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You'll find various contests from the Administration that you can enter to win stuff!
Profile Banner Auction #3
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Take your digital life with you on WD's ultra-portable My Passport Elite drive. It's our smallest drive but it's packed with smart features.
WD's smallest portable drive ever - WD are experts in portable storage, so they designed a smaller, high-quality integrated USB hard drive inside a premium finished package. Smaller is always better for a portable drive.
WD SmartWare - A control center for your drive that gives you the power to:
Drive lock - Gain peace of mind knowing that your data is protected from unauthorized access or theft with password protection and military-grade 256-bit hardware-based encryption.
Illuminated capacity gauge - Connect the drive to your computer and see at a glance how much space is available on your drive.
Grab-and-go USB dock - Convenient one-hand connection to your computer.
Ready to plug-and-play with Windows PCs - if you're a Mac user, check out our Mac version of this product.
USB 2.0 interface - Powered directly from the USB port on your PC. No separate power supply is needed. An optional cable is available for the few computers that limit power from the USB port.
Planet friendly - We designed a small box from recycled materials to minimize waste. We encourage you to recycle it.
Ideal for
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subset: commoncrawl


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Immigration Overhaul Stalls
Boehner Applies Brakes as GOP Moves to Avoid Divisive Fight Over Obama Priority
House Speaker John Boehner squashed growing expectations that Congress would rewrite immigration laws this year—dealing a setback to the White House, a swath of U.S. businesses and a bloc of fellow Republicans seeking to improve their party's chances with Hispanic voters.
Rank-and-file Republicans have voiced few complaints about the GOP's latest ideas for an immigration overhaul, which include some legal status for most of the 11.5 million people in the U.S. illegally. But many balked at debating an issue that divides Republicans...


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Reno, NV – The Arc in Nevada and People First of Nevada are proud to announce a new joint venture funded by the Nevada Governor's Council on Developmental Disabilities (DD). This exciting project aims to provide people with developmental disabilities living in the state of Nevada with information and skills necessary to participate in advocacy and policy making decisions through expanding an effective statewide self-advocacy organization – People First of Nevada – that is led by people with developmental disabilities.
The Arc has years of experience creating movements of social change, and training people with DD in ways that supports their lives. In 2011, The Arc created the National Council of Self Advocates in response to the need to fully include people with DD to guide The Arc's direction and to provide self-advocacy training, leadership development, and opportunities to be part of a national self-advocacy movement that is grounded in local and state grassroots efforts. This effort in Nevada is a natural extension of those efforts.
"People First is excited to join forces with The Arc in Nevada and to start new ventures together," said Santa Perez, Self-Advocacy Coordinator for The Arc in Nevada.
People First of Nevada is a self-advocacy group run by and for individuals with developmental differences throughout Nevada. People First works to support the reality that people with developmental disabilities have the right to make their own decisions and to live self-determined lives.
This joint project will include efforts to recruit and engage new people with DD to the Nevada self-advocacy movement. Participants will be provided with leadership training and have opportunities to develop new self-advocacy skills and be among the upcoming generation of new leaders. This training will provide information on how to grow an organization in financial terms, and also in terms of solid leadership and governance strategies.
For more information about this project, visit either The Arc in Nevada's website at www.thearcnevada.org, or People First of Nevada's website at www.peoplefirstofnv.org.
The Arc in Nevada is funded by the Nevada Governor's Council on Developmental Disabilities to support expanding the capacity of People First of Nevada as a strong, sustainable organization able to expand the leadership and impact of self-advocates (people with developmental disabilities) in their communities across Nevada.


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Open Kernel Labs has announced availability of OK:Symbian, a ready-to-run paravirtualized version of the Symbian smartphone platform. OK Labs Secure HyperCell Architecture lets the Symbian platform be used as a guest operating system running in a secure hypercell on top of the OK Labs OKL4 microvisor.
Currently, the Symbian platform runs on select handsets from Nokia, Sony Ericsson, and other Symbian licensees. While the creation of the Symbian Foundation and the opening of the Symbian platform code broaden the market of the mobile OS, but chipset vendors, mobile OEMs, and mobile network operators still face the challenge of porting and hosting the Symbian platform on both current chipsets and new mobile hardware.
OK:Symbian lets developers and vendors:
- Run multiple mobile OSes or multiple instances of the Symbian platform on a single device
- Migrate legacy the Symbian platform, wireless stacks, and applications to new hardware architectures and handsets
- Consolidate hardware (e.g., baseband and application CPU cores) for more aggressive price-points in handsets based on the Symbian platform
- Create new mobile-to-enterprise virtualization (M2E) enabled devices based on the Symbian platform (M2E is a set of joint solutions developed by Citrix Systems and OK Labs for delivering enterprise applications to mobile devices)


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Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, spending liberally from his personal fortune in a bid to bury his Republican primary opponents, donated $6 million of his own money to his front-running Senate campaign, his campaign disclosed late Friday.
While Dewhurst's personal contribution will extend his financial edge over former Texas Solicitor General Ted Cruz, his closest rival in Senate polls, Cruz's campaign has raised more money than Dewhurst since the beginning of April.
Cruz and Dewhurst raised five times as much as former Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert and more than ten times as much as also-ran Craig James.
Minutes after the Dewhurst campaign released a statement claiming to have raised more than $500,000 in individual contributions from April 1 through May 9, the Cruz campaign said it had done better, with $542,000. Documents from the Federal Election Commission show Cruz's claims to be correct – Dewhurst raised $513,444 in the same period.
Cruz's campaign boasted that it has seven times the number of individual donors as Dewhurst has publicly revealed, adding that Dewhurst has given himself more money than every other Texas resident put together.
Leppert, lagging far behind the frontrunners, raised $102,199 in the period. James, a sports broadcaster and former pro football player who is trailing badly in polls, raised just $37,752.
Spending increases as primaries draw near
A more detailed look at the records filed show Dewhurst has amped up spending as the primaries have drawn closer – his campaign spent $7.1 million in the five-week period, compared to the $11.5 million he has spent on the entire campaign.
Cruz and Leppert also increased their spending throughout the month of April and into May. Cruz spent $2.3 million in the period, more than half of the $4.2 million he has spent overall. Leppert spent $1.9 million and has spent $4.2 million overall.
James spent $103,035 in the same time – he has spent less than $600,000 throughout the campaign.
Dueling press releases
"The strength of our campaign has always come from the grass roots," said Cruz's communications director, James Bernsen. "With nearly 35,000 contributions from over 850 Texas cities and all 50 states, conservatives are ensuring that Ted's positive, optimistic message is not drowned out by the relentless barrage of false, negative attacks that Dewhurst is personally funding."
Dewhurst counterpunched that he had received 91 percent of his contributions from Texas, a swipe at Cruz, who has received 35 percent of his money from outside of Texas, according to a Houston Chronicle/San Antonio Express-News analysis of Federal Election Commission data.
The dueling Friday afternoon press releases came shortly after both campaigns filed the required pre-primary financial disclosure forms with the Federal Election Commission.
Into the home stretch
With little more than a week left before the May 29 primaries, Leppert has $2.8 million on hand, while the campaigns both Cruz and Dewhurst have more than a million on hand. James has less than $10,000.
Cruz initially benefited from heavy spending from conservative independent expenditure committees such as the Club for Growth Action. Recently, the Texas Conservatives Fund has spent money in opposition of Cruz and the Conservative Renewal PAC has supported Dewhurst.
Texas currently leads the nation in independent expenditure donations to Senate candidates – various groups have spent $5.9 million in the state – most of it to Cruz.


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|Version 7 (modified by rogerdpack, 7 years ago) (diff)
FFmpeg can basically stream through one of two ways: It either streams to a some "other server", which restreams for it, or it can stream via UDP directly to some destination host. Servers which can receive from ffmpeg (to restream) include ffserver (linux only, though cygwin might work), or wowza, or flash media server. Even VLC can pick up the stream, then redistribute it. Since ffmpeg is sometimes more efficient than VLC at doing the raw encoding, this can be a useful option compared to doing it all in VLC.
Here's how one guy broadcast a live stream:
$ ffmpeg -y -loglevel warning -f dshow -i video="screen-capture-recorder" -vf crop=690:388:136:0 -r 30 -s 962x388 -threads 2 -vcodec libx264 -vpre baseline -vpre my_ffpreset -f flv rtmp:///live/myStream.sdp Here is my ffmpeg preset (libx264-my_ffpreset.ffpreset): coder=1 flags2=+wpred+dct8x8 level=31 maxrate=1200000 bufsize=200000 wpredp=0 g=60 refs=1 subq=3 trellis=0 bf=0 rc_lookahead=0
How to stream with several different is described here.
NB that when you are testing your streams, you may want to test them with both VLC and ffplay, as ffplay sometimes introduces its own artifacts when it is scaled (it has poor quality scaling). Don't use ffplay as your baseline for determining quality.
Also note that encoding it to the x264 "baseline" is basically for older iOS devices or the like, see here.
Here is what another person did for streaming:
Ffmpeg -f dshow -I video="Virtual-Camera" -vcodec libx264 -tune zerolatency -b 900k -f mpegts udp://10.1.0.102:1234
And here is what another person did:
ffmpeg -f dshow -i video="screen-capture-recorder":audio="Stereo Mix (IDT High Definition" -vcodec libx264 -preset ultrafast -tune zerolatency -r 10 -async 1 -acodec libmp3lame -ab 24k -ar 22050 -bsf:v h264_mp4toannexb -maxrate 750k -bufsize 3000k -f mpegts udp://192.168.5.215:48550
NB that they also had to adjust the rtbufsize in that example.
The ffmpeg "-re" flag means to "Read input at native frame rate. Mainly used to simulate a grab device." i.e. if you want to play a video file, but at realtime, then use this. My guess is you typically don't want this flag when streaming from a live device.


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SC Solutions, Inc. (SC) provides products and services for the design and analysis of dynamic systems, including physical modeling and simulation, control design, system design, data analysis, and system identification. SC also provides hardware/software for real-time embedded control and data acquisition. Our engineering staff expertise is in modeling and model-based control system design with extensive experience in semiconductor manufacturing, advanced materials processing, advanced process control, aerospace systems, and mechatronics. Our control system designs range from real-time feedforward-feedback control design to supervisory run-to-run control.
Our clients are semiconductor equipment makers, aerospace companies, and more generally those doing development or research that requires expertise in modeling, control design, and optimization of complex dynamic systems. MATLAB and Simulink are used extensively to provide modeling and control solutions to customers from a variety of fields.
1261 Oakmead Pkwy
Sunnyvale, CA 94085
Tel: 408-617-4520
Fax: 408-617-4521
Related Connections Views: Consulting Services, Real-Time Systems, MATLAB Programming, Process Control and Monitoring, Control Systems, Semiconductor, Instrumentation, Aerospace and Defense


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OFFICIAL "Dream Trip To South Africa" SWEEPSTAKES RULES
1. Sweepstakes Description.This sweepstakes is sponsored by Budget Travel LLC, the publisher of Budget Travel, 530 Seventh Avenue, Second Floor, New York, NY 10018 ("Sponsor"). The sweepstakes begins on February 1, 2010 at 12:01 a.m. EST and ends on April 30, 2010 at 11:59 p.m. EST (the "Sweepstakes Period"). Entries must be received by 11:59 p.m. EST April 30, 2010. Sweepstakes is void where prohibited. By entering, each entrant accepts and agrees to be bound by these sweepstakes rules.
2. Eligibility. No purchase or participation in a sales call or group presentation is necessary to enter or win. A purchase or participation in a sales call or group presentation will not increase your chances of winning. This sweepstakes is open only to legal residents of the forty-eight continental United States, including the District of Columbia, who are 21 years of age or older at the time of entry. Employees of Budget Travel LLC, South African Airways, The Mantis Group, and each of their respective parent companies, affiliates, subsidiaries, and immediate family members or persons living in the same household of such individuals are not eligible to participate in this sweepstakes. Acceptance of prize is subject to the policies and rules or restrictions of winner's employer.
3. How to Enter. There are two ways to enter this sweepstakes. First, individuals who schedule and complete a sales call or in-person group presentation with sales representatives of Budget Travel during the Sweepstakes Period will automatically be entered into the sweepstakes drawing. Individuals will receive one entry for each in-person group presentation scheduled and completed during the Sweepstakes Period. Second, individuals can log on to http://www.budgettravel.com/SouthAfricaTrip and complete the online entry form. All online entries must be received by 11:59 p.m. EST on April 30, 2010 in order to qualify. Multiple entries per person are allowed. All entries become the property of Sponsor, and Sponsor reserves the right to use any information submitted by entrants.
Entries must be filled out completely and legibly in order to qualify, and will be void if they are, in whole or in part, incomplete, illegible, damaged, irregular, counterfeit, altered, or obtained through theft or fraud. No mechanically reproduced, software-generated or other automated multiple entries are permitted. Sponsor is not responsible for lost, late, illegible, misdirected or mutilated entries, including due to transmission, technical, and/or network failures of any kind, including, without limitation, malfunctioning of any hardware or software (whether originating with sender or Sponsor), telephonic failures, human error, or any other error or malfunction. For online entries, the authorized account holder of the e-mail address submitted at time of entry will be considered the entrant. An "authorized account holder" shall mean the natural person assigned to such e-mail account by the Internet access provider, online service provider, or other organization responsible for assigning e-mail addresses for the domain associated with such e-mail account. A potential winner may be requested to provide proof that he or she is the authorized account holder of the e-mail address associated with a winning entry.
Entrants agree not to upload, post or transmit any materials which contain any computer viruses, Easter eggs, worms, Trojan Horses or other harmful component or programming routines that are intended to damage, detrimentally interfere with, surreptitiously intercept or expropriate any system, data or personal information. Any attempt to deliberately damage any web site or undermine the operation of the sweepstakes is a violation of criminal and civil laws, and Sponsor reserves the right to seek damages from any person who makes such attempt(s).
Entry materials that have been tampered with or altered are void. Any questions regarding the number of entries submitted by an individual or the authorized account holder of an e-mail address shall be determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion, and Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify any entries by persons determined to be tampering with or abusing any aspect of the sweepstakes.
4. Prize. One (1) Grand Prize will be awarded. The Grand Prize will be a seven (7) day trip to South Africa for the Grand Prize Winner and one guest. Grand Prize Winner's guest must be 21 years of age or older. The Grand Prize includes: round-trip coach-class airfare for two (2) from New York City or Washington, DC to Cape Town, South Africa; two (2) nights' hotel stay in Cape Town; two (2) night's stay in South African wine country; two (2) night's stay at the Sanbona Wildlife Preserve; two (2) game drives per day at the Sanbona Wildlife Preserve; breakfast at Cape Town and Wine Country hotels; and all meals at the Sanbona Wildlife Preserve. Sponsor shall, in its sole discretion, determine the airport the Grand Prize Winner and his or her guest shall travel from, the airline and flight itinerary, and the type of accommodation provided. The Grand Prize Winner must take the trip between April 1, 2010 and March 1, 2011, and must schedule the trip at least four (4) weeks prior to travel. In the event that the Grand Prize Winner is unable to travel between April 1, 2010 and March 1, 2011, the prize will be forfeited and Sponsor reserves the right to randomly select an alternate winner from among the remaining eligible entries. The Grand Prize Winner must coordinate with Sponsor regarding the date that the Grand Prize Winner wishes to travel. The Grand Prize Winner and his or her travel companion must travel together on the same itinerary. Once booked by Sponsor, the Grand Prize Winner may not change the dates of travel. Actual travel dates are subject to Sponsor's discretion and conditions outside of Sponsor's control. Travel, including seat selection, and accommodations are subject to availability and blackout periods. Other restrictions may also apply. Sponsor is not responsible for airline or cruise operator cancellations or delays. The Grand Prize may not be combined with any other offer. The approximate retail value of the Grand Prize is U.S. $4,999. Actual retail value may vary depending on the point of departure and fare fluctuation. Any difference between actual retail value and approximate retail value will not be awarded. All expenses and incidental costs not expressly specified herein as part of the Grand Prize (including, but not limited to, personal charges at lodging, tips, insurance, fees, airport transfers, taxes, additional meals, alcohol and other expenses) are not included and are the sole responsibility of the Grand Prize Winner and his or her travel companion. Sponsor will not replace any lost, mutilated, or stolen tickets, travel vouchers, or certificates.
No prize may be exchanged for cash. No prize transfer, assignment, or substitution is permitted. Sponsor reserves the right to substitute a prize, in which case a prize of equal or greater value will be awarded.
5. How the Prizes are Awarded. Random selection of the winner will occur on or about May 1, 2010 from among all eligible entries received. One (1) Grand Prize Winner will be randomly selected. Winner will be notified by e-mail or phone on or about May 1, 2010. In the event that any prize notification or attempted notification e-mail is returned as undeliverable, or if any attempted notification by phone is not successful within seven (7) days, the prize will be forfeited and Sponsor reserves the right to randomly select an alternate winner from among the remaining eligible entries.
6. Odds of Winning. The odds of winning depend on the number of entries received.
7. Conditions of Acceptance of Prize. Winner must continue to comply with all terms and conditions of these Official Rules, and winning is contingent upon fulfilling all requirements. Driver's license or other appropriate picture identification is required to claim a prize. Winner and travel companion must have a valid U.S. passport at time of travel. Winner is subject to verification by Sponsor, whose decisions are final and binding in all matters related to the sweepstakes. An entrant is not a winner of any prize unless and until entrant's eligibility has been verified and entrant has been notified that verification is complete. In the event that winner is determined to be ineligible, the prize will be forfeited and Sponsor reserves the right to randomly select an alternate winner from among the remaining eligible entries.
Winner and the Winner's travel companion will be required to execute and return to Sponsor a release and affidavit of eligibility (except where prohibited) within fourteen (14) days of notice of winning; failure to timely execute and return such releases and affidavits (except where prohibited) may lead to Winner's forfeiture of the prize, and Sponsor reserves the right to randomly select an alternate winner from among the remaining eligible entries.
Winner will be solely responsible for any and all local, state, and federal taxes, as well as license and registration fees incurred by participating in the sweepstakes, including, but not limited to, transportation costs, gratuities and other items of an incidental nature. Sponsor will report any individual winnings over $600 (in cash or fair market value of goods or services) in a one year period to the Internal Revenue Service. Winner(s) will receive a Form 1099 from Sponsor if Sponsor reports any winnings to the Internal Revenue Service. Prizes may not be exchanged for cash or any other consideration.
Winner agrees to the use of his or her name and likeness in publicity without any additional compensation (except where prohibited). By entering this sweepstakes, winner acknowledges that Sponsor has the right to publicize, by any medium, winner's name, voice, and likeness, the fact that he or she won, and all matters incidental thereto.
8. Limitation on Liability. By entering this sweepstakes, each entrant forever discharges, releases, and holds harmless the Sponsor, South African Airways, The Mantis Group, and each of their parent companies, subsidiaries, affiliates, and their respective directors, officers, employees, and agents from any and all liability, claims, losses, damages, causes of action, suits, and demands of any kind arising from or in connection with the sweepstakes, including, without limitation, responsibility for property damage, loss of life, or personal injury resulting from or in connection with participating in the sweepstakes or from or in connection with use or receipt of the prize, however caused.
9. Sponsor's Reservation of Rights. These Official Rules are subject to modification by Sponsor. In the event of a dispute, all decisions made by Sponsor are final and binding. Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to disqualify any person who tampers with the entry process or the operation of Sponsor's web site, or who otherwise acts in violation of these Official Rules. Sponsor further reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to rescind, cancel, terminate, or modify this sweepstakes in whole or in part, at any time, without notice or liability, for any reason, including, but not limited to, if the sweepstakes is not capable of completion as planned due to infection by computer virus, technical corruption, force majeure, or non-authorized human intervention that compromises or affects the administration, fairness, integrity, security, or proper conduct of the sweepstakes.
10. List of Winner. For a list of winner, send a self-addressed stamped envelope after May 15, 2010 to Budget Travel, Attn: Dream Trip To South Africa Sweepstakes, 530 Seventh Avenue, Second Floor, NY, NY 10018. Requests received more than sixty (60) days after May 15, 2010 will not be honored.


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Gamasutra has published a postmortem for the hugely successful Bioshock; nothing contained within is particularly shocking (though comments have groused that they left out some big snafus), though I think it's always interesting to see what participants in the creation process have to say about the success (or lack thereof). The article goes beyond game elements and gets into things like how design teams were organized. But where does Alyssa Finley, project lead, have to say about the problems the Bioshock team ran into?:
Our goal when we set out to make BioShock was very clear. We wanted to get to the next level, moving beyond our suite of critically acclaimed games to make a blockbuster. A lot of factors aligned to make this possible: the commercial backing of 2K; the game design knowledge we'd acquired from building System Shock 2; the technological familiarity with our Unreal-based engine that we'd built with previous games. But we still had to figure out how to make it all big-blockbuster big. A lot of our problems came from underestimating how big the task of making a triple-A product for multiple platforms and multiple regions really is. And other problems came from over-estimating our capacity to solve those problems using our existing procedures and staffing levels. If there's an over-arching theme of our development, it's that we, like many other developers, believe that ultimate success in this industry comes from iteration. You have to build, evaluate (and have others evaluate) and be prepared to throw things away and rebuild.
It's not terribly long, clocking in at 4 pages, and worth a read — even if you weren't a particular fan of the game. Postmortem: 2K Boston/2K Australia's BioShock [Gamasutra]


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Bone makes you different!
Bone makes you different!
Bone collection was established in 2005. We dedicate in the field of innovative industrial design. The ideas were inspired from details of our daily lives. We tried to create funny and functional designs to solve the inconvenient. Bone's heart touching design which were built up with passion and inspired from animals and funny characters presented functional, healing and funny user experience which closed to our lives.
The meaning in the creation of Maru Penguin is to remind us the habitat of penguin is getting worse due to global warming. Thus, Bone wants to be a brand that cares about environment protection. While providing ideal designs, we also try to reduce the burden on the planet.
From imaginative sketching to accurate 3D drawing, Bone cares all the producing details. Our goal is to offer brilliant design by persistent improvement in the quality of our creation. Nowadays, in this High-tech era, we delicate to bring warmth to everyone and make people to enjoy their life, to care about others and to protect environment. We make the ordinary life different with our different ideas.


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The Annual James J. Whalen Academic Symposium provides a forum for students, faculty, and the community to discuss cutting edge research topics and to examine the connection between research and education. The Symposium includes poster, presentation and creative (visual, media and performing arts) sessions by students from all academic disciplines.
All Ithaca College students involved in research, scholarship,
and creativity are encouraged to apply and those not yet involved
will discover that attending the Symposium is a great way to learn
about the broad range of opportunities available at IC. In 2018,
over 400 students participated in the Symposium supported by 100
faculty sponsors.
The Symposium is open to all students, with separate categories for undergraduate and graduate students, and provides the opportunity to present research either as an oral presentation, poster format, or a creative piece. Participants are encouraged to present results from their current research projects, even if it is preliminary research, as these presentations provide the student researcher the opportunity to discuss their research with other participants and faculty. In addition, the Symposium provides a venue for the exposure of student research to the broader IC community.
The Symposium includes projects from all disciplines and encourages interdisciplinary discourse, allowing students to learn from each other about a broad range of exciting research topics. In addition, students can include their presentations on resumes and graduate school applications.


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North Lenoir issued two shutouts to begin 2014 season.
La GRANGE � The Donnell Garris era is underway at North Lenoir, and things couldn�t have started out much better for the first-year head coach, as his Hawks opened the season with a pair of shutouts against Eastern Wayne and Southern Wayne.
A day after beating Eastern Wayne 1-0 in a nine-inning thriller, the Hawks (2-0) hosted Southern Wayne, beating the Saints 9-0 in the NL home opener Thursday. Seniors Landon Letchworth and Noah Reese combined for a three-hit shutout, and the Hawks got all the offense they needed with three runs in the first inning. Four more runs in the second stanza effectively put the game out of reach early.
�This team is working hard out there,� Garris said. �We want to take care of the little things. We�re a blue collar, take your lunch pail, show up to work kind of team.�
Over the span of two games, the Hawks have blanked a pair of 3A teams, holding Eastern and Southern Wayne to seven hits over 16 innings. Letchworth was particularly efficient against the Saints, tossing five innings of two-hit balls to earn the win. He struck out five and did not walk a batter while throwing just 57 pitches, including 39 strikes.
�He�s been doing that for us since he was a freshman,� Garris said. �He gives us a great chance to win every time he�s on the mound, and he�s swinging the bat well too.�
The senior was one of three North Lenoir players with a multi-hit game against the Saints, as Letchworth went 3-for-3 with three doubles and three runs scored. Left-fielder Jacob Baird was 2-for-3 and had an RBI single in the first. Collectively, the Hawks banged out 10 hits on the evening.
But the night belonged to Tyler Smith, at least at the plate. The senior first baseman went 4-for-4 with a pair of doubles, a home run and four RBIs. His first double, a laser to the power alley in left field, came on a first-pitch fastball and plated three runners to give his team a 6-0 lead in the second inning. The home run was the Hawks� last of the evening, and the sixth inning shot over the left field wall served as an exclamation point of sorts.
�We�ve been working on him all year with staying tall,� Garris said. �He�s been driving the baseball. He had a heck of a night.�
The Hawks also flashed some leather in an all-around effort. Reese, who started the game at second base, ranged behind the bag on a tough ground ball in the fourth inning and made a difficult back-hand stab and throw to first look easy. The play saved a run, as the Saints� next batter roped a double for one of his team�s three hits.
Not to be outdone, right fielder Brandon Moore made a sliding catch in the next inning, and center fielder Orlando Cannon took away another sure hit in the sixth with a diving catch of his own.
�We had three stellar defensive plays tonight,� Garris said. �We talk to our pitchers about hitting their spots and making them hit our pitches. When they do that and you are making plays behind them, good things happen.�
If the first two nights of the young season are any indication, North Lenoir should expect more good things to come.
` Garris, in his first year as head coach, replaced a legend in Jim Montague, who took the reins of the North Lenoir baseball program in 1991. His teams won two state championships and played for another in a three-year stretch from 2005 to 2007. Garris joined the NL staff as an assistant on the state runner-up team in 2007.
�I�m set up for success here,� Garris said. �Coach Montague set the standard. All I�m doing is trying to maintain it.�
The Hawks have plenty of experience with six seniors, all of whom saw action against the Saints. Four starters return from a year ago, and six players have significant varsity experience. North Lenoir also has a wealth of pitchers, with at least seven players capable of taking the hill.
For Garris, the blue collar mentality will define his team.
�We come in expecting to do the little things to compete,� he said.
S. Wayne 000 000 0�0 3 2
N. Lenoir 341 001 X�9 10 1
Hayes, Jernigan (3), Holland (6) and H. Barwick. Letchworth, Reese (6) and Jackson. W�Letchworth. L�Hayes.


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LOS ANGELES, Dec. 14 (UPI) -- L.A. Reid told "Access Hollywood" he will not return as a judge for a third season of "The X Factor."
The Epic Records boss currently serves on the panel for the Los Angeles-based singing competition show, alongside Simon Cowell, Britney Spears and Demi Lovato.
"I have decided that I will not return to 'The X Factor' next year," he told "Access Hollywood."
"I have to go back and I have a company to run that I've kind of neglected and it saddens me a little bit, but only a little bit," Reid said. "It was a nice break, it was a nice departure from what I've done for the past 20 years, but now I gotta go back to work. ... I have a huge responsibility to a roster of artists and it's kind of time for me to stop doing the 'me' show."


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Technical FAQs
Technical FAQs
In most cases, to desensitize the UPS you will need to install the Powerchute software that is included with the UPS. Once the Powerchute software is installed, you can lower the sensitivity from the default setting of High, to either Medium or Low.
Note about Building-size generators - Generally, generators used to back up an entire building or facility, such as those used for hospitals, are sized large enough and are of good enough quality that any APC UPS will operate fine.


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World No.1 side annihilated by Amla and Kallis
A forum for fans of South Africa.
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World No.1 side annihilated by Amla and Kallis
An unbroken 200 runs stubborn stand of Kallis and Amla washed Indian fightback hopes on second day of opening test in Centurion. India stuck between a hard and a rock place due to Amla and Kallis tons, which gave an unbearable thrust to world No.1 side. South Africa acquired total control over Indian bowlers and annoyed them by vigorous attacking bating performances. Top order of home side mesmerized Indian bowlers with two aggressive fifties and two unbeaten remarkable centuries.
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ST. LOUIS — The Red Sox have left here for good, returning home for a chance to do something no Boston team has done since Thomas R. Marshall was vice president. Win a World Series at Fenway Park.
With the remarkable David Ortiz getting three more hits, Jon Lester getting another World Series win, David Ross and Xander Bogaerts each getting two big hits, and Koji Uehara picking up another save, Boston beat the Cardinals here on Monday night, 3-1.
The Sox lead the World Series, 3 games to 2. The teams are off today and play Game 6 at 8:07 p.m. on Wednesday at Fenway. John Lackey will start for Boston, Michael Wacha for St. Louis.
The Red Sox have been in position to win the whole thing at home just once since they beat the Chicago Cubs at Fenway in six games in 1918. That was in 1975, when Boston won a classic Game 6, then lost a heart-rending Game 7.
Lester outpitched Adam Wainwright, who gave the Cardinals seven strong innings but lost.
Ortiz and Lester have doubled up on Reggie Jackson, the Yankees' Mr. October. Together, Ortiz and Lester have become Misters October with a series of remarkable performances.
Lester went 7? innings and gave up a solo home run to Matt Holliday in the fourth. That was the first earned run Lester allowed in three World Series — and still the only one. He is 3-0 in the World Series with an 0.43 ERA. Only Bill Dinneen (1903), Ernie Shore (1915 '16) and Babe Ruth (1916, '18) also won three World Series games for Boston.
"I was telling Jonny Gomes," Lester said. "You show up Feb. 1, play 162 games — now about 180 total — and it comes down to one game. That's pretty special."
Lester is 4-1 with a 1.56 ERA in five playoff starts in 2013.
"Given the stage, given how strong he's been through the course of this year," manager John Farrell said, "and particularly what he's doing career-wise in the postseason, this was a big game. We talked before the game. We felt this was going to be a classic pitchers' duel. It was shaping up that way and fortunately we were able to break through in the seventh inning. Jon Lester was fantastic tonight."
The seventh inning was pivotal.
Boston got a run in the first on consecutive doubles by Dustin Pedroia and Ortiz, then could not get another. Holliday's home run tied it. Wainwright started to wobble a bit in the sixth when the Sox got two hits off him, but he didn't crack until the seventh.
With one out, Bogaerts singled to center, then Stephen Drew worked a walk. Ross hit a ground-rule double down the left field line to make it 2-1 and put runners at second and third with one out.
Lester batted and grounded out weakly to Wainwright, but Jacoby Ellsbury got a pad run with a single to center. That scored Drew, but Ross was thrown out at the plate.
Lester was pitching so well, Farrell never considered hitting for him.
"Not even if that game was tied," Farrell said. "Where his pitch count was, as effective as he was, we were looking for at least one more inning. We were able to do that and fortunately, again, David Ross comes through big for the go-ahead run."
Farrell finally called for Uehara with two outs in the eighth. Four outs was all the Sox expected from their closer, and he got them in order, but it wasn't without some drama. David Freese hit a one-out double off Lester, then the Sox starter got Pete Kozma on a fly ball to left.
In came Uehara to face pinch hitter Matt Adams. Uehara, who had looked a bit tired in recent appearances, struck out Adams on three pitches, then got the side in quick order in the ninth. Not too, too long after that, the Red Sox were on a plane, headed for home.
"When a team is down, 3-2, that's your biggest challenge," Ortiz said. "We've got to come back on Wednesday and play hard again. I'm telling you — it's gonna get loud out there. Our fans are baseball fans, they love the game, love how we've been going at it every day, and I'm pretty sure it's gonna be pretty loud out there."
Maybe louder than it's been for 95 years.
Contact Bill Ballouat email@example.com.


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Why should I ask them?
You can tap the collective wisdom of other Microsoft Project users by posing questions in discussion groups, reading Project blogs, or using any of the other community resources mentioned in this article.
For example, you can use discussion groups to access an online group of experienced Project users, including Project Most Valuable Professionals (MVPs), who willingly share their time to answer questions and to provide solutions, tips, and expertise.
— Jan De Messemaeker, Project MVP


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Shameema Sikder, M.D.
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Specializes in: Adolescents (12-18 years), Children (1-11 years), Adults (18+ years), Infants (up to 1 year)
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Expertise: Cataract Surgery, Cataracts, Cornea Transplant, Cornea/Anterior Segment Disease, Corneal Diseases, Corneal Dystrophies, Corneal Ulcer, Dry Eyes, Fuchs Dystrophy of the Cornea, Fuchs Endothelial Corneal Dystrophy, Herpes Infections, Keratoconus, Laser Surgery, Ophthalmology, Refractive Surgery, Thyroid Eye Disease, Trauma ...read more
Research Interests: Surgical Education; Keratoconus; Thyroid Eye Disease; Cataract Surgery; Granular Corneal Dystrophy
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Phone: 240-482-1100
Shameema Sikder, M.D., medical director of the Wilmer Eye Institute at Bethesda is an assistant professor of ophthalmology. She specializes in corneal disorders, including Fuchs dystrophy and keratoconus; complex cataracts and external eye diseases. Dr. Sikder's clinical interests include surgical treatments for corneal diseases, such as endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK, DSAEK), complex cataracts and treatments for keratoconus.
Dr. Sikder is also director of the Center of Excellence for Ophthalmic Surgical Education and Training (OphSET) at the Johns Hopkins Hospital. She has a particular interest in surgical education and is working on a technologies that could be implemented at the international level to improve the level of ophthalmic surgical care.
Dr. Sikder received her M.D. degree from the University of Arizona. She completed her ophthalmology residency at the Wilmer Eye Institute and fellowship in cornea and refractive disease at the Moran Eye Institute in Salt Lake City, Utah, where she received the Claes Dohlman Fellow of the Year Award, recognizing the most distinguished cornea fellow in the nation. Dr. Sikder returned to Wilmer in 2011 and served as assistant chief of service (chief resident) and associate director of ocular trauma.
- Director, Center of Excellence for Ophthalmic Surgical Education and Training
- Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology
Departments / Divisions
- Ophthalmology - Cornea and Anterior Segment
- Surgery at Suburban Hospital
Centers & Institutes
- MD, University of Arizona College of Medicine (2006)
- Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine / Ophthalmology (2010)
- The University of Utah / Cornea and Refractive Surgery (2011)
Board Certifications
- American Board of Ophthalmology / Ophthalmology (2013)
Research & Publications
Selected PublicationsView all on Pubmed
Sikder S, Khalifa, YM, Neuffer, M, Moshirfar, M. Tomographic Corneal Profile Analysis of Central Toxic Keratopathy. Cornea, 2012;31(1):48-51.
Holt DG, Sikder S, Mifflin MD. Surgical management of traumatic LASIK flap dislocation 15 years postoperatively with macrostriae and epithelial ingrowth. JCRS, 2012 Feb;38(2):357-61.
Mifflin MD, Hatch BB, Sikder S, Kurz CJ, Moshirfar M. Custom versus Conventional PRK: A Prospective, Randomized Contralateral Eye Comparison of Post-Operative Visual Function. JRS, 2012 Feb;28(2):127-32.
Oberg TO, Sikder S, Jorgensen AJ, Mifflin MD. Topical-Intracameral Anesthesia without Preoperative Mydriatic Agents for Descemets Stripping Automated Endothelial Keratoplasty and Phacoemulsification Cataract Surgery with Intraocular Lens Implantation. JCRS, in review. 2012 Mar;38(3):384-6.
Calvo CM, Sikder S, Mamalis N, Mifflin MD. Linear Interstitial Keratitis: A Distinct, Clinical Entity Revisited. Cornea, 2012 Mar 8.
Moshirfar M, Hsu M, Schulman J, Armenia J, Sikder S, Hartnett ME. The incidence of central serous chorioretinopathy after photorefractive keratectomy and laser in situ keratomileusis. J Ophthalmol. 2012;2012:904215.
Christiansen SM, Neuffer MC, Sikder S, Semnani RT, Moshirfar M. The effect of preoperative keratometry on visual outcomes after moderate myopic LASIK. Clin Ophthalmol. 2012;6:459-64.
Mifflin MD, Leishman LL, Christensen SM, Sikder S, Hsu M, Moshirfar M. Use of Loteprednol for Routine Prophylaxis after Photorefractive Keratectomy. Clin Ophthalmol. 2012;6:653-9.
Sedaghat M, Zarei-Ghanavati M, Ansari-Astaneh MRA, Patel V, Sikder S. Evaluation of Sterile Uveitis after Iris-Fixated Phakic Intraocular Lens Implantation. Middle East African Journal of Ophthalmology, 2012;19(2):199-203.
Casparis H, Lindsley K, Kuo IC, Sikder S, Bressler NB. Surgery for cataracts in people with age-related macular degeneration. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2012 Jun 13;6:CD006757.
Activities & Honors
- University of Arizona, College of Medicine Excellence in Research Award
- University of Arizona, College of Medicine Research Distinction Award
- Claes Dohlman, M.D. Cornea Fellow of the Year Award (National)
- Mitchell Research Prize, Wilmer Resident Association
- Honor Society Member, Alpha Omega Alpha
- Intern of the Year, Tucson Hospitals Medical Education Program
- Seventh Annual Resident Writer''s Award Program Participant, Ophthalmology Times
- American Academy of Ophthalmology
- American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery
- Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology
- Cornea Society
- International Society of Refractive Surgeons
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It was a clear, wintry dawn in December, 1937, when Gopi Krishna, a 34-year old government official, sat in his customary meditating asana. The sun was just casting grey light over the horizon onto his hermitage on the outskirts of Jammu Kashmir. With the seasoned practice of 17 years of yoga, he was breathing deeply, visualizing a radiant full bloom lotus floating above the crown of his head shedding beams of light.
Unexpectedly, and for the first time ever in his dawn meditative vigils, a force at the base of his spine stirred. It threw his concentration, but within minutes he was composed, his meditation refocused on the lotus. Again the warm, electric force arose, gaining in intensity as he remained locked onto the lotus. Suddenly, like a laser flash, the force surged up his spine into the nerve tissue of his brain. He was enveloped in a white light and a sound like a rocket booster engine. His body rocked slightly as his consciousness broke loose of its biological encasement. He was now light-consciousness, expanding out into a boundless sphere.
It was Gopi Krishna's first kundalini experience, his first sojourn into the rarely seen realms of man and God's inner reality. Those hours radically transformed his life, propelling him on an odyssey that would traverse awesome visions of the inner cosmos, clairvoyant seeing of man's subtle nerve system and the interpenetrating energy of Satchidananda. But his odyssey would also plunge him into the physical and psychic nightmare of kundalini unleashed into the wrong nerve channel, and an unprepared nerve network.
On July 31st this year, Gopi Krishna, famed but unaffected explorer of kundalini consciousness, visionary prophet and architect of an evolutionary human consciousness theory, died of pneumonia in Srinigar, Kashmir. He was 81.
A friend of Krishna intimated that his contraction of pneumonia resulted from a recent state of samadhi in which his body had turned death cold, effectively lowering his resistance.
Gopi Krishna's life was the stuff of good fiction, an incredible tale of guideless sorties into the yoga mysteries and two encounters with death. It was an ecstatic/traumatic adventure that he didn't expect or ask for.
Some writers have called him a mountebank. Others call him a philosopher, a mystic, a sage. Science fiction writers would label him a new strain of the human race, an idea probably not too foreign or objectionable to Gopi Krishna, whose decades of powerful experiences resulted in the formulation of a theory that the organic whole of human consciousness is evolving, perfecting itself. Similar to Sri Aurobindo's "superman" theory, Gopi Krishna shaped his evolutionary consciousness model in a series of widely read books.
He saw himself as a fortuitous model of the new man, who through the controlled awakening of kundalini can open new vistas of consciousness, a dual identity of man and pervasive cosmic essence. He also felt that at this time humankind en masse is not able to realize the ultimate identity between God and man, that being reserved for very advanced souls. Religion, in all of its expression, was man's innate impulse towards a more perfect consciousness, and was best exemplified by the siddhars and yogis of ancient India and China who had perfected the technique of kundalini yoga.
His autobiography, Kundalini - The Evolutionary Energy in Man, written in the mid-60's, chronicles his experiences and is a fascinating study of the psychosomatic relationship of man's nerve system and his inner consciousness. When describing his inner vision or voyages, his prose transforms into surreal imagery that is among the most telling portrayals of man's interior worlds. He also tells how he had considered taking sannyas, choosing not to because of the difficulty in maintaining his special diet (to help control the kundalini). His later books turned to visionary prophecy, primarily warning humankind about the necessity to elevate consciousness to avoid nuclear apocalypse.
His most recent but unaccomplished endeavor was working with the Kundalini Research Foundation of New York to record the traces of kundalini/prana activity within the brain.
Article copyright Himalayan Academy.
The comments are owned by the author. We aren't responsible for their content.


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At #3: The Ruched T. Either as a regular tee or a t-shirt dress, ruching allows a fitted cut while expanding with the growth of the bump. In fact, it's even flattering post-pregnancy when there's still a few pounds to shed!
This easy and fail-safe stable is definitely a no-brainer. And if I factor the cost-per-wear, it's really worth investing in a good quality stretch jersey that can survive the weekly wash&dry.
T-shirt - H&M; Skirt - Alexander Wang; Pumps - Miu Miu; Hat - Zara; Scarf - Hermes; Necklace - Street Vendor


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NuWa is now Kansas RV Center! Kansas RV Center is owned and operated by NuWa Industries, in the same location, with the same great sales, service, and parts departments. Kansas RV Center has a continuous supply of good used HitchHikers (and other brands) taken on trade from new and repeat customers. We also represent new products from several other quality manufacturers, providing a full product mix ranging from small travel trailers all the way up to the top of the line 5th Wheels.
Please visit Kansas RV Center at www.KansasRVcenter.com.
For Archived information on 2013 and earlier NuWa Products (floorplans, features, options, specs, etc.) visit our Archives section.


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Athena and Nell are two of my top Formidable Female Protagonists and they both made the list this week.
As always it has been fun researching the list, I pick up new books to read all the time. 40 down and 34 more protagonists to go. The females are carefully selected by me, their names written on paper, folded and put in one of two bowls, one for new-to-me and one for read-by-me. I then select four read and one new-to-me and write about them. I am open to suggestions for more females to include.
Here is the list, read about them below.
- Athena Hera Sinastra – Intrepid Rebel (Sarah A. Hoyt)
- Nell – Mouse Queen (Neal Stephenson)
- Nicole des Jardins Wakefield – Stowaway to the Stars (Arthur C. Clarke & Gentry Lee)
- Sauscony 'Soz' Valdoria – Empath Commando (Catherine Asaro)
- Festina Ramos – Expendable (James Alan Gardner)
Athena Hera Sinastra – Intrepid Rebel
Books: Darkship Thieves
Series: Darkship Thieves
Author: Sarah A. Hoyt
Publisher: Baen 2010
Genre: Space Opera
For being the daughter of a seacity ruler Athena Hera Sinistra, our protagonist picked up an amazing skill set while going rampage through military schools, instructors, reformatories, madhouses and ballet school.
It helps a lot when she wakes up with an unknown man leaning over her aboard her father's space cruiser. She succeeds in subduing him and flees the ship half naked in an escape pod. In a desperate attempt to escape her pursuers she heads into the dangerous power-tree forest and crashes into a dark ship. She is rescued by the pilot.
She has run into the Darkship Thieves of legend. This is a really mesmerizing book, I started reading and after a few pages I was in the world Sarah A. Hoyt created experiencing it from the slightly disturbed mind of a captivating young woman. Athena Hera Sinistra is as much a handful as her name, but it is a handful easy to love as a reader. The book reminds me of old Space Opera classics like the Skylark series but with much better characterization and world building.
24th century Earth has outlawed all bio-engineering since the revolt against the super engineered sterile Mules that ruled humanity. All Mules and their bio-engineered servants where killed but legend has it a few escaped in a spaceship. Earth civilization is centered on the seacities, each ruled by a Good Man with dictatorial powers, and Daddy Dearest is one of them. The Darkship Thieves home, Eden is quite different but I won't ruin the surprise for you.
At the core of the story is the morality of bio-engineering and cloning humans.
I first learned about Sarah A. Hoyt from The Big Idea article about Darkship Thieves on John Scalzi's blog Whateverand found it quite entertaining that the Big Idea started with Sarah being annoyed. But it wasn't until I read a rant Blame It on the Girls on Darwin's evolutions I started to suspect I found a new favorite author. And I was right. Now I can't wait to read more by Sarah and any sequel to Darkship Thieves would be on the top of my list.
I love Darkship Thieves and Athena the strong heroine, you will too.
Nell – Mouse Queen
Books: The Diamond Age: Or, A Young Lady's Illustrated Primer
Author: Neal Stephenson
Publisher: Bantam 1995 | Penguin
Genre: Cyberpunk
One of the best cyberpunk novels I have ever read.
Stephenson's fourth solo novel, set primarily in a far-future Shanghai at a time when nations have been superseded by enclaves of common cultures ("claves"), abundantly justifies the hype that surrounded Snow Crash, his first foray into science fiction. Here, the author avoids the major structural problem of that book-a long lump of philosophical digression-by melding myriad perspectives and cogitations into his tale, which is simultaneously SF, fantasy and a masterful political thriller. Treating nanotechnology as he did virtual reality in Snow Crash-as a jumping-off point-Stephenson presents several engaging characters. John Percival Hackworth is an engineer living in a neo-Victorian clave, who is commissioned by one of the world's most powerful men to create a Primer that might enable the man's granddaughter to be educated in ways superior to the "straight and narrow." When Hackworth is mugged, an illegal copy of the Primer falls into the hands of a working-class girl named Nell, and a most deadly game's afoot. Stephenson weaves several plot threads at once, as the paths of Nell, Hackworth and other significant characters-notably Nell's brother Harv, Hackworth's daughter Fiona and an actress named Miranda-converge and diverge across continents and complications, most brought about by Hackworth's actions and Nell's development. Building steadily to a wholly earned and intriguing climax, this long novel, which presents its sometimes difficult technical concepts in accessible ways, should appeal to readers other than habitual SF users. [Publishers Weekly]
Nicole des Jardins Wakefield – Stowaway to the Stars
Books: Rama II (1989), The Garden of Rama (1991), Rama Revealed (1993)
Series: Rama
Author: Arthur C. Clarke & Gentry Lee
Publisher: Gollancz | Random House
Grene: Science Fiction
It was a fair time since I read the Rama series. Nicole des Jardins Wakefield is the formidable protagonist in the sequels of Rendezvous with Rama.
[Rama II] Years ago, the enormous, enigmatic alien spacecraft called Rama sailed through our solar system as mind-boggling proof that life existed — or had existed — elsewhere in the universe. Now, at the dawn of the twenty-third century, another ship is discovered hurtling toward us. A crew of Earth's best and brightest minds is assembled to rendezvous with the massive vessel. They are armed with everything we know about Raman technology and culture. But nothing can prepare them for what they are about to encounter on board Rama II: cosmic secrets that are startling, sensational — and perhaps even deadly.
[The Garden of Rama] In the spellbinding Arthur C. Clarke tradition, here is an exhilarating adventure into the hearts of both the Universe and mankind…
By the twenty-third century Earth has already had two encounters with massive, mysterious robotic spacecraft from beyond our solar system—the incontestable proof of an alien technology that far exceeds our own. Now three human cosmonauts are trapped aboard a labyrinthine Raman vessel, where it will take all of their physical and mental resources to surviv. Only twelve years into their journey do these intrepid travelers learn their destination and face their ultimate challenge: a rendevous with a Raman base—and the unseen architects of their galactic home. The cosmonauts have given up family, friends, and possessions to live a new kind of life. But the answers that await them at the Raman Node will require an even greater sacrifice—if humanity is indeed ready to learn the awe-inspiring truth.
[Rama Revealed] On its mysterious voyage through interstellar space, a massive alien starship carries its human passengers to the end of a generations-long odyssey. But the great experiment designed by the Ramans has failed, and Rama III has become a battleground. Fleeing a tyrant, a band of humans ventures into the nether regions of the ship, where they encounter an emerald-doomed lair ruled by the fabulously advanced octospiders. As the octospiders lure the humans deeper into their domain, the humans must decide whether the creatures are their allies of enemies. All the while, Rama III continues its inexplorable journey towards the node, where the climax of their voyage awaits the stunning revelation of the true identity of the beings behind this glittering trek across the cosmos.
Sauscony 'Soz' Valdoria – Empath Commando
Books: Primary Inversion (1995), The Radiant Seas (1998)
Series: Saga of the Skolian Empire
Author: Catherine Asaro
Publisher: Tor
Grenre: Space Opera
The Formidable protagonist is Sauscony Lahaylia Valdoria Skolia, also called Soz or Soshoni. She is a member of the Ruby Dynasty ruling the Skolian Empire and has the empathic and telepathic abilities of a Rhon psion. She ranks Jagernaut Primary (Admiral or General) in the ISC. A Jagernaut is a biomechanically enhanced fighter and pilot.
Catherine Asaro is pretty new to me as an author. Primary Inversion is a fantastic first novel with remarkable storytelling. It is a Romantic science fiction with space opera, military scifi and hard science influence about a formidable yet human Julia character and it avoids the usual pitfalls of that genre, it is not action packed but there is enough thrills to go around. It reads well as a standalone novel. I will read The Radiant Seas that continues Soz's story next.
[Primary Inversion] The Skolian Empire rules a third of the civilized galaxy through its mastery of faster-than-light communication. But war with the rival empire of the Traders seems imminent, a war that can only lead to slavery for the Skolians or the destruction of both sides. Destructive skirmishes have already occurred. A desperate attempt must be made to avert total disaster.
[The Radiant Seas] Living in exile on a deserted planet, Sauscony and Jaibriol, each the heir to an interstellar empire, become entangled in the machinations of the Skolian Empire. Interstellar war erupts and Jaibriol is snatched away to be the unwilling ruler of the Highton Aristos. Sauscony must lead an invading space fleet to rescue him from his own Empire-without revealing that they are married. With much of interstellar civilization poised on the brink of destruction, it is the devotion of these two lovers, their sacrifices, and their heroism, that might just forge a new order.
Festina Ramos – Expendable
Books: Expendable (1997), Vigilant (1999), Hunted (2000), Ascending (2001), Radient (2004)
Series: Legaue of Peoples
Author: James Alan Gardner
Publisher: Eos
Genre: Space Opera
This is the one not read by me yet, looks interesting. Festina Ramos is only protagonist in the first book but she features as a prominent characters in the others.
[Expendable] Introducing the League of Peoples Universe and Festina Ramos of the Technocracy Explorer Corps. Festina and her partner are assigned to escort an admiral on an exploration mission…but it soon becomes apparent that the mission is simply an excuse to get rid of the admiral before he becomes a public embarrassment.
[Vigilant] On the planet Demoth, the Vigil is a watchdog agency keeping watch for government corruption. Members of the Vigil are kept honest by a brain implant that makes it impossible for them to ignore the consequences of their actions. In Vigilant, a member of the Vigil and Festina Ramos investigate a threat that might kill every human on the planet.
[Hunted] Edward York doesn't think he's special. He's wrong. In fact, he's about to find out he holds the key to ending a twenty-year-long civil war on the alien planet Troyen, not to mention revealing corruption at the heart of the Technocracy navy. [Yes, Festina Ramos is in this one.]
[Ascending] Oar is beautiful. Oar is made of glass. Oar is smarter than you…except that her brain is getting tired. She must go on a Great Adventure with her faithful sidekick Festina in order to conquer her enemies. [I think Oar is the funniest character I've ever written. She's a hoot.]
[Radient] First, there's the sentient red moss that invades and envelopes a domed city. Then, there's the mayday from a newly-colonized planet where everyone has disappeared. And that's not to mention that our heroine is being eaten from within by an alien parasite that's affecting her mind. [The most recent Festina Ramos story, where a number of secrets are revealed.]
Read part 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | index | afterword


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My first interaction with the fascinating world of blogging was through my friend and ex-colleague Raza Ahmad who had initiated his blog on wordpress and I used to get SO amazed at how he ever finds the time to work fulltime, manage his very active social life in addition to 'writing articles', my first take on his very regular blogging. Little did I know that my orientation was to grow more with time and that the world of blogging and those of the bloggers is fascinating, addictive and a whole lot more! This post is just to give you an idea of what it is out there, from someone who has just stepped in this wonderland only recently.
So what is a blog in the first place? It's a contraction of the term 'weblog' and is a type of 'website' that is either maintained by an individual, a group of like-minded people or even organizations. Many blogs are 'theme-specific' and provide commentary and articles on related topics while others can just be online 'diaries' of individuals. A typical blog would have narrative, images and might even have links to other related sites. What makes a blog more interesting is the nature of interaction with its reader: you can leave a 'comment' to share with the author what you feel about their post. Some blogs provide help and advice to those in similar circumstances and serve as discussion boards for key topics such as parenting. According to an Economist article, quoting Mr. Bhatia who helped start hotmail, 'Just as everybody has an e-mail account today, everybody will have a blog in five years'. Need I say more…
Blogs come in all shapes and sizes. The collective community of all blogs is known as the blogosphere! Yes, it has a life of its own indeed, with its own set of vocabulary, search engines and the networks that connect the proud citizens of the Blogger-Land. Blogging is also termed as the easiest, fastest and the cheapest 'publishing' tool ever. There are personal blogs that are maintained by individuals, and are perhaps the most common kind. Then there are corporate blogs that are likely run by businesses, and then there are blogs by genre or types: travel, fashion, musical and ofcourse the rather widely known photoblogs. And then, lo and behold, there is even something called a moblog, a blog that is maintained via your mobile phone!!!! I even read a term 'blooks', books from blogs, and cheekily enough, there is a Blooker Prize for the popular books!!!
The west has experienced the strength of blogs in their political and public lives and there have been numerous studies and research to analyze how this medium is increasingly becoming popular with the masses. International media such as the CNN uses stories from readers/users who can upload their stories on the IReport link.
Blogging in Pakistan has seen an upward surge in popularity with the educated elite, with mushroom growth of many blogs in the last couple of years. Sites such as the wordpress have made it easier for upcoming bloggers to have their personal space only a click away. The scribe is but a prime example of the same! Of late, DAWN group of newspapers in Pakistan has also initiated its own blog space and a recent article on a subject as popular and controversial as the blackwater can attract as many as 77 comments! Alternate media is definitely here to stay!
Some skeptics might argue exercising caution in maintaining your own blog, as prospective employers might at some stage check your cyber content and may not accept your candidature as 'appropriate' based on your opinions cited freely and publicly earlier on. Bloggers of the world, beware! Your blog is now officially the window to your soul! Others might even question how much of cyber footprint are we willing to leave behind anyways, as the cyber social networks experience an exponential growth and as users increasingly become wary of over populated social networks.
There is increasing skepticism over the role of mainstream media and how our national media is increasingly resigning to promoting catfights among politicians and fuelling fights and grudges by highlighting pedantic issues with a potential to create disharmony among provinces (recent case of disagreement over citing of Eid moon is a case in point). So while we ponder over the importance of responsible journalism, perhaps it is also prudent to start thinking about the importance of responsible blogging as well. News, especially in a medium which is one's 'personal space' and therefore can encompass biased opinions, false or inaccurate information, can also spread like wildfire. The domino effect of links and cross-links can be just as misleading on blogosphere as anywhere else. Granted that your blog is your personal space, but does that give an individual the right to air their opinion on any subject? In this age of information, and perhaps information overload, how does one go about 'filtering' the 'right' information? What remains 'right' in such an information-clutter anyways?
In the current crisis it is all the more important to share the image of an enlightened Pakistan, while all the others hear about are Taliban, widespread corruption, disasters and the ongoing conflict in the country. Our blogs must reflect our sense of responsibility towards building a better image for the country in these stressful times, highlight the earnest efforts of the few among us who still upload the sense of patriotism closer to their hearts. As Raza Rumi points out, 'Fighting intolerance and forces of retrogression is of prime importance in these troubled times and nobody can do it for us. We will have to undertake this Jihad – albeit of another variety – ourselves!'.
There are two blogs that I would refer to my readers, who are doing their bit towards a more aware Pakistan: Dr Awab Alvi's Teeth Maestro and Faisal Kapadia's Deadpanthoughts. They are prominent among Pakistani bloggers for their genuine writing style and candid disposition. The duo has recently launched a podcast, a web-based media production so to speak, with a tongue-in-cheek name, 'The Laidback Show'. I suggest you watch it on this link, as it opens new horizons to the alternate media in Pakistan. A candid, casual, open discussion focusing on the online community in Pakistan, its informal style making it most watchable….Not a single dull moment indeed! Although they can definitely improve on the sound quality and perhaps even on the duration of the episode itself. From what I can tell from the site they have received raving reviews already and there is great excitement on the second show, which is hopefully uploaded tonight! The Laidback Show only reinforces the belief that the social networks and interactions are only to grow, hopefully stronger and with a focus that gives a new gateway to the world into Pakistan: the land of promise. The show, due to its online presence and the medium of language, has the potential to reach out to the world and perhaps play its role in changing global perspective about the country.
I hope this post has given a fair roundup of the blogging 101 for Pakistan…that is, if you have had the patience to make it all the way down here! I am remembering Star Trek's opening lines as they seem very apt for the Blogger-Land in which I am still trying to find my way around…
….the final frontier….to explore strange new worlds…to seek out new life and new civilizations…to boldly go where no man has ever gone before.


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Posts Tagged 'romero'
The Eight (8) Best Ways to Cross Tucson
I've been asked multiple times about how best to get across Tucson. I've been meaning to write a piece about it and it looks like I am finally getting around to doing so.
The first things we have to do is establish what we mean by "best." For the purposes of this article here are the criteria (in no particular order) I will be using to decide what "best" means when it comes to roadways in Tucson.
- Road Quality – A road where you have to dodge potholes or that is so rough you have to hang on with a death grip will not make the list.
- Length – There are some very nice road that only run for a couple of miles. For this article, roads considered must cross a significant portion of the city. As you will see, it is okay for the road to merge with another and change names, as long as it continues in the same direction.
- Amount of traffic – a good quality road that has extremely heavy traffic is going to be less safe, especially as far as scooters are concerned.
- Intersections – I checked some some Pima County and City of Tucson sources which listed the most dangerous intersections in the city based on numbers of cars and numbers of accidents. This was factored into my choices. The ideal route will not pass through any of the most dangerous interstions.
- Personal Opinion – After riding around most of the city for the past 4 and a half years, I have my own opinions on which roads are good or bad for scooters and their riders. Feel free to add a comments and vote for your favorite.
- Construction – I realize that construction comes and goes. For this piece, I considered major construction work that will continue for months. This article will, therefor, be accurate only until another major construction project comes along and either spoils one of the "best" roads, or converts one of the bad ones into a "best" one. Maybe I'll review this and update it every year or so.
One thing I DID NOT take into consideration is scenery. I plan on writing a piece in the near future about Tucson's most scenic rides. Stay tuned for that. I also plan on adding a "Worst Roads" piece soon as well.
I had originally planned on calling this the "10 Best Roads," however, after doing a little bit of research and applying my criteria, only eight roads made the cut. I have chosen four roads running north/south and four running east/west. I will finish with a couple of honorable mentions.
Silverbell/Mission – I am aware that these are separate roads and that have to travel about 3 blocks on Congress to fuse them together, but, hey, I claim writers' prerogative. This is the only road on our list on the west side of I-10. Combined, Silverbell/Mission runs more than 20 miles, from Twin Peaks Road, in Continental Ranch, to Valencia where the road leaves Tucson and enters the reservation. With the exception of about 4 miles, from Ina to Camino del Carro, road quality is pretty good. Traffic can be heavy around St Mary's at times. There are some "speed tables" and a couple of small traffic circles on Mission between Congress and 22nd St. as well. Silverbell/Mission also gets special dispensation because it's really the only road that runs for any significant distance on the far west side. We have used this route on a number of different club rides. There are a fewer than average number of stoplights as well.
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Stone/6th Ave/Nogales Highway – Stone is one of the few streets that pass all the way through downtown and are 2-way. On the down side, Stone will only get you as far north as River Rd, however, it makes it up on the south side where it merges with 6th Ave at 5-points. Further south it becomes Old Nogales Highway and will take you as far as Green Valley. Yes, traffic will be heavy as you pass through downtown, but I have found it to less congested than some of the other downtown streets. Road quality is pretty good along most of the way.
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Craycroft – 5.5 miles to the east is Craycroft. Most of the streets between Stone and Craycroft suffer from congestion, construction of roughness. On the north end, Craycroft actually goes up into the foothills then does a big U-turn near Ventana Canyon Resort and comes back down as Kolb Rd. On the south end, it goes into the main gate of Davis-Monthan AFB. Immediately after Golf Links Rd. Road quality is good to very good along most of this road, with the exception of the short section just north of Sunrise which is just fair.
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Harrison – The eastern most road on my list is Harrison. The southern section of Harrison (It stops at Wrightstown then resumes again at Catalina Highway and runs north for 2 miles to Snyder.) is only 5.5 miles long, but crosses the east side from Wrightstown to Irvington. Road quality is good and, because it doesn't run all the through, traffic is much less than Houghton, which also has poorer quality.
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Irvington – The southernmost road on this list is Irvington. Truth be told, I almost forgot about this road. Irvington runs for more than 15 miles across the southern part of the city and that is minus the 3 miles that are occupied by Davis-Monthan. The western section runs more than 11 miles between Sunset Blvd and Swan. Road quality is good and except for the section immediately around I-19, traffic isn't too bad. The 4 mile long eastern section only has fair road quality, but is an excellent alternative route between Kolb and Houghton.
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Glenn – We have to go almost 6 miles north before we come to the next road on our list. I think Glenn is my favorite way to cross town east to west. It runs almost 8 miles from Sahuara Ave, east of Craycroft, to Flowing Wells, which is right at I-10. Glenn has a 35 mph speed limit, which keeps those people in a big hurry off of it. There are also as many 4-way stops as there are stoplights. It is my opinion that 4-way stops are considerably safer for those of us on 2 wheels. Road quality is good and traffic is generally light.
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El Camino del Cerro/Ruthrauff/Wetmore – I know, another one of those combination streets. Well, Ruthrauff and Camino de Cerro are the same road, but separated by I-10. Thanks to some creative roadwork, Ruthrauff and Wetmore merge at Romero and Wetmore continues all the way to 1st Ave. Other than the intersection with Oracle,which gets congested at rush hours, I have found this to be a pretty decent road to travel. Road quality just east of I-10 is only fair, but otherwise it's pretty good.
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Orange Grove – If you have to travel east/west a little further north, I recommend Orange Grove over Ina. Orange Grove runs almost 7 miles from I-10 to Skyline. I was tempted to add Skyline and Sunrise as part of this but traffic is just too heavy to give that part "best" status. Road quality is good and traffic is moderate. Except around La Cholla and Northwest Medical Center at change of shift times.
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North/South – The Park/Euclid/1st Ave combo runs almost 15 miles across mid-town. The southern terminus is at Valencia and the northern end is at Ina. It doesn't make "best" status because road quality between Broadway and Speedway is abysmal. Also, the intersection with Grant can be difficult. Road quality from River to Ina is very good, but it has a 45mph speed limit and is uphill, so this can be a little dicey for small displacement scooters to stay with traffic.
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East/West – It is probably because I ride it almost everyday or because it is where Scoot Over can be found, but I really like Broadway. It is very wide and has that wonderful bus lane and bus pullouts that keep traffic from suddenly jumping in your lane to get away from a slowing bus. Other than the section from Camino Seco to Houghton, road quality is good. Of the "Big Three (Speedway, Broadway and 22nd St) Broadway is probably the safest. It does, however, have one of the most dangerous intersections, which is at Wilmot. I recommend avoiding it if you can.
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I will follow this entry with one about the "Worst Roads in Tucson" soon. Do you have a road youy think should have made this list, please make a comment.
Safe Riding Everyone


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32And they go to a place the name of which was Gethsemane, and he says to his disciples, "Sit down here while I pray." 33And he takes Peter and James and John along with him, and he grew apprehensive and full of anguish. 34He says to them, "I'm so sad I could die. You stay here and be alert!"I recently read "The Value of Conflict," a powerful article by George Lakey in the November 2010 issue of Friends Journal. The article was drawn from an address Lakey gave on July 5, 2010, to the Friends General Conference gathering held in Bowling Green, Ohio. George Lakey is a member of Central Philadelphia (PA) Meeting, a nonviolent activist, author, and the founder of Training for Change.
—Mark 14:32-34 (The Complete Gospels, 3rd ed. )
I was so exercised by Lakey's article that I created a new blog, The Threshing Session, to invite discussion of Quaker peace and social concerns issues, and I published excerpts from the article as the blog's first post.
Lakey's words move me in the midst of my political despair.
We are currently witnessing mass denial with regard to the human and economic wellbeing of our nation and world. On the cusp of a second Great Depression, Americans should be rallying to share their resources and to affirm their moral and civic responsibility for each other. Instead we have anti-government, anti-tax, anti-public services demagoguery in the media and on the street, and the political and corporate powers exploit this to undo the social safety net and the worker and consumer protections of the New Deal.
As a student of history, I have been watching this process escalate since at least the late 1970s. As a Friend of Jesus, I grieve through each next election cycle, watching citizens vote against their own best interests—out of fear or ignorance or a misguided sense of entitlement.
What are we to do?
George Lakey reminds us that the first Quakers were not content merely to witness such harm done to their neighbors and their world:
Conflict warms us up. It makes available things that otherwise are very hard to achieve. I think that's one reason why Quakers in the 17th century found it so very useful to make trouble.Lakey tells of Martin Luther King's decision to join the action on the streets of Birmingham in 1963, after President Kennedy refused to take leadership in backing the civil rights bill because of the political realities of his reelection campaign.
Theocracies are hard to overthrow, right…? The Puritans had their theocracy in Massachusetts, and it didn't take Quakers long to do it in….
I don't know how you end a theocracy that fast, but I think Quakers did it because things got very hot very quickly. They engaged in conflict, and conflict made something happen. Conflict made justice happen in Puritan Massachusetts. And conflict can make things happen whenever we choose to use it.
Then he tells of Quakers asking President Kennedy to ban atmospheric nuclear weapons testing because of the risk to children caused by Strontium 90 in the air, and of social reform advocates going to President Roosevelt in the early 1930s to propose social security and other eventual New Deal programs.
In each of these cases, the response of the President was to say: "I would very much like to do that. Please go out and create a movement so strong that it will 'force' me to do what I want to do."
Next Lakey tells about the challenge voiced to him recently by a Canadian union leader:
"George, why have your people abandoned your President?"I had already reached the same conclusion about our abandonment of President Obama as advocate when I read Lakey's stories. What I had not yet found was clearness on how to engage myself locally, how to engage my friends and colleagues and Meeting in public movements on behalf of our concerns.
I had nothing to say, because we had, in fact. We had elected Obama and then headed for the door, refusing to create movements that would "force" him to do what he wants to do.
We went into dependency mode like six-year-olds who say, "Please, Daddy, do this and that for us," instead of being the young adults and the teenagers and the full adults who can demand things through nonviolent struggle.
What a big price we pay for conflict aversion, that we will even abandon a President whom we put in office.
She was right. That's how we are looked at in some countries; as people who will put someone like Obama in office, and then run out the door, instead of kicking and screaming until he is able to do the things that he needs to do.
The weekend I created The Threshing Session, I went to meeting for worship ready to ponder these concerns and, perhaps, to share them. Instead, what came to me in the silence carried me past my initial preoccupations and into the immediacy of Jesus' last days in Jerusalem.
15They come to Jerusalem. And he went into the temple and began chasing the vendors and shoppers out of the temple area, and he turned the bankers' tables upside down, along with the chairs of the pigeon merchants, 16And he wouldn't even let anyone carry a container through the temple area.Jesus did not need to be a prophet to know that carrying his radical gospel of God's egalitarian justice up from peasant Galilee into the urban heart of Roman-colonized Israel would put his life at risk.
17Then he started teaching and would say to them: "Don't the scriptures say, 'My house is to be regarded as a house of prayer for all peoples'?—but you have turned it into 'a hideout for crooks'!"
18And the ranking priests and scholars heard this and kept looking for a way to get rid of him.
—Mark 11:15-18
In the space of a century, Rome had wholly disrupted and restructured life in Israel. It drove families off of their hereditary land in favor of wealthy landowners, who worked the land for profit, using those now landless peasants as tenants, day laborers and slaves, and shared that profit with Rome. People who could not survive in such circumstances either joined the working poor in the new Roman cities or became wandering beggars and thieves.
Jesus' message for these people was that God cared more about them than that. His whole faith and practice was centered in living as if members of both surviving and disrupted families were actually part of one large Family, where each person was equally loved and valued, and each took care of each.
He had already challenged the religious hierarchy in Galilee, insisting that God's will, both in the present and as illustrated in scripture, was for this Family to transcend all of the boundaries imposed by the Jewish purity codes, by social class, by disease, by nationality, and so on.
Going up to Jerusalem, he knew, meant going up against the national religious hierarchy. That hierarchy gained and maintained its power through a cult of ritual sacrifice which could only take place in the temple, and only according to their rules. That hierarchy also collaborated with Rome, in exchange for being left in power within the Jewish world.
Jesus knew well that violence—brutal violence—was the normal response of earthly powers to anyone who called attention to or got in the way of their abuse of God's people and God's earth. The depth of his love for God and Creation led him to stand in the way of this violence, in order to speak truth to power.
I already understood this about Jesus on that First Day morning. Yet here is the unexpected opening I was given: Jesus led his disciples into that same danger.
Did they know? Did they choose? Did he lead them unawares, or did he warn them and prepare them and give them the choice?
I agree with George Lakey's assessment of our modern conflict aversion and with his challenge to us. Yet I also remember that many of those first Quakers met loss of family and property, imprisonment, physical brutality and death because they stood in the way.
The key is that they chose knowingly. And each of Jesus' disciples chose knowingly—sooner or later.
A generation after Jesus, the focus of the gospel writers was on Jesus himself. Their purpose was to dramatize what they believed about him. That tends to be the perspective of readers to this day. We relegate the disciples to the role of supporting actors or extras.
Jesus' own focus, though, was not upon himself, but upon his disciples and the Family he wanted them to love and serve.
If we read again from that perspective, we see not only how Jesus demonstrated the present reality of the "kingdom of God" through his words and actions, but also how he repeatedly warned his listeners about the earthly dangers of taking a stand in that kingdom.
That is the gist of my opening in meeting for worship. In Gethsemane, knowing that he must accept the consequences of taking his own stand, he warns his disciples again:
He says to them, "I'm so sad I could die. You stay here and be alert!"I don't believe he meant merely that they should stay alert for his sake, as his attendants. I am sure he wanted them to recognize that they were taking a stand with him, and that they needed to do so with full consciousness.
—Mark 14: 34
He says the same to us:
Take a stand with me. Wait for your own leading. Be alert for that leading—knowing that the powers of the world mean you violence if you follow it.And so it is.
Blèssed Be,
Note: Published on what I call "the Empty Day."
Image: "Praying in Gethsemane," by Dr. He Qi, a professor at the Nanjing Union Theological Seminary
The grass never sleeps.
Or the roses.
Nor does the lily have a secret eye that shuts until morning.
Jesus said, wait with me. But the disciples slept.
The cricket has such splendid fringe on its feet,
and it sings, have you noticed, with its whole body,
and heaven knows if it ever sleeps.
Jesus said, wait with me. And maybe the stars did, maybe
the wind wound itself into a silver tree, and didn't move,
the lake far away, where once he walked as on a
blue pavement,
lay still and waited, wild awake.
Oh the dear bodies, slumped and eye-shut, that could not
keep that vigil, how they must have wept,
so utterly human, knowing this too
must be a part of the story.


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