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Every day as parents we question whether or not we are good, average hell … great parents, especially with the internet's telling us that we are doing it all wrong, or those overzealous parenting posts on Facebook, or our own psychosis screaming into our brains that we are not good enough parents.
Well, my friends, I am here to tell you that you're a great parent, no matter what those annoying helicopter moms or dads say. How do I know that? Well, I got some mad skills, I've been around the parenting block for a decade, I've made many mistakes – my oldest sons first year of life was like a circus, I had no idea what I was doing, I made everyone around me crazy, and my pediatrician actually red-flagged my file.
That is not a joke.
My sons file was really red-flagged ala Elaine Benes in Seinfeld – because I was a nut job.
So I am pretty qualified to let you know that you are not fucking up as a parent, that you are doing more than an OK job at this parenting thing, I know that because you…
- Wash the same pair of socks over 6,000 times in one week because your child can only wear those socks, no matter how many new pairs of the exact same pair of socks you bought, they don't want the new ones.
- Cut their fingernails in their sleeps because it the only way to get it done and more importantly avoid a temper tantrum.
- Make the same lunch for twelve years because it's the only lunch food your child will eat.
- Volunteer… as a coach, with the PTA, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Religion Teacher, School Function, whatever volunteer gig you take, you're giving up valuable time for your child. Kudos to you!
- Have boogers, tears, food stains on your shirt.
- Sing them to sleep even though you have a headache, the flu, or are hung-over.
- Held their hand when they went off to school for the first time.
- Stayed up to the wee hours of the night for moral support as they finish their school reports.
- Worked extra hours (basically handled your shit) so you can watch them play any sport, perform in any production, or watch them march in any fricking parade.
- Cried yourself to sleep because they were rejected in any way by a friend, a school admission, the travel soccer team or any rejection really – could be the random kid at the park who didn't want to play with them – am I being dramatic? HELL YEA!
- Gave in for the 100th time to the play date, sleepover; ice-cream or gum at the checkout line. Sucker MC? Absolutely! But hey they're worth it.
- Paid $15.00 for some crap toy at the amusement park cause your parents never did that. Okay, that's dumb but it happens.
- Refrained from clothes-lining the mom whose snotty kid tormented your child at recess.
… You love them like no other and will take a gosh darn bullet for them even if it means you may spill your wine.


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It is also believed that the price hikes will take the average household energy bill in the UK to over £1,000 a year.
Commenting on the reports, Adam Scorer of watchdog energywatch told the Times: "The consequence is that consumers - households, businesses, public services - all have to find extra money from tight budgets to pay for essential gas and electricity.
"Worst of all, those families who really struggle to make ends meet start to make some invidious choices about whether to spend their scarce resources on warm homes, food or clothing."
npower, which was formally established in 1999, generates and supplies energy to 6.8 million gas and electricity users across the UK.
Click here to run an energy price comparison, and see if you could be paying less for your gas and electricity.
Help spread the word and share this page with your friends and family on your social networks.

subset: commoncrawl


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Guilford Technical Community College English major
Think about what career is best suited for you, and where you want to study. Request more information now.
Think about what career is best suited for you, and where you want to study. Request more information now.
Think about what career is best suited for you, and where you want to study. Request more information now.
Info concerning Guilford Technical Community College English major, and registering for elective lectures and seminars. As a student, your first stop should be the registrar's office, where you can pick up a free copy of both the academic calendar and course catalog, in order to find available credit classes that you may be interested in taking. It may surprise you that it's possible to enroll for a full-time course load, without having any 8am classes at all. Finally, check with your major department for assistance with prerequisites, tuition payment deadlines, and Guilford Technical Community College English Language information. Please use the form above to request admissions info for Guilford Technical Community College.
If you want to learn to write and speak well in English, there's no easy way around long hours of English conversation practice and writing drills. Whether you would like to study creative writing, to broaden your cultural skills, or are leaning towards technical writing, improving your English language skills may help you land a job after graduation. While it's true that you may become an author online, self-publishing Kindle books, it's also true that English writing ability is a great skill to list on your resume.
For assignments in report writing classes, make the paragraph your basis of composing the report, and limit each paragraph to a specific topic. In fact, begin each paragraph with your topic sentence, both in creative writing as well as for technical writing. Choose a method of organizing your thoughts, in order to complete an application essay or a college writing assignment. The simplest method of English composition is either narration or description, followed by comparison and finally persuasive writing. Beyond consideration for Guilford Technical Community College English major, you may think about Montana State University Great Falls courses online 2017 for complementary electives to your primary course of study.
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Great opportunities to Get Your Blood Pumping for Blood Cancer
Publish Date: 14/4/2016
It's time to dust off the running shoes, pull your stationary bike out of storage and gather all your family and friends to Get Your Blood Pumping for Blood Cancer.
Whether you are a serious runner, jogger, walker or cyclist, this is your chance to join more than 250 people across New South Wales who, each year, take on one of the many physical challenge events to raise funds to support the work of the Leukaemia Foundation.
The idea of a physical challenge such as the City2Surf , Tour de Lounge or New York Marathon can be incredibly intimidating, especially on your own.
This is why we have dedicated staff to support you along your journey, similar to how our Blood Cancer Support Coordinators are there for people living with blood cancer.
Team Coordinator, Marianne Timbrell, (pictured left) says some people take on a physical fundraising challenge because of a personal blood cancer story while others are simply looking for a way to make the lives of others a little easier.
Regardless of their motivation, working with fundraisers always brings a special smile to Marianne's face.
"I always find people who fundraise such a huge inspiration. The personal commitment that each person makes is such a great way to enjoy and participate in life. We have so many passionate people who choose to raise funds for the Leukaemia Foundation," said Marianne.
"I'm lucky enough to be someone who gets to help you make your experience more fun, rewarding and to help create an experience for you that you will long remember. As a fundraiser you are not just trudging the miles that your feet take you, but helping us to raise valuable funds and make a real difference to the lives of people living with blood cancer."
If you have ever thought about embarking on one of these physical personal challenges or, if you have a challenge of your own that you would like to pursue, we'd love to have you on our team. Call Marianne on 1800 620 420 or visit getyourbloodpumping.com today.


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Det Norske Encounters Oil in Storskrymten Prospect
Det norske oljeselskap ASA (formerly Pertra ASA) has completed drilling wildcat well 15/12-18 S and appraisal well 15/12-18A between the Sleipner Ost and Varg fields in the North Sea. Two oil discoveries were made in Paleocene reservoir rocks.
Well 15/12-18S had two drilling targets, one in the Paleocene (the Storskrymten prospect) and one in the Jurassic/Triassic (the Grytkollen prospect). In the Paleocene, 23 meters of oil was found in sandstones with good reservoir properties belonging to the Ty formation. Nine-meter thick sandstones were also encountered in the Jurassic (Grytkollen), but no oil or gas was proven here.
The well was drilled to a total measured depth of 3520 meters and concluded in rocks from the Permian Age. Oil and rock samples were taken in the Ty formation for further analysis.
Appraisal well 15/12-18A encountered sandstones in the Ty formation. However, these were somewhat deeper than the oil-water contact proven in the original well, and did not contain oil or gas.
The well did, however, prove a new oil discovery in Paleocene sandstones in the Heimdal formation. The sidetrack was drilled to a total measured depth of 3036 meters and was concluded in rocks from the Late Cretaceous.
The operator has estimated the total size of the two discoveries to be from 1.5 - 7 million standard cubic meters of recoverable oil.
- Det Norske Completes Merger with BP Norge, Creates Aker BP (Sep 30)
- Lundin Granted Drilling Permit Offshore Norway (Sep 20)
- Det Norske Increases Production Guidance for 2016 (Sep 14)
RigLogix can provide the information that you need about the offshore rig fleet, whether you need utilization and industry trends or detailed reports on future rig contracts. Subscribing to RigLogix will allow you to access dozens of prebuilt reports and build your own custom reports using hundreds of available data columns. For more information about a RigLogix subscription, visit www.riglogix.com.


text: OUR MISSION To help people with brain injuries, autism and other disabilities reach their maximum potential by developing skills, creating opportunities and shaping brighter futures. OUR VALUES We value QUALITY: We believe quality is the essence of distinction. We achieve excellence by our commitment to innovative and individualized services, customer satisfaction and long-term relationships. We value RESULTS: We believe that results can be achieved by flexible, creative and interrelated solutions. Developing solutions is the fundamental approach we use for every relationship. We value WIN-WIN RELATIONSHIPS: We believe in lasting associations with all parties. This includes building genuine relationships with customers and employees. Synergy in our relationships allows us to accomplish more than we can individually. We value GROWTH: We believe growth is critical in every aspect of business in order to continuously improve. Growth means that consumers, employees and the organization are constantly becoming more productive.


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With the slower start to the spring market and the May 2014 OREB news release stating that condominium sales dropped in comparision to last year, is now the time to pounce on your first opportunity at home ownership or to downsize? There are so many great options available. Whether you are looking for an apartment, a bungalow, a townhome or a life lease, Ottawa has plenty of great properties available.
Many first time buyer's don't quite understand the wonderful benefits which condo living can offer. Here are just a few factors that you may want to consider.
Location and Price: One may think going rural may seem to be the only option to accomodate mortgage budget. However, with beautiful condo's in the downtown core or from Orleans and Kanata, there are many great options that will offer you that great community feel and be budget conscious. These condo's are in close proximity to transit, amentities and have the security of being close to neighbours.
Layout options: Do you want something quaint and open concept? Or a garden home style condominium with 3 bedrooms? Really when it comes to condo's you can really create your perfect wish list. Basements, balconies, concierge service, underground parking. The wish list is so versatile.
Maintenance: One of the greatest perks for condominium living, is the small amount of time that it needs to be dedicated for your own personal upkeep of exterior features. In this busy day in age, finding time to plow snow or cut the lawn can be quite difficult. Or perhaps you like to travel and don't want to worry about taking care of your walkways and grass while you are away. In a condo, typically these items of maintenace are the responsibility of the caretaker. Roofs, windows, doors, elevators, parking lots usually fall under the responsibilty of the condo and are part of the monthly association fee's.
Equity: As with freehold home ownership, condo ownership also serves as a financial bonus as opposed to renting. You are building equity as soon as you move in. Not to mention you gain the opportunity to take advantage of tax deductions for mortgage interest and property taxes. Definetly something to consider when debating between renting and owning. Having your home act as a savings account as opposed to paying your landlords mortgage, only seems logical.
Life Lease vs.Seniors residence: A life lease condominium offers the occupant the right to occupy. The occupant purchases this right to occupy and is then able to sell the unit when they decide to move onto a full care facility. This saves the hefty monthly fee's of a seniors residence that sometimes cost thousands of dollars a month. In a life lease, there is monthly fee that is similiar to the cost of a typical condo fee which includes the utilities.
Amenities: Who doesn't want access to a pool or a health club? Some of these great units also offer recreation facilities. Imagine just walking down the hall to a full service gym. Or how about a guest suite located in your building for when guests arrive from out of town. These are just some of the amenities that can be offered.
These are just a few points to take into consideration when deciding what your next move in the property ladder will be. If you have any questions, need some real estate direction, or are curious to see what is out there, please feel free to contact me at any time.


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Nov 6, 2017
A Forum will be held at Redland Library on Monday, November 6th from 7pm until 8.30pm.
It is thought that if we are to have any chance of securing monies for the area in the future and/or of influencing local decision making, then we must have an active and constructive Forum.
Please attend and contribute your ideas for the future of these meetings.


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Canada will not soon forget the 2010 Winter Games, having racked up literally dozens of historic firsts. A typical day of the games saw Canada earn its first ever 15th place finish on Canadian soil by a 27-year-old Quebecker in Men's Super Combined Alpine Skiing and its first ever 10th place finish in Men's Ski Cross. Meanwhile it was shutout entirely, another historic first, in Women's Mass Start Biathlon.
"Canada, it has always been a role model to us," Dugashvilli said.
Some grumblings were heard, however, over the aggressive stance taken by the Canadian Olympic Committee in its Own The Podium program. Smället Dugashvilli, president of the group Citizens of the World Against Stupid Nationalism (CWASN), expressed dismay at the unprecedented confidence shown by Canadian athletes and Olympic organizers through much of the Games. "Canada, it has always been a role model to us," Dugashvilli said, at a specially convened press conference. "A country with no identity. Now, of course, we are very disappointed."


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The crowd at McLeod Tennis Center came out Wednesday night expecting to see some great tennis. Not only did they get their money's worth, but they were also treated to a site rarely seen on the hard courts.
The anticipated doubles matchup between teammates Tim Smyczek and Ryan Sweeting of the United States and Raven Klaasen and Ivo Klec, from Russia and Slovakia was overshadowed by a very unique set of tennis playing brothers.
Brian and Dann Battistone, Americans from Santa Barbara, Calif., exhibited not only a unique style of play, but very interesting pieces of equipment. The Battistones, who play together as a doubles pair, use a racket that splits off into two handles at its end. It looks exactly like the average racket, or at least three-fourths of one.
"That's the first question I've ever heard about the racket," Brian Battistone said kiddingly.
The Battistones defeated Stephen Amritraj from India and American Michael McClune, 6-4, 6-2 in a best-of-three format. Not only did they have the edge in groundstrokes and volleying, as they showed throughout the match with their powerful returns and solid net play, but when on serve, they were nearly unbreakable.
Brian Battistone said that he met the inventor of the racket, Lionel Burt, a few years ago in Southern California. He said he got a chance to talk to him and learned about this racket, which was invented for health purposes. They are designed to make the sport less stressful on the wrists.
"He saw me using two hands, trying to be able to hit a forehand from both sides, and also experimenting with a jump serve," Battistone said.
Yes, a jump serve - like the ones often seen in volleyball matches.
The way Brian Bannistone approaches the baseline to serve is about the only similarity to any orthodox tennis player.
Instead of placing the racket in his right hand as he approaches to hit a serve, he puts the ball in his right hand. With the racket in his left hand he then gathers and throws the ball about 20 feet in the air just in front and above him, spins his racket from his left to his right hand, then jumps to serve as though he has been watching tape of Misty-Mae Treanor.
As he uncoils to hit the ball, he comes down with so much force that it is difficult to fathom how one could return the serve. And surprisingly, he is very accurate.
"I just thought I should try it out, even though at first it was crazy," Battistone said. "After winning matches and playing very reasonably, we just decided to try it out more."
He explained how it can be beneficial to improving one's game. Battistone said that because of the angle at which your hands are placed, it gives you better top spin and it keeps your racket head out in front of the ball. The two handles give a player greater stability on returning a serve, especially when they are being hit at 120-130 mph.
"For us, it took a couple of solid weeks to learn it," he said. "Even after 20-30 minutes you can already begin to get a handle on it."
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Michelle Grabner Exhibition Opens 7/27 at Inova's Kenilworth Gallery
The Institute of Visual Arts (Inova) opens the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) Peck School of the Arts' Year of the Arts with two prominent UWM alumni. Chicago-based artist, writer, teacher and curator Michelle Grabner (BFA '84, MA '87) presents a selection of paintings, prints, sculpture and video spanning her formidable career. Guest curated by artist and gallery director John Riepenhoff (BFA '04), this exhibition will also include a selection of work by Grabner's former students who have gained prominence over the years, as well as the work of five pivotal mentors and professors who have had an impact on Grabner's artistic practice.
Grabner is currently a Professor and Department Chair at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, visiting Professor at Yale University and with her husband Brad Killam runs The Suburban (est. 1999) in Oak Park, Illinois and the Poor Farm (est. 2008) in Waupaca County, Wisconsin.
Dates: July 27-September 23, 2012
Opening reception on Gallery Night, Friday, July 27, 5-8pm
Join us on Gallery Day, Saturday, July 28 for a conversation between the artist, guest curator John Riepenhoff and Inova's new director, Sara Krajewski, in the Inova screening room at 1:30pm.
Location: Inova/Kenilworth, 2155 N. Prospect Ave, Milwaukee, WI
Free and open to the public
This is a twenty-year survey exhibition that spans work from the early 1990s made while Grabner was living and working with her young family in Milwaukee to new work dating 2012. A range of paintings, prints, video, and sculpture will illustrate Grabner's investigations into the concepts of work, labor, and the aesthetics and social-dynamics of the domestic sphere. Repetition, pattern, and indexical systems of mark-making are her preferred language yet this accumulative exhibition will also feature examples of representational work less familiar to her public oeuvre. "Maturing as an artist in Pluralism, educated in the 1980's, and fusing conceptual practices with handcrafted objects, Grabner stands firmly in the gap between past and future" writes Molly Zuckerman-Hartung in her catalog essay. She goes on to say that, "Grabner grinds her teeth at night, and holds onto at least a semblance of conviction, while relentlessly evacuating any signs of passionate intensity. In every interview she critically refers to the "lurid" color of past work, the "optical bounce," the domestic references. Look at the history of her paintings and note the continuing effort to repress the hallucinogenic color, the wavering psychedelic opticality."<
The exhibition will also include collaborative art objects with artists Brad Killam, David Robbins, and Gaylen Gerber. And in an effort to contextualize Grabner's practice and reach, original work by prominent artists who Grabner studied with at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Northwestern University will also be featured. In addition, the exhibition will present a selection of work by artists who have studied with Grabner as students, representing a larger picture of her influences, pedagogy and her orbit in the field of contemporary art.
Work by Grabner's former professors and mentors, Julia Fish, Leslie Vanson, Tom Uttech, and Ed Paschke will be featured. A selection of work by exhibiting artists who have studied with Grabner including Lesley Vance, Jesse Chapman, Evan Gruzis, Andrew Falkowski, Deirdre O'Dwyer, Kelly Williams, Aliza Nisenbaum, Hilary Wilder, Fatima Haider, John Neff, Elijah Burgher, Dana DeGiulio, Alex Jovanovich, Jose Lerma, Rodney McMillian, Barry Underwood, Julie Weitz, Aaron Van Dyke, and Molly Zuckerman Hartung will also be exhibited.
In addition to this comprehensive exhibition in the Inova galleries, a full scale replica of The Suburban, Grabner and Killam's 13 year-old artist project space located in Oak Park, Illinois will be erected in Inova's parking garage. This architectural twin will host three shows during the run of Grabner's survey exhibition featuring projects by artists David Robbins, Kay Rosen, and John Riepenhoff.
A catalog accompanying this survey exhibition will include republished material, new essays by Nicholas Frank and Molly Zuckerman Hartung, and a conversation between Grabner and Riepenhoff.


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Welcome to my garden. There are earwigs in my romaine lettuce and spiders on my green beans. I am not scared of bugs, but I am positively annoyed by them. I am also annoyed by having to wash my lettuce and spinach over and over to get it recipe ready.
These are some of the convenience drawbacks to having a garden and producing your own food. It's great to be involved in every stage of growth, harvest, and [finally] eating. However, I argue that fruit and vegetable farmers provide excellent value to the home cook by doing this for us. It's the absolute best kind of processed food out there.
Yes. You read correctly. I said something positive about processed food.
I recently learned the danger saying that 'I avoid processed food.' Dr. Jim Hill, Professor of Pediatrics and Medicine and Executive Director of the Anschutz Health and Wellness Center, shocked an entire group of health and fitness bloggers by "revealing" that baby carrots were a processed food. There were audible gasps of flabbergast.
The group was happily rattling off possible causes of obesity in the United States, including the prevalence of processed food. Healthy people like to feel self-righteous about certain things, especially the shunning of processed food. Dr. Hill helped me realize that processing whole foods for convenient use is great. The problems start when good ingredients are refined beyond recognition.
Modern farming and production techniques deliver some of my favorite ingredients, like old fashioned oats, frozen peas, and ready-to-eat spinach.
Jeanette Bessinger helped me understand this even more in her book Simple Food for Busy Families. She uses the terms "refined" and "intact" to differentiate between industrialized junk and real food. For example, a potato chip is refined and a fresh potato is intact. These terms help me when I am grocery shopping for my family.
I rely on industrial processes to feed my family well. There's something to be said for not having to thresh and winnow my wheat before I grind it into flour. Talk about flour being a processed, convenience food! I will always enjoy gardening, but I will really enjoy the convenience of buying romaine hearts without any earwigs.
What process do you appreciate most? The cutting in pre-cut fruit? The cooking to make canned black beans? Let us know in the comments below, on the Don't Panic Mom Facebook Page, or on Twitter.


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"So now what?" Caroline asks, leaning against the counter in Stefan's kitchen.
The house is empty, his father away on business again, and Damon still stationed in North Carolina. Rebekah never thought to question just how he's been able to stay over so often, content at being able to spend such long stretches of time together, not realizing the alternative was a vacant home surrounded in solitude.
He hasn't said a word, other than the muted request to be taken here, after retrieving the stones. It grows worrisome the way he stares so intently at them, as if he's on the receiving end of a conversation she and Caroline aren't privy to, the rest of the world all but fading away.
"Hey!" Caroline prods, snapping her fingers in front of his face. "Focus. What are we supposed to do with these things?"
She makes like she's going to pry them out of his hands, and Stefan snatches them away so quick Caroline staggers back.
"Seriously?" Comes out incredulous, catching her sister's eye.
Rebekah places a hand on his shoulder, only to flinch as he shrugs away.
"Sorry," he says distantly. "I just-you shouldn't touch them."
"I'm starting to think you shouldn't either," she states flatly.
He doesn't look at her, only at his hands.
"We need to talk to Sheila," Caroline offers. "She's the one who told us to go fetch in the first place."
"Agreed," Rebekah replies.
Stefan doesn't offer an opinion.
Sheila opens the door before anyone can knock, a look of expectation in her eyes.
"Didn't think it would take you that long," she taunts, stepping aside to allow them entry.
"He asked to go home afterward," Rebekah replies.
"And you took him there why?"
Neither she, nor Caroline, have an answer though in hindsight, it does seem counterproductive. They take seats at the kitchen table, Stefan preferring to stand, and Rebekah is not at all surprised to see Bonnie there. They exchange a look, but no words are spoken, the carnival incident still fresh in their minds.
Stefan is still in his catatonic stupor, her concern growing manic with each passing second, but somehow keeping her revere. Sheila looks at him, still clinging to the stones, and reaches out. Caroline opens her mouth to warn her, but a few Latin words uttered, and she successfully places her hands over Stefan's.
Rebekah can see his eyes clear immediately, as he shakes his head and looks around seemingly unaware of where he is or how he got here.
"Ms. Bennett?"
"Welcome back," she responds without a hint of humor. "They're spelled," she goes on, holding up the stones for all to see. "Bonded to the one who will bring their energy's release."
Stefan almost collapses back, Rebekah and Caroline quick to hold him up by each of his arms. They settle him into a seat, Rebekah asking for a glass of water, to which Bonnie obliges. All eyes on him, she'd swear he's flushing with embarrassment, before gulping down the water gratefully.
"They spoke to me," he says to the room. "They said I'm the one."
"The doppelgänger is the key," Sheila offers.
"Yeah," Rebekah inserts. "But what does that mean?"
"It means," Stefan starts, setting the glass down on the table. "That I alone can break the curse."
Everyone jumps as the back door is kicked violently open, Kenneth leaning forward as far as the lack of invitation will allow, an easy grin on his lips.
"Now," he says, gaze focusing on Stefan. "Why would you want to do a silly thing like that?"
Elena is waiting in the living room when they return home with Kenneth's ultimatum, give him the stones or the town would rain with blood, still fresh in their ears. A whole day given to think it over. Stefan takes pause at his friend just standing there, her head tilted anxiously at him.
Her smile is instant, and he moves without a second thought, pulling her into a hug.
"Only you," she says, wrapping her arms around him. "Could ever tell us apart."
"Where have you been?" He asks, pulling back. Something, Rebekah notes, the girl looks disappointed about. Katherine doesn't answer the question, keeping her hands on Stefan's wrists.
"I came for Elena," she says instead, allowing a moment for it to sink in.
"You're leaving."
She nods.
"There's no reason for us to stay."
Rebekah holds back a scoff, thinking that there's plenty of reasons to stick it out. Helping one of her so-called best friends survive becoming a sacrificial lamb, the first thing that comes to mind. But of course Stefan says nothing along those lines, never once asking those close to him to put themselves in harm's way. He pulls her into a hug again, chin burrowed into her shoulder, while Katherine whispers something into his ear and Rebekah can't help but listen in.
"I know you couldn't, because of her, but for me-"
"I know," he whispers back.
Rebekah wonders if he's always known.
Elena comes into the room then, bag slung over her shoulder, and walks right up to them throwing her arms around both. Rebekah isn't sure how long they stay that way, not wanting to count the awkward seconds she's compelled to keep looking, and they only break apart when Caroline struts in still picking the glass out of her hair from Sheila's half decimated kitchen.
"Okay," she says regarding the three of them with a curious glance. "What'd I miss?"
Rebekah's head rests idly on Stefan's shoulder, listening to the sounds of an encompassing nighttime forest. He's hardly said more than a few sentences since Katherine and Elena walked out the door yesterday, his brow becoming ever more creased and brooding.
Caroline's eyes are everywhere, impatiently waiting for Kenneth to appear out of the ether. He does exactly that a few minutes later, a calm smile present, as if he hadn't promised impending doom mere hours ago.
"I really thought I'd have to track you all down," he says with irritating nonchalance.
She feels Stefan tense at Kenneth's presence, having no clue how he must feel in the moment.
"So you're him," Stefan states, rising to his feet.
"I would say the one and only," Kenneth replies with a shrug. "But that's hardly the case anymore, is it?"
Rebekah and Caroline's eyes meet, the sight of them together not entirely new, but the other comparative moment so brief it never had a chance to register.
Kenneth steps so close they're only inches apart, looking his counterpart up and down, Stefan never flinching.
"Don't let yourself entertain the idea that, just because we share the same handsome face, I won't snap your neck."
Caroline moves the same time as Rebekah, but of course Kenneth is faster than both, pulling Stefan into a headlock.
"Now, now ladies," he taunts. "Let's not let this get messy."
They don't move, and after a moment, Kenneth lets go. Stefan gasps, falling to the ground, and both she and Caroline are at his side instantly.
"What is it about you," Kenneth wonders aloud. "That has these two lovely gals so wrapped around your finger?"
Stefan shrugs them off, rising to his feet again.
"Oh right," Kenneth goes on. "They wish you were me."
"If you really wanted to kill me," Stefan says, voice slightly gruff. "I'd be dead."
"Too true."
"So what do you want?"
"Oh, this has never been about what I want," Kenneth says, clasping his hands together. "It's what she wants."
Great, Rebekah thinks with a roll of her eyes. Another player, another game, with hardly any answers forthcoming.
"So what does she want?" Stefan reiterates.
"Some curses should never be broken," Kenneth answers. "Creatures of the night, and all that."
"And we're just supposed to believe you?" Caroline chimes in. "It's hard to imagine a vampire who doesn't want to walk in the sun."
"Believe what you will," Kenneth responds with a sigh. "I'm just the messenger."
Stefan takes the stones from his pocket and tosses them at Kenneth's feet.
"Are you stupid?" Caroline shouts, while Rebekah's own mouth drops open in shock.
"Honestly," Stefan says, keeping his gaze forward. "I don't care what you do with them. So long as you leave us out of it."
"Ah, there's the rub," Kenneth replies, stooping to pick up the stones. "There's no breaking the curse without the doppelgänger, but there's no destroying these without him either."
The smell of hay is prevalent, eyes fluttering open to three red wood-paneled walls, capped off with a door of bars. Caroline lays a few feet away, unconscious and unmoving, head twisted at an angle that's going to leave her as sore as Rebekah feels when she comes to. Stefan isn't with them, no surprise there, but the sight of Kenneth just past the bars is.
"Morning sunshine," he says with a small wave.
"Where's Stefan?"
He doesn't answer.
"Where is he?" She asks again.
"With her," he says, leaning closer and running a finger along the bars.
She jumps to her feet quicker than recommended, losing her balance on the uneven ground, head still woozy from having her neck snapped.
"Do I at least get the name of the woman intent on killing my boyfriend?" She asks, lifting herself up and dusting off her hands.
"Love that accent," he deflects. "Have I told you how much I love the accent?"
She shoots him a glare.
"Claudia," he answers, head turning away.
"She told you to come here, didn't she?"
He doesn't say anything.
"I'd gather she was the reason you came around the first time."
"The ritual was doomed without a doppelgänger," he says, head tilted in some kind of reminiscence. "And I was to gather the stones once that mistake came to fruition, but I failed."
"So what were we then?" She asks, looking down at Caroline's still frozen form. "Time better spent?"
"You were unexpected," he answers, looking back to her. "Enchanting. I liked the idea of a world with the two of you in it, so I made it happen."
Rebekah has always suspected there to be no true reason, love or otherwise, as to why they were turned. But to hear him admit as much still pings painfully inside her chest.
"I know I've never given you a reason to think otherwise, but I did love you. Caroline too."
"Is that why you fled as soon as you made us?"
"I fled because I couldn't get the stones. Because I wasn't willing to sacrifice my freedom by walking into that tomb. Because my punishment was going to be severe, and the further away I was, the less likely Claudia would have ripped the hearts from your chest."
Liar, she wants to shout. He doesn't care, he never cared. They were pawns to him. Fools in a game he likes to play with his mistress, or master, or whatever the hell this Claudia is to him.
"I'm jealous that you could be so happy," he offers. "For whatever that's worth."
"Considering you're fully compliant is destroying that happiness, I'd say it isn't worth a damn."
He looks to the floor, no snide comment, or clever retort follows.
The wheels in her mind spin in the silence. Worry for Stefan, Caroline, and the true possibility of her own demise. She wants to rips those bars from their hinges, club him across the head, and rescue Stefan from whatever fate is thrust upon him. No chance of it happening, but a girl can dream. She hates feeling so trapped, so helpless. Knowing there's someone she loves in danger and pain, with absolutely nothing to be done about it.
Kenneth looks different suddenly, in this contemplative moment, neither the cocky vampire lothario nor the cunning com man. Rather, this is what the boy he once was must have looked like however many millenia ago.
"This may seem like a stupid question," she starts, breaking the silence. "But you've never struck me as the type to be at anyone's beck and call."
"I didn't hear a question."
"Getting to it. Why do you bow to her?"
"Excuse me?" He shoots back with a scowl. "I bow to no one."
"Sorry, it seems like you do."
"She made me," he says evenly. "She easily could have killed me, but didn't. Instead she let the stones exist for another five hundred years, simply because I asked. There's a certain gratitude in that."
"A valid reason," she admits. "But it doesn't sound like the whole story."
"Okay Freud," he laughs, though not mockingly, a bizarre self depreciating sound that seems so foreign coming from his lips. . "You want inside my head? Fine."
He taps a few of the bars, the sound echoing throughout.
"Everything I do, everything I've ever done, is because sometimes she loves me back."
There's a body in the middle of the floor when she comes to again.
Caroline is no longer out cold, but on her knees next to it. To him.
"No," she whispers desperately. "Please no."
Her fingers go to his mouth, but she feels no breath. To his neck, but she feels no pulse. His eyes are mercifully closed, as the tears begin to spill from her own. A sorrow so overwhelming, it weighs heavy in her bones. The one she's loved more than anything, growing colder by the second. Caroline doesn't say a word, reaching a hand out, and Rebekah falls easily into her sister's arms.
It's then she notices that the bars are open. No need to be held prisoner when the deed is done, now is there?
Caroline's fingers run through her hair, and Rebekah feels a kiss placed atop her head.
"Don't be sad Bekah," she says. "Everything is going to be okay."
"How?" She asks. "How could it possibly?"
"We're not in mourning," Caroline continues. "We're in waiting."
Rebekah pulls away.
"I know I promised I'd never compel him-"
"But I lied," she confesses. "I'm a lying liar, who lies."
"What have you done?"
She looks away.
"Gave him my blood."
Rebekah's insides twist with mixed emotion. Anger, pain, betrayal, and a sudden radiant happiness all twirling in a violent mess.
How could you? She thinks. How dare you? Thank you, thank you, thank you.
She wants to smack her sister. Kiss her, hug her, or snap her bloody neck all over again.
In the end none of those things happen, kneeling next to Caroline she leans over to place a kiss on his still cheek, and waits for the most beautiful boy she's ever met to open his eyes.


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Heat is a form of energy which exists naturally.
It easily changes into different forms of energy like light, electricity etc.
Life on this earth depends on heat energy for survival.
Man knew about heat and its precursor fire since ages and has been using it for various applications.
Heat energy unlike other forms can be felt by sense of touch.
Importance of heat
Heat and energy are quite related and know to common before advancements of science. It has great role in the human lives and also the environment. Heat energy helps to
1. Photosynthesis: In plants, light energy from sun converts to heat energy and gets trapped in the leaves to form carbohydrates.
This energy trapped again releases to generate heat energy when the carbohydrates are broken down by animal tissues.
Besides carbohydrates, heat energy is also present in fats and to some extent in proteins.
Thus energy in the from of heat is involved in food production.
2. Enzyme reactions: Enzymes are bio-catalysts which help to enhance the speed of reactions. These enzymes operate only when there is suitable temperature i.e. heat energy. At low temperature, they are inactive and the reactions do not operate.
3. Water cycle: Water cycle is great virtue to the life on earth. When the heat from sun contacts water on the earth, it evaporates. This evaporated water from the oceans form the clouds. These clouds in turn reach the land through sky and cause rains. This cycle is called as water cycle and this happens due to heat gain and cooling mechanism. When the water gets heated, it evaporates from the earth and when the clouds gets cooled (heat loss), it causes rain on the earth.
During heat temperature in summers even water on land also evaporates. The water vapor when rises above converts into clouds and cause rains when cooled. But most of the water is from oceans than from land.
4. Chemical reactions: Many chemical reactions, synthesis occur in the presence of heat energy. Due to heat energy, the electrons and atoms in the substances are set into vibration. These vibrations make it easy to form new bonds and new molecules.
5. Automobile motion: All the vehicles which run on petrol and coal operate due to generation of heat energy within. The heat energy helps the pistons to move which is conveyed into cyclic motion and thus the wheels rotate. The more the heat generated, the more the speed and strength of movement. Thus heat energy is the base for all the automotive vehicles like cars, buses, trucks etc.
6. Cooking: Cooking is a daily routine at home followed by many to make their food. Cooking helps keep the food tasty, easy to digest and also kill any microorganisms which might be harmful to health. Heat transference during cooking renders the food material and fiber more soft and pulpy.
7. Electricity generation from solar and earth geo: Electricity is generated by many means like by use of dam water, coal, nuclear energy, wind and even solar energy.
Of them solar and coal methods employ the use of heat to generate electricity.
Especially coal is used in large quantities in many countries to generate heat and there by electric current.
Even few advanced countries use geo-thermal energy (renewable) to generate electricity by safer means (non-polluting and harmful to environment).
This geo-thermal energy also is heat inside the earth.
8. Melting and molding of metals: Metals are hardest substances which are used widely for building, vehicles, hardware etc.
These metals cannot be molded with application pressure. But hey can be molded in easy way if heated.
Sometimes hard metals like iron are heated to red hot condition to mold them into proper shape.
9. Drying: Drying is done by removal of water from surfaces. This is possible by wind currents and even vacuum. But the most common method is by use of heat. Sun's heat helps in drying clothes, soil and any other wet surfaces. Transferring heat to moist clothes set the water molecules into motion there by they easily move away into air leaving the cloth dry.
10. Sterilization: This is a process to kill any microbes in drugs and other health care material. This aims to keep the preparation sterile until use. So heat sterilization is the most common and highly effective methods of doing it. Methods like autoclave, hot air-oven, incineration use heat energy in the process of sterilization. But the process can be achieved at when the material is exposed to specific temperature and suitable duration of time.


text:
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text:
Twenty-year-old Captain Suraj Sharma�s father was there, too; bereaved, but proud. �He had opted for one of the toughest units in the armed forces and performed his duty with bravery and honour. We are proud of Suraj�s sacrifice for the nation. He fought like a soldier and died like one,� he said.
The captain�s body was today flown to Bagdogra Airport and given full military honours. Another body was also flown in, that of a young officer of the para commando unit, Diren Thapa.
The top army brass as well as representatives of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC) were present to place wreaths on the soldiers.
Residents lined the roads as the hearse carrying the body of the slain captain climbed up to Kurseong.
Speaking to The Telegraph, from his St Mary�s Hills residence on the outskirts of Kurseong town, Suraj�s father, R.K. Sharma, said: �Suraj always wanted to excel in life. It was his own choice to join the army on his uncle�s footsteps.�
Brig. K.P.S. Jadav of the para commandos said: �On the night of July 8, the captain led a 20-member crack team to raid a militant hideout deep inside the Rajnawoa jungles in Kupwara. But the militants ambushed him. He fell to a fusillade of bullets.�
According to Writers� Buildings sources, the clarification was issued as there was �some confusion� about candidates who wanted Nepali as a compulsory subject.
However, the chief minister said the government is �seriously considering� the introduction of Bengali in other parts of the state.
�The state government is very focused on introducing Bengali in the examination ever since it had introduced its use in official work,� a senior bureaucrat said.
Bengal, unlike states like Maharashtra, has allowed extensive use of English. With Bengali not being compulsory, candidates from other states could easily compete for the examination.
�The government feels that the entire staff should have a working knowledge of Bengali, though English can still be used to conduct business,� the bureaucrat added.
The power station, which was under the state electricity board, was transferred to the West Bengal Power Development Corporation Ltd on July 1.
The power station has five units: four 80 mw units and one 210 mw.
�Modernisation of the Bandel plant was pending for some time. We had approached financial institutions for funds,� a senior power department official said.
Power Development Corporation managing director B.K. Paul said: �The formal process of transferring the two power plants, Santaldih and Bandel, to the Power Development Corporation is currently going on. I know PFC has sanctioned the loan. Once the formalities are over, we will start modernising the Bandel plant.�
Paul said a study on manpower requirement will be carried out. �We may do the study on our own or we may appoint a consultant to carry out the exercise,� he said. Santaldih and Bandel employ 3,100 people.
Senior state electricity board officials feel the entire staff strength of Santaldih and Bandel cannot be transferred to Power Development Corporation as the latter has a 1.6 man/megawatt ratio.
Those who cannot be absorbed will be accommodated in phases in the state electricity board.
The state electricity board will clear the statutory dues � provident fund and gratuity � of the employees up to October this year. After that, it will be taken care of by the Power Development Corporation.
Employees will be given post-retirement benefits and their seniority will be recognised. �It will be scrutinised carefully before taking any decision,� state electricity board officials said.
However, a section of the employees has decided to take a legal opinion.
The 30-member crew reached Haldia port early today and were interrogated by intelligence officials. The Haipong-based cargo vessel, owned by the Vietnam Ocean Shipping Company, went down with its entire cargo on Tuesday at Sandheads around 5.45 pm.
Coast Guard officials said there was no spillage from the phosphate cargo. �In case there is a spillage, the port authorities will have to take care of it,� he added.
Coast Guard vessel CVS Ramadevi is monitoring the situation in Sandheads. �The ship has been loaded with all types of anti-pollution devices to tackle any untoward situation,� the spokesman added.
The health minister said a restructured medical internship course would help to fill in gaps in the reproductive health system. The system, at present, is weighed down, among other factors, by the non-availability of anaesthetists in the primary health care system.
Making the announcement on the concluding day of the three-day population policy meeting, Union health minister C.P. Thakur said: �The Nursing Council of India has reviewed the course content and training requirements of health workers and recommended that the present duration of training should be enhanced from 18 months to two years.� He said the training of doctors and para-medical officers at present was out of step with the objectives of the national health programme.
On the world population day, policymakers in the governmental and non-governmental sectors today put their heads together and declared that the issue of reproductive health was inextricably linked with the overall health status of women. Though infant mortality rate has dipped, neo-natal mortality is still not under control � and it was the opinion of all that the health of the pregnant mother needed to be brought into focus. The more robust the mother, greater the possibility of the infant�s survival, it was felt.
The Centre, on its part, made it clear that the national population policy was against the use of coercion and holding out incentives or disincentives to keep the numbers down. �We know some of the states are doing it. We will not be able to stop them. But the Centre is totally against it,� said the health minister. In Andhra Pradesh, chief minister Chandrababu Naidu has been freely doling out incentives to promote the two-child norm �- so has the Gujarat government.
Nothing was said at the meeting that had not been said before. But the focus of the discussion at the national population meet was the dipping female sex ratio and a the soaring rate of female foeticide. �An imbalance in the population is even more devastating than population explosion,� said health secretary A.R. Nanda. The Centre is planning to amend the Pre-natal Diagnostic Act to expand its scope and give it more teeth. �We are in the process of finalising the amendments but they will not come in the forthcoming session of Parliament,� said Sabu George, an activist.
But the overall situation is not hopeless. So believes Aloke Mukhopadhyay of the Voluntary Health Association of India. �The Centre and some states at least are taking measures to improve access to health. Madhya Pradesh, for instance, has taken a paradigm shift in decentralising and handing over the health system to gram sabhas,�� Mukhopadhyay said.
There is a growing realisation and an effort to implement the concept that reproductive health is not related just to contraception, but that it is essentially a convergence of health services and empowering women so that they can exercise a reproductive choice. This is why the government, in consultation with other associations of gynaecologists and paediatricians, has recommended an MBBS course that will gear doctors to tackle better the issue of reproductive health.
�The experts felt that a great deal of maternal and infant mortality can be reduced by improving obstetric care at the community level. It was suggested that several models of community-based care should be experimented with,� the health minister said.
Of the Jains � the other residents of the haveli � only two of the six-member family will be allowed to greet Musharraf.
A mushaira was supposed to be held in thehaveli to greet Musharraf. But the venue has now been shifted to nearby Mahavir Vatika at Daryaganj.
But the President will not be able to attend the joint Indo-Pak programme that former Prime Minister V.P. Singh will inaugurate. Pakistani shayyars Ahmed Faraaz, Mehmood Sham and Athar Javed will be present at the mushaira.
The timing of the President�s visit to the haveli has been changed, flushing lakhs of rupees down the drain. Because the entrance to the neighbourhood is dark, the government had fixed some street lights that cost Rs 3.45 lakh. But now Musharraf is scheduled to visit the haveli at three in the afternoon.
At the reception in the haveli, the President will be entertained to a rendition of a Ravi Shankar sitar piece. Residents and politicians have lined up mementoes to hand over to the President.
An intricately carved hexagonal wooden jewellery box with sketches of the Neharwali haveli and historic buildings such as the Jama Masjid, Qutb Minar and Taj Mahal engraved on its other sides is one of the gifts that will be given by Shoaib Iqbal, an Independent MLA who was involved in sprucing up Musharraf�s haveli.
The President will also be given a book penned by Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, the founder of Aligarh Muslim University. Sir Syed Ahmed Khan�s haveli stands close to Musharraf�s ancestral home.
Another book on Delhi and its heritage sites, including write-ups on important landmarks such as Mirza Ghalib�s haveli, will also be presented to the President.
Structure demolished
A portion of the Neharwali haveli was demolished this afternoon. The reason: to facilitate the entry of Musharraf to thehaveli.
Though the passage leading to the main haveli is 18 feet broad, orders came from the Lieutenant Governor�s office for the demolition of the structure.
Authorities claim security reasons were behind the demolition. They wanted the President�s car to reach the main gate of the haveli and the demolished portion was an obstruction.
The two-room structure, of which one room was destroyed today, is occupied by two children whose grandmother had purchased it in 1947. They lost their parents four years ago and their grandmother, who looked after them, died last year. The children have been promised reconstruction of the structure after the President�s visit.
A woman bystander died in the attack and five others, including two members of the paramilitary BSF, were wounded.
In another strike, militants shot dead the younger brother of ruling National Conference MP Abdul Rashid Shaheen at Pattan in northern Baramullah district.
The rifle grenade fired at Khanyar exploded minutes before Abdullah reached the venue of a meeting in connection with the first death anniversary of his mother, Begum Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah.
Militants had targeted the venue in the heavily-guarded locality encircled by paramilitary troops and policemen from early this morning. The grenade exploded on the road minutes before the chief minister passed through the area.
Police and paramilitary officials overseeing security arrangements in the area ordered searches. All roads leading to the venue were sealed by the troops immediately after the explosion.
In the other incident, militants fired several rounds from close range on Nazir Ahmad in the main Pattan market and fled, police said. Nazir, sources said, was rushed to hospital but died on the way.
Police and security forces rushed to the spot and cordoned off the area. Shaheen, who was away in Delhi, as rushed back. No one has yet claimed responsibility for the killing.
Addressing the meeting in the memory of his mother, Abdullah urged Pakistan to respond positively to the Indian initiative of �establishing visa centres at various places, including Uri�.
State department spokesman Richard Boucher told reporters that �we will leave the outcome (of the summit) to the Indian and Pakistani governments�.
Boucher�s statement represented a resounding rebuff to Pakistan�s ambassador here, Maleeha Lodhi, who has been engaged in a no-holds barred effort to get the Bush administration involved in the Agra proceedings.
Twice in the last fortnight, Lodhi has gone public with pleas to the US to intercede in the disputes between India and Pakistan. In addition, Pakistan�s large lobbying apparatus in the US has been working overtime with the same objective.
Addressing a meeting organised here last week by the Pakistan American Congress, the envoy said the US should make a �fair and friendly intercession� to sort out the Kashmir issue and end the �legacy of antagonism and distrust� in South Asia.
This week, speaking at the annual meeting in Chicago of the Association of Pakistani Physicians of North America, she said: �We know the US shares the objectives of peace and stability in South Asia. We hope it will play a helpful role in encouraging continued dialogue and the resolution of outstanding issues�.
Although Boucher effectively snubbed Lodhi by asserting that the Bush administration would not get involved in the Agra process, he made it clear that �the question of India and Pakistan and the issues that they are going to be dealing with are very important to them and to the US�.
He added: �We look forward to them establishing a base of cooperation for them to produce a more peaceful and stable situation in the region. And it is our hope that they will do that.�
The spokesman was asked if secretary of state Colin Powell had any views on the Agra summit in view of the interest he has recently been taking in South Asia.
Boucher pointedly remarked that Powell will be visiting the region only after the summit.
Asked if the US was offering any specific recommendations to the summiteers in Agra, he said: �I will leave that to our representatives in the field�, implying that no directives were going out from here to American envoys in New Delhi or Islamabad unlike during some Indo-Pakistan conclaves in the past.
The Bihar Cabinet yesterday passed a proposal to increase the perks and allowances of ministers, the Speaker and the deputy Speaker.
In one go, the Cabinet has doubled the field allowances of ministers from Rs 6,000 to Rs 12,000 per month. Entertainment allowance has been hiked from Rs 5,000 to Rs 11,000 a month for Cabinet ministers and from Rs 4,500 to Rs 10,000 for ministers of state. The daily haltage allowance has also been increased.
The ministers get vehicles and fuel allowance, besides bodyguards and government employees as attendants.
According to sources, the government spends Rs 40 crore on its ministers and MLAs and the hike would put an additional burden of Rs 1.21 crore on the exchequer at a time when the state is yet to recover from the body blow of bifurcation.
�These are symptoms of a government that has grown a rhinoceros hide. In such a state of crisis, when the government cannot pay the salaries of employees, the ministers should have set an example before the people by taking less salary,� said Jagannath Mishra, a former chief minister.
The CPM, an ally of the RJD, also criticised the move. CPM legislator Ramdeo Verma said the timing of the hike was wrong. �This is not the time for luxury,� Verma said.
The current state of affairs proves that Verma is hardly off the mark. Municipal employees, who have not been paid the last six months, went on strike last week. The result is reeking roadsides as mountains of garbage have been piling up, sparking fears of an epidemic.
The cash crunch has hit road repair work. Salaries of health officers and government school teachers also could not be cleared.
Defending the salary-hike, excise minister and RJD national spokesman Shivanand Tiwari says Bihar�s economy is not in �such dire straits� that it cannot afford to bear an additional Rs 1.21 crore.
�Journalists need not worry about that,� he said.
Parliamentary affairs minister Ramchandra Purve says the hike in perks and allowances would help ministers take care of their needs while on tour.
Six months ago, a CAG audit had revealed how a section of legislators and ministers submitted fake tour bills for reimbursement.
Some MLAs even furnished bills for tours outside when they were in the state capital at that time.
The irregularities exposed both members of the treasury benches and the Opposition. In one case, a Cabinet minister withdrew allowances for a period when he had stopped holding the post.
Last year, the proposal to hike the salaries and allowances of MLAs had kicked off a controversy after Governor V.C. Pandey returned the recommendations twice without approving them.
A delegation of Opposition and treasury members had then met Pandey to pressurise him. The proposals were later cleared after they were tabled in the House and passed by voice vote.
Congress leader Pranab Mukherjee articulated the Congress� stand on the Hurriyat�s participation at the tea party, saying: �The party view is that we are going to join the tea party. The Hurriyat has been invited by the Pakistan High Commission and, therefore, this is much more than a tea party. Besides, it being a social get-together, the high commission has freedom to choose its guests.�
Mukherjee said he would consider the Agra summit a success if the two countries continued to dialogue, pointing out that a long-standing dispute like Kashmir could not be resolved in a few hours. About the Hurriyat, he said: �We consider them as one of us. The Congress has all along maintained that the government of India should hold negotiations with them.�
Mukherjee, however, said certain mechanisms had to be observed in bilateral meetings.
The Congress leader clarified that the invitation was extended to individual leaders and not to political parties as such. Sonia Gandhi, Manmohan Singh, Natwar Singh and Mukherjee have been invited from the Congress.
Party sources, however, made it clear that Sonia was unlikely to attend Qazi�s party. �She will be meeting Musharraf separately,� a senior leader said.
Mukherjee said all concerned parties should deal with Indo-Pak ties delicately so that it does not �rock� the boat of the peace process initiated by the two countries.
Manmohan on tea party
Senior Congress leader and former finance minister Manmohan Singh sees no harm in allowing Hurriyat leaders to meet Musharraf at the tea party, reports our special correspondent in Bangalore.


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Over the last few months, I've had a lot of conversations with people about the use of winsorization to deal with heavy-tailed data that is positively skewed because of large outliers. After a conversation with my friend Chris Said this past week, it became clear to me that I needed to do some simulation studies to understand the design space of techniques for dealing with outliers.
In this post, I'm going to write up my current understanding of the topic. To motivate my perspective, I'm going to describe a specific inferential problem. Trying to solve that problem will require me to explore a small portion of the design space of algorithms for dealing with outliers. It is not at all clear to me how well the conclusions I reach will generalize to other settings, but my hope is that a thorough examination of one specific problem will touch on some of the core issues that would arise in other settings. I've also put the code for this simulation study on GitHub so that others can easily build variants of it.
Defining Outliers
To simplify things, I'm going to define an outlier as any value greater than a certain percentile of all of the observed data points. For example, I might say that all observations above the 90th percentile are outliers. In this case, I will say that the "outlier window" is 10%, because I will consider all observations above the (100 – 10)th percentile to be outliers. This outlier window parameter is the first dimension of the design space that I want to understand. Most applications employ a very gentle outlier window, which labels no more than 5% of observations as outliers. But sometimes one sees more radical windows used. In this post, I will consider windows ranging from 1% up to 40%.
Outlier Removal
Given that we've flagged some observations as outliers, what do we do with them? I'll consider three options:
- Do nothing and leave the data unadjusted.
- Discard all of the outliers. The removal of extreme values is usually called trimming or truncation.
- Replace all of the outliers with the largest value that is not considered an outlier. The replacement of extreme values is usually called winsorization.
The Data Generation Process and Inferential Problem
As a further simplification, I'm only going to consider a single inferential problem: estimating the difference in means between two groups of observations. In this problem, I will generate data as follows:
- Draw \(n\) IID observations from a distribution \(D\). Label this set of observations as Group A.
- Draw \(n\) additional IID observations from the same distribution \(D\) and add a constant, \(\delta\), to every one of them. Label this set of observations as Group B.
In this post, the distribution, \(D\), that I will use is a log-normal distribution with mean 1.649 and standard deviation 2.161. These strange values correspond to a mean of 0 and a standard deviation of 1 on the pre-exponentiation scale used by my RNG.
Given that distribution, \(D\), I'll consider three values of \(\delta\): 0.00, 0.05 and 0.10. Each value of \(\delta\) defines a new distribution, \(D^{\prime}\).
To contrast these distributions, I want to consider the quantity: \(\delta = \mathbb{E}[D^{\prime}] – \mathbb{E}[D]\). The outlier approaches I'll consider will lead to several different estimators. I'll refer to each of these estimators as \(\hat{\delta}\). From each estimator, I'll construct point estimates and interval estimates; I'll also conduct hypothesis tests based on the estimators using t-tests.
Selection of Outlier Windows
Given that we have two data sets, \(A\) and \(B\), applying outlier detection requires us to make another decision about our position in design space: which data sets do we use to compute the percentile that defines the outlier threshold?
I'll consider three options:
- Compute a single percentile from a new data set formed by combining A and B. In the results, I'll call this the "shared threshold" rule.
- Compute a single percentile using data from A only. In the results, I'll call this the "threshold from A" rule.
- Compute two percentiles: one using data from A only and another using data from B only. We will then apply the threshold from A to A's data and apply the threshold from B to B's data. In the results, I'll call this the "separate thresholds" rule.
Combining this new design decision with the others already mentioned, the design space I'm interested in has three dimensions:
- The outlier window. The method for addressing outliers, which is either (a) no adjustment, (b) trimming, or (c) winsorization.
- The data set used to compute the outlier threshold, which is a shared threshold, a separate threshold or a threshold derived from A's observations only.
I consider the quality of inferences in terms of several metrics:
- Point Estimation:
- The bias of \(\hat{\delta}\) as an estimator of \(\delta\).
- The RMSE of \(\hat{\delta}\) as an estimator of \(\delta\).
- Interval Estimation:
- The coverage probability of nominal 95% CI's for \(\delta\) built around \(\hat{\delta}\).
- Hypothesis Testing:
- The false positive rate of a t-test when \(\delta = 0.00\).
- The false negative rates of t-tests when \(\delta = 0.05\) or \(\delta = 0.10\).
Point Estimation
The results for the point estimation problem are shown graphically below. I begin by plotting KDE's of the sampling distributions of the seven estimators I'm considering, which give an intuition for all of the core results shown later. The columns in these plots reflect the different values of \(\delta\), which are either 0.00, 0.05 or 0.10.
Next I plot the bias of these estimators as a function of the outlier window. I split these plots according to the true value of \(\delta\):
Finally, I plot the RMSE of these estimators as a function of the outlier window, again splitting the plots according to the true value of \(\delta\):
Interval Estimation
To assess the quality of interval estimates derived from these estimators of \(\hat{\delta}\), I plot the empirical coverage probability of nominal 95% CI's:
Hypothesis Testing
In this last set of analyses, I plot the false positive and false negative rates as a function of the outlier window:
And, for one final analysis, I include a plot of false positive rate when \(\delta = 0.00\) vs false negative rate when \(\delta = 0.05\). This makes it easier to see which methods are strictly dominated by others:
- Both winsorization and trimming can improve the quality of point estimates of \(\delta\). But they can make inferences worse because they can introduce bias into these point estimates. The only way to prevent bias is to compute outlier thresholds in Groups A and B separately.
- There is sometimes an optimal outlier window that minimizes the RMSE of point estimates of \(\delta\). It is not clear how to calculate this without knowing the ground truth parameter that you are trying to infer. Perhaps cross-validation would work. Importantly, choosing a bad value for the outlier window makes both winsorization and trimming inferior to doing no adjustment.
- Both winsorization and trimming can improve the FP/FN tradeoffs made in a system, although one must use outlier thresholds that are shared across the A and B groups to reap these benefits
- CI's only provide the desired coverage probabilities when the outlier window is very small.
Putting all this together, my understanding is that there is no universally best method without a more complex approach to outlier control. Whether winsorization or trimming improves the quality of inference depends on the structure of the data being analyzed and the inferential approach being used. Some methods work well for point estimation and interval estimation, others work well for hypothesis testing. No method universally beats out the option of doing no adjustment for outliers.
A Note about Likely Failures of Generalization
If you consider a different kind of difference between the A and B sets of observations than the constant additive difference rule that I've considered, I am fairly sure that the conclusions I've reached will not apply.


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WWE Hell in a Cell 2016 Preview
Hell in a Cell preview because…. why not?
Now lately WWE programming has been a chore to watch but thanks to the #NewDay I am still tuned in for now. This evening Hell in a Cell will air on WWE Network in what is a star packed card. Let's get to chopping this fable.
The Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar (Hell in a Cell Match
There wasn't any real need for this match to happen three times. It completely takes away 21-1 as a "moment" in WWE History. Especially since the last time the Undertaker "won."
IMO Mark Calloway (Undertaker) is a old school guy and will do the job for Brock. Brock has many more years left in the business and him losing cleanly again doesn't help him this run (hear that Triple H, John Cena?)
Brock beats Taker into a pulp. Taker disappears and retires.
John Cena vs. ??? (U.S. Open Challenge Title Match)
Prediction: this will be the return of Sami Zayn. Zayn will win the title in his second match on the main roster as Cena leaves to record a TV show.
Let me repeat that, SAMI ZAYN IS YOUR NEW US CHAMPION.
Remember where you read this first.
Roman Reigns vs. Bray Wyatt (Hell in a Cell Match)
Reigns and Wyatt have been feuding close to two years if you count the Shield vs Wyatts stuff. This feud eventually must end, right? Please. Let. This. Feud. End.
Prediction is Reigns takes it and goes into Mania season on fire.
Seth Rollins vs. Kane (WWE World Heavyweight Title Match)
If Kane wins we riot.
New Day vs. The Dudley Boyz (WWE Tag Team Title Match)
With that said, I think the Dudleys win. They came back to WWE to cement their legacy which was a huge sacrifice considering Bubba Ray was the TNA Champion just a year ago.
Kevin Owens vs. Ryback (Intercontinental Title Match)
Another match of two guys stuck in midcard purgatory. Ryback should be in the main event if you flashback to HIAC two years ago where he was red hot vs. CM Punk.
That moment has come and gone and it looks like WWE isn't going to stop the NXT fastlane anytime soon. Owens wins.
Dolph Ziggler, Cesaro, Neville vs. King Barrett, Sheamus, Rusev
No one cares about this jobber-fest. The guys that creative forgot (Ziggler, Cesaro, Neville) will take it.
Charlotte vs. Nikki Bella (WWE Divas Title Match)
Again, who cares about this? We want Sasha. No one wants to see Nikki Bella or Charlotte as the woman's… erm… Divas Champion. Charlotte will win because her last name is Flair and none of the other Divas' are Flair's kid.


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Print and Fill Contract Template: ContractForGraphicDesigners
PDF Form Contract Templates: LiveContractForGraphicDesigners
(Bonus Download, Original Source Here / Not an Ofazomi.org Document: AIGA Standard Contract)
I am not a lawyer, business consultant, member of the SBA or in any conceiveable way qualified to offer advice on business, contracts or law. Do not trust me. I offer no implied warranties or expertise. The sample above is just that, a sample. Be sure to contact your local county and/or city clerk, state taxation authority, business lawyer, cpa and all applicable laws before coming up with your own contracts. Got it? Good.
These sample contracts are offered as a helpful example under the Creative Commons copyright license (cc by-nc-sa). You may copy, reuse, reprint or edit the ofazomi.org contract samples to serve your purposes for any use, commercial [personal use as contract materials] or non-commercial but you must in turn share alike. (You can't sell any derivative contracts or agreements as templates but you may post them freely.) Many students begin their freelancing careers without even a boilerplate contract. Above is my show and tell.
Be sure to click on the Contract Addendums (addendum=add on) link above the initial box to check out all the clauses, sub-clauses and other santa related jargon. I have folks review this as additional pages because it's too darn dense for a clean, one page summary agreement.
It is highly recommended that you not start any job until you have received a non-refundable, 25% – 35% downpayment. I have set up a PayPal account to accept payments. They skim 3% off the top but I recommend it for a few of reasons.
- PayPal emails me the second cash is put into my bank account.
- I have an dated 3rd-party record of payment.
- Clients must pay me via credit or debit card. Why? Bounced checks stink for everybody.
I choose to automate my contract for the same reason I use PayPal. It offers instant confirmation of signature and offers the benefit of outside party date-stamping and verifiability.
There used to be a sample here but a malicious individual (yes, you: world.pokerMas.terUkraine) thought it would be fun to thrash around while I was on vacation. The clean up took far too long and I am pulling the whole thing down. If you would like a sample, please contact me and I am overjoyed to share.


text: I have gone back and forth with this issue. I am going to be 39 years old. Lately, I have been admiring a lot more non-logo bags--some LV some YSl. Should I sell my denim mini pleaty? Am I too old to carry this bag? It is rather small and I am wondering whether it is too "young" for me now. What do you guys think?


text:
Rockets coaching candidates had better be prepared to discuss defense and team chemistry in their job interviews, writes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. GM Daryl Morey offered few clues beyond that in a press conference this week as the team decides whether to replace interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff. Owner Leslie Alexander is a strong believer in an up-tempo attack with a heavy emphasis on 3-pointers, but Morey said running that system won't be a prerequisite for the next coach. The Rockets are known as pioneers of analytics in the NBA, but none of Morey's coaches has been a strong believer in numbers. Feigen notes that every coach Alexander has hired came to Houston with previous head coaching experience but adds that the organization targeted several assistants before hiring Kevin McHale and is expected to do so again. The writer mentions ex-head coaches Jeff Van Gundy, Lionel Hollins and Jeff Hornacek as possibilities, along with Adrian Griffin, Ettore Messina, Jay Larranaga and Jim Boylen.
There's more out of the Southwest Division:
- Pelicans GM Dell Demps and his staff are preparing for the draft and free agency, even though the team hasn't confirmed that Demps will keep his job, tweets Scott Kushner of The Advocate.
- The Mavericks can offer one max contract to free agents this summer and possibly a second if Dirk Nowitzki and Chandler Parsons follow Deron Williams and opt out for next season, writes Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post. Dallas entered the offseason expecting to have at least $32MM to spend, but that number could rise closer to $60MM if Nowitzki, Parsons and Williams all opt out. Bontemps notes that Dallas is counting on landing an elite free agent this summer after last year's near miss with DeAndre Jordan. He adds that owner Mark Cuban is trying to surround Nowitzki, who's likely to remain, with as much talent as possible before he retires.
- Dwain Price of The Fort Worth Star-Telegram suggests Rockets center Dwight Howard is the first name on the Mavericks' free agent wish list. Price believes Miami's Hassan Whiteside, Chicago's Pau Gasol and Atlanta's Al Horford are other centers Dallas will target if it can't land Howard.


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After I made my homemade coconut milk, I was left with over 2 cups of coconut that I could use for anything else. I didn't want to waste it and throw it in the compost bin, which was my initial thought. I searched Pinterest for recipes that included coconut and came across many yummy ones, but I didn't want anything with added sugar or covered in chocolate.
I hit the jackpot when I found The Organised Housewife's blog post about Healthy Chocolate and Coconut Bliss Balls. I had to try it because I had most of the ingredients and it's a sure way to curb cravings mid-day when I would otherwise reach for a naughty snack. Below is the recipe I took from The Organised Housewife:
- 2 cups medjool dates
- 1 cup almonds
- 1 cup hazelnuts
- ⅓ cup cacao
- 1 cup desiccated coconut
Okay, so I didn't have all of the ingredients so I made some substitutions. I used raisins instead of dates, and I didn't have the 2 cups of nuts. What I did have was about 1/3 cup of walnuts, so I supplemented the remaining with oatmeal. I am sure it doesn't taste AS good but it works until I can buy nuts for my next time making this recipe.
- Combine the dates/raisins and nuts in a food processor. I probably blended for about 45 seconds.
- Add the cacao and coconut and blend for another 60 seconds. After it's done, the food processor will tell you by throwing the ingredients around in a big ball. Scrape down the sides.
- Roll into balls any size you want.
- Refrigerate until you are ready to use.
I still have over a cup left of the coconut so I could use it to make the following:
- Homemade soap and add the coconut to exfoliate.
- Use in a breading concoction for coconut crusted chicken, fish or shrimp.
- Make homemade Almond Joy or Mounds.
- Homemade smoothies.


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Recorded in Howacht, a small town at the Baltic Sea. Nice stereo panorama.
For this sound, I generated a sine wave at a frequency of 440 Hz, an amplitude of 0.80 and a ...
Recording of a cell phone vibration in an iso cabinet. Recorded @ 96/24. This sound sample is under Attribution license. ...
lighting candle with a match
Recording of a spitfire flying by-some bird noises unfortunately but i hope it might be some use
single prop plane idle.
Synthesized sound of distant explosions.
A Bomb sound. Free to use, from the creator of "Gears Of Destruction" check out my Industrial muSICK!!!
Sound of a bomb obtained using noise and a bandpass filter
ANOTHER trance bomb effect Check Out My Music Here!: https://waveplay.bandcamp.com/
Authentic air raid siren. It is activated every year on the 2nd of June in memory of the Bulgarian poet ...
foot steps sound made from my yamaha psr
Took a ride on a historic steam engine in the Lake District (England). This was recorded from outside as the ...
Steam train blows its whistle in a short burst. Some windnoises. Recorded with a Roland R-09HR
Steam Train at Chatham Dockyards


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Please welcome Julia Roller, author of Mom Seeks God: Practicing Grace in the Chaos, who is touring the blogosphere with Litfuse Publicity!
Reviewed by Shannon Trenton
First-time parenthood is a journey filled with joy, wonder, and the nagging feeling that nothing will ever be in order again. I watch my baby grow into a little boy and even as I treasure his laughter and celebrate his new discoveries I struggle to find my own sense of balance. We're reincorporating church into our lives but I wonder how I am supposed to find God when the service ends.
I chose Mom Seeks God because author Julia Roller's situation spoke directly to me. Here was another busy mother who had a hard time balancing work and a child with a strong relationship with God – and she writes about God for a living! Mom Seeks God promised practical advice to develop spiritual disciplines as well as to see motherhood as its own spiritual discipline, so I decided to give it a go.
This book delivered on every promise, and more. I was drawn immediately into Roller's story about adjusting to new parenthood with son Ben and to the trouble she had finding peace in her faith. Roller's decision to practice a new spiritual discipline every month came from her reading of Richard J. Foster's Celebration of Discipline, among other books, and was her way of taking small steps into building a larger faith.
Each chapter follows Roller's efforts through a long and busy year – well, ten months. She begins the story by warning her readers that life got in the way and that she didn't meet her goal of a new discipline every month. I was comforted by her admission and felt like I was taking the journey with her rather than listening to a lecture about a perfect process. In fact, the entire story is peppered with moments that Roller didn't live up to her own expectations or set the bar too high for what God intended her to do, and so her efforts became ever more realistic for the normal mother reading this book.
While Roller discusses each discipline separately, she is careful to point out that her practice of each did not stop on the last day of the month; rather, each discipline influenced her practice of subsequent disciplines in one way or another. Through the year in this book Roller practiced:
• Prayer
• Fellowship
• Submission
• Study
• Simplicity
• Silence
• Worship
• Failure and Fasting
• Service
• Celebration
Roller's writing style is genuine and humorous, as well as easy to follow. Any parent, new or seasoned, will appreciate her frustrations as well as her proudest moments. More importantly, her journey toward spiritual discipline is one that any reader can incorporate into her (or his) life. Every chapter ends with some easy tips to begin practicing the discipline covered, and the notes at the end will guide readers to other books Roller mentions that helped her along the way.
Mom Seeks God is inspirational, instructional, and a joy to read. I recommend this book to anyone who seeks God in the chaos of their everyday life. I hope you will all take this spiritual journey for yourself.
Shannon lives in Cleveland, Ohio with her husband, son, and two cats. When she isn't reading, getting paid to play on social media, or running her own business she enjoys playing with her baby and cooking.
Review copy was provided free of any obligation by Abingdon Press. No monetary or any other form of compensation was received.


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Shirley MacLaine's UFO date with ex Oz Minister Andrew Peacock
Melbourne: In a new tell-all book about her string of prominent lovers, legendary actress Shirley MacLaine has revealed that former Australian Foreign Minister Andrew Peacock, nearly "climbed the sky" during a UFO stakeout in Mexico.
In the book, entitled 'I'm Over All That And Other Confessions', the Oscar-winning actress writes: "I thought as long as he's the Minister for Foreign Affairs, I might as well give him one he'll never forget," reports the Daily Telegraph.
She claims her Australian lover, with his access to government files, knew more about UFOs than he was willing to reveal to her.
"Whenever I discussed my spiritual and metaphysical ideas with him, he listened, nodded and more or less said: ``It could be, who knows?``
"On a UFO stakeout in Mexico near Mt Popocatepetl, at one moment we thought we saw a craft and Andrew nearly ``climbed the sky`` to see if it was real.
"Because he was sworn to secrecy, he never told me outright that UFOs were extraterrestrial in origin and were present," she further wrote.
Mt Popocatepetl is a reported hot-spot for UFO activity where enthusiasts claim the craft are regularly captured by Mexican Government disaster cameras.


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Download Wantirna Hill apk 1.0.0 free for Android smartphone
Posted by Impact Data Pty Ltd in Lifestyle | Nov. 21, 2013 | 0 Comments
Apk file size: 4.2 MB
Relax and enjoy excellent bistro dining and be looked after by our friendly staff. There are Members nights and Free Bingo and our very popular themed nights on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.
The Wantirna Hill Club has been part of the landscape of Wantirna for many years and is the home of the Vermont Football Club. Situated on central Boronia Rd, close to Eastlink, the Wantirna Hill Club offers locals a variety of entertainment options. It has all of the facilities that you would expect including a bistro, TAB & Tavern bar, function room, gaming room and special offers that caters to all tastes and budgets
Impact Data Pty Ltd part of our Lifestyle and have average installs from 10 to 50. Last Update Nov. 21, 2013. Google play rating is 96.0. Current verison is 1.0.0. Actual size 4.2 MB.


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Printable View
Originally Posted by Quilter 65
Debbie, those are beautiful. Yes, I am eager to give it to him to see his reaction. When they are in hospice, I would think this expression of gratitude would be gratefully received.
Here's a copuple pictures of 2 of the 16 veterans who have recieved one of the quilts I've donated so far
I know he will love it. You are so nice to do this. Thank you.
Eleanor's patterns are so wonderful!
And she is a hoot!
The serviceman will cherish this quilt forever! :)
Thanks for sharing your pictures!