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FELICITY MOORE – Chair of Governors
I am the authority governor and have fulfilled this role for 16years. Recently retired from the civil service, my strengths are in educational project management, event management and human resources. I have a Social Policy with Politics Degree from the University of London and I am CIPD qualified.
I am married with two adult sons and I have lived in Ashford for most of my life.
I am proud to be Chair of Governors and I led our team to achieve Governor Mark, a national quality accreditation award that recognises excellence in school governance. I enjoy helping with recruitment of new staff and making monitoring visits to the school.
I am keen that we continue best practice and we have recently successfully achieved the Department for Education (DfE) GovernorSpace Entrust accreditation.
CHRISTINE OZDEMIR – Co-Opted Governor
I am a co-opted governor having first joined the governing body as an associate governor early in 2015. Having taken early retirement from my job as a marketing director to bring up my daughter, I was looking for voluntary work where I would be able to make a difference and continue to use my skills.
I viewed Downs View as a prospective parent and was blown away by the school and knew immediately that I wanted my daughter to go to this school and that I would like to be a part of the team helping to provide such a great learning environment. I applied to be a governor and to my delight, I was accepted.
As well as my general governor responsibilities, supporting and challenging the head teacher as she leads the school, I help to keep the school a safe place for children and staff by conducting regular health and safety inspections. I also work with the Single Equality group ensuring all the characteristics under the Single Equality Act 2010 are protected for children and staff alike.
All the staff are 100% committed to giving each and every child the very best foundation to their learning journey and I am immensely proud to be a governor at Downs View and seeing how well behaved and happy the children are when I visit the school is a reward in itself.
NIC PETRI – Co-Opted Governor
I am a Co-Opted Governor and am just starting my second term of 2 years. Born in the old Willesborough Hospital I think I count as a local and I have friends and family who attended Downs View.
I joined the Governing Body as I felt my skills and experiences within education (as a teacher of nearly 20 years) would enable me to support the school to remain an 'outstanding' provision.
I love going into Downs View, it's always buzzing and the whole staff team work exceptionally hard to provide the widest experiences for the children.
The best reason to be a Governor is the children, watch them run into school in the morning and come out smiling at the end of the day. It makes me very proud to be part of the team making that happen.
LISA SOMERVILLE (Inclusion Leader) – Teacher Governor
Since September 2016 I have been the teacher governor at Downs View Infant School. For the past 2 ½ years I have been the Inclusion Leader at Downs View which includes the role of Special Educational Needs and Disability Coordinator. I achieved my Post Graduate Certificate in SEN Co-ordination from Canterbury Christ Church University in May 2016.
In 1990 I qualified as a teacher at Derbyshire College of Higher Education with a Bachelor of Honours degree and have been teaching primary age children ever since. I spent 2 years working as a Junior teacher in Grimsby before moving to the South East and I have worked in a number of schools in the Dover area. I have been a part-time teacher at Downs View Infant School for 16 years both as a class teacher and intervention support teacher. For 14 years I was the PE and sports coordinator and I continue to support the current PE leader with her role.
My role of intervention teacher requires me to work very closely with the teaching staff to co-ordinate and teach intervention programmes for a number of targeted pupils across the school for a range of curriculum areas. I also work closely with the school management team to provide strategic leadership for inclusive practice for all pupils. My role of SENDCO gives me responsibility for the day-to-day operation of the school's SEND policy. I co-ordinate additional support for pupils with SEND and liaise with their parents, teachers and other professionals who are involved with them.
JENNIFER WHITE – Parent Governor
I have been a Parent Governor for Downs View Infant School for 15 months. I take a specific focus on the training and development of our Governing Body, with a general knowledge of the Schools Plan and responsibility in assisting the Governing Body in holding the head teacher to account.
I am a parent with a child at Downs View Infants School, and volunteered for the role when I heard that the school needed more Governors. Being a Parent Governor enables me to be a representative of the parents View and provide feedback to parents regarding school developments and other topics of Parent interest. It does provide me with a great insight into the way the school functions and the standards held by the school and how these standards are achieved and maintained.
I am a registered general nurse at my local hospital. I work nights and weekends so that I can be at home in the week for my children. I have two sons, one at Downs View Infants and the other is just a toddler.
The future is bright for any child at Downs View Infant School. We have an excellent and Strong Governing Body and School staff with a very focused Head Teacher. The value that 'Every child matters', I can assure you is held to an exceptional standard. The school will strive to achieve the absolute best for your child's education and at the same time the school commits to the 100% happiness for every child. We are proud to be able to offer such a rounded system for all your children. The Governing Body will continue to maintain the schools focus in line with the school plan and ensure standards are maintained.
When I was at school the government did not set the targets for schools to the same level seen today. So I remember infant school being more play related with teachers giving you short structured lessons. I chose Downs View for my child because the teachers are tasked to make learning fun filled, with games and child focused play. The teachers have to hold in depth knowledge of the education system and are expected to be very creative so that they can ensure every child can learn and develop the necessary skills laid out by the education board at their pace. Happiness of each and every child is key to the education provided at Downs View Infant School.
DIANE TURNER – Parent Governor
With sons in Year 2 and Reception, I see how special the atmosphere is at Downs View Infants and want to work with school leadership to ensure children learn, develop, play and have fun.
My husband, sons and I moved to Little Burton from Medway in 2015. I volunteered as a governor to contribute to the school and Kennington community as we puts down roots in the area.
As well as my interest as a parent, I work part time at a professional services firm in London. In my day job, I help leaders define and implement strategy, build good stakeholder relationships, make decisions and manage crises.
PAUL BAKER – Parent Governor
I joined the Governing Body in late 2017 having been a parent of a child at the school for just over a year with a child now in Year 1 and child that will hopefully join the school in September 2020, in the last year I have seen several pleas from the school for new parent governors and at first I thought that its was something for someone else, but I then thought about how my life was changed by the strong leadership and governance at my primary school back in the 1980's and without that input I really think I'd have been doing something very different today.
I help run a regional building contractor and hold the post of commercial director dealing with everything from marketing to pricing and subsequently overseeing the completion of projects throughout Kent, my work means I'm involved daily in Financial, Purchasing, Health & Safety & Quality Assurance within the company and this is were I feel I can help the most as a governor.
From what I have already seen both as a parent and a new governor we are very lucky to have the committed quality team that we have running our school and I'm looking forward to supporting them.
CATHERINE SMITH – Parent Governor
I have three daughters two of which are currently at Downs View; the eldest is in Year Two soon to move on to Kennington Academy, my second child is in Reception and my youngest child born last year who when the time comes will follow her Sisters and attend Downs View Infants School too.
The first time I visited the School I was immediately impressed by the care and dedication of the teaching staff along with the School ethos that every child matters. It was obvious to me from the beginning this really is the case. I have been a Parent Governor since September 2017 and joined hoping to continue the great work that the Governors past and present do.
I moved to Ashford in 2010 and since 2012 have stayed home to raise our family and help my husband with his Digital Online Advertising business. Prior to this I worked in the City of London in the Insurance industry for 15 years, with 9 of them as a Lloyds Broker.


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You can spot a terrible boss in your interview for the job
A reminder for the discriminating job seeker: If the interview with your prospective manager is boring, the job itself will probably be boring, too. At Harvard Business Review this week, writer Sara Stibitz outlines how to spot a terrible boss during the interview process, and tells the story of software developer Joe Franzen to demonstrate what not to do.
Franzen sensed from the way the boss read from prewritten questions in their one-on-one interview that the position at the health-care company would not exactly be a creatively fulfilling one. "Software development is anything but standard," he told HBR. "When your potential manager reads from a list of standardized questions, it sends a signal the work will be treated the same way." He took the job anyway, was bored to tears by the unchallenging "cubicle work," and eventually quit.
It's an example of the importance of trusting yourself in the job-interview process. "Be on the lookout for clues in the way you're treated by your potential manager," Stibitz writes, advising people to "observe how you're handled as a candidate, from the quality of the information the manager gives you to the way he looks after you when you arrive for the interview." First impressions often tell you everything you need to know.

subset: commoncrawl


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Navarathri was very much looked forward to during my school years in Palakkad. Nine festive days of getting dressed up in the evenings wearing pattupaavadai, long silk skirts with lovely golden trim, hair in pigtails adorned with fragrant mallipoo(jasmine), roaming the agraharam street with two of my friends. Among the two of them, they were best friends the first ten minutes and bitter foes the following ten minutes. This was a never ending cycle and my role was to listen to both ends of the argument and be their mediator. Most of the days during Navarathri, the hour long trip ended when we made it back home with our loot after visiting each of the households in the agraharam. Our loot consisted of all the yummy goodies from all the houses we visited. It was indeed a treat with the variety of snacks all mixed up. We would still continue our chitchat session in front of one of the three houses until an adult showed up, scolding us that it was getting dark.
Moving on to the recipe :) I love to make this dish in the evenings. My daughter absolutely loves to snack on these soft pearly white balls after school. On working days, I usually have the kozhukattai balls steamed and ready before I leave to work. All there is left to do in the evening is the tadka/tempering.
Ammini Kozhukattai Ingredients -
Rice Flour - 1 cup
Water - 2 cups
Minced fresh coconut - 1/2 cup
Oil - 1 teaspoon
Salt - 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoons, according to taste
For Tempering -
Oil - 1/2 tablespoon
Mustard Seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Hing (Asafoetida) - less than 1/4 teaspoon
Curry Leaves - 2 sprigs
Green chillies - 2 or 3
How to make kozhukattai-
- In a thick bottomed pan, add the water and salt, mix well to dissolve the salt
- When the water starts boiling, add the minced coconut pieces.
- Now add the rice flour half cup at a time, stirring quickly and uniformly so that no lumps are formed.
- Add all the rice flour gradually and keep incorporating all of it, without forming lumps. Reduce the heat to a medium while doing this. In a couple minutes, the rice flour would get half cooked, and becomes a solid mass.
- Remove from fire and allow it to cool, about 5 to 10 minutes.
- Once the rice dough is cool enough to be handled, make tiny balls out of it using oiled palms. Steam these rice balls for about 8 to 10 minutes in a steamer. I use an idli cooker for all my steaming purposes. Remove the steamed balls from the steamer/cooker and set aside to cool.
- In another wide pan, add 1 tablespoon oil for tadka.
- When it is sufficiently hot, add the mustard seeds.
- After the mustard seeds splutter, add curry leaves and the chopped green chillies. Fry for a couple minutes without burning. Add the hing and mix.
- Remove the pan from heat, add the steamed rice balls and mix well.
Sangi from Simply Delicious has passed on the Kreativ blogger award to me. Thanks so much for the encouragement Sangi. I am truly touched.
I would like to pass this award to all my blogger friends. I have been discovering new and creative blogs by the day. It is so much fun to meet foodies and talk about food!


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Somewhere along the way, she grew up. She was okay with it. I wasn't. Lillian went into the 6th grade this past year and with that, a lot more responsibility. More homework, more expectations, more of everything. This girl is truly special though. She sticks up for what she believes in, never tells a lie and is wise beyond her years. She's okay with being her own person and doesn't look for the approval of others to determine her worth. She is the perfect mix of myself and her father with her own unique twist. In short, she's pretty amazing and we're lucky that she's ours. We took these photos in Syracuse during Christmas break and since then, she's probably grown another inch, had braces put on and her hair is a little longer (because "why did you let me cut my hair, mom……..it makes me look like a little girl……uggghhhh)!
Stop growing my sweet Lillian Grace, stop growing.


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Mitsubishi is a brand that has set itself above the average in Brisbane in terms of performance and style. The Mitsubishi Lancer, for instance, has taken the market by storm for a number of reasons. Mitsubishi Lancer is known as the family sedan due to its large passenger space. In addition, it is equipped with a range of standard features such as steering wheel-mounted controls for cruise, calling and audio, Bluetooth smartphone connectivity and automatic climate control among others. The amenities offered by Mitsubishi become better and better as new models are unveiled. When planning to acquire a Mitsubishi car you are faced with a dilemma: whether to buy used or new. Do you buy a new Mitsubishi Mirage or do you go for a used Mitsubishi Lancer Brisbane has to offer? One of the great advantages of used cars cited by some used car dealers Brisbane has today is the money saving part.
Of course, buying a used Mitsubishi car will save you big bucks as opposed to buying a new one. There are many other great reasons why you should consider buying a used Mitsubishi car. Let's discuss them further.
You Will Save Thousands of Dollars
You will spend half the price of a new car, if not less, to buy a used one. That's right! You will save thousands of dollars by buying a used car. There are several reasons why this comes about. First, new cars depreciate pretty fast. Buy a brand new Mitsubishi car from a dealership in town, drive around the suburbs and bring it back to the dealership. The car won't be considered new anymore and it will be worth much less than what you paid for it a few hours ago. Something else with used cars is that insurance and sales tax is way less than for new cars. Check Toowong Mitsubishi for more details.
Used Cars are Dependable
Any expert in used car dealers Brisbane has today relies on the dependability of used cars as a unique selling point. Modern automobiles have reported improved dependability as compared to the older versions. Exhaust, transmission, and engine problems have dramatically reduced. In fact, a modern car can last 150,000 miles or more if maintained properly. This is great news for someone intending to buy a used car. You can be confident that your car will serve you for a long time without a need for major repairs.
Certification Programs
Another major reason why you should contact a used car dealers Brisbane has today is to take advantage of certified pre-owned programs. Mitsubishi institutes these programs. The benefits you will accrue from CPO include:
- Vehicles undergo cosmetic and mechanical makeover before they obtain certification.
- CPO vehicles obtain an extended warranty aside from the original factory warranty. It has the same benefits as those of a brand new car.
- The manufacturer may offer special financing options for CPO cars. This includes low loan rates.
Buying a used car often seems like a risk since you are not sure of how the vehicle had been used and if significant problems will arise in the future. Now that you know that modern cars are built to last, that shouldn't be a concern anymore. You can also assume the risk considering that your bank account shall be in a better state than if you bought a new car.


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Music and Culture by and for the Community
My first time. I have enjoyed it very much.
Fabulous!! Wish more people knew about this! Thank you!
Great music!
Music and Talent is GREAT!
Fabulous winds in the Gounod!
Beautiful! Thank You!
Beautiful! Great for Family!
Loved it all, especially audience interactive portion, sort of an intimate and friendly feel. (Dec. 2015)
This is our first concert, and we are very impressed with the overall quality. Keep up the great work!
The quality music is a gift to the community. Mr. Botti is a colorful, enthusiastic director who infects the audience. Bravo!
So impressed!
Absolutely Beautiful—Loved it!! Don't change a thing—Fantastic!!"
The best. Don't change a thing."
Welcome to the Web Site of the Waltham Symphony Orchestra, the Premier Civic Orchestra for the Western Suburbs in the Greater Boston Metropolitan Area.
All images provided for the exclusive use by the Waltham Symphony Orchestra. Copyright 2018 Waltham SymphonyPhoto Copyright 2016, Cary Chu Photography (caryproductions.com) and Ethan Gilson


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at 9:00am & 11:15am
1800 Blanding Street
columbia, sc
*Kidtown, our ministry for children 6 weeks through 5th grade, is available at our two morning Gatherings.
Each Sunday, we host Gatherings. Gatherings is our word for services–when God's people come together to be reminded of the gospel, celebrate the implications of the gospel, and be challenged to continue living lives on mission throughout the week.
Since expectations are different for different people, we wanted to provide some help on what to prepare for at our Gatherings:
Come as you are. We don't have any particular dress code for our Gatherings. You're welcome to wear whatever you feel most comfortable in. You'll probably be among some people in their Sunday best and some people in flip-flops.
Our Gatherings are short enough to endure, but long enough to matter. Gatherings at our church generally contain 40-50 minutes of teaching, and 20-30 minutes of music.
Childcare is provided at our Gatherings. Our 9:00am & 11:15am Gatherings offer Kidtown, our ministry for kids six weeks through fifth grade. Find out more about Kidtown.
We won't ask for your money. We do take up an offering during our Gathering, but that's for our members. You won't be asked to give or be put on the spot if you're a guest.
We use real-world words. We try to avoid "churchiness" as much as possible. If we use unfamiliar terminology, we aim to always explain what we mean. Our goal is to make sure no one feels alienated by insider language.
We want to connect with you. God has formed us into a family through Jesus. We would love to get to meet you, answer questions and help you get more connected into our church family. Please stop by the Connect Area in the lobby to talk with one of our member volunteers before or after the Gathering.
Much of our parking on Sundays is generously provided by neighboring businesses. Reference the map below to find out where you can and can't park, and join us in being the best neighbors we can to the businesses around our building.


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The Inspiration Behind our NEW Colors!/
You know that feeling when you buy a souvenir from a special trip & whenever you wear it or see it, it brings back happy memories of that time? Well, that's what this collection of colors is all about! Colors are very powerful & have the ability to stir up the spirit up so when it's time to choose new Mika colors, we draw inspiration from things that bring up a feeling. Sure we research color forecasts & trends, but in the end tend to pick colors that have a CONNECTION with something greater. It has a more powerful meaning that way right?!
This selection of colors is especially meaningful as we drew inspiration from hues we've connected with over our travels. So... here's an inside look into where each hue came!
Fire Opal
This fire red hue was chosen during our last trip to Peru! I was craving a unique red to bring to Mika & when I saw this hue, it just felt right. Bright, electric, fun... much like the energy of Peru. The name however was chosen over a few glasses of vino by our sister (& photographer) Janine!
Inspiration found during a Kauai trip last fall. While my man was out surfing, I went out exploring & stumbled upon an adorable bikini house shop. I bought a super cute paisley print kini & although it had only touches of green in it, it was enough to make me fall in love with this seaweed hue.
Where do I start... Well, I guess I can begin by explaining that Uluwatu is a beach on the island of Bali. My husband & I exchanged our vows very close to this beautiful water 6 years ago. The water surrounding the island is deep, rich, powerful, ever changing & beautiful. I like to think our love is a bit like that- just add a few storms (ok, ok, maybe a small tsunami), waves, high & low tides & it's pretty much spot on.
The sand in the Mentawais is like nothing I've ever seen in real life. Straight up postcard level. The picture explains more than I could ever describe here.


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Richter had both Steinways, and Bösendorfer pianos, and later in life, he played only on Yamaha grand pianos, and was sponsored by Yamaha, Japan.
Now, let us have a look at this intriguing question. To begin with, let me report an anecdote here. There are both classical and Jazz pianists who swear on Bösendorfer instead of Steinway. Let me mention only the Austrian pianist and Mozart specialist Paul Badura-Skoda and the late Oscar Peterson. (Bösendorfer actually produces two versions of tuning and intonation for their piano, one for classical, especially Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert, and one for Jazz—the latter version is often played with the grand completely open).
Now the case is especially interesting regarding Svjatoslav Richter who was sponsored by Yamaha in his later years. He had no particular liking for Steinway and the anecdote goes that when recording Schubert's Wanderer Fantasie back in 1963, he was playing it in on a Steinway first. Then, late in the afternoon, when the studio stuff was about to go home, he changed his mind to record the entire piece again on a Bösendorfer—and asked them to stay until late at night.
He played it in again, that same day, on a Bösendorfer and that was the final version, which he approved and which is one of the most striking proofs of his musical genius and pianistic abilities. It's a truly monumental take on this extremely difficult piece. I guess that what inspired him to achieve so high was not only his inner mind but also the fantastic piano. You can listen to it here (including score):
Richter Plays Schubert Wanderer Fantasie on Bösendorfer
Paul Badura Skoda about Bösendorfer
But I would like to mention in addition here a piano maker from Italy, FAZIOLI, as well as one from Korea that the American pianist Earl Wild preferred, the KAWAI CONCERT GRAND.


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WOW what a year 2016 was! We had so many wonderful milestones during 2016 directly attributed to all the little ones that found our bike and have fallen in love with them. These are some of the milestones that we are grateful for and could not have achieved them without the support from our Pello community all across the US.
- After approximately 4 years of designing, developing and testing our bikes we successfully launched Pello bikes for sale in May of 2016. Right from the beginning people loved our bikes and felt a need to provide their children with a better bike.
- We let reviewers see our bikes for the first time and the response has been overwhelmingly positive.
- We can only smile when we receive praises from parents who purchased a Pello for their child. It makes us feel so good that all our work in making these bikes is paying off, kids are learning to ride on our bikes and that is awesome!
- We traveled to a lot of events in 2016, big and small, and set up our test track. It's been so great to see little ones taking flight for the first time on our bikes!
- We are still logging miles on our very first prototypes; in fact our very 1st Rover is pushing 500+ miles from being passed around to friends and testers. We are happy to report that it is still going strong!
- We have successfully sold out of the Revo and are very limited on others! Stock will be replenished this Spring.
Looking forward to 2017
- In 2017 we will welcome Ripple and Reyes to the Pello Family. Still in development, these two new additions will be the smallest (balance) and biggest (24") bikes in our lineup. We are so excited to release them into the world for kids to learn, ride and smile as they engage in the magic of riding a bicycle.
- We will be traveling to more events across the country in 2017 with our test track.
- We will be launching new cool things for sale on our website including new t-shirt designs, jersey's, exclusive in-house designed prints and many more cool things.
- We will launch our "Loyalty" Program where members of the Pello family will receive cool things and get discounts on future Pello bike purchases.
We could not have been successful without the support and help from our family and friends; we truly thank them for all they have contributed.
Thank you again to all of those who have supported us in making 2016 such a great year, we look forward to making 2017 even better!
Smile, Ride, Repeat.
Shane & Chris


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Imagine a giant vine with no leaves and no chlorophyll scrambling over decaying wood and branches of a warm tropical forest. As remarkable as that may seem, that is exactly what Erythrorchis altissima is. With stems that can grow to upwards of 10 meters in length, this bizarre orchid from tropical Asia is the largest mycoheterotrophic plant known to science.
Mycoheterotrophs are plants that obtain all of their energy needs by parasitizing fungi. As you can probably imagine, this is an extremely indirect way for a plant to make a living. In most instances, this means the parasitic plants are stealing nutrients from the fungi that were obtained via a partnership with photosynthetic plants in the area. In other words, mycoheterotrophic plants are indirectly stealing from photosynthetic plants.
In the case of E. altissima, this begs the question of where does all of the carbon needed to build a surprising amount of plant come from? Is it parasitizing the mycorrhizal network associated with its photosynthetic neighbors or is it up to something else? These are exactly the sorts of questions a team from Saga University in Japan wanted to answer.
All orchids require fungal partners for germination and survival. That is one of the main reasons why orchids can be so finicky about where they will grow. Without the fungi, especially in the early years of growth, you simply don't have orchids. The first step in figuring out how this massive parasitic orchid makes its living was to identify what types of fungi it partners with. To do this, the team took root samples and isolated the fungi living within.
By looking at their DNA, the team was able to identify 37 unique fungal taxa associated with this species. Most surprising was that a majority of those fungi were not considered mycorrhizal (though at least one mycorrhizal species was identified). Instead, the vast majority of the fungi associated with with this orchid are involved in wood decay.
To ensure that these wood decay fungi weren't simply partnering with adult plants, the team decided to test whether or not the wood decay fungi were able to induce germination of E. altissima seeds. In vitro germination trials revealed that not only do these fungi induce seed germination in this orchid, they also fuel the early growth stages of the plant. Further tests also revealed that all of the carbon and nitrogen needs of E. altissima are met by these wood decay fungi.
These results are amazing. It shows that the largest mycoheterotrophic plant we know of lives entirely off of a generalized group of fungi responsible for the breakdown of wood. By parasitizing these fungi, the orchid has gained access to one of the largest pools of carbon (and other nutrients) without having to give anything back in return. It is no wonder then that this orchid is able to reach such epic proportions without having to do any photosynthesizing of its own. What an incredible world we live in!


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recently i-mate launched a new mobile phone. its a completely different than other i-mate phones, thats why i said its a revolution phone. this is a slide smart phone which powered with windows mobile 6.0 OS. actually this is more than a PC.
The additional features that are available in this model are the handwriting recognition and the four navigational pads. The display of the mobile is a TFT touch screen comes in the size of 2.4 inches with a resolution of 320*240 pixels, supporting 65k colours. The total memory capacity of I-Mate JAMA is 64 MB RAM and 128 MB ROM, which helps you to store more number of data in the mobile. SD card is used as an expansible memory slot used in this device. It is supported by Samsung SC32442X processor. The processor comes with a speed of 300MHz along with a micro-card and TransFlash card.
The GPRS Class 10(4+1/3+2 slots) network is available in this model with the speed of 32-48 kbps. USB 1.1, mini, Bluetooth 1.2, WAP, Browser, Infra-red and e-mail client are some of the other networking facilities that are available in I-Mate JAMA mobile phone. The operating system that supports this model is Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0 Pocket PC software. A 2MP integrated camera with 1600*1200 pixels is available in this model, allowing you to take pictures and videos in high quality.
more pics
Read More!
Monday, September 29, 2008
i-mate JAMA phone is a revolution
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Samsung INNOV8 8Mp phone challenges all camera phones
Couple of months ago Sony ericsson has launched 8.1Mp camera phone.but now it has a challenge from Samsung. Samsung has announced the high-end, feature packed Samsung INNOV8 (model number i8510). It is an S60 slider with a 8 megapixel, autofocus camera with dual LED flash. The phone runs S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 2 and other key features include a 2.8 inch screen, WiFi, 16GB of on board flash memory, optical sensor, integrated GPS, accelerometer sensor, and DNSe audio technology.
Samsung INNOV8 is made for tech-savvy users who wants to enjoy the best possible multimedia entertainment with their mobile phone. With the 8-megapixel camera, pre-embedded 3D games, high speed data connections and much more other features will help users gain the true benefits of mobile entertainment. I expect Samsung INNOV8 to be a revolutionary milestone for Samsung for opening a new era of mobile multimedia", said Geesung Choi, President of Samsung Telecommunication Business.
more features
-8 megapixel auto focus camera with dual LED flash.
-2.8 inch, QVGA screen with 16 million colours.
-Integrated accelerometer sensor, which will be used for automatic screen rotation.(like iphone)
-Optical sensor, this takes the form of a touch pad (as on laptops) like control in the centre of the D-pad
-16GB of internal flash memory and a microSD card slot support cards up to 16GB
-Support for HSDPA at 7.2 bps (3.5G)
-In video playback supported formats include DivX, H.263, H.264, WMV, and MP4.
Read More!
Friday, September 26, 2008
Sony Ericsson W980 is the newest walkman phone
sony ericsson has launched their newest Walkman series phone. that is Sony ericsson w980. this is a special kind of mobile phone in many ways. as you see its a flap phone and it has two color displays. the major specification is W980 has 8GB internal memory.
the front of this phone is also very attractive. it has beautiful touch music control keys.Currently at the top of the Sony Ericsson Walkman range, this device has a lot to live up to, but with features like an FM Transmitter, stereo Bluetooth(INFO), and a 3.2 megapixel camera, it's got the ingredients to be a winner. We take the W980 for a test drive to see if it's as good as it sounds.
the W980 is a 3G phone which supports HSDPA technology. as i told earlier,W980 has a 3.2Mp auto focus camera which is pretty enough for very good capturing. it has common sony ericsson camera features but the video recording length is unlimited. because it has 8GB memory, you can even record a movie.
To round off the Sony Ericsson W980's applications are a host of information management apps such as a calendar, alarms, code memo, calculator, timer, stopwatch, notes, tasks etc, plus a collection of 'entertainment' apps. These apps include Sony Ericsson's 'TrackID' software for finding out the names of songs, some games, VideoDJ, PhotoDJ, MusicDJ, and a sound recorder. The TrackID app worked very well, giving me the correct details of most songs very quickly.
more pics
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Thursday, September 25, 2008
Samsung i550 cheap phone with symbian OS
if you have read my recent posts, you may found many Samsung i-series phones. Samsung i550 is the newest member of i-series. the i-series is very popular Samsung phone category like Nokia N-series. the reason is all of these phones are special. all of them has Symbian or windows mobile OS and many business features unlike many other samsung phones.
The Samsung i550 features a 3.0 megapixel digital camera with auto focus. This amount of resolution is considered outdated these days, even on a mobile phone, and it is obvious that the camera function is not the main function of this cell phone.
the i550i has a great music player.To adjust the volume, the choice of the songs, and starting or stopping a song, you have to use the TrackBall. it is very easy to handle and attractive.
Samsung i550 is a GPS enabled phone which has A-GPS navigator. the google maps application has also included.
The possibility to view a number of text files or presentation is also available on the Samsung i550. There is an integrated viewer for Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint and Adobe PDF files. the internal memory of this phone is 150Mb. but you can extend it using SD cards. it supports up to 12GB SD cards.
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Tuesday, September 23, 2008
palm treo 800w new smart phone
Unlike other recent palm phones, the palm treo is a different phone .it is very similar to a blackberry phone.The Palm Treo has 800w Windows Mobile 6.1 OS and it has a 320 x 320 touchscreen display, 400MHz processor, 256MB Flash memory, 128MB RAM, 2.0-megapixel camera, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0, GPS, and EV-DO Rev.
This powerful phone has A-GPS navigation and google maps application.still they have not specialized this is a business phone but palm treo has many business features. the organizer and contact number system has designed according to business phone.
Also palm treo is a good entertainment phone. it is very fast and attractive because of its powerful processor. you may feel this difference when playing a large video files.
more features of palm treo 800w
* 320×320 screen
* 400mhz CPU
* 128mb of RAM, 256mb of ROM
* GPS enabled
* integrated wi-fi
* bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP
* 2.0MP digital camera
* Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional
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Monday, September 22, 2008
Nokia 7710 is a unusual phone
The 7710 is based on the Nokia 7700 which was never released. It is Nokia's first, and so far only, smartphone to run the Series 90 GUI atop the Symbian OS.
Compatible with GSM/HSCSD/GPRS/EDGE 900/1800/1900 MHz networks, the 7710 features a wide, touch-screen colour LCD with a resolution of 640 x 320 pixels and 16-bit colour depth, which also boasts a special power save mode activating only 640 x 64 pixels of the display. It has 90 MB of internal memory supported by a 128 MB MultiMedia Card (MMC). The external memory can be upgraded up to 2GB.
Featuring an integrated Megapixel camera with a maximum resolution of 1152 x 864 pixels and 2x digital zoom, the 7710 also has an integrated FM radio, as well as Bluetooth, USB and Nokia's proprietary Pop-Port interface for connectivity purposes.
Offering a broad range of software, the 7710 includes much of the application suite to be found in the Series 80-based Nokia 9300 and 9500 communicators, such as a complete PIM suite; an XHTML compatible Internet browser with Flash 6.0 Support; e-mail client supporting SMTP, POP3 and IMAP4; an office suite comprising Word Processor, Spread-Sheet and a PowerPoint viewer; timed profiles; SIP VoIP support and more. In addition, the 7710 also supports Java MIDP 2.0 applications.
Moreover, the Nokia 7710 also offers multiple-format video recording courtesy of its integrated digital camera, supporting QCIF resolution at 17 FPS in MPEG4, H.263 and Real Video 8 formats - for which the device also supports full-screen playback at 15 FPS. Additionally, a music player supports MP3, AAC, RealAudio 7 and 8, WAV, MIDI and AMR formats, whilst picture viewing is also in place with support for JPEG, GIF, WBMP, BMP, MBM and PNG formats.
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Sunday, September 21, 2008
Nokia 3250 (thunder) the twistable phone
The Nokia 3250 (code-named Thunder) is a cellular phone which features a unique 'twist' design that transforms the traditional phone keypad into a camera and dedicated music control keys. It can store up to 2 Gigabytes of music (500 songs) and other data thanks to a microSD memory card slot, and features a two-megapixel camera and Smartphone capabilities. It uses the S60 (3rd Edition) user interface and the Symbian OS 9.1 operating system.
Nokia 3250 is not a newest phone but still it is famous. This is not a 3G phone but can get better internet experience with EDGE technology. The camera is 2Mp and it is enough for clear capturing. The video recording is very special because it allows to record MPEG4 format videos.
More features of Nokia 3250
Twist: 3 twists for 3 modes of operation
Optimized, easy to use music player: Music collection management and playlist editing in device
Stereo FM Radio playback including Visual Radio functionality
Tutorial Application
Sound Meter application
Picture editor
Movie maker
Audio setting include different equalizer settings, Stereo Widening and Bass Boost
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Saturday, September 20, 2008
Sony Ericsson Z555i fashion phone
If you have checked my resent posts, you may found Nokia prism concept phones. This is a Sony Ericsson phone but it is very similar to Nokia's fashion concept. Like many phones in Z category, this is a clamshell opening handset. But the concept and functions are differing with others.
The Z555i is a fashionable & eye catching mobile phone which comes with user friendly imaging & communication features. The Sony Ericsson Z555i is a member of the Z range which includes other fashion conscious clamshell opening handsets including the Sony Ericsson Z250i, Sony Ericsson Z310i & the Sony Ericsson Z320i mobile phone. The Z555i comes with a stunning glossy diamond designed casing which has an eye catching reflective finish. This gorgeous phone comes in two attractive colours which show off its reflective diamond designed casing perfectly which include a diamond black coloured casing or a dusted rose which is a pale pink coloured casing.
Sony Ericsson has announced Z555i has picture blogging software. But no further details. The talk time and stand by times are excellent. Z555i has a 1.3Mp digital camera. The picture quality is bit poor but night mood and many other functions are included.
The media player is also in good condition. It allows playing many file types and managing your playlists easily.
More features of Sony Ericsson Z555i
Gesture Control
Dual Screens
9 Hours Talk Time
1.3 Megapixel Camera with 4 x Digital Zoom
Picture Blogging
Media Player
Bluetooth™ Stereo with A2DP
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Cheap Bass Boat Insurance Quotes
Bass boat insurance is especially designed for the special needs of folks who love to go fishing. The common insurance policy wont generally cover the requirements of an owner of a fishing boat. There are restrictions on size, sorts and pace of propellers, and other elements that are often waived by insurance firms.
Bass boat insurance coverage is meant for people who are truly significant about fishing. That is why the kind of boat they own is a really important issue when theyre filling up their insurance estimates.
It is critical to note that bass boat insurance coverage quotes include limited industrial use. This is to guarantee the risk coverage that is linked to fishing and other competitive incidences.
A sign that the insurance is credible is when it comes from an insurance coverage supplier that offers 24/7 help.
If that is the situation, it only comes to display that the insurance coverage agents of the bass boat insurance coverage program you signed up for are really knowledgeable and can accommodate you with your considerations.
Another given is that the best bass boat insurance provides their clients and prospective customers a number of coverage. Regular elements are the coverage of liabilities, physical injury, and health-related payments.
The completely insured boats are protected for the hull and machinery. This contains the inboard and the outboard motors.
The boat may be in use or not, in storage or towed, it doesnt matter. If there is bass boat insurance, the security of the boat is assured.
To elaborate a lot more on the greatest bass boat insurance coverage, they offer the a few following policies. 1st and foremost, there is an agreed value on the insurance rates. It might be costly when compared to the other people but this is because there is much more coverage when compared to the common-priced bass boat insurance coverage plans.
You can easily evaluate the requirements that are integrated in 1 plan to the other. If you sense that you want to add far more to the cost because it will let you to have peace of thoughts figuring out that no matter what takes place to your boat, bass boat insurance has your back.
The second regular policy of the best bass boat insurance is an actual income value. Depreciation is taken from the worth of the watercraft. If there is complete reduction, then the boat insurance costs are much less expensive.
Eventually, the liability only fishing boat insurance is also offered in these kinds of insurance ideas.
If there are damages to a boat that is not insured with the policy, then the bass boat proprietor will have to spend so considerably.


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Mountain To Move – Barbayanni Blue Label Ouzo
On our recent trip to Greece, I of course had to bring back a bottle of booze. While my eye was not set on any particular spirit, the choice fell on the Barbayanni Blue Label … Read more
On our recent trip to Greece, I of course had to bring back a bottle of booze. While my eye was not set on any particular spirit, the choice fell on the Barbayanni Blue Label … Read more
Keeping the non-rum-theme for another week during Tiki month, I am presenting to you the Palms cocktail using – Palms Arrak. What might seem like an uninspired cocktail name, actually is another one of my … Read more
Well, the next cocktail in this years Tiki month is more or less a product of chance. Some time ago I was inspired by another drink to infuse red vermouth with chai tea, but at … Read more
Tiki month is here, so it is the same procedure as every February! This means that I of course, have special drinks in stall for you. Now you might expect a conglomerate of various rum … Read more
Man, I cannot tell you how long I have been waiting to try this iconic gin! I had almost given up, but then when I thought the gin-hype was almost over, Beefeater raised the game … Read more
Finally, it seems to have caught on with spirit start-ups that the next new gin might not be the best way to start your venture. Besides the already featured German rum, Birds Weissbrand is another … Read more
View in: de en Kaum ist ein halbes Jahr vergangen, sind auch schon wieder einige neue Tonic Water auf dem Markt. Einerseits freut es mich immer, etwas Neues auszuprobieren, andererseits schwindet mit jedem neuen Tonic … Read more
Yes, it is this time of year again! – No, not Christmas! It is Tiki Month and of course I set out to create a few new tropical inspired cocktails for you. So join me … Read more
With this last Japanese inspired cocktail a few things are different from the other two drinks. Besides using another base spirit, the inspiration for this one came from a song. To finally come full circle, … Read more
The second instalment of my Japanese cocktail trilogy again features Japanese whisky. However, this time it is a Blended Malt combined with Japanese plum liqueur and green tea. This might be the perfect beverage when … Read more


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Where is your home? Many Christians have been taught that our 'real' home is in heaven. Yet, the Bible actually says that God's home will be with humanity (Revelation 21:3), and God calls us to put down roots and bear good fruit in the places where we've been planted. A Rocha's 2013 Environment Resource Pack on Home provides resources for churches to celebrate their local area – the human and wildlife communities they share it with – and to seek ways to be involved in caring for their homes.
The pack can be used on Environment Sunday (the nearest Sunday to the UN's World Environment Day, 5 June), during Time for Creation (1 September – 5 October, promoted by the World Council of Churches), or any suitable date.
The pack contains a variety of documents in Word and Adobe PDF form, along with PowerPoint presentations.
- Home: A view from the reef (PDF with text; PowerPoint and PPTX)
- Service outline – including prayers & activities (PDF, Word)
- Hymns and songs (PDF, Word)
- Prayers (PDF, Word)
- Sermon (PDF, Word, PowerPoint, PPTX)
- Children's activities (PDF, Word)
- Small group material (PDF, Word)
- Further resources and ideas (PDF, Word)


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7 Ways To Drink More Water/
We all know that water is important. We literally cannot live without it. The human body can go weeks without food, but cannot survive more than three to five days without water.
Making up nearly 60% of our body, water plays many roles. It aids in:
- Regulating body temperature
- Lubricating our joints
- Flushing out waste products
- Carrying nutrients and oxygen to our cells
- Dissolving minerals and nutrients to make them available to our body
- Cushioning our organs and tissues
- Maintaining electrolyte balance


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Welcome to our website
To take full advantage of all features you need to login or register. Registration is completely free and takes only a few seconds.
Cooler Master Musketeer III Tube Amplifier Review
Posted by Philipp Esselbach on: 08/15/2006 11:32 AM [ Print | 0 comment(s) ]
Motherboard.org posted a review on the Cooler Master Musketeer III Tube Amplifier
Sure it might be a novel idea, and an easy way to get a front audio port, but what did you guys really expect - that a $50 audio "enhancer" could turn terrible, bottom of the barrel audio ICs around, and pump theater quality surround sound out of any speakers. Does the product do what it says it can - that being, to warm up, and humanize the audio - yes.
Cooler Master Musketeer III Tube Amplifier Review


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- Mill Valley
- 321 Summit Ave
- $5,495,000
Middle Ridge Neighborhood, Mill Valley
Middle Ridge is an upscale Mill Valley neighborhood located between the communities of Blithedale Canyon and Cascade Canyon. Middle Ridge combines the quiet, serene environment that typifies Mill Valley with the advantage of being close to outdoor activities as well as shops, schools, and services.
Middle Ridge has the reputation of having some of the most pleasant weather in Mill Valley. Its location on a ridge of Mt. Tamalpais assures that days are warm and sunny - and also provides some great views of San Francisco and the Bay.
Schools in Mill Valley have an excellent reputation. Many Middle Ridge elementary school students attend the Old Mill Elementary School (although attendance is ultimately determined by a variety of things, including current enrollment). Older children attend Mill Valley Middle School and go on to Tamalpais High.
Middle Ridge Homes for Sale (Mill Valley)
|All Listings
|$1,500,000 - $1,750,000
|$1,750,000 - $2,000,000
|Over $2,500,000
- Mill Valley
- 365 Lovell Ave
- $3,250,000
- Mill Valley
- 16 Manzanita Pl
- $2,680,000
- Mill Valley
- 280 Ralston Ave
- $2,549,000
- Mill Valley
- 200 Summit Ave
- $1,995,000
- Mill Valley
- 153 Myrtle Ave
- $1,900,000
- Mill Valley
- 35 Elaine Ave
- $1,795,000
- Mill Valley
- 301 Myrtle Ave
- $1,599,000
- Mill Valley
- 3 Summit Ave
- $1,595,000
Middle Ridge Real Estate
Homes and lot size in Middle Ridge are typically somewhat larger than in some other Mill Valley neighborhoods. Architectural style ranges from classic Craftsman homes to elegant historic estates - and everything in between.
Some of the nicest real estate in Mill Valley is available in the exclusive neighborhood of Middle Range. Beautiful homes, open spaces, and proximity to downtown Mill Valley make Middle Ridge a coveted destination.
Contact the Marin Modern Team, experts in Mill Valley CA real estate, for assistance buying a single-family home, condominium or land in Middle Ridge or anywhere else in Mill Valley.


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RaaSool is a point and click, puzzle adventure. You play the sun (RaaSool) of a different universe. He has fallen down and you need to help him back up and shine. On your way you will meet strange creatures and unusual sights!
Director: Claudia A. Bille Stræde
Game Designer: Paul Brinkkemper
Project Manager: August Ras Jørgensen
Lead Programmer: Jakob Udsholt
Game Programmer: Rune Holm
Game Programmer: Michael Jensen
Art Director: Stephanie Degiorgio
Lead CG Artist: Pernille Sihm
CG Artist: Elisabeth Atlandóttir
CG Artist: Stinna Frydkjær
Lead Animator: Josefine Hannibal
Animator: Thomas Mortensen
Sound Designer: Bjørn Jakobsen


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With this only being the second blog post on my site – and the second to feature death – there is a concern that to those reading there may be a fixation with the morbid. However, there is a strong filmmaking point to be made here, so do bear with me.
Someone I worked with tragically died at the age of 33. This post isn't about me or my grief: what I felt when I read about his passing amounts to less than zero when compared to what his family and friends have experienced. No, this post is about the importance of not only his contribution to one of those films but also the importance of a collaborative spirit such as he one he displayed.
His name was Teitur Arnason and he was the sound engineer on NEON.
I met the lovely guy just once. I had the best audio mix session of my life, watching him work 5.1 wonders and then we went out on a jolly afterwards that was too short. There were promises of further collaborations, not just in the realm of film, but also the excitement of a new friendship that now, sadly, will never be.
NEON features Paul O'Brien's immense score throughout its entirety: it's wall-to-wall music for fifteen minutes, building in intensity and emotion until a final flare to white at which point the end credits kick in. Initially, the credits were an emotional, subdued affair, quiet and tender with a score to match.
And this is where my favourite part of the film was born, due to a huge change and the trust to collaborate.
Teitur prepared us before our first viewing for something 'different' during the end credits. Something that he had tried out and felt worked. He was excited.
Paul and I sat through the film. An immaculate mix throughout. Then the final scene played out, the flare to white crashed to black – and Paul's score was gone: or, rather, that part of the score was gone. Instead, Teitur had repeated the drum-heavy action montage theme from earlier in the film, crashing it in with the first credit. It went from ending on a beautiful, moody moment to announcing itself with a barnstorming, Hollywood style finale.
And it makes the film.
After closing our mouths and shaking off he surprise, we told Teitur how immaculate the decision was and how it changed the entire film for the better and – without a second of hesitation – agreed to it.
And this is what any filmmaker, any creative, must always be open to: improvement.
And this extends to every stage of the filmmaking process. In NEON'S case, Teitur's contribution: of having the creativity to suggest such a bold change to what had been planned for so, so long. And the result? More than worth it – and not just for the film but for opening my eyes even further on the importance of collaboration.
Of letting great people do great work.
Teitur smashed it with a smile and with some mad, mad skills.
So RIP to him and RIP to anyone who doesn't embrace that spirit of collaboration.


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Will, and should, Tebow say yes to Military Ball invite?
Perhaps you've seen this video that has been making the rounds on YouTube.
In it, Jamie Walden, a member of the Air Force, invited Tim Tebow to be her date to the annual Military Ball, which will be held in Louisiana in April. Other celebrities like actors Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis and reality star Kristin Cavallari (Jay Cutler's fiancee) have attended similar Military Balls recently after being invited via YouTube.
Watch Jamie's invitation below:
I'm told Tebow is aware of the invitation, but no word yet on if he'll choose to attend. Jamie did say the Ball is in April, which is the same month in which the Broncos officially begin their offseason training program.
So what say you, Broncos fans? Should Tebow make this young woman's year and accompany her to the Ball? Or should the only ball in Tebow's future be the leather kind?


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Letters to the Editor
Fix the road
Last weekend I was joined by several friends, and we rode our bicycles to Ragged Point. It was a beautiful day, but I was a little concerned about riding on the recently chip-sealed section of Highway 1 that I have been reading about. Everything was fine until we reached the north side of Cambria. As soon as we passed onto the new chip-seal, we could instantly feel a buzzing vibration in our hands, feet and saddle.
The shoulder is uneven, rough and covered in loose stones. We were constantly being struck by rocks kicked up by our own wheels, our fellow cyclists wheels and on occasion, a passing automobile. This continued for approximately five miles and then the "old" surface returned for about one or two miles. Wow, what a difference.
Just as we were thinking that all was well, the new chip-seal started again. This continued for approximately 15 miles, when we suddenly rode onto new, smooth asphalt. Thinking that Cal Trans was fixing the road from north to south, I was relieved. Not so fast. The chip-seal returned within a mile or so and continued to Ragged Point.
Please Caltrans, fix the road properly.


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Serves 2 | Prep time: 5 minutes | Cooking time: 30 minutes
Mushroom risotto is a staple vegetarian dinner dish for good reason - it's filling, flavoursome and an all-round crowd pleaser. In a hurry? Jump straight to the recipe.
Why risotto?
Risotto was actually the first meal I learnt to cook on moving out of home. My dad made it regularly while I was growing up and passed his recipe on when I moved to London and realised I had no idea how to cook proper food for myself. Over time my cooking repertoire expanded, but what kept me coming back to risotto was how varied it was - you can adapt a basic risotto recipe to include whatever vegetables and herbs you've got to hand. Of course, some combinations work better than others. My personal favourites include:
- Tomato, basil and feta,
- Pumpkin, feta and sage
- Pea, zuchini and mint
- Mushroom
A traditional risotto
For those unfamiliar with it, a traditional mushroom risotto is made by simmering risotto rice for 20 minutes or so, while stirring and gradually adding hot stock to the dish. The rice releases starches while cooking, giving the dish its creamy consistency. The risotto is finished off by stirring parmesan cheese and cold butter through it.
In this mushroom risotto recipe we've made a few tweaks to get it just right for camping. In particular:
- Dried mushrooms - We've used dried mushrooms as opposed to fresh, to help keep our packs light and prevent having to carry as much perishable food.
- Use a mug to decant your stock - Risotto is typically a two pot dish. We've adapted it for one pot by adding in stock from a mug as opposed to another pot.
- Be flexible with your ingredients based on your location - Traditionally risotto recipes include wine and butter. Depending on where you're camping, you may not have these available. We've suggested a few work arounds .
The full mushroom risotto camping recipe is below.
Gear you'll need
Camping stove - we used a Jetboil MiniMo, but any camping or backpacking stove with a capacity of 1L or more and the ability to adjust the temperature down to a simmer is fine.
Cup - with at least 400ml capacity and preferably well insulated. We a Sea to Summit Delta Insulated Mug.
Spoon - to stir the risotto with. We used a spork from Light My Fire. As it's plastic, it doesn't scratch the non-stick coating on the Jetboil.
Bowl or plate - to eat from. We used an enamel bowl.
Knife & chopping board - to prep the onion and garlic. Our tip - if you're not traveling far, cut it at home and carry it in a ziplock bag so you don't need to cart a knife around with you.
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
120g arborio rice (or another type of risotto rice, like carnaroli or vialone nano)
80ml wine (1/3 cup or 3 fl oz) (optional) - red or white, whatever your preference
400ml stock (1 2/3 cups or 13.5 fl oz) - if not using wine, use 500ml stock (2 cups or 17 fl oz)
16g dried mushrooms
1 tbsp dried parmesan cheese
1 tbsp dried parsley flakes
1 tbsp butter - if you're away from a cooler, use powdered butter or 1/2 tbsp olive oil instead
What to do
- Boil water to prepare your stock. Once boiled, prepare stock in accordance with directions and pour into a mug or secondary container.
- Add vegetable oil to Jetboil, along with onion and garlic. Cook for a couple of minutes on a low heat until translucent but not coloured.
- Add rice and stir for a minute to coat with the oil, onion and garlic mixture.
- Add wine, if using. Stir the rice in a circular motion until wine is close to absorbed. The risotto should be lightly simmering as opposed to boiling.
- Start adding your stock, 1/4 at a time, stirring continuously. Add your next batch of stock just before the current one is totally absorbed - not allowing the stock to completely absorb will help prevent the risotto sticking to the stove, which happens more easily when the pan is dry. Give the base and corners a good stir as you go to help prevent the risotto sticking.
- When you've used 3/4 of your stock, add your mushrooms.
- Once all the stock is in and close to absorbed (around 20 - 25 minutes later), turn off the heat. Stir through the butter (or olive oil), along with the parmesan cheese and parsley flakes. Cover and leave for a minute to allow the cheese to melt into the dish.
- Serve immediately.
A few parting thoughts
Cooking a dish that requires gradual simmering, like risotto, uses quite a bit of fuel. When cooking this recipe, we used an average of 38 grams of fuel each time - that's over a third of a standard 100 gram Jetboil fuel canister. No one wants to be eating half-cooked rice, so do make sure you've got enough fuel before you start cooking this one.
If you're backpacking for multiple days and are trying to conserve fuel, consider cooking your risotto in advance at home and dehydrating it - that way you can just add water to it to bring it back to life, cutting the gas you'd use from 38 grams to less than 5 grams.


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State, International, & Town Parks
If you enjoy hiking, there are several trails at Shackford Head State Park, all with beautiful ocean views. A bit farther south, Cobscook Bay State Park offers hiking trails and campsites. Other attractions include St. Croix Island International Historic Site commemorating the arrival of the first French settlers in North America in 1604; the Devil's Head Conservation Area in Calais with views over the St. Croix River to the New Brunswick shore; the Reversing Falls Park in Pembroke; Gleason Cove in Perry that offers a boat launch ramp and picnic tables; the Moosehorn National Wildlife Refuge, whose two sections span more than 24,000 acres of trails and guided walks; and the West Quoddy Head State Park, with hiking, beachcombing, picnicking and an iconic lighthouse.
Just across Passamaquoddy Bay is the Roosevelt Campobello International Park on Campobello Island, New Brunswick. On the same trip, you can visit Deer Island, New Brunswick. If you're into geo-caching there are several sites in the area.


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Save Your Links is a FREE, easy to use bookmarking/ favorites system that allows you to access your bookmarks from any computer that has Internet access. The only URL you ever need to remember is: www.saveyourlinks.com!
Please note, that once you click the button your current password will be reset and temporary password will be issued and sent to your email address.


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Aaron Golden – co-founder of Living Myth Media, writer, dreamer, and lover of Mango. I sat down to talk with him about his ideas on writing and discovered that writing is really just the tool he uses the most for his real passion. Building narrative and crafting stories, these are the driving purposes that define him. Aaron asserts that narrative is the framework we use to make sense of our existence; our lives are stories, he says, and we use archetypes of them as a template for our social roles, theological systems, even our values. He claims that these concepts are based on a kind of story we have create over the course of our lives. When looking at stories from this perspective, they become far more than just entertainment; they become the seeds of creation. The transformative power in hearing a story is well-known and that is what drives Aaron to write, and while writing might be the word, in the beginning there was the storyteller.
Living Myth Media:
You keep talking about narrative. What does that mean?
Aaron Golden:
By and large, story.
I'm a story addict. I pick things apart and study them by nature, mostly out of a desire to figure out how they work so that I can use them. I'm obsessive when it comes to story in general, but story isn't the whole of it. Story, in and of itself, is just a combination of plot and character. When those two qualities are properly balanced you end up with a good story.
Good narrative is a logical extension of that. A story is a glimpse of another world or possibility, but narrative is the sort of thing that gets under your skin because it's not just a glimpse – it is another world entirely, the sort of thing that people could devote their lives to.
As people, we define ourselves by our stories, but we live inside our narratives.
What do you mean by that?
We're the sum of our experiences mingled with our perspectives. (laughs) What I mean is, there are bits of us that are essential to our identities, beliefs that we refine over the course of our lives that we may or may not be aware of. That's what I mean by 'perspective.'
Experience – what happens to us – allows that refinement.
The stories of our lives are built upon those experiences, but narrative is how we look at and interpret those experiences, what meaning we give them through the framework of the perspectives that we are.
So when you write a story are you trying to offer new frameworks of perspective to you readers?
The stories… the stories just sort of come. They're built off of ideas or conceptual characters, honestly, usually just a moment or two or maybe a trait. From there, it's figuring out what happens around those events or to those characters.
Mercedes Ketch, for example, was a character I came up with when I was very much younger. She evolved around the idea of being an epic hero in a modern world and what that would mean.
As I've explored her world, I've ended up discovering things that I wasn't expecting and the story has gone in radically different directions – I'm usually exploring concepts as much as anything else when I write, and I let the story take me where it wants to go.
Sometimes, things end up going differently than I expect, and characters that I thought would be minor or unimportant take on lives of their own.
Also, main characters change.
Mercedes, Michelle, Solaina, Helena… all of them went through drastic changes that sometimes had me rewriting whole drafts as I discovered more about them and their world.
I know that doesn't really answer the question, but, well, I'm not really writing with the reader in mind – it's the story that pulls me in. I like to think that if the story is strong enough it will find an audience, and a good editor can help with that process, too. (laughs)
Why an Epic Hero, what is that to you?
An epic hero is someone who, just by existing, makes the world around them a better place and changes the people around them in ways that make those people better by their understanding of happiness.
The concept of being a hero has been reduced to a caricature in the modern era, as the individual person was seen as a resource and not being of much importance outside of prescribed notions of what was possible and what wasn't.
It's one of the reasons that the deconstruction of the hero concept have become so popular in our age, because we've been taught and the paradigm we're living in tells us that heroes are an impossibility.
But we need heroes – paragons to make our lives better. Heroes that are worth living up to, worth aspiring to live in that way.
We need our legends.
Mercedes Ketch explores that whole idea, the concept and definition of heroism and evolution.
There are many different mediums for telling stories, why do you choose writing books?
Every medium has its own strengths and weaknesses, and different stories will play out stronger in one or the other.
The stuff I'm writing now just works better with what books have to offer.
Will you expand in to other mediums if your story is better suited to it?
In a heartbeat.
The idea of Living Myth Media was to create a means of telling stories in whatever medium was best suited for that story, with respect to that story.[hr]
As an author in residence, Aaron is crafting some very good stories that seem to have a life of their own. These worlds he is opening up to us in no rehashing of old tales, they are a vivid insight to our current culture, marking a path through that changing culture. Parables, legends, stories, they are all a part of what makes us human, and Aaron's work reminds us of the immutable strength that lives in us all.
You can see for yourself by getting the first book in his new series, The Legend of Mercedes Ketch: Her Father's Daughter. Out now in the iBookstore.


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Advanced Riding
Red Earth Equestrian Centre can provide training for experienced riders who wish to learn advanced techniques in horse control and the ability to ride horses over varying terrains and surfaces,
We cater for riders with there own horses that need to brush up on there positions or the horses way of going to improve results!
Or to give confidence to horse and rider that they are ready to move up to affiliated level by teaching them about related distances, narrow fences, leg yield, half pass, flying changes or perfecting the winning round over courses of fences!!! Not forgeting the jump off tactics that are best suited to the horse that they are competing ..... for example horses that cover a lot of ground dont need to risk out of control speed they need to be able to learn to turn balanced on a six pence!!!
And for riders with horses that struggle with certain dressage movements they need to learn how to pull the marks up by riding very accurate flowing transitions to show harmony and control to gain 9's and 10's!!!
And if you have not got your own horse to compete you can still learn on one of the schoolmasters that are currently out competing at the affiliated levels but are also used in the school!


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At Zarraffa's, only high grade Arabica beans – a unique blend of Kenyan and Ethiopian beans are sourced, roasted and used to produce the house coffee blend, for a great tasting coffee every time. Take home coffee blends available. Proudly Australian owned and operated.
We're really sorry, but something has gone wrong.


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It's my last day as an unpublished author .../
Today is my last day as an unpublished author. I start a new job tomorrow as a published author when St. Martin's Press release THE STRONGEST STEEL, book one of the Second Circle series. I've stared at this for a while, because Lord knows, the world doesn't need an Oscars-worthy ode to my life and times.
I'll keep it brief. I started out as an engineer. Made cars at Toyota for a living. And somehow years later, through a combination of A-type personality, Scorpio star sign, and a hide that is tougher than a ninja-rhino, I ended up as Senior Vice President of a +$30 billion dollar retailer staring down the barrel of COO job offers. So when I oh-so-casually announced I was giving it up to write a contemporary romantic suspense novel, you could hear the ripples of laughter across three continents. (Well, my friends and family cheered, and they were the only ones that mattered.)
But with my first book, I landed four offers of representation, and I selected the determined and tenacious Beth Phelan at The Bent Agency. And with Beth's help, this happened:
With Lizzie's guidance, the book received the literary equivalent of a sea salt scrub followed by a swift application of souffléd cocoa butter.
Now it's here, I don't really know what to say. I assumed I'd be full of authory-type wisdom. But it all seems trite.
All I can say is this. I'm eternally grateful for the opportunity to write for a living. I'm grateful that I get to work with super smart people who share their expertise and advice, and want to help me be successful. I'm grateful to all the bloggers and readers who have taken THE STRONGEST STEEL to their hearts, and have given me some truly wonderful reviews.
Tomorrow I start my new job, Published Author, and it feels pretty damn spectacular.
~ Scarlett xoxo
p.s. T, F, & L - We did it!!


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90,000 sq. ft.Residential condominium with 28 units
Located in historic Greenwich Village, the two residential towers of this project are the first construction in Manhattan by star architect Richard Meier. They have become a visually stunning addition to the New York City skyline with both towers clad in insulating laminated glass. Inside, apartments are afforded unobstructed panoramic views of Manhattan, the Hudson River and the New Jersey riverfront.


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Canterbury Housing Repair
In response to the 2010 & 2011 Canterbury earthquakes, Stephenson & Turner have been involved in the repair of earthquake damaged homes throughout Christchurch.
Working for a number of clients including Hawkins & Falcon Construction, Southern Response/Arrow & MWH Recovery, we have been coordinating repair strategies to for over 203 homes to date, with many more ongoing.
S&T works collaboratively with the clients and engineers to ensure the repairs satisfy the MBIR guidelines. The work largely involves; the identification and scoping of repair works, producing as built models of the dwellings, detailing and documentation to see the projects through building consent. We have developed efficient processes to facilitate the large number of properties and continually strive to get homeowners back into safer homes, faster.


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Big Beast
Fe-Fi-Fo-Fum... 6'6'', 300lbs. Size 15 feet. 8x6uc.
Big pecs, big arms and big...legs.
I want to make you go "Wow."
I want you to feel excited to meet me and look forward to fun. What would that great experience look like for you? Tell me, I want to hear all the details from you.
For more information, go to my site www.bryan-knight.com or my social media.
I feel comfortable with men of all backgrounds, including older men, disabled, married, and new to the scene.
My other friends here are Lance Navarro, Abel Rey, Scott Reynolds, Joel Someone, Mike Cruise, Dallas Steele, and Seth Knight.


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For the past century, the United States' electric sector has continuously expanded to keep up with the steadily growing demand for electricity. The interconnectedness of the various independent systems makes the national electric system vulnerable. The effects of an outage, either because of technical failure or terrorist attacks, would have widespread impact on the system. What we need now is a grid that is more distributed, flexible, and robust.
A key part of this is the distributed large-scale storage or on-demand dispatch of electricity through fuel cells, directly in batteries, or even more exotic technologies. Our inability to cheaply store the electrons we generate at massive scale has become a major bottleneck to the performance of our country's energy system. While we have long had an efficient way to store limited amounts of electricity using pumped hydro storage whereby water is pumped uphill in massive open mountainous reservoirs, its potential for further expansion is severely limited by the availability of appropriate geography. Nonetheless, pumped hydroelectric storage represents 99 percent of world-wide storage capacity. Meanwhile, the Electric Power Research Institute estimates that all battery storage technologies combined today offer an installed capacity of less than one full-size coal power plant.
And that is why research into grid-scale storage has exploded in material science, chemical engineering, and chemistry departments across the United States over the past five years. The efforts now underway draw on the best researchers from across the world with an unprecedented focus. Moreover, early achievements here are increasingly promising and coming faster than expected.
Electricity is the most perishable commodity. The moment it is generated, it needs to be consumed or stored.
— Vladimir Bulovic, MIT School of Engineering associate dean for innovation
Electricity is the most perishable commodity. The moment it is generated, it needs to be consumed or stored.
— Vladimir Bulovic, MIT School of Engineering associate dean for innovation
Compressing air with extra energy on hand and then getting it back out when needed is not a new concept. The city of Paris used a "pneumatic dispatch of power" network in the late nineteenth century to drive small machines, water pumps, and refrigerators. More conventional utility-scale electricity storage applications followed: hundreds of megawatts of capacity in underground salt domes in Germany in the 1970s and saline caverns in the 1990s in Alabama. In the years since, however, the technology has largely sat on the shelf.
The rise of intermittent renewables such as wind and solar power has now changed that, with utilities around the country taking a second look at deploying this relatively "mature" technology. One major attraction is the cost, which is more comparable to pumped hydro storage than today's chemical batteries. Another is scale, which is potentially one hundred times that of alternatives.
"Compressed air energy storage v2.0" R&D has looked to reduce costs and improve efficiency by changing how these systems handle heat. When air is compressed, it gets extremely hot; the so-called "diabatic" systems deployed in the past lost this energy. "Isothermal" storage, on the other hand, reduces that wasted heat by spraying a fine mist into the compressing air, capturing the heated water separately for later use during expansion. A startup founded on research conducted at Dartmouth College's Thayer School of Engineering is attempting to commercialize just this—a 1.5-megawatt unit was recently demonstrated in New Hampshire.
Another recent R&D focus has been the development of smaller, megawatt-scaled systems either above ground or in man-made caverns. Smaller, modular systems have the flexibility to be placed where they are most useful on the grid. Building on research carried out in the 1980s by Stanford graduate student Steve Chomyszak focusing on efficient "toroidal intersecting vane compressors" (initially envisioned for use in automotive hydrogen fuel cells), startup firm General Compression has recently completed its first 2-megawatt, wind turbine-driven compressed air storage facility in Texas.
When you think of backup electricity for when the grid goes down, a noisy generator probably springs to mind. An increasingly available option, however, might be fuel cells. They are clean, quiet, and have few moving parts. But compared to a gasoline or diesel generator, they are not "corner hardware store" convenient: they can be large and heavy; they need gaseous fuels such as purified methane or even hydrogen, which is hard to transport and store; and they must operate hot and at high pressures. But a type of fuel cell developed by researchers over the past two and half decades at the University of Southern California's Loker Hydrocarbon Research Institute in collaboration with Caltech's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) changes that.
With funding from DARPA beginning in 1989, USC's George Olah and Surya Prakash found that solutions of liquid methanol—an alcohol similar to ethanol fuel—could be oxidized across a catalyst to form CO2 and water, and an electron flow in the process. Compared to hydrogen fuel cells, this "direct methanol fuel cell technology" could run at low temperatures and atmospheric pressures across a wide range of sizes. Though the efficiency of the methanol's conversion to electricity is relatively low, the high energy density inherent in the liquid fuel helps to compensate, making this technology particularly useful for long-lasting, low-power electricity delivery.
Years of additional research and refinement of ancillary systems alongside research teams at JPL and Caltech have resulted in a viable technology now used in a wide variety of applications: from portable consumer electronics to lightweight soldier-worn power supplies, and more recently off-grid or backup generator replace- ment for building-sized applications. Licensing their patent portfolio to manufacturers such as SFC Energy AG in 2011 has enabled the further development and commercial availability of this unique form of energy storage and delivery.
We often think that there are logical connections between science, development, and manufacturing, in that expected order. But actually in the area of storage, there have been a number of surprises. They didn't happen because people had ideas and they worked on them and it all went in the normal sequence, but actually some of these surprises came as a result of an unexpected outside influence and some came from mistakes.
— Robert Huggins, Stanford professor emeritus of materials science and engineering
We often think that there are logical connections between science, development, and manufacturing, in that expected order. But actually in the area of storage, there have been a number of surprises. They didn't happen because people had ideas and they worked on them and it all went in the normal sequence, but actually some of these surprises came as a result of an unexpected outside influence and some came from mistakes.
— Robert Huggins, Stanford professor emeritus of materials science and engineering
Fuel cells make electricity by combining hydrogen, or hydrocarbon fuels, with oxygen. Now, MIT researchers have unraveled the properties of a promising alternative material structure for a key component of these devices.
The new structure, a "superlattice" of two compounds interleaved at a tiny scale, could serve as one of the two electrodes in the fuel cell. The complex material, discovered about six years ago and known as LSC113/214, is composed of two oxides of the elements lanthanum, strontium, and cobalt. While one of the oxides was already known as an especially good material for such electrodes, the combination of the two is far more potent in promoting oxygen reduction than either oxide alone. Oxygen reduction is one of two main reactions in a fuel cell, and the one that has limited their overall performance—so finding improved materials for that reaction could be a key advance for fuel cells.
The key to the material's performance, explains MIT's Bilge Yildiz, associate professor of nuclear science and engineering, is the marriage of complementary qualities from its two constituents. One of the oxides allows superior conduction and transfer of electrons, while the other excels at holding onto oxygen atoms; to perform well as a fuel cell's cathode—one of its two electrodes—a material needs to have both qualities. The close proximity of the two materials in this superlattice causes them to "borrow" one another's attributes, the MIT team found. The result is a mate- rial with reactivity that exceeds that of the best materials currently used in fuel cells; as Yildiz says, "It's the best of the two worlds."
Credit: David Chandler, ©Massachusetts Institute of Technology, used with permission, 2013
The high price of platinum catalysts used inside fuel cells has provided a roadblock to widespread use. Now, chemistry professor Hongjie Dai's nanoscale research at Stanford University has found a way to reduce the cost.
Over the past five years, the price of platinum has ranged from just below $800 to more than $2,200 an ounce. Among the most promising low-cost alternatives to platinum is the carbon nanotube—a rolled-up sheet of pure carbon, called graphene, that is one atom thick and more than 10,000 times narrower than a human hair. Carbon nanotubes and graphene are excellent conductors of electricity and relatively inexpensive to produce. For the study, the Stanford team used multiwalled carbon nanotubes consisting of two or three concentric tubes nested together. The scientists showed that shredding the outer wall, while leaving the inner walls intact, enhances catalytic activity in nanotubes, yet does not interfere with their ability to conduct electricity.
"A typical carbon nanotube has few defects," said Stanford post- doctoral fellow Yanguang Li. "But defects are actually important to promote the formation of catalytic sites and to render the nanotube very active for catalytic reactions." For the study, Li and his colleagues treated multiwalled nanotubes in a chemical solution. Microscopic analysis revealed that the treatment caused the outer nanotube to partially unzip and form nanosized graphene pieces that clung to the inner nanotube, which remained mostly intact.
"We found that the catalytic activity of the nanotubes is very close to platinum," says Li. "This high activity and the stability of the design make them promising candidates for fuel cells."
Credit: Mark Shwartz for the Stanford Precourt Institute for Energy, 2012
In general, when we think about storage, the game changers will come from three buckets. One is new materials—new chemistry that will store more energy, at less cost, and will be easier to produce. The second is the architecture of the storage device. That starts a round of innovation that was not there previously. And then the third is the issue of manufacturability and scale.
— Yet-Ming Chiang, MIT professor of materials science and engineering
In general, when we think about storage, the game changers will come from three buckets. One is new materials—new chemistry that will store more energy, at less cost, and will be easier to produce. The second is the architecture of the storage device. That starts a round of innovation that was not there previously. And then the third is the issue of manufacturability and scale.
— Yet-Ming Chiang, MIT professor of materials science and engineering
A new system developed at MIT to lower the costs and increase longevity of large-scale energy storage uses high-temperature bat- teries with liquid components that, like some novelty cocktails, naturally settle into distinct layers because of their different densities.
The three molten materials form the positive and negative poles of the battery, as well as a layer of electrolyte—a material that charged particles cross through as the battery is being charged or discharged—in between. All three layers are composed of materials that are abundant and inexpensive, explains MIT's Donald Sadoway, professor of materials science and engineering. One promising recipe: magnesium for the negative electrode (top layer), a salt mixture containing magnesium chloride for the electrolyte (middle layer,) and antimony for the positive electrode (bottom layer). The system would operate at a temperature of 700 degrees Celsius.
In this formulation, Sadoway explains, the battery delivers current as magnesium atoms lose two electrons, becoming magnesium ions that migrate through the electrolyte to the other electrode. There, they reacquire two electrons and revert to ordinary magnesium atoms, which form an alloy with the antimony. To recharge, the battery is connected to a source of electricity, which drives magnesium out of the alloy and across the electrolyte, where it then rejoins the negative electrode.
The inspiration for the concept came from Sadoway's earlier work on the electrochemistry of aluminum smelting, which is conducted in electrochemical cells that operate at similarly high temperatures. Many decades of operation have proved that such systems can operate reliably over long periods of time at an industrial scale, producing metal at low cost. In effect, he says, what he figured out was "a way to run the smelter in reverse."
Credit: David Chandler, ©Massachusetts Institute of Technology, used with permission, 2012
Stanford researchers have developed part of new long-life grid-scale battery: a new electrode that employs crystalline nanoparticles of a copper compound. In laboratory tests, the electrode survived 40,000 cycles of charging and discharging. "At a rate of several cycles per day, this electrode would have a good thirty years of useful life on the electrical grid," says graduate student Colin Wessells.
The electrode's durability derives from the atomic structure of the crystalline copper hexacyanoferrate used to make it. The crystals have an open framework that allows ions—electrically charged particles with movements that en masse either charge or discharge a battery—to easily go in and out without damaging the electrode. Most batteries fail because of accumulated damage to an electrode's crystal structure.
Because the ions can move so freely, the electrode's cycle of charging and discharging is extremely fast, which is important because the power you get out of a battery is proportional to how fast you can discharge the electrode. To maximize the benefit of the open structure, the researchers needed to use the right-sized ions. Too big and the ions would tend to get stuck and could damage the crystal structure when they moved in and out of the electrode. Too small and they might end up sticking to one side of the open spaces between atoms, instead of easily passing through. The right-sized ion turned out to be hydrated potassium, a much better fit compared to other hydrated ions such as sodium and lithium.
"It fits perfectly—really, really nicely," said Stanford's Yi Cui. "Potassium will just zoom in and zoom out, so you can have an extremely high-powered battery."
Credit: Louis Bergeron for the Stanford News Service, 2011
Researchers from DOE's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Stanford University have developed a new flow battery with a simplified, less-expensive design that presents a potentially viable solution for large-scale production.
Today's flow batteries pump two different liquids through an interaction chamber where dissolved molecules undergo chemical reactions that store or give up energy. The chamber contains a membrane that only allows ions not involved in reactions to pass between the liquids while keeping the active ions physically separated. This battery design has two major drawbacks: the high cost of liquids containing rare materials such as vanadium—especially in the huge quantities needed for grid storage—and the mem- brane, which is also expensive and requires frequent maintenance.
The new Stanford/SLAC battery design uses only one stream of molecules and does not need a membrane at all. Its molecules mostly consist of the relatively inexpensive elements lithium and sulfur, which interact with a piece of lithium metal coated with a barrier that permits electrons to pass without degrading the metal. When discharging, the molecules, called lithium polysulfides, absorb lithium ions; when charging, they lose them back into the liquid. The entire molecular stream is dissolved in an organic solvent, which does not have the corrosion issues of water-based flow batteries.
"In initial lab tests, the new battery also retained excellent energy-storage performance through more than 2,000 charges and discharges, equivalent to more than 5.5 years of daily cycles," says research group leader Yi Cui.
Credit: Andy Freeberg for the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2013


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A Business-Friendly Approach to Urban Sustainability
Over the past two years, a handful of major players in Charlotte have been developing a program intended to "demonstrate its leadership as a sustainable, progressive, cost-efficient place to do business," Quinn writes. Formed by institutions in the public, private, academic, and nonprofit sectors, Envision Charlotte provides building owners with hard data on resource consumption to help steer their tenants toward greener habits.
The first model program within Envision Charlotte, dubbed Smart Energy Now, pools the resources of Verizon, Cisco, and Charlotte-based Duke Energy to monitor energy use in 70 buildings in the Uptown area. Each property owner will receive a report outlining building-specific energy use, and aggregated numbers will be released to the public.
"The information gained will have a profound impact on how a community, property owner, tenant, and individual will view and utilize electricity," said Michael Delev, property manager for a 25-story, Class A office tower located in Uptown.
Smart Energy Now includes commercial spaces as small as 10,000 square feet. "Individual building owners have the ability to make an impact in our community in a significant way," said property owner and businessman Dan Roselli. "Taking a building built in 1928 as a parking garage and turning it into a LEED building shows that every building has the potential to decrease its environmental footprint.
Model programs monitoring water usage, waste, and air quality are soon to come.


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DIRECTORY > FASHION > Majestic Fashions by Lady G.
Majestic Fashions by Lady G
Majestic Fashions has multi-culture fashion for all occasions. If you're looking for something different with a classy and sassy look, Majestic is the place elegance. And elegant hats.
Majestic Fashions has been in business for over 5 years, originally specializing in elegant hats. In November of 2013, the hat business gave birth to Majestic Fashion with hats, African attire, women's church suits, and custom alterations.


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A lady while dining at Crewe
A lady while dining at Crewe
Found an elephant's whang in her stew.
Said the waiter, "Don't shout,
And don't wave it about,
Or the others will all want one too."
A lady while dining at Crewe
Found an elephant's whang in her stew.
Said the waiter, "Don't shout,
And don't wave it about,
Or the others will all want one too."
A horny old trapper named Rex
Liked the risks of wild porcupine sex.
By incredible luck
His dick never got stuck,
But his nuts were just pitiful wrecks.
There once was a girl from New Haven
Whose pubic hair was not shaven.
But missing because
She slept without drawers
Within range of a nest building raven.
There once was a man from Tahiti
Who went for a swim with his sweetie,
But as he pursued her
A big barracuda
Made off with his masculinity!
There once was a girl from Decatur
Who got laid by a big alligator.
Now, nobody knew
The result of that screw,
Because after he laid her, he ate her.
There was a young lady of Worcester
Who dreamt that a rooster seduced her.
She woke with a scream,
But 'twas only a dream
A lump in the mattress had goosed her.
Old mother hubbard
went to the cupboard
to get her poor dog a bone
but when she bent over
rover took over
and gave a bone of her own!
A bugger who buggered some sheep
Tried to bugger a ewe in her sleep.
She awoke with a start
And she ripped a great fart.
Now he's covered in shit three feet deep.
There was a young maid from Madras
Who had a magnificent ass.
Not rounded and pink
As you probably think,
It was grey, had long ears, and ate grass!
Old Charlie, a jolly old bloke
Made love to a cow as a joke
He found pleasure divine
With this friendly bovine
Now they call him the old cowpoke!


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In the months leading up to my daughter's birth, I contemplated what it would be like to raise a child. I thought, if I can barely remember to put deodorant on in the mornings, how could I possibly steward another life? More importantly, how will I lead her to cherish Jesus? What if she one day rejects the gospel? I felt the enormous weight of Deuteronomy 6 where God commands his people to teach his statutes "diligently to your children, and you shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise" (Deuteronomy 6:7). Raising an eternal soul was, and still is, terrifying.
The Bible tells us that the home is the most immediate context for discipleship. I am called to love God with all my heart, soul, and strength and to teach this diligently to my little girl. My wife and I have the unique mission of raising our daughter in a gospel-saturated home, reminding her about what God has done when we sit, when we walk, when we lie down, and when we rise. This is a beautiful calling, and totally beyond me.
When thinking of raising my daughter, I'm reminded that Jesus's call for us to make disciples of all nations can also feel like a daunting task (Matthew 28:18–20). We wonder, how could I tell another sinner about Jesus when I myself am a sinner? What if I don't say the right things? What if my own imperfections and foibles deter them from believing the gospel's power? This calling, too, can be terrifying.
[Read the rest of the article at Desiring God.]