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Speech analytics software product directory
Get started evaluating speech analytics software with this product directory. You'll find on-premise and SaaS speech analytics technology from a variety of vendors in the speech analytics market.
Welcome to the speech analytics software product directory. This product directory contains basic information about speech analytics vendors and products in the speech analytics market. When beginning your speech analytics evaluation, use these resources to help you find the right speech analytics product for your business needs. Listings include: Vendor information, product name and website, short and long product descriptions and pricing details.
Download the speech analytics software product directory
Get an overview of some of the top speech analytics software applications with our interactive product directory. You'll find detailed descriptions of speech analytics vendors and the speech products they offer, as well as an article from call center expert Donna Fluss on selecting the right speech analytics application.
Additional speech analytics software resources:
|Read the top speech analytics software headlines
|Find speech analytics software resources in SearchCRM.com's learning center
|Learn more about speech analytics technology and find out whether or not it's right for your company with these top speech analytics technology headlines. Find out how to get ROI from speech analytics software and more.
|Take our speech quiz, read about speech analytics tools in a workforce optimization suite and browse other CRM and call center technology resources for CRM and call center professionals in our learning center.
|Learn the top benefits of speech analytics for the call center
|Discuss CRM software with your peers on IT Knowledge Exchange
|According to many experts, the market for speech analytics is growing fast, and when used properly, speech analytics technology can give a company a significant advantage. Read about some of the benefits of speech analytics in this special report.
We're planning to launch a product directory every year for each of the following markets:
- CRM software suite product directory
- Call center suite product directory
- Speech analytics software product directory
- Sales force automation software product directory
- Workforce management software product directory
- Marketing automation product directory
Online customer service product directory
Back to the product directory library
Selecting the right speech analytics application
By Donna Fluss, President, DMG Consulting LLC
Donna Fluss
Speech Analytics—also known as audio mining—is an application used to structure conversations and find embedded information, including customer insights, implicit needs and wants, and the root causes of issues. These applications can also be used to determine how staff complies with scripts and/or regulations. Some speech analytics applications can identify concepts and trends that organizations didn't even know to watch for. When used in the call center, speech analytics enables managers and executives throughout the enterprise to address the issues that generate call volume and to identify competitive challenges and new revenue opportunities.
Speech analytics technology overview
There are six functional components of a speech analytics application:
1. Speech engine: this is the layer that does the initial analysis of the audio stream and converts the data into a file containing a series of phonemes, or a first pass at text transcript.
2. Indexing and analysis layer (augmentation): this software improves the accuracy of the speech engine's output. Its role is to make sense of the findings from the speech engine and to index it for further analysis, queries and ad hoc searching. This is where the tools import data from other telephony and servicing solutions. Most current R&D investment is focused on this area of speech analytics.
3. Query engine: this is a user interface (UI) where end users define their queries and the output that they expect from the speech analytics tool.
4. Search tool (criteria): this tool is used to conduct ad hoc searches on processed audio files or indices; it should be easy to use and allow nested filtering.
5. Reports and dashboards: these are formats for clearly presenting system findings in a flexible, customizable and graphically appealing manner. They allow end users to drill down and filter their results.
6. Business applications: these prepackaged applications can help users quickly realize benefits from speech analytics. Modules are available for root-cause analysis, customer retention, first call resolution (FCR), competitive intelligence, sales and marketing effectiveness, script adherence, collections effectiveness, and so on.
LVCSR VS. phonetics
All speech analytics applications use an underlying speech engine to perform their initial analysis. The two primary types of speech engines are large vocabulary continuous speech recognition (LVCSR) engines and phonetic engines. LVCSR engines depend on a language model that includes a vocabulary/ dictionary for speech-to-text conversion of audio files. The text file is then searched for target words, phrases and concepts. Phonetic-based applications separate conversations into phonemes, the smallest components of spoken language; they then find segments within the long file of phonemes that match a phonetic index file representation of target words, phrases and concepts. Interestingly, part of LVCSR processing involves breaking words down into phonemes, which is one reason why many of the LVCSR vendors now claim to also do a phonetic analysis.
Read the rest of Donna's column by downloading the speech analytics software product directory.


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Unity per project compiler options, -unsafe
by Dave Buchhofer on Nov.28, 2011, under csharp, Unity3D
I had to integrate a small set of third party code that calls down to some win32 dllimport bits, to do this I needed to be able to work with some pointers. which in c# need to be declared in an unsafe function, so that it knows to be unmanaged.
Slightly awkward, but it turns out that there is an -unsafe compiler option that needs to be turned on in unity/mono, and that you can do this very easily on a per project basis by adding a file 'smcs.rsp' to the root of your assets dir, and in there you can add the text '-unsafe' to add this to the compiler commandline.
Reference threads: Setting Compiler Options, Unsafe code in Unity, How To: Set Project-Wide #pragma Directives with JavaScript
Other apparent uses stated in the threads are setting project wide defines and pragmas
Fun with Generics and Lists in C#
by Dave Buchhofer on May.19, 2011, under .net, csharp, Scripting, Unity
So I've been doing a lot of List juggling lately and have run into a few tidbits that I wish I had learned a few months ago. I figure that is always a good cue to write them down for future reference and for any others who are digging into this C# world headfirst also. this is all sort of an exansion to try and get a concrete example of mike_mac's lamda/delegates/callback articles
Say I have a custom class that I'm using to store a structured set of data, this time we'll play with "ArmDefs". ArmDef's just hold a little string and int based data and a list of ArmDef's as children, and a second list of GameObjects that contains all of the models for this section of arm for use to serialize to disk, but thats more a story for another time.
Overall this is used to build up a hierarchy that holds the "contents" of a runtime modular rig, and handles the Saving/Loading/Reloading.
To work with this I needed to set up a pile of recursive functions to edit the tree at runtime, since I don't know the depth of the hierarchy, and rebuild the system as needed.
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[System.Serializable] //Inheriting from ISerializable gives us //an easy access to Serialization to disk public class ArmDef : ISerializable { public string Name; public List<ArmDef> Children = new List<ArmDef>(); public ArmDef(string iFile) { this.Name= iFile; this.Children = new List<ArmDef>(); } public void AddChild(ArmDef child) { Children.Add(child); //just wrapping the Add so that we can do "extra" //stuff here if we want, like add links to parents etc } }
not really building these thru scripts out in the wild but just to build something to work with here.
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public ArmDef config = new ArmDef("Base Level"); //add a couple children config.AddChild(new ArmDef("Level2a")); config.AddChild(new ArmDef("Level2b")); config.AddChild(new ArmDef("Level2c")); //add a couple grandchildren config.Children[1].AddChild(new ArmDef("Level3a")); config.Children[1].AddChild(new ArmDef("Level3b"));
ok thats all the boring stuff for now! here is a Generic Recursive function that walks down a tree and does 'Action<>' to all children of 'parent'. The key here is that the Action<> pretty much rocks. !
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public void HandleArmDef(Action<ArmDef> item, ArmDef parent) { if (parent.Children.Count > 0) { foreach (ArmDeft in parent.Children) { HandleArmDef(item, ti); } } item(parent); }
Now the fun begins when you start to chain this stuff together to "act" on all children.
we can define that "Action
This will go through the hierarchy and remove all children with the Name of "Level3a".
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string toDelete = "Level3a"; HandleArmDef(item => { item.Children = item.Children.Where(child => child.Name != toDelete).ToList(); }, config);
In another example, i wanted to search the hierarchy and see if there was a certain value anywhere in the hierarchy. easiest way i found was to just quickly build a flattened list and use the Linq "Any" function to see if the string was found anywhere in the hierarchy.
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List<string> flatList = new List<string>(); HandleArmDef(item => { flatList.Add(item.Name ); }, parent); bool isCurrentlyFlat = flatList.Any(x => x.Contains("Flat"));
in another case, i wanted to insert a new child into the hierarchy as a child of a specific object.
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void AddChildAddon(ArmDef parent, string addAsChildOf, string newChild) { //for each object 'item' down the hierarchy //if the item.Name contains our addAsChildOf string //we'll add the newChild as a child to the item. HandleArmDef(item => { if (item.Name.Contains(addAsChildOf)) { item.Children.Add(new ArmDef(newChild)); } }, parent); }
there's plenty more possibilities of things to do here if I've explained well enough!
More info on Linq by example
Unity: Toying with Scriptable objects and Custom Editors
by Dave Buchhofer on May.18, 2011, under .net, csharp, Scripting, Unity
Expanding on the previous post about Scriptable Objects as an easy way to save/edit some data at runtime, here's a small extension looking at an example for a simple custom editor that appears when you select the Scriptable Object we built previously in the Project view.
Here's what you get clicking on the file previously:
And the result with the custom editor:
Now, this isn't the sexiest of examples, but hopefully it helps someone along the way!
First a small addition to the data class, lets add a constructor to it, since our input values are going to be basically the same every time (Mimic 'this' camera), we'll add a secondary constructor for the class that just takes a unity Camera as input and records the values for us.
We'll use the same 'CameraLocationHolder.cs' from below:
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//File: CameraLocation.cs using UnityEngine; using System.Collections; //the Serializable attribute is key to what makes the custom class visible in the editor ! [System.Serializable] public class CameraLocation { public string name; public bool isOrtho; public float orthoSize; public float fov; public Vector3 position; public Quaternion rotation; //base constructor that builds an empty CamLoc public CameraLocation() { name = string.Empty; isOrtho = false; orthoSize = -1; fov = -1; position = Vector3.zero; rotation = Quaternion.identity; } //build a CamLoc from a supplied camera public CameraLocation(Camera c) { if (c) { name = "New Camera"; isOrtho = c.isOrthoGraphic; orthoSize = c.orthographicSize; fov = c.fov; position = c.transform.position; rotation = c.transform.rotation; } } }
And we replace the 'CameraListboxWizard' that we previously used to edit the Scriptable Object with this (very similar) 'Custom Editor'
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//File: CameraLocationEditor.cs -- Place in an Editor directory under the unity project using UnityEngine; using UnityEditor; //this limits the editor to running on object that have type CameraLocationHolder [CustomEditor(typeof(CameraLocationHolder))] public class CameraLocationEditor : Editor { //This will just be a shortcut to the target, ex: the object you clicked on. private CameraLocationHolder db; void Awake() { db=(CameraLocationHolder)target; } public override void OnInspectorGUI() { GUILayout.BeginVertical(); if (GUILayout.Button("Add current Camera.main position", GUILayout.Height(50))) { Camera m = Camera.main; if(m) { //Add the new camera to the list db.content.Add(new CameraLocation(m)); //tell the unity editor that the list has changed and needs to be serialized EditorUtility.SetDirty(target); } } GUILayout.Space(5); DisplayCurrentCamList(); GUILayout.Space(5); GUILayout.EndVertical(); } void DisplayCurrentCamList() { if (db.content.Count == 0) return; //For each of the cameralocations in the saved scriptable object db for (int i = 0; i < db.content.Count; i++ ) { EditorGUILayout.BeginHorizontal(); //A text field to rename the camera db.content[i].name = GUILayout.TextField(db.content[i].name, GUILayout.Width(200)); //a few simple buttons to juggle the array order if (GUILayout.Button("UP")) { if (i > 0) { CameraLocation item = db.content[i]; db.content.RemoveAt(i); db.content.Insert(i - 1, item); } } if (GUILayout.Button("DN")) { if (i < db.content.Count) { CameraLocation item = db.content[i]; db.content.RemoveAt(i); db.content.Insert(i + 1, item); } } if (GUILayout.Button("Remove")) { db.content.Remove(db.content[i]); } //sets the maincamera to be at the selected cameralocation if (GUILayout.Button("MoveTo")) { MoveToView(db.content[i]); } //updates the cameralocation to match up with the Camera.main (Usable at runtime or at edit time) if (GUILayout.Button("UPDATE")) { UpdateView(db.content[i]); } EditorUtility.SetDirty(target); EditorGUILayout.EndHorizontal(); } } void MoveToView(CameraLocation cam) { Camera MainCamera = Camera.mainCamera; Quaternion currentRotation = cam.rotation; //if we had an ortho cam, lets just set it there before we start moving. MainCamera.orthographicSize = cam.orthoSize; MainCamera.isOrthoGraphic = cam.isOrtho; //a parent check incase we have a 'fpswalker' type script setup also if (MainCamera.transform.parent) { //move the parent object MainCamera.transform.parent.position = cam.position; Vector3 ang = currentRotation.eulerAngles; //rotate the parent object on the Y axis MainCamera.transform.parent.rotation = Quaternion.Euler(0, ang.y , 0); //rotate the child camera on the X and Z axis MainCamera.transform.localRotation = Quaternion.Euler(ang.x , 0, ang.z ); } else // there is no FPSWalker parent, so just move the camera itself { MainCamera.transform.position = cam.position; MainCamera.transform.rotation = currentRotation; } MainCamera.fov = cam.fov; } void UpdateView(CameraLocation cam) { Camera MainCamera = Camera.mainCamera; cam.isOrtho = Camera.main.isOrthoGraphic; cam.orthoSize = Camera.main.orthographicSize; cam.position = Camera.main.transform.position; cam.rotation = Camera.main.transform.rotation; cam.fov = MainCamera.fov; } }
Now having built that up, we can simply click on the asset file that we had created previously and see the editor in the Inspector panel, making it easier to handle multiple lists.
Unity: toying with Scriptable Objects
by Dave Buchhofer on Oct.19, 2010, under Architecture, csharp, Scripting, Unity3D
In architecture there is often a need to keep track of and have handy many different viewpoints of a model at a time. with my early unity experiments, I made the mistake of creating a Camera for every Viewpoint that I wanted to have available in my scene. this was faulty for several reasons, not the least of which was that every 'Camera' object in a scene is actually rendering everything in the scene at once. Each camera has a few fun/useful options in the Clear Flags that makes this useful for things like rendering UI overlays with 3d objects and other assorted multipass ideas, but thats a whole 'nother story.
Next attempt was to just import a large list of dummy objects in from 3dsmax that would represent camera orientations and allow the end user to select from these dummys and align the camera with the dummy objects using some UI bits in unity. This worked fine, but there is the base problem that the user cannot modify/edit these objects easily and have the changes save across play sessions.
This is where Scriptable Objects started to come in to play. (Taken partly from the unity Character Demo where they were explaining some of the joys of AssetBundles if you wish to look up more in depth examples.) this may not be the most useful demo of Scriptable objects, but this is a case study for when you are trying to store Runtime data for use at editortime.
There are several parts: First and probably the only important part is the Holder, this is really just a list of 'Somethings' that we save to disk. in our case, CameraLocations.
//CameraLocationHolder.cs using System.Collections.Generic; using UnityEngine; public class CameraLocationHolder : ScriptableObject { public List<CameraLocation> content; public CameraLocationHolder(List content) { this.content = content; } }
the above empty list consists of 'CameraLocation's which is just a simple class I used to store a few variables that are needed to re-create a Viewpoint. Camera locations is a Serializable Class (Serializable in this case means that its viewable in the inspector in Unity the same way you would view for instance a Vector3..) and it has some default values in there of pulling the maincameras location/rotation and field of view.
//CameraLocation.cs using UnityEngine; using System.Collections; [System.Serializable] public class CameraLocation { public string name = "New Camera"; public float fov = Camera.main.fov; public Vector3 position = Camera.main.transform.position; public Quaternion rotation = Camera.main.transform.rotation; }
Now, we create an asset in the editor where we will store our list of CameraLocation's, this can be placed anywhere, its a small file so i tend to just store it in Resources for easy finding later.
//CreateCameraLocationAsset.cs using UnityEngine; using UnityEditor; using System; using System.Collections.Generic; public class CreateCameraLocationAsset { [MenuItem("Custom/Cameras/Create camera location holder")] public static void CreateMyAsset() { ListList<CameraLocation> content = new List<CameraLocation>(); CameraLocationHolder asset = new CameraLocationHolder(content); //scriptable object AssetDatabase.CreateAsset(asset, "Assets/CameraLocationDatabase.asset"); AssetDatabase.SaveAssets(); EditorUtility.FocusProjectWindow(); Selection.activeObject = asset; } }
Now you have an 'Asset' where you can store/load/erase/whatever in a list of CameraLocations at runtime, and the results will still be available at Editor time, and at future Runs of the application.
For instance, you can browse around your scene as you would normally with your FlyingCameraScriptOfDoom, and occasionally call a script to add your current camera.main viewpoint to the list.
or accessing it as a runtime resource for use by a normal GUI pulldown:
//Excerpts from CameraListBox.cs //declaring a list of stuff public List<CameraLocation> camList = new List<CameraLocation>(); //Declare our list of stuff //.... //somewhere in Start() we load the list from the DB Object o = Resources.Load("CameraLocationDatabase", typeof(CameraLocationHolder)); CameraLocationHolder CameraLocationDB = (CameraLocationHolder)o; //fill our list of stuff, with the content from the Holder in the asset camList = CameraLocationDB.content; //.... //and somewhere in our OnGUI() GUILayout.BeginVertical(GUILayout.Width(120)); for (int i = 0; i < camList.Count; i++) { if (GUILayout.Button(camList[i].name)) { SelectedListItem = i;//Set the index for our currrently selected item CameraLocation cam = camList[SelectedListItem]; StartCoroutine(SmoothMoveCamLoc(cam.position, cam.rotation, cam.fov, duration)); } } GUILayout.EndVertical(); //the SmoothMoveCamLoc just lerps between the current positions/rotations/fov's //and the desired ones that were stored in the CameraLocation. //although mine has a few other random logic items in there to decide //which style of camera i have currently and deal with any parents/targets/initializing/etc //needed if we move the camera.
For instance, editing the list by an Editor script, that builds a list for you to Add/Remove/Rename/and Re-Order the list, because thats oddly hard to do with the built in object interface? Maybe this is where a custom inspector should be for the .asset type? hmm! things to play with in the future.
//CameraListboxWizard.cs using UnityEngine; using UnityEditor; using System.Collections.Generic; public class CameraListboxWizard : ScriptableWizard { public string DBLocation = "Assets/Resources/CameraLocationDatabase.asset"; private CameraLocation camLocation; static private Object dbaseAsset; static private CameraLocationHolder db; [MenuItem("Custom/Cameras/CameraListBox - Database Helper")] static void DoSet() { ScriptableWizard.DisplayWizard("Add view to CameraListBox", typeof(CameraListboxWizard), "DONE"); } void OnWizardUpdate() { helpString = "This will control the Camera Location asset database\n, and allow you to 'save' the Camera.main's position\n while in the player mode\n"; UpdateMyAssetLocation(); } void AddExistingCameras() { int count = Camera.allCameras.Length; for (int i = 0; i < count; ++i) { //except for the main camera, which we'll use to transition between the others if (Camera.allCameras[i] != Camera.main) { camLocation = new CameraLocation(); camLocation.name = Camera.allCameras[i].name; camLocation.fov = Camera.allCameras[i].fov; camLocation.position = Camera.allCameras[i].transform.position; camLocation.rotation = Camera.allCameras[i].transform.rotation; AddCamera(camLocation); } } } void OnWizardCreate() { Debug.Log("done"); } void AddCamera(CameraLocation cam) { db.content.Add(cam); EditorUtility.SetDirty(dbaseAsset); } void OnGUI() { EditorGUILayout.BeginVertical(); EditorGUILayout.BeginHorizontal(); GUILayout.Label(name, GUILayout.MaxWidth(0)); DBLocation = EditorGUILayout.TextField(DBLocation); if (GUILayout.Button("Browse")) { DBLocation = EditorUtility.OpenFilePanel(name, DBLocation, "asset"); UpdateMyAssetLocation(); } EditorGUILayout.EndHorizontal(); if (GUILayout.Button("Update Database Location")) { UpdateMyAssetLocation(); } EditorGUILayout.Space(); if (GUILayout.Button("Add current Camera.main position", GUILayout.Height(50))) { camLocation = new CameraLocation(); AddCamera(camLocation); } EditorGUILayout.Space(); DisplayCurrentCamList(); EditorGUILayout.Space(); if (GUILayout.Button("Add all existing 'Cameras' to the list\n this can 'import' max camera locations", GUILayout.Height(50))) { AddExistingCameras(); } EditorGUILayout.EndVertical(); } void DisplayCurrentCamList() { for (int i = 0; i < db.content.Count; i++ ) { EditorGUILayout.BeginHorizontal(); db.content[i].name = GUILayout.TextField(db.content[i].name, GUILayout.Width(200)); if (GUILayout.Button("UP")) { if (i > 0) { CameraLocation item = db.content[i]; db.content.RemoveAt(i); db.content.Insert(i - 1, item); } } if (GUILayout.Button("DN")) { if (i < db.content.Count) { CameraLocation item = db.content[i]; db.content.RemoveAt(i); db.content.Insert(i + 1, item); } } if (GUILayout.Button("Remove")) { db.content.Remove(db.content[i]); } //db.SetDirty(); EditorUtility.SetDirty(dbaseAsset); EditorGUILayout.EndHorizontal(); } } public void UpdateMyAssetLocation() { dbaseAsset = AssetDatabase.LoadAssetAtPath(DBLocation, typeof(CameraLocationHolder)); CameraLocationHolder CameraLocationDB = (CameraLocationHolder)dbaseAsset; db = CameraLocationDB; } public void CreateMyAsset() { List content = new List(); CameraLocationHolder asset = new CameraLocationHolder(content); //scriptable object AssetDatabase.CreateAsset(asset, "CameraLocationDatabase"); AssetDatabase.SaveAssets(); EditorUtility.FocusProjectWindow(); Selection.activeObject = asset; } }
Interactive Lab Demo
by Dave Buchhofer on Feb.10, 2010, under Architecture, csharp, Interactive, Unity3D
Here is another Architectural interactive test project. This time, a laboratory setup, a tighter interior space, set up without any real lighting (1 direct light + ambient colors + Ambient Occlusion currently) created with the goal of customizing the unity asset pipeline to be a little more friendly for architectural work.
First, the Project, roughly 6mb, clicking on the screenshot will open the project in a new window. its another quickly evolving work in progress, Warning: No consideration has been taken currently for speed on older hardware, ~100fps on an 8800GT was the target.
Some findings and random ramblings on arch and interactive 3d:
- unlike with general gaming, with architecture you are in most cases going to already have a model provided in some form or another. odds are, the model is going to be pretty horrific, as arch models tend to be built for the purpose of either:
- A: Viz… the Viz model will require a lot of cleanup in terms of material work, and stripping down a lot of the high poly fluff required for rendering.
- B: Design Development… the DD model is normally plagued more by bad modeling conventions, no naming, poor materials, materials not fully assigned, or mangled geometry due to being stretched and squished for days on end to keep up with a design.
- you will probably still want to break up the file by some logical layer type system, by default this will land you with a unique material for each material of each fbx file
- a small AssetPostProcessor script that works on the OnMaterialAssign function can make the process of sharing materials across multiple FBX files much easier to handle, with the added bonus of being able to easily progressively build up a library of reusable realtime materials
//file: MaterialsPostProcessor.cs //goal: Share a library of materials across different assets based on the name of material supplied in the FBX file // Dave Buchhofer - 02.10.2010 using UnityEngine; using UnityEditor; using System.Collections; public class MaterialsPostProcessor : AssetPostprocessor { Material OnAssignMaterialModel (Material material, Renderer renderer) { //The path where you keep your "Standard" library of materials string StandardMatPath = "Assets/DMGStandardMaterials/" + material.name + ".mat"; //the path where you want to keep your "temp" materials, that weren't found above //So you have a logical place to look for materials that need editing and tweaking for realtime work. string TemporaryMatPath = "Assets/Mesh/Materials/" + material.name + ".mat"; //Check for it in the standard if (AssetDatabase.LoadAssetAtPath(StandardMatPath, typeof(Material))) { Debug.Log("FOUND: " + StandardMatPath); return (Material)AssetDatabase.LoadAssetAtPath(StandardMatPath, typeof(Material)); } //Else check to see if we've already built one in the temp path if (AssetDatabase.LoadAssetAtPath(TemporaryMatPath, typeof(Material))) { Debug.Log("FOUND temp: " + TemporaryMatPath); return (Material)AssetDatabase.LoadAssetAtPath(TemporaryMatPath, typeof(Material)); } //Or create it? material.shader = Shader.Find("Diffuse"); AssetDatabase.CreateAsset(material, TemporaryMatPath); Debug.Log("CREATED temp: " + TemporaryMatPath); return material; } }
also check out the previous arch experiment a few posts down: Basketball Arena

subset: commoncrawl


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Worlds Apart: Understanding The Mindset And Values Of 18-25 Year Olds
Regular price $14.99
The life stage of 18-25-year-olds is completely different than it was in previous eras. In just one generation, we see contrasts that used to take two to three generations to surface. This shift has created frustration and confusion with those of older generations. Parents recognize this is a completely different world and struggle to relate the world of their child. Others throw their arms up in bewilderment, assuming they'll never understand. And many church leaders wish they'd "just grow up."
In his book, Worlds Apart, Chuck Bomar brings understanding, comfort, and direction to all interested in this age group. You'll learn how the development of higher education has led up to and caused much of the separation between generations and the irreversible ways in which this generation has been impacted. By dissecting some of the biggest generational tension points, profiles of college-aged people, and testimonies of parents, this book provides practical insight into how you can bridge your world with that of this new generation of twenty-somethings.
As a parent or ministry leader, you'll gain great insight into how to effectively minister to your college-aged sons, daughters, or church members.


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The Perfect Marriage
Having been an LA Tech Recruiter for many years (and having been a Tech Hiring Manager before I came to The Dark Side), I've honed in on the qualities that make an effective relationship between Recruiter and Agency.
- Give and Take – no recruiter will excel without detailed feedback, and great communication. Without it, every resume they submit is a crap shoot. In my ever-humble opinion, no company should work with an agency not willing to take the time to come visit in person (assuming you are local), and no agency should work with a client who won't make the time to meet them. But it can't stop there. This relationship, just like any other type, has to evolve over time. If you put the time in to provide feedback, you'll yield phenomenal results. Saying "Pass" on a candidate serves no purpose.
- Telephone Game – remember that game where you whisper something in someone's ear, and they whisper it to someone and so on, and the final person states what the first person said? Remember how the last person usually says something completely different from the original statement? Same concept applies to a hiring managers' requirements. Nothing whatsoever against internal recruiters and HR – they are awesome and most make agencies lives easier. However, even if the process is handled by HR, it's critical that a hiring manager speak directly to the recruiter. It provides priceless information that will save time, not suck it up. A 10 minute time investment to make sure the recruiter knows what you are looking for is far less than the hours you will waste interviewing the wrong candidates.
- Quality vs. Quantity – If you are the type of company that likes lots of volume from the Dialing For Dollars agencies, high volumes of resume submissions may not be a problem for you. When I was a hiring manager, this drove me crazy! But some companies seem bedazzled by volume, and seem to think that means the agency is working really hard. Volume is easy. Efficacy is the gem.
- Chemistry – you have to jive with the person you are working with, plain and simple. If you feel the agency is good, but you just don't like the Account Rep, before giving up on the agency, see if you can be assigned a new Rep.
- Being Valued – Though this is thankfully rare, I have run into some clients that truly view agencies as a necessary evil. Do us a favor. If you don't value the service we provide, don't call us. Don't misinterpret our ability to pick the perfect person out of thin air as magic. It takes years of experience to build up a network that can yield that magical candidate. We earn every dollar we make, and just like anyone on earth, our sense of accomplishment comes from feeling valued and appreciated. Doesn't matter how much money an agency can make with your company – you'll drop to the bottom of their priority list if make them feel like like they are not providing value.
- Working for Free – Contingency agencies are just that. We only get paid contingent on making a successful placement. Which means we work for free much of the time. And we work a lot. This is a very individual thing, but some agencies absolutely sort to the top. If you think you have done a great job by negotiating a rock bottom fee agreement, be aware that your fabulous negotiation skills may land your recruiting needs at the bottom of the heap. Also be aware that it's very likely that your company has a lot more money on hand than the individual recruiter that may or may not make money depending on success in a search. One of our clients has a very fluid agreement with us – the fee is based on the urgency of an individual position. It's worked well for both of us. Think creatively to make a mutually beneficial agreement, and you'll have better results.
I feel extremely grateful to have many long-term clients. We have been working together for years, and have honed our relationships to a fine tuned machines. It's to the point where they can give me a requirement, and we will nail it with the first resume. But that not only takes our talent and ability to source, it takes the client's willingness to partner with us, communicate and trust us (which only comes with time and results). Just like any relationship, with effort, it can excel and exceed expectations.


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Wanna feel warm, comfortable and stylish? Drive bomber is right for you. Two big pockets. Available in three colors.
Are you interested in this product? Fill in the form and we will contact you.
Drive Film FactoryWe are a creative and media production. We approach the projects professionally and with tremendous passion. We also organize our own events. Our young but very experienced team offers everything from TV shows, commercials, music videos to AV productions in general. We are currently focusing on feature films, the first will hit cinemas in the fall. The results speak for themselves: a successful TV show DRIVE for music television.
Drive HouseDrive house is a multicultural space in the heart of Prague. The five floors of the Neo-Renaissance House provide its premises for purposes such as presentations, meetings, celebrations, vernissages, or screenings, dance battles or even acting workshops. DRIVE HOUSE is a private club offering original and modern facilities. Each floor offers something different, you can find a theater café, a music club and last but not least, a fine art studio.
Drive TV Show"Real Drive for your Life", or everything about heavy music, tattoos and extreme sports. Drive project's concept in unique on Czech television. In one hour TV show you'll see and hear what you've never seen and heard before. Every episode is souped up with special guests and reportages from events.
Drive TourNabušený outdoorový event, který po vzoru pořadu DRIVE nabízí divákům propojení třech základních pilířů. Extrémní sporty, hudba a lifestyle. Tyto tři subkultury utváří ojedinělý koncept eventů, který v Čechách nemá obdoby. Na každé tour se můžete setkat se špičkovými jezdci, nasát atmosféru z koncertů skvělých kapel a zapařit na legendárních afterparties. Příští rok se navíc chystáme atakovat hranice české republiky a posunout tour zase o kus dál.


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Webinar Details: Thursday, February 13th, 2014 at 2:00-3:00pm EDT
Topic: Making the Most of Video Content & What It Can Do For Your Brand
Guest Speaker: Derick Rhodes, Footage Content Producer at Shutterstock
For this month's episode of our CopyPress webinar series, Derick Rhodes will be discussing how to get started with video production and editing, and how to best make use of stock footage in that process. Topics will include shooting footage for the Web, basic editing tips and tricks, and how to craft videos that are truly engaging and convert customers.
You can register for this FREE webinar event here, or you can click the button below!
We'll be broadcasting the live hangout on this page (we'll embed the video player below about 15 minutes before the live broadcast begins ~1:45pm EDT). You'll be able to view a live feed of the hangout, and we'll be taking questions through the Q&A feature in the hangout window, and from viewers via Twitter. Tweet your questions to Derick using #CopyPressHoA and we'll read and answer your questions during the Q&A segment during the last 20 minutes of the webinar.
About this month's presenter:
Derick Rhodes
Derick Rhodes is the Footage Content Producer at Shutterstock where he creates videos and other video-related content that help to communicate the breadth and depth of the Shutterstock stock footage collection. A Brooklyn-based filmmaker, Derick completed his first feature film, Secret Everything (shot on the RED Epic in Brooklyn and Vermont), in 2012. When he's not busy making movies, Derick endures the heartache of being a Knicks fan, escapes the city as much as possible for upstate NY and Vermont, and obsesses about future technologies. Check out the Shutterstock blog here.
Bookmark this page now to tune in and watch the live broadcast here on Thursday, February 13th! You can also find the live and recorded video on our YouTube channel & on our CopyPress G+ page. Don't forget to tweet your questions to Derick during the webinar with #CopyPressHoA to have your questions answered live on the air. We look forward to having you join us!


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My One Year Blog Anniversary and Upcoming Giveaway
Hi Friends!
How are you all doing my lovely friends? Well I am going great and today is a very special day for me, my baby 'The Perfectlook with Dona' turned one year old today! Yes today is her birthday :-) this is exactly the same date 9th Sept, 2015 one year back when she started her journey into the world of blogging. She was little nervous when she was about to publish her first post and skeptical too whether she will be able to speak her mind about her love for makeup and beauty, but thanks to all of her enthusiastic readers and friends, who decided to join her in her journey with loads of appreciation, love and support.
To celebrate this special day, I really like to host a giveaway for you guys. I have started planning the giveaway prizes and will soon announce the same and yes there will be more than one winner J Rules will be clearly mentioned on the giveaway post. So stay tuned guys.
Before ending, once again a big thank you to all my readers and friends for continuously reading my blog and supporting to the fullest!
Cheers Friends!!
Image Source: Google
Image Source: Google


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This post is for posterity's sake.
But, you're welcome to read along.
And laugh.
A lot.
It's Monday morning. I've been thinking since yesterday that I really need to get to the grocery store, as we were down to our last standby meal of spaghetti and meatballs. So, grocery store today it is. I had a brief conversation with Shawn this morning that went something like this:
Me: What time will you be home?
Shawn: around 5.
Me: Huh. (Thinking that tonight will be busy with FHE). Well, I need to get some groceries.
Shawn: You want me to try to come home a little earlier?
Me: Thinking...thinking...(do I deal with rush hour grocery store or toddler and baby in grocery store, the latter of which I have not done yet in a full out grocery run). No, go ahead and come home when you plan and I'll try to do it with the kids. I'll call you if I have to abandon ship.
Fast forward 2 hours.
Rebekah is asleep after a GREAT night (slept 8, fed, slept 3) and Aaron is dressed, ready to go, watching Dora. List has been prepared with produce circled so I don't have to go back to that section if I miss something...I was going to try to itemize by isle after that, but ran out of time...
Plan of attack: Wait for baby to wake up, feed, burp, change, and off we go.
We get to the store. They have these cool carts where I can strap Aaron in front of Rebekah and have the cart free for the food. He loves it. I promise him a sucker at the end if he's a good boy. Baby is starting to show signs of being unhappy...fidgeting and making the sucking motions....didn't I just feed you kid? You wanted more? Why didn't you say so at the house? (Let me just say at this point that at 8 weeks we are still on a feed-on-demand routine that varies from hour to hour, minute to minute. In other words, I have no idea when I'm going to be feeding the child). Hoping the pacifier will hold her off we race off to the produce. Onion, celery, romaine, apples, and strawberries all in the bag at record speed. Darting to the cheese - baby is fussy...put in the paci...she sucks for 5 seconds and spits it out. Meanwhile I've found the cheese...put in the paci...look for the cheaper brand - there it is! Quickly on to the bread isle for pnut butter. I ask Aaron to help me find the pnut butter to keep him entertained...put in the paci...walking down the isle to get to the pnut butter at the end of the isle and the whole way down the isle I hear, "THAT'S not the pnut butter, THAT'S not the pnut butter, ad nauseum. Whew. Rounding the cart to the next isle - move it buddy, I've got a fussy 8 week old in tow...put in the paci...hold in the paci while awkwardly moving the cart down the isle in search of salsa....where is it...where is it...THERE! Oh, wait, there's a coupon - I can get free chips that I need anyway - WOOHOO!! Gotta remember that when I get to the chip isle cause it's not on my list...put in the paci...OK, keep it moving. Up and down the isles I go like a woman possessed...trying to get out of the store before baby hits Meltdown...
Fast forward 10 minutes.
We've made it through the isles and all that's left is dairy. Have to have the dairy, even though baby has clearly had it (and I don't mean the dairy, I mean had it as in "Meltdown is imminent"). Mad dash to the dairy. Leave the cart in the middle of the aisle while I grab butter, milk, cottage cheese and yogurt all in one pass. Put in the paci....nope....baby is having none of the paci anymore. Have officially hit Meltdown status...MAYDAY...MAYDAY! A quick, and I mean a quick, scan of the list reveals I have forgotten the rotel...DANG THE ROTEL! Off we zoom to isle 6 with crying baby in store. Aaron is pleased to know we are now going to check out and he gets his sucker (the one bright spot in this trip...he was awesome!). To the checkout where the cashier asks how I'm doing....ummmm....yeah. I start piling stuff on the belt and baby's cry turns to a scream. Time for action. Baby is taken out of the car seat much to her and the cashier's relief. I again one-handedly begin piling stuff on the belt while squatting to reach the stuff in the bottom - oh, the thighs are getting a good workout! Transaction is complete. Problem: no suckers in sight. Solution: my buddy Sharon down at the self checkout stands who is sure to pull through with a sucker while I sit down on the conviently located bench and shove a boob in baby's mouth. Ahhhh, sweet peace for a few minutes. I take this opportunity to go over my list where I discover I've forgotten PEANUTS!! Must have the peanuts. I can see the peanuts from where I'm nursing - they are approximately 15 steps away. Oooohh, what to do...after thinking through the options, I determine the only workable one is to let baby finish, burp her, put her in her car seat, go get the peanuts and rush through the self checkout stand. Easy enough, right? Baby finishes, into the car seat we go. Sharon is kind enough to ask if she feels better now...cue the crying....quick, someone get me out of this nightmare! Put in the paci....nope, having none of it. In the peanut isle, take out the baby, put the peanuts in the cart, one-handedly maneuver the cart into the self checkout (where mercifully there is no line), scan, pay, bag, all with baby on shoulder and off we one-handedly go out the store...bye, Sharon, have a good day.
Out to the car...thinking through the options. In goes Rebekah, in goes Aaron, in go the groceries, in goes the paci...wow, she took it! On goes the white noise, off we go towards home. Wow, she's not fussing! (I love you white noise, I love you white noise).
Get home...still no fussing...leave the white noise on, pull open the trunk, carry first 4 bags to door...set the bags in one hand down to open door, pick them up and the one with the milk gallon promptly falls back on the ground. I'll get it in a second. Get the bags on the counter and come back for the milk only to find it spewing everywhere, thank you very much not-very-sturdy-HEB bags. Quick, into the house, find big bowl, find big bowl, run outside, hold what's left of milk in leaking plastic bag over my porch while laughing hysterically at the absurdity of the situation, or maybe just because I've finally lost it and will end up in the loony bin. Bring bowl with saved milk inside, back out to the car where baby is crying (surprise, surprise) and the rest of the groceries are brought in at record speed. In comes baby, in comes a dazed Aaron, and whew, we DID IT!!
And you thought YOU had a crazy life!!
I now have enough groceries to make it through the week minus a few things I will pick up at a different store...tonight...alone. What will next Monday bring???
Stay tuned for another episode of...
(cue the horror music)
Monday, February 28, 2011
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
My talented friend
My good friend Tiff is an amazing photographer. She offered to take some pics of Rebekah as a baby gift - what an awesome baby gift, right?!
AND, check out her photography blog at:
Thanks Tiff! Love you friend!
Last week was the annual Girls Night Out at Kay's school. I always look forward to this as a Mommy-daughter together time. Here she is all ready to go.The pickles were way yummy!
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Florence + The Machine – Queen of Peace / Long and Lost
The Odyssey – Chapters 5 & 6 To give yourself over to another body, that's all you want really. To be out of your own and consumed by another. To swim inside the skin of your lover. Not have to breathe, not have to think. But you can't live on love, and salt water's no drink […]Read more "Florence + The Machine – Queen of Peace / Long and Lost"


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You may wish to designate the Chabad Jewish Center of S. Clemente as beneficiary of your retirement plan. When you designate your children or other heirs as beneficiaries, they receive only a small fraction of the plan's value since inherited assets of retirement plans (such as IRA's, 401k's, Keogh Plans and others) are subject to both estate and income tax. You would be making a substantial donation to the Center at a minimum cost to your family with plan assets that would be otherwised subject to tax.
Pooled Income Fund
After your lifetime, or that of the designated life income beneficiary,the remainder interest will vest to the Chabad Jewish Center of S. Clemente.
Charitable Gift Annuities**
Retirement Plans


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WORKOUTS (post race):
Core work + arms (minimal) + walking + stretching
I've been keeping my workouts very low key this week. Today was the first day that I attempted to run, post-race. It didn't last long. My legs are still too tight and I could feel some not-so-fun-pulling in random places. #thatsoundedwrong
Thanks to all of you for your encouraging comments about my attempt at going gluten free for 30 days! You guys truly are the best!
Now, I've been contacted several times from folks who are a little confused about Celiac disease and want to know a little more. I'm not a registered dietitian, but I'll let you know what I do know from my major (Nutritional Science with a specialization in Physiology and Metabolism).
NOTE: I'm about to get really nerdy on you again. I promise I won't be offended if you completely skip this post.
Wheat allergies, gluten intolerance, and Celiac disease ARE different.
A little background about immune responses before I talk about the differences:
Our normal immune systems clear foreign substances (antigens), without adverse reactions. Part of this process requires antibodies, or immunoglobulins, which are produced by B cells.
Classic food allergies, have an immunoglobulin E (IgE) mediated immune reaction. IgE antibodies actually help to eliminate parasites from the body, but these are also present during classic allergic reactions to food. Thus, some food allergies can be detected by testing the blood for these antibodies (IgE, and some say IgG as well).
A gluten intolerance, does NOT involve an immune response. Exposure to gluten would cause a reaction in the GI tract, but none of this would be detectable by an antibody test.
Celiac disease is an inflammatory small intestine disorder caused by a T cell-mediated autoimmune response to gluten ingestion. Simply put, this autoimmune disease causes one's body to essentially attack itself. For Celiac disease, this means that T cells (when exposed to gluten), produce cytokines that start an inflammatory and autoimmune reaction. During this reaction, villi (which line the small intestine and aid nutrient absorption) are flattened and become inflamed.
Sorry if none of that made sense. Feel free to contact me if you need me to re-explain something or just want to chat about it!
I also found this video. This doctor explains this topic much better than I do (but he doesn't talk about the intolerance portion)
So back to why I am doing the 30 day gluten free experiment.
NOT because I think I have Celiac disease. I am 99% sure I do NOT have Celiac disease.
Gluten and dairy have been shown to cause inflammation in some people. I am simply doing this experiment because I think that I might have a minor intolerance.
Yes, I could get tested. BUT here's why I decided to do this food experiment first
- I hate needles and I don't think this affects my life enough to endure that. ha.
- I like food experiments (I have gone vegetarian in the past). I think it is a great way to walk a mile in another person's shoes. I have several friends with Celiac disease. While I know it is difficult to constantly monitor one's dietary intake, I think it is easier to understand if I briefly experience this process first hand.
Hope that clears things up a bit. But like I said, please feel free to contact me at firstname.lastname@example.com !
Have you ever tried a "food experiment?"
How many times did you fall asleep trying to read this? wait, don't answer that…


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The Last of Us Part II Trailer
(Image: Naughty Dog)
Last weekend, during the Playstation Experience we were all treated to the announcement of The Last of Us Part II, taking place after what is arguably one of the best game that ever release. In the trailer, we see a grown up Ellie, and a very aged Joel. The Last of Us was winner of over 200 awards, and was given an HD release on the PS4, as one of the launch titles. Which I will happily say it is one of the many reasons I purchased the PS4. So we can only assume for now that Naughty Dog will have another massive hit on their hands.
Can we also be honest, and say that Naughty Dog kind of stole the whole show with the release trailer of Last of Us part II, and the upcoming Crash Bandicoot N Sane trilogy
Here is the official trailer from the Playstation Experience


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The Android 8.1 long-standing bug, finally to fix
For handheld Google son of Pixel, Pixel 2 XL users, June is expected to have a good news, is troubling them for a long time of system bug seems important to repair, is really like big rush ah.
Although Google has released new Android P developer preview, but for the official version of the latest Android 8.1, many models such as Pixel kiss the son met multi-touch bugs, in some cases cannot achieve multi-touch function, or touch point recognition error, lead to function failure.Some users are reflected in the game and view the pictures, but Google has not repaired, until now the latest version of the firmware still exists the problem.
Fortunately, Google finally heard the user feedback, built in the AOSP "Fix resampling for multiple Pointers" project, should be used to repair the multi-touch this bug, but Google every time to repair and security patches at the same time push measures, so are likely to be until June the Android 8.1 users can get rid of the annoying bug.


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Mike Silver's love of uncool sounds has always made him a square peg, but it's also earned him a cult following and a Grammy nomination. Shawn Reynaldo catches up with the Canadian producer.
It's tempting to think he's being ironic, but Silver, a 28 year-old Montreal native who describes his music as "painfully sincere," swears that his intentions are completely genuine. "I'm not somebody who appreciates music ironically," he says, "but a lot of the time, I'll bring something to my friend and be like, 'You're really going to like this, it's pretty schmaltzy.' It's not because we think it's funny, it's because it actually tugs on the heartstrings."
Schmaltzy or not, Silver has staked out a conceptually rich and invitingly warm corner of the electronic spectrum that's uniquely his own. The latest CFCF record is On Vacation, a captivating suite of shimmering, funk-tinged exotica that also dabbles in new age, jazz, Japanese pop, Balearic and ambient. Issued as a mini-LP for the impeccably chilled International Feel label, it caps an impressive recent run from Silver, who last summer released a pair of similarly spirited—and much lauded—albums, Radiance & Submission (for Driftless) and The Colours Of Life (for 1080p), within the space of two weeks. These records represent a period of cohesion from a producer whose lengthy catalog has touched on many different styles and sounds. And they're arguably the strongest CFCF material to date.
In a time when many producers are content to strive for functionality, Silver is driven by ideas. "I don't get inspired by heartbreak, or the things that are the defining moments in people's lives," he says. Brutalist architecture and minimal composition were at the heart of 2012's Exercises EP, while 2013's more abstract Music For Objects found Silver musically examining a series of everyday objects—song titles included "Bowl," "Keys," "Lamp" and "Camera." Back in 2010, he filled The River EP for RVNG Intl. with hypnotically languid synths inspired by Werner Herzog's 1982 film Fitzcarraldo. Cinema has long been one of Silver's biggest influences, the work of directors David Lynch, Michael Mann, Yasujirō Ozu and Herzog in particular. "A lot of their movies just had something in them that was intangibly human," he says, "even if it was approaching something grotesque or sad."
Of all his conceptual endeavors, however, Silver's extended foray into an internet-spawned anti-genre called "night bus" was the most lighthearted. Taking its name from a Burial song and first coming together through online message boards, night bus is a sound that Silver is loath to define—in his mind, that would run counter to the entire concept—but he is willing to provide a loose framework of his own musical headspace at the time: "It was just like, 'Well, if I wanted to play this Tangerine Dream song and mix it into Roy Orbison and then out into this mid-'90s Jay-Z song or whatever, maybe that makes sense.' It was a way of understanding, of just trying to break apart the rigidness of approaching music in a genre way."
Despite the goofy name and the music's online origins, Silver was clearly onto something. In 2010 his Do U Like Night Bus? mix became such a sensation that he later followed it up with additional Night Bus mixes in 2011 and 2014. During those years, piecing together his version of night bus was something Silver found both "fun" and "totally subjective," but he eventually grew tired of it. "People started to do exactly what they do with other made-up genres, which is they try to quantify and qualify," he says.
Definitions and classifications are things that Silver has struggled against throughout his career. Despite the diversity of his output and the intriguing ideas behind it, CFCF has often been somewhat ignored by "serious" electronic music circles, and has sometimes been lumped in with the indie scene, which never sat well with him. "While I like some indie rock, it's definitely never been my forte," says Silver. "I didn't have patches on my bag or go to Elephant 6 shows."
Part of this perception stems from the fact that the first two CFCF albums were released on Paper Bag, a Toronto label that's also been home to the likes of Broken Social Scene, Stars, Tokyo Police Club and a number of other indie bands. Furthermore, CFCF was a name that initially made the rounds of the bloghouse circuit: back in 2008, Silver broke onto the scene by winning a Crystal Castles remix contest, and many of his early offerings were reworks of tracks from HEALTH, Sally Shapiro, Memory Cassette, The Presets and other similarly hyped acts from that era.
Yet even within those circles, Silver didn't really fit. While many of his bloghouse contemporaries were openly aping Daft Punk and gravitating toward crunchy electro and over-the-top theatrics, Silver—a self-taught producer who'd been messing around with electronic music since the age of 12—was experimenting with disco, R&B and noodly synths, inadvertently landing on a compelling strain of leftfield electronic pop. "I just didn't understand how to make music like those other artists," he says with a laugh. "I couldn't figure out what they were doing when they were producing these songs. I just had to do my own thing."
That freedom is key to Silver's musical vision, and it's why he finds himself continually drawn toward the electronic realm. "I'm not a rock musician and I'm not a jazz musician," he says. "Electronic music is a nice place to be because there's an expectation that you can make music without having a specific set of values, or having to adhere to any one language. You can really just play around."
His playful spirit certainly helped spawn The Colours Of Life, an album that was actually written back in 2011, during a six-month stint living in Paris with his then-girlfriend. "It was a little challenge for myself," he explains. "I had no gear there and I didn't have much to do with my days, so it was a little challenge to myself to see if I could do this 40-minute piece that was just a continuous flowing piece in a slightly kitschy, slightly silly, but very sincere, new age, Balearic, answering-machine-hold-music style."
Stuffed with twee melodies and drawing inspiration from Phil Collins' "Hand In Hand," synth pioneer Suzanne Ciani and kosmische legend Manuel Göttsching, The Colours Of Life is a celestial and utterly engrossing listen that was originally slated for release on RVNG Intl. as part of the label's collaborative FRKWYS series. Vocal contributions were solicited, recorded and mixed into the album, but when the time came to sign contracts, some of the artists got skittish and pulled out of the project. Silver had no choice but to strip out their voices, and the album went into a sort of limbo. "I sat on it for a while because I wanted to be respectful to RVNG, and it just was a weird thing," says Silver. "After some time had passed, I sent it over to 1080p."
While The Colours Of Life was still being sorted out, Silver had also begun working on what would become Radiance & Submission, which he viewed as his proper third album. Although the music shares DNA with The Colours Of Life, it's more somber, and vocals play a prominent role. Comparing the two, Silver describes Radiance & Submission as "more earnest and way more in a chamber jazz, modern pop, classical sound. I was just trying to do a folk record." At the time he was listening to a lot of Joni Mitchell, Terry Callier, Mount Eerie and Steve Reich, and wanted to make ambient electronic music with acoustic guitar as a focal point.
Although the core components of The Colours of Life and Radiance & Submission have long peppered his releases, Silver admits that the two albums were the first time that he effectively distilled these elements into what he describes as "easily digestible morsels." On Vacation is a continuation of that effort, and though its songs were initially conceptualized as part of two separate EPs—with ironic working titles of Road Movie and House Music—he was convinced to combine them into a single release by Paul Byrne (AKA Apiento) of the influential Testpressing website, who also does A&R for International Feel.
With its airy melodies, glossy marimbas and generous use of slap bass, On Vacation is both alien and oddly familiar, coming across like a slightly warped, albeit totally entrancing take on the sort of music that gets piped into luxury spas. "The overall vibe of it ended up being really varied, but with a lot of relaxed themes and relaxed tones," says Silver. "The style is really organic and stripped down and relatively light. I think it's very jazz inflected, but not in a smooth jazz way. It's like ECM jazz."
On Vacation surfaced earlier this month, just a few days after Silver found himself taking a trip to Los Angeles following a surprise Grammy nomination for his remix of Daniel Hope's performance of Max Richter's violin composition "Berlin By Overnight." Although he didn't win, he's both self-deprecating and gracious about the recognition, joking that he was "dead at the bottom" on the list of Canadian nominees that made the rounds in the press.
At the same time, there's no denying the Grammy nod contributed to the current momentum surrounding CFCF—the nomination prompted a feature in the New York Times. Between that and the recent groundswell of electronic artists and labels referencing and celebrating new age and Balearic sounds (Mood Hut, Music From Memory, etc.), one might expect Silver to continue mining his recent musical palette. But he has other ideas, preferring to shift his focus back toward the dance floor. Late last year, Silver issued a low-profile 12-inch, Head Up, and while it reflected his talent for breezy melodies, the record was essentially three pumping, retro-flavored house workouts. He expects his next one to continue in that direction.
"It's another departure for me," says Silver. "I'm trying to interact and interface with the music that I grew up with or grew up around in a straightforward way and make electronic music, specifically electronic music, referencing both the techno and electronica that I grew up with and some of the pop and alternative rock, too. It's a weird, late '90s period piece, but with a modern approach."
It's hard to think of much music that's less cool right now than the raucous sounds of late-'90s alt-rock and electronica, but Silver seems thrilled by the prospect of returning to his roots. With his track record, he just might be onto something.


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Partner PE, Theatre battle for lead vs. ROMS staff in annual dodgeball tournament
Students donate $1 for a chance to taste dodgeball glory
December 21, 2017
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Teachers take on Partner PE for the final epic battle in this year's dodgeball tournament played December 21.
Excitement was in the air as the ROMS dodgeball elite took to the basketball court Friday morning. At least eight student teams launched, ran, ducked, and dodged the attaks from their peers in hopes of being able to bring the heat to their true opponents: the ROMS 6th Grade Center and Main staff teams.


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Extra Board
Welcome to Passenger Train Journal's Extra Board! We explore a different perspective of passenger, commuter, and rapid transit trains every month. Extra Board welcomes your submissions. We're looking for about 1500 words accompanied by two or three photos. Each photo should be no smaller than 14 inches (or 1024 pixels) across at 72 dpi (no verticals, please). Brief caption information must accompany each photo. Please send your inquiries to the Webmaster for consideration.
May 15, 2017
Countdown to Brightline
Brightline is well on its way to proving that a private intercity rail passenger venture just may work and even be profitable. What gives wonder to it all is that Brightline arose from the DNA of the Florida East Coast Railroad, whose roots date from the late 1800s and was a premier passenger carrier into the latter half of the 20th century.
March 10, 2017
CZ by KZ: Amtrak's California Zephyr
Amtrak's California Zephyr nearly follows the same schedule as the original train launched by the Burlington, Rio Grande, and Western Pacific railroads in 1949.
February 20, 2017
Passenger Trains of the Lehigh Valley Railroad
More than 55 years have passed since the Lehigh Valley Railroad abandoned its last passenger trains in 1961. At the time it was one of the largest railroads to do so and followed the Maine Central and Bangor & Aroostook in discontinuing what had been a mature service offering sleeping and dining service along with basic coaches.
February 13, 2017
Transforming the Long Island Rail Road
New York State, the MTA, and the LIRR are making a big bet that an expanded network, increased track capacity, new and improved stations and new rolling stock will improve service and remove some of the constraints on the railroad's growth.
January 9, 2017
My Life on Amtrak
I've never been a big fan of flying. While I don't have nearly the same kind of crushing anxiety I used to about getting on a plane, it's still not my favorite way to travel. While planes are great for quick hops across the country, I try to work train travel into my schedule whenever I can.
December 23, 2016
Springfield Union Station
After 43 years of being shuttered, the majestic 1926 Springfield Union station is set to reopen thanks to an $88.5-million restoration and redevelopment project.
November 23, 2016
Union Pacific's Butte Special
The Butte Special was a Union Pacific passenger train connecting Butte, Mont., and Salt Lake City, Utah, providing a vital service to the sparsely populated area in eastern Idaho and southwestern Montana. UP provided this passenger service between the two cities for 90 years, operating the trains under a variety of names and numbers.
August 31, 2016
Northward to Hudson Bay
Traveling by rail from Windsor, Ont., to Churchill, Man., is a one-way journey of about 2,500 miles (4,000 km) on three different VIA Rail Canada trains. The western end of VIA's Corridor links Windsor with Toronto, where connections can be made with trains 1 and 2, the transcontinental Canadian. In Winnipeg, Man., Churchill passengers make their connections to and from twice-weekly trains 692 and 693, the Hudson Bay.
August 25, 2016
Metro-North: Part 2
Fortunately, prior to MNR's start, the serious planning underway at both MTA and CDOT did mitigate the challenge somewhat. A multitude of projects and plans were underway to address the looming realities regarding delivering reliable service, along with a tight supply of electric-service passenger equipment.
August 5, 2016
Denver Commuter Rail Awakening
By the end of 2016, Denver will be one of the busiest passenger terminals in the Amtrak network with the introduction of new RTD commuter rail trains serving the fast-growing suburbs of the Mile High City.


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When my wife's out of town, I go out late at night.
I walk down an alley below the balcony of an old woman smoking cigarettes and yelling what sounds like Russian into her phone, avert my eyes from the teenagers smooching in the bakery parking lot, pass under the sickly green signs of the clustered drug dens "collectives" and the blinking neon of carpet stores and electronics shops, nod at the Chinese guy breaking down his boxes out back of the donut shop and the homeless men arranging theirs in the vestibules of insurance agencies, peer into the yawning maws of empty buildings and the kitten dens of all-night vets, watch as the intermittent strobe of headlights amplifies the garishness of sex shop window wares, side-glance into the "CLOSED" Mediterranean restaurant, too intimidated to look full-on at the table of dark-suited men drinking arak and smoking cigars (yes, on white linens), step down into the street around the sidewalk-piles of box springs and shelving units that'll all be gone by morning, wondering just how late it is that the nocturnal rag-and-bonemen come.
I tell myself I take this stroll to unwind, to help settle my stomach after the dinner I ate over the sink two, three, four hours later than I would if she were home, to clear my head after working on the book, to relax before sleep, to circulate the blood, or whatever other justifications I can come up with for what's really, if I'm honest about it, an excuse to pretend I'm like Charles Dickens.
He did that, went for walks at all hours of the day or night, to take in the country, to see his city, to engage with the landscapes of his tales. He was a writer, I'm a writer. He was eccentric, I'm a little bit weird, sometimes. Kind of. I pretend to be, at least. And I live on a street that bears his name, so I think about him even more often than I normally would (which, when you've read all his books at least once and some several times, is a lot).
And it really is nice to go out and walk around late at night, especially now when it's so hot all day and the streets are finally cooling down a few hours after nightfall. You see people driving their cars then, along Ventura Boulevard when it's nice and quiet and traffic-free, and they have the windows down and maybe if they're lucky the top down too and even if they don't have a hand out the window fluttering in the rush of air, you figure they must have a moment ago.
But where The Inimitable would walk twenty miles, I walk half of one, maybe thrice that if I'm feeling especially energetic, before I wish I had some destination, someone I was going to see, to talk to, to interact with. Novel writing can be kind of like doing cocaine—once you get started, it's pretty much all you want to do the rest of the night, and you have so much to say, and you feel really industrious but also, after a few hours, kind of thin or hollowed out, drained but restless, and the last thing you want to be doing is wandering around aimlessly even though you want it to help and you're not quite sure what else to do with yourself.
I like to think at the end of several solitary hours inside our small abode that being out in the wide world will rejuvenate me, reconstitute me, burn off whatever energy the work has generated and start sowing new creative ground. But the Valley's empty streets are no balm for whatever that ailment's called. Walking is not calming or stimulating, and I'm distracted from the distraction, and I have to admit, picking at the plywood of this week's boarded-up restaurant or staring into next week's plastic-wrapped CrossCoreYogaFitFlexTan&Talent, that what it all amounts to is loneliness, a longing sometimes bordering on despair.
I don't like running the AC when she's gone either, on some kind of principle that I could neither name nor describe. So I shower when I get back, a quick cold shower to get my heat down, and lie on my bed and look uncomprehendingly at black squiggles arranged into lines on eggshell pages. Invariably, as I reach over to flick off the light and set my alarm and see the time, I think—I say aloud—Why do I do that it's stupid this is not enough sleep.
But the next night, come ten thirty or eleven when I'm brushing my teeth, excited about the prospect of a rare solid hour+ of reading, I find myself thinking about my local haunts, wondering if the donut guy with his boxes is just getting to work or only finally leaving and how maybe this time I'll finally ask him, and before I know it, my t-shirt's back on and I'm slipping my feet into sandals and hitting the door.
I used to think of it as a secret, this going out at night, back when Erin was just my girlfriend. As a thing belonging only to me. Paul Theroux said somewhere* that writers thrive on secrets, and I know what he means. I don't know what's changed about it now, to tell on myself about it. To tell you. I'm not afraid—or hopeful—that doing so will dispel what little charm the exercise might have to lose.
I don't think I could do it with her home—leave her sitting in the apartment watching TV or reading, saying as I head out the door, "Going for a walk, babe, exorcise some demons, you know. nbd. brb." It'd seem…pretentious. At best.
And I wouldn't need to if she were home. I do not need to when she's home. It's never occurred to me to go out and "stretch my legs"/channel C. D. when Erin's around. And perhaps—and we arrive at the point at last—it's the simple fact of having gotten married, of finally being on the other side of a ten-year courtship, that's got me looking at things in a different shade of streetlight.
People's most common question these days is, "So, how's married life? Any different?" It's an obligatory question, and most of the time I give them the polite nonanswer they're hoping for—"Naw, not really" or "You know, it's really great" or "We're finally talking about something besides the wedding."
But this is something that is different. It's not that I'm pissed she has to travel for work or that I resent her for being gone or that I want her to be home every night by 6:15 (I mean, I do, but you know what I mean, not "in front of the stove" &c.). It's that the abortive rambling no longer seems to be just mine. It no longer seems to have nothing to do with anyone else.
It's what I do when my wife's not home. It has to do with her absence, so it has to do with her.
It's a fairly fundamental aspect of my personality that I best learn things in the negative. Like Taj Mahal's crooning up there in that song, like the people of the great state of California are starting to realize, I don't miss my water till my well runs dry. Which, no, is not the same as absence makes the heart grow fonder.
I'm surprised sometimes by how slow I can be to pick up on things—as I said, it was a ten-year courtship. I know so many things intellectually. We all do. We all know how you're "supposed" to feel about marriage and a spouse (what "supposed to" means is different for each of us, yes, but the knowing is universal). But that's just information, right, and as a wise man once said, "information is not knowledge."** Sometimes when we move on to knowledge, when we realize what a piece of information means to us or how it makes us feel or how it affects our behavior, we're surprised to find it's substantially different from the information we thought we had. A lot of times, when I get up in to the knowledge arena, I'm surprised at how straightforward it is.
"Ah," I think, looking away from a dumpster full of lilies behind the florist's so I don't get caught weeping on Van Nuys Boulevard, "so what you're saying, Universe/gaping hole in my chest, is that I'm better off with her here than without her? Holy shit, you're right! Man, good thing we got hitched."
I'll probably have to learn and relearn this a few more thousand times before it really sinks in, or stays sunk—another persistent delusion of mine, this assumption that my default setting is "Loner."
Or maybe, being reminded of something often is actually a working definition of "knowledge."
I'll always keep some things to myself, of course. Like a friend of mine says in response to Penny for your thoughts?,
But I'm beginning to realize and recognize that doing so is an act of identity—what and how much is ours, what and how much mine—and that my identity is very much in flux again. Or maybe I'm just hyper-aware of its flux capacity now, with my shiny new golden hoop. Either way, it's a pretty good feeling.
There's this insistence among people who get married at my age, or maybe just among men (or maybe just among me), that it's of the utmost importance to maintain your sense of self in marriage, to remain independent, to not be one of those couples that end up in matching Hawaiian shirts. But I'm starting to see that a "union" can reveal other rather interesting and novel avenues or (if you'll permit me a little New Ageiness) ways of being that I hadn't thought much about or even conceived of, really, and that I'm certainly not able at present to describe any better than that, except maybe to add that I feel a great sense of being on the threshold of things. Poised before the promise of adventure, if you will.
And that, maybe, contrary to a lifelong belief, I'm not Charles Dickens after all, and prefer to walk as part of a pair.
*It was in an architecture magazine, I think, that I saw in a doctor's office two or three years ago. Meaning it could be as old as ten. I've searched and searched for it because I'd love the exact reference, but alas this is one treasure the interweb is keeping to herself.
**Man went on to say that "knowledge is not wisdom, wisdom is not truth, truth is not beauty, beauty is not love, and love is not music. Music is the best."


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With an estimated 48,000 people diagnosed each year, pancreatic cancer is far from the most prevalent form of this disease. Its five-year survival rate of less than 10 percent, however, makes it one of the deadliest. The American Cancer Society, in fact, estimates that some 40,000 people die in that country alone each year from the condition.
Often known as a silent killer, pancreatic cancer is a difficult condition to diagnose. A lack of early screening protocols is complicated by the reality that the disease tends to present few symptoms at its onset.
Only when patients reach advanced stages of the disease does this possible diagnosis tend to enter the picture. Compounding the problem, few people are aware of the disease. While celebrities stricken with pancreatic cancer, such as Patrick Swayze and Steve Jobs, have raised some level of awareness, attentions and funding are not yet fully focused on the condition, which is believed to be on par to become one of the most common forms of death in countries across the globe.
In its earlier, more treatable form, pancreatic cancer presents with a variety of symptoms that can easily be chalked up to other causes. Patients may find themselves diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Syndrome, gastritis, hepatitis or even gall stones. Vague symptoms like back pain, skin itching or gastric changes, make arriving at a diagnosis even more difficult.
While medical science continues to play catchup in developing screening protocols for this disease, people at risk can help themselves by understanding the factors that do put them at risk. They include such things as tobacco use, obesity, age and a family history of the disease. Those with diabetes and a history of chronic pancreatitis may also be at higher risk. Anyone who is concerned about pancreatic cancer should discuss the topic with their healthcare provider. Early detection is tricky, but it can be done and it can help save, or at the very least extend, life.


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Celebrating Newfound's Homecoming with activities and sporting events throughout the week.
Purchase your Homecoming button for $5 during lunch. The button is your ticket to the bonfire/dance on THURSDAY NIGHT from 7 to 9 pm.
On Monday show your Newfound spirit by dressing for America Day. Wear your red, white and blue!
Tuesday, Hawaiian Day
Wednesday, Mismatched Day
Thursday, School Colors (Green/White) Day.
Recent Announcements >


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The SABC (South African Broadcasting Corporation) board has refused to resign despite a chorus of calls for them to step down.
The board is currently without a quorum to continue doing its work after two resignations from Krish Naidoo and Vusi Mavuso, leaving it with only four members.
At a press conference on Thursday, Group Executive for Corporate Affairs Hlaudi Motsoeneng said that the public broadcaster is in a better position that it's ever been under his leadership.
702's John Robbie spoke to EWN senior reporter, Stephen Grootes, regarding his take on the matter.
Listen to the interview below:
It's bizarre really because the board is without a quorum with only four members.— Stephen Grootes, EWN senior reporter


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Dr. John F. Rosen, a pediatrician whose discovery of high levels of lead poisoning among the New York City children he treated propelled him to campaign for a national effort to prevent the condition, died on Dec. 7 in Greenwich, Conn. He was 77.
The cause was colon cancer, his wife, Margaret, said.
When he arrived at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx in 1969, Dr. Rosen was mainly interested in how children's bodies absorb calcium. But within a few years, concerned about the levels of lead he was seeing in his young patients and knowing that lead poisoning diminished mental capacities irreversibly, he embarked on a mission. Dr. Rosen helped establish one of the nation's first and largest clinics for the treatment of lead poisoning; he personally supervised the treatment of 30,000 children. In one advance, he developed X-ray techniques for measuring lead in children's bodies.
He went on to push New York City to adopt stricter standards for removing lead paint from tens of thousands of older buildings. (The use of lead paint had been outlawed in 1978.) In 1991 he led a committee at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta that lowered the threshold at which children are considered to be poisoned by lead, to 10 micrograms per deciliter of blood from 60 micrograms.
But even that threshold was too high, Dr. Rosen believed, and he immediately began lobbying to reduce it further. This year, the C.D.C. halved it to 5 micrograms. The change could not help those who had lead in their bodies, but it sounded an alarm that even infinitesimal quantities of lead could be dangerous.
"It's about time," Dr. Rosen said.
He cited his own and others' studies showing that lead poisoning harms a person's ability to think and plan, as well as physical coordination. For a child with an I.Q. of 85, he said, lead exposure "could mean the difference between a menial job in a fast-food restaurant or a meaningful career."
Dr. Rosen's ambition was to eventually eradicate lead poisoning by eliminating exposure to lead altogether, in the manner that vaccines reduced the incidence of polio to almost none. He served on committees of the National Academy of Sciences and urged spending tens of billions of dollars to remove old lead paint from tens of millions of homes, calculating that lead exposure harmed far more children than asbestos.
Landlords and some government officials disputed the need for such a large-scale effort, arguing that lead poisoning had dropped sharply in recent decades as lead was removed from gasoline and that the use of lead paint had abated.
Dr. Rosen often testified in suits against property owners, leading some to suggest that his crusade was motivated by the prospect of personal financial gain from payments by plaintiffs' lawyers.
He also had critics in the news media. In 2003 Andrew Wolf, then a columnist for The New York Sun, argued that the war against lead poisoning had been won and accused Dr. Rosen of practicing political, not medical, science. In 1992, Newsday questioned whether he was a "well-meaning prophet or merely an alarmist."
Dr. Rosen replied: "I am not an alarmist. I cannot keep quiet when kids' futures are at stake."
John Friesner Rosen was born in Manhattan on June 3, 1935. His parents volunteered for civil rights and leftist causes and traveled to China to meet with Chou En-lai before President Richard M. Nixon's historic trip there in 1972.
Dr. Rosen graduated from Harvard and the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia University, did his residency at the Columbia-affiliated Babies Hospital and became a researcher at Rockefeller University. He moved on to Montefiore, where he became a pediatrics professor and head of environmental sciences at its Children's Hospital. His focus was underprivileged children living in substandard housing.
In one instance, he encountered two young sisters who had made repeated visits to the hospital with very high levels of lead in their blood. He decided to accompany them home, but the home, he discovered, had been inspected and the paint found safe. He then accompanied them to a park, where they climbed up and down a fence. It was covered with lead paint.
Dr. Rosen started his lead clinic in the early 1970s. He later opened "safe houses," where families could come while lead paint was removed from their homes. When lead paint was discovered in a Manhattan elementary school in 1992, he spoke out, calling the school "a toxic dump." It was closed for a cleanup.
Dr. Rosen lived in Stamford, Conn. His first marriage, to Katharine Lardner, ended in divorce. He is survived by his wife, the former Margaret Hiatt; two children from his first marriage, Carlo, a physician, and Ellis Lesser; a daughter from his second marriage, Emily Reilly; and nine grandchildren.
Dr. Rosen's concerns about lead poisoning went beyond residents of low-income housing. In 1988, he warned against eating Florida grapefruits because they had been sprayed with lead arsenate to speed ripening. Two years later, he reported seeing 30 or 40 cases of lead poisoning each year among children of wealthy people who had bought and restored brownstones.


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Spanish bond auction goes off with mixed success as European PMI figures disappoint
21/Sep/2012 • Currency Updates•
Yesterday morning's much anticipated Spanish bond auction sent out mixed messages to market participants regarding the state of Spain's finances. The latest bond sale by the debt-ridden Iberian state saw some €4.8bn worth of medium-to-long-term bills shifted – a significantly greater tranche than policy-makers in Madrid had expected. The fact that the gilts were sold at lower average yields than previous recent offerings provided further cause for encouragement regarding Spain's troubled fiduciary position. However, debt yields on Spanish 10-year bills remained at just below the 6% level in the aftermath of the auction. This suggests that bond market investors are more worried about the historical level of debt built up by Spain rather than by her near-term ability to raise funds as Madrid may still look for a bail-out package, eroding confidence caused by the ECB plan. Whilst countries including Spain, Italy, Greece and Portugal continue to flounder, the euro is likely to remain out of favour in the currency markets. This, coupled with gloomy PMI reports out yesterday, was quoted by many as a nudge in the ribs for many investors, causing a broad sell off of the single currency which caused the EUR to fall 0.6% against sterling and lose ground to the tune of 0.4% against the USD.
The pound tracked the euro lower against the dollar yesterday, with dealers concerned about the impact of a fragile euro zone economy on the UK, which has strong trade links with Europe. It fell 0.25% against the Greenback but rose against the euro. However, the pound would surely have made up further ground against the single currency had it not been for yesterday morning's release of mildly disappointing UK Retail Sales data for August, although these were cited as being negatively skewed due to Olympics. Of course all eyes are on data releases in the run up to the next BoE meeting in November. Though the minutes this week suggested more QE was possible, there is hope that the better data may stay the BoE's hand come November and this is standing the pound in reasonably good stead. The big question is will the UK economy bounce back strongly enough to convince the BoE to hold off and will sterling be able to hold it's ground particularly against the euro.
The dollar (and the yen) strengthened against most of their major counterparts as demand for the perceived safety of those nations' assets increased after separate reports showed China's manufacturing and Japanese exports declined for a third month . In times of economic stress, investors seek dollar-denominated assets because it is the world's reserve currency. The dollar gained ever so slightly at around 0.2% against sterling yesterday, and extended ground made earlier in the week against the euro tipping EUR/USD lower.


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Oral Panel Interview
Local Law Enforcement Interviews
Question Bank
POST has developed an Oral Interview Question Bank (Bank) to assist law enforcement agencies in meeting the six factors to be assessed in a pre-employment peace officer interview as mandated by Commission Regulation 1952. Access to the Bank is limited to law enforcement agencies and personnel departments who have completed a POST Use and Security Agreement and have been assigned a password.
Interview Guidelines
The POST Interviewing Peace Officer Candidates: Hiring Interview Guidelines manual is intended to assist department heads and other oral interview panel members in all phases of the interview process. It contains important information on the rating criteria for evaluating candidates on each of the mandated interview factors.
POST strongly recommends reviewing the Guidelines manual prior to initiating the oral interview process and accessing the Bank.


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Not realizing that the museum is under construction and closed to the public until the end of April.
It just so hapened that the House of Bols, Cocktail and Genever Experience was across the street.
So I wandered in and the lady behind the desk sold me on their interactive experience into the world of cocktails and the history of the world's oldest distilled brand: Bols Amsterdam, (which naturally included a cocktail tasting.)
Again, I had a found an excuse to hit the bar. Clearly I shouldn't be left alone in a European city.
There are 38 flavors of Bols liqueur and yep, they're the candy colored bottles you've probably seen at bars and liquor stores. They have every flavor you can imagine from watermelon to yogurt and they come in a trademark bottle – which Bols claims is ergonomically designed to be perfect for the bartender who wants to be like Tom Cruise in Cocktail, throwing those bottles in the air.
I smelled and tasted the many Bols flavors in rainbow-colored rooms.
And learned about the brand's history.
In 1575, the Bols family arrived in Amsterdam to open 'het Lootsje' to distill liqueurs. The Bols Distillery grew quickly and the original 'Lootsje', a wooden shed, was replaced by stone buildings.
In 1652 Lucas Bols was born. Living in the Golden Age of the Netherlands, he managed to turn Bols into an international brand and greatly expanded the range of liqueurs. The herbs and spices of the Dutch East India Company played an important role in this development.
Don't fret mom, I got to see some art after all. In 1650, Lucas Bols and Dutch painter, Rembrandt were next door neighbors in Amsterdam. Rembrandt was a loyal customer at the Bols distillery and in 1658 he paid his outstanding liquor bill to Lucas Bols with this painting, produced by one of his students. It portays a biblical scene of Joseph accusing his youngest brother of stealing a silver goblet from the Pharaoh.
Lucas began distilling Genevers – The Netherlands' national spirit category – in 1664 and the Bols family refined the recipe with great success in the 1820's. The first cocktails in the U.S. (where the cocktail was born!) were often made with Genever, because of its powerful, delicious flavor and balanced mixing qualities.
In the 18th Century a competitor stole the Bol's secret Genever recipe. In a sweet turn-about, Lucas Bols bought the rival company 100 years later and recovered the original recipe book. These recipes are still the foundation of their production and are still a well-guarded secret.
Today, Bols offer two Genevers: Bols Genever and Bols Genever Barrel Aged, both still made according to the original Lucas Bols recipe.
I was really excited when I read that Genever is considered to be gin's grandfather, made from grain mash rather than neutral spirits, because one of my favorite liquors is gin. Both Genever and gin are infused with juniper berries and other botanicals. The main difference is in the base spirit and this is what makes Genever taste nothing like gin (bummer for me but great for you if you don't like gin and prefer bourbon/whiskey.)
Gin is a highly aromatized liquor based on neutral grain vodka, which is a thin, high-proof spirit. Original Genever recipes, like the Bol's recipe, on the other hand, are based on malt wine, which is a mixture of rich grains like rye, corn, wheat, and barley, all distilled to a low proof. The malt wine comes out of the still tasting like unaged whiskey. And it's that profile—malty, heavy, viscous, earthy—that gives character to genever.
The Bol's malty flavor comes from using over 50% malt wine, which is made from fermented rye, corn and wheat, triple-distilled in copper pot stills.This malt wine is then infused with selected distillate of botanicals and brought to 42% alcohol.
I sampled both Genevers and they definitely reminded me of bourbon.
Genever can only be made in The Netherlands and a few nearby areas, since it is a protected spirit category, meaning it has the equivalent of a French Appellation D'origine Controlee, putting it on par with champagne, cognac and Scottish single malt whisky.
If you're a golfer, take note that Bols has had a hole-in-one club since 1929. To join you must hit a hole-in-one and fill out a form on their website. There are over 16,000 members today including Richard Nixon.
The Bols tour ends in the Mirror Bar, where you can select which Bols Genever and liqueur cocktail you'd like to try and the Bols bartenders will mix it for you. The recipe prints out so you can take home a souvenir.
I went with a Dutch 'n Stormy.
After making this hard decision, I elbowed some spring breakers out of the way and hit the brightly-colored bar. My Dutch 'n Stormy! Delicious! If you're a follower of Cat Mixes (as you should be!) you know I'm a sucker for anything Ginger.
Of course the only way out was through a gift shop with bottles of Bols and every cocktail implement you can imagine.
I had a great time at Bols and I'm going to see if I can track down some Genever in Virginia. If I can find it I promise that the beautiful Cat of Cat Mixes will be putting together a Genever cocktail for you soon! Cheers!