bank. Everything will be sent to you ready assembled so all you need to do is add the address. You will see that this website does not have a shopping cart. This website is intended for you to have a good look round and see what there is on offer. I will provide a personal service that is paramount for that special occasion. Please have a look at some previous designs and the range I offer. Once you have an idea of what you would like, you can contact me with your thoughts and we can work together to design your perfect invitation or card. Pearlescent Card Wedding Invitation Sets
Years of Experience
My personal hobby being realised as a business
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Customers enjoy working with me and my products
Love what I do
This was my hobby which I love sharing with others
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Beautiful, personalised products for sensible prices


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I have been reading Hattie's (2009, pp212-214) summation of the research regarding cooperative learning and have been encouraged to see that there is a positive learning gain from its inclusion in our teaching as compared to individualistic teaching pedagogies. Also there are links to some of the other skills considered important in the 21st century such as deep/critical thinking, problem solving, communication and social interactions.
I was interested to read about the comparison of cooperative and competitive teaching, where both are shown to have positive gains, though cooperative teaching had larger gains over competitive. Rather than thinking I should be doing even more cooperative tasks I am considering including more competition between the different groups within my existing cooperative tasks. Hattie (2009) also notes that providing tangible rewards to students in these situations has its benefits.
The most thought provoking aspect of Hattie's (2009) summary is the links between cooperative learning and interpersonal relationships, which points to the power of friendships in producing better student achievement. Hattie includes the following quote.
If you want to increase student academic achievement, give each student a friend (Roseth, Fang, Johnson, & Johnson, 2006, p. 7).
This has left me wondering about how to improve the social interactions of my students so that they experience an increased sense of well being, belonging, and self worth that produces increased positive feelings about school and learning. Hattie(2009) suggest that it is structured and well planed tasks (cooperative or competitive) that unleash the potential of peer learning .
Hattie, J. (2009). Visible Learning: a synthesis of over 800 meta-analyses relating to achievement. London: Routledge.
Roseth, C. J., Fang, F., Johnson, D. W., & Johnson, R. T. (2006). Effects of cooperative learning on middle schools students: a meta analysis. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association.


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Le 15/02/2019 par Webmaster ROADEF :
The submision deadline for conference EURO 2019 has been extended to February 15th.
We invite you to submit an abstract in the stream Green Logistics by using one of the following codes.
Green Maritime Logistics 0ebb88fc
Decision Making in Sustainable Transportation 7f32414a
Urban Logistics e9255bad
Electric Vehicles e9159c96
Environmental Management 8027e5cc
Sustainable Transportation


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Sarah Rose
With 15 years experience in the IT industry, Sarah now gains satisfaction by facilitating learning in Agile mindset and practices.
As a SAFe 4 Certified Program Consultant, she has experience implementing Agile at Scale and prior to arriving at Elabor8, gained her Agile stripes leading the Agile Adoption at Monash University. Sarah is active in the Melbourne Agile community and spoke at Agile Australia on the Monash Agile Adoption in 2017.
As a self described pragmatist, she helps people put mindset first and focus on the practices that will actually deliver value.


text: Ethics of Financial Services (MAccFin und MBF, MA) Lehrveranstaltung im Frühjahrssemester 2019 auf Masterstufe. Veranstaltungsinformation Dozierende: Prof. Dr. Thomas Beschorner Sprache: Englisch Stufe: Master (MAccFin und MBF) Umfang: 2 SWS Credits: 2 ECTS Inhalt und Aufbau/Struktur Corporate responsibility has become a crucial issue in modern societies and an emerging field in management, social sciences, and humanities. Due to an ongoing process of globalization along with the lack of national regulatory mechanisms, questions of how to avoid ʺbadʺ corporate behavior and how to foster ʺgoodʺ business practices have increasingly risen. In this course we will focus on ʺbadʺ and ʺgoodʺ business practices in the financial sector‑more precisely on corporate social responsibility (CSR) of financial services. Based on a general introduction in business ethics we will discuss societal institutional measures to foster CSR in the financial sector. In the third part of the seminar students will develop case studies on the CSR performance of selected banks. Zum Kursmerkblatt


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These Tattoos Have Given Us a Case of Tulip Mania
We're looking at tattoos of this beautiful flower that was once the hottest commodity on the market
Throughout history, mankind has placed a great value of the aesthetic beauty of flowers. Ancient Greeks and Romans cultivated many different types of flowers in order to beautify the world they lived in. And why not? Flowers are pretty and they smell good. Beyond that, their applications are a bit limited to the layperson, but they're a cheap investment. Flowers produce the means of production for more flowers, making them a cheap investment. But for no logical reason whatsoever, for a brief time in the 17th century a flower became quite possibly the most valuable thing on the planet.
The tulip is certainly a pretty flower, coming in a wide array of colors. Tulips are so nice to look at, but other than that what can you do with a tulip? Nothing, really. You could try to eat it, but it wouldn't be enjoyable. There are no fun chemical compounds found in a tulip that could get you high if you were to smoke some. Outside of aesthetics, the utility of a tulip is null.
The aesthetic quality of the tulip was a hot novelty since its introduction to the Western world. The tulip first arrived in Europe from Persia around the mid-16th century and its popularity began to bloom. These new and exciting flowers just made all the old flowers seem dull. Like most new and exciting entries to the marketplace, tulips quickly became a status symbol. Holland became the center of the tulip trade in Europe, and everything was pretty chill for like 50 or so years, and then, without warning and for no concrete reason, everyone just completely lost their shit over tulips.
Tulip mania is the name given to the period of 1636-1637 in Holland when the price of tulip bulbs rose to astronomical levels. Eventually people started to treat tulips as a form a currency. The tulip trade became more and more speculative. And then during the winter, prices fucking exploded.
Historians still dispute exactly what the fuck was going on in Holland in 1636-1637, but tulip futures exploded, and everyone wanted in on the action. Some bulbs were traded up to ten times a day by speculative investors gunning for a profit. At the peak of this mania, some single bulbs were being sold for ten times the annual income of a skilled laborer.
And then the bulb bubble burst. Many were left holding contracts to purchase tulips at 10 times their market price. Eventually, things settled down, and the tulip became affordable enough to spread all over Holland and become a modern symbol of the country. To this day, the causes of the inflation and collapse of this bubble are still debated, as it remains one of the greatest mysteries in the history of economics.
Thankfully, no one treats tulip tattoos like futures. While a tattoo of this beautiful flower with a rich and storied history may run you a couple hundred bucks, you'll never see a monetary return on your investment. And that's ok, because tulips are just so fucking beautiful, as you can see from a glance at some of these beautiful floral tattoos.
These tulip tattoos are positively flowering with beauty. Hopefully we've planted some seeds that might inspire you to start thinking about a tulip tattoo. Or maybe a Venus Flytrap.


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Author Archive
It wasn't too long after my son, Sage, was born in 2002 that his day care providers alerted my husband and me about delays in our son's development.
He didn't respond to sights and sounds like a typical 4-month-old. So we had his hearing (which was fine when tested right after birth) and sight checked, including a MRI to check for any abnormalities in his brain. The hearing and MRI results came back fine but it was discovered he had a small, gray optic nerve. He was diagnosed with optic nerve hypoplasia which can range from mild to debilitating.
Soon after, we were referred to an early intervention program through Kansas Infant-Toddler Services. Thus began my dread of evaluations. In my mind, my baby was just a little behind in some areas and everyone was blowing things out of proportion. In one of his evaluations at day care, a teacher's assistant said he didn't smile at people or show affection. Are you kidding me? He always smiled at me and was a cute, cuddly baby.
As the evaluations continued, so did my annoyance. At 13 months, his displayed skills of a 6-month-old. At 18 months, he was more like a 10-month-old. I felt once he finally learned how to walk, things would be fine. It just took him a little longer to learn things.
When we moved to Iowa in 2004 when Sage was 18 months old (and still not walking), we were referred to Grant Wood Area Education Agency for early childhood services. Within a couple months he started walking and I didn't think Grant Wood's services were longer needed. But they were. Sage still had delays in his speech as well as gross and fine motor skills. The fine folks at Grant Wood worked with him and made sure we knew about other available services.
A year later when Sage was diagnosed with Pervasive Development Disorder – Not Otherwise Specified on the autism spectrum, we weren't all that surprised. Jolted, yes, but not surprised. The evaluations kept coming and kept breaking my heart. Now he wasn't just months behind in certain areas, but years.
A year ago while preparing for Sage to enter kindergarten, my husband and I went through our first official IEP meeting. Mandated by the U.S. Department of Education, the Individualized Education Program is designed to fit the needs of each student in special education. There were five or six people at the table discussing my baby. All of these professionals are good, caring people but in that setting it seemed like I was sitting in front of a firing squad listening to everything that was needed for my son's special needs.
Last week we met with almost the same group of people to discuss Sage's progress in kindergarten and prepare his IEP for next year. I no longer felt like I was in front of a firing squad. I don't know if that was because I knew everybody in the room or by now, I am getting used to these evaluations. I was pleased with his progress. He is at grade level academically but still behind socially and behaviorally. Since I am quite aware of the second part of that statement, I'll focus on the first part. Grade level.
Trust me; I know these evaluations are tough. Nobody wants to hear their 5-year-old has the skill level of a 2-year-old in some areas. But if somebody is trying to tell you something about your child, listen. And then let them help you and your child. Because being at grade level by the time they are in first grade is a lot better than ignoring the problem or waiting too long.
The beginning of staycation season
Posted May 10, 2009on:
During these tough economic times, people are cutting back on entertainment expenses, including travel. Instead of jetsetting across the country, people are opting for staycations closer to home.
But is that really so bad? Sometimes we are so focused on getting away that we take for granted what's available in our own backyard.
Next Sunday, the annual Explore section will be distributed with The Gazette. I have been this section's editor for the past four years. This year's edition will feature six daytrips: Amana Colonies, Decorah, McGregor-Marquette, Anamosa–Monticello, Maquoketa–Dubuque and Galena, Ill. As an Eastern Iowa native, I have been to most of these places, but look forward to visiting all of them this summer.
For Mother's Day, I met my parents Saturday at Brucemore in Cedar Rapids. The historic site was holding its annual spring plant sale. Although a little chilly, it was a beautiful day to wander around the estate. If you haven't been to Brucemore or attended any of its events such as Classics at Brucemore (featuring "To Kill A Mockingbird" this summer), Cabaret in the Courtyard or Bluesmore, do so. It's serene setting makes you forget about the rest of the world, even if it's just for a few hours.
After checking out another plant sale at Corner House Gallery and Frame just down First Avenue from Brucemore, we were ready for lunch. I suggested going to Czech Village. Yes, there were other places a lot closer to First Avenue and Collins Road, but I am so impressed with Czech Village's resilience after being devastated in last June's flood, I wanted to support their businesses.
Although not completely rebuilt by a long shot, Czech Village has come a long way in the past 11 months. We ate at the Bohemian Café and Pub in the heart of the village on 16thAvenue. It just opened Monday; it was an antique shop pre-flood and has been renovated into a restaurant/pub/bakery featuring Czech dishes such as a pork loin sandwich topped with sautéed apples and cheddar cheese. In the future, it hopes to attract busloads of tourists visiting the museum which plans to relocate to the Music Loft building next door.
We then went to recently reopened Sykora Bakery down the street. I hate to admit it, but that was the first time I've been there. There was a line, but I didn't mind the wait for freshly baked kolaches and turnovers.
At every place we visited, the owners and employees graciously thanked us for coming to their rebuilt business that was destroyed less than a year ago. They also invited us to come back to Czech Village next weekend for Houby Days.
It was questionable whether the annual festival celebrating all things mushroom would proceed due to continued clean-up efforts in the area. But it has been decided the show will go on. I highly encourage you to attend some or all of Houby Days next weekend, May 15-17. The residents and businesses of this Eastern Iowa treasure have put their whole lives into rebuilding this area the so love. While we can't control the weather or the river, we can ensure the vitality of Czech Village's future by throwing our support and dollars into it.
I plan on taking all sorts of stay-cacations over the next few months. I'll write about them and take some pictures. I invite you to share your stay-cation stories and photos here. Please e-mail me at email@example.com
Give me something to believe in
Posted April 23, 2009on:
My husband, Jeff, is a fighter. He fights for what he believes in, and who he believes in, especially our son, Sage, and others with special needs.
Jeff has been the head swimming coach at Vinton-Shellsburg High School for the past several years. It has become something he loves and believes in. When the boys' program came up on the chopping block due to budget concerns within the district, you just knew he wouldn't go down without a fight.
He gave a passionate plea to the school board, citing all the reasons the program should be saved. It wasn't until the end of his presentation that the unconvinced members (read: rubber stampers) perked up when Jeff offered to coach this next season for $1 to save money.
The issue again come up at Monday's board meeting and the motion was made to save boys' swimming as long as Jeff was not paid. Not even that $1. Jeff saw it as a victory for the program and the swimmers. I saw it as just one more thing we would have to contend with next winter when Jeff will be student teaching – without getting paid.
While Jeff's insistence to fight to the end for what he believes in can be one of his most irritating traits, it is also one of his most endearing. It is why I am proud he is my soul mate and father of my son.
Here are his thoughts on the future of the Vinton-Shellsburg boys' swimming program:
(the embedding has been disabled, but you can get to the YouTube video by clicking on this)
I've been watching American Idol since its first season in 2002. I was pregnant at the time my favorite contestant, Kelly Clarkson, won (I try to tell my son that he should like Kelly because of this, but he doesn't seem to care).
The majority of contestants that grace the American Idol stage are young, attractive and do have musical talent. By the end of each season, the stylists have done their magic and have made the contestants into heartthrobs. Last year, I didn't give David Cook a second look in the beginning, but by the time he won, he was on my hottie list (still is).
A couple of weeks ago across the pond a new star emerged from an audition on "Britian's Got Talent." Susan Boyle is a sensation primarily because she doesn't look or act like one.
When Boyle, the 47-year-old unemployed woman from a village in Scotland, walked on stage, nobody in the audience gave her a chance. You see, Susan is rather, uh, frumpy. A little too short and plump with bushy eyebrows and frizzy graying hair, Susan doesn't look like the next Kelly Clarkson.
Audience members were seen rolling their eyes when Susan told the judges she had never been given the chance to be a star and she wanted to be the next Elaine Paige. The judges, including American Idol's Simon Cowell, looked they were bracing for the worst 3 or 4 minutes of their day.
Then Susan began to sing. Once the first line of "I Dreamed A Dream" from "Les Miserables" came out of her mouth, everyone in the music hall was stunned. Out of this frumpy-looking woman came the most beautiful voice. The look on the judges' faces was priceless. They, too, didn't expect to enjoy it so much. By the end of the performance, everyone was on their feet, cheering.
"I know everybody was against you," judge Amanda Holden. "This was the biggest wake-up call ever."
Susan has since become a worldwide sensation, thanks to postings of the video on YouTube. I first watched the video over the weekend. It literally gave me chills.
If you haven't seen the entire video (which would be surprising considering it has more than 41 million views so far), please watch it. It's absolutely inspiring to see somebody go from ridiculed to loved within 6 minutes.
You go, Susan Boyle! You are the ultimate frumpfighter.
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Marian Wright Edelman has always been on a mission to prove doubters wrong. When she was growing up in the South in the '40s and '50s, everything around her said she wasn't worthy as a black child, especially a black girl.
"But I didn't believe it and my parents didn't let me believe it," she said Thursday at the Iowa Women's Leadership Conference at the Coralville Marriott Hotel and Conference Center.
With her family's support, she continued her education and graduated from Spelman College and Yale Law School. She was the first black woman admitted to the Mississippi Bar and directed the NAACP Legal Defense Fund office in Jackson, Miss.
Inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream of equality for all, Edelman founded the Children's Defense Fund in 1973. It has been her life's goal to see all children are given a level playing field.
While the country has come a long way since the segregation of the '50s and '60s, there still too many children in poverty and uninsured.
Here are some facts provided by the Children's Defense Fund's Health Coverage for All Children Campaign:
- 9 million children in America are uninsured. A child is born uninsured every 39 seconds.
- Currently, approximately two-thirds of the uninsured children are eligible for health coverage under Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) but are not enrolled; excessive enrollment barriers are often the cause.
- In January 2009, Congress acted to expand CHIP and enroll more children in coverage. This legislation was necessary to prevent more children from losing health coverage in the economic downturn, but it still leaves 5 to 6 million children uninsured.
- Children are subjected to the "lottery of geography" – whether they get coverage and what kind of benefits they may receive depends upon the state in which they leave.
- Roughly 800,000 pregnant women are uninsured.
- Approximately 28,000 children die each year in America before their first birthday – ranking the U.S. 25th among 30 industrialized countries.
- Almost a quarter of 2-year-olds are not fully immunized.
- The majority of uninsured children live in two-parent families:
- Almost 90 percent have one parent who works.
- Almost 90 percent are U.S. citizens.
- Health insurance premiums for families have risen more than three times as fast as wages since 2001 at the same time that fewer employers are providing coverage for employees.
To reverse this trend, as well as the "cradle to prison pipeline" in our country, Edelman says every child and pregnant woman should be guaranteed comprehensive health and mental health coverage.
"It cost so much more to detain children than to provide mental health services," she said. "America has the dubious distinction of being the world's largest jailer. If we don't think this has anything to do with us, we need to change our thinking."
The country needs to invest money on prevention and early education to prevent money spent on incarceration, she said.
Edelman believes adults need to set an example for children, including instilling a sense of family, community and self.
"We don't have a children problem, we have a profound adult problem," she said.
Although poverty is a problem, "affluenza" is just as damaging to our youth, she said. "People have too much worth too little. Children learn from us."
Edelman doesn't comprehend how the government can't support comprehensive health care, but can dish out $700 million to bail out failing banks. "We don't have a money problem in this country, we have a values problem," she said, prompting applause from those in the audience at the conference.
Health care and prevention would be less expensive for taxpayers than treating a child in the welfare system. When poor children are hospitalized and possibly die from seemingly simple medical issues, such as a tooth abscess, the cost to taxpayers is about $250,000, she said.
She praises President Obama's proposed budget which includes health care reform, early childhood development and tax credits for low-income families.
"This is the most sympathetic budget we've ever seen," she said. "I don't know what's wrong with setting priorities."
The reverse the facts and guarantee every child and pregnant woman has comprehensive health and mental health coverage, the Children's Defense Fund believes any health care reform legislation must include these principles :
- Coverage Must Be Affordable. Establish a national eligibility floor of 300 percent of the federal poverty level for all children and pregnant women, with an affordable buy-in based on a family's income for those over that income level.
- Benefits Must Be Comprehensive. Guarantee every child access to all medically necessary services to maximize a child's health and development.
- The System Must Be Simple and Seamless. To ensure children get enrolled and stay enrolled, simplify the application and enrollment process to make it easy for all children to get covered and stay covered. This must include eliminating known barriers to enrollment and instituting automatic enrollment of eligible children.
For more information about the campaign, visit www.childrensdefense.org/healthychild
An open house for a proactive parenting program will be held from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. Thursday, April 16, at the Resource Center on the second floor of St. Luke's Hospital, 225 12 St. NE, Cedar Rapids.
According to program coordinator Craig Meskimen, Teaching Interventions to Empower and Strengthen families, or TIES, is a positive parenting program for children between 18 months and 6 years old. What makes the program unique, he said, is that parents and children go through the program together.
"Parents don't just drop their kids off," he said.
Parents are taught eight strategies focusing on positive interaction with the child. Parents need to tell their children what they are doing right rather than what they are doing wrong.
"If they are sitting and being quiet in church, tell them exactly what they are doing right," Meskimen said.
All eight strategies will be taught at four stations during Thursday's open house. The goal is to control disruptive behavior before it begins with positive reinforcement.
TIES is the result of a partnership of the ABBE Center for Community Health, Grant Wood AEA, Healthy Linn Care Network, Mercy Medical Center, St. Luke's Hospital and Linn County Community Empowerment.
It is offered at no cost to parents but has a payback system – as parents learn the program, they then teach other parents.
Although the program was developed in 1969 in Tennessee to treat children with Down's syndrome and those on the autism spectrum, Meskimen says there is no minimum or maximum behavior for a child to be involved.
Children in the program range from "whiny" to destructive, he said.
The program works with parents and children on an individual basis, depending on the child's behavior. The behavior is targeted and the parents need to realize how to control that behavior, Meskimen said.
This TIES program is the only one in the Midwest. It has been available to Eastern Iowans since Oct. 13 and has received a positive reception, Meskimen said. The evening program is full with a waiting list and the daytime program has a few spots left.
"Parents are here because they want to be," Meskimen said.
For more information, call (319) 558-4861.


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Find Lux Homes Of Naples on social media to receive exclusive updates on high-end real estate in the Naples area.
From stunning featured properties to home buying and selling tips, we have all the information you need to enter the luxury market with confidence.
Sign up as a member of Lux Homes Of Naples to uncover advanced search features including saved search criteria. Plus, you'll receive select notifications when a Naples home that meets your criteria is listed.
Design a dream, custom estate with London Bay Homes on this 0.71-acre west-facing lake, golf course and preserve homesite, cleared and ready for building. It sits in an idyllic location on one of the premier streets in Estuary at Grey Oaks. Located just minutes from world-class dining, shopping and beaches of Old Naples, the award winning Grey Oaks Country Club has recently completed a multi-million dollar renovation including an incredible new lagoon beach entry pool, fire pits, indoor/outdoor restaurant and bar, tennis center, golf training facility and a lavish 30,000 square foot health and wellness center.
Clubhouse, Exercise Room, Golf Course, Private Membership, Putting Green, Restaurant, Sidewalk, Streetlight, Underground Utility
Cable, Electric, Gas, Irrigation Water, Phone Line, Sewer, Trash Removal, Underground Wiring, Water
The source of this real property information is the copyrighted and proprietary database compilation of the Southwest Florida MLS organizations Copyright 2019 Southwest Florida MLS organizations.. All rights reserved. The accuracy of this information is not warranted or guaranteed. This information should be independently verified if any person intends to engage in a transaction in reliance upon it.
The data relating to real estate for sale on this Website come in part from the Broker Reciprocity Program (BR Program) of M.L.S. of Naples, Inc. Properties listed with brokerage firms other than William Raveis Real Estate are marked with the BR Program Icon or the BR House Icon and detailed information about them includes the name of the Listing Brokers. The properties displayed may not be all the properties available through the BR Program.
|Price Increased from $1,995,000 to $2,250,000


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Magical Pâtissière Kosaki-chan!! (Manga) ➜ Forum ➜ Commentsマジカルパティシエ小咲ちゃん!!
- TypeManga
- Volumes / Chapters4 / 43
- Release Date01. Dec 2014
- Main genresComedy
- Country of OriginJapan
- Adapted From-
- Target GroupMale
Manga Comments
This is the general discussion topic for the manga "Magical Pâtissière Kosaki-chan!!," in which you can post just about anything that's too generalised for the episode section and doesn't quite have a review character. You may also want to reply to any existing comments, but please note that spoilers are strictly forbidden in this topic.


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Herna Muñoz-Galeano, Managing Director of HMG gave a talk about Implementation of PGx – Challenges and achievements at e:Med Meeting 2018
e:Med has the objective of promoting systems-oriented research of diseases by linking life sciences and informatics and establishing a systems
medicine network in Germany.
The program includes:
– Technologies in Systems Medicine
– Modelling in Systems Medicine
– Systems Medicine of Diseases
– Translational Approaches in Systems Medicine
HMG presented PGX InteraktionsCheck at the meeting.
Find out more about e:Med Meeting.
Read more about PGXperts InteraktionsCheck at pgx-interaktionscheck.com
PGXperts InteraktionsCheck is available for Android, iOS and as a web version – analyzes drug interactions (drug-drug, drug-gene, drug-nutrition, drug-lifestyle) and provides clinical consequences, dose recommendations, measures, pharmacogenetic information.


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Imagine the pressure of caddieing for Bryson DeChambeau. You'd think the job would require a fancy degree from an Ivy League-caliber school, with some continued education in astrophysics or the like. Turns out, that's not the case. Surprisingly, math isn't the strong suit of Bryson DeChambeau's caddie, Tim Tucker.
Despite Bryson's penchant for vector green reading, his mastery of physics, radius control and calculating the coefficient of restitution, among the many other idiosyncrasies of one of the most unique golfers, the World No. 5-ranked golfer actually has a caddie with a simpler approach to the game.
"The best part is, you know he failed pre-algebra," DeChambeau explains in an appearance on Golf Channel's Feherty, which will air at 9 p.m. eastern on Monday.
Even then, the mad scientist said he's opted for Tucker over a more experienced caddie, although he admits he considered firing Tucker at one point earlier in his young career.
Give the clip a watch, which Golf Channel gave to us as an exclusive preview of the Feherty appearance by Bryson on Monday.
RELATED: The 11 most unusual things about Bryson DeChambeau
We won't judge DeChambeau's caddie too hard. Pre-algebra is tough. We'd think some of the calculations that Bryson requires of Tucker require some skills that can't be taught in a classroom.
We're sure the entirety of the show will be entertaining, as Bryson is really one of golf's best conversationalists. Who knows what kind of topics will be covered here—coefficient of restitution, predicative analysis … Tiger stories. You'd expect two great talkers such as David Feherty and Bryson DeChambeau to keep us entertained. And we're sure they will.
RELATED: You can be Bryson DeChambeau's caddie for a day—but it'll cost you


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One Word about Copyright
No doubt to respect the intellectual rights of others is one of most basic and important rules for a fruitful interaction on the Internet. What is widely taught to students at universities' bibliography lessons is quite unknown to regular Internet user.
But there are case worse than that. Many times I see one and the same glossary on different websites. Then the puzzling begins, who original content is it, who was copying (with or without permission).
Here is an example:
Perfumes Net (www.perfumes.net) – I site not to my taste – offers a "OLFACTORY FRAGRANCE TERMS Glossary" at http://www.perfumes.net/perfumes/glossary.html. No copyright or remark concerning the glossary can be found. When working with online glossary for years you get a feeling about if or not a glossary is suitable to the overall content of a site. Here I had the feeling that it didn't. So I chose an example term and googled on its definition.
Like this I came to the Fragrance Glossary at the Ministry of Fragrance (www.ministryoffragrance.com). Here I got one step closer to the main source thanks to a note after the glossary. "Most definitions come from the CFSS guide from the Fragrance Foundation.
Well done Ministry of Fragrance!!!
The "real" glossary is to be found at the Fragrance Foundation. This foundation was "established in 1949 by six industry leaders affiliated with Elizabeth Arden, Coty, Guerlain, Helena Rubenstein, Chanel and Parfums Weil, to develop educational programs about the importance and pleasures of fragrance for the American public."
When you are interested to add a glossary to your site, don't just simply copy and paste the text without giving reference and more important,without checking the copyright and reprint permission policy of the glossary owner. Fragrance.org is actually very generous about the reuse of their material:
Unless particular materials are specifically restricted as noted on the web page, it is The Fragrance Foundation's policy to allow limited reproduction and distribution of the materials posted on our site as follows: You may copy, reproduce and distribute content from this site provided that: (1) the particular article or section is reproduced in its entirety in its original form; you may not edit or otherwise change the substance of the content, or change or delete any copyright, trademark and other proprietary notices; (2) all copies include a statement that the material was reproduced from senseofsmell.org with permission of The Fragrance Foundation; (3) all copies include the following notice "Copyright ©2001 The Fragrance Foundation. All Rights Reserved."; (4) the copies are distributed only for educational or scientific purposes; and (5) the copies are distributed at no charge, or at most, at actual cost. Provided you comply with all of these conditions, The Fragrance Foundation grants you a non-exclusive, non-transferable license to use the materials on our site.
What is left to do? I will add a new entry about a Fragrance glossary with giving you the URL to the real source….
Posted on November 30, 2008, in How to use my blog and tagged Copyright. Bookmark the permalink. Leave a comment.


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Tigers Sign RHP Danny Patterson
Right-hander reliever Danny Patterson and the Detroit Tigers agreed Wednesday to a $7 million, three-year contract.
Patterson, who had filed for salary arbitration a day earlier, led the American League with 1.67 walks per nine innings last season and was third among AL relievers by stranding 83.9 percent of inherited runners. He appeared in a career-high 60 games, going 5-4 with a 3.06 ERA and one save.
The 30-year-old Patterson is 24-16 with a 3.97 ERA over six major league seasons with Detroit and Texas.
Patterson gets $1.7 million this year, $2.5 million in 2003 and $2.8 million in 2004.


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Starter Clutch - 20 Sprag - CG200 CG250 Engine
Engine Starter Clutch - 20 sprags is the replacement part that fits CG 150cc 200cc, 250cc ATVs, Dirt Bikes. This vertical style engine with a manual clutch and foot shifter for the gears. This dirt bike engine commonly used in Roketa, Lifan, SunL, Yamoto, Eagle, Baja, Tank Sports, BMX, Loncin, Hensim, Redcat, Hi-Bird, Jet Moto, Taotao, Terminator, Wild Fire, Extreme and many more.
Starter Clutch details:
- ID of center hole: 45.9mm [1.8"] inside ring minus sprag pawls
- Overall OD: 87.9mm [3.46"]
- Hole distance: 63.5mm [2.5"]
NOTE--this popular MANUAL CLUTCH engine with electric starter and can be water or air cooled.
This style starter clutch has the twenty (20) locking one-way pawls. The 3 sprag starter clutch is also available. CHECK YOUR MEASUREMENTS BEFORE ORDERING.
Customer Reviews
- Reviews
- Questions
- part
- Chinese
- engine
- life saver
It works great
I had a hard time finding this part for my Chinese made ATV. I have a ZONGSHEN 250 engine and this part was a life saver for this engine. THANKS


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Joe Gransden to perform at Centennial HS | Arts & Culture
Title (Max 100 Characters)
ROSWELL, Ga. -- One of today's hottest names in jazz will give a concert at Centennial High School next month.
Joe Gransden and his 16-piece band will swing into Roswell at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Mar. 20.
"Joe's big band has quickly become one of the busiest groups on the jazz scene," Rob Sayer, owner of The Music Class child movement and music center, said in a statement. "The ensemble includes some of the finest jazz musicians in the country, and it really swings."
The Music Class is sponsoring Gransden's visit.
Before the Mar. 20 concert, Gransden will hold a private jazz workshop for Centennial High band students, as well as members of the jazz bands at Haynes Bridge Middle and Holcomb Bridge Middle.
Learn more about Gransden at joegransden.com.
Tickets to the concert are $10 and can be purchased at chsknightsband.com. Centennial High School is located at 9310 Scott Road.


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« November 2, 2007 | November 4, 2007 | November 5, 2007 »
Time To Get Ghoulish on Fox News - Donation Drive For The News Hounds, reported by Donna, 0 comments
George Herbert Walker Bush Cries During FOX News Sunday Interview, reported by Marie Therese,
Hannity And Guests Rally Around Dog "The Bounty Hunter" Chapman, reported by Ellen,
Fox Whines About Congress' 4 Day Work Week, Leaves Out That Repubs Worked 3 Days a Week, reported by Melanie,
Mailbox Funnies - XIX, reported by Nancy,
Breaking News: Pakistan's Musharraf Declares Emergency, Suspends Constitution, Removes Supreme Court Judges, reported by Marie Therese,
Male Chauvinism 101: Barnes and Kondracke Take Pot Shots at Hillary Clinton, Feminists. Token Female Panelist Does Nothing., reported by Marie Therese,
FOX News Suddenly Discovers There Is a War Going on in Iraq. Lower Casualty Figures Trigger War Coverage., reported by Marie Therese,


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Winning several awards, including most recently being presented with Glass The Award for Change at Spikes Asia 2018, NoConditionsApply has been praised for its bravery. In this video Rohit Ohri, Group Chairman and CEO at FCB India explains how the campaign worked by connecting with an audience authentically.
Produced by FCB Ulka for the Times of India, and focused on promoting tolerance in a culture still riven by longstanding social divisions...
Existing users sign in here
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Contact Customer Support at
or call+852 3175 1913
Why Subscribe?
- Campaign Asia-Pacific online premium content* including in-depth monthly focus on key trends and industry issues
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or call +65 9771 3034
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A famous 'psychic' outs himself as a fake and starts working as a consultant for the California Bureau of Investigation so he can find 'Red John', the madman who killed his wife and daughter.
Bruno Heller
Tim Kang, Simon Baker, Amanda Righetti, Robin Tunney, Rockmond Dunbar, Owain Yeoman
Crime, Mystery, Drama
© 2019 by HOOQ. All rights reserved.


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Our Daily Bread Tampa Bay: BayNews 9 Everyday Hero
Family plays a big part in Everyday Hero Veturia Preston's life. Veturia says her desire to give back comes from one beloved person. "My grandma played a large influence in my life," Veturia said. "She taught us. She was very involved in church and very generous and people loved her beyond measure. Strangers, children and…Details


text: Love to work and enjoy the satisfaction in helping a family by their first home or who are moving up to a larger home. When the client and I achieve the goal in selling their home in the shortest possible time frame for the highest possible price in today's market it's a win-win situation! Most importantly one thing you will get from me is Honesty by providing you with up front answers and opinions in the selling or buying of your home buying. Wealth of knowledge in Short Sales to Avoid Foreclosure and REO Bank Owned Properties. I do have a lot of other interest as well from spending time with the family, cars, traveling, fitness, hiking, fishing, golf, biking – pretty much everything outdoors and just relaxing and enjoying a cup of coffee.


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Published at Wednesday, November 13th, 2019 - 09:04:47 AM. Coffee Table. By Raymond Couturier.
Do you love to make good food and drink from scratch? You love the pure stuff? You like fresh brewed coffee from gourmet coffee beans, and you need the atmosphere to compliment it, right? If you wish to enhance the look of your home with a coffee comfortable theme, you need a coffee table.
You can find distinct coffee tables in sets or as individual pieces. They should always match and compliment your other home furnishings. All the decor in your home should follow a single style. This keeps a solid flow throughout your home.
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I'll come out and say it right away: what's going on with Apple?
For the last couple of years it seems like Apple keeps building hopes up, only to crush them when the announcements come. In that time, we've been getting excited about new MacBooks, updated iPhones, and groundbreaking wearables — and then realize that the much-hyped improvements (or brand new devices) didn't provide all that much of interest to the general public, and especially to travelers.
For the record, I'm a die-hard Apple fan. After having my first bite of Apple products when I purchased my beloved iPod Classic a decade ago, I converted almost immediately. I barely remember how to use a PC, have never learned the ropes of Android, and literally cried when my first MacBook left me. Apple products have my heart. But, as Lauren did before me, I can't turn a blind eye to the reality: Apple has been letting us down. It needs to be an Apple fan saying it.
Take the last announcement, for instance. Early last month, Apple was expected to unveil its iPhone 8, and promised a few surprises. Well, it did uncover the iPhone 8, and went the extra step with the iPhone X. The smartphones included some interesting features — but that fancier model also came with an "interesting" price tag to go with it: $1,000.
You read that right: $1,000 USD – or more exactly, $999 for the model with 64GB storage, $1,145 for the 256GB version.
That price puts the iPhone X out of reach for most of us mere mortals, and makes it a serious investment for any traveler looking to take moderately-better smartphone photos. Is the iPhone X a good phone? Probably. Does it justify its four-figure pricetag? That looks less certain — especially when you consider other options in the smartphone market that offer a whole lot more bang for your hard-earned buck.
And, unfortunately, this wasn't an isolated event. The last MacBook refresh didn't offer much to travelers (or anybody, really), the Apple Watch still misses useful travel features, and the iPad hasn't seen a significant update in at least a couple of years. Think I'm being too harsh? Let's take a trip down memory lane, device by device.
Where We Were
Apple, forever the tease, took two years to bring any significant changes to its MacBook line. When it finally did, eleven months ago now, it was quite the letdown.
The new MacBook inherited the all-aluminum look of its predecessors, in both the 13" and 15" versions, but was a good half-pound lighter. That, at least, was good news for travelers who'd had to choose between the lighter MacBook Air, and the more powerful MacBook Pro.
Other than that, there was little to talk about. The main upgrade was the TouchBar, a touch-sensitive keyboard strip that adapts to what the user is doing, like showing tiny versions of open browser tabs. Besides introducing Touch ID, which brings more security for laptops and works with Apple Pay, the TouchBar looks cool, but is hardly a "can't live without" feature.
Where We Are Today
We're in exactly the same spot we were before, since the last announcement didn't include anything regarding laptops. Here's hoping we don't have to wait another two years for an update.
Any Better Options?
Microsoft took its time to get into the laptop game, but once it did, it nailed it: the Surface Pro and Surface Book are impressive, to say the least.
If you're after something lightweight without compromising on speed, the Surface Pro is a great choice. It weighs just 1.7lbs as a tablet (2.3lbs with the keyboard/case accessory), with a high-resolution 12.3″ touchscreen, great battery life, and a range of configurations to meet different needs (and budgets).
For even more power and flexibility, check out the Surface Book 2, which received an update just last week. It looks much like a normal laptop — until you detach the screen and turn it into a tablet. The 13.5″ touchscreen model makes the most sense for travelers, and you can configure it with up to 1TB of storage and 16GB of RAM. There's also a dedicated graphics card, and up to 17 hours (!) of battery life. The downside? It's heavy for travel, at nearly 3.4lbs.
Neither option is particularly cheap, but neither is a Macbook Pro — and you get noticeably more for your money.
The Acer Switch 7 Black Edition, due out in December, looks like might give the Surface a run for its money. A 2-in-1 with a 13.5" display, 2256 x 1504 resolution, and impressive graphics card, it'll last up to eight hours on battery and, due to its lack of fan, be totally silent. Weighing 2.5lbs and starting at $1,699, we'll be keeping an eye on this when it hits the shelves.
Where We Were
When the September 2016 Apple launch rolled around, nobody really knew if the much-rumored iPhone 7 would be even mentioned. Indeed it was, and with it came some cool upgrades.
The smartphone, which like its predecessor came in two different sizes, introduced a first in the family: it went waterproof. Among its other noteworthy features were an improved camera (two for the Plus version, one telephoto and one wide-angle), with a four-LED-toned flash, better more battery life, a revamped set of headphones, and faster LTE download speeds.
Where We Are Now
The iPhone (or indeed, iPhones) was the main story of the latest Apple event.
The expected iPhone 8, available in regular and Plus sizes, brings some upgrades to the previous model but no groundbreaking new features. It thankfully remains water- and dust-resistant (though is still unlikely to handle a swim in the toilet), and it is meant to be better at surviving drops. As with every new model, Apple again promised better battery life.
The company also finally introduced wireless charging. This feature allows iPhone 8 to be charged on any of the Qi wireless chargers you're starting to see in cafés, hotels, airports, and cars. Depending on where your travels take you, that can come in handy.
The camera is also better, particularly in the Plus version. Upping the color sensitivity on its 12MP camera (for both versions) will make for more impressive photos, while the double camera on the Plus improves upon the wide-angle and telephoto lenses we got to know on the iPhone 7.
It wasn't the only new arrival, though. As mentioned, the iPhone X has also joined Apple's smartphone ranks. The X, which comes in one size (slightly longer than the 8, but with similar width and weight), mirrors the 8 Plus with its dual camera and 2x optical zoom. It also adds some brand new features, like Face ID (which replaces Touch ID, as there is no start button), as well as expanding battery life by two hours.
The iPhone 8 will retail for $699 (64GB) and $849 (256GB); the iPhone 8 Plus will go for $799 and $949, respectively. As for the X… well, there's no need to say it again.
Any Better Options?
After the Galaxy Note 7 fiasco of last year, Samsung has stepped up its game on its Galaxy S8. Just like the iPhone, it comes in two sizes: the 8 (with a 5.8" screen) and 8+ (6.2"). The camera didn't get much of an upgrade from the previous model — but given how good it was, it didn't need one. The camera is still a single 12MP sensor, with a wide f/1.7 dual pixel lens.
The one upgrade is the multi-shot processor, which takes three images at a time to eliminate blur and give much sharper photos. Add this to a super-fast shutter and auto-HDR mode that works with any lighting conditions, and you have a winner in your hands. It's currently priced around $649, sometimes a little cheaper on Amazon.
We're also getting pretty excited about Google's new Pixel 2, which started shipping last week. Available in two sizes (5″ and 6″), priced from $649, it's already getting rave reviews from the tech press. Dave's eagerly waiting for his order to arrive! It's definitely not the sexiest phone on the market, but the camera, speed, and software could make it a strong contender for phone of the year regardless. We'll have our own review up next month.
Tablets & Wearables
Where We Were
We didn't love the Apple Watch when it came out in 2015, but started warming up to it last year — or at least seeing some promise. The Apple Watch 2 was submersible up to 50 meters, and had built-in GPS (though it still had to be connected to an iPhone for it to work).
As for the iPad, three new models came out last year. The most recent was the 9.7" iPad Pro, unveiled just in time for Christmas 2016. It came with a slightly improved camera compared to its bigger brother, the barely two-month-old 12.9" version.
The other iPad models were the iPad Air 2 and iPad Mini 4, both of which came out in October 2016.
Where We Are Now
The Apple Watch 3 was the other focus of last month's announcements, and one that actually caught our attention. For the first time, the Apple Watch will be completely independent — the introduction of a cellular LTE network means it will, for the first time, be useful when not connected to an iPhone. The watch will use an eSIM card, which is already available from some US carriers, and will adopt the same phone number as the owner's iPhone. Prices start at $329.
However, as good as the news is, it's nowhere near as exciting for travelers. Why? Because the cellular connection in the Apple Watch 3 doesn't support roaming, or being used outside the country of purchase. The wide range of LTE bands around the world undoubtedly plays some part in this, but regardless, the best feature of the new model won't work when you're on the road. There are also several quirks with things like text messages and app notifications, if your phone isn't connected to the Internet somewhere.
iPads weren't part of the latest set of announcements, so no changes there.
Any Better Options?
It's still too soon to look for alternatives to the Apple Watch 3, but the previous version had some worthy competitors, like the Samsung Gear S3. This smartwatch is compatible with both iOS and Android, has 4GB of storage, IP68 protection (can be submerged in five feet of water for half an hour) and three-day battery life. It's a little cheaper than the Apple version, too, at around $300 on Amazon.
In terms of tablets, the Asus ZenPad 3S 10 is a good equivalent to the 9.7" iPad Pro, at half its price. The ZenPad has the same screen size and resolution as the iPad, as well as 4GB RAM, and a great processor and graphics card. Another plus? It comes with 64GB of storage as default (double that of the iPad), which you can then expand with a microSD card.
Should Travelers Keep Investing in Apple Products, Then?
The short answer? Honestly, no.
While the iPhone 8 is undoubtedly a good phone, it doesn't offer much in the way of an upgrade from the previous model, and the design is getting dated. The iPhone X is more exciting in terms of technology, looks and features, but it's very hard to justify paying $1000 or more to have it.
Similarly, the latest MacBook barely brings any real-world improvements from the previous models, and as we mentioned, there isn't much happening with the iPad lately either. The Apple Watch 3 is becoming increasingly more interesting for the general customer, but remains of little use for travelers.
Given all that, combined with the competition bringing more to the table across all segments, Apple gear is no longer the obvious recommendation for travelers it was three or four years ago.
Now, if you're a diehard fan who has completely forgotten (or maybe never learned) how to use a PC or Android phone, then sure, Apple's new products will probably keep you happy. The iPhone 8 and X are still good phones, and the MacBook Pro is likely to work just as well as its predecessors.
However, if even I, a diehard Apple fan, couldn't justify buying any of the latest devices myself, can I really persuade travelers to drop $1,000+ on a phone that's no more useful than one costing much less, or point them towards an unexciting MacBook Pro or iPad when there are better alternatives?
Sadly, the answer is no.
Images via Apple.


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Women's Yoga for Mindfulness provides women already in therapy with the opportunity to reconnect to their physical bodies, identities, and sensations through yoga. Unlike traditional talk therapy, yoga therapy works with the same part of the brain that stores trauma and stress. When this part of the brain is activated, the energy stored during traumatic or stressful experiences can actually be released, rather than cognitively processed.
All body types and ability levels are welcome in Women's Yoga for Mindfulness. The focus of each session will be on reconnecting with one's own physical sensations in a safe and supported setting.
Fountain Hill Center therapist Jessica Gladden will be facilitating these sessions at Wealthy Theatre. Cost is $200 for all 6 sessions. Blue Cross Blue Shield insurance accepted; full- and half-scholarships also available on a limited basis.
Enrollment is first-come, first-served. To register, call (616) 456-1178 or email firstname.lastname@example.com.


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Midwest Physician Group Ltd. is stepping into the bond market to gain an edge against medical practice rivals. But others are likely to follow suit as marketshare wars intensify among physicians groups in the Chicago area.
While local hospitals have tapped the tax-exempt bond market for more than a billion dollars in capital expansion programs, medical groups haven't gone knocking.
"People (in the bond market) aren't real familiar with physicians groups," says Terence Mieling, vice-president and national director for health care at Chicago investment banking firm John Nuveen & Co.
Medical groups haven't been large enough to attract interest from underwriters in the public markets, Mr. Mieling says. Because they haven't needed large amounts of capital, they've generally turned to banks for commercial loans.
However, increasing consolidation among the region's medical practices has upped the ante for the largest group practices.
In January, Midwest Physician Group (MPG), the Chicago area's seventh-largest medical group, floated $17 million in tax-exempt bonds, issued through the Illinois Health Facilities Authority and underwritten by Nuveen.
"We're taking about extending to other markets," says Louis M. Porn, president of Olympia Fields-based MPG, which has 200 doctors and 24 clinic sites. "The plan calls for rapid growth through recruiting, affiliations and mergers."
In addition, MPG is developing an $8.1-million clinic on 17 acres in south suburban Orland Park and is spending $2.8 million to upgrade its information system.
Chicago health care consultant David Kanzler says MPG's ambitious plans are fast becoming the norm as medical practices compete for large insurance contracts-and patients.
"The amount of capital required to successfully compete in the new managed care arena is not trivial," Mr. Kanzler says. "It takes a large amount of capital to invest in infrastructure."
Mr. Kanzler, who is also chief financial officer at Chicago Partners Inc., a medical practice management firm, adds that fully competitive medical practices in the Chicago market now need sophisticated information systems and skilled personnel to staff them.
Mr. Porn says MPG initially considered bank financing, "(but) the bank said they would issue basically a mortgage to us, just like anyone else, at commercial rates as opposed to tax-exempt rates." "And they wanted 20% to 30% down."
Mr. Mieling says the medical group bonds aren't as highly rated as other health care debt. New York-based Standard & Poor's Corp. and Fitch Investors Service rates MPG's bonds BBB-, which "is still investment grade," Mr. Mieling notes.
He adds that the bonds received a relatively low rating because debt securities for medical groups "are still a new thing for everybody. Medical group assets are people," he notes, "and if they're foreclosed, they'll all be gone. It's not like a hospital where, if something closes, you can convert the assets into cash."


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Acclaim is an independent, unbiased client advocate that helps businesses across the United States, Canada and Mexico minimize total energy costs and unlock value through a proven integrated energy management approach.
Our proven track record speaks for itself. With a 97% client retention rate, Acclaim consistently reduces clients' total energy costs by 10 – 20% by customizing unique, total solutions.


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First Announcement
Program Committee
Organizing Committee
Participants list
Registration NEW!
Programme NEW!
The International Conference MATHEMATICAL MODELING AND COMPUTATIONAL PHYSICS, 2013 (MMCP 2013) will be organized by the
Laboratory of Information Technologies,
Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, Dubna, Russia,
the Keldysh Institute of Applied Mathematics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow,
Institute of Experimental Physics, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Kosice, Slovakia, and the
Technical University, Kosice, Slovakia,
the Pavol Jozef Safarik University, Kosice, Slovakia,
and will be held at the Laboratory of Information Technologies of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research on July 8 - July 12, 2013 in
The Conference follows the rich traditions of the previous conferences on mathematical modeling, numerical methods and computational physics which started in Dubna, Russia in 1964, e.g.,
Computational Modeling and Computing in Physics 1996, Modern Trends in Computational Physics 1998, V-th International Congress on Mathematical Modeling 2002 (in Dubna),
Mathematical Modeling and Computational Physics 2006 (in Slovakia), 2009 (in Dubna), and
2011 (in Slovakia).
Plenary lectures (30 min.) are scheduled during the morning sessions. Parallel sessions with short talks (20 min.) and poster presentations will be held in the afternoons.
Plenary lectures will be given by invitation or they will be selected from the proposed contributions by the Local Organizing Committee on the recommendation of the International Program Committee.
The working languages of the Conference are English and Russian. If possible, English should be preferred. Lecturers are urged to prepare the presentations in English.
Conference Proceedings will be published.
We kindly ask you to inform us about your interest to participate at the Conference MMCP 2013. Please pass the information along to those colleagues of you who could be interested in the
Conference Mathematical Modeling and Computational Physics 2013.
For all communication and information please use the Conference e-mail firstname.lastname@example.com.


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Top deals:
.49 Colgate toothpaste, .49 Softsoap hand soap, .75 Speed Stick, .88 Hershey's 8-pack candy bars, .99 Softsoap body wash, $1.32 Irish Spring body wash, $1.99 Arm & Hammer laundry detergent, $2.50 Revlon ColorSilk haircolor
CVS/pharmacy Shopping Tools:
- View print version of weekly CVS ad
- CVS My Weekly Ad
- Preview next week's ad on Thursdays
- CVS Photo offers
- CVS Coupon Policy
- 2019 Insert Schedule
- Expired coupon inserts to remove: April 2019
- Coupon Lookup (CouponTom)
CVS/pharmacy Ecoupons
- Ibotta offers
- Checkout 51 offers
- SavingStar offers (load to CVS card)
Note: I refer to coupon inserts found in the Chicago Tribune, as it is the newspaper with the largest quantity of high-value coupons for Chicagoland. Need a deal on the Tribune? Get Sunday delivery for .75/week!


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A Pool Maintenance channel framework takes the necessary steps to keeping the water clean, however it takes chemistry to do the calibrating. It's imperative to painstakingly control the chemical adjust in pools for a few reasons. One reason is that pathogens, for example, microscopic organisms, flourish in water. A pool loaded with untreated water would be an ideal place for sickness conveying microorganisms to move starting with one individual then onto the next.
Additionally, water with the wrong chemical adjust can harm the different parts of the pool. Also, dishonorably adjusted water can chafe the skin and eyes. Dishonorably adjusted water can likewise get exceptionally overcast. There are a few unique chemicals that are suggested and required for pool maintenance. PoolStyle, Regal, Pool Logic, EZ Clor, and Pool Season all give chemicals to keep your pool water protected and clear.
Chlorine is a generally utilized chemical – in truth it's the most well-known chemical utilized for swimming pool sterilizing. The explanation behind this is it's exceptionally compelling at murdering contaminants but is simple and reasonable to utilize. Swimming pool chlorine responds with the pool water to create hydrochloric corrosive and hypochlorous corrosive. Hypochlorous corrosive is chlorine's dynamic shape and can enter the cell dividers of microbes and other possibly destructive microorganisms, slaughtering them so they never again represent a hazard to the soundness of swimmers. While pool chlorine is utilized for consistent, progressing purifying, it can likewise be utilized for pool stun medicines. "Stunning" or super-chlorinating a swimming pool alludes to raising the chlorine levels until the point when they are ten times the level of the chloramines in the water. Chlorine stun medicines are utilized amid pool openings and at whatever point additional purification is required over the span of the swim season. Pool proprietors should stun their pool at least at regular intervals, particularly when their pool is much of the time utilized by a high number of swimmers.
Albeit swimming pool chlorine is the most broadly utilized pool sanitizer, pool bromine is likewise utilized. Swimming pool bromine is a very successful sanitizer. Which keeps water clean by executing microorganisms and by consolidating with and controlling flotsam and jetsam in a comparative mold to chlorine.
Pool Shock
The chlorine tablets or granular chlorine that you continually break up into your pool water searches out and joins with microbes and different organics on an atomic level. To kill these destructive contaminants. During the time spent killing these destructive contaminants the chlorine ends up noticeably latent. The chlorine and microorganisms that have joined together is called "Consolidated Chlorine". The consolidated chlorine must be expelled from the swimming pool to keep your pool water sheltered and clean. The joined chlorine is expelled by "Stunning" the swimming pool.
Green growth blossoms cause issues for some, swimming pool proprietors. While absence of appropriate dissemination and out-of-adjust water chemistry can prompt the development of green growth in pools. Even deliberately kept up swimming pools can in some cases encounter green growth development. This is on account of green growth spores can be conveyed into the water by the breeze and by swimmers. When green growth blossoms flourish in your pool, they can turn out to be unattractive and can stop up your pool's channel. Thus, it's essential to utilize a successful treatment when a green growth sprout shows up in your pool. It's additionally a smart thought to take measures to keep green growth from developing in your pool in the principal place. Algaecides lessen the requirement for pool stun medicines and are ok for an assortment of pool surfaces. Swimming pool algaecides can take your pool from overcast to completely clear in under 24 hours.
Shady pool water is unattractive and unsavory to swim in. It is likewise possibly risky as shady water can be home to microscopic organisms and infections. That can cause sicknesses and diseases. Overcast swimming pools can likewise be hazardous as the diminished perceivability makes. It harder to check whether swimmers are battling or stuck in an unfortunate situation under the water. Therefore, it's critical to keep your pool water spotless and clear by utilizing pool clarifiers and pool cleaning chemicals. Swimming pool clarifiers enable you to take your pool water from overcast to completely clear rapidly and effortlessly. Clarifiers work by causing fine trash particles to coagulate into bigger particles which would then be able to be expelled from the pool water.
Chemical Feeders
Not adding chlorine to the pool for half a month is extremely speaking to numerous individuals. Pool chlorinators or chemical feeders are genuinely basic gadgets that hold bigger measures of chlorine or bromine and slowly discharge these chemicals into the pool. Swimming pool chemical feeders were created so pool proprietors would have a solid. Advantageous technique for controlling the right measure of chlorine to their pools with less exertion. Pool chlorinators additionally guarantee that your pool water is chemically adjusted.
Disconnected pool chemical feeders can generally be utilized with either chlorine or bromine and work close by your pool's pump. These pool chemical feeders are anything but difficult to introduce and require little pool maintenance and are particularly appropriate for over-the-ground swimming pools.


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Preparing for your Otago Rail Trail Cycle Tour
If you are not a regular cyclist/rider we suggest you begin a daily cycling regime for 4 to 6 weeks before your Otago Rail Trail adventure, gradually increasing the distance you ride.
This will certainly make your cycling journey more enjoyable.
Download Trail Journeys Exercise Program here created by Camille O'Connor
Camille O'Connor
BPhEd (Bachelor of Physical Education with a Major in Exercise Prescription)
Owner and Manager of Pulse Fitness Gym in Alexandra
Qualified Personal Trainer and Les Mills Group Fitness Instructor


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Choose what you call it, if in India, you will call it Dry Potato Sabzi / Curry, or Sookhi Aloo Sabzi (सुखी आलू की सब्ज़ी), or if you in western country, its more commonly known as Bombay Aloo or Potato, it is one of the simplest curry made of potatoes with spices. Its magical to see how simple spices can add so much flavour to potatoes.
Continue reading "Aloo Ke Sookhi Sabzi | Dry Potato Curry"


text: Yummy New Food Products for Baby, Toddler, and You! Christina Walter 5 April, 2017 Food, Food Products, Product Reviews Here are some great new food and drink products that we've been trying and testing on ourselves and our little ones. From energy balls to snacks for toddlers there is something for everyone to enjoy. Creamy Fish Pie from Ratatouie Curried Root Vegetable Gratins from Ratatouie Magic Forest Organic Fruit Gums from Hey Yum Almond and Flax Oatmeal Porridge from Bellota Baby Quinoa Puff Bliss Balls from Bellota Baby Deliciously Ella Coconut & Oat Energy Ball from Ocado Brekki Porridge Hot Cereal from Orgran Super Yummies Pumpkin and Rosemary Breadsticks from Cow and Gate Pip Organic Fruity Water Blackcurrant, Raspberry & Apple, Mango, Orange & Apple from Abel & Cole Nutribaby from Babymoov Chickpea Pop Pops from Little Dish Fruit Wriggles from Kiddylicious S'Well Satin Bottle BikiniPink from Amara New Organic Sead and Nut Butters from Daylesford Organic Chickpea Puffs from Hippeas New Meals from Mini Nom Noms New Mum Granola from The Food Stork Gluten Free Astro Bites from Nairn's Soffle's Pitta Chips Red Pepper Hearts from Organix Gummies Multipack from Organix Gluten Free Snackers from Nairn's Doisy and Dam Chocolate Pip and Nut Jars Super Grains from I Am Super Food GingerbreadBiscuit Baking Mix from BKD Energy Balls from Wild Child


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Since May is 'Salad Month', I thought it would be fun to share some tips on how to build the perfect salad that's not loaded with gluten, dairy, sugar or soy. With the weather warming up, you're probably craving fresh fruits, veggies and herbs that you can toss into a meal for lunch of dinner. Who wants to slave over their stove top or oven when it's hot outside? Make yourself a simple salad that you can tote to work and enjoy at your desk or add more oomph to your salad and enjoy it for dinner.
Healthy salads are a lot easier to create than they look. If you've got 20 minutes, you can easily toss together a filling and satisfying salad anytime with the below healthy ingredients. Start by upping the nutrition ante of your salad by choosing a healthy base of leafy greens such as baby kale, spinach and arugula. Give up the nutrient-void iceberg lettuce for a pre-washed bag of mixed organic greens. If you're pressed for time, just remember the main ingredients you'll need: grab a healthy fat (such as avocado), a lean protein (such as organic chicken breast), pre-sliced veggies or fruits (such as asparagus and apples) and a bag of organic salad greens from the food store and make a meal with what's already in your pantry.
Start by adding 2 cups of your favorite greens (choose from the below list) to a large serving bowl. Then, boost your salad with fresh fruits and veggies in an array of colors. Reach for raw or steamed veggies instead of veggies soaked in unhealthy vegetable oils. Choose 1-2 cups of fruits and veggies and pile them high into your salad bowl for an extra boost of fiber. Salads become meals when you add quality protein such as organic chicken or beans and legumes such as chickpeas and lentils. Toss in one serving of your favorite lean protein (be sure to avoid processed meats as well as fried proteins)! Focus on roasted, grilled or poached animal proteins or if you're a vegetarian, you can enjoy nuts, seeds, cooked beans and legumes. Add another dimension to your salad with textured toppings such as fresh herbs, nuts, seeds, avocado, dried fruits olives or croutons. And to top it all off, just drizzle your salad with a fresh dressing. There's no need to soak your salad in tons of oil; just drizzle your favorite oil along with an acid such as fresh citrus juice or vinegar and toss to combine. Here are a few suggestions you can use to build your healthy salad for May!
The Building Blocks for a Healthy Salad
Pick Your Leafy Green (s)
o Romaine
o Spinach
o Arugula
o Kale
o Endive
o Radicchio
o Collard Greens
o Swiss Chard
o Mixed green lettuce blends
Pick Your Fruit n' Veggies
o Cucumbers
o Bell Peppers
o Tomatoes
o Broccoli
o Mushrooms
o Carrots
o Red Onions
o Asparagus
o Sweet Potatoes
o Radishes
o Pineapple
o Berries
o Sugar Snap Peas
o Apples
o Kiwi
o Oranges/Grapefruit
o Purple Cabbage
o Avocado
Pick Your Protein
o Organic chicken or turkey
o Beans or legumes
o Eggs
o Nuts and Seeds
o Quinoa
o Salmon or other seafood
Pick Your Toppings
o Dulse Flakes
o Unsweetened toasted coconut flakes
o Seeds (hemp, chia, ground flax)
o Nuts (almonds, walnuts, cashews)
o Whole Grain Gluten-Free Croutons
o Fresh herbs
o Olives
o Figs
o Pomegranate seeds
o Dried Fruit (cranberries, cherries, mango, blueberries, golden raisins)
Pick Your Dressing
o Fresh Citrus Juice (Freshly squeezed lemon juice, orange juice)
o Healthy Oil (Flax oil, olive oil)
o Vinegar (Balsamic, Apple cider)
o Mustard (Dijon, spicy, whole grain)


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Argus Media's Singapore bunker spot assessment reaches new milestone
Argus Media's new Singapore bunker spot assessment service has reached a major milestone, capturing around 30pc of the market for the first time.
Argus reported a record 22 deals totalling 23,430 metric tonnes (mt) on Friday 24 August, split between 17 deals of the 380 centistokes (cSt) grade and five deals of low-sulphur marine gas oil (LS MGO).
The figure is about 30% of the total spot fixed market in Singapore, explains Sammy Six, Marine Fuels Pricing Analyst at Argus Media. The firm's Singapore bunker spot assessment service has been averaging about 10 deals per day since it was launched 10 weeks ago.
"When we started in June, there were only a handful of inputs; now, the participation has increased to the extent that it clearly shows there is a real interest out there for a more accurate and reflective market benchmark for marine fuel," Six told Manifold Times.
"To date a total of 25 different companies, such as suppliers — including many of the top bunker players in Singapore — as well as shipowners and brokers have so far submitted deals."
According to Six, the current development shows Argus Media also has a headstart providing a benchmark for LS MGO.
Market players are already reporting their deals to the pricing agency, well ahead of the deadline of July 2019 when Singapore introduces mass flowmeter (MFM) bunkering operations for the material.
"Argus has clearly taken the lead in providing the market with a robust and representative assessment come 2019, when Singapore introduces MFM for LS MGO bunkering," he notes.
"The next phase is to have companies use the Argus price assessment in their contracts, with the possibility to hedge using swaps to be introduced at a later stage."
Argus Media and the International Bunker Industry Association (IBIA) are jointly organising the Singapore Bunker Fuel Seminar on 31 August, 2018.
Related: Argus officially launches 380 cSt, MGO, LSMGO bunker price assessment
Related: Argus Media discusses Singapore bunker price assessments
Related: Argus Media and IBIA organises Singapore bunker fuel seminar
Photo credit: Argus Media
Published: 28 August, 2018
Oil Price
BW supports the global implementation of mass flow meters
BW is proud to support the global implementation of mass flow meters for a more efficient, precise, and transparent bunkering process.
Metcore: Understand TR48 on the use of MFM
Taking a homogeneous approach on MFM systems places both the buyer and the supplier under risk without proper insurance.


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Rhombus Ballpoint Pen Ambition - Faber-Castell
The clean lines and selected materials of these slim writing implements make an excellent impression. They are distinguished by clear-cut visual design combined with professional functionalism.
Barrel made of black precious resin, polished to a high gloss
Cushion design by means of laborious guilloche engraving
End cap and tip made of highly polished chromed metal
Spring-loaded metal clip, chromed and polished
Equipped with twist-mechanism
Fitted with a black large-capacity refill, line width B
Attractive, white gift box with slip case


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MedTech Compliance 201: A Deeper Dive Into the Compliance Landscape 2018October 24, 2018 – October 25, 2018 Washington, DC
Managing healthcare compliance in a medical device company involves many complexities; absolute issue resolutions can be elusive. This advanced program will tackle some of the thornier problems confronting Compliance Departments. During each in-depth interactive session, a single topic will receive a thorough analysis of the associated problems and approaches to manage the risks and unintended consequences.
Key Agenda Topics
- Assessing your company's risk profile and its impact on your business and compliance efforts
- Hazards presented in the new value-based medical device selling model
- The potential landmine of sales compensation
- Med Ed/Sponsorships/Grants: Things that can go wrong
- Internal investigations of complicated reported violations
- Motivating your senior management & board of directors
This program is intended for in-house personnel with substantial healthcare compliance responsibilities; individuals who play a key role in the execution of the company's compliance strategy and plan; those who regularly address difficult issues that arise in the business. More junior compliance personnel who are preparing themselves for a leadership role also fit the ideal attendee profile.
To learn more, click here.


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The WHAT, WHEN & HOW of starting, growing and sustaining your business
workshops are held in the conference room!
Starting and growing a business is not an intuitive process. But there IS a process. One of the tricks is understanding what your business needs most at a given point in time, so that you can prioritize where to spend your time and energy and maximize the results you want to achieve. One way to do that is to understand what stage of business you are in.
So, what stage of business are you in? Are your current priorities and actions in alignment with what your business really needs right now? If not, you could be spending a lot of time and energy on the wrong things. It may sound simple, but the fact is that many businesses make the mistake of investing too much in the wrong things at the wrong time, or event the right things at the wrong time. And those can be expensive mistakes.
For example, the needs of a fledgling startup are different from a business that is scaling to accommodate growth. Taking the time to understand the stages of business development is critical to making strategic decisions and avoiding costly delays that can hold your business back. When you know where you stand, you will save time, money and energy by understanding what stage of business you are in, and what to focus on to get to your next milestone.
In this hands-on workshop, we'll focus on some of the earlier stages that small businesses go through, and why some stages require more focus on marketing and sales, while others require an investment in systems, operations, or HR. Understanding the evolving needs of your business can help you anticipate (and budget for!) important investments of time and money that will help your business grow, one manageable stage at a time.
Takeaways from this workshop include:
-Understand the stages of business development, and how this impacts your ability to succeed -Identify what stage of business you are in, and how to set realistic, achievable business goals -Learn how to anticipate your business needs over time and better plan for growth -Opportunities to get hot seach coaching on your individual business challenges
Are you a coach, consultant, freelancer or small business that wants to grow? Do you find it a challenge to prioritize where to spend your time, energy and money in your business? Do you feel a pressure to work on "everything, all the time" in your business? Would you like to be able to anticipate and plan ahead so you can pace yourself and feel more in control of your business growth? This workshop is for you!