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Box Office: 'Jason Bourne' Defeats Competition For $60 Million Debut
The return of Jason Bourne has further cemented Matt Damon as a box office draw after last year's stellar, Oscar-nominated The Martian. Jason Bourne easily marched to the top of the box office, debuting at No. 1 with $60 million in what has become one of the best debuts of this summer so far.
But that's not all, as Jason Bourne has also become one of the few franchise films of this year to debut stronger than the previous film in the series, as The Bourne Legacy opened to just $38.1 million in 2012. However, that could have a lot to do with the complete lack of Matt Damon in that movie. Jeremy Renner is a great actor, and Aaron Cross was a pretty cool character. But, as the box office evidence suggested at the time, he was no Jason Bourne.
Of course, the big story with Jason Bourne is just how well the movie is doing internationally, with the ticket sales from 56 foreign markets totaling $50 million. This is the best opening for any of the Bourne movies, and it places the film with a worldwide gross of $110.1 million in its first weekend. The film, which cost $120 million to make, has received strong critical reviews for both Damon and returning director Paul Greengrass, who helmed The Bourne Supremacy and The Bourne Ultimatum, the second and third films in the (so far) five-film franchise, respectively. Needless to say, Jason Bourne steamrolled this weekend's other competitors.
The other big newcomer for this week was the female-skewing comedy Bad Moms, which did pretty well for a movie that hasn't received nearly the promotional push of a movie like Jason Bourne. In its debut weekend, the film is on track to earn around $23.4 million, which is impressive for an R-rated comedy. Granted, the movie couldn't get above a third-place finish, but this isn't so much a failure of Bad Moms so much as it is a testament to the staying power of Star Trek Beyond, which earned $24 million to pass $100 million in its second weekend. Bad Moms is bolstered by solid audience reviews, and a star-lined cast that includes Mila Kunis, Kristen Bell, Kathryn Hahn, Jada Pinkett Smith and Christina Applegate.
And then there was Nerve. The thriller, which stars Emma Roberts and Dave Franco, earned about $15 million over the course of its five-day debut, since the film released last Wednesday. Excluding Wednesday and Thursday, the movie is projected to take in $9 million, for a disappointing eighth-place finish. However, the positive is that the film cost just $20 million to make, so there's still hope for Nerve turning a profit, particularly if word-of-mouth is able to keep it in the summer movie conversation. After all, there's nothing else like it in theaters right now, really.
We'll update tomorrow with more box office news once the final numbers are in. Until then, let us know what you saw at the movies this weekend, and what you're looking forward to seeing, in the comments below!
And for more news from the weekend in entertainment, read up on Teen Wolf star Tyler Posey coming out as gay — only to apparently retract it!


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A provocative perspective for building Organic Cottages
Organic Cottages are a trend I think you will be hearing more about as we are forced to delineate between the idea of Tiny Houses on Wheels which the TV shows have made popular and the tiny houses that are not on wheels and are intended for living in full time. The idea of creating sustainable houses that could be transported but are not road vehicles is one I have built over 70 houses upon. Some have weighed in at over 20,000 lbsand others well under 5,000 lbs. The possibilities are many, and all have been built with 95% Pure Salvage. Two trailers have delivered 65 houses so why waste a trailer under just one house. For those that find their new homestead quickly, the axles and trailers will have little meaning later and will likely go to waste as they will seldom be used to move the house, but are tied to it for life.
Given the incredible reduction in airspace when the people move into tiny houses on wheels or others that are sealed up rather air tight, one should perhaps consider how much air one needs to survive. What quality of air would you like to breath? Consider the formaldehyde, plasticizers, vinyl, glues, and other materials that outgas into a very tiny breathing space, then factor in that the children under 8 have no blood brain barrier to keep these chemicals from getting into their brains while youngsters and hurting their brains for life. It is critical people understand the dangers caused by the environment that outgassing creates when the immune systems are compromised when they are stressed out by having to give up their homes they have been in for decades. After years of abusing our immune systems, the Baby Boomer generation is going to have to pay attention their houses as Lupus, Fibromyalgia, and other immune system or health issues plague them as they enter their 50's and 60's. Tiny Houses, if not built properly, will only aggravate the problem and result in consequences that few seem to be anticipating. Soon the evidence will be undeniable and the home being built as toxin free as possible will become a big issue for those that care about their health and that of those they love who share their tiny homes with them.
We should look at the environment we create for people that we call a home, as a due diligence owed to the people by the builders and the companies that create the materials being used to construct the typical houses being built today. Factoring the ecological, health, and energy costs of the materials we use is a responsible form of diligence that can be done if one sets their mind to it, but few builders do. As responsible stewards of the world and the continual call for stopping the pollution, imports of the last rain forests, issues of toxins created in the processing of the aluminum, vinyl, sheetrock, glass, etc. I suggest that we measure the cost of energy used to create and then separately, the energy required to live in housing, not just the amount we use after we move in, then perhaps we can make people more aware of the true costs of our houses from an energy, resources, and human energy perspective.The should calculate the cost to create glass, plastics, vinyl windows, wiring, tubs, sinks, numerous parts, and the trees it takes to build as well. These are the energy costs that amount to more than what you will use while living in the house for decades, and likely, by the time the house is 15 years old, the ac system, carpet, roof, water heater, fogged up energy efficient windows, and many other parts will already need to be replaced, thus the added energy costs to create, ship, stock, sell, and install them adds to the superficial costs of operating a house for heating and cooling, which is all that is used now to determine the efficiency of a house. Seems rather short sighted to not calculate the costs of the materials it takes to build it in addition to the living costs after it is built when the former cost is the greater of the two. So the 15 or 20 year life of one product versus the 100 year life of another becomes more meaningful in the equation since the materials might create a structure with 3 times the lifespan and is using 1/10th of the resources, the impact is much greater.
Now, if you can build a house with 95% of the parts costing you a total of 40 gallons of diesel fuel in energy, whether used to run the generator to de-nail the wood, to run the saws to build the house, the nail guns to shoot out and shoot in the new nails, or the few other new parts needed to build an organic sustainable house. The 5% of new items required are screws, nails, underlayment for exterior walls, insulation, wiring, and plumbing. The fewer materials you create anew to build a house with, the lower the energy and resource component in the bigger energy equation. Make the tiny houses energy efficient as well as organic, sustainable, and healthy… you have a paradigm shift in thinking about how to calculate the real cost of housing to the planet. IF 40 gallons of fuel, truly a small amount of energy released to manifest 95% of the house means that it costs 1 gallon of diesel per year of its first 40 years of its potential 100 year lifespan.
Better still is the amount of energy saved before the house was built by not having to create the other parts as well. For example, the cast iron sink that is 60 lbs with a thick porcelain coating on it was salvaged thus the savings by not having to create cast iron from iron ore, cast the sink in a mold, put it through a kiln to bake on the thick porcelain, and ship it to Texas from the far away foundries that create it. Add to that the average additional cost of going through the marketing chain from China where it likely would be made, ships, warehouses, big box stores, and eventually though the builder into the house cost equation, including advertising cost for all of the entities involved to make it all happen.
The true cost of the sink from a resource and energy cost is huge, human energy is still great, and thus, the old sink that would have been scrapped comes to life again to save the energy it took to make it, and bank it toward the future. The heat and fuel it took to create it is enough to fuel the entire energy needs of the organic energy efficient house it goes into for more than 50 years alone. The savings by not having to make new glass and cut trees to create the wooden windows that are rather energy efficient once weather stripped, again, enough to heat and cool the home for 15 years for it take a whole lot of energy to melt sand into glass. That does not value or mention the human energy required to blow the bubbles in a pit, lift it to the table, cut it and unroll it to create sheets of glass as they did up until 1919.
If one saves as much energy as a house would use in 100 years before it is built by not having to create the materials it will take to build it, and it only cost you 40 gallons of diesel fuel and some human energy to accomplish that feat, wouldn't it make sense to promote that sort of building on a national scale. That would be the target, knowing it is possible, thus some could or shoot for something lower but similar in scope if one could not attain that high of a percentage of salvaged materials in the total construction. How do we inspire that sort of thinking and a shift in the paradigm that is presently dominating the building materials industry, the one of all new materials, imported, and without any significant points to count or regard for the energy it takes to bring it together in a house as part of the Energy Star and LEEDs rating systems. Once we transition to calculating the total cost to build a house, the savings from salvage and reward people for building with this standard in mind, we can create an industry from what is now trash.
If you tract the value of the materials that go into the landfill and see what taxes get paid on the building materials that now comprise 50% of the landfills across the country. They pay nothing in property taxes nor for the loss of resources, the release of carbon there after, or the pollution from the sites. If we take 25% of the landfills, just half of the building materials presently going into the landfill and use them to build houses instead that deserve the same tax free status as the trash in the landfill for the benefits to the planet in savings that they thus create. They keep the carbon trapped in the old growth lumber we can save, the siding, glass that was formed with coal pulled from the mines by 12 year olds, and respect the enormous human energy it took by our forefathers to create all of it. We respect them and the giant trees 4′ across and over a hundred feet tall by not throwing the lumber they were turned into long before the end of its usable lifespan. If we throw it away, there is no more. Instead, if we gave a lifetime tax exemption for what ever portion of a house that was salvage, people would be clamoring for 95% Pure Salvage, not just 40% so they could live in a tiny Organic Cottage for the rest of their lives. These are the sorts of legitimate rewards we need to offer the retiring baby boomers so that they have a choice in saving the world for the kids to come and being rewarded for using up what would have filled badly needed landfill space so that we do not have to build more landfills.
The concept of Pure Salvage Outposts are simply Resource Banks that people can gather the salvage in, barter, share knowledge, labor, and skills to help each other not only create houses, but communities where skills like teaching can be bartered for house parts, help, clothing and food if needed. Each person has something to offer in such a co op and all have much to gain. The common resources stored to build organic houses, mostly at the cost of human energy, not new resources, and the tools and spaces to build in, common trailer and truck to ship with, and the community to support each person in their progress to new skills and self sufficiency. Why not fund it with the gifts left to us by our ancestors, old houses, barns, and buildings full of treasure we could not otherwise afford?
This is my vision, my dream, for the Pure Salvage Living Renaissance to spread so all may share in the benefits of building incredible houses out of salvage and in doing so, empowering the masses to all have what they need, and know they are preserving the future of the planet for the generations that will follow. How better can we respect those who came before us, share the planet with us, and all it took to make these miracles possible every day?
If you have not heard the Song of Salvage in the two versions available as Music Videos…. Please do take a moment and enjoy them as they are full of great pictures and have a great tune to go with them.
and the other by Johnny B and the Apostles of Salvage…
Thanks for sharing the vision and perhaps helping it manifest in your part of the world.

subset: commoncrawl


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You aren't sure when you lost interest in your life. Maybe it was when you graduated high school and realized that your mom and dad weren't going to always pay for your gas and make you Tang when you asked for it. Maybe it was when you were in college and you realized that you were no one if you didn't like to drink. More likely, it could have been after you were diagnosed with something stupid that should be insignificant but has somehow changed your entire life. But you think it was probably after him.
Everyone has a him in their lives. You know this. And you don't like playing the victim, the martyr. But you didn't lose your constant reading, your love for family get-togethers, your passion for music and writing...until after he was done with you. You think of how he would make eye contact with you across a room and mouth the words "Fuck you," then, minutes would pass, and he would mouth tearfully, "I love you." You think of this and you laugh. You remember how he punched his steering so hard it broke, how he said, "You are so lucky that wasn't your face," afterwards. You remember this and you roll your eyes. But thinking of the things he said to you for years after that doesn't make you laugh, or roll your eyes. It just makes you sad. You realize that if you are told you are worthless time and time again, you start to believe it yourself.
You know it wasn't his fault. Even if you know better, you have already forgiven. Just not forgotten. You know it is the chemicals in your brain, some stupid gene you have, that is to blame. You used to care about things. You don't know what happened. You cry for no reason and you tell your husband that you aren't unhappy, exactly, but it is as though there is a film over your life. Like those allergy commercials where the screen is blurred, and then suddenly clear again. But you haven't found that magical cure yet.
Your husband asks, and will ask, time and time again, if he has done something wrong, why you feel this way. You try to tell him that there is no reason - you are simply sad and cannot seem to snap out of it. He tries to understand - he brings you boxes of donuts, new movies that you want to see, puts little notes in your lunch - but he doesn't. You know your life is nearly perfect; you know you couldn't ask for more. Why, then, does there seem to be something in your brain that is switched off? You go to the movies weekly with your husband, you play video games together - you are happy. But when he is gone and you are alone, you have never felt such a crushing helplessness.
There are days you feel you physically cannot get out of bed. Could you be any more of a cliche?
You have been diagnosed in the past, talked to by a psychologist whose face you now cannot recall, but that in your mind looks like a mix between Professor Trelawney and Professor McGonagall. You watch too much Harry Potter. She gave you a bright lamp, telling you to sit in it for an hour each night, especially during the winter - it will improve your moods. You tried it for a few nights but it just makes you nauseous.
You don't understand what you are doing wrong - you're doing the same things you've always done that used to make you happy - you're frustrated that your old tactics are no longer working for you. Your husband is relentlessly hopeful: Try going over to your parents'! Try starting a new television series on Netflix! Try taking a nap? He is sweet, that boy, and you love each other very much, but all you want to do, all you feel you can do, is sit on the couch and stare at the wall.
There is no reason for you to be feeling this way.
You are so lucky.
Stop it. Stop being sad. Stop.


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Sunday in Huntington Beach could not have been more pristine, as local surfing royalty, friends and fans of the late Andy Irons gathered on the south side of the Huntington Beach Pier to pay tribute to the legendary surfing icon. Still reeling from shock after Irons' untimely death at age 32 on Nov. 2, this surfing community gathered first on the sand for a beautifully executed memorial and then a somber procession into the surf for a traditional paddle-out to honor their fallen brother. On this beautiful autumn afternoon, the surfers slowly began to form the large circle that connects them together, holding hands and chanting, "Andy, Andy, Andy!"
The sight from the pier was nothing less than spectacular. On the pier, an estimated crowd of 3,000 onlookers watched in awe as these surfers splashed water toward the heavens, banged on their boards (also part of this timeless Hawaiian tradition) and threw into the center of the massive circle flowers for their hero that they clenched in their teeth as they made their way into the water. Due to the huge number of grieving souls, they were not able to each give a personal account of their memory of Andy Irons. Estimated to be a thousand in number, it was to be the largest paddle-out in Huntington Beach ever.


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Vanilla ice cream curl will promote moisture for bounce and shine . Its cocktail of natural ingredients are designed to lock in moisture. The oils act as a natural SPF. Containing your favourite ingredients like shea butter and coconut oil, you'll also love the subtle hints of vanilla ice-cream.
The best product for curly hair. If you have a mixture of 3C to 3A hair textures , then this product is for you. This product will promote moisture for bounce and shine . Shea butter keeps the moisture locked in all day. Also great for deep conditioning, strengthening hair, and adding shine.
How to use
Apply to clean hair after shampoo and conditioning, apply one of your oils and the vanilla Ice cream curl hair butter cream to LOC in moisture and hydrate your hair.
Ingredients :- Aqua, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter), Theobroma Cocoa (Cocoa Butter) Emulsifying Wax, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut Oil), Cetearyl Alcohol, Olea Europaea(Olive Oil), Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond Oil), Castor Oil, Geogard Ultra, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond Oil), Castor Oil, Geogard Ultra (Preservative), Glycerine and Vanilla Essential Oils.


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While it is true that a timeshare contract is a binding legal document, it is often mistakenly thought that such a contract cannot only be cancelled. In fact, most timeshare companies maintain that their contracts are non – cancellable. This misconception is perpetuated by timeshare companies and user groups that are funded, maintained and controlled by the timeshare industry.
The FHA 203k loan program provides home buyers the opportunity to buy and fix up a property, without exhausting their personal savings.
The National Mortgage Foreclosure Settlement Agreement of 2012 was a landmark case for the housing industry in the United States, but it did not mark the end of the scrutiny placed on dubious foreclosure practices. A new settlement between 10 banks and the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) will distribute $8.5 billion to nearly four million homeowners who were victims of the careless, perfunctory, aggressive, and generally misguided actions of mortgage lenders and servicing institutions during the foreclosure free-for-all that followed the housing market crash.
Amidst mounting complaints by mortgage borrowers with regard to malfeasance and general ineptitude by banks and legal teams handling foreclosures, federal regulators assigned the review of millions of highly questionable mortgage defaults, evictions and repossessions to the OCC. The review, which began in late 2011, proved to be a herculean task and a costly endeavor.
After more than a year of reviews and analysis by consultants who pocketed about $1 billion in fees, the OCC gave up and approached the offending banks with offers of a settlement agreement. Among the few foreclosure files examined, the OCC consultants found patterns of Clouseau-like clumsiness, dual tracking, robo-signing, substandard paperwork, botched loan modifications, and suspicious activities.
A Conflict of Interest and a Lacking Settlement
Bruce Marks, an executive at the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America, told the New York Times that the decision to distribute the funds from the settlement award among the 3.8 million borrowers affected was absurd. From $8.5 billion that the banks agreed to pay, only about $3.3 billion will be disbursed among the borrowers. One billion has already been earmarked to pay the consultants who were paid as much as $250 per hour in some cases.
Two of the consulting firms retained by the OCC may have caused conflicts of interest due to their prior relationship to the banks being investigated. Those firms are Deloitte and Promontory, respectively assigned to audit Bank of America and JP Morgan Chase. According to the New York Times, the former chairwoman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) realized that the OCC was ill-equipped to deal with the situation from the beginning.
As the OCC defends its role in review and the settlement agreement it was able to reach, some borrowers are questioning the validity of the review. Many borrowers felt that they were given puzzling questionnaires that did not apply to their particular foreclosure situations. It is unclear at this point how much each borrower will receive as part of the settlement.


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Roberta Flack: The Best of Roberta Flack [Atlantic, 1981]
On the evidence of these hits (the early albums were marginally livelier), she has nothing whatsoever to do with rock and roll or rhythm and blues and almost nothing to do with soul. The analogy isn't Donny Hathaway (who lives on in duet after duet), much less Stevie Wonder (also represented)--it's Barry Manilow. She made "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" and "Killing Me Softly With His Song," he made "Mandy" and "I Write the Songs," and who is to say which achievement will prove more durable? Flack has much better taste, I agree--that's the point. In the long run, pop lies are improved by vulgarity.


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Too many new things to learn, eh?
I write web/mobile applications for fun and at work using the latest and greatest frameworks and technologies.
I am not a graphic designer or a web artist though. Let's leave that to the experts.
I am a professional engineer registered in the province of Alberta, Canada.
Living in Calgary, Alberta has its perks. You're just an hour away from the majestic Canadian Rockies.
You can find me backcountry skiing during the winter, scrambling, biking, climbing, hiking and backpacking during the summer.
Check out more of my adventures on Flickr


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Longmont Nest to Wings
Nest To Wings is a half-day annual event for sophomore, junior, and senior young women and their mothers. The event provides educational sessions designed to help the young women to maximize the college application, college choice, and first year college experience while helping their mothers to understand how to provide support and deal with an empty (or emptier) nest. All of our presenters have experience in their field.
We have an annual event scheduled for March 8, 2014 at the LifeBridge Confernece Center in north Longmont. For the event Agenda and topic listing click here!
We are sponsored by the P.E.O. See about us page.
We invite you to learn more about our services and activities here on our website. Please do not hesitate to contact us for more information. We are happy to have your attendence at the event. The agenda and more information on the event is located here.
Nest to Wings


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Public History Summer School – University of Wrocław (Poland), 2-5 July 2018
Na Sveučilištu u Wroclawu održana je od 2. do 5. srpnja 2018. godine ljetna škola iz javne povijesti.
The Historical Institute of the University of Wroclaw (Poland), the International Federation for Public History, Jean Monnet Network for Applied European Contemporary History and Zajezdnia History Centre invite students and PhD candidates to participate in Public History Summer School to be held in Wrocław, 2-5 July 2018.
The Historical Institute (HI UWr) constitutes a major centre for public history studies and offers a unique MA program taught in English.
If you are interested in how history functions in the public sphere, the summer school will give you an opportunity to broaden your interests and enrich your methodology. The event will combine lectures and debates concerning methodology and specific case studies by scholars from the HI UWr and invited guests from other universities, as well as presentations of students' own research projects.
We strongly encourage graduate and postgraduate students from all universities in Poland and other countries to apply and deliver their papers in English. The research projects may concern:
- Historical narratives
- History & politics
- History & memory
- E-history
- Digital humanities
- Oral history
- Visual history
- History of education
- Historical journalism
- Popularization of history
- History & media
- History-related games
During the summer school, you will have an opportunity to meet students of the UWr, visit the old city of Wrocław and Zajezdnia History Centre (a recently opened museum devoted to the post-war history of the city). Furthermore, you will be given more information regarding pursuing MA in Public History at the University of Wrocław.
The summer school is organised within the framework of the International Conference Studying Public History – Methods, Difficulties, Perspectives.
The opening keynote lecture entitled
Internationalizing Public History
will be given by the President the International Federation for Public History
Prof. Thomas Cauvin (Colorado State University)
Climbing out of the ivory tower, jumping into society: some thoughts on public history
Written by
Fabio Spirinelli
Published on
12 July 2018
From 2 to 5 July 2018, I had the pleasure to participate in the Public History Summer School in Wroclaw (Poland). Not only was it an enriching experience for me, but it also pushed me to think more about the role of public history, its challenges and its opportunities.


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Dark Dwarves by Grenadier
|Dark Dwarf General
|Dark Dwarf Infantry
|Dark Dwarf Sorcerer
|Wood Elf Infantry
|Wood Elf Rangers (rear)
|Wood Elf Rangers (front)
|Wood Elf Brigade Commander
|Wood Elf Chariot
|One of four stands for my Royal Archers
|Elf Hero (round base)
Griffin Riders by Ral Partha
Wemics by Ral Partha
I personally think these are some of the most amazing sculpts around. I have based and flocked these since, but don't have newer photos.
I'll continue to post more photos this week.


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Unpleasantness in St Alfege's Passage
Robert from Number 16 (the guesthouse)had a most unpleasant time Saturday night, and is keen to warn people to be on their guard. He says:
"I woke at 4.30 am to find an intruder in my bedroom which is very much at the back of the building. I don't know who was more shaken when I screamed at him, he or me. There was then a fight, in which I injured him. He made off across the gardens of the next door into the church recreation gardens. Police were called and details taken.He was mid to late 20s, black neat short hair wearing clean jeans and dark blue top."
Robert's understandably very shaken, and presumably the burglar(?) isn't feeling so great either. I used to think that St Alfege's Passage must be an idyllic place to live; I'm getting less and less sure these days.


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Analytical psychology, or Jungian psychology, is a school of thought developed by Carl Jung which stresses the importance of the ego and the personal quest for wholeness. It also states that the psyche is yearning for a balance between the conscious and unconscious states.
This said balance can be achieved through the study of dreams. Training analysts believe that Jungian psychology is an appropriate means of supervising clinicians in their field of work. Below are some of ways how this psychological model is being utilized as a form of mentorship:
1. Counter-transference
To understand their patients at a deeper level, clinicians must establish an emotional connection with them. In other words, they must redirect their feelings toward their clients. Counter-transference is of immense clinical utility as it allows the therapist to play a role congruent with his or her patient's internal world.
2. Self-discovery
Among psychologists, it is presumed that psychopathology cannot be taught. Instead, it must be discovered in the apprentice's own analytical experiences. Carl Jung's theory explicitly points to the examination of the ego. This provides the analytical viewpoints that learners need in order to understand psychopathology.
3. Jungian archetypes
Carl Jung's theory identifies four cardinal orientations, namely ego, freedom, social, and order. In each orientation lies three archetypes, which are then used by the mentor. This will provide the learning clinical psychologist with knowledge on how to deal with patients.
Paul Gabrinetti, Ph.D., is a Jungian analyst and clinical psychologist on the faculty of C.G. Jung Institute of Los Angeles' analyst training program. He is a former instructor at the University of Southern California. More about him can be read here.


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Hey Guys,
This was my second time attending London Fashion Week. I went on the last day which was Tuesday 24th February, and as it was more in the colder months not a lot of people were around. I still enjoyed it none the less. I took a few pictures of the street style and noticed people were wearing lots of layers and was prepared for the cold but yet was still stylish. My outfit of the day was a white blazer which I absolutely love, and you probably saw it in my 'A Few New Things' blog post; a black top, bottoms, and wedges. I felt it was simple but yet the white blazer stood out. During the whole time I was actually freezing and shivering my butt off lool it was so cold.
White Blazer - £24.99, Black Top - £7.99, Black Jeans - £7.99: H&M, Wedges - £85: Clarks
Can we just take this time to look at my friend Sosa, in the pop of colour! Loving the purple hair and the yellow skirt, I can honestly say I thought she looked the best, her outfit styled by her and inspired by Rihanna. Check out her blog: https://modemesee.wordpress.com
Hakaan Yildirim Autumn/Winter 2015
I got to see another Hakaan Yildirim fashion show! And again I loved it, I found the colour scheme simple but yet so much detail added to the garments. Take a look at some of the pictures :-)
Hope You Enjoyed This Post!
Genie xo


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CliffyB: Microtransaction is Not a Dirty Word, EA is Not The Bad Guy
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In the short run perhaps, but by making the continued acquisition by EA untenable, there is a third option.
An unemployed hack of a game designer soapbox defending EA, the worst goddamn publisher on the planet... This guy is a fucking idiot.
Okay, I'm going to say one thing. Do NOT fucking call what I'm saying a rant. This bullshit that people pull about labelling someone's argument a rant or some other diminutive term is fucking childish and pathetic. It's the same as people labelling me a troll. It's disrespectful and demeaning, and if you pull that shit again this discussion over. Clear?
As far as I'm concerned, I don't care.
The depends upon how much creative control EA has over the finished product. In past posts, your or someone else has claimed that I should not give credit for EA publishing a few games because they're just a publisher, not a developer. Now what you're implying is that EA has creative control and is setting unreasonable deadlines?
Let's assume something, EA is setting a publishing deadline, and the company itself has creative leeway. In that case it's up to the company to know what they can do in that allotted amount of time. Now if EA is demanding more than they can do, then the company should just say no. We can't do that. We need more people, and more money to pay those people. You know, it's about having a backbone?
Now if EA has control over the design of the game itself, and the budget, and the deadline and if the demands of the project are unreasonable then sure it's their fault. But in the case they're not really a publisher are they, they're a developer.
No I live in the real world where that happens all the time, people moving to different jobs that is.
My precious EA? I don't give a shit about EA, as I've said in the past. I barely own any of their games. SO don't attribute some fanboyism to me, that's not the reason I'm in this discussion I'm in this discussion to promote level-headed understanding. Why you feel it necessary to attribute some sentimentality to me is beyond me. Perhaps my goal is not to support EA but to support a balanced understanding?
How many new IPs EA promotes is irrelevant to me when everyone else is doing a same or worse job. Blizzard is just continuing old IPs, so is Valve, so is Bethesda, so are a lot of people.
I think you're attributing thoughts to me that don't apply.
So yeah, actually I'll go back on what I just said and say that yes, Valve is a failure. And until they quit doing sequels to third party mod updates, I'll continue to hold that point of view.
Steam Greenlight? So you're giving them credit, for other people's games? Riiiiight.
Xbox Live Summer of Arcade has done more to get indies into the spotlight than steam ever did. Steam is just riding on the coattail's of MS's success.
I wouldn't even call Valve a dev anymore. Nothing more than a store really, like EB Games or Gamestop.
What law? You can't copyright game mechanics.
Like the new game Cube. Cube is portal-like, in that it's a bunch of puzzles and has a similar aesthetic. But it's not portal. Different mechanics. They didn't break any laws.
Ask me again in four years. (the amount of time it took TF2 to go F2P)
I love it how he patronizes valve with only two examples and the second example and i quote,
"People love to beat up on Origin, but they forget that, for a good amount of time, Steam sucked. No one took it seriously for the first while. When Gabe pitched it at GDC to my former co-workers years ago they came back with eye rolls." Steam took years to become the undisputed king of digital distribution, and Bleszinski asks us to remember this before dismissing Origin."
actually proves that valve worked hard to be where they want to be and they did it because of the consumer, and you know what. Valve knows this so they give great prices, deals, sales, and games because they want people to be satisfied. Yet with this stupid argument "If you don't like EA, don't buy their games," is pretty crap especially because EA locks companies in and wont allow them to publish games outside EA so if you like a game but not EA, too bad EA published the game and now that company is in a 10 year hidden contract.
Also these "microtransactions" that cost $3 or $5 isn't the BIG problem, the problem is why do you deserve $60 if your going to charge me $30 in (usually mandatory) microtransactions & DLC, you don't deserve $60 and that's the difference between them, Team Fortress 2 is free to play and how do you become premium? $40? $50? $60? try less than one dollar, yeah the full game less than a dollar, the game is so cheap that no one has problems buying hats because they didn't pay $60 up front valve let the consumer decide the games worth. Funny because valve is starting to make me think of another video game thing, The Humble Indie Bundle.
I'm also sensing that Cliffy B got a big check from this interview *cough* EA *cough* probably paid him to say this *cough*
That's pretty much exactly why people love valve and hate EA. When valve makes something available for free you actually get to experience almost all of the game for free whereas in a microtransaction enabled EA game if it ever goes free you will see severe restrictions on what your character can do (I wouldn't put it past them to make you pay for the ability to jump!) and what they can use (Want more than two weapons? Buy the weapon pack for only $29.55!) and they have already cut out gameplay to sell to you as on-disk day one DLC (Want more than one level of gameplay? Unlock the rest of game one level at a time for the low price per level of $1.99! Or better yet; unlock five levels at a time for the bargain price of $8.99! Want to see the REAL ending for the game? Now you can for the low, low price of only $5.95!)
That's the benefit of the second option, not a third.
Taking that option still means that all the currently acquired, beloved studios and their properties die.
It is the better of the options, in the long run, I admit. But it is a very, very hard line to follow. To refer back to my hostage situation comparison; while not negotiating for hostages prevents people from taking hostages in the first place, you've still got to willfully doom any hostages taken between now and when the lesson is learned.
You really need to calm down.
I'm not your underling, and I'm not indebted to you for this discussion, so your threat holds absolutely no weight.
That being said, I apologise for any offence caused by using the term "rant", it wasn't intended to cause offence.
No. I'm saying EA are setting unreasonable deadlines. You're making the other part up.
That was me.
It'd be great if it was that simple, but it's not. Do you think authors predict the number of pages their books will be before they write them, or do you think they write them and find out how many pages it is afterwards? When creating art, you can't just choose a stopping point, because then you'd have to deliberately skip over inspiration when it came to you. When they were writing Mass Effect 3, if they had a really good idea that they'd not had when the deadlines were set, should that idea just be cast to the wind just so the truly arbitrary deadline can remain on one day, instead of moving back a week to an equally good day?
I've worked on a fair bit of art myself. Inspiration comes and goes and no amount of trying will ever bring it to you otherwise. Prioritize deadlines and you grossly limit art. Someone has one idea, and you make it, ignoring all of the inspiration along the way which would have improved upon it and accepting all the flaws you discover, without fixing them. Sounds great, right? Much more important that you release it in March instead of April, but make it totally uninspired, yeah?
As for switching companies, I'm happy for you that your local business seems to be so good that you can fall from one job into another without trying. But please don't try to pretend the whole world is like that. The video game industry is hard to get into, because its a dream job for a lot of people. That means there are a lot of unemployed game designers. That means you join a long line when you lose a job.
I'd buy that if you weren't trying to deflect absolutely 100% of the blame away from EA. That's not level-headedness, that's fanboyism.
You told me I wasn't showing a balanced perspective, so I showed you some of the things EA does right and some of the things Valve does wrong... I even divided the blame for ME3's ending equally between BioWare and EA.
But as far as you're concerned, EA's spotless and Valve's awful. Exactly the same black-and-white nonsense I thought you were railing against?
I've already told you that they're making the Steam Box, but you selectively ignored that, apparently. So I'll tell you again; They're making the Steam Box. Maybe making a console is taking a lot of their attention?
Plus, what Gabe Newell is also doing, is offering more games for much, much cheaper than anyone else. And maybe developing HL3? When that comes out, it's sure to set the bar once again. If I asked you to wake me up when EA made a revolutionary new console, offered massive sales across hundreds of products like Steam, or defined a new generation of games, I'd be sleeping eternally.
Great strawman. Now onto what I was actually saying;
Steam Greenlight is great because it gives indie games a chance to be advertised on Steam's front page. Exposure can make or break a game.
XBLA is good for Indie games, but Greenlight is better. Firstly, it's much easier and cheaper to make indie games for PC (which is why they out number XBLA games hundreds-to-one) and secondly, because XBLA requires Microsoft to find and approve those games, whereas Greenlight works on votes by users, eliminating Valve's potential blind spots from the equation.
You would not believe how much more difficult it is to make games for a console than it is to make them for PC. If making a game could be equated to cooking; PC games would be an omelette and console games would be a roast dinner with all the trimmings.
I don't even know why you're asking that question, when you already know the answer, evidenced by your own words a sentence later.
You can copyright enough of a game so that it'd be breaking the law, if you were making Portal, got the sack, got a new job and made Portal again.
So, like I already said, if you're working on your magnus opus, you simply could not afford to have it taken from you. Imagine your favourite art form, your favourite artist... say perhaps a musician... suddenly being legally unable to play whatever their main, signature instrument is. It's not as simple as just shrugging and saying "Welp, onto the next instrument." like you seem to think it is. So if that musician, through no fault of their own, became the apparently disposable slave of EA (through whatever witchcraft you might like to imagine, play along) and EA could take their instrument away if the musician didn't do as they say... you damn well better believe that most, even those with this fabled "backbone" you talk about, would do as EA say. At least for a little while.
Aw, Cliffy thinks that people who love Valve are being irrational.
TF2 used to cost money until the microtransactions proved to be much more profitable...im not defending EA or Valve but I got to admit, it makes sense.
I think the best system is how ME3 multiplayer works...all the multiplayer DLC's are free and everything can be unlocked in-game by playing it long enough. However, you can also buy packs for MS points and because the system is a RNG, luck-based system it works well. You can spend $1000 or 1000 hours playing the game and probably achieve the same results. If you don't want to spend the money then just play the game and you will eventually get what you want.
I disagree
EA's profits are not my concern. EA's shareholders are also not my concern. I don't want to see micro-transactions in $60 games.
1: Valve can and has done wrong but the good they do versus the wrong they do far outweighs the negative.
2: Microtransactions in a $60 dollar game is ludicrous.
3: EA has a lot of smart people working for them, true but those smart people don't seem to have any decision making power.
4: I have no interest in Origin considering their previous issues with TOS, their attitudes towards opinions on forums and the limited library of games they apparently have.
5: I haven't liked EA for quite a while and I haven't bought a single one of their games for that same amount of time. I own Mass Effect 1 and 2 and I'm a completion-ist. I will never buy Mass Effect 3. I own Dragon Age 1 but I don't own Dragon Age 2 and never will. I don't touch any of their games.
6: Their stance in the past and the rumors of anti-used games is also a huge point of contention with me.
But that's not free.
Since you made the claim that they are very similar, then surely you can tell me when EA will release DS3 entirely for free.
Also, the "Valve can do no wrong mentality" is there because Valve has done very little wrong in its operation. EA has its "scumbag" status, because they have been scumbags for almost the entirety of their existence. We don't assign labels arbitrarily, they come from plain observations.
I agree with Cliffy here on most points. I will never understand while people act like DLC and micro-transaction are a kin to the developer trying to steal money from you. If you don't want to spend the money don't. It is not like as soon as you load an EA game up a hired thug storms your house and steals your money.
That being said EA hasn't put anything out in almost a year that appeals to me and Origin the last time I checked was garbage. I really don't care if that is how Steam started. I didn't give shitty Steam the time of day either. Maybe when Origin gets its shit together I would reconsider, but they would have to give me a hell of a deal on a game I could get else where or offer me a must have game I can only get off Origin. Neither of those things are likely to happen.
I have two answers for this, one for the OP content, and one for the posters.
For the posters:
I paid for TF2 as a retail game, can I be mad it has microtransactions? I mean you all keep saying "We didnt have to pay for it, so its okay". But I paid for it, so I guess that makes it okay for me to be mad.
For the topic:
EA is the bad guy. But not for microtransactions. EA is the bad guy for years of games that require connections to EA servers whilst EA servers are slow, cheap and poorly maintained. Extra points for the games where you dont keep progress when EA server connections fail and kick you from the match.
Thats just plain poor product quality. The shame being its poor product quality tacked onto whats usually a decent product. If we must have DRM, at least put some effort into making it stable. Its been years EA, years.
You see valve charging for a myriad of items and turning a pay $5 once game into a "buy all these virtual items, yay micro-transactions" game. Yes EA is slightly more greedy, but it's not quite the Gandhi versus Hitler situation everyone makes it out to be.
Even worse, EA had a Steal-like service before Origin.
Which makes Origin inexcusable. They had their own prior service AND a host of other DD-services (Steam, Impulse, GoG, etc) to learn from, yet they still released Origin in such an awful state.
Why anyone wants to defend them on that is astoundingly confusing to me
Microtransactions are EA's most minor evil, though. A well-done system of MTs comes across like a donation system. You donate and in exchange you get some completely unnecessary appearance alteration.
MTs done badly are known in the F2P world as "Pay to win" (or P2W for short). Dead Space 3's MTs make the game much easier, which makes them more like P2W transactions, than donations. "Pay and be more powerful", not "pay and have a hat that does nothing besides looking cool.".
But EA's list of crimes is much, much longer than just badly implemented MTs.
1) Buying studios only to overwork the devs, force them to rush their products, and sacking them all when the product wasn't successful (example; Westwood).
2) Slicing parts of games off, so you've got to pay to unlock stuff that's already on the disk you already paid full price for (Day One DLC, numerous examples. Eleven pieces of it on Dead Space 3, for one).
3) Pressuring studios into releasing their games incomplete (example; ME3, BF3, DA2 and games as early as Magic Carpet 2)
4) Flooding the market with sequels. How many FIFA games is that now? Approximately fifty-eight? In only nineteen years?
And I'm sure I'm only scratching the surface with this list.
Wat wat wat wat wat wat wat wat wat wat
Well, this is just plain old embarrassing now. How, EA? How?
For the last few months, every time that The Escapist posts news about Cliffy B it only makes me feel sad because he is married to someone who is not me. This man has it completely right, every time.
Anyone can see that most DLC packs are not worth how much they cost. Map packs are the most notorious for demonstrating this point.
You freaking know they aren't worth it and that's why you keep making them. You get so much more money because there is almost no investment to make DLC worth it and you're pretty much scamming the people that love your product. The microtransactions are an easy way for publishers to generate money without actually providing anything.
What I'm saying is that this isn't gonna continue forever and you can save yourselves by correcting now. You have to make the Microtransactions worth it. It also can't take away from the original product.
Otherwise you are gonna fail and we'll lose the games we love. So stop dicking around.
This is so bloddy stupid Im sick of Valve being seen as the god of companays and EA get treated like theve opened Pandoras box with every little slip but Its the same fucking thing all the Time, A company like bethesda or Netherrealms or 2k games (all good companys btw)Is gonna relse some microtransactions or Dlc then your gonna moan about it then buy and feel ripped off then your gonna call the company evil and threaten to boycott because it's always someone else's fault
The fact that there are people here defending EA makes me very worried
"It's always someone else's fault"? If video game companies are slicing off parts of the game, so they can sell us a full price game, except with some of the disk seperated as "Day One DLC" that you have to pay extra for, despite already owning the disk its on... who's fault is that? We're blaming the company who did it. Not someone else.
Some people will always complain about games asking for extra money for more parts of the game, it's true, and not all of that behaviour is really "evil". If good extra content is offered, for a reasonable price, which took investment from the developers beyond the original development of the game, then there's nothing wrong with that.
But what EA do, is they take their complete game, and chop it up into pieces, so they can sell it to us multiple times with no extra effort from them. It is no coincidence that they include a grindy resource collection mechanic to Dead Space 3, only to offer us a way out if we pay through microtransactions. And that same game had eleven pieces of Day One DLC, which was all already on the disk I'd already paid full price for.
It'd be like me selling you a DVD, and then making you pay extra on top of the box price to watch the final scene. Underhanded, and it should be illegal.
And that's only the beginning of EA's crimes. EA are evil for many more reasons than just Day One DLC and Microtransactions. I'm not going to explain it again, since I've done so more than few times on this thread already.
Me too. I think maybe people just don't know the full story.
I agree with old CliffyB that microtransactions are not a bad word. That's... all about I can say.
The issue is that microtransactions tend to either be elements that improve the game's aesthetic if the gamer feels that he'd like to add some extra polish to his game, or are small boosts in stuff like MMOs or RPGs where the player, say, gets double exp or gold or some crap like that.
The issue is that CliffyB is confusing microtransactions with another term, DLC, which we tend to have a problem with. I wouldn't mind stuff like From Ashes from ME3 if it weren't for the fact that they contained a character whose entire evolution and insight into the Reaper campaign was practically required for anyone interested in ME's lore (see: any gamer that actually bought all three games and imported their Shep throughout the story mode). If EA was just selling me the ability to give Necromorphs party hats, I'd be on a pedestal proclaiming EA as some brilliant wizard that learned how to take the Internet and turn it to their advantage.
Instead, we can see that the CEOs at EA still aren't understanding exactly why we purchase some specific content. If EA dropped the microtransactions in Dead Space 3 and instead added an extra mode where you could play the game in horror-themed Sepia, they'd probably make even more money, because it's a novelty that people that love the game (and as you can see from hard critics like Jim Sterling, it has a lot of fans) will buy to make them love the game more.
I think people are going way too overboard on this, he's basically just saying that games are a business and people are buying into it. If you guys have to get mad at someone, get mad at those who buy Cod map packs for $19.99.
Know what baffles me even more?
Many gamers, even some in this thread (like Akalabeth, for example) go on and on about how much "irrational hate" EA receives and about how we should "forgive" some of EA's transgressions, no matter how big and blatant. Yet, they seem simultaneously hellbent on chastising Valve for any transgression, no matter how small or imaginary.
Not to mention how often these same people call Valve fans "blind sheeple".
Hypocrisy and double standards are dangerous things, people. They only make you look a fool. Especially when you're preaching from atop your soapbox.
I say sir, is your head on stright? cause it seems it is, unless most other people in this tread Thank heavens. Honesty ots people who support valve blindly that scare me. Who to says that when Valve take over the world that how many will accept it just because its valve? I say valve should be not be treated just because "they made good games in the past or they aren't EA" Its people like that who prevent anything progessiveness in gamers intereacting with game developers and publishers. Heck I say valve is sorta like a religion in some cases with how blinded they are.
That said if and when valve does fail or make a bad game, it will be so good to watch them valvies try to prove others otherwise. Their tears shall be sweeter than shooting up an entire army with my Orks and Necron allies.
Thanks for proving Vigormortis point one post below his, and without any hint of irony. You know dude, that there's hell of a lot more of "EA CAN DO NO WRONG! NO WROOOOOONG!" in this thread than there's *coughs*That other bullshit term you tossed out, right?
I actually don't think anyone here has blindly supported Valve. At least, not in this thread. I think you might be imagining it.
Dude While I see your point Films dont take over 100 million to make Companys need to make a profit all those people are just like you and me trying to make enough money to keep up with rent bills etc would you really condemm a bunch of people to live on the street just because you didnt pay for a new gun or 2 in Mass effect 3?
I think downloadable content and microtransactions come across the gaming medium as a spectrum of varying substance. Each one released by any publisher, whether it be Valve or EA, has a different context behind it and what makes a "good" microtransaction seems to depend on the individual gamer.
Some people here seem to think a good microtransaction is solely one that might be mostly cosmetic or doesn't affect the gameplay at all, whereas other people percieve that solely as paying for pretty much zero substance and would rather prefer actual additional features affecting gameplay. On a greater sort of world-scale I don't think there's really one right way of what DLC or microtransaction content should be like.
As for actual proper context, I'm sure EA has been guilty of bad creative direction in the past, but to me I think the examples being touted aren't entirely reasonable. Dead Space 3 does the whole passive-aggressive thing with the whole "you could grind this game ooooooor you could just fork over a couple dollars to make your life a little easier". Sure it's irritating and consumer-unfriendly, perhaps, but you're not necessarily being deprived of the endgame or whatever analogy I saw up above.
Honestly, the more I think about it the more I believe that while Cliffy B might be flapping his gums as usual, I also believe that EA are partly just a symptom of gaming trends in big business. We hold EA one of the most accountable simply because they make themselves an incredibly easy target. Like someone mentioned earlier, they seem to have an incredibly incompetent PR department (and/or take much more heat than a PR department would be capable of) - and on top of that their percieved public image has been built by a consumer base perhaps not wholly understanding of the context/motive/reasoning of their business practices.
I'd not condemn them to the street, I'd suggest they stop bloating their own costs. The only reason games "take over 100 million to make" is because the developers spend that much on them. They could spend less.
I'd list you all the incredible games I've played that didn't "take over 100 million to make" but the list would be so long I'd be typing all day and night.
Expensive games =/= good games.
If cat food companies started putting their cat food in ornate golden boxes, the answer to their heightened costs wouldn't be to try every scheme under the sun to bleed more money out of its customers, it would be to stop using the damn golden boxes.
The analogy I made was more about Day One DLC, rather than microtransactions.
The problem with Dead Space 3's MTs is that passive-aggressive thing you mention, and I agree that it's not so serious.
Day One DLC is a much greater transgression. Take Mass Effect 3, for example, with a character removed from the game until you paid for the DLC, to unlock information that was already on the disk. That's what I was talking about with the "being deprived of the endgame" analogy you mentioned.
I was under the impression that the release date imposed by EA prevented Bioware from being able to complete From Ashes, and hence they couldn't complete the content on the disc before it had to go through QA testing.
I'm sure the restrictive release date was a conscious decision on EA's part as a publisher (since Bioware apparently had to *beg* for a few more months), but the full story behind these DLC may be more opaque and complex than we think.
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Nuuksio70 Trail Ultra is a 70km ultra trail in one loop across beautiful Nuuksio forests. One of its kind in Southern Finland, Nuuksio70 is an unforgettable experience for seasoned trail runners. Finishers will be awarded with ITRA ranking points and four UTMB qualification points, worth coming event from abroad!
Nuuksio70 course is very special. There are no moutains in Finland but vast forests, tens of lakes and small trails in Nuuksio National Park near Helsinki offer something else: The course consists almost completely of narrow, natural single track trails that are slow but you can still actually run them because big, steep ascends and descents are missing. However, the terrain has a lot of smaller hills of 20-50m vertical difference, and the cumulative ascent on the 70k course is approximately +1500m.
The course is based on Nuuksio Classic Trail Marathon. To this 42k loop we are adding two additional sections in different parts of the area. The fist extra loop, about 10k, deviates from the marathon course after about 16km of running. The second new loop adds about 20k to the marathon distance takes runners to the North-Western and Western parts of the national park. The last 10k of the course, ultra runners will enjoy the company of marathoners.
Nuuksio70 aid stations include the three main aid stations of the marathon plus one additional water station on both extra loops. All energy is carried by runners from the start. See Nuuksio70 course in Movescount and download it to your own GPS watch.
Not for beginners
Nuuksio70 is a challenging ultra run with plenty of slow sections. We recommend it only to runners who have finished at least one Nuuksio Classic Trail Marathon or another trail marathon or a longer trail run before. 100 first registered runners will fit in.
The course will be marked with the high Nuuksio Classic standard but the additional loops will not have as many officials along the course as the marathon distance. Note also that in terms of energy supply, runners are self-supported.
Nuuksio70 starts at 6:00am and the finish line closes 6:30pm. This leaves 12,5 hours to finish the course. There will be cut-off points in the last half of the course where runners are guided to a shorter course. Finishing the full course is realistic from the fitness level if you have run Nuuksio Classic marathon distance in or sub-6h.


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All About History FAQFrequently Asked Questions 2 on History
Mayan Gods
- Aztec Mayan Gods - What role did the legends of the Mayan-Aztec gods play in the creation of the world? - What role did the legends of the Mayan-Aztec gods play in the creation of the world? What were the stages of creation?
- Mayan death god - How can the Mayan death god, Au-Puch, be avoided? - How can the Mayan death god, Au-Puch, be avoided? How does one convince him not to stop?
- Mayan gods and goddesses - What creature held prominence in the worship of the Mayan gods and goddesses? -
- Mayan rain god - Is the ancient Mayan rain god, Chac, still worshipped? - Is the ancient Mayan rain god, Chac, still worshipped today? Read a first-hand account.
Native American History
- Who are some famous Native Americans? - Learn about Ira Hamilton Hayes, Russell Means, Grahame Greene, and Ben Nighthorse Campbell. What impact did they make on society?
- Is there polytheism in the Bible? - Study examples of polytheism in biblical days, such as Baal and Molech. What was the consequence of this worship?
- What is monotheism? - Discover the basis of this religious position as well as atheism, polytheism, and pantheism. How do we know the truth?
- What is Pantheism? - Discover the basis and foundation for this religious viewpoint. Discover how it compares with other views of God.
- When did monotheism start? - Discover when the worship of one God began and how He was distinguished from other gods. How did people react?
Prayer In Public School
- Should Prayer Be Allowed in School? - Read one opinion in this highly contested debate. Link to other sites about the prayer in school controversy.
- What are the pros and cons of prayer in school? - Study both sides of this heated debate and learn the history behind the controversy. Where did it originate?
- What is the position of those who are against prayer in public school? - Read points of argument for keeping officially-sanctioned prayers out of the school system. Does it lead to intolerance?
- When did the prayer in school debate begin? - When did this controversy begin and what have been the major milestones? What is acceptable in schools today?
Roman Gods
- Did the ancient Romans believe in an afterlife? - Did they believe in an afterlife and if so, how did it affect their lives and belief of death?
- How many gods were in the Roman Pantheon? - Learn of the importance of gods in the Roman culture. Discover some of the gods who played a major part.
- Were the ancient Roman gods and goddesses based on real people? - Were they based on real people or were these gods mythical? Were they borrowed from the Greeks and renamed?
- What were the names of some Roman gods and goddesses? - Learn about Ops, Janus, and Quirinus and how they influenced the culture. Understand how these gods were celebrated.
School Prayer
- What are some arguments for prayer in school? - Study the basic arguments for allowing prayer in public school. Understand the concepts which America was founded upon.
- What are the arguments against school prayer? - Study the basic arguments for removing prayer from public schools. Discover the facts behind the views and debate.
- What was the public school prayer which originally sparked the debate? - Study the history behind the debate and also the prayer that started the controversy in Hyde Park, New York.
- Where can I find more information on prayer in school? - Find helpful links to a wealth of information on the school prayer debate. Study the facts through informative links.
Separation Of Church And State
- How does combining church and state affect religious liberty? - How does it affect religious liberty? What has history shown? How does the removal of public expressions of faith affect our world?
- Is mixing church and state a bad idea? - Discover how the different views of relative or absolute truth play into this important debate of God and government.
- Was Jesus for the separation between church and state? - Is this concept of separating God from religion a biblical concept? What did Jesus say while on Earth?
- Where can I find separation of church and state in the constitution? - Discover how the different views of relative or absolute truth play into this important debate of God and government.
- Where is Christ in Christmas? - Learn about the sanitization of the celebration surrounding Christmas. How does it relate with separation of church and state?
Spiritual Heritage
- Spiritual Heritage – Government Monuments, Buildings, and Landmarks - What are some of the most important monuments, buildings, and landmarks in Washington, D.C., that include religious words, symbols, and imagery?
- Spiritual Heritage – The Acts of Congress - Learn the heritage that is included in acts of Congress. What has Congress established through the years?
- Spiritual Heritage – The Bill of Rights and the First Amendment - What spiritual heritage is mentioned in the Bill of Rights and the First Amendment? Find out the sources here.
- Spiritual Heritage – The Constitutional Convention - God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without His aid?
- Spiritual Heritage – The Declaration of Independence - What is the spiritual heritage included in the Declaration? Find out with all the supporting resources.
- Spiritual Heritage – The Founding of America - Religious faith was not only important in official American life during the periods of discovery, exploration, colonization and growth, but has also been acknowledged and incorporated into all three branches of American federal government from their very beginning.
- Spiritual Heritage – The Presidential Inauguration - What religious activities were included in the first Presidential inauguration? Find out the spiritual heritage here.
- Spiritual Heritage – The U.S. Court System - A regular and integral part of official activities in the Federal courts – including the United States Supreme Court – was the inclusion of prayer by a minister of the Gospel.
Thanksgiving History
- Thanksgiving quotes: What makes them unique? - Read sayings about this special holiday. What is the consensus? Find out what the popular opinion is.
Word Origin
- How important is origin of words to our understanding of them? - How does knowing the history behind a word or phrase help us develop our vocabulary? Discover the facts.
- What is the origin of the word Easter? - Discover the history of this word and holiday. Where does the word originate and how did it become a celebrated holiday?
- What is the origin of the word President? - How did this word become the name we often call our leader? Discover the origins of this word.
- What is the origin on the word picnic? - Discover the truth about this hotly contested word origin. Trace the word back through American and French history.">
WHAT DO YOU THINK? - We have all sinned and deserve God's judgment. God, the Father, sent His only Son to satisfy that judgment for those who believe in Him. Jesus, the creator and eternal Son of God, who lived a sinless life, loves us so much that He died for our sins, taking the punishment that we deserve, was buried, and rose from the dead according to the Bible. If you truly believe and trust this in your heart, receiving Jesus alone as your Savior, declaring, "Jesus is Lord," you will be saved from judgment and spend eternity with God in heaven.
What is your response?
Yes, today I am deciding to follow Jesus
Yes, I am already a follower of Jesus
I still have questions
What is your response?
Yes, today I am deciding to follow Jesus
Yes, I am already a follower of Jesus
I still have questions


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When is a phish not a phish? Warning over "anti phishing" scam
SophosLabs have warned of a scam circulating in Australia which uses an almost amusing twist on conventional phishing email warnings. Instead of talking you into going online to a bogus website to change your banking credentials, the email strongly urges exactly the opposite. "Dear Australian Bank Clients. You must NOT Update or Confirm Your Account information," it warns.
Instead, the email claims to be from News Limited and shouts out the unlikely story that "this week all AUSTRALIAN BANKS WILL BE CLOSED." Clicking on the link and visiting the bogus news website infects internet users with a phishing Trojan horse designed to steal login details from customers of the Commonwealth Bank and e-gold. When is a phish not a phish? Warning over "anti-phishing" scam
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This may be Justin's sexiest undies campaign yet. 'FLAUNT' IT, BRO.
Spring is still two whole months away, but that's not stopping Justin Bieber from stripping down to his skivvies right now.
Calvin Klein has tapped Bieber, Kendall Jenner, and more big-name stars for its spring 2016 underwear ads, detailing what they like to do in their Calvins.
Of course, this isn't Bieber's first time modeling with the brand — he debuted his first undies ad, along with a memorable drum-filled commercial, last January.
Along with Bieber, Jenner, Fetty Wap, FKA Twigs and Kendrick Lamar also debuted their Calvin Klein ads on Tuesday — check out the pictures above!
Wednesday, 27. January 2016


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This year, for the first time ever, Taylor and I decided we were going to go out and chop down our very own Christmas tree. We obtained a permit in October, and this past weekend trekked the entire family out into the woods to find us "the perfect tree." When we got there, we all got out of the car and began hiking to find the best one in Prescott National Forrest (aka: the pine-less forest.)
A few minutes into walking, Lucy had to go to the bathroom. I tried to help her pee in a squat, but she refused. She kept telling me, "No, I go in the Potty!" until she had an accident in her pants. So Taylor and the kids trudged ahead, looking for the perfect tree. Lucy and I returned to the warm car where she could play naked. A few minutes after being in the car, Abby emerged of the woods. Her feet were too cold to keep going. (She has outgrown her boots, and I refuse to get another pair until after Christmas. Her tennis shoes were not cutting it in the snow. :) Maybe 10 minutes after that Parker ran out of the woods.
"Parker," I asked, "did you find a tree?" "Not yet," he replied. "It was getting too steep for me. So I came back." So Parker climbed in the car with us. The kids played in the warm car, while I tried to get Christmas music to come through on my phone---to no avail.
Some time after that, I decided I probably should go out and look for Taylor. What if he needed help. So I left the car, locked the kids in, and started trudging to see what was going on. As I did, I found Taylor hauling this god-awful tree behind him. "It was the best there was," he said. One whole side of the tree was bare. "I figured we could put the bare side against the wall, and maybe no one will notice." We both started laughing and hauled it to the car.
Once decorated, it was apparent how bare the poor tree really was. The
star hangs off to one side, and the ornaments look like a really bad
attempt to make our tree look pretty. Taylor and I discussed whether or
not we will do this again. I think we decided that we will. It was fun,
and besides, a Charlie B. tree fits our little family quite well.
Merry Christmas Charlie Brown!
Good Greif Charlie Brown
2 comments:
- Ashlee said...
Oh dear, maybe you should come to the real forest next year!
- December 13, 2011 at 6:47 PM
- The McEnaney's said...
Hilarious! I love it!
- December 17, 2011 at 11:23 AM
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


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Lindys September 2014 Color Challenge is here. The rustic colors in the Limited Edition Set are simply fabulous!! With autumn in the air here in Florida, (74 degrees this morning!!! lol) I just had to create something earthy.
Here is a layout that is a little rustic with metallic overtones. I wanted a woodsy
fairytale like feeling, and the colors this month allowed me to achieve that image. I chose a wood grained patterned paper from FabScraps that compliment the colors well. I cut some vertical slits in the paper and placed it upon a piece of 12x12 corrugated cardboard that has been stripped away from its top layer. I marked the spots where the slits were and removed the patterned paper for the moment. I sprayed over those areas on the corrugated cardboard using Cowabunga Copper Starburst Spray and then adhered the patterned paper over the cardboard. I pulled back the paper in those spots, adhered the paper then touched the edges with the same spray. I did some tear outs on the outside edges of the entire layout, and did some more spraying with Cowabunga Copper and Ocean Breeze Blue Flat Fabios Spray.
I chose flowers that were light peach, white and beige in color. I used Fuzzy Navel Peach Starburst Spray for an all over color on the flowers, then touched the edges with Cowabunga Copper while the flowers were still wet. The color bled into the flowers and gave it a gorgeous fade. The white flowers I sprayed with Ocean Breeze Blue and Danny Zukos Denim Flat Fabios.
Here is closer view of the nest.
For the die cut frame, I inked it with a dark color then heat embossed it with Desert Moon Copper Teal Embossing powder. Then I went over it in spots with Silver Moon Mistletoe Embossing powder. The bottom layer of the frame was primed with white gesso and sprayed with Ocean Breeze Blue and toned down with bit of Gag Me With Spoon. The die cut Sizzix leaves were also heat embossed with Cowabunga Copper then spayed with Gag Me With Spoon Gray.
The butterflies are a file I have. I printed them on card stock, cut them out and enhanced them with the sprays. Then I covered them in Rock Candy Stickles. I only adhere the bodies of the butterflies to the paper and lift the wings a bit for dimension.


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The University of Manchester is at the forefront of a national drive to transform the teaching of computing in schools. In 2012, the University's Professor Steve Furber chaired a Royal Society project which published a report that recommended a move from teaching IT to teaching Computer Science in schools. These changes were immediately enacted by the Government, resulting in an urgent need for training of teachers in secondary education - and Manchester has been at the forefront of this from the outset. The model adopted is of regional centres that support 'Master Teachers', who then guide other teachers in the region.
Manchester's Dr David Rydeheard led the challenge of helping schools to teach the new curriculum. As a result, The University's School of Computer Science is now the North West Regional Centre for Computing At School. Over £200k of funding from the Department for Education pays for three staff members who have school-teaching experience and are managing the outreach to schools in the region.
The Centre is supporting teachers to become Master Teachers, and there are now 50 in the North West. It is now working with over 2,000 teachers in schools to develop exciting computer science teaching in primary schools, secondary schools and colleges. This involves around 80 students trained in outreach running one‐off events, through to full‐year engagement with schools and final-year projects developing teaching resources for use in secondary schools.
The Centre provides training events for teachers throughout the school year, as well as exciting activities for schoolchildren to help them to appreciate the science and creativity inherent in the subject. This outreach activity has engaged the enthusiasm of students at The University of Manchester, has supported the region's primary and secondary schools to rise to the major challenge of teaching new programmes, and has created a close relationship between the University and schools across the North West.
Dr David Rydeheard, Senior Lecturer in the School of Computer Science said: "Universities are well placed to support schools in their need to upgrade the teaching of computing, and The University of Manchester has led the way in this, both nationally and in our own region. These are exciting times for computing education, with many new ways of teaching the subject, especially using new technologies such as robots, drones and virtual reality."


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She got a brief phone call from her son before she started watching the tragedy unfold on the news. Eventually, Lillian Evans, of Columbus, just turned the TV off.
The Lowndes County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to abandon library construction in Crawford because of a lack of funding. However, supervisors will pursue grant money for a new fire station for the community.
The newest member of the Lowndes County Board of Supervisors is learning, meeting and gaining an appreciation for others who serve in public office. District 2 Supervisor Bill Brigham is new to the board and to public office after spending 40 years in Columbus' banking industry.
The first mission of Columbus Air Force Base is training pilots. Student pilots come from around the world to the hometown base that began as a pilot training post for the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1942 during World War II.
Lowndes County authorities are trying to determine the identification of a white male whose body was recovered Saturday afternoon along Bud Price Road.
A Columbus man is home but not necessarily resting comfortably after shooting himself in the buttocks Friday night.
Aurora Flight Sciences is expanding its Columbus operation, but a company spokesman declined to give specifics Friday, citing continuing negotiations.
Columbus Air Force Base received the all-clear Friday afternoon after a fire retardant foam spill at the base about 48 hours earlier.
The world is changing. And those things affecting the Asia-Pacific region will impact all of us, an Air Force general told members of the Columbus community Thursday. "The world ... is reshaping. It will shape our futures as well," said Gen. Gary North, commander of Pacific Air Forces.
A Columbus bank is putting part of its operations in the vacant first-floor space of the building that also houses the Columbus-Lowndes Convention and Visitors Bureau.
California-based Calisolar is expected to begin construction in May on a new silicon plant at the GTR Global Industrial Aerospace Park. And employee layoffs in Sunnyvale, Calif., will not affect the company's plans to build near the Golden Triangle Regional Airport, Calisolar CEO Terry Jester said Wednesday.
"Does not get along well with others" seems to be routine at Columbus-Lowndes Convention and Visitors Bureau board meetings. The show was on again Monday evening as board members accused, yelled and generally disagreed among themselves and with others.
The general manager of Columbus' new and only Chrysler dealership is glad to add the last line of the Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram family to the business. The owner of Columbus' former Chrysler dealership said he is doing well without the line but is still charging the automaker rent for the sign on his property.
The addition of West Point and Clay County to the Columbus-Lowndes Development Link came with an enthusiastic reception. The Link board unanimously approved expanding its reach at Friday's regular quarterly meeting.
Search articles back to February 2009 with the form above.
1. Dispatch sports editor arrested STARKVILLE & OKTIBBEHA COUNTY
2. Business Moves with Mary: Georgia Blue restaurant, bakery coming to Starkville BUSINESS
3. Man harasses women on hundreds of phone calls COLUMBUS & LOWNDES COUNTY
4. Cracker Barrel shooter indicted for attempted murder COLUMBUS & LOWNDES COUNTY
5. Car stolen from West Point found burned in Oktibbeha AREA


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Our aim is to work together to provide a high level of professional care in a safe and friendly environment. All of our physiotherapists are committed to continuing education and strive to remain up to date with evidence based best practice. This means you can expect excellence in service when it comes to assessment, diagnosis, treatment, and education regarding the condition being treated and self-management strategies.
Physical Agents Physiotherapists Use
Skilled observation and movement analysis, including the use of video analysis, is used to identify abnormal movement patterns and identify weak muscles or stiff joints contributing to the altered movement.
For example a stiff painful hip joint due to arthritis or bursitis will cause movement away from the side of pain and gradual weakening of the muscles around the affected hip and thigh and overuse of muscles on the other side. A joint that is too flexible becomes unstable under too much load and protective movement patterns are adopted.
During movement analysis your physiotherapist can identify exactly which joints are stiff and which muscles are tight and weak as well as those that are overused. Once identified, techniques such as mobilisation of stiff joints and surrounding soft tissues, graduated strengthening of weak muscles, appropriate stretching and re-education of a more normal movement pattern can be initiated.
Common areas that we treat include shoulder rotator cuff injuries or degenerative changes, jaw pain, knee pain due to abnormal tracking of the knee cap or abnormal loading of the patellar tendon, tennis and golfer's elbow, headaches due to poor posture and overuse of the muscles that elevate the shoulder, pain at the lateral aspect of the hip and thigh due to a bursitis or tendinopathy, pain and swelling of the Achilles tendon, pain swelling and altered movement due to osteoarthritis of the hip or knee.
Musculoskeletal Screening
This is a service we provide for those about to embark on an exercise regimen or new sport but are concerned that they may need to identify areas of risk that could result in injury.
Some athletes also like to have a full screening at the beginning of a new season especially if they have not been as active during the 'off season'.
Through a comprehensive musculoskeletal assessment the likelihood of injury can be reduced considerably if potential imbalances in muscle strength and flexibility are identified.
Other bio-mechanical factors, which may affect performance such as joint range, stability or hyper-mobility – especially of those joints most likely used in your sport or activity, can also be assessed with advice given on how to address any possible risks factors and so be better prepared.
The function of ultrasound varies according to the frequency of the sound waves. At hawker Place Physiotherapy we use diagnostic ultrasound to observe, assess the function of, and rehabilitate certain muscle groups such as the deep abdominal and pelvic floor muscles.
Ultrasound at a higher frequency can also be used to stimulate cellular activity and promote healing as well as relax very tight and tender muscles.
Stretching Programs
Stretching is aimed at increasing flexibility of muscles and joint range of motion (ROM) following a period of inactivity or rest after an injury or surgery, contracture after a burn, or built up tightness due to prolonged overuse of a muscle or groups of muscles.
It is the muscles of the body that control movement of a joint and stretching is the process of placing particular parts of the body into a position that will lengthen, or elongate the muscles and associated soft tissues. Upon undertaking a regular stretching program a number of changes begin to occur within the body and specifically within the muscles themselves such as an increase in the length of muscle cells.
Other tissues also adapt to the stretching process include the fascia or connective tissue, tendons which join muscle to bone, ligaments that join bone to bone, skin and scar tissue.
Dry Needling
Dry Needling is a physical modality that has become very popular with physiotherapist over the past few years. It appears to be successful in relieving trigger points. It should not be confused with the oriental practice of acupuncture, dry needling is being used successfully by physiotherapists who are suitably trained in this technique.
There are two categories of dry needling-superficial dry needling and deep dry needling. As the name implies, superficial dry needling does not reach the myofascial trigger points and is painless. With deep dry needling the needle goes directly into the myofascial trigger points, eliciting a twitch response, similar to what occurs when the knots are palpated.
The twitch response shows that the needle has reached the knot and pain is reduced or relieved immediately although in some cases the full pattern of referred pain may be elicited first. This practice seems to be taking over from 'electrotherapy' as a form of pain relief. Just as electrotherapy does not treat the bio-mechanical source of pain, nor does dry needling.
Exercise Programs
Exercise and stretching form an integral part of most rehabilitation programs. Exercise helps to increase energy and range of motion, strengthen the muscles, bring blood to the extremities and improve cardiovascular health.
Stretching is essential not only for muscle, but for the soft tissue as well. Stretching helps to elongate muscles, increase range of motion, provide flexibility, promote healing and prevent future injury. In the rehabilitation of many sports injuries such as plantar fascitis, shin splints, iliotibial band syndrome to name a few, stretching is recommended.
In order to increase strength, the muscle must contract against its maximum resistance. The number of repetitions, rest intervals, rate of movement and frequency of treatment must be geared toward the patient's capacity to adapt to the exercise. In order to gain optimum results, exercise should be graded with small loads initially, working up to the maximal power that the muscle can accommodate. This is known as progressive resistive exercise and is best done under the direction of your physiotherapist.
In the beginning of treatment you may not know what your muscles are capable of, therefore you may not exert the amount of force that you should. Pain or fear of injury may also inhibit you from reaching your maximum. Based on the muscle test results, your therapist can estimate the amount of resistance the muscle can take and add or subtract resistance until you can perform the repetitions properly.
Therapeutic Massage and Soft Tissue Therapy
For century's people depended on massage to improve circulation, ease aches and pains and promote a sense of well being.
Physiotherapists use soft tissue therapy and therapeutic massage to deliver these same benefits and more, to patients who suffer from chronic pain, poor circulation, sprains and strains.
Combined with an exercise program, massage therapy can be an important adjunct to any physiotherapy program. Some conditions that benefit from massage therapy are postural headaches, neck and back pain, general muscle tension following sporting injuries.
We may combine different techniques depending on your needs. The degree of touch, pressure and movement may vary depending on your sensitivity to the massage. For example, to relieve trigger points (knots of muscle tension), deep pressure is often required to loosen the knots, increase blood flow and relieve pain.
Lighter touch with long, gliding strokes in the direction of blood flow to the heart is another effective technique. When combined with passive and active range of motion it can greatly improve circulation, promote relaxation, restore range of motion and relieve muscle tension.
Trigger Point Therapy
Trigger point massage also known as neuromuscular therapy or 'ischaemic pressure' involves concentrated finger or ball pressure to trigger points – the tight, painful knots in muscles that cause pain and spasm.
Myofascial Release
Myofascial release is a form of soft tissue manipulative therapy that stretches the thick fibrous bands of tissue beneath the skin to remove tightness and reduce tension. Sustained pressure combined with deep frictions decreases the tight areas within the muscle and fascia.
Jaw Pain
Jaw Pain is often caused by abnormal temporo-mandibular joint alignment (TMJ). Place your second and third finger tips just in front of the lower end of your earlobes – now open and close your mouth. You are palpating your temporo-mandibular joints.
These joints often develop faulty movement patterns after such things eating a large very hard apple, having a series of dental appointments with your jaw open for prolonged periods or after prolonged periods of very poor head forward posture.
Dysfunction of this joint can also be a source of headaches. If your jaw locks, grates, clicks or is painful and stiff to open you probably have TMJ dysfunction.
Some physiotherapists are trained to assess your jaw function and to aid in the restoration of normal movement of this joint.
This generally involves internal mouth mobilisation (gloved hand technique) to restore any stiff or restricted motion, trigger point therapy and massage as well as initiation of appropriate home program exercises to address the specific direction of tightness or weakness. It also involves advice regarding posture that improves TMJ position and function.
If left untreated, TMJ dysfunction can accelerate osteoarthritis and chronic pain and in some cases where the specialised cartilage in the joint called a meniscus becomes trapped – surgery may be indicated.
Shoulder Pain and Stiffness
Shoulder pain and injury is common. The shoulder is the most mobile of all your joints but this mobility comes at the expense of stability. It is your shoulder muscles that are vital in providing dynamic stability in a normally functioning shoulder.
If your rotator cuff muscles are weak your shoulder becomes vulnerable to injury. In most cases, if you are suffering shoulder pain it is because your muscles are simply not strong enough or they are not working in a well coordinated and controlled manner. Research shows that managing shoulder injuries conservatively with physiotherapy is quite successful.
Accurate assessment of the shoulder can determine if your shoulder pain is related to instability causing subluxation (partial dislocation) or dislocation (most often cause of shoulder pain in those under 30), rotator cuff injury or disease, Frozen shoulder, fracture, or arthritis.
Other conditions include acromioclavicular joint or ACJ injury or arthritis, Biceps tendinitis, Bursitis, Muscle strain, a pinched nerve, impingement, or RSI.
Hip Pain & Injury
Hip pain and joint injury is common for all age groups. The hip joint and its integration with your pelvis, sacro-iliac joint or SIJ and lumbar spine (lower back) make it a complex region to correctly analyse and assess any dysfunction.
Your hip function can also be affected by lower limb biomechanics involving your knee, foot and ankle plus your thigh and calf muscles.
Typical hip conditions physiotherapists treat include Gluteal tendinopathy or trochanteric bursitis, groin or adductor pain (adductor tendinopathy) osteitis pubis, hip flexor or adductor muscle strain, Pirifomis syndrome, sciatica, stress fracture SIJ pain often associated with pregnancy, hip cartilage tear and hip arthritis.