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Articles of Interest:"Wanted - Blue and White in Any Color." Read about Flow Blue, transferware, and a few of the earliest blue and white patterns, some of which are still produced today.
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Mike Mazerall, 49, the orthotic fitter at Braintree Rehabilitation Hospital, lost his left leg at the knee in 1997. Now he helps others through his work.
People who have lost part of a leg and need to be fitted for a prosthetic at Braintree Rehabilitation Hospital may not suspect it at first. But the athletic, energetic man with curly hair who is helping them knows first-hand what they're going though.
Mike Mazerall moves quickly around the hospital's orthotics room, grabbing equipment and monitoring the computer. There's only a hint of unevenness in his walk. Mazerall lost his left leg at the knee in 1997 in a motorcycle accident in New Hampshire, and he uses a prosthetic from the knee joint down.
It allows him to carry his full weight and gives him more flexibility in choosing his knee socket and prosthesis. He can swim, ride a motorcycle and a bike, roller blade and ice skate. "The only thing I don't do is sky dive," he said.
How he came to be working at the rehab hospital is a story of his personal abilities and the support of John Griffin of Marshfield, head of Orthopedic Rehabilitation Services.
When Mazerall came to the hospital in 1997, he said he was "a mess and it took a while to feel I still had a body. I didn't know where my life would go."
Griffin visited him in his hospital bed and told him he would do well with a prosthetic because he had a light build and was athletic.
"That actually made a huge difference," Mazerall said. He worked hard to develop skills to use the prosthetic equipment and became so active when he went home that he kept coming back for repairs.
Then he began doing repairs at home and asking Griffin to order parts. Mazerall was doing motorcycle repairs for a job at the time, but the job involved some heavy pushing and after a hip replacement, he needed less strenuous work.
Griffin suggested he apply for a job as an orthotic technician at Braintree Hospital. Eventually he did. He has been on board for two years and is studying to get his orthotic fitters license.
He enjoys working with patients, giving them encouragement with examples from his experience. "I truly do feel that when they take that first step with the prosthesis, it's as if I took it," he said. "It's quite exhilarating and gives me really fond memories because I know how I felt when I took my first steps."
Mazerall lives in Dorchester with his wife, Karen Jansky, and their three children, ages 18, 20 and 21.
Griffin, who had been a victim of a car accident, has experienced great satisfaction watching Mazerall develop over the past 10 years. "He has had achievement after achievement that would otherwise keep some people back," Griffin said.
"Mike is a natural, with his experience working with metal, building and modifying motorcycles. That has helped him to fabricate metal braces for stroke patients, and to contour the shape of the knee joints and uprights used in the prosthetics."
Sue Scheible may be reached at email@example.com.

subset: commoncrawl


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San Bartolomé Tirajana
San Bartolomé de Tirajana
- 自治区: Canary Islands
- 省 / 岛: Gran Canaria
San Bartolomé de Tirajana, a municipality which covers the vast territory which stretches from the centre to the south of Gran Canary, is a place of contrasts. Its main town, San Bartolomé, is situated inland, next to the Tirajana crater, an incredible volcanic setting of steep terrain and abundant vegetation. But towards the south, all which was lushness becomes a desert of dunes, more fitting a semi-arid climate. On the coastal strip are some of the island's chief tourist centres, such as Maspalomas, Playa del Inglés or San Agustín. Places which offer the visitor the opportunity to do water sports and sports on dry land, such as golf, as well as many other leisure possibilities.
San Bartolomé de Tirajana has its origins in the old agricultural and fishing village of Tunte. In the 16th century, a small hermitage dedicated to San Bartolomé was built, which later gave rise to the parish of the same name. San Bartolomé de Tirajana is currently the most extensive municipality on Gran Canary, a fact which means it has a huge wealth of nature and landscapes. Inland, next to the island's central massif, the landscape consists of rugged terrain in which forests, boulders, natural dams and ravines surprisingly appear. In this place you can appreciate the striking volcanic formations, such as the walls of the Tirajana crater and the spout of Risco Blanco. There are countless outdoor activities and leisure possibilities available to the visitor here. Hiking, mountaineering or bicycle routes are some of the options for exploring this idyllic setting where the development of green tourism has been favourable to the creation of hostels, country hotels, camping grounds and recreational areas.The southAs a counterpoint, the landscape of San Bartolomé de Tirajana to the south provides us with a totally different view, that of gentle coastal dunes which frame magnificent beaches, such as Playa del Inglés, Maspalomas or Meloneras. Places which have made this municipality one of the most tourist-friendly on Gran Canary, thanks to its excellent facilities and the mild climate which prevails throughout the year. Hotels, apartments, restaurants, outdoor cafés, shops and nautical facilities form part of the huge choice on offer on this coast which, as well enjoying the sun and the sea, allows you to do all kinds of water sports, such as scuba diving, sailing or water skiing. Those who prefer dry land can play a round of golf on one of the area's exceptional courses, or enjoy a family day out at any one of the existing theme parks: Aboriginal World, which brings us closer to the ways of life of the old native settlers on the archipelago; Sioux City, an authentic reconstruction of the American wild west; or Palmitos Park, which house numerous species of exotic birds. Gran CanaryOnce you have toured the extensive region of de San Bartolomé, the island still has many surprises in store for the visitor. In the north, whose most typical image is that of the tall cliffs which fall into the sea, the most important urban centre is Las Palmas. The capital of the islands is a city which offers sun, beaches and an exceptional historic legacy around the square of Santa Ana. Nature lovers have the opportunity to learn about very diverse ecosystems only a few kilometres from one another. The Tamadaba Nature Reserve, situated in the west of the island, has one of the best-conserved pine forests on Gran Canary and the surprisingly imposing beauty of its eroded landscapes of ravines and massifs. In the south and centre is the Pilancones Nature Reserve, which has outstanding scenic beauty and considerable ornithological importance.The villages, towns and cities, meanwhile take us to a colonial period, both inland and on the coast. Gáldar, Arucas or Telde are some of the most interesting. Any one of these places will offer us a richly-laid table based on Canary Islands cuisine. Vegetable stews, marinated tuna, spicy sausages or sweet black pudding (with raisins and almonds) are just some of the area's specialities. Not forgetting that we are in a region with a subtropical climate, which provides avocado, mango and garden produce throughout the year. Among the desserts marzipan is the most famous. The province has famous wines with the Designation of Origin Lanzarote guarantee, with aromatic whites and delicious sweet wines.
Enjoy a thrilling day of sport fishing in Gran Canaria ...(+查看更多内容)
San Bartolomé de Tirajana
Gran Canaria is a miniature continent with good weather ...(+查看更多内容)
Tejeda,Palmas de Gran ...


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Thanks for sharing, well written info like this goes a long way with future searches.
Gday, as the title states I am using JDM Rotors on ADM Calipers.
QFM make pads with 3mm less material to achieve this...
but what if im stingy & currently have pads that may be worn enough to fit the JDM rotors now?
Well the info you need is that a regular ADM pad is 14mm thick new & to fit the JDM rotors ur pads must be 11mm Thick.
I couldnt find this info anywhere so I thought Id share.
Happy corolla'ing
Thanks for sharing, well written info like this goes a long way with future searches.
check out my build thread: http://www.ae86drivingclub.com.au/fo...-shuttle-wagon
Good post, quick question though do you know how much of the backing plate is taken up of this Height and how much is actual pad material?
Rust is a way of life
Backing plate is as per normal pads - ie 4/5mm.
i too brought slotted/vented rotors and milled down my pads to fit & worked a treat!
Do you have the QFM pad code with 3mm less material? Would be interested in doing this.
Bump would also love to know what the pad code is please!!!
Finally got a set of pads here's the part number for the 3mm less pads!


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CLAREMONT, Calif. – Claremont-Mudd-Scripps' Director of Athletics Michael Sutton has announced that David Schwarz, a two-time NCAA Division III national championship-winning head coach, has been hired as CMS' new head women's tennis coach. Schwarz takes over a CMS team that won 21 matches in 2014 and made it to the NCAA Quarterfinals after winning the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) and West Region titles for the third season in a row.
"Dave has a wonderful background of coaching in the Division III world, and was a very successful coach at Middlebury College with the men's team, where he developed and raised their program to the top of Division III tennis," said Sutton, the CMS Director of Athletics and William B. Arce Professor and George R. Roberts Fellow at Claremont McKenna College. "He is an outstanding student of the sport, tactician, motivator of student-athletes and developer of team chemistry, and we thought he would be very inspiring as well as a great leader of our women's tennis program. We are happy to have him on board."
Teams led by Schwarz have won two NCAA Division III national championships, and in 2004, he was named Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) National Coach of the Year. He brings 14 years of head coaching experience to Claremont from the NCAA Division I and Division III levels, most recently as the head coach of the Brown University men's tennis program, where he went 57-35 over four seasons (2011-2014) at the Ivy League program. Prior to Brown, his head coaching career began at the Division III level for the men's team at Middlebury College (2001-2010).
"I am excited about coming back to coach at a NCAA Division III program. To me, this is the purest form of college athletics," said Schwarz. "Claremont is a great environment to coach in because tennis is a signature sport at CMS and there is an established women's tennis tradition. CMS represents some of the top academic institutions in the country. I wanted to get back to coaching in Division III, and coming to CMS is a great opportunity for me."
During his tenure at Middlebury, Schwarz became the most successful men's tennis coach in program history, taking over a program that did not have a NCAA postseason appearance prior to 2001 when he arrived on campus. In 10 seasons at Middlebury, he had an overall record of 174-37 (.825), while leading the Panthers to national prominence. Under Schwarz's guidance, Middlebury made eight-straight trips to the NCAA final four, with the 2004 squad capturing the school's first NCAA Tennis national title. Schwarz's 2006 and 2007 teams set school records at the time, with 22 wins each season. Those records were eclipsed in 2010 when the Panthers earned a 23-2 mark en route to Middlebury's second national championship in men's tennis.
The ITA Division III National Coach of the Year in 2004, Schwarz was named NESCAC Coach of the Year in 2002, 2004, 2007, and 2010, and earned ITA Regional Coach of the Year honors in both 2009 and 2010.
A 1989 graduate of Cornell, where he played four years of varsity tennis, Schwarz began his collegiate coaching career at his alma mater in the fall of 1996 as the assistant men's and women's tennis coach. Following one year in that role, he became the assistant men's coach (1997-2000), spending the 1998-99 season as an assistant with the women as well. The Northeast Region Assistant Coach of the Year in 2000, Schwarz was also the managing director of the Cornell Tennis & Squash Center.
Originally from Providence, Rhode Island, Schwarz received a master's degree from Cortland State (N.Y.) in 1994.


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Deficit deceit: Matthews falsely claimed "deficit is not being caused by tax cuts"
Responding to Senator John Kerry's (D-MA) July 29 acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention, in which Kerry indicated his plan to "cut the deficit in half in four years by ending tax giveaways that are nothing more than corporate welfare," MSNBC Hardball host Chris Matthews offered a false refutation.
From the July 29 edition of MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews:
MATTHEWS: The deficit is not being caused by tax cuts. It is being caused by the failure to cut spending on both sides [Democratic and Republican].
As Media Matters for America has previously noted, while increased government spending does play a role in expanding the deficit, tax cuts are a much greater factor. The Center for Budget and Policy Priorities' (CBPP) January 2004 analysis of the shift from a $236.4 billion surplus in 2000 to a projected $477 billion deficit in 2004 directly contradicts Matthews's claim that tax cuts are not a source of the budget deficit. CBPP reported that "the drop-off in revenues [due to tax cuts] accounts for more than three times as much of this shift as the rise in expenditures [due largely to increased spending for homeland security and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq]."


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Events Calendar - Legacy [x], Medical Center [x], School of Medicine [x]
- day:
- Thursday
- date:
- 11/07/2013
- time:
- event:
- Department of Economics Merrick Lecture: The Future of Medicare
- location:
- Monroe Hall 120
- type:
- Seminar
- department:
- Research-Office
- audience:
- Everyone
- details:
- Professor Jonathan Skinner is the James O. Freedman Professor in the economics department at Dartmouth, and a professor with the Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice at the Geisel School of Medicine. He received his PhD in Economics from UCLA and taught at the University of Virginia from 1981 to 1995. In 2001 he was awarded the first Dartmouth Student Council teaching award, and in 2007 was elected to the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences. He is also a research associate with the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) in Cambridge, MA and a former editor-in-chief of the Journal of Human Resources. His research interests include the economics of government transfer programs, technology growth and disparities in health care, and the savings behavior of aging baby boomers.
Reception to follow: 5:00 - 6:00 PM.
- isCME:
- No
- speakers:
- Jonathan Skinner James O. Freedman Professor of Economics Dartmouth College
- registration:
- No registration is necessary
- contact:
- Leora Friedberg Economics 924-3225 firstname.lastname@example.com


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An inherited collection of papers yielded the following original document pertaining to the Alexander family of Pickens Dist., SC, later Oconee Co., SC. The first part of the transcription can be found in yesterday's post.
Pertaining to the Estate of James Alexander, Oconee Co., SC, Part 2
Pertaining to the Estate of James Alexander, Oconee Co., SC, Part 1
I have lately inherited a goodly number of papers relating to the Watson family from my grandfather Watson's youngest sister, Dixie. Part of these were kept and maintained by the eldest brother of the family, Ralph Watson, who is now deceased. Uncle Ralph saved several important family papers, including the complete chain of title for his grandfather Daniel Alexander Watson's land with a copy of the original land entry.
One of those documents provides clear evidence of the relationships between various members of Dan's mother's family, the Alexanders of Pickens District and later Oconee County, South Carolina. This Complaint for Partition of Real Estate is likely a copy sent to Dan and his siblings, James F. and Elizabeth Watson.


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I live in Qatar and am having difficulty finding Advocat. Is there any other drink that can be used to give the same taste?
Fluffy Ducks
Started by Caroline , Sep 03 2011 07:54 AM
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Jump to content
Posted 03 September 2011 - 07:54 AM


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Here's How You Can Care For Chemically Treated Hair, Naturally
As a briefer, chemically processed hair generally falls into one of two categories: dyed or chemically straightened. Both are decidedly not easy on your hair and contain some less-than-ideal chemicals (ahem, bleach; ahem, sodium hydroxide).
I fall into the former category, in a major way. I lift my naturally brunette hair into a sunny California-kissed shade of blond. In a perfect world, I'd let my highlights grow out and I'd embrace my natural hue, but that's just not going to happen anytime soon. And thus, I'm not in the business of judgment: If you want to dye or chemically straighten your hair, I'm right there with you. But it does set an interesting standard: What if you occasionally process your hair but otherwise want to keep it nontoxic? Can natural or clean products adequately care for altered hair?
What is chemically straightened hair?
When you are talking about chemically straightening hair, you are talking about relaxers, which includes thermal reconditioning, often called Japanese straightening. The processes permanently straightens hair, and you only see your curl pattern come back with regrowth. These are not to be confused with keratin treatments or Brazilian blowouts, which last a few weeks and can only tame frizz, not fundamentally alter your texture.
There are three main chemicals used: sodium hydroxide (often called lye relaxers), calcium hydroxide (or no-lye), and ammonium thioglycolate (thermal reconditioning), and your stylist can choose one depending on your need.
When you relax your hair, you are breaking down the chemical makeup of your strands so the hair can be "rearranged" straight, says licensed cosmetologist and hair stylist Gabrielle Corney. It does so by raising the cuticles, so the active chemicals can get into the shaft and manipulate the natural behavior, or curl pattern. "And in doing so, you are also stripping the hair of vitamins and nutrients the hair actually needs to stay strong," she says.
Here's how to care for it.
The first thing you can do, according to Corney, is to ask for an oil-infused treatment during your process. "After you rinse out a relaxer, technically the cuticle is still open," says Corney. "Instead of shampooing right away and closing the cuticle, I infuse vitamin E into the strand first so you add hydration to the process." (She says just ask your stylist about this while you are setting up an appointment; most will be able to do it.)
After your process, there are a few things you need to know: Avoid heat styling and amp up hydration.
This might be challenging, but only heat style once a week and no more than that, says Corney. (Try air drying instead.) Your hair is already compromised, and heat only make that issue worse. "This is what leads to extreme damage and breakage," says Corney. When you do whip out that curling iron or blow dryer: Here's our guide to natural heat protectants.
And "you have to deep condition; that's essential," says Corney. And this can take many forms. On a hair wash day, swap in an intense mask instead of your conditioner (Corney likes Carol's Daughter Monoi Repairing Hair Mask).
For natural oils, try grapeseed, olive, and avocado oils. These tend to be heavier and can weigh down hair. Skip using them in the morning, and instead apply the oil at night. Before bed, wrap your hair with a silk scarf, which keeps the oils on the strand—instead of transferring to your pillowcase. (Standard cotton cases are very absorbent and can soak up all that oil you just applied.) The silk will also protect hair from damage as you toss and turn.
If you are someone desperate for nutrients every day, try this combo: aloe on the scalp and roots ("It's incredibly hydrating but absorbs immediately," says Corney) and vitamin E oil on the strands. Vitamin E is a thinner oil and can be absorbed into the shaft, so it will provide nutrients without weight.
But you need to set expectations: "The only thing that is going to truly get rid of damage is scissors," she says.
What does coloring your hair do to the strand?
Color processing your hair works one of two ways, and it depends whether you are dying it or bleaching it. When you are adding color—be that darker or a fun, bold hue—the ammonium lifts the strand's cuticle so pigments can be deposited into it, changing the shade. When you are bleaching it, the reverse happens: This time when the cuticle is lifted, color is removed.
"When you are bleaching, you are going through what is called the 'decolorization' process, and it involves fragmenting melanin into smaller and smaller bits so hair becomes lighter," says colorist and co-founder of the salon Spoke&Weal Christine Thompson. This process can be pretty harsh, often blasting open cuticles permanently, making the hair coarser and drier. (Dyes do not have this effect, especially modern versions, which are much gentler on the hair.)
"I have clients who come in having silky, straight dark brown hair who want it platinum blond," says Thompson. "I have to explain to them that they are going to have a brand-new hair texture after—that they need to get used to having rough hair."
Here's how to keep color fresh.
Those with color-treated hair would benefit from many of the same principles as those with relaxed: Hydrate and keep hot tools at bay. (Blondes especially need to be mindful of hot tools as it can turn strands brassy.)
You can also prep hair for color processing with the clean, natural-ish Malibu C's Color Prepare Wellness Hair Remedy, which extracts buildup and other color-blocking molecules on your hair, so dye is better deposited in the first place. This will limit the need for as many touch-ups or reprocessing later.
Post coloring, avoid washing too regularly. Not only can it fade your shade, but it also deposits color-altering minerals from hard water. It does this because your hairs' cuticles naturally open in steam and the dye can literally fall out from the strand.
You can also "color-correct" hair with blue or purple shampoos or conditioners. The idea behind these is that you can cancel out brass with neutralizing pigments (if you look at a color wheel, you'll see blue and purple are opposite yellow and orange). Rahua's Color Full Shampoo is a mild lilac hue, so it can tone color without altering it too much (the purple pigments are also sustainably sourced).
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text: As farmers look to get their crops in the field, an event is planned to also help them get their crop to market. Farmers can learn online marketing techniques and networking strategies during an outreach event next week in Holmes County. Roberto Gallardo, an associate professor with the Mississippi State University Extension Service Center for Technology Outreach, will help fruit ...Read More »


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24 Hour Fitness says it is committed to continuing to promote youth fitness despite ending the after-school program for high school athletes that it has offered since 1992.
The program provided free after-school access to 24 Hour clubs for high school varsity athletes. Participants in the program recently received an email from the San Ramon, CA-based company informing them of its decision.
"Unfortunately, despite our best efforts to sustain this program, we have had to make the difficult decision to discontinue our Varsity Program for next year," 24 Hour wrote in the email.
24 Hour apologized to the program's participants and encouraged them to click on the company's website for membership offers.
In a statement, 24 Hour says it plans to redirect its resources to promote youth fitness through partnerships including Playworks, KaBOOM!, the Presidential Active Lifestyle Award, HealthCorps and Let's Move!
"Our goal is to change lives in the communities we serve, and we will continue to support high school athletic programs through equipment donations whenever possible," 24 Hour said.


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Two important stories this morning in unlikely places. Jason DeParle of the New York Times, a liberal mainstream bastion, has a terrific piece about the terrible social and economic effects of having children out-of-wedlock. Irwin Stelzer of the Weekly Standard, a conservative mainstream bastion, has a smart piece about the depredations of the banksters–and he suggests, wisely, that Mitt Romney might profit from saying something substantive about the fetid state of international finance. Taken together, these pieces are clarion reminders of the political discussion we should be having this year, but aren't.
Liberals don't like talking about the effect of morality on poverty–even though the data have been glaring for years. Certainly, the loss of manufacturing jobs has been part of the growing gap between rich and poor. And so has the plutocratic greed that Stelzer hints at in his piece. But it is also quite clear, as DeParle writes, that children who are born to intact families have a much better chance of succeeding in life than those who don't. And DeParle shows why, in intimate detail: fathers matter, not just in terms of providing a paycheck, but also in child-rearing, providing the rich learning–and extra-curricular–environment that leads to success. Any honest debate about the growing gap between rich and poor needs to address all three elements: the job losses caused by global economic shifts, the Information Age plutocracy and the decline in morality among an increasingly broad swath of our lower middle classes. DeParle cites estimates that the out-of-wedlock explosion accounts for 40% of the increase in income disparity–that sound like a lot, but no matter. A remoralization of America when it comes to out-of-wedlock births is well past due.
As for Stelzer's article: any honest debate about the financial crash, the sluggish economy and the future of American capitalism has to include a detailed plan about how to deal with the bankers who have profoundly distorted, and pillaged, the system. Sadly, neither President Obama nor Mitt Romney have addressed the "moral hazard" that accrues from having banks that are too big too fail (Jon Huntsman was the only candidate in either party to offer a plausible plan for breaking up the banks.) Obama's stand is disappointing; Romney's is business-as-usual. He hasn't provided policy details on anything in this campaign. He proposed massive, ridiculous tax cuts without laying out the loopholes he'd close to pay for them. He won't talk about immigration. He won't talk about the government's specific role in goosing the economy. He won't release his tax returns. But his failure to talk about how he'd regulate Wall Street is particularly gaping void.
We know Obama's plan, sort of–it's the deficient Dodd-Frank bill, a morass of regulation concocted by regulators, rather than clear legislation laying out the rules of the road for big banks. Romney says he's against that. Good. But what's he for? It's time for some Republican–other than Huntsman–to call out the financial sector for its reckless greed and immorality. A remoralization of America when it comes to Wall Street is also well past due.


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Canada, stretching from the U.S. in the south to the Arctic Circle in the north, is filled with vibrant cities including massive, multicultural Toronto; predominantly French-speaking Montréal and Québec City; Vancouver and Halifax on the Pacific and Atlantic coasts, respectively; and Ottawa, the capital. It's also crossed by the Rocky Mountains and home to vast swaths of protected wilderness.
* Conditions Apply


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I go to Ottawa tomorrow to join my Canadian colleagues in a celebration of the work of Alice Munro. Professor Robert Thacker, author of the excellent biography of Ms. Munro, Writing Her Lives, and I share the honor of giving keynote addresses. Professor Thacker will speak on Friday afternoon, and I will speak on Saturday morning. Many fine writers, critics, and scholars will discuss various aspects of Munro's work over the three-day weekend. I will give you a summary of the celebration when I return.
Since I will be taking a break from my blog for a few days while in Ottawa, I though it only appropriate that I post a brief discussion of her work before I left. I have written many blogs on Alice Munro over the past several years, but for some reason have neglected her most personal collection, The View from Castle Rock. Munro says that as she put together the material in this book over the years, not surprisingly, since she is, with little or no argument, the best short-story writer currently practicing that underrated art, the material began to shape itself into "something like stories." The combination of the words of her ancestors and her own, she says, resulted in a re-creation of lives about as truthful as the past can be.
In addition, Munro says, during this same period she was also writing a special set of stories that she had not included in her last four books of fiction because she felt they did not belong. Although they were not memoirs, they were closer to her own life than other stories she had written. She says in her previous stories, she drew on personal material, but then did whatever she wanted to with it, for the chief thing she was doing was "making a story." However, in these new pieces, she knew she was doing something closer to what a memoir does—exploring her own life, although not in a rigorously factual way.
The View from Castle Rock is made up of these two separate sets—five family chronicles that Munro says are "something like stories" and six pieces drawn from her own life that she emphatically declares are "stories." Munro describes them as two separate streams that flow into one channel.
The first story, "No Advantages," is the most historical, least fictionalized, of the five pieces of "family history." The narrator is Munro, in her sixties, traveling alone in Scotland. When she finds the gravestone of her great-great-great-great-great grandfather, born at the end of the seventeenth century, she enjoys that familiar human experience of imagining her ancestors existing in time and space. Discovering he is the last man in Scotland to have seen the fairies, she envisions him as a sort of Rip Van Winkle who encounters little people, about as high as a two-year-old child, calling his name. She draws conclusions and forms hypotheses about him and those who follow him. She identifies a trait of her Scottish ancestors that forms her own attitudes generations later--the reluctance to call attention to one's self, the opposite of which is not modesty, but rather a refusal to turn your life into a story, either for other people or for yourself--a curious trait for a storyteller who has all her adult life transformed her life into story.
The title story of the collection moves closer to fictionalized narrative. Its imaginative spark derives from a received story of one of her ancestors, a young boy, being taken up to Edinburgh Castle by his father, who points out a grayish-blue piece of land showing through the mist beyond the waves and pronounces gravely "America." The boy knows he is not looking at America, but rather an island off the coast of Scotland, but this does not lessen the force of the illusion of a land that does have "advantages," so far away, yet so close—a combination of fiction and reality. The story focuses on the actual journey the family makes to Nova Scotia. Although Munro says she depends largely on a journal kept by one of the family members, whereas he merely records events, Munro speculates and humanizes, inventing actions for which she has no historical basis and creating motivations based on her imaginative identification with her ancestors.
"Illinois" deals with an event that must have been irresistible to Munro, who has written previous stories of tricks and cross-purposes. A young male ancestor steals his baby sister and hides her; two silly young girls who like to play jokes steal the infant a second time to tease another boy. It is a comedy of errors that ends well when the father finds the baby. "The Wilds of Morris Township" has less drama and little comedy, focusing on the quiet intentions of an ancestor who builds himself a house and lives out his life in a brotherly-sisterly relationship with a second cousin. Munro's recollection that her father said he had seen the odd couple at church when he was a child brings the chronicle of the family closer to her own life.
"Working for a Living" recounts how Munro's father begins his adult life as a fur-trapper and seller of skins for the commercial market and how he meets her mother. After her father stops raising animals for fur, he gets a job at a foundry as a night watchman; when Munro, as a young girl, goes to visit him there, she sees him as someone other than just her father. In this story, we are introduced to Munro as a future writer. While her father provides her with particular explanations of the foundry, she is more interested in the general effects--the gloom, the fine dust, and the atmosphere of the place. Munro leaves this first half of The View from Castle Rock with her father listening to his grandfather and other men speaking in the dialect of their own childhood---an appropriate transition to the second half, which begins with a fictional account of Munro's early understanding of the complex relationships that daughters have with their fathers.
"Fathers," the opening piece of the second part of the book, brings us closer to the kind of story that has made Munro famous. Describing the relationship that two different girls have with their fathers, it is structured around theme rather than event. First, there is Dahlia, who hates her father for his brutality and would kill him if she could. Secondly, there is Frances, whose parents try to encourage their daughter's friendship with Munro. However, when Munro sees Frances' father squeeze the mother's behind, she feels some sort of "creepy menace" about them. Not used to this open display of attention, she feels cornered and humiliated. She recalls once when her father beat her for some back talk to her mother, the probable source of "Royal Beatings" one of Munro's most famous stories. However, she does not compare her situation to Dahlia's, but she knows that her father hates the arrogance in her. "Fathers' is a story about two kinds of father/daughter relationships, neither with which Munro completely identifies, but both of which she intuitively understands.
All the stories in this second section point to Munro's future as a writer. In "Lying Under the Apple Tree," she is thirteen and has a secret poetic idea about looking up through apple blossoms, which has an irresistible formality for her, like kneeling in church. She has her first erotic feelings for an older boy, but when they are interrupted in what Munro expects will be her first sexual experience, she realizes that the boy is having a relationship with the woman who owns the farm where he works. Once again, the story ends with a presage of Munro's future life as an author, for she says for the next few years it is men in books who become her lovers, sardonic and with a ferocious streak in them; her preference running to Heathcliff rather than Edgar Linton, Rhett Butler rather than Ashley Wilkes.
In "Hired Girl," Munro, 17, takes a summer job with a family. When they have a party and friends come to stay the weekend, Munro thinks they are glamorous, like the people she has read about in magazines--people who drink a lot, have affairs, and go to psychiatrists. When the visiting husband suggests she go swimming without her bathing suit, the next time she is in the water she pulls her top down and thinks of him touching her, feeling both a sense of pleasure and repulsion. When the summer is over, the husband for whom she works gives Munro a copy of Isak Dinensen's Seven Gothic Tales. The fictional takes precedence over the merely real, for as soon as she begins to read, she loses herself in the book, believing that this gift of literature has always belonged to her.
In "The Ticket," Munro is 20 and preparing for her wedding with her first boyfriend. The family is glad someone wants her, for she has always scared men off with her intelligence and her arrogance. More and more, Munro sees the world in terms of language. As if they were stories, she studies three marriages as a way to prepare for her own—that of her parents, which is the most mysterious because like many children she cannot imagine them in any connection except the one through her; that of her grandparents, which she knows from reports from her mother; and that of her Uncle Cyril and Aunt Charlie, who warn her about marriage. Munro makes a rare confession in this story by saying that her first husband deserved better than what she gave him; he deserved a "whole heart."
The last three stories in the collection bring events closer to the present. In "Home," Munro is in love with a man other than her husband, her mother has died, and she comes to visit her ill father and her stepmother, a woman good at sniffing out high-mindedness and superiority. In "What Do You Want to Know For?" she is married to her second husband and has been told she has a lump in her left breast and must have a biopsy. Over sixty now, she does not think her death would be a disaster. It is at this time in her life that she begins to think more about her family and to become interested in imagining them in the past.
In the Epilogue, entitled "Messenger," Munro ponders the impulse to investigate one's family history, sifting untrustworthy evidence, linking names, dates and anecdotes--determined to be joined to death and thus to life. Alice Munro's most personal book ends appropriately with a metaphor, a huge seashell, which she holds to her ear to listen to the pounding of her own blood and the roar of the ocean. This metaphor of listening to the self and the sea brings the book full circle, echoing the young ancestor so many years ago, gazing from Castle Rock across that misty ocean which held the future and now holds the past.


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612 people have taken this course
Have you ever felt that your energy is off but you are not sure how to balance it and feel more alive? Wished you could feel more strong from within? Handle stressful situations with grace instead of reacting?
Kundalini Yoga is a powerful technology brought to the West from Yogi Bhajan in 1969. Through specific sets he gave, we are able to become more aware of our blocks, both emotionally and physically, and practice toward more wholeness. The chakras(energy centers or vortexes) are a system utilized in Kundalini Yoga to better understand the aspects of ourselves that relate to how we are in the world and in our relationships. At any given moment, we are directing our energies from one chakra more strongly than any other. The navel empowers us when balanced, the heart opens us to new possibilities, the hips open us to our feelings and the head centers allow us to experience life and express ourselves from a higher awareness and understanding. Kundalini Yoga is sometimes called the yoga of awareness. Through the movements, breath, sound, and meditation the effects of this yoga are also said to be more accelerated than other forms of yoga. Yogi Bhajan suggested that the main benefit of Kundalini Yoga is the experience you receive from practicing it.
"I am especially thankful for the opportunity to experience you as a yoga teacher. The whole experience has been truly beneficial, really made an extraordinary difference. I want to thank you for your guidance on my journey. With Love and Surrender." N - Chicago
Donna has been teaching Kundalini Yoga as taught by Yogi Bhajan since 1985 in New York City and since 1997 at her retreat center in Maine Sewall House Yoga Retreat. She has taught tens of thousands of students this technology for health and healing that includes breathing techniques, sound and movements. Her style is informative, fun and accessible. In addition to Kundalini Yoga she also teaches a form of yoga based on her studies in Ashtanga, Iyengar and Dharmayoga. Her retreat center has been chosen top ten worldwide and featured in Yoga Journal, Instyle, Shape and Travel & Leisure. Her video The Challenge was chosen top ten by Yoga Journal in their list for home practice. She has been quoted as a yoga expert in Glamour, Bride, GQ and other publications as well as teaching a popular Chakra Series at the Open Center in New York City. Her DVDs The Awakening and Flexibility and the Spine have helped many on their journey of healing and well being through Kundalini Yoga. She has also appeared on Martha Stewart, Good Morning America and is the yoga columnist for Inner Tapestry, a New England publication, and a contributing editor for Yogamint.
Hi, I just took the DailyOM Kundalini yoga class online. I love it! Thank you so much for being a great teacher. -Molly
Starting today, you will receive a new lesson every week for 6 weeks (total of 6 lessons). Each lesson is yours to keep and you'll be able to refer back to it whenever you want. And if you miss a lesson or are too busy to get to it that day, each lesson will conveniently remain in your account so you won't have to search for it when you're ready to get back to it.
As a free gift, when you sign up for this course, you will also receive the award-winning DailyOM inspiration newsletter which gives you daily inspirational thoughts for a happy, healthy and fulfilling day. We will also let you know about other courses and offers from DailyOM and Donna Davidge that we think you might be interested in.
We are offering this course with the option of selecting how much you want to pay. No matter how much you pay, you'll be getting the same course as everybody else. We simply trust that people are honest and will support the author of the course with whatever they can afford. And if you are not 100% satisfied, we will refund your money.
How much do you want to pay?


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text: The California Stem Cell Report will go dark for a couple of weeks or so as we make our way across the bounding main to Mexico. As many of you know, yours truly lives on a sailboat (15 years come June 1) that shuttles about the Pacific south of the American border. We have spent nearly two years in Panama and are now working our way back to Mexico where the chiles are hot and the frijoles "rico." Look for fresh coverage either late this month or early April.


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Whirly Bee
The Whirly Bee features the original flat Slider Head, size 2 bronze hook, and tough grub body. This lure is excellent for all type of game fish...Bass, Crappie, Perch, Trout, Northern Pike, White Bass (Stripe), and especially Smallmouth Bass. The overall length is 2 1/2". The weight is approximately .13oz or a little over 1/8 oz. Recommended for fishing with 4, 6 or 8 pound line. The Whirly Bee can also be trolled. One Whirly Bee per pack.
Whirly Bee Component Kit Catalog #HK4 can be bought seperately...
- Item #: WG1088
- Manufacturer: Slider
- Manufacturer's Product Number: WG1088
Whirly Bee WATERMELON / GOLD GLITTER WG1088
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7/30/09 Fat Man in Hot Water
by, July 31st, 2009 at 02:33 PM (3310 Views)
It was over 100 yesterday as I headed to the pool. The aerators where going full time but the water temperature was still warmer than I would prefer.
Aquatic Center LCM
300 Warm up
4 x 200 - odds IM, evens Free on 3:30, I led the first half as a lot of folks were late getting in. First IM felt real strong, no piano drop on the fly, just smooth turnover. Not much rest before the free started. Folks joining in voted to move to 3:45 interval. 2nd IM was dragging on the fly, and not near as smooth through out. bagged the 200.
100 easy
8 x 100 odds IM/drill, evens free build on 2:00
100 easy
8 x 50 odds IM order, evens free fast on 1:00
100 easy
Shoulders hurt from this one. I would have loved the workout if the water was 10 degrees cooler.
Been looking through old work out logs from my first stint as a Masters Swimmer (pre FatMan) and the logs run from 1983 to 88 when I moved to Austin. Mileage seems to be the same, only the interval and the girth of the swimmer have changed in the current workouts.


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Black Scar - the name sounds as if it belongs to a smuggler or a pirate, and no doubt there were plenty of those around St Brides Bay in the past.
But Black Scar is the name of a small rock in a group half a mile off the entrance to Solva Harbour, the others being Green Scar and The Mare.
The notorious privateer Paul Jones is known to have operated round these shores, and had a secret hideout on Caldey Island, where Paul Jones Bay commemorates his connection there. Indeed, Fishguard Fort, at the northern entrance to Lower Town Harbour, was erected as a result of his and other brigands' piratical activities. Scottish-born Paul Jones was the founder of the American Navy. But St Brides Bay and the area around Black Scar is more associated with the nefarious activities of wreckers and plunderers in the days when sailing ships and steamers came to grief there.
With no evidence of actual wrecking - luring vessels to their doom with lights purporting to be lighthouses or beacons - the opportunist plunderers were described as 'beachcombers' in old books and newspapers recording their cruel crimes. One of those incidents concerned the sailing vessel Amity in December 1668, which foundered at the northern end of the bay, spilling its cargo of wine and fruit from Malaga. The Revenue men found no sign of any wine, but only broken casks when they searched the shore, for the 'beachcombers' had been there before them. Some pretty gruesome crimes were committed after the sailing ship Phoebe and Peggy was wrecked near the Black Scar in January 1773. More than 60 people were drowned in the disaster and callous plunderers stole the rings and earrings of a woman named as Madam Elliott, and her nephew, who survived, was able to recover only a few of his aunt's possessions. A McGonnagal-style ballad was written about the wreck by a local man, a few lines from which read: "Madam Elliott, she was drowned, five hundred guineas in her pocket, and old Luke Davy and John Phillip, they robbed the lady in a minute. And for her rings they cut her fingers, and split her ears all for her jewels. These country mobs they be like villains." The bodies that were recovered were buried at Brawdy church.
In 1874, the Liverpool ship Alaric foundered in St Bride's Bay in a dreadful storm. She was sighted bottom up a mile west of the Black Scar, and later sank with the loss of all hands.
The Black Scar would seem to be well-named in view of all those horrendous occurrences so many years ago. Now it is a sinister memorial to those unfortunate souls.


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In RoboHelp, the Mobile App output preset allows you to generate an Android or iOS mobile application as your project output.
To generate a mobile app using RoboHelp, you require a PhoneGap account. If you don't have a PhoneGap account, you can create one in the PhoneGap ID section of the output preset settings in RoboHelp.
The first step in generating the output of a RoboHelp project is to create an output preset and then configure the various settings of the output preset. You can use the following settings to configure a Mobile App output preset:
Title Specify the title for the generated output.
You can use variables in the title. To do so, type Ctrl + 1 and select a variable from the drop-down list, and then press Enter. Note that if you have provided a variable set in the Content tab > Variable Set field, during output generation, the value of the selected variable is picked from the variable set.
The title, along with the variables if used, appears on the browser tab of the output.
Language Use the drop-down list to specify a language for the output preset if the language of the UI of the generated output needs to be different from the language of the content.
Encoding Use the drop-down list to specify the type of character encoding format to be used for your content.
Post Generation Script To run your custom script after output generation, select the script .js file from the drop-down list.
Table Of Contents Use the drop-down list to select a Table of Contents to be included in the output. This drop-down list displays the Tables of Contents available in your project. The first Table of Contents in this drop-down list is selected by default.
The set of files and their references present in the selected Table of Contents appear in the generated output.
Browse Sequence Use the drop-down list to view the defined browse sequences in your project. You can select more than one browse sequence. The selected browse sequences are then merged for the output. If there is a conflict with the selected browse sequences, the first selection is given preference.
Default Topic Click to select the topic that displays in the Topic panel when you open the output. By default, the first topic in the Table of Contents selected for this output is the default topic.
You can also select the default topic from the merged child projects. The list shown under the merged child projects is read from the selected TOC.
Include Index Select this setting to include the index page in the output.
Glossary Use the drop-down list to select the glossary to be included in the output. The glossary helps your users to quickly retrieve the relevant terms in your project, with the corresponding definitions.
Condition Expression Use the drop-down list to specify the condition expression for your output. This setting allows you to easily include or exclude content depending on the desired type of output or userbase. Click to edit the selected condition expression. You can also select None in the drop-down list to not specify any condition expression.
Dynamic Content Filter Use the drop-down list to select a dynamic content filter so your end users can filter content in the generated output. Click to edit the selected Dynamic Content Filter. Alternatively, select None in the drop-down list to not specify a dynamic content filter.
Variable Set Use the drop-down list to specify the variable set to use in this output. In the drop-down list, you can select <Default Variable Set> to use the project's default variable set. Variable sets allow you to implement output-specific use of variables. For example, you can have different variable sets for generating output for customers and internal users.
Master Page Use the drop-down list to select the master page for the output you are generating.
Skin Use the drop-down list to select a skin to apply in your output.
Show Thumbnail for Images Select this field to show thumbnail for images in output.
- Create Thumbnail for images Select this field to generate image thumbnails from existing images in the output. These images can be enlarged when the user clicks them.
- Style Existing Images as Thumbnails Select this field to style existing images as thumbnails in the output. These images can be enlarged when the user clicks them.
Use topic description as search context Select this setting to display the topic description with the title in search topic results. In Set a Character limit, enter the maximum number of characters to be displayed in the topic description. To set a topic description, right-click a topic in the Contents panel and select Properties. In the Topic Properties dialog box, enter the description in Description and click Apply.
Enable auto complete in search box Select this option to display predictive options for the search query based on the initial characters typed by users.
Auto correct search query Select this option to correct misspelled terms that are typed during search. This setting corrects up to one character in each word typed during search. This ensures that you receive relevant search results, even if you enter a misspelled term.
Show definitions from glossary Select this option to display definitions of search terms from the glossary selected for this output. If the search term matches a glossary term, the definition of the term is displayed.
Select file types to exclude from search You can exclude specific types of files, such as PDF, Word, and Excel, from search. The content from the selected files will not be included during search.
Package Specify a name for the mobile app. A common naming convention is to use your company domain name in reverse followed by the name of the app. For example, com.adobe.myapp. This is used by PhoneGap to uniquely identify the application.
To avoid issues with third-party tools used in PhoneGap, use English letters, the underscore character, and a period as the separator.
Version The PhoneGap version number for the app.
Version Code (Android only) The Android version number for the app. This is a positive integer that increases by one value each time you update the app. When you upload your app to an Android store, such as Google Play, your user will be notified of updates to your app when you update the version number.
Title The name of the mobile app. This is displayed in Google Play Store or App Store and on the mobile device when a user installs the app.
Description Specify the PhoneGap description for the app.
Icon Specify the icon that is associated with the application. This is displayed in Google Play Store or App Store and on the mobile device when a user installs the app.
Splash Screen Specify the splash screen for the app.
User ID Enter the user ID of your PhoneGap account.
Password Enter the password of your PhoneGap account.
Create PhoneGap Account Click this if you don't have a PhoneGap account. You will then be directed to the PhoneGap plans page.
Validate User ID Click this to test your PhoneGap credentials. If this fails, go to phonegap.com and log in with the same credentials. After you log in to phonegap.com, retest the credentials in RoboHelp.
Generate iOS App Select this option to generate an iOS app as your output and specify the following:
- Digital Certificate Upload the digital certificate of the app. Click to do this.
- Certificate Password Enter the password of the digital certificate.
- Provisioning Profile Specify the digital certificate. Click to do this. The digital certificate contains details of the registered testing device. If the APP is not posted on the App store, it can be installed only on registered testing devices.
Generate Android App Select this option to generate an iOS app as your output and specify the following:
- Keystore File Click to upload the keystore file. This is to authenticate your app. When you sign an Android app, it means that you brand your app with your credentials. You can brand multiple applications using the same key.
- Keystore Password Specify the password of your keystore file.
- Certificate Alias Specify the alias name of your keystore.
- Certificate Password Specify the password for the alias name of your keystore.
The settings marked with * are mandatory fields; you need to configure these settings to successfully generate an app.
You can publish your output to FTP, SFTP, or File System. To be able to publish your output, first configure a publish profile for the appropriate server type. For more information, see Configure a publish profile for FTP, SFTP, or File System.
After you save the publish profile, RoboHelp displays the profile in the Publish tab. To publish your output, select the appropriate publish profiles and click .
By default, only modified files are published using the chosen publish profiles since the last publish.
To publish all files, select Republish All and click . To view the publish log, in the Output Presets panel, against the appropriate output preset, choose > View Publish Log.
Click the Generate Preset icon in the Output Presets panel.
You can then view a progress bar next to the selected output preset in the Output Presets panel. Once the output generation is complete, a Success dialog box is visible at the lower-right corner of the screen.
After the output generation is complete, click in the Output Presets panel to view the Mobile App output dialog box. Click Download to download the app to your computer. You can download and allow other users to download the app onto mobile devices by scanning the given QR code or by navigating to the URL on the devices.
iOS apps can only be installed using this URL if your device UDID is added in the mobile provision file.
Alternatively, you can generate the output in the authoring window. Click Quick Generate on the toolbar, select the desired output preset, and click Generate.
You can then view a progress bar in the Quick Generate dialog box. After the output generation is complete, click next to the output preset to view the Mobile App output dialog box. In case the output generation failed, click next to the selected output preset to view the error log.
After you have configured your mobile app settings, you can then generate the app. This app is the uploaded to the PhoneGap server. You can then either download the app to your computer or you can use the QR code to download the app to your mobile device.
To upload the app to the Apple or Android app stores, follow the instructions in the following articles:
- (For iOS) Submitting Your App to the Apple App Store
- (For Android) Android Developer Console


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Remedial Vastu Course
The remedial Vastu course is the last and final level in the Vastu courses offered at our institute. This course is highly beneficial for those who want to learn about the Vastu of today's age.
This is a highly advanced Vastu course wherein the Students learn about Vastu without demolition and how to check and cure the Various Vastu defects in any premise without spoiling the structure of the premise and without doing any breakdown in the building.
This is a highly demanded topic these days and it would be very beneficial for the students to learn about this topic.
Duration: 3 Months | Mode: ONLINE | Fees: INR 26000/- (USD 410) | Medium: English, Hindi
Please fill the form below to enroll


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Sponsor – CRO communication critical to IRB transfer; FDA
Draft guidance from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) calls on all parties to maintain open dialogue when transferring oversight from one institutional review board (IRB) to another. Failing to do so can impact on the smooth running of a clinical trial.
"In some situations, a transfer may disrupt study enrolment or other aspects of a clinical investigation, whether because of unforeseen difficulties in the transfer process or because of concerns arising from the study", the FDA wrote in draft guidance on transferring IRB oversight.
The FDA draft guidance places the burden of telling the CRO (contract research organisation), data safety monitoring board, and other entities linked to the clinical investigation, on the study sponsor.
So the FDA can access records quickly openness must also extend to the agency. "It is important for the agency to know which entity (eg the original IRB, the receiving IRB, the institution that housed the original IRB, a CRO or other responsible third party) will maintain the records", the FDA wrote.
The need for communication is lessened when clinical trial oversight is transferring between IRBs at the same institution. In these instances the FDA expects "simpler and more expeditious" transfers that can exclude some of the precautionary measures needed when moving to a separate IRB.
Timelines for transfers are also affected by the number and risk of the studies being moved, as well as the reasons for making the switch, with some motivations carrying greater legal, regulatory, administrative, and logistical burdens than others.
"Transfer of IRB oversight due to purely administrative reasons such as consolidating IRB workload may be straight-forward, whereas a transfer of oversight due to the original IRB's non-compliance would be anticipated to be more lengthy and involved", the FDA wrote.
IRB warning letter
This week the FDA also hit the IRB Advocate Health Care with a warning letter criticising its informed consent process in a clinical trial, submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov in 2007, run by the hospital in which it is based.
"The IRB approved Study 4257, a clinical investigation for which informed consent was not sought from prospective subjects or their legally authorised representatives, without satisfying the requirements for approving such an investigation", the FDA wrote in its warning letter.


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Blog Archives
Keep off beaches, Peru warns after mass pelican deaths
LIMA | Sat May 5, 2012 7:30pm EDT
(Reuters) – Peru's government declared a health alert along its northern coastline on Saturday and urged residents and tourists alike to stay away from long stretches of beach, as it investigates the unexplained deaths of hundreds of dolphins and pelicans.
At least 1,200 birds, mostly pelicans, washed up dead along a stretch of Peru's northern Pacific coastline in recent weeks, health officials said, after an estimated 800 dolphins died in the same area in recent months.
The Health Ministry recommended staying away from beaches, though stopped short of a ban, and called on health officials to use gloves, masks and other protective gear when collecting dead birds.
The peak tourism season around Lima's beaches is over, though many surfers are still venturing into the waters near the capital.
The Agriculture Ministry said preliminary tests on some dead pelicans pointed to malnourishment. Oscar Dominguez, head of the ministry's health department, said experts had ruled out bird flu.
"The Health Ministry … calls on the population to abstain from going to the beaches until the health alert is lifted," the ministry said in a statement posted on its website, along with a photograph of a dead pelican.
The ministry said officials had so far checked 18 beaches in and around Lima for dead birds, but gave no details on any findings.
A mass pelican death along Peru's northern coast in 1997 was blamed at the time on a shortage of feeder anchovies due to the El Nino phenomenon.
(Reporting by Marco Aquino and Caroline Stauffer; Writing by Simon Gardner; Editing by Sandra Maler)
Related articles
- Over 1200 Dead Pelicans in Northern Peru, Same Region as Mass Dolphin Die-Off (pakalertpress.com)
- Mystery As Hundreds Of Pelicans Die In Peru (news.sky.com)
- Dead Dolphins and Now Hundreds of Dead Pelicans in Peru (hispanicallyspeakingnews.com)
- Peru investigates mystery pelican deaths (edition.cnn.com)


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Westbourne Woods - A unique, custom build, combining everything on the "must have" list of the most discerning buyer: premier address; sold exterior construction, interior finishes evidencing the finest of craftsmanship; generous square footage; unique spaces for both living and playing and acres of expertly manicured lawn. This is the home which all the superlatives really do apply. Westbourne Woods is the product of a marriage between the Main Line's premier architect and most acclaimed high end builder. Just 14 years ago, F.L. Bissinger summoned one of his unique, Artisan Revival Style designs to E.B. Mahoney, whose name is synonymous with the highest in quality building standards. The resulting, expertly Colonial residence consists of three finished levels, positioned on 8 acres, with an additional adjoining lot of more than 6.5 acres available for purchase. Inside are 6-7 Bedrooms, 7 full baths and 4 half Baths, five fireplaces, an in-home theatre, wine cellar, indoor swimming pool, baseball batting cage, gym quarters and a 4 car Garage. Energy is partially supplied by solar panels. Twenty minutes from CC Philadelphia and a short drive from the links of the famed Philadelphia Country Club, drive through the gates of 1520 Monk Rd. Descend the driveway lined with stone walls which are finished with bricked lattice. Cross the cobblestones and enter the massive aged wood double door into a stone floored Foyer. Step down into the formal Living Room featuring floor to ceiling windows, exceptional quatrefoil plaster work ceiling and hand hewed plank hardwood floors. Pivoting between contemporary and traditional, this formal space is designed with multiple seating areas for small or intimate gatherings. Dramatic volume ceiling bar room with outside entrance is highlighted by an exposed stone wall with incorporated candle ledges for twilight entertaining. Steps away is a Library w/fireplace,Family Room w/fp, formal Dining room with hand painted ceiling. An expansive Kitchen w/solarium styled Breakfast Area w three sides of glass, encouraging views of gardens & wooded acres. Ascent the main staircase to a Master Suite w/two Sitting Rooms/private offices and separate "his"and "hers" closets. Master Bath highlighted by stone soaking tub. The walk-out LL offers everything needed for recreation for all ages, theatre, wine celler, lap swimming pool, gym & baseball batting cages.
Listing courtesy of Compass RE.


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MU Students Recommend Policies on Columbia Affordable Housing
COLUMBIA - Three MU students presented their survey findings Thursday and gave recommendations to the city on Columbia's safe and affordable housing.
Students from the Truman School of Public Affairs surveyed 133 individuals in Columbia since January. They targeted people with lower levels of employment and income, and higher levels of veterans status.
"I think it will be a great benefit for Columbia to mix those income levels in one housing development. I hope to see that in the future," said Scout Merry, who works for the disability services for independent living.
The survey responses show that the major barriers to affordable housing are: jobs in Columbia do not pay enough, there's not enough affordable housing in Columbia, and the conditions of affordable housing are poor.
Based on that, the students gave these recommendations to the city:
- planning location-efficient housing development including nearby transportation, job sectors, downtown centers and other amenities
- extending the time period of paying silent second mortgage
- educating people on budgeting and home maintenance
"Looking at our silent second mortgages on our homeownership assistance program, that's something we currently do, but only on maybe one or two houses per year. That's something we can look at potentially, maybe expanding and reevaluating how we do that on our part of the program," said Randy Cole, the city's coordinator for Community Development Block Grants.


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The Peerless Prognosticator is ON THE AIR!!!
Game 56 of the season for the Capitals is as big a Game 56 as a Game 56 gets as the good guys DO NOT visit the Carolina Hurricanes in
For those of you needing a recap, the Capitals have completed a 34-game march from the bottom of the Eastern Conference to the top of the Southeast Division and a three-seed in the conference standings. With a chance to wrest the top spot away from the Caps on Thursday, the Atlanta Thrashers canuckled under the superb goaltending of Roberto Luongo as
So now, the Caps have a chance NOT to blow into
But to do that, the Caps must beat a veteran, battle-tested group that has been able to withstand the fierce winds of adversity this year…to help us peer into the eye of the Hurricanes, we have with us some very famous…well, Hurricanes. We have with us Diane, the first billion dollar hurricane…Lenny, or "Ol' Lefty, who wreaked havoc on
Lenny…let's start with you. You came at those islands from a direction no one would associate with a hurricane. How do you liken that to what
Lenny: "Well, it's getting late in the season, just like when I strolled through the
Diane, the Hurricanes are dealing with some critical injuries at the moment – Justin Williams, Chad LaRose, Matt Cullen, Dennis Seidenberg…critical cogs that have missed, and in some cases will continue to miss, time with the club. Will the Hurricanes pull the trigger on a trade?
Diane: "Well, they could. They have a little bit of cap room to accommodate a deal, but wholesale changes don't seem to be in the cards. The trouble is that with the injuries, they have a greater variety of needs. They might have been in the market for a defenseman, but now they might have to look at some forward help, too."
In other words, the situation blows…
Diane: "Like a category-five storm over
Katrina, you might be the most famous of our guests here. But the Hurricanes don't seem to have that star wattage you see on other teams, especially for one not too far removed from a Stanley Cup.
Katrina: "Oh cher, these Hurricanes…there might not be a category-five player on the team, but they have a lot of category three and four guys – Eric Staal, Ray Whitney, and of course, the storm surge himself, Rod Brind'Amour."
Why "storm surge?"
Katrina: "He's so strong in the face off circle and on defense, he's as relentless as a storm surge heading up
Wilma…you know powerful. No doubt you've been keeping up with the media attention surrounding Alex Ovechkin lately – his goal scoring, his taking over the points-scoring lead, his physical play.
Wilma: "I've seen more highlights of him on TV lately than I have Jim Cantore…"
It's not surprising…but my question is, is Ovechkin the most powerful force of nature in the National Hockey League at the moment?
Wilma: "Oh, without a doubt. He's relentless. He reminds me of…well, me marauding across the
But hurricanes eventually weaken and blow themselves out…do you see this for Ovechkin?
"Yeah, maybe in about 15 years…"
Well, Caps fans will be hoping Ovechkin, Semin, Kozlov, Green, and the rest of the boys will keep the pressure on the Hurricanes, who are reeling a bit at the moment, having gone 4-7-0 in their last 11 games (two of the wins came in overtime). The particulars:
Record: 4-7-0
Goals for/against: 30/37
Power play: 6/45 (13.3 percent)
Penalty killing: (33/41 (80.5 percent)
Number of games giving up three shorthanded goals, including two on the same shift: one (against the Islanders on January 22nd, a 6-3 loss)
Whether a combination of injuries and slumps, though, the Hurricanes have lacked for some secondary scoring. Ray Whitney has only one goal in this stretch, but does have six assists. Erik Cole is 1-3-4.
The Hurricanes have made one move – one that might strike some as a bit desperate. Left winger Sergei Samsonov, acquired by the Chicago Blackhawks last June, was a disaster in the Windy City (0-4-4, -7 in 23 games). He was waived a month ago and claimed by
For a game in early February, this is as big as it gets. That's what having four teams within two points of each other fighting for what is likely to be the only playoff spot coming out of the division will do.
A win does several things for the Caps:
- It maintains and expands their lead in the Southeast
- It preserves the "game in hand" they have on Carolina
- It would be their first three-game winning streak since winning four in a row, January 15-21.
- It would make for a decent weekend and a nice way to move into the game with the Rangers on Sunday.
There are the faintest hints at rumblings with the Caps, but the only rumbling that will be done tonight is that of the Caps storming up and down the ice to beat the Hurricanes…
Caps 5 – Hurricanes 3
...and honest, we are not abusers of prescription substances, much as a reading of the previous edition of this might suggest otherwise.


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Pay through Paypal
Prints are available in one size only: 16 x 20. This size is quite large and very striking. The actual image size is narrower (about 13 x 20), leaving a white border on the longer sides due to the proportions of the image.
I will mail them to you first class rolled in a tube.
They cost $100 which includes shipping within the U.S. (overseas shipping is $50 extra).
At the moment, payment must be made with PayPal.
The images you select are printed on Fuji Crystal Archive paper, a photographic print medium that has vivid color that will not fade in ordinary use. These are printed on a state-of-the art laserjet machine, usually used to print satellite images. I feel this is the finest method of making photographic images possible today.


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More like small lobster tails, these sweet succulent 'super colossal' black tiger prawns are so large they're sold 4-6 to the pound, although 'colossal' which are 8-12 count do an admirable job too — the key is to buy the largest prawns you can. In this case, size does matter. Served as a special treat on their own or as part of a 'surf-and-turf' feast, these gorgeous creatures are substantial enough to withstand a marinade with a little zing — a splash of sambal oelek or Lebanese hot pepper paste should do the trick. Whisked with minced garlic, fresh squeezed lemon juice, grated ginger, fresh mint and cilantro, teaspoon of Dijon mustard, dash of soy sauce and a glug of olive oil, and left to marinate for an hour or so, they're simply divine grilled on the barbecue for about 3-5 minutes per side and served with a bowl of cold creamy tzatziki, for a sensational seafood treat.
4 spectacular colossal black tiger prawns, so large they're 4-6 to the pound
Blended marinade of garlic, ginger, mint, cilantro, Sambal Oelek, lemon juice, Dijon mustard,
soy sauce and olive oil
The marinade is rubbed into the shelled and deveined prawns,
then covered and refrigerated until ready to grill
Prawns grilled on the "Barby"
Grilled Spicy Super Colossal Black Tiger Prawns
Serves 1
4 Colossal prawns (4-6 to the pound), peeled and deveined with tail left on
1/2 tbsp Sambal Oelek or 1/8 tsp Lebanese hot pepper paste
1 tbsp each fresh mint and cilantro, minced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tbsp lemon juice
1-inch piece ginger, minced
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp soy sauce
2 tbsp olive oil
In a small food processor, whizz the garlic and ginger to a fine mince, then add the sambal oelek, lemon juice, mint, cilantro, mustard, soy sauce and oil, and purée to a loose paste. Mix the shrimp with the marinade and allow to marinate for 30-60 minutes. Preheat an outdoor grill to medium-high heat, and grill the shrimp for 3-5 minutes per side, depending on the size of the prawns. Serve with tzatziki and a sprig mint.


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To be eligible for financial aid at the University of Washington, students must maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress. This means to remain eligible for all types of financial aid you must meet the four requirements below:
If you do not meet these requirements, then you will need to file an appeal for consideration of continued financial aid. Form is available online as Satisfactory Progress Appeal.
Please read the full Satisfactory Academic Progress policy on-line. You are responsible for knowing this information.


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Commitments of cost sharing of faculty effort on research grants are financially unfavorable to the University and are thus permitted ONLY under restricted conditions. Authorization for cost sharing commitments will be considered in the following circumstances:
NYU fully supports the salary of its faculty holding a nine-month appointment which they may use for research, instruction and administrative purposes. In accordance with these responsibilities, however, NYU makes no specific commitment of time or salary to this project. This voluntary effort is determined by the PI and is not monitored by the University.
Effective Date Supersedes N/A Issuing Authority Pierre C. Hohenberg, Senior Vice Provost for Academic Policies Responsible Officer N/A


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Stock market participants will closely track the Winter session of Parliament, which begins on Thursday, for fresh triggers amid subdued sentiments over the 'fiscal cliff' concerns in US and worries over Eurozone slipping back into recession in the September quarter.
With July-September quarter results season now almost over, the focus is seen shifting to the forthcoming session of Parliament. Key economic agenda for the session includes amendment to Insurance Bill to raise FDI cap from 26 to 49 per cent, Banking Regulation Amendment Bill and Direct Taxes Code.
"Investors' shall be looking for global cues and other post-reforms actions within the country for further market
direction," Rakesh Goyal, Senior Vice President, Bonanza Portfolio said.
With major events including RBI monetary policy and US Presidential polls now over, the Indian stock market seems direction less with a downward bias, he added.
Stock markets may open flattish to weak on Monday, say analysts. "The outlook for the market looks weak as NSE benchmark Nifty broke a big support level of 5,600 on Friday," CNI Research CMD Kishor Ostwal said.
The week is packed with global data including existing US home sales (November 19), Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke speech and Bank of Japan monetary policy (both on November 20) and manufacturing PMI in key EU nations (November 22).
Besides these, experts said that the action on reform initiatives front will be critical to revive stock markets
that have been sluggish over the past one month-and-a-half.
The BSE benchmark index Sensex had gained about 2 per cent from September 14-28, when the government announced a slew of big-bang economic reforms.
"The government seems committed to fiscal reforms and more announcements / action on these will be needed to sustain markets at current levels and help them move higher," said Dipen Shah, Head of PCG Research, Kotak Securities.
On the global front, developments regarding the US 'fiscal cliff' could also weigh on sentiment, brokers said.
With the 2G auction realising far lesser amount than expected, concerns on the fiscal deficit front have deepened. While October inflation rate did come in better than expected at about 7.45 per cent, RBI has indicated that it still remains at elevated levels.
Besides local factors, fresh worries over the economies of Eurozone and the US had dragged down the Sensex and the Nifty by around 2 per cent last week.
Figures released by the European Union's official statistics agency on Thursday had showed the combined GDP of the 17 countries that share the euro fell for the second straight quarter.


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Oh. my. goodness. Trying to take in everything at NIGR is like trying to drink from a firehose. Our first speaker on Tuesday morning explained that her one-hour lecture would be a condensation of a four-hour presentation. And then she was off and running, talking rapidly as we tried to keep up. This was followed by another one-hour presentation by the same speaker. Followed by more speakers, each attempting to distill years' and years' worth of experience into a useful package to enable us to navigate the 500+ record groups in the National Archives system. This is key: the National Archives does not rearrange or combine the records that come to them. So, service records for a Civil War soldier are in one record group, his pension application in another, his medical records (if he ended up in a hospital due to wounds or illness) in another, and I refuse to even think about bounty land right now. Anyway, we need to know that all these sets of papers are in different places and need to be requested separately. Notations on papers in one set might well refer you to another set of papers… if you know how to interpret these things. Hence the firehose of information.
I'm beginning to feel less ignorant about military records—as in, I'm getting an idea of what I don't know, which is the important first step. We have lectures on basic military records, Civil War medical records, pension records, discharge papers for the War of 1812, and Fold3's military collections. Much of my own personal research time will be in the Civil War military and pension files of two or three men, supplemented (I hope) with some regimental histories.
We had the DAR Library to ourselves for three hours last night with the undivided attention of four staff members; quite a treat! I found a North Carolina county history that I'd not come across before. And then I found that the classmate sitting across the table from me was reading up on the same religious community in the same North Carolina county. Gotta love the connections we make with other researchers attending NIGR! The DAR Library, by the way, is an amazingly beautiful space. I remember years and years ago when my family was taking the train cross-country and we changed in Chicago, our parents took us out on the street and we craned our necks at the skyscrapers, and Dad laughed at us little hicks awed by the city. Well, some things never change; decades after leaving farm country, I'm still awed by these things that we never saw amidst the forty acres of this and forty acres of that in rural Michigan. And so at the DAR Library I grinned to myself like a hick in the city, soaking up the beauty of the place.


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Glazed honey & mustard sausages
Nutrition and extra info
Nutrition: per serving for eight
- kcal209
- fat15g
- saturates5g
- carbs10g
- sugars4g
- fibre1g
- protein9g
- salt1.86g
- 2 tbsp sunflower oil
Sunflower oil
Sunflower oil is made from pressing sunflower seeds and extracting the oil. It's usually…
- 48 cocktail sausages, separated if linked
- 3 tbsp clear honey
Honey is made by bees from the nectar they collect from flowers. Viscous and fragrant, it's…
- 3 tbsp wholegrain or Dijon mustard
- ketchup and mustard, to serve
A condiment made by mixing the ground seeds of the mustard plant with a combination of…
Preheat the oven to 200C/Gas 6/fan oven 180C. Pour the oil into a large roasting tin and heat in the oven for 3-4 minutes. Tip the sausages into the roasting tin and toss to lightly coat in the oil. Roast for 20-25 minutes or until browned and cooked through.
Drain the sausages well on kitchen paper, then tip them into a clean roasting tin. Blend the honey and mustard together in a small bowl, pour over the sausages and stir and shake them so they become coated. Return to the oven for 5 minutes, turning them over halfway. Serve hot or warm, with cocktail sticks and little pots of ketchup and mustard for dipping.
Prepare ahead: you can roast the sausages the day before, cool them on kitchen paper and then just keep them in a plastic container in the fridge overnight. Toss in the honey and mustard mix and reheat for 10-12 minutes in the oven before serving.
Stagger the cooking: heat half the sausages through in half the honey and mustard mix just before your guests arrive, then do the other half just as this first batch runs out.


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Enjoy the exceptional picture quality of LG's LB5900 TV. With Full HD 1080p resolution you get double the pixel resolution of standard HD, making your HD channels and Blu-ray movies look amazing. And, because this TV has LED backlighting, colors are bright and clear with detailed color that enhances your viewing experience. Have pictures, movies or audio stored on a USB? With USB 2.0, you can just plug and play your JPEG, MP3 and DivX HD content. And if you have fast moving content like action and sports, it will look virtual blur free with LG's Motion Clarity Index 240 that lets you get into the action.
Product Details:
Full HD 1080p resolution - See the best that HDTV has to offer with the outstanding picture quality of Full HD 1080p Resolution.
LED Backlighting - LED makes TVs slimmer, while also delivering amazing brightness, clarity and color detail.
MCI 240 - Fast-action sports, video games and more will look even better with a Motion Clarity Index of 240.
Product Details::


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Fading Gui Controls
A collection of new gui control classes that support fading via custom rendering code and script commands. Created by Will o' Wisp Games.
New Classes
• GuiFadingBitmapButtonCtrl : Gui button control with an image that will fade in and out.
• GuiFadingBitmapCtrl : Gui control with an image that will fade in and out. Includes child controls.
• GuiFadingButtonCtrl : Gui button control that will fade in and out. Only for buttons with no image, using profiles to 'fill' the color and borders.
Tech Blog
For more information about the development and usage of this resource check out its tech blog: Fading Gui Controls Blog Post
Fading Gui Controls on Github
Source Code:
1 - Create a new directory "source\gui\fading\".
2 - Copy the provided source files into the new directory.
3 - Open your project and add the new 'fading' filter under "torque3d\gui\" to mirror the new directory.
4 - Right-click the new 'fading' filter and choose 'Add Existing Item' from the dropdown. Go ahead and add each of the 4 new source files.
5 - Recompile. A successful install will allow the new classes to be used and their fadeIn() and fadeOut() functions called from script.
MIT Licensed under the original license included with Torque3D.
No clauses, no additions, no requirements. Enjoy the resource.
If you find this resource helpful you can thank us or show your support by leaving feedback or suggestions on our blog.


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Illustration clients include New York Magazine, New York Times, Simon and Schuster, Beth Israel Medical Center, Pfizer International. Susan Stillman's landscape work has been exhibited at various galleries. Trips to England and Wales inspired a series of landscape paintings, which became the basis for Home Portraits, a business Ms. Stillman began in 1989. Through Home Portraits, she is commissioned to paint heirloom representations of people's homes. Her work has been featured in Country Home magazine, New York Magazine, Victoria magazine, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Journal News, and on the "America's Talking" channel. Ms. Stillman has been teaching at Parsons since 1983.
Drawing/Imaging: (Spring 2021)


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Texas-style 'cancel culture' comes for GOP convention
A veteran of Republican politics in The Lonestar State is vowing to join a lawsuit if Houston's mayor refuses to allow a state GOP convention.
Heading into Easter on last weekend's box office top 10 list to secure an expanded release this weekend, the movie The Cast for Christ – which is based on the best-selling novel written by acclaimed Christian author Lee Strobel – received the highest reviews by moviegoers, who give it a rare "A+" CinemaScore rating … which is typically received by only two films per year.
After taking in nearly $4 million in receipts on its debut weekend, The Case for Christ will be viewed at hundreds of more theaters through Easter Sunday by audiences across the nation, according to the ex-atheist-turned-Christian author of the like-named book.
"Because of [a] strong opening weekend, Case for Christ movie now expanded to 500 more screens for Easter weekend!" Strobel tweeted last week. "Please spread the word."
One of the nation's leading movie sites announced last week that the Christian film held its own with Hollywood box office smashes – such as DreamWorks' The Boss Baby ($26.3 million) in first, Disney's Beauty and the Beast ($25 million) in second, Sony's Smurfs: The Lost Village ($14 million) in third and New Line's Going in Style ($12.5 million) in fourth – with The Case for Christ coming in 10th.
"Rounding out the top 10 is Pure Flix's The Case for Christ, finishing with an estimated $3.9 million from 1,174 theaters and an 'A+ CinemaScore," Box Office Mojo reported last week.
As anticipated below, the adapted film got a boost after its opening week once Palm Sunday receipts were registered, as the movie recorded a nearly $7 million box office total on Thursday going into its second weekend – with receipts expected to jump again with moviegoers flocking to the big screen on Easter Sunday.
"[The] weekend … featured a satisfactory opening for Pure Flix's The Case for Christ, which could see its estimates receive a bump … as a result of it being Palm Sunday," Box Office Mojo's Brad Brevit reported before to total of last Sunday's receipts were tallied.
According to critics at Rotten Tomatoes, the film received a "fresh" score, indicative of a 75-percent favorability rating, with audiences scoring it higher by nearly double digits to give it an 84-percent favorability rating.
Word to the skeptic
The movie – intended for believers and skeptics alike – challenges audiences on both intellectual and spiritual levels and takes moviegoers on the same journey Strobel took decades ago when he was an atheist playing devil's advocate.
"The Case for Christ retells the story of how Strobel – a former investigative journalist – sets out to prove that the resurrection of Jesus Christ was a sham, but after a journey of examining the evidence and wrestling with his inner self, comes to faith," The Christian Post (CP) reports. "The plot follows Strobel, who is played by actor Mike Vogel, as he struggles to deal with his wife's conversion to Christianity."
It was tangible evidence that ignited Strobel's skepticism in his own atheistic religious beliefs – an entrenched worldview that began taking its toll on his family.
"His wife, played by actress Erika Christensen, encourages her nonbelieving husband to turn to Christ – something he initially rejects – but is persuaded following his examination of the evidence, including the world-famous Shroud of Turin," CP's Stoyan Zaimov informed. "The movie presents a number of different struggles, including one between a father and a son, but focuses heavily on the stain on Strobel's marriage."
Soon, Strobel could no longer ignore the facts and buy into the lies that he was led to believe his entire life.
"Some of the evidence for the resurrection of Jesus helped convince me – as an atheist journalist – that there is really truth behind the Christian claims," Strobel told CP earlier this month. "We are living in a post truth era, where people are searching for solid ground – they're looking for something to say, 'This is true … I can rely on this.'"
He maintained that believing in Jesus Christ is not leap of faith at all – but an embracing of the facts – of trusting in tried and tested Truths that can only come from the one and only God of the universe.
"Christianity claims to be true – it says it's not wishful thinking or make-believe or legends or mythology, but it's based on actual historical evidence," Strobel continued in the interview. "And I think these days young people especially are looking for something solid like that to put their trust in."
Cure for the blind
Strobel shared the message of his book and the newly released movie in a piece he wrote this month titled "Why I am bullish on Christianity."
"When atheists claim there is no evidence for Christianity, I disagree," Strobel wrote on FoxNews.com on April 7. "When liberal theologians assert there are many paths to heaven, I object. When young people say God isn't relevant in the 21st century, I beg to differ. When analysts predict the decline of the evangelical church, I roll my eyes."
He recognizes today's heavy opposition to his faith and biblical worldview, and invites the very skepticism he one dished out.
"Are my positions popular?" the former atheist posed. "Maybe not, but they flow out of convictions that have only grown stronger in the midst of the evolving religious landscape in America. I've seen the surveys. I'm aware of the rise of the so-called 'nones,' who profess no religious affiliation. And frankly, that doesn't trouble me very much. Rather than claiming to be Christians, as many have done in years past, now these people are now willing to be more honest. Today it's socially acceptable – in many places even desirable – to be a skeptic. 'Atheist' is no longer considered such a derogatory term."
Strobel is actually glad that more people today are candid about their disbelief than they were in the past.
"The truth is that America was never as much of a 'Christian nation' as some historians wish it were," he added. "There was a veneer of faith over the land. 'Respectable' people went to church. Now they don't pretend anymore. That's okay."
He then visited the days of unbelief that once shrouded his life – and his wife's.
"I was a scoffer once myself, before spiritual skepticism became trendy," the Christian apologist recounted. "As a law-trained journalist at the Chicago Tribune, I didn't have any patience for mythology, superstition or make-believe. 'Just give me the facts' was my motto. My wife was agnostic. Then one day, through the influence of a friend and a church, she met Jesus. The first word to come into my mind: divorce. As portrayed in The Case for Christ, the forthcoming movie based on our story, I set out to disprove her beliefs and rescue her from the cult of Christianity."
The mounting evidence for Christ and his resurrection soon turned Strobel's life upside-down.
"After nearly two years, the scales tipped," he explained. "Having encountered the persuasive evidence for Christianity, I concluded it would have required more faith to maintain my atheism than to become a believer. I ended up taking a 60-percent pay cut to leave my journalism career and become a pastor. For 30 years now, I've watched the world from the vantage point of a pulpit…"
He says the days are becoming more desperate as humanity, which is finding that the pursuit and attainment of worldly ambitions and idols are empty and futile – and unable to find pure joy and fulfillment that only comes through a relationship with Jesus Christ.
"More and more people [are] growing weary of our materialistic and celebrity-saturated culture – and instead finding exhilaration in Jesus," Strobel pointed out. "The proliferation of ministries that help the hurting, feed the hungry, and replace despair with hope. Addicts rescued. Broken families put back together. Racial reconciliation. Selflessness displacing self-interest. While some churches are closing, many of those with a relevant and biblically faithful message aren't just growing – they're burgeoning."
He ended by predicting that the denial of right and wrong – good and evil – promoted by America's schools, media and entertainment industry will soon lose its war against God, His Church and the Bible.
"Let me share a little secret – in our increasingly chaotic world, the Christian message of truth and grace continues to resonate among people who are tired of the shifting sands of post-modern relativism," Strobel concluded. "No doubt about it: count me among those who are optimistic about the future of the Church in America."
A veteran of Republican politics in The Lonestar State is vowing to join a lawsuit if Houston's mayor refuses to allow a state GOP convention.
News stories each weekday from reporters you can trust without the liberal bias found in much of "mainstream" media.
News stories each weekday from reporters you can trust without the liberal bias found in much of "mainstream" media.