text:
This past July, Max New asked me about the relationship between bidirectional typechecking and semantic notions like polarization and call-by-push-value. I told him it was complicated, and that I would try to write something about the relationship. I was reminded of this since a couple of days ago, Conor McBride wrote a blog post where he laid out how he approaches bidirectional type systems. This is a fantastic post, and you should read it (probably twice or more, actually).
In his post, he remarks:
I like my type systems to be bidirectional. Different people mean different things by the word "bidirectional", and I'm one of them. Some people relate the notion to "polarity", and I'm not one of them.
I'm someone who would like to join the club Conor abjures, but I don't know how to!
It sure looks like bidirectional typechecking has a deep relationship to polarization or call-by-push-value, but I don't know how to make it work correctly. So, in this post is to explain why people think it does some deep semantic import, and then I'll talk about the mismatch that creates a problem I don't know the right way to handle. (Also, I apologize in advance for the lack of citations -- I really want to get this post out the door. If I didn't cite a paper you like (or even wrote), please link to it in the comments.)
The reason that people think that bidirectional typechecking must have a deep semantic meaning arises from how it works out in the simply-typed lambda calculus. Let's try writing some things down and seeing what happens. First, recall that bidirectional typechecking categorizes all terms as either "checking" or "synthesizing" and introduces two mutually recursive typing judgements for them.
\[\newcommand{\bnfalt}{\;\;|\;\;} \newcommand{\To}{\Rightarrow} \newcommand{\From}{\Leftarrow} \newcommand{\rule}[2]{\frac{\displaystyle \begin{matrix} #1 \end{matrix}}{\displaystyle #2}} \newcommand{\check}[3]{{#1} \vdash {#2} \From {#3}} \newcommand{\synth}[3]{{#1} \vdash {#2} \To {#3}} \newcommand{\lam}[1]{\lambda {#1}.\;} \newcommand{\inj}[2]{\mathsf{in}_{#1}({#2})} \newcommand{\case}[5]{\mathsf{case}({#1}, \inj{1}{#2} \to {#3}, \inj{2}{#4} \to {#5})} \newcommand{\match}[2]{\mathsf{match}\;{#1}\;\mathsf{of}\;[ #2 ]} \newcommand{\arm}[2]{{#1} \to {#2}} \newcommand{\downshift}[1]{\downarrow{#1}} \newcommand{\upshift}[1]{\uparrow{#1}} \newcommand{\thunk}[1]{\left\{{#1}\right\}} \newcommand{\return}[1]{\mathsf{return}\;#1} \newcommand{\fun}[1]{\lambda\;#1} \newcommand{\checkn}[3]{{#1} \rhd {#2} \From {#3}} \newcommand{\checkp}[2]{{#1} \leadsto {#2}} \newcommand{\spine}[4]{{#1} \vdash {#2} : {#3} \gg {#4}} \newcommand{\unit}{()} \]
\[ \begin{array}{llcl} \mbox{Types} & A & ::= & b \bnfalt A \to B \\ \mbox{Contexts} & \Gamma & ::= & \cdot \bnfalt \Gamma, x:A \\ \mbox{Checking} & e & ::= & \lam{x}{e} \bnfalt t \\ \mbox{Synthesizing} & t & ::= & x \bnfalt t\;e \bnfalt e : A \\ \end{array} \]
We'll start with a pretty minimal calculus -- we've got a base type \(b\), and functions. Contexts work as usual, giving variables their types, but terms are divided into checking terms and synthesizing terms. Checking terms are either introduction forms (just lambda-abstraction, here) or any synthesizing term (the intuition is that if we can infer a type for a term, we can surely check its type as well). Synthesizing terms are either variables (we can just look up their type in the context) applications, or explicitly annotated terms.\[\begin{matrix} \rule{ \check{\Gamma, x:A}{e}{B} } { \check{\Gamma}{\lam{x}{e}}{A \to B} } & \rule{ \synth{\Gamma}{t}{A \to B} & \check{\Gamma}{e}{A} } { \synth{\Gamma}{t\;e}{B} } \\[1em] \rule{ \synth{\Gamma}{t}{A} & A = B } { \check{\Gamma}{t}{B} } & \rule{ \check{\Gamma}{e}{A} } { \synth{\Gamma}{e : A}{A} } \\[1em] \rule{ x:A \in \Gamma } { \synth{\Gamma}{x}{A} } & \end{matrix}\]
You can see the intro/elim pattern in the first line -- when we check a lambda-abstraction (an introduction form) against a type \(A \to B\), we put the variable \(x\) in the context at type \(A\), and check the body at type \(B\). When we apply a function, we first infer a type \(A \to B\) for the function expression, which gives us a type \(A\) to check the argument against.
So far, this is pretty standard stuff. Now, let's tweak the rules slightly.\[\begin{matrix} \rule{ \check{\Gamma, x:A}{e}{B} } { \check{\Gamma}{\lam{x}{e}}{A \to B} } & \rule{ \synth{\Gamma}{t}{A \to B} & \check{\Gamma}{e}{A} } { \synth{\Gamma}{t\;e}{B} } \\[1em] \rule{ \color{red}{\synth{\Gamma}{t}{b}} } { \color{red}{\check{\Gamma}{t}{b}} } & \color{red}{\mbox{(No annotation rule)}} \\[1em] \rule{ x:A \in \Gamma } { \synth{\Gamma}{x}{A} } & \end{matrix}\]
Now, we've made two changes. First, we've deleted the annotation rule, and second, we've restricted the checking/synthesis switch to only occur at base types \(b\).
The effect of deleting the annotation rule is that it is not longer possible to write beta-reducible terms. A term in the simply-typed lambda-calculus written \((\lam{x:b}{x})\;y\) which reduces to \(y\) would be written \((\lam{x}{x} : b \to b)\;y\) in a bidirectional system -- but without annotations these terms can no longer be written.
The effect of restricting the check/synth switch rule is that it is no longer possible to write eta-expandable terms. If \(f : b \to b \to b\) and \(x : b\), then the term \(f\;x\) would synthesize the type \(b \to b\) in the original system. However, it no longer typechecks in our restricted system. To make it work, we have to eta-expand the term, so that we write \(\lam{y}{f\;x\;y}\) instead. This now checks against \(b \to b\) as we expect.
So the joint-effect of these two restrictions is that only beta-normal, eta-long terms typecheck. The reason these terms are so important is that any two beta-eta equal terms will have the same normal form. So having a simple, easy characterization of these normal forms is really great! Moreover, this characterization is easy to extend to products:\[\begin{matrix} \rule{ \check{\Gamma, x:A}{e}{B} } { \check{\Gamma}{\lam{x}{e}}{A \to B} } & \rule{ \synth{\Gamma}{t}{A \to B} & \check{\Gamma}{e}{A} } { \synth{\Gamma}{t\;e}{B} } \\[1em] \rule{ } { \check{\Gamma}{()}{1} } & \mbox{(No unit elimination rule)} \\[1em] \rule{ \check{\Gamma}{e_1}{A_1} & \check{\Gamma}{e_2}{A_2} } { \check{\Gamma}{(e_1, e_2)}{A_1 \times A_2} } & \rule{ \synth{\Gamma}{e}{A_1 \times A_2} & i \in \{1,2\} } { \synth{\Gamma}{\pi_i(e)}{A_i} } \\[1em] \rule{ \synth{\Gamma}{t}{b} } { \check{\Gamma}{t}{b} } & \mbox{(No annotation rule)} \\[1em] \rule{ x:A \in \Gamma } { \synth{\Gamma}{x}{A} } & \end{matrix}\]
This type system still characterizes normal forms in the STLC with units and products. Adding these constructors starts to give us a pattern:
- Introduction forms (lambda-abstractions, pairs, units) are checking.
- Elimination forms (applications, projections) are synthesizing.
Since units + pairs + functions are syntax for everything in cartesian closed categories, this is actually pretty wonderful. We seem to have a simple rule for characterizing beta-normal, eta-long forms.
But what happens when we try to add sums to the language? Let's try to follow our recipe, and see what happens:\[\begin{matrix} \rule{ \check{\Gamma}{e}{A_i} & i \in \{1,2\} } { \check{\Gamma}{\inj{i}{e}}{A_1 + A_2} } & \rule{ \synth{\Gamma}{t}{A_1 + A_2} & \check{\Gamma, x_1:A_1}{e_1}{C} & \check{\Gamma, x_2:A_2}{e_2}{C} } { \check{\Gamma}{\case{t}{x_1}{e_1}{x_2}{e_2}}{C} } \end{matrix}\]
The introduction form seems to work. The elimination form is a bit more complicated -- it's the same syntax as always, but the checking/synthesis moding is a bit subtle. The expectation created by units/pairs/functions would be that both the scrutinee and the whole case form should synthesize, but expecting two branches with different contexts (i.e., \(\Gamma, x_1:A_1\) for \(e_1\) and \(\Gamma, x_2:A_2\) for \(e_2\)) to synthesize the same type is a morally dubious expectation (eg, it would not make sense in a dependently-typed setting). So we are led to say that case is checking, but that the scrutinee is synthesizing.
This imposes some restrictions on what does and doesn't count as a typeable term. For example, because \(\mathsf{case}\) is checking rather than synthesizing, we can never write an expression like:
\[a:((b \to A) + (b \to A)), x:b \vdash \case{a}{f}{f}{g}{g}\;x \From A\]
Instead of applying an argument to a case expression of function type, we have to push the arguments into the branches:
\[a:((b \to A) + (b \to A)), x:b \vdash \case{a}{f}{f\;x}{g}{g\;x} \From A\]
From the point of view of typing normal forms, this actually doesn't seem too bad, because most people would consider the second term simpler than the first, and so this gives us a "nicer" notion of normal form. However, this doesn't seem like a real explanation, since our rules permit things like the following:
\[\synth{f : b \to b, x:b+b}{f\;\case{x}{y}{y}{z}{z}}{b}\]
To get to a better explanation before the heat death of the universe, I'm going to skip over about 20 years of research, and jump straight to polarized type theory.\[\begin{matrix} \mbox{Positive Types} & P & ::= & 1 \bnfalt P \times Q \bnfalt P + Q \bnfalt \downshift{N} \\ \mbox{Negative Types} & N & ::= & P \to N \bnfalt \upshift{P} \\ \mbox{Values} & v & ::= & () \bnfalt (v,v) \bnfalt \inj{i}{v} \bnfalt \thunk{t} \\ \mbox{Spines} & s & ::= & \cdot \bnfalt v\;s \\[1em] \mbox{Terms} & t & ::= & \return{v} \bnfalt \fun{\overrightarrow{\arm{p_i}{t_i}}} \bnfalt \match{x \cdot s}{\overrightarrow{\arm{p_i}{t_i}}} \\ \mbox{Patterns} & p & ::= & () \bnfalt (p,p') \bnfalt \inj{i}{p} \bnfalt \thunk{x} \\[1em] \mbox{Contexts} & \Gamma,\Delta & ::= & \cdot \bnfalt \Gamma, x:N \\ \mbox{Typing Values} & & & \check{\Gamma}{v}{P} \\ \mbox{Typing Spines} & & & \spine{\Gamma}{s}{N}{M} \\ \mbox{Typing Terms} & & & \checkn{\Gamma}{t}{N} \\ \mbox{Typing Patterns} & & & \checkp{p:P}{\Delta} \\ \end{matrix}\]
The key idea in polarized type theory is to divide types into two categories, the positive types (sums, strict products, and suspended computations, denoted by \(P\)) and the negative types (basically, functions, denoted by \(N\)). Positive types are basically those that are eliminated with pattern matching, and the negative types are the ones that are eliminated by supplying arguments. Negatives types can be embedded into positive types using the "downshift" type \(\downshift{N}\) (representing suspended computations) and positive types can be embedded into the negatives using the "upshift" \(\upshift{P}\) (denoting computations producing \(P\)'s).
The funny thing about this setup is that despite arising from meditation upon invariants of proof theory, we end up with a syntax that is much closer to practical functional programming languages than the pure typed lambda calculus! For example, syntax for polarized calculi tends to have pattern matching. However, one price of this is a proliferation of judgements. We usually end up introducing separate categories of values (for introducing positive types) and spines (argument lists for elminating negative types), as well as terms (how to put values and spines together in computations, as well as introducing negative types) and patterns (how to eliminate positive types).
Now, let's talk through the rules. First up is the \(\check{\Gamma}{v}{P}\) judgement for checking the type of positive values.\[\begin{matrix} \rule{} { \check{\Gamma}{()}{1} } & \rule{ \check{\Gamma}{v}{P} & \check{\Gamma}{v'}{Q} } { \check{\Gamma}{(v,v')}{P \times Q} } \\[1em] \rule{ \check{\Gamma}{v}{P_i} & i \in \{1,2\} } { \check{\Gamma}{\inj{i}{v}}{P_1 + P_2} } & \rule{ \checkn{\Gamma}{t}{N} } { \check{\Gamma}{\thunk{t}}{\downshift{N}} } \end{matrix}\]
The rules for units, pairs and sums are the same as always. The rule for downshift says that if a term \(t\) checks at a negative type \(N\), then the thunked term \(\thunk{t}\) will check against the downshifted type \(\downshift{N}\).
We'll see the rules for terms in a bit, but next will come the rules for spines, in the judgement \(\spine{\Gamma}{s}{N}{M}\). This judgement says that if the spine \(s\) is applied to a head of type \(N\), it will produce a result of type \(M\). In this judgement, the type \(N\) is an algorithmic input, and the type \(M\) is an output.\[\begin{matrix} \rule{ } { \spine{\Gamma}{\cdot}{N}{N} } \qquad \rule{ \check{\Gamma}{v}{P} & \spine{\Gamma}{s}{N}{M} } { \spine{\Gamma}{v\;s}{P \to N}{M} } % \\[1em] % \rule{ \forall i < n.\; & \checkp{p_i:P}{\Delta_i} & \checkn{\Gamma, \Delta_i}{t_i}{M} } % { \spine{\Gamma}{\match{x \cdot s}{\overrightarrow{\arm{p_i}{t_i}}^{i < n}}}{\upshift{P}}{M} } \end{matrix}\]
The first rule says that if you have an empty argument list then the result is the same as the input, and the second rule says that if \(v\) is a value of type \(P\), and \(s\) is an argument list sending \(N\) to \(M\), then the extended argument list \(v\;s\) sends the function type \(P \to N\) to \(M\).
With values and spines in hand, we can talk about terms, in the term typing judgement \(\checkn{\Gamma}{t}{N}\), which checks that a term \(t\) has the type \(N\).\[\begin{matrix} \rule{ \check{\Gamma}{v}{P} } { \checkn{\Gamma}{\return{v}}{\upshift{P}} } \qquad \rule{ \forall i < n.\; & \checkp{p_i:P}{\Delta_i} & \checkn{\Gamma, \Delta_i}{t_i}{N} } { \checkn{\Gamma}{\fun{\overrightarrow{\arm{p_i}{t_i}}^{i < n}}}{P \to N} } \\[1em] \rule{ x:M \in \Gamma & \spine{\Gamma}{s}{M}{\upshift{Q}} & \forall i < n.\; \checkp{p_i:Q}{\Delta_i} & \checkn{\Gamma, \Delta_i}{t_i}{\upshift{P}} } { \checkn{\Gamma}{\match{x \cdot s}{\overrightarrow{\arm{p_i}{t_i}}^{i < n}}}{\upshift{P}} } \end{matrix}\]
The rule for \(\return{v}\) says that we can embed a value \(v\) of type \(P\) into the upshift type \(\upshift{P}\) by immediately returning it. Lambda abstractions are pattern-style -- instead of a lambda binder \(\lam{x}{t}\), we give a whole list of patterns and branches \(\fun{\overrightarrow{\arm{p_i}{t_i}}}\) to check at the type \(P \to N\). As a result, we need a judgement \(\checkp{p_i:P}{\Delta_i}\) which gives the types of the bindings \(\Delta_i\) of the pattern \(p_i\), and then we check each \(t_i\) against the result type \(N\).
The match statement \(\match{x\cdot s}{\overrightarrow{\arm{p_i}{t_i}}}\) also has similar issues in its typing rule. First, it finds a variable in the context, applies some arguments to it to find a value result of type \(\upshift{Q}\), and then pattern matches against type \(Q\). So we check that the spine \(s\) sends \(M\) to the type \(\upshift{Q}\), and then check that the patterns \(p_i\) yield variables \(\Delta_i\) at the type \(Q\), and then check the \(t_i\) against the type \(\upshift{P}\).
Restricting the type at which we can match forces us to eta-expand terms of function type. Also, these rules omit a side-condition for pattern coverage. (I have an old blog post about how to do that if you are curious.)Both lambda-abstraction and application/pattern-matching need the judgement \(\checkp{p:P}{\Delta}\) to find the types of the bindings. The rules for these are straightforward: \[\begin{matrix} \rule{ } { \checkp{\thunk{x} {:} \downshift{\!N}}{x:N} } & \rule{ } { \checkp{\unit : 1}{\cdot} } \\[1em] \rule{ \checkp{p_1 : P_1}{\Delta_1} & \checkp{p_2 : P_2}{\Delta_2} } { \checkp{(p_1,p_2) : P_1 \times P_2}{\Delta_1, \Delta_2} } & \rule{ \checkp{p:P_i}{\Delta} & i \in \{1,2\} } { \checkp{\inj{i}{p} : P_1 + P_2}{\Delta} } \end{matrix}\]
Units yield no variables at type \(1\), pair patterns \((p_1, p_2)\) return the variables of each component, coproduct injections \(\inj{i}{p}\) return the variables of the sub-pattern \(p\), and thunk patterns \(\thunk{x}\) at type \(\downshift{N}\) return that variable \(x\) at type \(N\).At this point, it sure looks like we have a perfect bidirectional type system for a polarized calculus. What's the problem? The problem is that I palmed a card! Here's the relevant bit of the grammar I kicked things off with: \[\begin{matrix} \ldots \\ \mbox{Contexts} & \Gamma,\Delta & ::= & \cdot \bnfalt \Gamma, \color{red}{x:N} \\ \ldots \end{matrix}\]
The context \(\Gamma\) has been restricted to only contain variables of negative type. It doesn't allow variables of positive type! And, I don't know how to add it in the "right" way. If we wanted positive variables (in fact, call-by-push-value only has positive variables), we could add them in the following way:\[\begin{matrix} \mbox{Values} & v & ::= & () \bnfalt (v,v) \bnfalt \inj{i}{v} \bnfalt \thunk{t} \bnfalt \color{red}{u} \\ \mbox{Contexts} & \Gamma,\Delta & ::= & \cdot \bnfalt \Gamma, x:N \bnfalt \Gamma, \color{red}{u:P} \\ \mbox{Patterns} & p & ::= & () \bnfalt (p,p') \bnfalt \inj{i}{p} \bnfalt \thunk{x} \bnfalt \color{red}{u} \\[1em] \end{matrix}\] So we add value variables \(u\) to the syntax of values, and so we have to also add them to contexts, and also extend pattern matching with them to bind values. Then, the rules for these things would look like the following: \[\begin{matrix} \rule{ } {\checkp{u:P}{u:P}} & \rule{ u:Q \in \Gamma & Q = P } { \check{\Gamma}{u}{P} } \end{matrix}\]
So a variable pattern at value type simply binds the variable at that type, and when we use a value variable we have the check that the type in the context matches the type that we're checking the term at.
And that's the wrong thing to do! The bidirectional recipe says that we should check equality of types only when we switch between checking and synthesis, and so while this rule might or might not work, it's clearly not arranged the information flow properly, since we have a random-looking subsumption test in the value variable rule.
Some additional idea is needed, and I'm not sure what, yet.


text:
Re: tomatoes for containers
Home › Forums › Edible-Garden Questions › Vegetables & Herbs › tomatoes for containers › Re: tomatoes for containers
March 24, 2010 at 11:56 pm #29248
If the pot is big enough, like a whiskey barrel, anything goes. Otherwise stick to the "determinate" (meaning not so vigorous and vinelike as "indeterminate" ones, but reaching a maximum size after they set a flower cluster at their terminal growing point), or even to the ones labeled for containers (see below). So-called "patio" type tomatoes are a sub-set of the determinates.
This U of Illinois factsheet has a good list of dwarf/container type tomatoes as well (scroll down):

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Explore what's inside top companies, browse through jobs and meet the people
you might work with.
Global trade is a positive force in the world. It promotes prosperity in resource-rich, emerging nations. It underpins
production and consumption in advanced economies. It can bring nations closer together.
Trafigura is advancing trade. We're one of the the world's largest independent commodity trading houses in the world trading millions of tonnes of energy products, metals and minerals every year. Day-in, day-out, we focus on phyiscal trade and what we can do to make it work better.
Our focus is on physical trade. We aim to optimise supply chains so that we can transfer commodities from producers to end-users reliably, efficiently and responsibly. It is a complex process and we depend on highly skilled teams. We trust them to make the right decisions and we back them with global resources.
It is exacting, challenging work and we are looking for the best in the business. We offer exciting opportunities for progression
and development in the international arena. Ability and commitment are well rewarded. Every Trafigura employee has a part to play in shaping
our work ethic and developing our strategy. For the right person, there is the chance to make a real difference as part of a global organisation. We know our
employees are the reason for our ongoing success. We are committed to treating all employees fairly and with dignity.
We believe in: advancing our employees' growth and development, fostering diversity of staff and ideas, keeping open and active channels of communication, promoting a healthy work environment, providing competitive compensation and being the employer of choice.
Trafigura views workforce diversity as an ongoing mission, which allows us to continue to hire the "best and brightest".
We believe in a collaborative management style. Input is solicited from employees as we make decisions that set the course. Being able to draw on the different experiences and viewpoints of our employees enables us to take a wide look at issues and come up with solutions that each of us individually may not have been able to. Our goal is to create a workplace in which every person and every group fits, feels accepted, has value, and contributes to the organization.
We believe that each one of us should be able to find our dream job, and we constantly strive hard to make that possible. Apply now!
1-6 yrs•Mumbai
2-4 yrs•Mumbai
1-4 yrs•Mumbai
4-8 yrs•Mumbai
0-3 yrs•Mumbai
2-4 yrs•Mumbai
2-6 yrs•Mumbai
1-3 yrs•Mumbai
3-5 yrs•Mumbai


text:
|Photo Credit: Morguefile by Xandert
Standing in the kitchen with my teenagers over the sundered carcass of a beast, I swell with joy. For the moment, I have their attention.
"We need more sea salt in the rub," I admit.
"Is this enough?" asks twelve year-old Devin, with the eyes like wells, Devin with the lashes like one hundred bolded question marks.
"Not really," I tell him, "and you need the fine rather than the coarse."
Fifteen year-old Rowan grinds pepper. In his able hands, the pepper grinder rumbles, purrs, obeys. Devin separates rosemary from a branch.
"Mom, is this the thyme?"
Innocence and ignorance sit so closely on my tongue. Rowan scoffs. I smile, and Devin answers with a smile that owns his question, the scoff and all the amusement in the world. The lashes blink and cheeks run to merry red.
"Is this the thyme, then?" he kids and points at the other herb. "No! What?" He enacts the drama of the fool. Rowan looks on through half-lidded eyes, as skeptical as a snake. I giggle. They push and pull and shape one another with their tugs. Logical and lyrical, an answer to the other's strength.
"We could do a dry rub," I tell them. Rapt eyes focus on my face. "But I am going to use olive oil."
We cover the chicken in olive oil, anoint it like a supplicant before its God. Then we pat on the salt, the pepper, the rosemary and thyme.
"I am going to slice the lemon finely," I tell them.
"Why can't you slice it coarsely?" Devin asks. Because of the laws that govern words. One can slice finely or chop finely, but one cannot slice things in a manner that is coarse.
"One slices thickly," I tell him. "But I am going to slice it finely." Somewhere an Adverb Judiciary nod their heads in frank relief, disaster averted once again.
For a few moments, I slice in silence. The boys watch me as disks of lemon fall decisively from my knife.
"You're slicing them thickly," admonishes Rowan. "You're screwing this all up."
Of course I am. It is my job to teach him things so that he can think that he could do them better than I can. It's his job to rib me and tell me I'm a fool. The basis of our good-natured fondness for one another rests in my willingness to assume that he may well be right. I grin and he grins back.
"Well," I tell him, "They'll have to do." We layer lemons over the chicken.
"It goes in a 400 oven uncovered for an hour or until done. Now, what shall we do with the butternut squash? "
We halve the squash and scoop out the seeds, cut it into manageable wedges. Then we sprinkle it with pumpkin pie spice—nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon, ginger, lemon peel and cardamom. It is dabbed with what passes around here for butter and settled in a bit of water, covered in a casserole dish. Into the oven it goes. I am confident in this experiment. Anything blessed with cardamom will sing.
"We need to make a salad." Bell peppers hardly bigger than Christmas lights, yellow, red and orange, and English cucumber, carrots—purple, orange and white. Leafy red lettuce. Devin has disappeared and it is only Rowan and me.
"I want to show you how to make my signature dressing."
"I just remembered I have something else to do," says Rowan.
"No, you don't."
"Yes, I do. I have to go lie on the couch."
"Come here," I tell him, using my Mother Voice and he Comes Here. He still Comes Here.
"You mix two tablespoons of red wine vinegar with two tablespoons of dijon and whisk."
"That smells disgusting," he tells me.
"Of course it does. It's vinegar."
"Then add in six tablespoons of olive oil, gradually." As I measure and add, he whisks it in, unasked.
"There's something about the way that looks that just...is wrong."
"Well, it tastes really good. Try." I hand him a lettuce leaf. Dip.
Meh, he tells me. Meh. Whatever, Mom.
When dinner is served, I put out cheap wineglasses and serve sparkling cider with the meal. Devin asks continually if he's holding his glass correctly.
"You look like a redneck who's trying to have class," Mike tells him. Devin rewards him with the deep red smile, the fluttering of lashes and the further mocking up of drinking wrong.
Rowan takes a bite of chicken and stops for a moment of what might be prayer.
"That's gooood," he says.
It is. It is good and it is simple, made of things that happen to be around. Leftover herbs from Christmas. Two lemons on the verge of getting hard. I stock good vegetables, good spices and buy cheap chicken then let everything marry itself on our tongues. I am raising my kids the same way, with whatever is in my cabinets and whatever I find at the store, whatever is on sale. Yesterday it was cooking, tomorrow history. Add good ingredients and a little know-how and forget the recipe book. One may taste like lemon and dijon, the other like cardamom and clove. It doesn't matter. They will sit and watch me cook until one of them takes the knife from my hand, saying, "Mom, I can do better than that." Then, he will cook his own meals and eat the ruined and the rich. He will learn from the smoke about arrogance and devise greatness in his own dry rub.
Until then, I will look for moments where I can stand with each of them in the kitchen, with the smell of lemon and fresh herbs, the warmth and closeness. I will look for them surrounded by the best ingredients we have.


text:
No this isn't a parody from The Onion, it's the real thing — maybe even God's work. Nearly a decade ago, the practice of burying St. Joseph statues upside down to sell real estate caused me to write "Beyond Superstition: Doing Justice to the "Just Man". When an article on the misguided practice became the most forwarded story in the Wall Street Journal eight weeks ago, I decided to turn my "holy anger" into fund raising idea:
PROBLEM: More than 16,000 MLS listings have expired or been canceled across Massachusetts over the past eight weeks, representing billions of dollars in potential sales. (UPDATE: Expired & canceled MLS listings totaled nearly 29,000 during the 4th quarter of 2007, see graph.)
OPPORTUNITY: If you're one of those discouraged sellers, particularly one who buried a St. Joseph statue, consider the following Special Offers:
1. Statue buyback / trade-in: cost refunded to anyone who becomes a fee-for-service or referral client of The Real Estate Cafe,
2. FREE "for sale by owner" seminar,
3. 20% off the cost of preparing a "listing agent report card" (if you want to select a new agent),
4. 1/3rd of the referral fee paid to The Real Estate Cafe rebated to the seller.
To honor St. Joseph, we ask participating sellers to decide how another third of our referral fee will be donated to charities and causes of their choice. Think "Pay-it-forward" meets real estate rebates. Our sample client letter and Referral Rebate Redistribution Worksheet shows you how our "community commission" works.
St. Joseph never said anything (at least nothing recorded in the Bible), but if he weren't buried upside down, here's what we think he'd say about today's real estate market:
Practical wisdom from St. Joseph: A generation ago, President John F. Kennedy said, "…here on earth, God's work must truly be our own." So pull that statue out of the ground, resist the urge to bury your OLD real estate agent upside down, and decide whether you want to sell on your own or need a NEW agent to relist your property in 2008. Either way, become one of the enlightened sellers who will save billions of dollars in 2008 and do God's work by sharing a fraction of those savings with a charity or cause of your choice.


text:
Bite-sized interviews for makers
Query is my newsletter for entrepreneurs who build stuff on the web. Every week I pose three questions to a founder of a successful business. Subjects range from pricing to working remotely to sustainable growth.
I believe there's a better way to do work and start a business. The people I interview tell us how.


text:
|Grizzly Country
|We first saw Apple and her cubs when we were standing on a bridge and she suddenly appeared at the far end.. She waited patiently until we frantically scrambled to the other side and then she led her cubs across.
|Her objective was this old tree which may have been Hawthorn. By this time we were back on the bridge and watched her climb up. I would bet that she has been up this tree many times before.
|We were astonished how agile she was to climb the tree and manoeuvre her way around it. The cubs were picking up what she shook off the tree.
|Here she is eating some of the berries.
|One of the cubs waiting for a berry.
|I have no idea why the branches did not break. We were afraid she would drop on one of the cubs.
|She would shake by bouncing up and down and pulling with her teeth.
|"Careful mom."
|One of cubs decided to climb up too and started shaking the branch like mom.
|There are people that pay 1000's of dollars to kill these animals. What's worse is, we have a government that allows them.
|This one was entertaining as she watched a leaf slowly float to the ground.
|Tired of the tree they decided to move on to another location.
|They had to cross a river.
|She appears to be chatting over the fence to a neighbour but is actually looking for berries.
|Grabbing a grass snack as she approaches.
|The cubs appeared to be more alert than their mother. Especially this one whom we think may have been a male. He appeared to be slightly larger and was a little more independent than the other who stayed closer to "her" mother.
|Kokanee River
|Food is found in many places. Here you can see the scar on her nose.
|Wait for me mom.
|We found her again on our way home. She was resting. Here you can see the difference in appearance between the cubs.
|This was the way we left them.
|This is another bear we found. I didn't like the demeanor of this character.


text:
A quality clean since 1989
For nearly three decades, Quality Janitorial has brought the highest quality cleaning and care to WNC.
High school sweethearts, turned husband-wife team, Jonathan and Namurah Blakey, developed the small, yet promising business in 1989.
The couple, along with two tiny employees/moral supporters Jonathan and Preston (just ….at the time), began with just three county libraries. It didn't take long for their Quality Way Clean to catch the eye of others in the community.
Within months, the Blakely's were offered larger contracts including Pack's Library, Carolina Tractor and the American Red Cross. To keep up with their demand, they began recruiting aunts, uncles, cousins, and even their parents came on board to make the business a shining success. Business was doing so well, in 1990 they decided it was time to incorporate and changed their name from Quality Cleaning to Quality Janitorial.
Today, as the largest family-run cleaning contractors in WNC, Quality Janitorial employees over 95 employees, 17 subcontractors and hold contracts with nearly 50 companies including many of the largest industrial and medical facilities in Asheville, Hendersonville, Canton, Sylva and Franklin. The Blakely's were also awarded the Entrepreneur of the Year award in 2004 by the MED Week Enterprises and State NC for outstanding service and performance as a Minority Service Business Firm of the year.
Over the years, much has changed, but a few things remain the same. The business is still run as if they were a family – a very large, hard-working, extended family.
"To me, quality means that even though we are a good size company, most of our customers wouldn't know it. A customer can call us anytime and within an hour we are there. That is what is different with us. We treat each client as though they are family. We run it as it's a small company. Our customers know all of our management, they have all of our cell phone numbers and can call anytime with any concern and know it will be taken care of."


text:
Ho, ho, ho, internet!
Last year, the amazing Kim of Later Levels created this awesome Christmas community collaboration event thingy. I was so totally in, then I deleted my old website earlier this year, erasing my old entries of the interwebz forever. Alas!
Basically, there were 12 holiday themed questions bloggers answered on set days, in a format of their own choosing. Yep. I'm still trying to get back in touch with my joyful side after 2018's craziness… so I'm hyping myself up for that upcoming cheery Christmas event by re-posting my old answers and providing new answers for this year. I've changed a lot, man.
Question #7
Your help must have worked, because it's now Christmas morning and presents are under the tree! There's a fancy box with your name on it; which gaming-related item are you hoping is inside?
2017 Answer
I would probably faint if Santa left me a working replica of Lightning Farron's gunblade under the tree this year. It's definitely my favourite video game weapon (I even wrote a sales pitch story for it). All I'd need is pink wig and I could totally pretend to be my shero while wielding it! I'd use it responsibly too, and NOT go chase down mindless internet hater trolls with it… honest.
To go off on a bit of a related tangent – I hope everyone enjoyed their Christmas day! Due to family drama related reasons I will not go into, I don't know my extended family very well (and that's a good thing, I think). I spend Christmas with my parents in their middle of nowhere residence (satellite internet… *shudders*). Since I was a kid, it has always been just the 3 of us and it's pretty laid-back. I spent the day working on my blog, playing Super Mario Odyssey, and EATING EVERYTHING IN SIGHT! *pats stomach*
My birthday was on Christmas Eve too. And no, I don't get double the presents like everyone thinks. Santa and the season always steal my thunder so I don't celebrate it. My parents take me out to eat every year, and that's all I want/need. After I reached the legal drinking age in my country, getting older every year started sucking anyway 😛 Oh and I have an excuse to eat chocolate brownie birthday cake along with all the other holiday goodies, so there's that! Far from the worst birthday ever, that's for sure.
For the first time in years, we had snow on Christmas morning! Unfortunately, the rain took it out soon after, and then a windstorm knocked out power for that night. Luckily, the food was cooked already so it was a nice Christmas supper under candlelight. It made me realize what's important in life, and extra thankful that the Nintendo Switch runs on a battery. Here's a few pictures of snowy nowhere, and what Santa actually left me under the tree this year. I wish everyone a superb 2018, and a happy rest of the holiday season.
2018 Answer
It's obvious this was posted after Christmas 2017 on my original blog (I still haven't touched those games Santa got me). Nothing quite reminds me of my extended family drama like this time of year does. Oh well! You can't choose your family, but you can choose your friends (who can honestly be as important as family).
My friend recently suggested I start celebrating my "half birthday" instead of yielding my thunder to the big Christmas holiday. So in June 2019, I'm gonna buy myself a big ol' birthday cake and a bottle of spiced rum, eh! Also, this Christmas Eve I'll be 30 years old…. wow. Where… did… my life go?? Sorry. I'll save my midlife crisis for another post.
But, yass! I still wanna gunblade more than ever. The technology has to exist… they can totally make one.
⚡Thanks for reading!⚡
If for some odd reason you want to read more of my posts, you can find a somewhat organized (and usually up to date) archive of my ramblings… I mean, articles here!


text:
Newly Rebellious, Part VI: Finding, Recreating, and Inventing Recipes
It's nearly impossible to find an alcohol-oriented blog without drink recipes, and there's a reason for this: inventing, tweaking and sharing recipes is one of the most rewarding parts of participating in cocktail culture. Be forewarned, however, that many bartender-bloggers pride themselves on posting lots of recipes using particularly expensive or arcane ingredients – it's an easy way to show originality in a crowded field. While there's nothing wrong with this approach, it can be frustrating for many newbies, as hunting down and buying a whole bottle of something unusual and pricey just to try out one drink isn't a time- or budget-efficient way to get a good grounding in mixology. (The Rebel Bartender doesn't promise to stick entirely to grocery-store ingredients, but the majority of the recipes here should consist of relatively easy-to-find and easy-on-the-budget items – in large part because the Bartender's budget doesn't stretch that far in the first place!)
Now that you're familiar with some of the classics, you can start branching out – the Internet is a wonderful resource for new drink recipes. Here also you will see the benefits of your course in the classics: because you're familiar with a lot of flavor combinations, you'll be better able to pick and choose recipes that are likely to be good. This is the Internet, after all, where filters and objective standards are minimal; and while there's no shame in trying a recipe, discovering it's crap, and pouring it down the drain, reducing those incidents to a minimum is helpful to one's liquor budget.
During your hunt for new recipes, chances are you will see a few different measurement systems. The Bartender writes her recipes in fluid ounces, because she's an American and that's what she's used to; however, you'll likely find recipes written in centiliters, milliliters, or just generalized "parts". People do the latter in order to make their recipe easily scalable; usually, for a standard-size drink, a "part" is 1 fluid ounce (American) or 2 centiliters/20 milliliters (metric, about 2/3 a fluid ounce), although of course it depends on who's writing the recipe. Google is an excellent tool for converting between systems – just type "25 ml to oz" in the search bar and it'll pop right up with the equivalent. If you don't have internet access at that moment, however, you can just go with a bartending rule of thumb – three centiliters (or 30 milliliters) is about equivalent to one fluid ounce. Sometimes, in more casual recipes, you'll see an ingredient given with no measurement (i.e. for a screwdriver: 1.5 ounces vodka, orange juice); that's usually an indication that you put the other ingredients in first, then fill the glass with the last one(s).
Branding (using specific brand names such as "Cointreau" instead of generics like "triple sec") can also cause some confusion, largely because of the differing reasons behind the practice. Sometimes a recipe's author will put in specific names simply because it's what they're used to or because they're trying to promote a specific product. Other times they'll put it down because the flavor of the cocktail actually depends on that specific ingredient – Grand Marnier, for instance, qualifies as a triple sec but has a very different flavor from DeKuyper or Patron Citronge. Generally speaking, the more distinctive (and, often, expensive) the ingredient, the bigger a difference a substitution will make to the flavor of the drink (with certain exceptions) and therefore the more likely it will be called for by name. If you don't have a particular brand of liquor handy, it's perfectly okay to substitute, but just be aware that the effect on the resulting drink can be anywhere from subtle to dramatic – so try the substitution yourself before serving it to a friend. (As you experiment with different ingredients, the knowledge gained will serve you well here; a drink might call for Absolut Citron, but if you dislike the medicinal flavor of Absolut and find Skyy Citrus to be sweet and pleasant, swapping it in is a no-brainer.)
This probably feels like a lot to take in all at once, but honestly it's not hard to keep in mind once you've played around with mixing for a while. The joy of mixology is that it's less a science than an art. Once you've got the basics down, start tinkering! Try adding your favorite ingredient to a drink, or swap out a disliked component for one you enjoy better, or just toss together a bunch of liqueurs that seem like they'd complement each other and see what happens. Many of your favorite recipes will likely be discovered this way, so experiment, compare, take notes, and write down your discoveries. Keep a notebook or a card-file full of your favorite recipes. Develop a signature drink (or three). Take risks, and have fun!
We've now covered every topic necessary to send the beginning mixologist out into the world, and if you've stuck around this long, both your future guests and the Bartender thank you. However, there's one more entry planned in this guide; and (as is appropriate for a finale) it's simultaneously the most frivolous and the most important one. Tools, technique, knowledge, and showmanship will get you making decent (and hopefully, eventually, fantastic) drinks. But remember, humans are visual creatures, and much like in cooking, the difference between "Huh, this is a good drink" and "Holy crow, this is amazing!" is often nothing more than a shade or two of color and a pretty garnish. And since one of the purposes of The Rebel Bartender is to address the artistic value inherent in mixology (read: to make drinks that really impress our friends), this guide would not be complete without at least a peek into the wide variety of presentational touches that can really make that "Wow" factor happen. And that, dear friends, is what's in store – if you'll bear with us for one more week.
Posted on 26 March 2011, in Discussion, For Beginners. Bookmark the permalink. 1 Comment.
Remember–plating counts for twenty points of your final score!


text:
Again, the detail in this pattern will require patience, but the finished product will so well worth it. The tomb, grass, rocks and the wonderful lily make a beautiful picture of the empty tomb. This makes an incredible Easter banner pattern. Utilizing Heat'n'Bond and Quick Bias, lettering and designs are held on to the light blue background. This christian church banner pattern includes full size lettering and patterns for all leaves, grass and flowers. For beginning to intermediate level quilters, this pattern will help you to develop your skills while making someting beautiful. Finished size is 38" x 62".
Copyright © 2012 Bunkhouse Books. All rights reserved.
JoAnn Gagnon, 1-800-337-8845


text:
Bridal Photography
{Bridal Photography Project – Can you identify the light source in this photograph? Let me know in the comments below}
Phew!! Finally, I am getting to write this blog post after so many months… It's been a hectic ride for the last six months, with almost no time to be on the blog – though I'm trying my hardest to stay in touch with all of you via my facebook and twitter feed…
After a thoroughly tiring 3 days of non-stop shooting a wedding in Gurgaon, I am finally at rest mode and looking forward to the oncoming festival season.
Over the last three months, I've covered three weddings, all of them entirely different in concept and execution than the other.
First one happened in Noida, typical Punjabi family wedding, with a stunningly beautiful bride and an equally dashing husband. They met a few months ago at a common family friends' and their families arranged the match for them.
Second wedding was in September with Anirudh and Chantelle – a couple so madly in love that it's contagious to everyone around them. Anirudh signed me up at 1AM the night before wedding coverage was to begin, and we had fun doing wedding photography for 4 days non-stop. Events included a traditional wedding and a Christian wedding (my first one, yay!!)
The third wedding, and the primer to the season ahead, was arranged with the blessings of Guru Ji. It was under his blessings, that bride and the groom met at a Satsang (a sermon – not religious in nature, but enlightening for sure) . They weren't supposed to be at this event, and yet they were. They wouldn't have met, had it not been for this event, and eventually their families met, and arranged the match. Thoroughly polite, friendly and gracious family, watch out this space for more photos.
Latest Bridal Photography Work
Here is a small preview of the latest bridal photography work that I've been up to these last few months, many more posts are in the "DRAFT" mode.
As always, watch this space for some more stuff that I am going to post over the next several days/weeks.
Until then, thanks for reading thus far, comments/feedback – let me know below! 🙂


text:
2017 California Gold Ribbon School
Wasco Union High School
Wasco Union High School (WUHS) was recognized as one of California Gold Ribbon Schools for 2017. The California Department of Education (CDE) seeks to recognize outstanding educational programs and practices through the California Gold Ribbon Schools Award. The award reflects the school's success in creating a positive learning atmosphere for students. This success is a direct result of the talented students, a dedicated staff, and a supportive school community. This year, WUHS was the only high school in Kern County to receive the award. Since the program's inception, CDE has recognized 193 middle schools, 180 high schools, and 780 elementary schools as Gold Ribbon School Award recipients.


text:
Club drug addiction is part of a lifestyle for young adults, expanding among teenagers with the onset of social events. The motivation increasing club drugs is stimulated by the acceptance of peer groups in neighborhood activities. There's a mix of reasons for the participation. Some individuals are looking to discard inhibitions, while others look at it as a source of new experiences. The major problem is the lack of acknowledgement about the drug's harmful effects.
Most of the controlled substances associated with club drug addiction are stimulants, used to create a sense of pleasure. But as the drugs wear off, moods of depression occur, triggering the need for another dose, launching the probabilities of addiction. As the depression worsens the need for more frequent and larger doses increase the person's addiction to stimulants. More drugs raise the tolerance levels, prompting club attendees to try stronger drugs for the effects of pleasure.
Social Consequences
These social environments are natural breeding grounds for addicts because the access to drugs is much easier. Add alcohol to the mixture and the feelings of euphoria are intensified, introducing a new level of drug abuse leading to overdose. Sometimes resulting in death.
Other traits among the club drugs include affecting one's ability to concentrate with consequences linked to the loss of memory. Personal assaults occur in these social settings with the loss of physical control and memory lapses. For many, these events are responsible for causing severe emotional problems.
The drugs are manufactured to be hidden, explaining why most club drugs are odorless and tasteless. Club drugs come in the form of powder that dissolve in a drink and go unnoticed. Extensive use are warnings of addition, detrimental to both a person's physical and mental functions.
Club drug addiction can cause permanent damages. Club drugs are known to cause heart and kidney failure, by increasing the heart rate and blood pressure. Psychotic symptoms of paranoia, delusions and hallucinations escalate with club drugs.
Because club drugs are laced with different chemicals, man-made impurities and toxins the recovery approaches for club drug addiction programs are more intense. Keep in mind each of these chemicals are responsible for the drug's effect. They accelerate the level of potential damage to your health.
Patients going into a treatment facility require multiple phases of detoxification. Therapy sessions include physical treatments, since some club drugs affect the muscles along with specific psychology consultations for dealing with mind alterations and the emotional repercussions.
In most cases, the addiction is best treated in a secured medical residential setting for the safety of the patient. Because the patient is dealing with a multiple set of drug addictions, long term relapse conditioning is necessary.


text:
In the Australia there were important make-work projects like the Shrine of Remembrance and the Great Ocean Road that absorbed some of the workers who would have otherwise starved. In the USA federal work projects like the Civilian Conservation Corps and the Works Progress Administration (WPA) provided work creating roads, parks, bridges and dams. President Herbert Hoover (1929-33) started the process and President Franklin Roosevelt (1933-45) really made the programme successful.
New Jersey Homesteads
20,000 paintings, murals and sculptures were produced by artists who were paid up to $42 a week, including Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning and Mark Rothko when young. The art they created was not to be placed in secluded galleries; rather it was to be placed on schools, post offices and city walls for all the population to learn history from and to be inspired towards a more optimistic future.
The first Public Works Art Project was funded in late 1933. By 1935 the WPA was establishing quite a few projects in Illinois, presumably because in that state there had been a hub of muralists studying at the Art Institute of Chicago when the WPA began.
Once again, post offices were often recipients of these art works, framed paintings, long murals, sculpture and graphics. To reach ordinary citizens going about their daily lives, a mural was to be hung on the walls of every newly constructed post office in each of the 48 states.
Let me give two examples. The mural in the photo below was created by Ben Shahn in 1937 to commemorate the New Deal resettlement community of Jersey Homesteads N.J, now called Roosevelt. The very long, very detailed mural can still be seen in the Roosevelt Public School today. The three panels of this 12 x 45' fresco mural depicted the history of Jersey Homesteads, from Jewish Eastern Europe, the residents' arrival at Ellis Island to the planning of their cooperative community. As the mural showed, theirs was the story of escape from tenements and sweatshops in the city to simple, light-filled homes, a cooperative garment-factory, store and farm in the country. Narrative tales from history.. hope for the future.
There were many divisions of the Federal Art Project that had social goals, but the Mural Division had a particularly grand vision. It showcased the talent of many artists in the 1930s with varying artistic styles, visions and messages. One artist in particular was Harry Sternberg, an artist from New York. Sternberg spent a year studying the working conditions of coalmine and steel mill workers. This was prominently featured in his first mural ever, Chicago: Epoch of a Great City 1937 for the Lakeview Post Office in Chicago. This mural, like other New Deal post office murals, showed scientists, metal workers, factories, railways, well known Chicago architecture and less known Chicago agriculture.
The Wall has been carved in low relief from three-metre high wooden panels made from solid Huon Pine. The carved panels tell the history of the harsh Central Highlands region - beginning with the indigenous people, then to the pioneering timber harvesters, pastoralists, miners and Hydro workers.
There are two important links between a] the American Depression-era murals, created under the aegis of the Federal Art Project, and b] the Wall in the Wilderness in Tasmania. Firstly they both employed long strips of mural art, enabling the viewer to walk slowly along the length of the murals and to read the panels in chronological order. Long continuous narrative tales have been created in art before, of course - consider Marcus Aurelius in 180 AD, Trajan's Column in Rome 113 AD and even the Bayeux Tapestry 1070s AD.


text:
Let Go, Heal, Be Happy
An In-depth Roadmap to Healing, Living,
and Life-long Emotional Mastery
Mark Linden O'Meara
Price: $17.95
When you're presented with the opportunity of your dreams, will you be ready, or will your baggage get in the way?
We've all been told "just let it go", yet we don't. We are hanging on to baggage that manifests in self-sabotaging relationships, constant headaches, and undesired unhappiness.
Let Go and Be Happy teaches you how to identify, overcome and eliminate the personal issues that have been impairing your life. Written in a friendly, entertaining and caring style, Mark walks you through awareness, change, and ultimately increasing your happiness.
Let Go and Be Happy helps you:
- Discover a wealth of resources to live happier
- Identify and challenge your personal issues, then work through them to healthier relationships with yourself and others
- Use tears, laughter, and self-expression to dissolve negative emotions and let the past go
- Have healthier relationships by stripping your unresolved issues of their power to influence you.
- Develop your finishing ability and finally resolve incomplete business
- Discover new levels of joy, creativity and your sense of self
Let Go and Be Happy is a step by step guide to resolving your issues and living a fulfilling, happy life now. A beautiful world awaits when you are ready to let the past go and accept happiness into your life.
"Breakthrough healing is possible and this book shows you how!"
–Mark Victor Hansen, co-creator, Chicken Soup for the Soul
"This book is jam packed with great content….
A veritable fountain of knowledge and wisdom…
A book to read again and again!"
Click one of these buttons to order from your favorite bookstore!
Prayers and Meditations for Daily Inspiration
A worldy multi-faith collection to calm the mind and lift your spirit.
Mark Linden O'Meara
Price: $17.95
232 pages
Do you often feel stressed by the reality of life, its daily demands and challenges? Do you feel the need to relax but haven't been able to make time for yourself or to meditate? Experience uplifting benefits in just seconds with this collection of beautifully written calming prayers and centering meditations, carefully selected from many different faiths, inspirational writers and sources of wisdom. Open this book and select any page to find comfort and relaxation while deepening your connection with Divinity. Keep this book nearby for instant moments of calm and stillness.
A strong choice for any religious or spiritual reader
Life is a constantly changing thing, and prayer is what some use to stay sane. "Powerful Prayers for Everyday Living: A Diverse Collection of Prayers Offering Hope, Happiness, and Wisdom" is a collection of daily prayers and proverbs to be spread out to when readers need them the most to deal with the harshness and cruelty of life. The words within are moving, giving readers much to appreciate and hold dear, making "Powerful Prayers for Everyday Living" a strong choice for any religious or spiritual reader. – Midwest Book Review.
Profound Quiet Moments
This book provides profound quiet moments that each person needs to have to ground themselves and then move forward in their day. –Dr. C.D. Condon
Outstanding Collection!
"This book is an outstanding collection of contemplative prayer with timeless poetry. An important addition to anyone's library." —Theresa Pugh, Arias Press
A calming, kind collection of special prayers
This book brings me calm everyday. I open up the book and read a prayer. Mark has done a wonderful job of collecting prayers and has written some beautiful ones himself. Get this book now and start enjoying these peaceful, calm and kind prayers that show we are all singing the same song! – E.W
Regenerate stressed cells!
The book is an amazing collection of different prayers. Prayer is a very common ritual in India. It is a part of life like any other activity everyday.
Marks book of prayers is an invisible emanation of man's spirit which is the the most powerful form of energy generated.The influence of prayer on the human mind is as demonstrable as that of secreting glands.It is the only power in the world that seems to overcome the so-called laws of nature. I would recommend everybody to get this amazing book and use it everyday to regenerate the stressed cells in our bodies.Just open any page when you are feeling stuck,starting your day or wanting to relax after a whole day to fill yourself with positivity and thankfulness. – Bhavna Solecki.(B.A.RST), Holistic Programme Creator.
Kitten and Bear and the Big Tree
Available as Ebook
Illustrations by Estelle Liang
Kitten and Bear both go for a walk in the forest from opposite directions. They end up meeting each other at The Big Tree. Discovering their common interests, they play for the rest of the day. They agree to meet again the next day at the left side of the big tree.
Each thinking that their new friend didn't show, they inquire as to what went wrong. They agree to try again and meet at the right side of The Big Tree. Again, both going right, they miss each other, but call out each others names.
Finding each other and realizing their mistake, they laugh about their mistake, forgive and continue their friendship.


text:
WIN! The ultimate Ibiza opening weekend holiday!
Ibiza's legendary opening party weekend is just around the corner… and White Ibiza and Clubtickets.com have got the ultimate Ibiza opening party weekend experience up for grabs!
What you'll win: Five days and four nights of the very best Ibiza has to offer.
Four nights accommodation at the all-new luxury apartment complex, Ibiza Royal Beach. Located right on the beach at Playa D'en Bossa (just minutes from Space, Ushuaia and transport), these ultra-exclusive design apartments are fully kitted out in with all the mod cons you could dream of and feature a private beach, swimming pool and concierge. The ultimate home-away-from-home holiday crash pad!
The most in-demand VIP clubbing experiences from Clubtickets.com
- Thursday: F*** Me I'm Famous at Pacha – VIP table for 2 + bottle of spirits
- Friday: IMS Closing Party – 2 x Grand Finale tickets
- Saturday: Ushuaia Opening Party – VIP daybed for 2 + bottle of spirits or Privilege Opening Party – VIP table for 2 + bottle of spirits
- Sunday: Space Opening Fiesta – 2 x fast track tickets
An alfresco dining experience for two beneath the stars in the gorgeous garden restaurant at Aura Ibiza, the coolest hangout in Ibiza's north and a favourite of visiting celebs and A-listers.
VIP daybed for two at Ibiza's most exclusive beach club, El Chiringuito de Es Cavallet. Join the jetset, international celebrities and Ibiza's fashion pack for a day of high-glam seaside people watching!
Professional hair and make-up application bySmack Ibiza. Let the beautifying pros come directly to your apartment to get you prepped for a VIP night out!
A relaxing, rejuvenating spa day in the luxurious surrounds of Agroturismo Atzaró. After all that VIP partying, some pampering is definitely going to be in order!
Airport transfers from Diamond VIP Services. Wave to those waiting in the taxi queues while you get whisked away in a luxury car, direct to the doorstep of your luxury apartment, then returned to the airport in style when the weekend is over.
Valid from Thursday May 24 – Monday May 27 2012.
How to enter: It's simple! Access the new White Ibiza Insiders App via Facebook or Twitter to become a member of the White Ibiza 'It Crowd'. Then share the competition with your friends via your personal Facebook status update for even more chances to win.
Whether you win or lose the comp, as a member of the White Ibiza 'It' Crowd the party continues all summer with fashion freebies, exclusive content and first release tickets on offer to our most active 'insiders'.
Got it? Just by sharing our content with your friends, we'll reward you with amazing Ibiza goodies, all summer long. So what are you waiting for?


text:
Release Date
The expected release of the S6 is March or April of 2015. There is no firm release date yet, but it is expected to be released around being showcased at the MWC (Mobile World Conference) which occurs in March of 2015. The Galaxy S6 is the flagship of the Samsung line and it is much anticipated with tons of rumors of what the S6 will have and how it willbe improved over the S5.
It is expected that Samsung is going to retain the AMOLED display but that the resolution will be better. The rumors are that it will be using 4K and it is believed that it will have a bigger screen than the S5. It appears that Samsung may also go with a flexible display where the display actually curves around the sides of the device. It is also expected to be UHD capable.
Samsung is expected to be releasing the S6 with Android Land that the S6 will have a 64 bit processor from Qualcomm of the 808 or 810 variety. Which one will depend on if Samsung goes with 4K or 2K display. This processor works well with a minimum of 3 GB of RAM but it probably be increased to 4GB. It may be that the S6 comes with the even better Exynos 8000 chip which is lightening fast.
The rumor mill is running fast and hard that Samsung is finally abandoning the plastic casing in favor or an all metal case. It is believed to be true as the Note4 has a metal case. The plastic back will probably be maintained to allow access to the battery.
Operating System
It is believed that Samsung will be using the Android L operating system which should increase speeds over the Android 4.0 currently in use in the S5. The TouchWiz will still be in use with refinements to make it sleeker and keep it streamlined.
It appears that the S6 will have a 20 MP sensor camera. If Samsung goes with OIS with this camera the design may be slightly thicker to accommodate this system. If they choose not to use OIS they can have a phone that can be thinner and lighter but rumors are that they will include OIS.
It is rumored that the S6 will have a bigger battery with longer life and hopefully they have figured out how to make it lighter.
It is assumed that Samsung will continue to maintain its Health Apps, as well as the Micro SD slot. It will probably retain both the water and dust resistance capabilities. The Fingerprint Feature is definitely staying seeing as it works and has been certified by PayPal. Since the Note4 has a UV sensor, we can assume the S6 will have one too.
It is hoped that the pricing will be similar to the S5 at about $750.00 without a contract, but this is probably going to be based on how much technology the S6 is packing. If it truly upgrades and gives us something really new and innovative, the price could go as high as $1,000.00. There will of course be discounts for obtaining with your phone carrier and signing up for a contract. The carriers are expected to offer generous trade-ins for turning in your old S5.
Wish List
It is hoped that the S6 comes with a better speaker and microphone system, a dual forward facing speaker is what fans want.
While Samsung has managed to protect the S6 from leaks, there is much talk about a bendable screen which probably won't show up on the S6 but it is coming, as is the possibly of a retina scanner with iris detection. Not for the S6 but definitely cool.
Squeezy controls that would come from a flexible phone that would return to its original shape, so if it's in the back pocket, it bends not breaks.
Until the release date is closer we probably won't see any leaks on what is coming in the Galaxy S6, but to be sure it is going to be an updated, innovative phone.
Please tell us your thoughts below
What would you like to see out of the new Galaxy S6? How can one of Samsung's flagship phone take charge of smartphone market? Will the Samsung Galaxy S6's specs beat the iPhone 6 plus? Please leave them in the comments below. We want to hear from you!
Please also like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, subscribe on Youtube, if you want up to date news on a tech world.
Want to sell your used smartphones, tablets, or Apple products? Please go to www.techgator.com for a free quote!


text:
Welcome to Muncie, Indiana and surrounding communities. River Gardens Bed & Breakfast is located close to it all. There is sure to be something for everyone with so many things to do and see in the area. Indiana tourism includes so many places to go and visit. If you find yourself asking, "What to do?" during your stay, let us be your guide with some links to area attractions and activities in the Indianapolis area:
Here are some of our local favorites.


text:
My heart is exploding with joy and love and lightness. I shouldn't be surprised, I've been working on this for a while now.
I know I won't be experiencing this 'forever' (whatever that means) so in this mountaintop en*heart*enment moment, I'll just capture the essence of this which is:
All of the friends I have had, from kindergarten all the way through now, you've grown my heart and filled it with playfulness like the way puppies play and roughhouse on green lawns, with forgiveness because no one is wrong, with lessons of loyalty and trust and just a general sense that it's good to just be--
All of the teachers I have had, who went the extra mile to SHOW me what the hell you were doing instead of TELLING me what the hell you were doing, you've put so much faith in me, filling my heart with the ability to trust and believe in someone other than myself and somehow showing me that I had everything I needed inside myself all along--
All of the lovers I have had, and some of you I never even kissed, we had that moment, those moments, those years, I know it, my heart knows it, and all those delicious memories in my heart, even the pain of the lover stuff ending, all of it swirling and sweaty and confused and confident and connected and misfiring and promised and betrayed--
All of my blood family folks, you've given me so much so selflessly, you set up my heart to know how to feel all of these feelings that are worth living for, how am I ever supposed to do for you what you've done for me and this thumping thrumming heart which you crafted and molded and held so tenderly in your own heart--
All of the writers and painters and musicians and artists who filled my senses with richness channeled from places I needed to experience through your magic, who gave their lives to their craft, sacrificed themselves so that I might enjoy a gorgeous cathedral, a transcendent choir piece, an arresting clash of colors, an imaginary world filled with characters I love love love--
And so many more, the ones I never talked to on the bus, the ones I never looked at in yoga class, the ones who were in the room next door, the ones who drove me home in a taxi safely, the ones who made my burrito, the ones who built the roof over my head, how do I explain it, it's all of them, all of you--
It's all of it and it's all of it good and the living stuff, the heart knowing stuff is made up of how much I feel you in my heart, how much I love love love--
I'm starting to lose it already. It's a cracked-open bigger feeling-feel, the part of me here, sitting alone, knowing I'm never alone, was never alone, will never not for one second spend any time of this life being alone, alone is a lie, it's a trick, it's a joke, alone doesn't exist, not to the heart anyway, the heart is too full of all of this, all of you--
Some people take drugs to get to this place and stay here. I had to go through a flood. A flood of my own fear. A flood that carried me up and washed away everything I no longer needed. A flood that reoriented me under stars that point the way, always point the way towards my heart. My heart wide open to you. To this.
The flood that nearly killed me taught me how to love.
Comments are closed.
About Sarah
Sarah Elovich is a writer and performer based in Oakland, CA.
February 2018


text:
Teachers and School Administrators
I know firsthand that a teaching profession is underpaid, under-appreciated and stressful.
I also know that teachers have some interesting financial differences compared to other careers. As more school budgets are cut, salary increases are lowered and teachers being asked to pay for more school supplies, it's no wonder teachers are feeling financially squeezed. Let's face it, teaching is stressful enough. I call it "Living the Teacher Life".
Kline's Investment Services is an Independent Financial Services Firm that specializes in meeting the financial needs of the teaching profession. We have helped many teachers plan a secure financial future for themselves and their families.
With an open and honest approach, we believe that financial advice need not be overly complicated. Our aim is to provide you with quality advice and we are confident that the attention we give to you, adds value and peace of mind.
Areas of Expertise
We are fully conversant with the "State Teachers' Retirement Program" and the "Public Employees Services' Retirement Program". Because we know these programs well, we can provide advice to help you make the most of your pension.
How we can help:
- Striving to ensure you have sufficient income in retirement.
- Ensuring your family would not suffer financial hardship in the event of your death or long term illness.
- Professional advice involving your pension's Lump Sum and income options.
- Inheritance tax planning.
- Health Insurance retirement options.
- Save money on taxes you're currently paying.
- Provide advice on your individual school district's retirement programs.
Give us a call at 330-673-2988 to speak to a dedicated teacher's adviser.


text:
Blogging cataloguing!
Thursday, 7 January 2010
New year: New plans
I find it is only when I have a break from work that I realise how stressed I've been! Three weeks of festive fun, food and friends has been quite restorative; only one problem - what was I doing at the end of 2009?
What to pick up on this year? The future of cataloguers? The new generation OPACs?
Library Routes Project
? The latest technical innovation? Or should I just be looking for a career change, given the uncertainty in universities at the moment? All hot topics in 2009, and somehow I think they will continue to be, well into 2010.
Posted by
No comments:
Links to this post
Newer Posts
Older Posts
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)


text:
Corporate Partnerships
Paid Services
– Working with Corporations in identifying goals & developing solutions.
– Access to Institutions for the Blind.
– Coordinating, advising & developing programmes suitable for meeting needs.
– Orientation & familiarisation of volunteers.
– Developing employment opportunities for the Blind – with your company or others.
– Consultancy & Information on Blindness related issues


text:
Kapital Bank has opened a new card centre in Ganja
By opening the card centre branch, the bank offers its clients even more up-to-date and convenient banking services.
In order to increase the level of customer service, Kapital Bank continues to implement new projects. Kapital Bank has always been one of the first to offer innovations in the financial market. And now, by opening the card center branch, the bank has offered its customers even more up-to-date and convenient banking services.
The branch of Ganja Card Center of Kapital Bank is located at 101 A Heydar Aliyev, Kapaz district. It will provide clients with various banking operations — card sales and service, opening of accounts for legal entities / individuals, deposit services and cash management, money transfers and loan services. It should be noted that last year the branch of Narimanov Card Center was also opened.
Now, Kapital Bank customers who were previously served in Ganja and Kapaz branches, will be able to receive their cards for social, salary, pension and other projects in the new branch — Ganja Card Center. As a result, the workload of the branches will be reduced, and customers will be able to spend the saved time on other banking operations. In the near future, it is planned to to open several such Card Centers.
It should be noted that Kapital Bank has been conducting certain works as part of the branch network transformation project. In the current year, it is planned to make a refurbishment of branches in Baku and regions, as well as to open new branches and offices. In 2018 Fizuli, Bravo-2 and Shimal branches were opened. Within 3 years of the project's duration several branches of Kapital Bank, that meet the requirements of clients, were successfully repaired and opened.
Kapital Bank, having the biggest branch network in Azerbaijan, is at the service of customers with 95 branches and 7 departments. For more detailed information about the Bank's products and services, please refer to www.kapitalbank.az website, 196 Call Centre or the Bank's various social network pages.


text:
Inspired by this and Dave Matthews, I have decided to post my list of favorite books. I found this list while reading my older blogs from another life. While reading my older blogs (from another life) I also discovered that I have been playing solitaire obsessively for the last 5 years.
Anyway, back to the list. I have edited out some of the books that are not my favorites anymore, so I have a total of 15 at the moment. These are books I cannot part with and will take with me when the world is ending to a high mountain where I'll wait for – well, the end obviously.
1. Alien Earth by Megan Lindholm
2. Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami
3. Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
4. Never Let me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
5. Reaperman by Terry Pratchett
6. She's Come Undone by Wally Lamb
7. The Company of Women by Khushwant Singh
8. The Earthsea Quartet by Ursula LeGuin
9. The Face of the Waters by Robert Silverberg
10. The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
11. The Sound of Waves by Yukio Mishima
12. The Stand by Stephen King
13. Of Human Bondage by W. Somerset Maugham
14. The Chrysalids by John Wyndham
15. Kartography by Kamila Shamsie
I do have more favorites. Perhaps I'll have to take a bigger bag with me when the world ends.


text:
How to Use the Choice Hotels Shopping Portal to Earn More Points
Full Disclosure: We may be financially compensated when you click on links to credit card products from our advertising partners, such as American Express, Chase, Citi & Capital One. Opinions and product recommendations on this site are ours alone, and have not been influenced, reviewed or approved by the issuer. See our Advertiser Disclosure for more details. Thanks!
If you're shopping online, you should definitely be using a shopping portal. If you're a Choice Hotels person, you should be using the Choice Privileges Mall. With a few extra clicks, you could easily be earning bonus points!
In this post, we'll walk you through the ins and outs of the Choice Privileges Mall so you can get shopping. And remember, if you have a credit card with category bonuses for shopping, you can earn even more.
Table of contents
Table of Contents
How to Log in
To reap the benefits of extra Choice Privileges points while shopping online, you will need to be logged in to the shopping portal: Choice Privileges Mall.
If you are already a Choice Privileges Rewards member, you simply sign in with your existing account. There is no need to create a new login.
If you are not already a Choice Privileges Rewards member, you will need to join and create an account.
The "Sign In" and "Join" buttons are clearly marked at the top of the page on the right-hand side.
Basics of Using the Portal
The Choice Privileges Mall has a very clean interface and is extremely easy to navigate. At the top, there is a tool bar that helps you browse retailers, bonus offers, coupons, and more.
You can browse retailers by category, name, new retailers, or simply type your desired retailer in the search bar. When you find one you'd like to shop with, clicking the retailer will show additional information.
Customers can view the offer, company information, purchase conditions, and even a handy points calculator to estimate the number of points earned with a specific purchase amount.
To earn the Choice Privileges points on offer, you must click the orange "Shop Now" button that will redirect you to the retailer's website. Once there, simply shop and complete your purchases as you normally would!
Choice Hotels uses cookies to track your purchases, so make sure they are enabled on your browser!
After purchasing through a retailer, the transaction will appear within 5 business days as "Pending" in your Choice Privileges Mall Transaction History. After confirming the transaction with the retailer (which could take up to 60 days), the transaction should be marked as "Approved." This is when the points will be credited to your account.
At this time, if you forget to use the Choice Privileges Mall and make a purchase through a retailer directly without using the portal, there is no way to retroactively apply your bonus points. If you're the forgetful type, read on to find out more about Choice Privileges "Points Booster."
Hot Tip: If you would like to see what deals other shopping portals are offering at a particular store, use CashBack Monitor to easily see a store's offers at 45 different shopping portals.
Special Offers
While the Choice Privileges Mall may not utilize big specials throughout the year as some portals do, they do make it easy to see which specific retailers have bonus offers at any given time.
By clicking on the bonus offers tab at the toolbar, you can see which retailers are holding a current bonus, what their normal points per $1 ratio is, and how long the bonus will run.
For example, at the time of this writing, Apple was offering 2 points per $1 instead of their regular rate of 1 point per $1. If you click through to the retailer's page you can see when the bonus offer expires.
Additionally, the "Coupons" tab allows users to see which retailers are offering sales and coupons and will provide you with the coupon code if needed.
Hot Tip: Once you've earned all of those points, you'll need a great way to use them — check out our list of the 30 best ways to redeem Choice Privileges hotel rewards points.
Example Retailers
In reading through this post so far, you may have noticed a few of the participating retailers in the images.
Participating retailers and potential mileage bonuses in the Choice Privileges Mall can change regularly, so keep your eyes peeled for your favorites!
At the time of writing, these were some of the great earning rates being offered through the shopping portal:
- T-Mobile: 5,850 points for activation of a wireless service
- Magazines.com: 16 points per $1
- Proactiv: 13 points per $1
- New Balance: 8 points per $1
- eBags: 7 points per $1
- … and much more!
Points Booster
Choice Privileges offers this helpful tool for shoppers who are a bit forgetful. The Points Booster is an extension of your browser that automatically alerts you anytime you're on a website that could earn you Choice Privileges points when shopping.
You'll need Google Chrome in order to utilize the toolbar. It's also free to download!
Using Credit Cards to Earn Extra Points
When paired with a points-earning credit card, the Choice Privileges shopping portal can give you a real boost.
Barclays Choice Privileges® Visa Signature® Card
If you want to earn Choice Privileges points directly, you can use the Barclays Choice Privileges® Visa Signature® Card. This card earns 2X points per dollar on everyday purchases, which will pair nicely with the Choice Privileges shopping portal.
American Express Membership Rewards Cards
You can also earn Membership Rewards points, which can be transferred to the Choice Privileges program almost instantly.
Recommended Amex Cards (Personal)
|The Platinum Card® from American Express - There's currently a welcome bonus of 60,000 points after spending $5,000 in your first 3 months, worth at least $600.
This is our absolute favorite card for getting into 1,200+ airport lounges worldwide (including Priority Pass) and we get ~$2,700+ in value from the card every year.
The Amex Platinum can get you up to $200 in Uber credits annually ($15 per month and a $20 bonus in December) — and up to $200 in annual credit for airline incidental charges (e.g. baggage or seat selection fees). There's even a $100 Saks Fifth Avenue credit, annually. For rates and fees of the Platinum Card, click here.
|American Express® Gold Card - We love using this card as it earns 4x points at restaurants worldwide and 4x points at US supermarkets (up to $25,000; then 1x). There's no better card in our opinion if you eat out and/or shop at supermarkets regularly.
With a welcome bonus of 35,000 points after you spend $4,000 in your first 3 months and a $100 airfare credit per year, for many this is an easy addition to your wallet. For rates and fees of the Gold Card, click here.
Recommended Amex Cards (Business)
|The Business Platinum Card® from American Express - Right now, there's a welcome bonus of up to 75,000 points. Earn 50,000 points after you spend $10,000 and an extra 25,000 after you spend an additional $10,000, on purchases within the first 3 months.
We get ~$5,525+ in value per year by leveraging many of the benefits & perks.
This is the best business card for lounge access as you'll get into 1,200+ airport lounges worldwide. For rates and fees of the Business Platinum, click here.
|American Express® Business Gold Card - probably our favorite Amex business card because we earn 4x points across the top 2 select categories that we spend the most money in each month. The 4x points applies to the first $150,000 in combined purchases from these 2 categories each calendar year. This means you'll max out at a (whopping) 600,000 points per year. After that, you earn 1x. For rates and fees of the Business Gold Card, click here.
|The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express - This is a simple card that earns you 2x points on any business purchase, up to $50,000 annually (then 1x). That makes for an easy 100,000 points per year! The card has no annual fee. For rates and fees of the Blue Business Plus, click here.
Final Thoughts
Choice Hotels provides customers with over 65,000 hotels in more than 35 countries—that's a lot of options! Just think about all the great places you could stay if you had some extra points in your back pocket.
Luckily, with the Choice Privileges Mall, all it takes is a few extra clicks to go through the portal, and voila! Points are adding up on purchases you'd have made anyway, and you're on your way to that next adventure.
Happy shopping!


text:
Farm Bill; Egg Bill; Ag Economy; Biofuels; Budget; and, Immigration
Farm Bill- Policy Issues
Chris Clayton reported on Friday at the DTN Ag Policy Blog that, "House Majority Leader Eric Cantor apparently won't press another pause button on the farm bill.
"Cantor, a Republican from Virginia, sent a memo out Friday to other House Republicans. In it, Cantor outlined several key agenda items for the spring and summer, including another repeal vote on Obamacare, legislation to avoid rising interest rates for student loans and a bill to require the Securities and Exchange Commission to conduct more cost-benefit analysis for rule-making.
"In his memo, Cantor also stated on the summer agenda 'and we will consider a farm bill produced by the Agriculture Committee and Frank Lucas.'"
Mr. Clayton added that, "The House Ag Committee is set for a May 15 markup for the farm bill and shooting to reduce the projected 10-year spending by $38 billion compared to current budget estimates."


text:
Tim Caputo is a Night Team reporter for 7NEWS. Tim joined 7NEWS in April 2010 and is glad to be back in the Northeast after spending years all over the country.
Tim's first reporting job was in Roswell, New Mexico. Despite what most people think, he did not report on aliens there. Tim stayed in New Mexico for several more years, working at KRQE in Albuquerque, where he covered stories that received national attention like wildfires, flooding, and the Georgia runaway bride who ended up in New Mexico.
Most recently, Tim worked in Charlotte at WSOC where he was an education reporter and occasionally anchored weekends. In North Carolina, Tim broke a number of stories about budget problems and crime and covered successes in local school districts.
Tim graduated from Syracuse University's S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. A native New Yorker, Tim is now happy to call Boston his home. Tim is an avid sports fan and you'll likely catch him in the crowd at a Red Sox or Celtics game.
TV show I never miss – 60 Minutes
Song that gets me dancing – Juicy
Alma mater – S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University
First concert I ever attended – Debbie Gibson (two older sisters, don't judge me)
Favorite place I've traveled – Austin, TX
Childhood hero – Michael Jordan
Best season – Spring
Book I've read over and over – Aim for the Heart by Al Tompkins
Last meal on earth – Chicken Parm
Movie that makes me cry – Rudy
Movie I've watched over and over – Shawshank Redemption
I'm known for – Sarcasm, one-liners


text:
Some people collect stamps. I collect children. Seven of 'em, spread hither and thither across the globe. How do I know where they are? I Skype 'em, of course.
We videoconference non-stop, for free, via our microphone- and camera-equipped computers. Because we Skype, the kid two states away in the boondocks of Idaho, or the one living two oceans away in the middle of a Chinese earthquake, seems just as close as the child two bedrooms down the hall, or the kid at college two miles down the road.
Now one son is arguing that we should switch to Yahoo Instant Messenger, since that's the system they use in his office. What's your opinion? Convince me to make the switch by clicking that comments link.
Monday, June 9, 2008
How I Dog My Kids
Posted by LauraMaery Gold at 2:00 AM
Labels: Community, editors, freelance writers, Home and Family, Social Networking, Technology, Utilities
1 comment:
- Rebecca GealtaJune 13, 2008 at 4:54 AM
I love both Skype and Instant Messanger :) I used Skype all the time to talk to my parents when they lived in South Africa. Instant messanger is nice though because you can just quickly type some messages even if you don't want to use your web cam. I use this all the time to check in on my siblings. I can talk to my brother at work on this easily. I love to turn on the web cam to show recent purchases, etc to my sister. It makes it so fun.ReplyDelete
So I guess if you are going to have long conversations then Skype is better. But if you just need to send a short message or ask a quick question, then Instant Messager is a good option.
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


text:
I finally got to install a utility sink I purchased from HD. I say "finally" as it took a while to do all the plumbing, venting, wall build etc. So after all of that I was pretty excited to make the final connections and start using it.
I even spent a bit more to get something I thought would be nice. Here is the one I bought:
So the problem is the basin does not drain well. I tried tilting it around ( to make up for not being level) and still could not get the water to all make its way down. I checked the tail piece to make sure I was not pushing up from below making the drain hole higher than the surround surface of the basin. Here are my two guesses
1. I used putty around the ring at the bottom of the basin. It does not look like I used a crazy amount and most of it did extrude out. Maybe that it causing the ring to sit too far up?
2. The bottom of the basin has bowed up for whatever reason
Has anyone experienced this before? I was wondering if I put some weight in the basin and let it sit for a while maybe the shape of the basin would creep into something more like it should look.
Any help with this would be greatly appreciated.


text:
Purchase bulk ammunition advertised in the Black Friday Sale Ammunition Preview below. Prices listed below include tax. Prices are only valid while supplies last.
You do not have to wait until Black Friday to receive your ammunition! Once purchased, cases may be picked up at our front desk 24 hours after receiving your confirmation email. Member discounts cannot be used on top of the bulk ammo discount.
All purchases are for in-store pick up only. Silver Eagle Group will not mail or transport any ammunition. If ammunition is not claimed within 30 days of purchase, it will be placed in storage at our facility for an additional fee of $30/month.


text:
Custom writing services for students have been out there for quite some time now, and even though many people argue about the moral and legal aspects of using these companies, the businesses are still striving. So, what's in it for the students and are these services actually worth the risks and the money?
Let's take a quick look at some pros and cons of ordering a custom academic paper.
The Upside
To sweeten the pill a bit, let's start with the pluses. The perks of ordering custom papers seem to be obvious:
You get a plagiarism-free assignment. Even though many people call custom written papers plagiarized — technically, they are not. The correct term would be ghost written or custom written. Such papers pass all plagiarism-software checks because even though they were not written by you, they were written for you — from scratch.
You save plenty of time and effort. Obviously. Contacting a particular custom writing service will be the biggest effort on your side — and the management will take the rest from there.
Your paper is written by a professional. Most writers working for custom academic services already have their degrees in particular subjects. True, some of them may still be grad students, but if you need a high school paper on Frankenstein or Hamlet, their qualifications are still more than enough for you.
And, as you might have guessed, each writer deals with a particular subject (a couple of subjects tops) and academic level(s). There is no 'random' assignment distribution in custom writing services.
Each paper goes through an extensive quality check. Next, every decent custom writing service has a department of writers and proofreaders, and most of the proofreaders are actually college and university professors. The paper is checked not only for grammar, content, and spelling but also for style.
The purpose of these extensive checks is to ensure that each work meets the exact academic requirements of a client.
The price is generally affordable. Despite the enormous amount of work, most custom written papers are still quite affordable.
The Downside
Still, apart from an obvious moral dilemma behind ordering custom papers, there are a couple of other drawbacks you should know about:
The prices vary from one region to another. While looking for a custom service, you will see that their fees may still vary — quite a lot. Some services, in fact, can be quite expensive.
The quality may vary as well. The sad truth is, most custom services do not pay their writers that much. So, even though the proofreaders are chosen very carefully, it is a common practice to downshift on the writers. Plus, these writers may come from anywhere across the globe, so if a writing service is registered in, say, England, it doesn't mean all their writers are from England, too.
The completed paper may not match your writing style and academic qualifications. Finally, even though the proofreaders ensure that each paper meets your academic qualifications, no one can guarantee that it matches your unique writing style. So, if you have already submitted a number of independently written assignments to the same professor, chances are they may notice the difference when you bring in a ghostwritten work.
The Takeaway
So, are custom writing services worth the money and, if so, who could benefit from them? Here are several case scenarios when using a custom writing service may be worth or not worth the trouble.
Worth it if
You need a paper for one of the minor subjects. This way, you can save yourself a lot of trouble, get your solid B+ (or, often, even an A), and forget about this minor course once and for all. Let's agree, the academy teaches a lot of stuff we will never use in the workplace.
You are an ESL student. Foreign students struggle with the high standard of academic papers way too much. Sure, it's for their own benefit, but sometimes hiring a custom writer may be a good solution.
You combine study and work, or otherwise lack the time. Another obvious perk, especially when dealing with the minor subjects.
Not worth it if
You're going to collaborate with the same teacher for quite some time. First of all, long-term collaboration with the same professor usually implies it is one of the major subjects we are talking about. And then again — in the long run, a teacher may notice inconsistencies in your writing.
Bottom line, there is no definite answer on whether the custom writing services are worth the money. Objectively speaking — yes, you will get what you are paying for. Still, if you are looking to build a long-term relationship with your professors, you might want to apply more effort and write your assignments independently.
But, of course, there is also a problem of time — especially for the students who work and study. So, like everything else in life, custom papers can be of great help — in certain circumstances.


text:
Posted on 8/23/2017
Molly E. Green
According to a 2016 Verizon Data Breach Report, the global cost of cybercrime will reach $2 trillion by 2019, a three-fold increase from the 2015 estimate of $500 billion. The threat of a cyberattack is no longer a case of if it will happen, but when it will happen. How can you protect your organization?
One way to stay protected is through cyber liability coverage, which covers your organization from claims by other individuals or organizations because of a cybercrime. The policy provides support if there are lawsuits against an organization for failing to protect the confidential information of others. This coverage could be essential.
Your organization will only have to make one call to the insurance carrier if you believe a cyber breach has occurred. The carrier will manage the breach investigation, which is invaluable as many companies will not have the resources to manage the breach. What may be the most important feature of a cyber liability policy, however, is the support it will provide. Most cyber liability carriers will hire a forensic specialist to determine if a breach occurred, help determine the scope of the breach, and identify who must receive notification of the breach.
The cyber coverage included in most package policies will not include the scope of coverage that is needed. It is important to understand not all cyber policies are the same. Cyber liability coverage should be reviewed along with all liability coverage associated with the organization.
What are other organizations doing to protect themselves?
There is relatively little data on what cyber issues small and mid-size organizations have been faced with and what measures they are taking to protect themselves. For the last two years, Marsh & McLennan Agency has conducted a cyber survey focusing on small and mid-size employers. This year they are partnering with Microsoft to launch its third annual survey. The intent of the survey is to better understand how they compare to their peers around the country in the areas of cyber exposure, adoption of risk management techniques and their overall understanding of the risk they face.
In the Marsh & McLennan Agency 2015/2016 cyber survey, they found that 60 percent of all cyber-attacks struck small to mid-sized businesses. Even one successful attack to this size business could shut down operations completely due to the enormous costs associated with recovery. This data is alarming when only 34.6 percent of these businesses believed the threat of a cyberattack wouldn't be severe enough to warrant the investment of time and resources.
The ultimate take away is there are clear benefits from addressing cyber and data security at the executive level. Starting and maintaining regular discussions about cybersecurity and loss mitigation techniques can lead your organization to have an active role in safeguarding themselves if – and when – a cyberattack occurs.
If you are a small or mid-size organization, you can contribute your thoughts on cyber risk and participate in the Marsh & McLennan survey by clicking here.
Molly E. Green
| Marsh & McLennan Agency
Molly E. Green, RD, LIC, CISR is marketing and communications strategist at Marsh & McLennan Agency (MMA), a subsidiary of Marsh, that was established in 2008 to meet the needs of mid-size businesses. MMA offer employee benefits, executive benefits, retirement, commercial property and casualty and personal lines to clients across the United States. Green graduated from Central Michigan University with a Bachelor's in science and is responsible for developing new property and casualty business and marketing strategies for MMA.
December 2019November 2019October 2019September 2019August 2019July 2019June 2019May 2019April 2019March 2019February 2019January 2019
December 2018November 2018October 2018September 2018August 2018July 2018June 2018May 2018April 2018March 2018February 2018January 2018
December 2017November 2017October 2017September 2017August 2017July 2017June 2017May 2017April 2017March 2017February 2017January 2017
December 2016November 2016October 2016September 2016August 2016July 2016June 2016May 2016April 2016March 2016February 2016January 2016
December 2015November 2015October 2015September 2015August 2015July 2015June 2015May 2015April 2015March 2015February 2015January 2015
Blog posts RSS
AR, VR and How the Gamification of Training Can Help Disadvantaged Populations
Cynthia Hutchison
Automation Alley
3D Printing Evolves to a Modern Manufacturing Solution
David Baumgarten
Novastar Solutions
Subscribe to Automation Alley's emails and stay up to date on all things Industry 4.0!
Submit your online membership application and begin growing your business.
2675 Bellingham, Troy, MI 48083-2044
Automation Alley programs and services are made possible in part through
ongoing support from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation.
Terms of Use
Privacy Policy
Site Map