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Progressive Caucus brands canceled special ed hearing a 'cover-up'
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The City Council's 11-member Progressive Caucus on Monday demanded to know why this week's Education Committee meeting on special education funding at the Chicago Public Schools was abruptly canceled without explanation.
Ald. Susan Sadlowski-Garza (10th), a former school counselor who ran for alderman with heavy support from the Chicago Teachers Union, thinks she knows why.
"A lot of parents and teachers were scheduled to testify about what's happening. Kids not receiving services. One hundred-eighty-one special ed openings not filled. So many kids out of compliance with the individual education plans that outline mandated services they were supposed to receive," Garza said.
"To have an open hearing for everyone to testify about what's happening behind closed doors —parents, teachers, everyone — would basically put CPS on blast. I don't think the mayor wants that. It's just another way to cover up the dysfunction in the Chicago Public Schools."
Ald. Howard Brookins (21st), chairman of the City Council's Education Committee, could not be reached to explain why he canceled the hearing, originally scheduled to be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday.
The City Clerk's office posted the public notice about the cancellation on Sunday. No explanation was given.
The Progressive Caucus has been demanding the hearings in response to an investigative report by WBEZ-FM Radio 91.5.
The public radio station uncovered delays in special education services and disparities among spending on white and on minority students, among other findings.
Ald. Scott Waguespack (32nd), chairman of the Progressive Caucus, could not be reached for comment on the canceled hearing.
In a press release, Waguespack was quoted as saying that he and his colleagues demanded the hearing after WBEZ found CPS leadership had "implemented secret plans to reduce programs and support for special needs students."
"Parents and taxpayers deserve answers," Waguespack was quoted as saying.
"CPS leadership must answer for the findings of this report, which demonstrate that, likely in violation of state and federal law, CPS redirected funds intended for students with special needs, and significantly reduced the programs and specialized supportive services for special education."
Ald. Roderick Sawyer (6th), a Progressive Caucus member who also chairs the City Council's Black Caucus, noted that "parents, teachers and principals" have been protesting, what he called "this pattern of willful neglect."
"The Education Committee must meet to look into this apparent stealth scheme to slash the number of students classified as eligible for specialized services," Sawyer was quoted as saying.
CPS spokesman Michael Passman was aware the hearing had been called off, but said he did not know whether CPS had requested the cancellation.
Under federal law, supervision of special education students is required to be spelled out in an "individualized education program." Those IEPs are confidential.
Last year, CPS made some changes in how the school district funded services for special education students. At the time, the changes were explained as an attempt to bolster oversight, raise standards and increase test scores among special needs students.
That prompted parents and advocates to charge that CPS had added layers of bureaucracy that delayed services for students. Some of the changes have been eliminated this school year.
Still, the Illinois State Board of Education has launched an investigation into the special ed practices at CPS aimed at determining whether there is, as State School Superintendent Tony Smith put it, a "policy environment in CPS" that is "preventing students from being served."


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Santosh Overseas binding machines, also known as perfect binding machines, allows you to create professional documents quickly and easily. Santosh Overseas offers best class used binding machine is basically a heat-activated thermal binding system that is used with pre-made binding covers that has glue applied to the spine.
A perfect binding machine is easy to use, simply place the paper inside the pre-made cover and then into the thermal binding machine. The binding machine heats up the spine and secures the papers to the cover. This is the perfect way for binding reports, proposals or high quality professional documents.
Santosh overseas is the big player of used offset machine dealer in India. Santosh overseas also deals in Heidelberg, Komori, Toko offset, Sewing, Cutting machine etc.

subset: commoncrawl


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Election of LFP Deputy Mayor & appointment of LFP elected officials to serve on regional bodies
Wednesday, January 17, 2018
|LFP Deputy Mayor
Catherine Stanford
At the January 11, 2018 regular business meeting, the Lake Forest Park City Council, per its Governance Manual, took action to elect the Deputy Mayor Council Vice-Chair, and to appoint members to serve in liaison roles representing the City on regional bodies.
Catherine Stanford was unanimously reelected as Deputy Mayor, and Tom French was unanimously reelected as Council Vice-Chair, both for two-year terms.
Following are the regional appointments for 2018:
Sound Cities Association
- Regional Water Quality Committee: John Wright, Member
- Regional Transit Committee: John Wright, Member
- Solid Waste Advisory Committee: Phillippa Kassover, Member
- King Conservation District: Mark Phillips, Member
- King County Accountable Community of Health Governing Board: Semra Riddle, Alternate
- King County Economic Development Council: Catherine Stanford, Board Member
- Puget Sound Regional Council Executive Board: Catherine Stanford, Member
- Sound Cities Public Issues Committee: Catherine Stanford, Member; Tom French, Alternate
- SeaShore Transportation Forum: Phillippa Kassover, Co-chair; John Wright, Member; Jeff Johnson, Alternate
- North Urban Human Services Alliance: Phillippa Kassover, Board Member; Jeff Johnson, Alternate
- Metropolitan Solid Waste Advisory Committee: Phillippa Kassover, Member
- Department of Natural Resources Washington Community Forest Council: Semra Riddle, Member
- Lake Ballinger-McAleer Creek Forum: Tom French, Member; Mark Phillips, Alternate
- Water Resource Inventory Area 8 Salmon Recovery: Mark Phillips, Member; Tom French, Alternate


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I'm not even sure I'm using that title anywhere near correctly, but since I've got 6 days left in the office at my day job, 10 days left before my cross-country move, AND 19 days before I've got a (non-sci-fi) manuscript due, the brain isn't quite engaged on non-move, non-writing subjects. Stress… I haz it. So I'm taking the easy way out and leading you to a couple of interesting things I've found online.
First of all…
WWIII Propaganda Posters: Yes, you read that right. World War 3. With slogans like "Loose Tweets Sink Fleets" and "Save Freedom of Speech – Support Net Neutrality", it reminded me of the many dystopian books I've read (and the one I've written, but not published). Take a look – they're amusing.
Facebook Business Cards: You might be familiar with Moo business cards. If you're not – get familiar! They've got a number of unique and compelling business card ideas. They've recently launched a line of business cards based on your Facebook timeline.
Finally… Trendhunter.com: I had originally visited this site tracking down this gorgeous dinnerware based on Earth and Moon, but I got sucked into the site itself. So many fascinating things to see there, and I certainly didn't have the spare time to see everything, but I definitely bookmarked it and will be going back when I have some free time to poke around. The site isn't confined to dinnerware – they cover fashion, technology, lifestyle, culture, design… the list goes on. Beware, I think this site could be VERY addictive!
Given my crazy schedule, I'm anticipating one more post filled with even more random ramblings from my fluffy-bunny, stress-broken mind, but then I'll be back on track. I promise! Wish me luck on meeting my deadlines!


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Taking Time Out
Do you have children? If so, what sort of disciplinary methods do you use? In our house, we have time out. If the toddler is misbehaving, she usually sits on the chair for a number of minutes according to her age and reflects on what she's done. Then we reinforce it with the loss of a toy only if necessary. Regardless, time out is usually the first port of call. (Admittedly, it doesn't always go well, as recently we had a 2-hour screaming fit from her where she didn't want to be on the chair!!)
In this context, time out is a punishment, used to discipline a misbehaving child. For this post, however, it takes on another meaning. The joy of words, eh? So many different meanings.
I've written before about how rest can be difficult to come by, and so we have to find different ways to recharge ourselves. (Note: this does not involve using USB cables or chargers connected to live electricity ports or anything like that!) If you have insomnia, like me, then that rest can be almost impossible to achieve by sleeping, as it's more like a sleepless battle.
So how do we do it?
My Time Out
If you ask Cheryl, she will tell you that I work on this website a lot. Whether it's writing posts, recording podcasts or videos or simply interacting on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ or our other social media accounts, I put a lot of time into it.
Which makes it all the more important to take some time out.
This year, for Cheryl's birthday, she received some vouchers for Hoar Cross Hall and she decided it would be nice if she and I went for a couple's spa day. No kids, no work, no stress, just a nice day or relaxation. To be honest, it was a wonderful experience. Swimming in the pools, lounging with a book on the loungers, enjoying lunch together and having that relaxing feeling that there was no stress, no pressures of life and nothing else to worry about while we were in those walls. Everyone was just there to relax, spend time together and work on finding that precious "me time".
It was time out.
Time out from the daily routine of working or child-sitting, from the stresses that come from everyday things like bills or shopping or other such daily occurrences; time out from the darkness of depression and anxiety.
It was time to recharge, to rest, to relax.
A Welcome Break
I'm not saying for one minute that my depression wasn't there, that my anxiety wasn't constantly nipping at my heels. Spending the day in swimwear was enough to trip the old anxiety a bit, as concerns about body image flood in along with the number of people at the resort. However, it was time when I could actually find that relaxation time as well. As difficult as it can be, pushing those mental health struggles aside to swim in the pool, to sit and chat in the Jacuzzi or to read a good book can be so beneficial to us.
It's a welcome break.
A time for us.
It might be difficult to achieve, but it is entirely possible. After all, we all have things that we enjoy doing.
Find What Works For You
Now, I understand that not everyone can afford a spa day. Even as gifts from others, those things can only come around once every so often. Taking that time out to relax doesn't have to be a spa day. It can be something else, something that you enjoy. A nice walk in a nature reserve, a trip to a museum, a concert, whatever works for you. If there is something that you enjoy, something that can distract you from the darkness inside your head, why not take some time out to do that?
It can only be beneficial, surely?
It doesn't have to be expensive. Nor does it have to be something grand that will take up a whole day or a week. Sometimes just an hour or two can be enough. With friends, without friends, whatever works for you.
And that's the point: whatever works for you.
So why not try it? Who knows what kind of good it will do?
Why not subscribe?
Subscribe today to receive a free chapter from my eBook "Pills and Blades", a subscriber-exclusive podcast episode and more!
Disclaimer: I am not an expert, nor am I medically qualified. This blog is based on my personal experiences only. Always seek medical advice in the first instance.


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One pair.
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I'm happy with this product and would recommend others to buy them.
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Ladies and gentlemen and people of all diverse experiences: Your ideas and experiences are each and all required in the managerial mix for any company that wants to survive. Host Bart Jackson brings on board author and women's leadership consultant Ms. Rebecca Shambaugh to discuss the benefits of boradening the corporate scope by diversifying your leadership. Ms. Shambaugh's, a feminine C-suite pioneer in her own right, has pointed the way for women's leadership in her best-selling The Leadership Style of Hillary Clinton, and latest Make Room For Her. If you are a man seeking to bring more ideas and fresh perspectives to your company table, or a woman seeking to get the ultimate fulfillment from your career, tune in and revel in the insights. –
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Is using VPN legitimate in UAE?According to Andrew Fawcett, senior associate, TMT at Al Tamimi & Company said: "Various media articles have been circulating that give the impression that an amendment to the UAE's Cyber Crimes Law last week has now made the use of a virtual private network (VPN) illegal."
"We are still working on determining the definitive position on last week's amendment – but at this stage, our view is the reports overstate its effect," he added.
"Whoever uses a fraudulent computer network protocol address (IP address) by using a false address or a third-party address by any other means for the purpose of committing a crime or preventing its discovery, shall be punished by temporary imprisonment and a fine of no less than Dhs500,000 and not exceeding Dhs2,000,000, or either of these two penalties."
Fawcett explained:"If that is correct, then the primary change is actually just an increase of the applicable fines (from the previous Dhs15,000 to Dhs500,000 to the new Dhs500,000 to Dhs2,000,000)."
"The change does not appear to make using a VPN on its own illegal – it still requires using a fraudulent IP address for the purpose of committing a crime or preventing its discovery (which was already the case under the "old" Article 9, which has been around since 2012)."
Hence the use of VPNs for legitimate purposes should not constitute a crime.
Which VPN should I trust in while in UAE?
UAE could be a good place for travelling, yet some websites are blcoked in UAE, like FaceBook,Flickr,YouTube,and etc. After taking gorgeous photos, you might want to share them with your friends online.To unblock these websites, it would be very convenient to have a VPN that supports both mobile device and laptop. Here, I recommend you with FlyVPN since the setting steps are not that complex. Simply download FlyVPN app in your device and register an account can let you enjoy totally 60 minutes free service.They have 300+ VPN servers located in 40+ countries.Wouldn't it be great? Anyway, a free Internet means everything.


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As a full service medical marketing and advertising agency, Karen Spencer Design is pleased to offer comprehensive medical marketing management services to organizations in all sectors of the medical community.
Over the last 25 years, our team has worked with large pharmaceutical companies, physician practices, medical colleges, healthcare centers, medical journals and publications, and research organizations to develop medical marketing, advertising and branding that is accurate, professional and persuasive.
We take the time needed to understand the business and character of each client and work one on one to develop a strategic marketing plan designed to carefully, ethically and successfully achieve the client's communication goals.
Whether your needs include the graphic design and publishing of collateral for a medical meeting, the development of corporate identity branding, the creation of promotional materials and advertising for a medical product, or start to finish medical marketing management services, the team at Karen Spencer Design are seasoned medical marketers and have the insight and proficiency necessary to accomplish your medical marketing objectives.
Visit our Services page to learn more about our Comprehensive Medical Marketing Management Services.


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Wednesday, January 03, 2007
Azucar - Final Portrait is Done!
Yipee!! Final Azucar portrait is done and I am so happy with the results. there is TONS of detail in this one and I carefully worked the texture and layers of colors throughout. I'm really happy with the way that the flowers, the stuffed animals, and the sky, and the banner, Azucar himself...and, well, the way the entire piece came out. Azucar's fur color is very layered and rich tonally, and has some paint texture in there too. The bottom quilt section was modelled after Azucar's own quilt given to him by his Grandmother. The quilt has actual photos of Azucar printed onto the fabric and it is a delightful keepsake quilt. I think I captured the spirit of the quilt very well in the bottom quilt portion of the portrait. The two stuffed animals to the right are two of Azucar's favorites, and I think they came out just great, with the paintbrush dappling effect adding a lot of fur dimension with texture and light. The top banner is an homage to Cuba's flag, and I think I have managed to give it the Cuban flavor without it being overwjelmingly "flaggy" looking. It's undoubtedly based on the flag of Cuba, yet it also maintains the overall aesthetic of my signature style. Something else I love is the 'color aura' around generally the whole piece, which I love to do in many of my paintings and I think here it is particularly successfully executed. Enjoy! and check out more detailed shots here.
7 comments:
- Alina Chau said...
THis is lovely!! Kathy, thank you very much for buying my book. Glad you like it. If it's not too much trouble, do you mind to vote for my book at the site?
It's a self publish book, so customers' word of mouth would help to support the sale. You don't have to do it or if you are busy ... Figure no harm to ask. :)
- 9:32 PM, January 06, 2007
- jules bianchi said...
you ROCK! I just sent you an email, and I'm nervous to hear how long the waiting list is...
- 5:08 AM, January 11, 2007
- Abby Creek Art said...
This is just adorable, Kathy...I love your work!
- 10:34 AM, February 09, 2007
- Anonymous said...
It's really quit wonderful! You did an excellent job!
- 10:09 PM, February 09, 2007
- Kathleen Rietz said...
I have never seen such sweet animal portraiture. It is so much fun and has such spirit to it! I can tell you enjoy creating it. Very beuatiful! I can't wait to see what you do next!
- 12:28 AM, February 10, 2007
- Rebecca said...
I love this one. Nice colors. It is amazing how closely you work with each person, getting so much personal detail in each piece. When I first started reading your blog posts about your artwork my jaw dropped at how much unique attention each piece has. You have a style, but not a formula, you have tricks up your sleeve, but you are no "one trick pony".
- 9:38 AM, February 10, 2007
- nancyrosetta said...
Very cute new portrait.
I really love what you do, and the detail is just amazing.
I am ashamed that I don't check your blog out more often. I will make a point to!
I love you!
Nancy <3
- 3:13 AM, February 11, 2007


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The Australian Federal Police, Australia Post, and New Zealand post are among several organisations across 22 countries targeted by TorrentLocker, a crypto-ransomware, according to ESET researchers.
TorrentLocker displays a page claiming that a "document" should be downloaded. If it is in fact downloaded and opened, it is then executed.
According to ESET this current version of TorrentLocker is extremely localised and victims are provided with information in their own languages and own currency.
Nick Fitzgerald, ESET senior research fellow, says these newer TorrentLocker variants have really upped the ante.
"Earlier variants, just like other crypto-ransomware, encrypted files of specific types, as determined by their filename extension," he says.
"The recent variants turn that approach on its head, encrypting all files except for a few types necessary to allow the system to keep working after the file system has been encrypted," explains Fitzgerald.
"This new approach to encrypting nearly all files on a system will have ramifications for the kind of backups needed to properly restore a system that has been encrypted by TorrentLocker."
He says that as always, unexpected offers, and especially claims of criminal behaviour that are received by email should be treated with great skepticism.
"Should you have been expecting such an email anyway, rather than clicking the links in the email, enter the homepage address of the organisation in your browser's address bar, or visit it via one of your own bookmarks, and follow the options provided at the site to locate your reputedly 'missing' parcel, 'unpaid fine', etc using the apparent reference number from the email," he explains.
To protect yourself and avoid being infected by ransomware, including TorrentLocker, Fitzgerald advises you to follow these 11 tips:
"Ransomware is very active in Australia and New Zealand and will be increasingly targeting users moving forward," says Fitzgerald.
"Users shouldn't panic when encountering these kinds of situations and follow best practices to retrieve their data. Proactive prevention and protection can significantly reduce the risks and impact of malware and ransomware attacks."


text: LNRD, a compact multi-stage telescopic boom lift system with steerable wheel drives and outriggers for stability and weight distribution is ideally suited to shipboard material handling applications. Robotic Research is a small engineering firm committed to finding innovative, cost-effective solutions in unmanned systems development. Target platforms include both LCS variants. LNRD satisfies the Navy's "Advanced Shipboard Mission Payload Handling System" requirements by providing the capability to rapidly reconfigure both variants of the LCS for a variety of missions. LRND provides more flexibility in lifting, transporting and maneuvering payloads than current material handling equipment systems, allowing payloads to be picked from and placed to locations not attainable by current systems. Additionally, the payload center-of-gravity can be adjusted to enhance stability while in transport.


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"Greater Intell's partnership with Xcellerate and its focus on development and marketing of Stella will add significant value for Kaseya VSA users," said Prakash Khot, CTO of Kaseya.
SEATTLE, WA (PRWEB) June 16, 2015
Greater Intell, a leading provider of software and services for IT Management platforms, today announced the acquisition of the Stella software solution from Xcellerate, an enabler and growth accelerator for IT Service Providers. Greater Intell is collaborating with Xcellerate to launch the development and marketing of Stella in the US and EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa). The partnership also includes an investment in Greater Intell by Xcellerate. Stella is proven in day to day use and has many premier Managed Service Provider (MSP) customers including CodeBlue, New Zealand's leading IT services company. Greater Intell plans to expand the integration of Stella with Kaseya® VSA™, the industry's leading IT Systems Management solution. Stella already supports over 15,000 end users at many customer sites around New Zealand and in the U.S. It provides a comprehensive solution for the site and knowledge management challenges faced by MSPs and IT Managers in today's dynamic IT services market environment. Knowledge Based Systems (KBS) are a rapidly growing category in the MSP marketplace and are increasingly seen as one of the most important tools for MSP and IT operations management.
"Greater Intell is a natural and easy choice for a partner to drive Stella forward," said Ken Davis, CEO of Xcellerate. "Their team is widely known as a premier provider of solutions for the MSP market. Furthermore, their growing product line and comprehensive knowledge of Kaseya VSA makes them an ideal choice to accelerate the penetration of Stella. Our investment reflects our confidence in the team at Greater Intell and the market opportunity for KBS."
The partnership will increase the development pace and focus of Stella and integrate it with Greater Intell's other solutions for MSPs. The company has accelerated its product development pace in recent months with the announcement of giDocs and giLens for Kaseya VSA. The planned integration of Stella into Kaseya VSA, combined with the unified and broad product line from Greater Intell are significant for the large number of customers using Kaseya's IT systems management solution.
"Greater Intell's partnership with Xcellerate and its focus on development and marketing of Stella will add significant value for Kaseya VSA users," said Prakash Khot, CTO of Kaseya. "Our most successful MSP customers have made it clear that Knowledge Based Systems have become a critical building block for their operations. Our platform continues to attract a growing base of solutions that integrate with our market-leading technology. We are pleased to see this solution, integrated with Kaseya, coming to market from our partner Greater Intell. We are looking forward to seeing the products of this partnership and the benefits that they will deliver to Kaseya users."
The acquisition of Stella and move into knowledge and site management sets the stage with another foundational building block for the Greater Intell product suite. The company's growing suite now includes all the core solutions that MSPs and IT Managers need to maximize their operational efficiency and overall profitability. "IT managed services providers are looking for a cloud-based site documentation and knowledge management solution that is quick and easy to implement, and integrates with their RMM system" said Kirk Feathers, CEO of Greater Intell. "This is what MSPs need to increase service resolution rates, keep site documentation up to date, and have all of the customer information they need instantly available. MSPs need this level of comprehensive integration to maintain profitable growth in today's highly competitive marketplace," said Mr. Feathers.
About Greater Intell
Greater Intell is a leading provider of software products and professional services for IT Management Platforms. The company's solutions enable Managed Service Providers (MSPs) and IT management to maximize their productivity and the return on investment of their information technology. Greater Intell is committed to its customers' IT efficiency and business success. Its growing customer base includes a range of industries, including healthcare, education, business services, and software firms. The company is headquartered in Kirkland, WA and is privately held. To learn more, please visit http://www.greaterintell.com.


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Freelance websites provide access to just-in-time workers to complete important assignments of all kinds — from small projects like creating a logo for your business card to long term assignments like building a mobile app. We looked at six of the most popular freelance websites with affordable pricing and features a small businesses would want.
For small projects and one-off assignments, hiring a freelancer is a great way to still get the job done and save you time. To outsource consistent day-to-day tasks, you may consider a virtual assistant. Virtual assistants at Time etc can free up your time by doing things like checking and responding to your emails, creating content for your website, researching products and competitors, and more–while saving you money on overhead. Click here to start your free trial.
Freelance Websites Comparison Table
|Freelance Website
(or $25 a month flat rate)
5% fee for jobs over $20
(After 15% commission on the first $280)
Upwork: Best Freelance Website for Small Business Owners
Of all the freelance websites we reviewed, we chose (and personally use) Upwork as our top pick. We love their Upwork Pro feature which allows employers to only see highly qualified freelancers. Upwork has more consistently positive online reviews than Freelancer or Guru, more robust mobile apps, and better customer service options for employers than the other freelancer websites.
Who Upwork is Best For
Upwork is great for any small business. It's an easy to use website that provides freelancers of all types. Upwork is the result of a merger between oDesk and eLance, so many businesses may already be aware of its services, even if the name is new.
Upwork currently has 10 million registered freelancers, and allows employers to rate the quality of freelancer work, which helps you determine which freelancer might be best for your next project.
Upwork Pricing
It is free to register on Upwork as an employer, and you pay freelancers based on rates you negotiate when you post a job. Once a job is completed, Upwork charges business clients a 2.75% transaction fee on each invoice. This is lower than most other freelance websites. If you have more than $910 a month in payments to freelancers, you can opt for a flat rate of $25 a month, which is even better.
You can also purchase an Upwork Pro membership for $149 per month. We recommend this for businesses that hire a lot of freelancers because it eliminates the number one problem with freelance websites — sifting through less-than-qualified freelancers.
Escrow: Upwork uses an escrow account for jobs/contracts paid based on milestones rather than hourly. The employer places funds in the escrow account where they're held until each project milestone is complete. Once a milestone is completed and approved, the funds are released to the freelancer. For example, if you hire Inga to build your website for $2000, you may pay her 25%, or $500, once she sets up the server and domain name. Then perhaps you'd pay another 25% after the logo and theme is uploaded and visible on the website.
Upwork Features
What we especially like about Upwork is their Upwork Pro feature. Upwork Pro works like a talent agency by hand picking vetted professionals for your job — individuals with 10+ years work history and great reviews. Upwork interviews them via video to ensure they're a good fit for your project. This saves you time and avoids you having to deal with poor or misleading freelancers who might also bid on your project.
With Upwork, you can post:
- An offer where you pay your freelancer on an hourly basis. Hourly jobs are billed to the client weekly. For example, you pay freelancer Susie for 10 hours of bookkeeping.
- Or a contract where you pay based on the completion of the project, or project milestones. Your funds are held in escrow until milestones are completed and approved. For example, you pay Julio $500 for setting up your payroll software and running the first payroll.
There are additional useful features on Upwork as well, such as a time tracker tool to keep track of your freelancer's work hours and a free mobile app to help you stay in touch with your freelancer.
Upwork Service & Support
Upwork has the best customer service out of the top freelance websites we reviewed. You can contact Upwork 24/7 by phone, use live chat, or send an email support request from their website. In fact, they are the only one of the websites reviewed that publishes their customer service phone number online.
They prefer to be contacted via website email 'ticket'. However, they responded immediately via live chat, and contacting them by phone required about 2 minutes navigating their phone tree. They also provide a robust online community with advice and tips from other users.
Dispute Resolution on Upwork
For hourly projects, the employer can dispute the hours worked, not the quality of the work, since you can terminate the project at any time if the freelancer's work isn't satisfactory.
For fixed projects, employers can only dispute money in the escrow account for project milestones that have not yet been approved. Once a milestone is approved and paid, you cannot request a refund.
What's Missing From Upwork
Like other freelancer websites, scammers sometimes make their way to Upwork. Upwork does a good job of shutting down their accounts. Nonetheless, do your due diligence and research freelancer ratings before you commit your money to a project.
Fiverr: Best Freelance Website for Low-Cost Gigs
With $5 projects, called 'gigs,' Fiverr has the lowest entry point of all the freelance websites. It's largely populated by millennial freelancers who want to pick up smaller projects on the side of their primary job.
Who Fiverr is Best For
Fiverr is best for businesses that have short, quick, low-cost work that needs to be done quickly. It's a great website to find a freelancer or gig worker to do things like proofread your employee handbook, create giveaway packages for a trade show, add music to your company video, run a package across town, build a PowerPoint presentation, or do a little market research.
Fiverr Pricing
In addition to the price you pay the freelancer, which can be as low as $5, you will pay 5% as a client fee. That makes it much more expensive than most of the other websites which charge only 0-3.5% client fee if you end up doing large expensive projects.
However, if you only order $20 or less worth of work, the fee is a flat $1. Technically, that's more than 5%, but still very economical.
Escrow: Orders must be paid for in advance. Fiverr has an escrow account option like the other freelance websites. Once a buyer makes a payment (which can be done using PayPal), the money goes into an escrow account.
Fiverr Features
You can create a free account on Fiverr with nothing more than your Google or Facebook account. Once on the website, the interface makes it easy to find someone who can do the work you need at your price point. Fiverr uses an eBay-style rating system that includes a numeric and star rating of each freelancer along with the number of clients they've served.
Almost any kind of service you want can be found on Fiverr, from software programming to pranks. You can even hire a freelancer to give hugs to your customers or order a singing telegram from a gig worker who disguises his voice as Batman. No other site offers that!
Fiverr Service and Support
Fiverr offers support through their user forum and via request from their website available 24/7.
Dispute Resolution on Fiverr
You can submit a request for support or your order from their website.
What's Missing from Fiverr
Low client fees are what's missing from Fiverr. There are much better freelancer sites to use that charge only of 0-3.5% as a client fee if you're looking to get larger projects done.
Freelancer: Best Freelance Website that Allows You to Try Before You Buy
With over 21 million freelancers on the website, Freelancer is the largest of the freelance job websites we reviewed. You can use Freelancer to post a job in one of three formats, including a contest format, which is unique to Freelancer. With a contest, like 'best website logo,' you provide details on what you want and multiple freelancers submit their entry. Only the winner gets paid.
Who Freelancer is Best For
Freelancer is best for businesses that want to see what a freelancer can do before they sign a contract. Contests allow you to see how a freelancer completes a small assignment, before you commit to hiring one.
Freelancer is also open source and has the most freelance users. It attracts gig workers from all over the world — 247 countries to be exact. So you may be able to find one outside the US who can do the work based on their contest submission. You may also be able to negotiate lower hourly rates with workers in less robust economic environments where your dollar goes farther.
Freelancer Pricing
It's free to post a job on Freelancer, but in addition to paying the worker your negotiated rate, Freelancer charges a flat fee of 3% per project. That's just a bit higher than Upwork (2.75%) and Guru (2.5%). If you want help selecting a freelancer, you can pay an extra $19 per job posting for a service that saves you time and helps match the best candidates to your job. This is similar to Upwork Pro's freelancer matching service.
Other advanced options let you advertise the job for $9, or keep your project confidential for $19 (meaning it won't be visible to website search engines).
Escrow: Freelancer offers an escrow service called Milestone Payments. Freelancer holds client funds until either a service/project is done, or a dispute resolution has been decided.
Freelancer Features
Local jobs on Freelancer are the same as what the Upwork calls an 'offer' or Guru refers to as hourly. They're 'hourly' jobs. Otherwise Freelancer features:
- Projects — such as building a website or translating a document
- Contests — such as creating a new logo or designing graphics for a new box label
- Local jobs — such as answering phones, entering data, or proofreading
Like Upwork, Freelancer also has a mobile app for IOS and Android.
When a freelancer finishes a project, the client has the opportunity to leave a public review on their profile. This is an awesome feature because if a freelancer has gotten lots of good reviews from other people that have used them, it is likely that they will do good work for you as well.
Freelancer Service and Support
Freelancer offers 24/7 live chat and email support and also provides online support with step-by-step guides, categorized into easy-to-find topics like 'payments' or 'contests.' There is no phone support.
Dispute Resolution on Freelancer
Disputes are handled similarly on all of the websites we reviewed, but Freelancer, like Guru, makes you setup your payments using an escrow service before they'll help with payment disputes. In comparison, Upwork will help you with any dispute whether you use their escrow service or not. Freelancer's Milestone Payments escrow service must be used in order to access dispute resolution or arbitration.
In addition, you can't dispute a contest payment after selecting a winner.
What's Missing From Freelancer
There's no phone number to contact customer support directly and the user reviews aren't very positive.
Guru: Best Freelance Website for Those Who Want a Proven Vendor
Guru has been around for 20 years and used to be one of the only websites dedicated to freelancers. However, websites like Upwork and Freelancer have now outpaced Guru in both the number of freelancers and clients using their websites.
Who Guru is Best For
Guru is best for businesses that want to deal with a proven vendor that's been around a while. Due to it being the first freelancer website, many freelancers and businesses are fiercely loyal to Guru. Guru also has the lowest transaction fees of all the websites we reviewed, with the exception of Giggrabbers that doesn't have a client fee.
Guru Pricing
It is free to sign up, and post a job on Guru. You can advertise your job for as low as $29.95. On top of the rate you negotiate with your freelancer, there's a 2.5% transaction fee added to the invoice.
However, Guro offers a rebate of 3.5% when paying via check, e-check, or wire transfer. So if you're not paying by credit card, you may actually earn a slight (1%) premium on each transaction.
Escrow: Guru offers an escrow account with their SafePay option.
Guru Features
On Guru, like the other websites, you can search for freelancers for any kind of work you need done — hourly or project based. You can post an hourly freelance job or a project for free, or you can advertise it to make it more visible to freelancers on the website.
Once you register, you provide job details such a location, rate, and description of what needs to be done. You set your own rates for what you'd like to pay. Guru will then send you a list of freelancers to choose from. Of course, some freelancers will negotiate with you until you both agree on the price. Guru encourages you to use and upload a contract clarifying terms in advance. Like the other websites, Guru provides ratings of their freelancers so you can find the ones with proven track records and great feedback.
Guru Service and Support
Guru provides adequate service, but some users claim they're not very helpful with dispute resolution, even if you opt for their SafePay escrow service. Support is provided 9 am – 6 pm EST via email and phone. There is no live chat option.
Dispute Resolution on Guru
Guru offers dispute resolution if both parties have agreed in advance to use the SafePay program, which escrows client funds while waiting for the freelancer to complete agreed-upon milestones. However, some clients complain that scammers game the system by sending invoices, knowing that 'auto-payments' are sent from escrow to freelancers after a fixed amount of time (7/14/28 days), whether the work was completed to the employer's satisfaction or not.
What's Missing from Guru
Guru's interface isn't as updated as some of the newer websites, they have no weekend support, and they don't yet have a mobile app. Also, because freelancer ratings can be removed at the request of the freelancer (if they're a Guru subscriber), you can't always trust that a top-rated freelancer is really that great. So do your homework, use an escrow account, and never agree to pay in advance for project work to be done.
In addition, the invoice auto pay feature pays invoices on a fixed date. Clients need to pay attention to those dates and dispute an invoice before that date if they don't want payment taken out for work not yet completed.
PeoplePerHour: Best Freelance Website for Managing Projects
PeoplePerHour is best for businesses that want to manage the workflow directly from the website. Once you agree to work with a freelancer, perhaps based on their contest entry, the 'workstream' feature with PeoplePerHour allows you to track progress online and even share documents, which Freelancer doesn't offer. You can post and manage multiple contests at once, and getting started is easy. Just go to their website and start filling in the blanks.
Who PeoplePerHour is Best For
In addition to features similar to other freelance websites, you can visually manage multiple projects maintaining all documentation online. So whether you post a website design contest to compare designers before you hire one, or hire a contractor to answer your phones off hours — you can use PeoplePerHour's tools to track the work.
PeoplePerHour also uses a 5-star rating system that helps you find freelancers with top ratings. Because they're based in the UK, you may find more European freelancers than other US-based freelance websites however.
PeoplePerHour Pricing
In addition to the payment you make to compensate your freelancer, PeoplePerHour takes a 15% 'commission' right off the top of the first $280 paid. Then they add a fee of 3.5% on top of payments over $280. The PeoplePerHour 3.5% fee is higher than Guru (2.5%), Upwork (2.75%), and Freelancer (3%). However, it's less than Fiverr (5%). In most cases, you have to provide a down payment to the freelancer at the start of a job, which is different than the other websites where no down payment is required.
Escrow: Funds are placed in an escrow account to be released within 7 days of your approval.
PeoplePerHour Features
Before PeoplePerHour shows you their freelancer list, they require you to sign up with your name and email address and describe in detail the kind of task you need help on.
Once signed up, you can do any of the following:
- Post a job and get proposals from freelancers who want to do the work
- Search and contact freelancers based on specific skills sets or key words
- Browse freelancers who offer fixed prices, for example a standard $20/hour for proofreading
In addition to standard freelance projects, PeoplePerHour provides the option of being able to post a contest for freelancers to design a website for you, in addition to the standard job posts, or freelancer listings. Freelancer also has that 'contest' feature for any project. With PeoplePerHour it's only for a website project but there's no obligation to accept or pay for any of the results if they don't meet your needs. That lowers your risk as compared to Freelancer where you have to put the money in up front and are encouraged to choose a winner.
PeoplePerHour Service and Support
PeoplePerHour provides help guides (pre-written articles) and a community forum. Otherwise, your only option is to send in an email request for support from the website. Other than help guides and the forum, email is their only support option.
Dispute Resolution on PeoplePerHour
You can open a dispute at the time payment is requested from the freelancer if you're not satisfied with the quality of the freelancers' work. Once you open a dispute, a rep from PeoplePerHour will review both sides and make a decision on whether payment should be made or not.
What's Missing From PeoplePerHour
The biggest thing missing is a person to talk to over the phone if you're having a technical issue or need help with a dispute. They also don't have a mobile app. And some US users complained that it's easy to get scammed by foreigners on this website.
Giggrabbers: Best Freelance Website that's Free for Employers
The biggest benefit of using Giggrabbers is that there are no transaction fees for the employer. Fees are paid for by the freelancer, so the price you're quoted by the freelancer is the price you pay. Giggrabbers doesn't bill you for anything extra. Giggrabbers is also the only website we reviewed that not only lets you find a freelancer for your project, but gives you the option to get crowdsourced funds to help pay for your project.
Who Giggrabbers Is Best For
Giggrabbers is best for businesses with limited budgets. They're a newer freelance platform and, in addition to not charging any client fees, they have an option that lets business owners use crowdfunding for their projects. That's something none of the other freelance websites offer.
Giggrabbers Pricing
Giggrabbers is free to you as the employer since the freelancer is the one who has to pay to use the service. Although Giggrabbers is one of the more expensive websites for freelancers to use (there is a 9.5 % service fee for freelancers), it's completely free for the job poster.
However, if you want help in setting up and managing your project, including finding the right freelancer, you can pay an additional $49.95 per job, which is cheaper than using Upwork Pro, but costs more than similar services on Freelancer.
Escrow: Giggrabbers, like all the other websites, also has an escrow option to ensure payments are secure until work is completed.
Giggrabbers Features
Giggrabbers has a simple three-step process to find a freelancer. Like other freelance websites, Giggrabbers lets you find freelancers either by searching for skilled workers — by keyword, category, job type, or location — or by posting a project so freelancers can find you.
Here's how that works:
Step 1: Post a job – complete the online prompts to post your job to the website.
Step 2: Hire a freelancer – communicate, complete work, make payments all online.
Step 3: Raise funds (optional) – create a crowdfunding campaign to promote on social media.
They also offer a contest option, but it's limited only to web design contest, whereas Freelancer contests can be for any kind of work product or deliverable. While most of the websites have a project tracking option to view individual project stages and key dates, Giggrabbers has a project management tool that gives you a visual look at all your projects at once.
Giggrabbers Service and Support
Giggrabbers only provides support by email.
Dispute Resolution on Giggrabbers
Giggrabbers provides a dispute center and promises their team will resolve disputes within 24 to 48 hours. You can submit a dispute with details directly from the website.
What's Missing from Giggrabbers
There's no phone or live chat support with Giggrabbers. As a newer website, there aren't many reviews for freelancers either, so proceed at your own risk. Their contests are also limited to website development, whereas Freelancer allows contests of all sorts including coding, design, and graphics.
Still Have Questions?
Have a question about choosing the right freelance website for your business? Our analysts are standing by to answer!
The Bottom Line
Freelance websites vary in the type of work and skills that they attract, so doing a little comparison shopping upfront can save you from headaches down the road. One of the most important considerations, in addition to price and quality of talent, is making sure that no matter which website you choose you select freelancers carefully. We recommend reviewing freelancer ratings and using the websites' escrow payment option to ensure you get what you pay for.


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Distributor Program
RapidFix has a comprehensive sales support program for our distributors. We invest in generating consumer interest and demand through:
- Professionally designed packaging and promotional materials geared to:
- Attract consumer attention
- Stand out from competitor products
- Establish market legitimacy for product, brand, and company
- Generate confidence in the purchase decision
- Bilingual marketing materials and product packaging (English-Spanish or English-French)
- Hands-on demonstration videos that show the ease of use along with the broad range of repair potential
- Video Display Unit (VDU) designed to hold and display our various counter display units. Topped with a compact video screen which is pre-loaded with a product demonstration video. Guaranteed to increase sales!
- Trade Show attendance


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(Click on the images for larger versions)
Hammond A100
Prod ID:
A beautiful organ with what we feel has the ultimate sound We in Vintagebua have a special preference for the A100s made between 1963 and 1965. Organs made in this period are known to have more bass in the middleregister and a very distinct and defined high end.
Contact us regardin this product
General Information
This beautiful Hammond A100 has only had one previous owner and it looks like its brand new.
This organ has been refurbished using our extensive procedure which makes these instruments ready for gigging and recording for many more years.
All capacitors on the tonewheel generator and vibrato line box have been replaced with new ones.
New felt in both upper and lower manuals.
Busbars cleaned in both manuals and pedals.
Cleaned all drawbars and switches
Preamp has been upgraded with new
Reverb and poweramp has been upgraded with all new components
Vibratoscanner cleaned
All tubes replaced with new ones
Original Leslie switch
Leslie output has been built into the preamp
Organ is sold with one year warranty
Will be delivered with a Leslie 122/147/142/145 style Leslie depending on customers preference.
Serial nr:
New repair shop in Kalbakken now open!
Tom Erik has worked hard and is now finally ready in his brand new shop in Kalbakkveien 46 in Oslo. This is your one and only place for all repairs and restorations of Hammondorgans, Leslies and amps.
Piano shop in Harestua now open
We are happy to announce that our new workshop for Rhodes, Wurly and Clav repairs now is open for business. Please call or mail to make an appointment for your vintage keys.
KDo your vintage keys need a tune-up?
You've come to the right place. Vintagebua is your #1 stop to get your vintage Fender Rhodes, Wurlitzer, Clavinet or Hammondorgan in amazing shape. Do not hesitate to contact us with questions you might have. We are glad to help!!
Website developed by K Tone Productions
All content is owned, managed and distributed by Vintagebua.


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So you have found your image being used without your permission. First thing you have to understand is that you own the copyright to that image the second you click the shutter. You do not have to register it in order to claim copyright status. (although registering your images with the copyright office does give you better standing in a legal fight and increases your potential damage awards). Second is that as the copyright holder only you have the right to determine how the image is to be used and where it is to be displayed. Third is that it does not matter if the image is not being used for commercial purposes (i.e making money off it) it still is a copyright violation if you did Hello,
I have found that the following image IMAGE URL located at LOCATION URL is using my copyrighted image which can be found at YOUR IMAGE URL without my permission. Please have the image removed immediately.
I look forward to your positive response.
Or something of that


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Our first day 'in' Barcelona was actually spent outside the city. Our plane landed early in the morning, we picked up the car and headed north. Our destination was the National Park and Abbey of beautiful Montserrat (which is Catalan for Serrated Mountain).
We didn't let the Rain in Spain dampen our enjoyment of the impressive monastery built into the side of the mountain. But even more enjoyable was hiking around the unique geology and hermitage ruins atop the mountain's peaks. Especially as the sun came out while we were up there.
And almost as much fun, was riding the inclined railway, cable car and funiculars up and down Montserrat mountain.
On our second day 'in' Barcelona, we didn't even manage to remain in Spain! But it was Rich's birthday, so hopefully you'll let us off. In fact, we jumped on the Autopista to Carcassonne in Southern France.
We've been to Carcassonne before, but this amazing Medieval Citadel was well worth a return visit. It was fun introducing our friends, Jamie and Amy, to this magical place. We even got to play a round of the board game Carcassonne, which first drew us to this remarkable place, whilst sitting on the city wall!
Finally, we made it into Barcelona itself. We spent two and a half days exploring this beautiful city.
We'd heard some really great things about Barcelona and they all turned out to be true. We loved the city.
Our first full day there started on a high. Literally. We visited the Sagrada Familia (which, incidentally, our apartment overlooked... see the photo to the left), including ascending one of the towers for an unparalleled view across the city. The Sagrada Familia is unlike any cathedral we've visited before, and absolutely beautiful.
Highlights of the rest of our time included a visit to Park Guell, the Eixample District (taking in Gaudi's Casa Mila and Casa Batllo), Plaça Espanya, Montjuïc, La Rambla and the Gothic Quarter.
But perhaps the most unusual thing we saw was the Paradiso Pastrami Bar, a cocktail bar (I didn't have a drink myself, of course), which you enter through a fridge in a sandwich shop!
We arrived in Marseille in the middle of a rain storm, but didn't let it dampen our spirits. We started with a great (if soggy) view of the old port from Parc Émile Duclaux, before heading up the hill to the Basilica of Notre-Dame de la Garde for an even more spectacular view across Marseille.
We then headed out of town to visit the picturesque fishing port of Cassis.
With the clouds clearing, our driver dropped us back in the old harbour, from where we wandered up to the Abbaye Saint Victor. Back beside the harbour, we accidentally ended-up having lunch in the restaurant that features in the movie Love Actually.
Having failed to get inside Fort Saint Nicolas, which appears to be permanently closed, we strolled the whole way around the old harbour to Fort Saint Jean, which we were able to explore. From there we wandered down to the Cathédrale La Major, from which we caught a taxi back to the ship.
By the time we got to Monaco, we'd left the rain behind us and so arrived in glorious sunshine. We spent the morning walking the entire Formula 1 track, taking in the sights and place names that were already so familiar to us from years of watching the Grand Prix set there.
Of course, one of the highlights was going inside the famous Casino Monte Carlo, although disappointingly, there was no sign of James Bond. The Japanese Garden provided a peaceful oasis from the hustle and bustle of Monte Carlo.
After lunch we headed up the hill to tour the impressive Palais Princier, Monaco's royal seat of government, and on to see the F1 cars in the private automobile collection of Prince Ranier III. We ended our day with a quick refreshment stop at the famous Rascasse Cafe.
Livorno is the port for Tuscany, including Pisa, Florence, Sienna and San Gimignano. As we'd all visited these amazing places before, we decided to hire a car and head up the coast to the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Cinque Terre.
We caught a boat from La Spezia. The view of the five isolated fishing villages of Cinque Terre from the sea, was unbeatable. Although we docked at four of five of the villages on the way, we stayed on the boat until Monterosso al Mare, the westernmost of the five. From there we backtracked by train to Corniglia, which we explored on foot, before catching the train back to La Spezia.
Civitavecchia is primarily the cruise port for Rome, but we decided to avoid returning to the Italian capital, and again picked up a hire car to explore the area outside the city. Whereas the previous day we had ended up with a Fiat Panda, today Rich had the pleasure of driving an Alfa Romeo in Italy!
Our first stop was the ruined Roman town of Ostia Antica, which rivals Pompeii in size. If an entire 2000-year-old Roman city wasn't enough, in the afternoon we headed to Cerveteri to explore the impressive and seeming endless tombs of the Banditaccia Etruscan Necropolis, which date back to the 7th century BC.
Once again, we'd visited the main sites near Naples, namely Pompeii and Vesuvius, on a previous trip to Italy so we decided to spend our day in Naples itself.
I say 'in' Naples, but we began our day more than 100 feet beneath the city, in the Roman and Greek tunnels of Napoli Sotterranea, which was simply amazing. We filled the rest of the day exploring the UNESCO World Heritage area of Naples. We visited the Duomo, took the funicular up the Castel Sant'Elmo for incredible views of the entire city. From there we descended through the Spanish Quarters to the Piazza del Plebiscito, the glass domed Galleria Umberto I, and the Castel Nuovo.
And of course, how could we leave Naples, birthplace of the pizza, without trying the local delicacy?!
Iraklion (also spelled Heraklion) wasn't just our first stop in Crete, but in Greece as a whole.
Avoiding the big bus tours, we hopped in a taxi and made a beeline for the ancient palace of Knossos, arriving there well before most of the day's other visitors. The palace was impressive, although a little spoiled by the overenthusiastic reconstructions of the early 20th century archaeologist who excavated the site.
Next we headed down into town, to the Archaeological Museum, where we marvelled at the impressive displays of artefacts found at Knossos and throughout Crete. After a tasty traditional Cretan lunch on the busy 1866 Street, we explored the old centre of Iraklion on foot, making our way down to the Venetian fortress.
Unfortunately, this must-see item on our list of things to do in Crete had closed minutes before our arrival. I hope we've learned our lesson: always check opening hours beforehand!
We jumped in a taxi from the Port of Piraeus to meet up with our guide Marialena Christopoulou at the base of the Acropolis. As we climbed the hill we were virtually alone. The ruins looked magnificent bathed in the golden early morning sunshine and we had the site almost completely to ourselves.
We hung on Marialena's every word as she introduced us to the Acropolis, the Parthenon and the National Archaeological Museum and so much more. We had a yummy snack of different spanakopita, before making our way to the Ancient Agora through the lively Plaka district.
A marvellous day in Athens culminated with us watching the changing of the guard at the Greek parliament buildings.
Zadar was our last port of call, and represented a welcome return to Croatia. We spent the day wandering around the picturesque old town on foot, starting at the impressive Sea Organ, which converts wave energy into haunting music.
But perhaps the highlight of the day was the former church of St Donat's, in which you can clearly see how earlier Roman masonry was used to construct the later building.
I can't over emphasise what a joy it was to return to Venice, and finally get to introduce Jamie and Amy to my favourite city in the World!
We spent much of our time there visiting familiar locations, but with fresh eyes, as we focussed on perfecting the storyline for Jaspa's Journey 5: The Ses Collector of Venice. We also got to explore a couple of places, which had previously been beyond our grasp.
The first of these new locations was the deserted Island of Poveglia, situated in the lagoon about three miles south of the heart of Venice. A former plague island and mental asylum, Poveglia has the unenviable reputation of being the most haunted island on Earth.
Yet without doubt, the most exciting place we got to explore during our visit was inside the famous Venetian Arsenale, which is normally off limits to most visitors. Thanks very much to Captain Luca Pegoraro and the Italian Navy for allowing such amazing access.
We also had great meetings with craftsman Piero Dri, whose workshop will feature extensively in The Ses Collector, and not forgetting Elena Zambardi and Chiara Montan of the Puntomose project, which is designed to protect Venice and its lagoon from future high water events.
Keep your eyes peeled for Jaspa's Journey 5: The Ses Collector of Venice... it's going to be a cracker!


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Ravi Bhatia and Jyotsna Chandola recently roped to play the roles of Salim and his wife Maan Bai respectively in Balaji Telefilms popular show Jodha Akbar.
Now we heard the makers have now zeroed on the beautiful actress Heena Parmar to play Salim's love-interest Anarkali.
It is believed that Anarkali was the finest flower in Baadshah Akbar's harem. He once caught her exchanging a flirtatious smile with his son Salim, after that he ordered her to be entombed alive as her punishment of having an affair with the heir apparent.
According to our sources, "The historical show will now focus on love-story of Salim and Anarkali. There were many girls who had auditioned for the role of Anarkali, but eventually Heena was chosen as she fits the bill perfectly."
For those uninitiated, Heena was recently seen in Rajan Shahi's Itti Si Khushi. She is expected to start shooting soon.
We tried to get in touch with Heena, but despite of our repeated attempts she remained unavailable for comment.
-Kavya D'Souza


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Leak was out partying with UBS's Tom 'The Mexican' Mallory and Stefan Boehm this week, at the bank's summer press party. After a few sherbets at Regent Street's Cocoon bar had loosened him up, Stefan, the lonely hearts Lothario, started spilling the beans that he had once lived ...
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Disney Fantasy
Building on the classic style of the previous ships, the Disney Magic, the Disney Wonder and the Disney Dream, the Disney Fantasy is a majestic sailing vessel where early 20th-century design—recalling the golden age of cruising—meets state-of-the-art technology. The cruise liner is designed with families in mind, combining sleek style and convenient facilities with splashes of Disney magic.
Year-round, you and your family are invited to embark on a once-in-a-lifetime cruise adventure aboard the Disney Fantasy. Here, you'll find the vast array of comforts, outstanding service and timeless beauty of a ship that's sure to capture your heart and imagination.
Stateroom Facts
Ship Facts


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Meet the First Scholars
Get to know some of the current First Scholars!
Montezia Shakespear
She lived in Germany and, as of now, have traveled to 22 countries.
Callie Reynolds
Callie's studying psychology and gerontology. She hopes to get a masters in social work and work in a long-term care home for older adults one day.
Rachel Meyers
Rachel is a pre-law senior studying sociology-criminology with a double minor in leadership and conflict analysis & trauma. After she graduates law school she dreams of being a personal injury/medical malpractice attorney in Texas
Kyle Wietharn
Kyle is a 3rd year student majoring in Architectural Engineering. He works for New Student Services where he schedules visits for prospective students so you may see him in the Berney Family Welcome Center or giving a campus tour!
Ansley Herzog
Ansley is a senior this year majoring in Human Resource Management with a minor in Leadership Studies. She enjoys helping others, traveling, and painting in my free time.
Ashley Coleman
Ashley is a linguistics enthusiast and has traveled to Japan, Canada, and numerous places in Europe with even more trips scheduled in the future.
Zachory Allred
Zachory's a hospitality management and business major from Wichita Kansas. Fun fact, he has have a severe allergy to pickles.
Tanner Sipes
Tanner is a animal science major from Stafford, Kansas. He loves the outdoors and working with animals.
Ashley Weigel
Ashley's a sychology major from Shawnee, Kansas. I have a passion for helping others.
Sequoyah Morabito
Sequoyah is studying biochemistry and has a pet beta fish named Richard.
Brandon Heide
Brandon is currently a fourth year architecture student minoring in entrepreneurship, and engaged in student life as a Resident Assistant in Marlatt Hall. He also enjoys woodworking, as well as filming and editing videos.
Shaylan Ballard
Shaylyn is majoring in snimal ecience and she grew up in the small town of Anthony, Kansas
Noah Aeillo
Noah is majoring in mechanical engineering and hopes to work for Boeing or Lockheed-Martin as my career
Katie Gehring
Katie will be studying abroad in Spain next semester.
Jessie Carr
Jessie's roots are planted firmly in a small town with less than 700 people where she found a love of serving others. However, she's been called to explore more than what she knows—her small town values have influenced her to serve bigger communities with a small town heart. After college, she will be doing a lot of traveling to find her new home where she will strive to make a difference. Oh and she as watched every episode of "The Office" 3 times now.


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*Argan Oil: Boosts Cell production. Improves elasticity. *Coconut Oil: Anti oxidant, strengthens skin tissue and eliminates dead skin cells while absorbing quickly into your skin * Avocado Oil: Helps protect your skin from damaging UV rays. Helps increase collagen *Castor Oil: Helps to promote the production of elastin and collagen. Deeply penetrating *Sesame Oil: Helps repair damaged skin cells. Helps slow aging *Essential Lavender oil: Anti inflammatory. Calms the nervous system. Helps with skin healing.
Apply a few pumps to skin and face as needed.
Packaged in beautiful Miron Violet Glass. Recyclable and refillable.
This gentle, easily absorbed lotion is ideal for sensitive skin and crafted with our special blend of nourishing oils.
Coconut, Argan, Avocado, Sesame and Castor with a hint of Lavender give skin full coverage of vitamins A, B1, B2, D, and E, leaving a supple, calmed complexion.
Feels light but packs a punch!
AHAlife is committed to help you live a conscious and inspired life.
Many of the items you discover here are exclusive to AHAlife, which is what makes our community of designers and artisans so special.
If you find one of our products anywhere else for less than it's being sold on our site, we will match it.
Our dedicated Support Team is here to help. Reach out any time at:


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Leavers Department
L1 Easter Egg Hunt
L1 Making Bird Boxes
L1 & L4 trip to Kingspan Stadium
L1 Visit Their Friends on Work Experience with the Orchardville Society
L1 Go Bowling
Dance Class at the Hammer Youth Club
L4 Visit the Ardoyne Youth Club
L1 Trip to the Ulster Museum
L1 Working Towards the John Muir Award
Fun in L1
L1 Easter Egg Hunt
Leavers Dept Rowing
L1 Team Enterprise
Padraig's Big 18th
L1 Space Art
L1 Trip to the Museum
Circus Skills
Duke of Edinburgh Silver Expedition February 2015
L2 Visit to the Tayto Factory
Happy 19th
L1 Visit the Tayto Factory
L5 Writing and Posting Letters
L5 Students Working Towards Independence
L5 Students do their bit for the Environment
L5 Making and Firing Rockets at the Planetarium
Learning, Fitness & Fun in L4
L5 Visit the Planetarium
L3 Make the Perfect Bird Houses
Fun in L5
L1 Fun and Fit at PE
L1 Visit to the Planetarium
C-SAW Project in the Leavers Department
In Glenveagh we are very passionate about promoting a healthy lifestyle. A group of students in the school Leaver's Department attend Belvoir Activity Centre every Friday to learn how to use the gym equipment. It is a really fun morning and as you can see from the photos everyone trains really hard!


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Jan 2017 - Mystery Tour
January 2017 Mystery Tour.....
So our little mystery day turned into even more of a mystery
with the unfortunate last minute withdrawal of the trip leader. Not to be
deterred the remaining participants met up at BP Kurmond and headed west
towards Zig Zag. We stopped for a quick look at Clarence Dam but with it all
but overflowing access was very restricted and a quick dip was shortly
dismissed. The call went out for a comfort stop and we headed off toward the
Zig Zag car park but not before a brief play on one of the exit tracks. This
saw both Nicole and Deb step up and give it a go (Kylie where are you). Both
did really well and got through unscathed.
After a brief stop in at Zig Zag we aired down and headed
out for a bit more of a play under the power lines on the way to Bungle Boree.
The Disco showed the way and went unusually well until Kylie tried to get in
the car only to find the side step pushed up preventing the door from opening.
Unfortunately Andrew found the same problem when attempting to get out and
assist.... After a brief stint of panel beating (jumping up and down on the
steps) we continued on to Lost City for a look via one of the side tracks which
was some fairly decent driving and had everyone holding their breath.
Lunch became the order of the day and we quickly shot back
to Clarence, aired up and took off to Little Hartley. As mentioned previously
the last minute loss of the trip leader saw Andrew and Kylie on line first
thing in the morning looking for swimming holes. Enter Hyde Park Reserve Little
Hartley, the kids had a ball, the adults cooled off and we all declared a
return visit was required. After a couple of hours splashing around we headed
back to the lolly shop for some treats before calling it a day.


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The Ruptured Sessions / volume 1
(By Karma Tohmé)
Ziad Nawfal's eclectic music tastes and his deep knowledge of a wide array of musical genres have made him one of the best DJ's in town for over 2 decades now, and his name has been tied to the most mythical underground places of post-war Beirut. His radio programs on Beirut's governmental radio station, Radio Liban, are also a reference for a whole generation of young alternative music lovers. These shows, as well as numerous other professional activities related to music — from working in Beirut's sole alternative record store, La CD-Theque, to writing reviews for all new releases of Beirut Incognito's collection, as well as for local and foreign magazines, have led to his extensive involvement with the local music scene. He often acts as a manager, producer, or event organizer for alternative rock, experimental and electronic music artists and bands from the Lebanese scene.
Following in the footsteps of one of his mentors, the BBC's famed radio host John Peel, Ziad Nawfal presents 'The Ruptured Sessions, volume 1': the first CD to be recorded live in the studios of Radio Lebanon, during his 'Ruptures' show. The sessions were recorded in the studios of Radio Lebanon over a period of eight months, between June 2008 and February 2009. There was initially no actual intent for the sessions to be released onto CD format, which explains the lo-fi quality of some of the final tracks. Artists came to the studio to present some of their favorite musical selections, with an emphasis on their own artistic output, and were eventually invited to grab their guitar and perform a number of songs, live on the spot.
The best tracks from these impromptu sessions were then carefully selected, mixed and mastered by Tunefork Studio's (one of Beirut's most prestigious recording studios, for alternative-minded musicians) master-of-ceremony Fadi Tabbal, in collaboration with Ziad Nawfal. The resulting CD features exclusive music by Nadine Khouri, Charbel Haber (the lead singer from punk-rock band Scrambled Eggs, caught in rare acoustic flight), Youmna Saba, Cristobal (aka Christophe Katrib), and The Incompetents.
Audio 1: Youmna Saba: Tehfi (feat. Fadi Tabbal)
Audio 2: Charbel Haber: It Seems You Had It All Figured Out
x To read Dan Warburton's review for The Wire, click here
x To read the Gossip Magazine – Lebanon review (Jul-Aug. 2009), click on the following link: Gossip music page
x Read Matthew Mosley's review for Daily Star – Lebanon (May 2009):
[Design by Youmna Habbouche]


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NPR on PGx Testing
Listen to this NPR piece on pharmacogenetics, which includes:
- case study of a boy reducing adverse events from Risperdal via drug metabolism testing
- other drugs mentioned include codeine, strattera, herceptin
- David Flockhart and Russ Altman are interviewed
The piece closes with this thought:
"Other experts, including Russ Altman of Stanford University, say
pharmacogenetics is such a new science that most doctors didn't learn about it
in medical school. Clinicians have to find a laboratory that offers the test and
learn how to read the results, he says."
Toward this end, DNA Direct (my employer) has put the physician-writer Dr. Alan Eshleman on the case with the launch of a new blog on pharmacogenetics. He'll be writing from the perspective of a physician that is not a pharmacogenetics expert, but is interested in learning about this new science and sharing his experiences with other physicians.
The blog is up and functional, but you'll have to ignore the dust because we're still working on layout/design.
Also, for information on drug metabolism, check out our website Genes & Drugs.
Leave a Reply


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There's a reason that Lose Big is Green Ridge Recreation Center's longest running and most popular program! Working in small groups, this 12-week program helps you achieve your health and fitness goals through guided exercises with a personal trainer*, nutrition education and more. One of the best aspects of Lose Big is the supportive community it fosters and the lifelong friendships that are created. We offer two plans for you to choose from: the 2-day plan offers participants two 1-hour sessions with a trainer each week and the 3-day plan provides an additional 1-hour session during the week. For non-members, each package also includes two additional days of access to the facility to use on your own. Join us for Lose Big and experience all of the benefits it has to offer!
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est. 1988
divineantiques.comyour source for simply divine antiques
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Material: 14 Karat Gold ~ testedSize: Inside Length = apx. 2 & 1/4, Inside Width
= apx. 1 & 3/4Quantity: 1
Antique Etruscan Revival 14K Gold Bracelet
The bracelet is not hallmarked, but tested 14K. This result was confirmed by an
independent jeweler test.
Inside bangle is lightly monogrammed in a fancy period script; C.M.B.
The bracelet is fairly good sized. Inch measurements are indicated above, but in
case it may be helpful (easier to hold a mm gauge up to wrist) here is the approximate
(inside) millimeter sizes; Length = 55 mm, Width = 43 mm.
The bracelet is in overall good condition. It retains it's original oval shape and
has not been bent out of alignment. Hinge appears to be original and works perfectly.
Safety chain is present.
Commensurate with age and gentle use we did however note a couple of minor issues.
1) Top two links of safety chain appear to be darker than other links. 2) The bracelet
does appear to have been dinged on one side, in the middle area, (not near the pattern
detail) and this was subsequently repaired, although it is still very slightly visible
if you examine closely. 3) There appears to be an old solder repair, near the
inside edge by the clasp. (where the two bracelet halves meet) Nothing evident on
the exterior of the bracelet, just on the inside, which of course is not visible
if it is being worn. We have tried to show this in the picture. Lastly and slightly
more significant; while viewing our photographs at a very magnified size we noticed
for the first time, a very tiny 1-2 mm edge split, that was not visible to our eye
without the magnification. It is located on the edge, between the push button clasp
and the safety chain. Please see close up image. This is easily repairable, requiring
a simple solder. Some dealers may not have even mentioned several of the above items,
but it is our policy to fully disclose anything noted, even if the piece is almost
150 years old, as is this bracelet. Additionally, we have taken condition into consideration
when pricing.
Without question, Etruscan revival jewelry examples are becoming harderto find, especially
solid gold pieces. SOLD


text:
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Contact Us now to see how Facts & Figures' whole of market, investment advisers could help you with wealth management. We are independent financial advisers and chartered financial planners based in London.


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Tom Eblen
Tom Eblen: Looking at Christmas again through a child's eyes
Looking through old family photographs recently, one jumped out it me. My father made it on Christmas morning 1960.
In the black-and-white picture, I am beside our tree, surrounded by toys, sitting in a pedal-powered fire engine my grandfather just gave me. I am grinning ear-to-ear.
I was 28 months old in that picture, a month younger than my grandson will be Thursday when he comes over to sit beside our tree, surrounded by toys and adults who adore him.
Christmas is many things: a religious holiday, when Christians celebrate the birth of their savior; and a commercial enterprise, a frenzy of buying and selling, giving and getting that fuels some of our best and worst instincts.
In my family, Christmas also is a time when everyone steps back from hassles of everyday life to enjoy spending time with one another. Those gatherings are never more enjoyable than when they include young children, whose sense of wonder helps us remember when we were just like them.
When I was a boy, Christmas began in November with delivery of the Sears Wish Book. My brothers and I would study each page of the toy offerings so our letters to Santa would precisely reflect our material dreams.
Several items from our lists would usually be under the tree Christmas morning. And when we tired of them, Dad would bring out his 1930s electric train and sit on the floor and play with us.
Christmas was always about special food, too. My aunt in California would send a box of chocolates. Salesmen would send Dad crocks of cheese and boxes of sausages. Some sent fruitcake, too, and some of it was edible.
If Dad had gone hunting that fall, there would be fried quail or rabbit for breakfast. Otherwise, he and Mom would fix country ham and eggs.
Christmas meant oysters, too. My parents developed a taste for them when Dad was in the Navy and they lived in a fishing village on the coast of Maine. Each Christmas, they would splurge so we could enjoy oyster stew, scalloped oysters, fried oysters with cocktail sauce and raw oysters on Saltine crackers.
For Christmas dinner, there was turkey and giblet gravy to go with oyster stuffing, celery sticks with cream cheese, green bean casserole and cranberry sauce shaped like its tin can. There was a plate of olives, too, if I didn't eat them all before dinner.
My mother always made a jam cake, which required two or three weeks of cold storage to properly moisten. Because refrigerator space was tight, the cake would age in the trunk of her car as she ran errands around Lexington.
Nothing went better with a good, high-mileage jam cake than ice cream and boiled custard, a homemade tradition Mom brought from Western Kentucky that is like eggnog, only better.
Christmas lost some of its magic in the 1970s as my three younger brothers and I grew up. But it returned in the 1980s when my wife and I had two daughters. They preferred dolls and books to trains and trucks, but I adjusted.
My wife is a master cookie baker, so our Christmases together have always been steeped in sugar. Her traditional family treat is the springerle, a flat, anise-flavored cookie. Each springerle has an elaborate design made by a hand-carved wooden rolling pin her ancestors brought with them from Germany in the mid-1800s.
As the girls became adults, I missed having kids around. Then, three years ago, our older daughter and her husband surprised us with a small, wrapped box on Christmas morning. Inside was a pacifier and a tag with a due date.
My grandson's first two Christmases were fun, but this year should be even better. I'm just sorry Dad won't be with us, because he was never happier in his last two years than when he was with his great-grandson and my youngest brother's little boy. It reminded me of how he was with our daughters, and with my brothers and me before them.
The only thing better than being a small child at Christmas is having one around to enjoy. I hope you are as fortunate as we are. Merry Christmas.


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DFSORT IntroductionDFSORT Tutorial Index DFSORT Processing
DFSORT is one of the IBM Data Facility family products.
The DFSORT is a high-performance data arranger developed by IBM for OS/390 and MVS/ESA users.
Using DFSORT,
- The datasets can be sorted, merged, and copied.
- List of names can be alphabetized
- Performing data management tasks with record-level editing capability.
- Manipulate the data(records) in the data sets(group of records).
DFSORT processing can be affect the whole data set mostly.
Some form of DFSORT processing effects certain individual records in the data set.
The term "record" refers collection of related information used as a unit(Field).
Other names that can be used to invoke SORT are ICEMAN, IERRCO00, IGHRCOOO and SYNCSORT.
The below are list of major tasks that can be done by SORT
Sorting data sets
DFSORT used to reorder the records in data sets.
Sorting is arranging records in either ascending or descending order within a file.
Data can be sorted in many different formats.
Merging data sets
DFSORT used to merge data sets.
DFSORT merges data sets by combining two or more files to a single file.
The data sets merge must have previously sorted into the same order (ascending or descending).
The sorting position should be same among the merging files.
Copying data sets
DFSORT can copy data sets/files as it is without any sorting or merging in effect.
Data can be copied in the same way that how the sort or merge copied them.
Joining data sets
DFSORT can perform various "join" operations on two or more data sets based on one or more keys.
Join operation can be done in a various ways including inner join, full outer join, left outer join, right outer join and unpaired combinations.
The one or more input data sets can be of different types (fixed, variable, VSAM, etc,.)
The one or more input data sets can have joining keys in different positions.
DFSORT always invoked by using JCL.
Sample JCL:
//STEPSORT EXEC PGM=SORT,PARM=sort-parms //SORTIN DD DSN=MTHUSR.SORTDATA.INPUT1,DISP=SHR //SORTINnn DD DSN=MTHUSR.SORTDATA.INPUT2,DISP=SHR //SORTOUT DD DSN=MTHUSR.SORTDATA.OUTPUT, // DISP=(NEW,CATLG,DELETE), // UNIT=SYSDA, // SPACE=(CYL,(2,2),RLSE), // DCB=(LRECL=80,BLKSIZE=0,RECFM=FB,DSORG=PS) //SORTOFnn DD DSN=MTHUSR.SORTDATA.OUTPUT1, // DISP=(NEW,CATLG,DELETE), // UNIT=SYSDA, // SPACE=(CYL,(2,2),RLSE), // DCB=(LRECL=80,BLKSIZE=0,RECFM=FB,DSORG=PS) //SORTXSUM DD DSN= MTHUSR.SORTDATA.OUTPUT2, // DISP=(NEW,CATLG,DELETE), // UNIT=SYSDA, // SPACE=(CYL,(2,2),RLSE), // DCB=(LRECL=80,BLKSIZE=0,RECFM=FB,DSORG=PS) //SORTWKnn DD SPACE=(CYL,(20,15),RLSE),UNIT=SYSDA //SYSOUT DD SYSOUT=* //SYSIN DD * control statements /*
Let's discuss about each DD statements in detail in futher chapters.DFSORT Tutorial Index DFSORT Processing


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Voice Daily Deals + Promo Code
Today's Houston deal is for $15 for $30 at Yelapa Playa Mexicana at 2302 Richmond Ave, Houston, TX 77098. This place was voted Houston Press Best of Houston Award for 2010's Best Mexican Restaurant. The deal is $15 for a $30 voucher to the restaurant. Better yet, if you enter the promo code GARF when you register for a new account, you get a $10 credit. This makes the deal only $5 for the $30 voucher.
If you want this deal, hurry, it is only good for 5 more hours… but I'm sure there will be something good again tomorrow!


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January 19, 2009 – The radial access approach to minimally invasive procedures will mean less bleeding, less down time, lower costs and less risk overall, particularly for obese patients, according to data being presented at the 21st annual International Symposium on Endovascular Therapy (ISET) this week near Miami Beach, FL.
Every year, about 1 million Americans opt for angioplasty over bypass surgery to open their blocked arteries. New data suggests that beginning the angioplasty procedure by entering through the wrist - rather than through the groin - will make it safer and easier on patients.
There is a risk of bleeding and nerve damage at the femoral artery access site. To reduce the risk, patients must lie down for two to six hours after treatment. Also, accessing the femoral artery in the groin is particularly challenging and risky in obese people.
Accessing the blocked blood vessels through the wrist (radial) artery, rather than the femoral artery significantly reduces the risk of bleeding and nerve damage, suggests data on more than 5,000 procedures performed at Baptist Cardiac and Vascular Institute, Miami. The radial approach also is easier on patients because they can sit up after the procedure and walk away almost immediately.
Currently, only about 2 percent of all minimally invasive heart treatments are performed through the wrist.
"I believe 75 percent of patients would be candidates for the radial approach if it were an option," said Ramon Quesada, M.D., medical director of interventional cardiology at Baptist Cardiac and Vascular Institute, and ISET course director. "The radial approach is a bit more technically challenging for physicians, but once they master it, I think most would prefer it. One of the main barriers is a lack of training opportunities."
When the femoral access approach is used, there is a 2.8 percent risk of bleeding or nerve damage, according to studies. Most patients spend at least one night in the hospital after the procedure. Although rare, the bleeding can lead to kidney failure, blood infection and death. At Baptist Cardiac and Vascular Institute, the complication rates for the radial approach are extremely low; only 0.3 percent had bleeding complications. None suffered nerve damage. An overnight stay may be advisable, depending on the complexity of the intervention performed, not because of the access approach.
The radial approach is not appropriate for all patients, including those who have very small or twisted arteries or are extremely thin, said Dr. Quesada.
"Using the radial approach results in lower cost, less time before the patient can get up and walk around and fewer complications," said Dr. Quesada. "Patients who are ideal candidates for the radial approach are those who are obese or have severe peripheral arterial disease (PAD)."
For more information: www.ISET.org


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A short test video of a gaming stream setup.
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Red Door is like no other place when it comes to early childhood education. The teaching staff recognizes that every child's journey is different and they focus on educating the whole child.
Our staff is passionate about developing each child at their own pace. The result is an environment where every child succeeds, regardless of their abilities.
Our STEAM based curriculum offers the unique blend of imagination and discovery. This curriculum stimulates new ideas and critical thinking that the students take part in and bring to fruition.


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Newcastle captain Jamaal Lascelles has been linked with an £18M move to Chelsea over the weekend, as the 22 year-old defender continues to improve under the guidance of manager Rafa Benitez.
The Sun on Sunday reported yesterday that manager Antonio Conte has had his scouts watch the English center-back and they like what they have seen – which is hardly surprising.
It seems the London club would like to sign Jamaal in January, but there's little chance of Rafa Benitez wanting to lose one of his top players – who he sees as a stalwart of his (successful) Newcastle side of the future.
That's one reason he made the player captain of the club even though he's just 22.
Jamaal Lascelles – 22 year-old Newcastle captain
Newcastle are in good financial shape right now having made a profit of £31M in the summer transfer market and the sell-outs at St. James' Park and on the road this season will help keep the coffers full.
And if we get promoted then we'll be back in the big time and the big money again.
Under Rafa Benitez the squad and the team put out on the field each game is the most important thing.
That's so Newcastle can put out a top team for every single game – start winning games – keep winning games – and as soon as possible – win a trophy.
We shouldn't forget that Rafa Benitez came to Newcastle to win trophies.
So things have changed a lot with Rafa coming in and it's not that money takes a complete back seat either.
Rafa has already talked about how important it is for us to get back to the Premier League, so we have the money to bring in some top players.
We will need some world-class players if we are to really be a team to be reckoned with in England and in Europe in future years.
That's the definite and fundamental shift that's happened under Rafa and we will not sell our best players just for the money, which we have done all too often in the past when money was King.
And even owner Mike Ashley seems to have finally realized that a successful football team is one that wins games and wins trophies and sells out St. James' Park for every home game.
It's not one that has a great bank balance, continually cuts costs and struggles against relegation every season.
Mike deserves credit for that – even though it took nine years for the penny to finally drop.
So Chelsea will have a really hard job to sign Jamaal Lascelles, who still has a lot of improvement to make under Rafa's guidance so he can become a top player at Newcastle for years to come.
That sounds so very good but it also points to the fact that Newcastle United are now a very different club than we were at the start of the year, before a certain Rafa Benitez arrived on Tyneside.
He has changed everything.
What do you think?
Comments welcome.
9 comments so far
Ed, we will only know if the penny has dropped for Ashley when we see the extent of the backing Rafa gets if and when we come back up. So far, MA has made 30 million out of Rafa's dealings in the transfer market and we look set fair to deliver Premiership riches once again next summer. We are yet to find out if Ashley's goals have risen above mid-table mediocrity in the Premiership and whether he is prepared to back Benitez to achieve real success. The 'mid-table plan' with Carr and Charmless running everything was scrapped only when there was no viable alternative and Rafa had MA over a barrel. It is a case of wait and see whether there has been a change of heart by the man who brought us SportsDirect.com Stadium, Dennis Wise, JFK, Wonga and a whle lot more besides. He is still the same man.. Geordie fans will not be counting their chickens until we know for certain there has been change.


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Ray Panthaki Actor
Actor and film producer Ray Panthaki has appeared in top movies including Ali G Indahouse, 28 Days Later, It's a Wonderful Afterlife, Screwed and Provoked.
Ray PanthakiKnown for tackling gritty projects in his acting and producing, he starred in and produced 2006 box office cult hit Kidulthood, award-winning The Feral Generation, City Rats and soon to be released The Man Inside. He spent two years on Eastenders.
In 2006 Ray Panthaki was nominated for 'Best Actor in a Play' at the TMA Theatre Awards for his role in Gladiator Games. He launched Urban Way Productions the same year.Follow Ray on Twitter


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Wide open space to enjoy the Perth sunshine:
There were kids climbing the tree (not part of our group!):
The frittata with seasonal fillings (AU$13) was fantastic and highly recommended:
The okonomiyaki (AU$17) was a tasty, and it was easy to get the kids to eat veges and protein:
Taylors Art & Coffee House
510 Great Northern Hwy
Middle Swan WA 6056
Tel. +61 447 441 223