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Privacy Policy
Your privacy is important to us. It is Cuckoo Camp's policy to respect your privacy regarding any information we may collect from you across our website, www.cuckoocamp.com, and other sites we own and operate.
Log data
When you visit our website, our servers may automatically log the standard data provided by your web browser. It may include your computer's Internet Protocol (IP) address, your browser type and version, the pages you visit, the time and date of your visit, the time spent on each page, and other details.
Device data
We may also collect data about the device you're using to access our website. This data may include the device type, operating system, unique device identifiers, device settings, and geo-location data. What we collect can depend on the individual settings of your device and software. We recommend checking the policies of your device manufacturer or software provider to learn what information they make available to us.
Personal information
We may ask for personal information, such as your:
Phone/mobile number
We will process your personal information lawfully, fairly and in a transparent manner. We collect and process information about you only where we have legal bases for doing so.
These legal bases depend on the services you use and how you use them, meaning we collect and use your information only where:
it's necessary for the performance of a contract to which you are a party or to take steps at your request before entering into such a contract (for example, when we provide a service you request from us);
it satisfies a legitimate interest (which is not overridden by your data protection interests), such as for research and development, to market and promote our services, and to protect our legal rights and interests;
you give us consent to do so for a specific purpose (for example, you might consent to us sending you our newsletter); or
we need to process your data to comply with a legal obligation.
Where you consent to our use of information about you for a specific purpose, you have the right to change your mind at any time (but this will not affect any processing that has already taken place).
We don't keep personal information for longer than is necessary. While we retain this information, we will protect it within commercially acceptable means to prevent loss and theft, as well as unauthorised access, disclosure, copying, use or modification. That said, we advise that no method of electronic transmission or storage is 100% secure and cannot guarantee absolute data security. If necessary, we may retain your personal information for our compliance with a legal obligation or in order to protect your vital interests or the vital interests of another natural person.
We may collect, hold, use and disclose information for the following purposes and personal information will not be further processed in a manner that is incompatible with these purposes:
to contact and communicate with you;
for internal record keeping and administrative purposes; and
to comply with our legal obligations and resolve any disputes that we may have.
We may disclose personal information to:
third party service providers for the purpose of enabling them to provide their services, including (without limitation) IT service providers, data storage, hosting and server providers, ad networks, analytics, error loggers, debt collectors, maintenance or problem-solving providers, marketing or advertising providers, professional advisors and payment systems operators;
our employees, contractors and/or related entities;
courts, tribunals, regulatory authorities and law enforcement officers, as required by law, in connection with any actual or prospective legal proceedings, or in order to establish, exercise or defend our legal rights;
third parties, including agents or sub-contractors, who assist us in providing information, products, services or direct marketing to you; and
third parties to collect and process data.
The personal information we collect is stored and processed in United Kingdom, or where we or our partners, affiliates and third-party providers maintain facilities. By providing us with your personal information, you consent to the disclosure to these overseas third parties.
We will ensure that any transfer of personal information from countries in the European Economic Area (EEA) to countries outside the EEA will be protected by appropriate safeguards, for example by using standard data protection clauses approved by the European Commission, or the use of binding corporate rules or other legally accepted means.
Where we transfer personal information from a non-EEA country to another country, you acknowledge that third parties in other jurisdictions may not be subject to similar data protection laws to the ones in our jurisdiction. There are risks if any such third party engages in any act or practice that would contravene the data privacy laws in our jurisdiction and this might mean that you will not be able to seek redress under our jurisdiction's privacy laws.
Choice and consent: By providing personal information to us, you consent to us collecting, holding, using and disclosing your personal information in accordance with this privacy policy. If you are under 16 years of age, you must have, and warrant to the extent permitted by law to us, that you have your parent or legal guardian's permission to access and use the website and they (your parents or guardian) have consented to you providing us with your personal information. You do not have to provide personal information to us, however, if you do not, it may affect your use of this website or the products and/or services offered on or through it.
Information from third parties: If we receive personal information about you from a third party, we will protect it as set out in this privacy policy. If you are a third party providing personal information about somebody else, you represent and warrant that you have such person's consent to provide the personal information to us.
Restrict: You may choose to restrict the collection or use of your personal information. If you have previously agreed to us using your personal information for direct marketing purposes, you may change your mind at any time by contacting us using the details below. If you ask us to restrict or limit how we process your personal information, we will let you know how the restriction affects your use of our website or products and services.
Access and data portability: You may request details of the personal information that we hold about you. You may request a copy of the personal information we hold about you. Where possible, we will provide this information in CSV format or other easily readable machine format. You may request that we erase the personal information we hold about you at any time. You may also request that we transfer this personal information to another third party.
Correction: If you believe that any information we hold about you is inaccurate, out of date, incomplete, irrelevant or misleading, please contact us using the details below. We will take reasonable steps to correct any information found to be inaccurate, incomplete, misleading, or out of date.
Notification of data breaches: We will comply laws applicable to us in respect of any data breach.
Complaints: If you believe that we have breached a relevant data protection law and wish to make a complaint, please contact us using the details below and provide us with full details of the alleged breach. We will promptly investigate your complaint and respond to you, in writing, setting out the outcome of our investigation and the steps we will take to deal with your complaint. You also have the right to contact a regulatory body or data protection authority in relation to your complaint.
Unsubscribe: To unsubscribe from our e-mail database or opt-out of communications (including marketing communications), please contact us using the details below or opt-out using the opt-out facilities provided in the communication.
We use "cookies" to collect information about you and your activity across our site. A cookie is a small piece of data that our website stores on your computer, and accesses each time you visit, so we can understand how you use our site. This helps us serve you content based on preferences you have specified. Please refer to our Cookie Policy for more information.
If we or our assets are acquired, or in the unlikely event that we go out of business or enter bankruptcy, we would include data among the assets transferred to any parties who acquire us. You acknowledge that such transfers may occur, and that any parties who acquire us may continue to use your personal information according to this policy.
Our website may link to external sites that are not operated by us. Please be aware that we have no control over the content and policies of those sites and cannot accept responsibility or liability for their respective privacy practices.
At our discretion, we may change our privacy policy to reflect current acceptable practices. We will take reasonable steps to let users know about changes via our website. Your continued use of this site after any changes to this policy will be regarded as acceptance of our practices around privacy and personal information.
If we make a significant change to this privacy policy, for example changing a lawful basis on which we process your personal information, we will ask you to re-consent to the amended privacy policy.
Cuckoo Camp's Data Protection Officer
Cuckoo Camp
This policy is effective as of 1 April 2023.
We use cookies to help improve your experience of www.cuckoocamp.com. This cookie policy is part of Cuckoo Camp's privacy policy and covers the use of cookies between your device and our site. We also provide basic information on third-party services we may use, who may also use cookies as part of their service, though they are not covered by our policy.
If you don't wish to accept cookies from us, you should instruct your browser to refuse cookies from www.cuckoocamp.com, with the understanding that we may be unable to provide you with some of your desired content and services.
A cookie is a small piece of data that a website stores on your device when you visit, typically containing information about the website itself, a unique identifier that allows the site to recognise your web browser when you return, additional data that serves the purpose of the cookie, and the lifespan of the cookie itself.
Cookies are used to enable certain features (eg. logging in), to track site usage (eg. analytics), to store your user settings (eg. time zone, notification preferences), and to personalise your content (eg. advertising, language).
Cookies set by the website you are visiting are normally referred to as "first-party cookies", and typically only track your activity on that particular site. Cookies set by other sites and companies (ie. third parties) are called "third-party cookies" and can be used to track you on other websites that use the same third-party service.
Essential cookies
Essential cookies are crucial to your experience of a website, enabling core features like user logins, account management, shopping carts and payment processing. We use essential cookies to enable certain functions on our website.
Performance cookies
Performance cookies are used in the tracking of how you use a website during your visit, without collecting personal information about you. Typically, this information is anonymous and aggregated with information tracked across all site users, to help companies understand visitor usage patterns, identify, and diagnose problems or errors their users may encounter, and make better strategic decisions in improving their audience's overall website experience. These cookies may be set by the website you're visiting (first party) or by third-party services. We use performance cookies on our site.
Functionality cookies
Functionality cookies are used in collecting information about your device and any settings you may configure on the website you're visiting (like language and time zone settings). With this information, websites can provide you with customised, enhanced, or optimised content and services. These cookies may be set by the website you're visiting (first party) or by third-party service. We use functionality cookies for selected features on our site.
Targeting/advertising cookies
Targeting/advertising cookies are used in determining what promotional content is more relevant and appropriate to you and your interests. Websites may use them to deliver targeted advertising or to limit the number of times you see an advertisement. This helps companies improve the effectiveness of their campaigns and the quality of content presented to you. These cookies may be set by the website you're visiting (first party) or by third-party services. Targeting/advertising cookies set by third parties may be used to track you on other websites that use the same third-party service. We do not use this type of cookie on our site.
We may employ third-party companies and individuals on our websites—for example, analytics providers and content partners. We grant these third parties' access to selected information to perform specific tasks on our behalf. They may also set third-party cookies in order to deliver the services they are providing. Third-party cookies can be used to track you on other websites that use the same third-party service. As we have no control over third-party cookies, they are not covered by Cuckoo Camp cookie policy.
We review the privacy policies of all our third-party providers before enlisting their services to ensure their practices align with ours. We will never knowingly include third-party services that compromise or violate the privacy of our users.
If you do not wish to accept cookies from us, you can instruct your browser to refuse cookies from our website. Most browsers are configured to accept cookies by default, but you can update these settings to either refuse cookies altogether, or to notify you when a website is trying to set or update a cookie.
If you browse websites from multiple devices, you may need to update your settings on each individual device.
Although some cookies can be blocked with little impact on your experience of a website, blocking all cookies may mean you are unable to access certain features and content across the sites you visit.
By accessing the website at www.cuckoocamp.com, you are agreeing to be bound by these terms of service, all applicable laws and regulations, and agree that you are responsible for compliance with any applicable local laws. If you do not agree with any of these terms, you are prohibited from using or accessing this site. The materials contained in this website are protected by applicable copyright and trademark law.
a. Permission is granted to temporarily download one copy of the materials (information or software) on Cuckoo Camp's website for personal, non-commercial transitory viewing only. This is the grant of a license, not a transfer of title, and under this license you may not:
1. modify or copy the materials;
2. use the materials for any commercial purpose, or for any public display (commercial or non-commercial);
3. attempt to decompile or reverse engineer any software contained on Cuckoo Camp's website;
4. remove any copyright or other proprietary notations from the materials; or
5. transfer the materials to another person or "mirror" the materials on any other server.
b. This license shall automatically terminate if you violate any of these restrictions and may be terminated by Cuckoo Camp's at any time. Upon terminating your viewing of these materials or upon the termination of this license, you must destroy any downloaded materials in your possession whether in electronic or printed format.
a. The materials on Cuckoo Camp's website are provided on an 'as is' basis. Cuckoo Camp makes no warranties, expressed or implied, and hereby disclaims and negates all other warranties including, without limitation, implied warranties or conditions of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement of intellectual property or other violation of rights.
b. Further, Cuckoo Camp does not warrant or make any representations concerning the accuracy, likely results, or reliability of the use of the materials on its website or otherwise relating to such materials or on any sites linked to this site.
In no event shall Cuckoo Camp or its suppliers be liable for any damages (including, without limitation, damages for loss of data or profit, or due to business interruption) arising out of the use or inability to use the materials on Cuckoo Camp's website, even if Cuckoo Camp or a Cuckoo Camp authorised representative has been notified orally or in writing of the possibility of such damage. Because some jurisdictions do not allow limitations on implied warranties, or limitations of liability for consequential or incidental damages, these limitations may not apply to you.
The materials appearing on Cuckoo Camp's website could include technical, typographical, or photographic errors. Cuckoo Camp does not warrant that any of the materials on its website are accurate, complete or current. Cuckoo Camp may make changes to the materials contained on its website at any time without notice. However Cuckoo Camp does not make any commitment to update the materials.
Cuckoo Camp has not reviewed all of the sites linked to its website and is not responsible for the contents of any such linked site. The inclusion of any link does not imply endorsement by Cuckoo Camp of the site. Use of any such linked website is at the user's own risk.
Cuckoo Camp may revise these terms of service for its website at any time without notice. By using this website you are agreeing to be bound by the the current version of these terms of service.
These terms and conditions are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Devon, England and you irrevocably submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts in that State or location.


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Morgan Wallen Returns to the Stage With Surprise Set at Kid Rock's Nashville Bar [Watch]
Morgan Wallen has returned to the stage for the first time since he raised controversy by using a racist term in a video that went viral. The 28-year-old country singer surprised fans at Kid Rock's downtown bar in Nashville by taking the stage to perform a surprise two-song set on Wednesday night (May 19).
Wallen kept it low-key for the informal appearance, clad in a white shirt, white shorts and white tennis shoes as he offered up versions of "Whiskey Glasses" and "Wasted on You," performing first with an acoustic guitar and then with the house band.
Pictures and video that onlookers posted to social media show Wallen getting an ecstatic response from the fans in attendance, who sang along very enthusiastically:
Nashville's Tennessean newspaper reports that Kid Rock also made a surprise appearance, singing his hit duet with Sheryl Crow, "Picture," along with a fan from the crowd.
The informal performance marks Wallen's first public appearance since TMZ posted a video of him using the N-word in February. He has faced major career repercussions; Wallen was suspended by his record label and dropped by his booking agent, and a number of radio stations and streaming platforms dropped his music. His core fans have stuck by him, making his January release, Dangerous: The Double Album, one of the runaway success stories of the year in country music through sheer sales.
Wallen apologized after the video's release and stepped out of the spotlight to better himself, and he's only rarely posted to social media since. He was originally slated to take part in Luke Bryan's 2021 Proud to Be Right Here Tour, but revealed in April that he will not tour this summer.
Every True Country Fan Needs to Know These Songs by Heart:

subset: commoncrawl


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Jeff Matthews
Doing the Right Thing: Upside? Zero. Downside? Financial Ruin…
In a typically breezy, highly readable and highly informative blog post (Bronte Capital: Daddy you are more evil than I thought), hedge fund manager (and friend, for the record) John Hempton writes an at once amusing and illuminating description of what he does and why he does it, to the admiration/horror of his son.
(John leaves out the 'how' he does it, but I can tell you it is the 'how' that makes John so good).
However, by summing up his work in the manner he does such that it generates his son's amusingly alarmed reaction (quoted in the title of the piece), John, I think, diverts attention away from the real underlying issue that anybody who plays on both sides of the investing fence faces when considering going to the press or to the authorities with negative information about a public company.
The real underlying issue is this: the downside of going public with damaging information on a public company, even if that information could bring down a bad guy and stop the bad guy from doing damage to other innocent investors down the road (e.g. Robert Maxwell, whose favored broker was Goldman Sachs, as described here), is so much greater than the upside that it makes no sense (in America, at least) to bother. So you just keep your mouth shut.
What is the downside to going public? There are many facets, but the two main ones are these:
1) Getting sued by the offending scammer, who, being CEO of a public company, can spend unlimited company money (not his own), on the effort to shut your mouth, run you out of business and keep the scam going;
2) Getting ignored (or worse–see David Einhorn's grim experience with the unintended cost of being right in "Fooling Some of the People All of the Time") by the Feds.
Now, what is the upside of going public?
Well, the upside is you may ultimately be proven right, and the bad guy may go to jail, in which case the investors and shareholders and analysts and investment bankers who hated your guts during the process and wanted to see you die because it was you (not the bad CEO) who was destroying their company, will finally admit you were right and shower you with kisses—no, wait.
They won't.
They will still hate your guts.
In fact, they'll hate your guts even more, because they will perceive that it was you who brought their company down. After all, without your efforts the fraud they were profiting so handsomely from would not have collapsed.
They'll think, in fact, that you're evil, because, as you will learn the hard way, scammers never, ever admit culpability: they blame short-sellers on the way to jail, in jail and out on parole.
So, to summarize: Upside to doing the right thing by going public? Zero. Downside? Financial ruin.
Still, while the bad guys John has exposed (and there are more than a few) may agree with the title of his blog, his investors (I am not one) would probably say that John Hempton is way less evil than his son fears.
And simply based on what I know of the work he does in arriving at his unwanted, non-conscencous, frequently scam-busting conclusions, I would tell his son, "No, your old man's alright."
Jeff Matthews
Author "Secrets in Plain Sight: Business and Investing Secrets of Warren Buffett"
(eBooks on Investing, 2011) Available now at Amazon.com
© 2012 NotMakingThisUp, LLC
The content contained in this blog represents only the opinions of Mr. Matthews. Mr. Matthews also acts as an advisor and clients advised by Mr. Matthews may hold either long or short positions in securities of various companies discussed in the blog based upon Mr. Matthews' recommendations. This commentary in no way constitutes investment advice, and should never be relied on in making an investment decision, ever. Also, this blog is not a solicitation of business by Mr. Matthews: all inquiries will be ignored. The content herein is intended solely for the entertainment of the reader, and the author.
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Romania is known for its breathtaking natural beauty and historic buildings. The capital, Bucharest, is a lively city with museums, performing arts centres and a vibrant nightlife. The Danube delta, the place where the Danube enters the Black Sea, is in Romania and has a wealth of flora, fauna and species of freshwater fish. Romania has a rich history and the country is studded with castles and monasteries that tell their own unique tale including the Bran castle that was the inspiration of Bram Stoker's Dracula. The cuisine of Romania is a mixture of the cuisine of its neighbouring countries and of countries that ruled Romania over the years. Accommodation options in Romania include luxury hotels, traditional guesthouses, budget hotels, homestays and apartments.
Hospitals and clinics in Romania offer high quality specialist medical, dental and surgical services at affordable prices for overseas patients. Romania has medical spas near thermal springs for patients looking for an alternative healthcare experience. Many hospitals offer packages that include treatments and procedures, transportation, accommodation and a holiday.
Romania has twelve international airports that serve major cities and tourist areas. Many hospitals and clinics arrange airport transfers for medical tourists.
Romania is a member of the European Union and patients from other EU member countries do not require a visa for medical treatments in Romania. Patients from other countries can get a short stay visa and travel to Romania for medical treatments. Details on how one can obtain a short stay visa to travel to Romania is available at the website: https://www.mae.ro/en/node/2035
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This is a re-post of a statement I published on the RhoMail.com website on 22 June 2015.
This idiot — Dylann Roof — is NOT A RHODESIAN!
He is an American extremist zealot, through and through.
Being 21-years-old, he was born fifteen years after Rhodesia ceased to be a country, and by his own admission in the manifesto attributed to him he is the product of the results of a Google search. He has as much right to wear a Google logo and attribute his murderous thoughts to Google as he does to attribute them to Rhodesia — a country in which he never lived, let alone visited, and which had nothing to do with his warped views and alleged actions. He should be wearing a swastika (itself appropriated from more benign origins), not a Rhodesian flag; in fact, one appears on his supposed home page. Southern Rhodesia and Southern Rhodesians (as it and they were at the time) fought against the Nazis and their odious ideology.
By his co-opting the Rhodesian flag he has besmirched a proud people, most of whom would NOT — despite the recent words of misinformed revisionists of history — have any truck with him. The Rhodesian flag was proudly worn by more black soldiers than white in the battle against Communist-backed terrorists in Rhodesia's civil war.
Dylann Roof is not the so-called last Rhodesian, as he calls himself (there are still plenty of authentic Rhodesians alive and well); he is an American who has (allegedly) perpetrated the uniquely American crime of mass murder in peacetime. He is the product of the United States of America in the 21st century, and has nothing to do with 20th century southern Africa.
Please do not associate him with Rhodesia, nor Rhodesians with him.
We offer our condolences to the family and friends of those who were killed in Charleston, and wish those injured a speedy and full recovery.


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Explore Stanford Medicine
Leading in Precision Health
Stanford Medicine is leading the biomedical revolution in precision health, defining and developing the next generation of care that is proactive, predictive and precise. Learn about Precision Health at Stanford
Diversity in all forms enhances Stanford Medicine's core missions — education, research and health care. More
A Legacy of Innovation
First synthesis of biologically active DNA in test tube
Nobel laureate Arthur Kornberg creates a strand of biologically active DNA, paving the way for studies of genetics.
First adult human heart transplant in the United States
Norman Shumway successfully transplants a heart into 54-year-old steelworker Mike Kasperak, who survives for 14 days.
First expression of a foreign gene implanted in bacteria by recombinant DNA methods
Geneticist Stanely Cohen transfers a foreign gene into bacterial cells, which then express the gene.
First successful human combined heart/lung transplant in the world (fourth attempted worldwide)
Mary Gohlke receives the world's first combined heart and lung transplant in a landmark operation led by surgeon Bruce Reitz.
Isolation of a gene coding for part of the T-cell receptor, a key to the immune system's function
Immunologist Mark Davis characterizes the T-cell receptor, believed to regulate the body's response to infectious agents and cancerous diseases.
Isolation of pure hematopoietic stem cells from mice
Pathologist Irving Weissman isolates a rare mouse cell, known as the hematopoetic stem cell, which gives rise to all the cells of the blood and immune systems.
First use of gene expression profiling to predict cancer outcomes
Application and expansion of optogenetics, a technique to control brain cell activity with light
Bioengineer Karl Deisseroth and his team develop a technique known as optogenetics that allows them to genetically alter brain cell activity in mice with light.


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Rodrigo Lopez is the starting pitcher tonight and it is the 33rd game started by one of the following pitchers: Doug Davis (9), Casey Coleman (9), Rodrigo Lopez (8), James Russell (5) and Ramon Ortiz (2). It's the 117th game of the season. 28.2% of all Cubs games have been started by one of those pitchers above who have combined to throw just over 150 innings and an ERA of 6.74 and a RA of 7.44. It's not like the other 5 starters have been that good, but those 32 starts (probably 33 after tonight) have been horrible.
Over the course of a season I seem to recall that the average team uses a 6th starter for about 25 starts. Well, the Cubs have used a 6th, 7th, 8th, 10th and 50th starter this season for 33 of them. And they've allowed more runs per 9 innings than anyone could have anticipated.
No, this team likely wasn't headed to the playoffs and the performance from the main 5 starters only makes it more difficult, but these guys haven't helped. It's kind of sad when you think about how many starts the Cubs have given to thse guys.


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SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — With more than two dozen states poised to ban abortion if the U.S. Supreme Court gives them the OK next year, California clinics and their allies in the state Legislature on Wednesday revealed a plan to make the state a "sanctuary" for those seeking reproductive care, including possibly paying for travel, lodging and procedures for people from other states.
The California Future of Abortion Council, made up of more than 40 abortion providers and advocacy groups, released a list of 45 recommendations for the state to consider if the high court overturns Roe v. Wade — the 48-year-old decision that forbids states from outlawing abortion.
The recommendations are not just a liberal fantasy. Some of the state's most important policymakers helped write them, including Toni Atkins, the San Diego Democrat who leads the state Senate and attended multiple meetings.
Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom started the group himself and in an interview last week with The Associated Press said some of the report's details will be included in his budget proposal in January.
"We'll be a sanctuary," Newsom said, adding he's aware patients will likely travel to California from other states to seek abortions. "We are looking at ways to support that inevitability and looking at ways to expand our protections."
California already pays for abortions for many low-income residents through the state's Medicaid program. And California is one of six states that require private insurance companies to cover abortions, although many patients still end up paying deductibles and co-payments.
But money won't be a problem for state-funded abortion services for patients from other states. California's coffers have soared throughout the pandemic, fueling a record budget surplus this year. Next year, the state's independent Legislative Analyst's Office predicts California will have a surplus of about $31 billion.
California's affiliates of Planned Parenthood, the nation's largest abortion provider, got a sneak preview of how people might seek abortions outside their home states this year when a Texas law that outlawed abortion after six weeks of pregnancy was allowed to take effect. California clinics reported a slight increase in patients from Texas.
Now, California abortion providers are asking California to make it easier for those people to get to the state.
The report recommends funding — including public spending — to support patients seeking abortion for travel expenses such as gas, lodging, transportation and child care. It asks lawmakers to reimburse abortion providers for services to those who can't afford to pay — including those who travel to California from other states whose income is low enough that they would qualify for state-funded abortions under Medicaid if they lived there.
It's unclear about how many people would come to California for abortions if Roe v. Wade is overturned. But a recent report by the Guttmacher Institute, a research group that supports abortion rights, estimated about 1.3 million more women would drive to California to seek abortions. The institute predicts most of them would come from Arizona, which has a law on the books that would outlaw abortion once it becomes legal to do so.
"That will definitely destabilize the abortion provider network," said Fabiola Carrion, interim director for reproductive and sexual health at the National Health Law Program.
That's why the report asks lawmakers to give scholarships to medical students who pledge to offer abortion services in rural areas, help them pay off their student loans and assist with their monthly liability insurance premiums.
"We're looking at how to build capacity and build workforce," said Jodi Hicks, CEO of Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California. "It will take a partnership and investment with the state."
Abortion opponents in California, meanwhile, are also preparing for a potential surge of patients from other states seeking the procedure — only they hope to convince them not to do it.
Jonathan Keller, president and CEO of the California Family Council, said California has about 160 pregnancy resource centers whose aim is to convince women not to get abortions. He said about half of those centers are medical clinics, while the rest are faith-based counseling centers.
Many of the centers are located near abortion clinics in an attempt to entice people to seek their counseling before opting to end pregnancies. Keller said many are already planning on increasing their staffing if California gets an increase of patients.
"Even if we are not facing any immediate legislative opportunities or legislative victories, it's a reminder that the work of changing hearts and minds and also providing real support and resources to women facing unplanned pregnancies — that work will always continue," Keller said.
He added: "In many ways, that work is going to be even more important, both in light of Supreme Court's decision and in light of whatever Sacramento decides they are going to do in response."
Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
This content is published through a licensing agreement with Acquire Media using its NewsEdge technology.


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Sharp scissors, smooth cuts: How to sharpen your scissors at home
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Ne-Yo, Bob Seger, Bette Midler, Meat Loaf, Stevie Nicks Light Up Songwriters Hall of Fame Ceremony Billboard Magazine
Short but SWEET! Better than not hearing it at all!! Now I want more.
Maybe she'll do this live on tour ?
<3 Thank You just amazing....want more!!
Why is she performing with sunglasses on??
It seems those glasses are glued to her head these days? why cant she at least get nice ones if she feels the need to wear them, it ruins the performance because all i can see are those dam glasses! i cant concentrate on the song!!
The link is now dead for some reason.
Never mind, it's back up now.
Love the glasses. Cool.
she said recently that she has a tearing eye...i know how bad that can be...even your makeup can run. that may be why the glasses especially under bright stage lights. or maybe she wears contacts and those will tear up your eyes too. she can wear any style she likes as far as i'm concerned ;)
I believe she had corrective eye surgery and from personal experience, it makes your eyes extremely sensitive to light. Just a thought, but she's been wearing the same shades for ages so its just Stevie. Great new outfit!! Missed her quarter moon pendant though.. Now BIG question... when is she going to be recognized???
She has gotten SO skinny...but she's probably also wearing Spanx...everyone does. The glasses need to go altogether - and the gloves. We don't care that your hands are aging and you have wrinkles and bags under your eyes!!!
Stevie's eyes are really, really light sensitive now...years of leaving hard lenses in, wearing lenses on top of dried out eyes...from dehydration, drugs, brandy...etc...the stage shows wih the blowing fans, smoke and debris would fly in...she took a big risk getting the laser surgery as this can often be result a couple of years down the road. I have night blindness and light sensitivity gives the worst migraines...she wears very thick heavy lenses...prescription lenses so she doesn't wear the contacts...her options of style are slim...subltle darkening with heavy ass lenses can only be done with big frames. I think it's kind of cool...she doesn't seem to give a white wing dove...her performances rock...here Stevie, wear mine next...You know walmart, supermarket, the mall etc...new lighting really hurts...It took me forever to find almost transparent glasses with a slight mirror/light deflecting...I feel like the village idiot...what's with Yoko Weird Guy in the glasses smelling shampoos? But, I'm more amused than offended.


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The time has finally arrived, the moment everyone on ModDB has been waiting for. After countless days spent voting, promoting and deciding it all comes down to this. 10 final placements for the very best mods that 2010 has seen. The victor will be able to stand tall against great mods like Project Reality, Natural Selection and MechWarrior! A big thanks to all those people who voted, its been a hell of a year and what better way to end it then announcing the Mod of the Year 2010.
To qualify for the top 10, the mod must place higher than it has in previous years and must have had a significant update in 2010. Otherwise an honorable mention is given, which these teams have received:
It is hard to knock a good mod down, that mod without a doubt this year is Project Reality. However being previous winner means Project Reality has reached the highest point, so they cannot place again. Thats just how good PR really is!
While Renegade X might be moving away from the modding scene with their UDK version players still decided that Renegade X would place high, just not high enough.
While MechWarrior: Living Legends may have already placed the highest it possibly can, it never stopped people from voting. To bad you can't beat being one of the top mods.
It has been a while since GoldenEye: Source has managed to place in the top 10 since the release of 1.0 popularity seemed to skyrocket! Lets hope they keep it up for next years event!
Always the brides maid never the bride Sven Co-op has been in every single MOTY event coming really close but never placing high enough to win.
Placing very high again this year Zombie Panic: Source just missed out placing once again this year.
Another mod just missing out on the top spot is Star Wars Mod: Galactic Warfare still well within the top 10 for Honorable Mentions!
The only mod to miss out on getting a spot in the top 10 only because they did not have any updates this year is STALKER Complete quite an accomplishment!
10Eleven Eighty Seven
Almost a decade after the black mesa incident which opened up the portal storms you find yourself trying to cope with its aftermath. They came without warning and swept the world. For no apparent reason you've been approached as in a dream by a man in a suit. Having no idea of what's going on all you can do is try to stay alive.
9Half-Life 2: Wars
brings the struggle between the human resistance and their Combine overlords to a real-time strategy setting. It features 3 game modes: Antlion Skirmish, Antlion Capture the Point, and Overrun, showcasing the Antlion and Combine playable factions. Future releases will include skirmish matches between Resistance and Combine.
touts a impressive list of new features such as a much more realistic Weapon damage system, many new skins for infantry and tanks (and wrecks) also including many own made tank skins, many new units for all factions, modified and enlarged Commander Trees (now 16 Upgrades!), new abilities, new sounds and recommended new maps included.
7C&C: Shockwave
aims to make Zero Hour a more interesting game with more diversity between the generals, making you think twice before you select a certain general, and overall provide more choices, diversity, and strategic freedom than in Zero Hour - while keeping the spirit and design direction of the original Generals game and storyline.
6Nehrim: At Fate's Edge
is a Total Conversion for the RPG The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. It is a self-contained game that bases upon the Oblivion game engine, but has no relation to Oblivion's lore. It is a world in which neither Tamriel nor any other TES based name exists. The continent itself on which the game is situated is called Nehrim, it is completely independent from the base game.
5Eastern Front
is a mod for Company of Heroes. Following the ethos of mimicking a Relic Entertainment expansion pack, Eastern Front has succeeded in adding a full Soviet faction packed with unique and exciting units to the existing armies - a feat never before achieved in the Company of Heroes world.
4Multi Theft Auto
is a multiplayer mod ("modification") for the Microsoft Windows version of Rockstar North's Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas that adds an otherwise absent online multiplayer component.
3Third Age - Total War
is a total conversion modification for 'Medieval II: Total War - Kingdoms Expansion' that brings you into the world of Middle-Earth. The Production has been going since March 2008 and the mod is still well under development and boasts a variety of new features.
2Nightmare House 2
is a total conversion for Half-Life 2. You wake up inside an abandoned hospital with no understanding of how you came to be there, only a vague memory of the girl from Nightmare House haunts you. Soon it will be difficult to determine between a dream and reality. How long will it take you to realize that escape is not an option?
1Forgotten Hope 2
is a mod for Battlefield 2. It aims to portrait World War II in a way no other multi-player first person shooter have done before, with a focus on historical accuracy and tactical gameplay. You can play as represent many different countries as a soldier and utilize an extensive arsenal of weapons and vehicles that accurately portrait the assets available in the real battles.


text: Touted by Lucky Magazine as a small town with big style, Oxford's shopping will not disappoint. Whether visiting the Grove for a football game, or just a night out on the town, style is always important in this small town and our local shops offer a variety of options to help you dress the part, and fill your suitcases with momentos of your trip. Don't miss the oldest department store in the south, Neilson's Department store, or perhaps pick up some signed editions at nationally renowned bookstore Square Books.


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Things are changing, no doubt about it. All over the world. Like in every paradigm shift there are cities that move fast, cities that try to play catch up and cities that are still tying their shoelaces in the starting blocks. One of the primary challenges that remains is the perception of who infrastructure is for. I meet many politicians and planners around the world who clearly think that they are expected to provide safe infrastructure for the few people riding bicycles in their city right now. They fail to understand that they should be building infrastructure for all the citizens who COULD be riding a bicycle if they felt safe on a complete network of infrastructure. The Zeros to Heroes cities that are way ahead of the curve - for example Barcelona, Seville, Dublin, Bordeaux, Paris, Buenos Aires - have just rolled up their sleeves and built infrastructure. Infrastructure that actually reflects where the citizens want to go in a city. Which is basically the same as where everyone else wants to go. In many other cities, bits and pieces of infrastructure are put in where it won't bother the motorised traffic too much. Often such bits and pieces are launched with much fanfare. "See! We are thinking about bicycles!" Even though the bits and pieces are symbolic gestures that do little to reestablish the bicycle as transport on the urban landscape. Here in 2014, after seven or eight years since the bicycle returned to the public consciousness, there are only 370 km of protected bicycle infrastructure in all of the United States, compared to 1000 km in Greater Copenhagen alone. What I often see around the world is attempts by cities to put cyclists where they want them to ride, based on false assumptions that this is want cyclists also want. "Ooh, those cyclists must really want to ride on quiet roads, away from traffic…. yeah… that's what they want." Then follows symbolic routes following all the vague principles of detours. Citizen Cyclists are sent out of the way of basically everywhere that city-dwellers want to go. Shops, businesses, restaurants, cafés, cinemas, workplaces. The existing, historical Desire Lines of a city - aka roads - remain the domain of automobiles. While Copenhagen may be "all that" these days, mistakes have been made. Lessons have been learned. Back in the 1980s when citizens were returning to the bicycle thanks to the reestablishment of cycle tracks, the City learned a valuable lesson. Cyclists were following the busy streets to get to and from the city centre. Normal behaviour for homo sapiens. The City decided that this couldn't possibly be what they wanted. They assume cycling citizens wanted quiet routes, even if it meant they would have to go a bit out of they way. They constructed a pilot project route roughly parallel to Nørrebrogade - along Guldbergsgade - that they were sure would please the cycling citizens. It was a flop. A2Bism will dictate that people want to travel along the most direct Desire Line, regardless of transport form. To the City of Copenhagen's credit, they respected this simple anthropological desire and started building cycle tracks along the pre-existing Desire Routes - the main arteries leading the city centre. The rest is history.
If you live in a car-dominated city you might be pleased with symbolic municipal gestures like "bicycle boulevards" or whatever they call them, or bits of narrow "bike lanes". You are, however, being handed the short end of the stick. Bicycle urbanism may be a phrase I coined but the principles have existed since cities first were formed. Best Practice is right there, for the taking. With a bit of balance you might be able to rest your weary bones on a two-legged chair. Definately better than no chair. But four-legged chairs are on the market. Demand them.


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Biogerontology Research Foundation Launches Campaign for Photographic Biomarkers of Age
Biogerontology Research Foundation
Thursday, August 31st, 2017, London, UK: The Biogerontology Research Foundation announces the launch of a crowdfunding campaign, MouseAge, to develop and test photographic biomarkers of ageing in mice in collaboration with scientists from Harvard University, University of Oxford, Youth Laboratories and Insilico Medicine. The project's aim is to develop novel biomarkers of ageing in mice for the purposes of testing the effect of healthspan and lifespan-extending interventions. The project is now live at Lifespan.io, a crowdfunding platform for ageing research institutions that has launched several successful campaigns for SENS Research Foundation, International Longevity Alliance and CellAge.
"One of the most fundamental challenges in ageing research today is the development of robust and reliable biomarkers of ageing to serve as the basis by which the efficacy of lifespan and healthspan-extending interventions can be tested. Humans live a long time, and testing the effect of geroprotective interventions in humans using lifespan gains as the main criterion for success would be wildly impractical, necessitating long and costly longitudinal studies. By developing accurate biomarkers of ageing, the efficacy of potential geroprotective interventions could instead be tested according to changes in study participants' biomarkers of ageing. While significant attention is paid to the development of highly accurate biomarkers of ageing, less attention is paid to developing actionable biomarkers of ageing that can be tested inexpensively using the tools at hand to the majority of researchers and clinicians. The Biogerontology Research Foundation chose to support MouseAge.org because photographic biomarkers of ageing represents a highly actionable alternative to more expensive measures of biological age." said Franco Cortese, Deputy Director & Trustee of the Biogerongology Research Foundation.
The project utilizes Insilico Medicine's novel deep learning platforms to correlate changes in physical appearance with biological and chronological age. Insilico is leading the pack in the intersection of deep learning and ageing research, and is well known for its use of advances in genomics, big data analysis, and deep learning for in silico drug discovery and drug repurposing for ageing and age-related diseases. The Biogerontology Research Foundation has collaborated with Insilico Medicine in the development of actionable and practical biomarkers of ageing before through their Ageing.AI project, and both organizations hope that MouseAge is the next in a long line of continuing research into the development of actionable biomarkers of ageing via the intersection of longevity research and deep learning.
"There are many experiments conducted around the world that examine lifespan in mice. The artificially intelligent MouseAge system will help determine which interventions make mice look younger. The plan is to develop an accurate predictor of mouse biological age based on images of mice and then apply transfer learning techniques to other datasets and data types," said Vadim Gladyshev, MouseAge Research Lead and Professor of Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School.
Milestones for the project include the design of standardized protocols for creating photos and videos of mice, developing a mobile app and server infrastructure for image data collection, developing and testing the project's main algorithm for mouse age prediction, optimizing feature extraction to investigate visual biomarkers of ageing in mice, creating a central data repository for the project's data, utilizing transfer learning techniques to make these methods applicable to other model organisms, and ultimately using transfer learning techniques to develop photographic biomarkers of ageing in humans. The project's principal investigator is Anastasia Georgievskaya, co-founder of Youth Laboratories, a company working at the intersection of ageing research, AI and machine vision, with the ultimate goal of using facial imageing data to predict patient health status.
The ultimate end-goal of MouseAge is to develop an intuitive mobile app to be used by researchers across the globe free of charge, where users can take images of model organisms and have the project's DP-based algorithms perform age-assessment of images uploaded by users of the app. Both the organizations and researchers behind MouseAge are united in their belief in the promise of AI to accelerate ageing research and to streamline the development of effective healthspan-extending interventions for use in human patients, and hope that MouseAge comes to be remembered as an important landmark in the ongoing paradigm shift away from costly and inefficient sick-care and toward morbidity compression and effective healthspan extension for the benefit of all.
"Ageing research is the most altruistic cause that can generate billions of quality-adjusted life years over time and save the global economy. We are very happy to contribute to and support the MouseAge project. Our Young.AI system for tracking multiple biomarkers during human ageing is currently in the alpha stage and is launching in the fall. However, the biological relevance of many of the biomarkers and interventions is yet to be established, and the MouseAge project contributes to the body of fundamental science required to bridge AI and longevity research. Please support the MouseAge project on LifeSpan.io to contribute to this grand effort", said Alex Zhavoronkov, PhD, Chief Science Officer of the Biogerontology Research Foundation.
About the Biogerontology Research Foundation:
The Biogerontology Research Foundation is a UK non-profit research foundation and public policy center seeking to fill a gap within the research community, whereby the current scientific understanding of the ageing process is not yet being sufficiently exploited to produce effective medical interventions. The BGRF funds and conducts research which, building on the body of knowledge about how ageing happens, aims to develop biotechnological interventions to remediate the molecular and cellular deficits which accumulate with age and which underlie the ill-health of old age. Addressing ageing damage at this most fundamental level will provide an important opportunity to produce the effective, lasting treatments for the diseases and disabilities of ageing, required to improve quality of life in the elderly. The BGRF seeks to use the entire scope of modern biotechnology to attack the changes that take place in the course of ageing, and to address not just the symptoms of age-related diseases but also the mechanisms of those diseases.


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Next: Running Configure and Make, Up: Installation [Contents][Index]
Octave is a fairly large program with many build dependencies. You may be able to find pre-packaged versions of the dependencies distributed as part of your system, or you may have to build some or all of them yourself.
• Obtaining the Dependencies Automatically: | ||
• Build Tools: | ||
• External Packages: |


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Tire Replacement in Seattle, WA
Tires don't last forever, and the two main reasons for replacement are wear and damage. There are several ways to inspect your tires. You can visually check their general condition and look for abnormal and uneven wear patterns. You can also perform the "penny test" or check if the "wear bars" are visible, to see if there's sufficient tread remaining to safely operate the vehicle under all driving conditions.
Tires may last 20,000 to 80,000 miles, depending upon quality and composition. Still, we recommend replacing your tires when the wear bars are visible or there is less than 1/16 inch of tread remaining. The "penny test" works because the distance between the rim and Lincoln's head is 1/16 of an inch, the minimum required tread depth. When your tire tread is less than 1/16 inch, your vehicle can develop handling problems.
Installing new tires will not only increase your car's fuel efficiency, but also improve your car's handling, braking ability and ride quality. From a safety standpoint, the issue should be pretty obvious. A driver's ability to control the vehicle depends upon traction between tires and the road. Poor traction could lead to an accident. From an environmental point of view, better gas mileage is always good for the environment.


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Eastern Bank is the corporate sponsor for a year-long series of 'Shark Tank' medical device venture pitch events. The most recent one took place on Wednesday, October 30th in the board room at M2D2's innovation hub in front of a full audience. From a field of over 20 Massachusetts medical device start-up company applicants, 5 were chosen to make presentations to the panel.
Panelists were angel investors from Boston Harbor Angels and from Mass Medical Angels. Pitching their medical device inventions were Frederic Bourgeois from Nanopulse Biosciences, Bob Thompson from Vista Scientific, Donna Brezinski from Little Sparrow Technologies, Mark Mendel from Flow Forward Medical, and Jeff d'Agostino from 206 Ortho.
In addition to drilling the presenters on their anticipated funding needs, the investors also asked tough questions about the medical significance of their inventions, details about their business models, and status of their intellectual property.
The next event in the venture pitch series is expected to take place in January 2014.


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Hi -
I have subscribed to your service to share files with another person. I have added her to the list and put money in the account. We are still not able to share/download this file. What now?
Thx - jltraylor
Please make sure you sharing files in a right way. By default, your files are secure and private.
(1) If you need to share with a few people only, please use the share feature;
(2) If you need to share to the public, or if you need to create static links, please use the Publish feature. (you then can use the Publish URLs for linking to the folder and files in it)
To share a folder, you can use our website or better use DriveHQ FileManager 4.0. Once you have shared a folder, the system can send an automatic notification email to the other person.
If the other user is also a DriveHQ member, he can access the shared folders in his special folder: \DriveHQ Share\
It might be easier if you create a sub-account for the other person. You can upgrade your account to a group account for free. Just logon www.drivehq.com, click on My Account --> Group Account.
Please logon and reply, Not DriveHQ Member?


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I was listening to a podcast where the hosts were chatting back and forth about the newly offered Hulu Plus, where for $10 dollars a month, you can get Hulu on a wide variety of devices including smart phones and over-the-top Internet TV boxes. Hulu is also offering a somewhat wider, but still incomplete back catalog archive of shows. One of the hosts was saying he wouldn't pay for content, he wanted it "for free."
Whether we realize it or not, we are all paying for content, either directly or indirectly. Even if we have only a TV antenna and watch only the local TV channels, we are still paying for content indirectly via advertising. When we buy consumer products of virtually any kind, part of what we pay goes for advertising, which pays for content creation.
If we are paying indirectly only, someone else is deciding for us as to the quality of the programming content. We can either consume that content or not, but we still pay as consumers buying products. We have very little indirect control over what gets put on the air. On the other hand, if we pay for content directly, then we have far greater control over the quality of the media we are consuming.
If Hulu can offer value for the money, then it will succeed What they have to do is figure out what people are willing to pay for. Perhaps that value revolves around putting highly-sought-after content on as many devices as possible. Perhaps it revolves around coming up with the absolute best back catalog of old TV shows. Imagine having instant streaming access to every TV show ever produced in every country in any language, and every movie ever produced anywhere in any language. Something like that would be well worth paying for. Imagine a site such as IMDB.Com that lists every movie and TV show ever made, except as a subscriber you could instantly stream it – now you're talking. Hulu, anyone else out there – are you listening?
I personally would be willing to pay for a service such as Hulu, except for one small glitch. There are no back catalog shows on the site at the moment that really excite me. Network drama shows can sometimes be quite good, but my tastes are somewhat different.
When I had Dish Network, I was watching a few selected shows on only 3 channels – Discovery, TLC and History. I can get most of these shows if I really want them at some point via Netflix. To my way of thinking, Netflix is a much better value. Netflix has a far wider variety of content, plus they also offer the handy rental service of DVD's and Blu-ray discs.
The verdict is currently out whether Hulu will be able to figure out what value it needs to best serve its customers. If people are paying Hulu money directly, then Hulu had better quickly figure out exactly what those customers want and do its best to deliver it to them.
Hey Hulu, here's an idea to try. Offer first-run streaming movies, but do it the Hulu way. I would be willing to pay for a first run movie streaming for a nominal pay-per-view fee, say $5.99. Vudu is offering streaming first run movies, but you have to have a big fat Internet connection to be able to use Vudu. The Vudu service demands way more bandwidth than my Internet service can currently deliver.
Here's yet another idea for Hulu – offer exclusive, Hulu-only content consisting of well-produced material revolving around the "Entertainment Tonight" type of concept. Do exclusive interviews of movie and TV stars. Do exclusive interviews of directors. Give people real value for their money. Make your customers want to not only see you succeed, but motivate them to help you succeed.


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Disney Pixar Cars Track Talkers Lightning McQueen, 5.5-in, Authentic Favorite Movie Character Sound Effects Vehicle, Fun Gift for Kids Aged 3 Years and Older, Multicolor
by Disney
Castle Toys
Or Stop on by our Shop!
3194 Industrial Way, Suite H-500
Castle Rock, CO 80109-2806
We are located just south of the Outlet Mall on the north side of Castle Rock.
Not a "regular" place for a toy store, but then again, we are not a "regular" toy store
We have two reserved spots in the parking lot – you'll know them by our logo on the reserved sign. There is additional parking at the end of the lot, which is noted on the map below. You can also just pull up in front of the store. There is additional general parking located just down the street in the lot next to the gymnastics place. We are sorry for the inconvenient parking, but please stop by! You'll be so glad you did!
All orders are shipped the day after you place your order, except for weekends and holidays, in which case your order will be shipped the next business day. All orders are shipped with tracking numbers so you can track it every step of the way!


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Paying close attention to a property's previous sale can be a big deal. I know it's tempting to say value is all about the current market, but sometimes looking at the past can help us understand the present. Here are some reasons why I pay attention to previous sales. Any thoughts?
5 things to consider about a property's previous sale:
- Requirement to Explain: If you didn't know, appraisers are required by USPAP (our uniform standards) to analyze and report the past 36 months of sales or transfers of the subject property. Thus analyzing a prior sale can be a normal and even mandatory part of the appraisal process.
- Context: A previous sale can sometimes give tremendous insight into how the market responded to the subject property. This is especially true if a property is unique or funky. What did the subject property compare to at the time of its previous sale? How did it fit within the market? Digging deeply into neighborhood sales can help us answer these questions and maybe even influence the comps we choose for today's value.
- Clues into Adjustments: A prior sale can give clues into how much we might need to adjust for certain aspects of the property. For instance, if the subject is located on a busy street, a previous sale might help us see if that was a big deal or not compared to other neighborhood sales. Or maybe the subject property has a very large lot for the neighborhood, and prior sales can help us gauge how much of a premium there was if any. Or imagine a house is twice as large as anything else in the neighborhood. Let's find some current comps of course, but let's also look to the past too. Can we maybe glean some value context by seeing what buyers were actually willing to pay for this beastly home in the past? Maybe so.
- Comp #4: Appraisers can use the subject property as a comparable sale in reports. Not that appraisers need permission, but according to Fannie Mae, "The subject property can be used as a fourth comparable sale or as supporting data if it was previously closed" (B4-1.3-08). I've done this on occasion when a property is unique and data is limited. After all, what is more comparable than the subject property itself?
- Past vs. Present: If there was a previous sale in the past, we can probably milk it for some perspective, but let's remember we ultimately have to let the current market speak to us instead of imposing the past on the present. After all, the market might be different today due to a change in zoning, change in buyer demand, gentrification, etc… It's worth noting too sometimes sales in the past simply sold for way too much or way too little.
Example: Here is a graph I made for an appraisal I did recently that was going to court. The subject sold three times in the past at a mid-range of the competitive market. Does the history of sales help build credibility for why I reconciled the value to the middle range? I think so.
Tip for Agents & Owners: If something has changed about the property since the previous sale, be very intentional about talking with the appraiser about the change (please use my Info Sheet for Appraisers). Also, I recommend opening up discussion about the nature of the prior sale so the appraiser can have more information and maybe make a judgment call about the sale (especially if the property sold too high or too low for some reason).
I hope that was helpful.
Questions: How do you use previous sales when you value properties? What is #6? Did I leave something out? I'd love to hear your take.
If you liked this post, subscribe by email (or RSS). Thanks for being here.


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When my kitchen was being remodeled last December, I couldn't cook at all for 5 weeks and that is the first time I just sat idle not being able to cook at all in 22 yrs after I got married! Did I enjoy the freedom? Not at all!! I just missed the cooking, baking and the aromas so much. When the construction was done, first thing I wanted to do is to bake a good bread in my brand new convection oven. I went on searching for a good bread recipe and I found this spinach-Feta bread recipe in a website which reminded me of Greek Spanakopita. Spinach, Rye and Feta sounded perfect for me and here it is, my first bread baked in my brand new kitchen and oven! What a perfect bread baking with cheese event to show it off too! :)
I tried this wonderful bread recipe from this beautiful cooking bread classes site. Check this out for step by step pictures. I have typed the bread recipe for my future reference here. My sincere thanks to this wonderful site for educating us all with such a clear cut instructions and for this super Spinach healthy and wonderful tasty, slightly tangy Feta bread.
Spinach-Feta cheese bread:
I followed the recipe mostly as it is except few changes and I also used the frozen Spinach instead of fresh Spinach. I didn't have the fresh greens at hand at the time but I don't think it took away much in the taste. Do use fresh Spinach if you can.
You need to do this the night before baking; Mix all these, cover and let it ferment overnight:
3/4 cup bread flour,
1/2 cup lukewarm water,
1/4 teaspoon instant yeast.
Next morning, gather all these in one place before you start the dough:
2 cups chopped fresh spinach or frozen, thawed and squeezed dry spinach,
1 tsp or butter to saute the Spinach,
Pinch of salt.
1 1/4 cup lukewarm water,
1/2 cup dark rye,
1 1/4 cup whole wheat flour,
1/2 tsp instant yeast,
1 tsp salt,
1/2 tsp crushed pepper or dry chilli flakes,
2 cups bread flour,1 cup crumbled feta cheese.
First step:
Heat 1 tsp oil or butter in a pan, add salt, Spinach and saute until wilted and there is no liquid left. I microwaved the thawed spinach until the water evaporated, checking it often taking care not to burn the greens. Take it out, separate the clumps if any and let it cool.
1. Take a big bowl (or if you are using the KitchenAid to knead like I did, use that bowl),add "night before" fermented mix and lukewarm water, mix gently.
2. Add salt, pepper or chilli flakes, yeast, and both Rye and whole wheat flour, mix again. Leave it for 5-10 mins to rise a bit.
3. Add the bread flour, 1/2 cup at a time until you use all the flour until you get a very slightly sticky dough. You might need more or less bread flour than 2 cups, use your judgment. Knead well by hand or in the machine until you get a good smooth dough. Cover and let it rest for 5 mins.
4. Now, add spinach and Feta cheese on the dough, fold and knead gently until evenly mixed with the dough. In the machine, add spinach first, let it mix gently on low speed. Once well mixed, add Feta and mix on the lowest speed just until mixed.
5. Brush some oil on the dough, cover and let it rise and double in a warm place or warm oven for about 2hrs. Divide into two and make round dough. Place on the baking sheet, brush some flour on the top. Cover with a towel and let them rise again for an hour.
Preheat the oven at 400F (Yes, I used 25F less than what the recipe says).
Once the oven is heated, uncover the dough and place the sheet inside. Since mine is a brand new Convection oven, I didn't use the water as it says at the cooking bread site but do follow that method if you like. Bake these bread loaves for 30-40mins or until they sound hollow when tapped at the bottom of the bread.
Again, use your judgment according to your own oven, times and temperature may vary. Do not overbake. I also used a double layered insulated cookie sheet to bake these bread, which doesn't give you a very dark bottom. You could use Pizza stone to bake the loaves and you could place a pan with water on the bottom rack for steam while baking. It's up to you.
I gave the second loaf to my neighbor who is a breast cancer survivor. She was so happy to receive such a healthy and tasty bread. However, as soon as she saw the bread, she was excited thinking that I brought her a Indian style bread but was equally happy to know that it had Greek ingredients instead! :D
So, that's it for today. Hope you have a wonderful weekend. We are looking forward to see the movie "Gran Torino"tomorrow! :))


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This is the inspiration for this month's tutorial. I am making it out of mat board but you could make it out of basswood if you have the equipment for cutting.
This is my version of the flower wagon. This could be used for Teddy Bears and toys, too. It is small, something to sit on a porch. You could enlarge the pattern and make it for the gardener to push around in his garden.
These are the beautiful patterns that Nancy made for us. She even offered a version #2 of the leg, I like both. On the left of the blog, in the "Things to do, Things to see" list there are instructions for HOW TO RE-SIZE THE PATTERNS.
This is a good project to use up your scrap mat board.
Print your patterns out onto card stock to trace around.
Trace 2 sides onto mat board.
Keep your pencils sharp. A sharp point gets closer to the edge of the pattern for a more accurate size.
Use a sharp blade in your craft knife to cut the sides out.
Make light cuts first, don't try to cut through in one slice.
Trace and cut out the front, back and handles for the flower wagon.
Use yellow carpenter's wood glue to glue everything together.
Glue the side to the back/front's cut edge.
That's Digger walking around, "I'm awake, I want attention, now, please".
I have the sides glued to the edges of the back and front of the flower wagon.
I want to let that dry a bit.
Nancy made you a beautiful wheel pattern. I asked if she could even my pattern out and she did, so your wheel will look better than mine.
Do you see that I have cut out every other triangle? You will have 5 holes or spaces and 5 solid areas or spokes.
Trace the wheel onto mat board.
Using a sharp blade cut your spaces out first while the wheels are still traced on the mat board. It's easier and safer to do that first.
After the spaces are cut out, then cut the wheels from the mat board.
Don't cut the center hole out, we will drill that.
I didn't make a pattern for bottom. I thought it would be better if you measured your wagon and make a bottom to fit.
Measure the inside of bottom opening, front to back.
It looks like I have just under 1 1/4".
Measure the inside of bottom opening, side to side.
If my ruler was straight, that should be an inch.
I am using my small square to draw the bottom. I want the bottom to be square, that is have 90 degree angles at the corners.
I do my best to keep things square, but that doesn't always happen, does it?
Trial fit the bottom, always do a dry fit before gluing.
Glue the bottom into the flower wagon's bottom.
Mark the center of the round top of the handle with a pencil.
Use a "T" pin to pierce the surface of the mat board. There is no need to go through, you just need an indentation for your drill bit to start in.
When drilling I start out with a bit smaller than I need. I graduate up in size to the size I need. Sometimes I use 2 bits, sometimes I use 3 bits.
I am going to use a toothpick for the handle, find a bit that is the diameter of your toothpick.
Being that this is a very small part, I know you had trouble cutting it out, you also will probably have some separation of the layers of mat board when you drilled through.
Apply a little yellow glue between the layers and press together.
Whenever your mat board becomes separated apply glue between the layers right away. This will stop problems later on.
I put both handles on the toothpick and put the assembly up to the wagon to "eye" a measurement for the handle's width.
Mark the toothpick where you want to cut.
Remove the mat board handles and cut the extra off the toothpick.
Glue the toothpick into the holes.
Glue the finished handle assembly onto the wagon.
I have most of the handle above the top of the wagon.
I am going to make the wheels on the wagon roll. This is a little involved and certainly not needed. If you want you can glue the wheels onto the side of the wagon after the painting is finished.
This is going to be our axle brace.
Cut 2 pieces of card stock 1/4" wide and 2 3/8" long.
Glue these together with yellow glue.
Mark the center, 1 3/16" and score a line using the back of your craft knife.
Measure from the center to each side 7/16" and mark.
Score these new measurements, also.
Measure 1/4" from the new scored lines.
Score these lines just like the others.
Mark the center of this 1/4" x 1/4" space.
I used an 1/8" hole punch to punch the holes on the marks I made in the previous picture.
To take this picture I had to glue one side of the brace to the middle, I don't want you to glue anything, yet.
Holding the ends of the brace in the middle, insert a pencil straight in making a mark where I have my pencil tip.
I used the 1/8" hole punch to punch 2 more holes where I just made my marks.
Now, glue the ends down in the middle.
Mark the center with a pencil and mark with a "T" pin.
I decided to drill the holes for both wheels at the came time. I used a smaller drill bit first and graduated up to the drill bit that my toothpick fits.
Measure 3/16" from the front edge and draw a line.
Center and glue the axle brace onto the bottom of the wagon.
Cut another strip of card stock, this can be 1/8" to 3/16" wide.
This is for spacers to keep the wheel from scraping the side of the wagon.
Here is my axle inserted through the brace.
Roll the card stock around the toothpick and glue. I rolled my paper around the toothpick twice, no more.
Don't glue the spacers to the tooth pick.
I've inserted the tooth pick again and slid the spacers on for a dry fit.
I've slid the wheels on and measured about an 1/8" from the wheel and marked with a pencil. This will be the end of the axle.
With a "T" pin make a dimple, don't push through, you may split the tooth pick. This will be where you drill a hole to hold the little stick that holds the wheel on.
I made the dimple a little more than a 1/16" away from my mark.
I am using my little pin vise drill to drill the hole. I bought this from Hobby Builders, www.miniatures.com.
I used the largest bit I could without drilling through the sides.
After you have drilled the holes cut off the extra length of tooth pick.
My holes are not perfectly aligned but I didn't split the tooth pick!
Sand down the tips of a tooth pick for the little sticks. Dry fit into the axle's hole.
I was able to glue my spacers into the holes of the axle brace. If your spacers don't fit into the holes you can just glue them to the outside of the axle brace.
I used a mixture of glue and craft paint to seal the cut edges of the flower wagon. I usually add glue to the paint until just before the glue starts to change the color of the paint or about half and half.
Choose the style of leg you like and trace it onto mat board.
Carefully cut out with your craft knife. Make light cuts first and work your way around.
Here's my leg.
I want you to sand down another tooth pick, it only needs to be tiny for about 1/4" to 3/8" long.
This is going to "dowel" the leg into the wagon. I don't like to butt glue anything if I can help it. This dowel will make the leg sturdier.
I want you to make a hole in the center of the top of the leg using a "T" pin.
I know it's difficult to do and the mat board splits, but drill a hole for the sanded down tooth pick/dowel to fit into.
We want a hole, material must be removed so the dowel can fit into the leg.
Glue the dowel into the top of the leg and clamp. Let this dry.
Carefully insert the "T" pin into the bottom of the back of the wagon. Make sure you don't poke through the mat board.
Drill a hole, removing material just like you did for the leg. Be careful not to drill through the mat board.
My leg is dry and ready to be inserted into the bottom of the wagon.
After a dry fit glue the leg into place.
The flower wagon assembled.
The flower wagon disassembled.
I am cleaning up the openings in the wheels with small files and sanding the surfaces of all the parts smooth.
I've painted two coats of craft paint and sanded. I will paint another coat and sand with a fine grit sand paper, 400 to 600 grit, which ever you have.
For my finish I used a finishing wax. I wiped it on, let it dry and buffed out with a softened piece of brown paper bag.
You can do this using natural shoe polish, too. This is the kind in the flat tin.
To soften the brown paper bag you wad it up over and over again.
You will have to drill out your holes in the axle for the little sticks to fit. Be careful not to split the tooth pick.
Here she is all buffed out. The wax gives the surface a nice smooth finish.
For all of you painters out there this has great sides to paint on. You could also paint the surface to look rusty like it's made from metal. The surface could be painted and aged, grunged up a bit.
I know there are metal wheels available and those would look great on the wagon, too.
With all of the snow I have sitting outside my window this little wagon makes me think of how soon spring will be here!
I hope to see some flower wagons in the Follower's Gallery filled with all sorts of things! Remember, my e-mail address is firstname.lastname@example.com for any questions you have and to submit pictures of finished tutorials.
Have fun, Expand on it, Make it better . . . . .
Just keep making minis!
TTUL Kris


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Rating (average)
Attraction Categories
Attraction Introduction
Sight seeing in Arizona. When in Tucson, Arizona be sure to put the Spanish San Xavier Mission on your list of places to see. National landmark
Attraction Highlights
San Xavier del Bac is a national landmark dating from the late 1700's and was founded by Father Eusebio Kino in 1692. Referred to as the White Dove of the desert, it is the oldest European structure in Arizona and a short drive of approx. 10 miles south of Tucson.
The mission is an architectural masterpiece where visitors can marvel at the beauty inside and out.
They offer guided tours or tourists can walk about on their own, the mission sponsors events, a mission school and conducts services. This is a free attraction and a must see while visiting Tucson, Arizona.
Visit the web site for complete information and photos of this Arizona Landmark.
Photo courtesy of Photos of California and beyond
Business Website Address
Pet Friendly Location?
Pets must be leashed
Attraction Address
1950 W San Xavier Rd
Zip Code


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I wrote about our Last Minute Hotel Change of Plans at the Country Inn, Rapid City about three weeks ago. I've been meaning to write an update to what the outcome was but Club Carlson and the Country Inn property were very slow to act on the matter.
Here is a quick recap:
For our first night in Rapid City, South Dakota we booked a room at the Country Inn & Suites. Upon check in we were informed of a water issue- there wasn't any at the moment! The problem was being worked on and was supposed to be fixed by 6:00 that evening. When we returned to the hotel we were told the problem was not what they thought and everybody had to find rooms elsewhere. They offered to help us find another room and the option was a hotel nearby which was "only" $13 more plus tax for the night. I declined and found my own room. My main concern was what would happen to the Stay 1, Get 1 Club Carlson points we were supposed to earn for our stay. Before leaving the hotel I checked with the desk to make sure that we would not be charged and was given a paper. The paper seemed more like what you get when you check out not a receipt for a reversal of the charge.
A couple of days later I contacted Club Carlson through Twitter and received a speedy response. They asked me to send an e-mail regarding the situation. Soon after sending the e-mail, we received a response that the problem would be resolved. We were told that we should expect to hear back from them again after the weekend.
We did not hear back from the rep after the weekend but I was really happy to see that the 44,000 Gold Points bonus (and other points associated with the booking) did post to Kim's Club Carlson account! I was really impressed that they did the right thing and gave us the bonus for our non-stay.
About a day later I was wondering- maybe the points posted because we were charged for the room, not due to Club Carlson being so kind. I had Kim check her credit card statement and what do you know, we were never refunded for the stay!
We decided to deal with the hotel directly to get our refund. I wasn't worried about getting the money back but was worried that Club Carlson might take back the Gold Points bonus.
Getting the refund was a bit frustrating but it got taken care of in the end. It took us four calls spread out over a few days to get it done.
- July 5- Spoke to Jake. He told us that he was busy checking guests in and would give us a call back which he never did.
- July 7- Call #1- Spoke with Jake again. He transferred Kim to the general manager's line to leave a message. The phone kept ringing & the answering machine never picked up for Kim to leave a message… Go figure!
- July 7- Call #2- Kim called back and spoke with a female employee (we did not get her name). She said that she would look into the matter and call back which she never did.
- July 8- Spoke with Shelby. She told us that managers do not work on Sundays. We explained the situation and she actually seemed to care. She said that she would look into what was going on and call back in 15 minutes.
- July 8- Shelby did call back (when she said she would) and was able to refund Kim's card for our non-stay. Finally a competent employee!
While this back and forth was going on we had discussed the idea of reaching out to Club Carlson social media. We decided against it since that did not lead to much happening in the past. Another option was to file a claim with the credit card company. Filing with the credit card company can be a pain, sending in documents and proof so we felt calling the hotel directly was the way to go.
In the end I think that Kim's Gold Points bonus posted due to the mistake of Country Inn & Suites charging her for our non-stay. Maybe I am wrong and Club Carlson responded to our e-mails and awarded the points bonus for our troubles but I doubt that this is the case.
I waited a couple of weeks to post regarding this situation because I wanted to see if Kim's bonus points would be taken back by Club Carlson.. I am happy to say that I've been checking on a daily basis and her account has all of the points earned from the Rapid City Country Inn booking.
For this headache, Kim earned:
Jul 2, 2012 | Adjust | Adjustment – Discretionary Award | 3,000 |
Jul 2, 2012 | Earn | Country Inn & Suites By Carlson, Rapid City, SD – Jun 27, 2012 to Jun 28, 2012 – Country Inn – Rapid City , SD US Points|Room Earning 20 Points per USD | 2,535 |
Jul 2, 2012 | Earn | Country Inn – Rapid City , SD US Points|Online Booking Member Bonus Points | 1,000 |
Jul 2, 2012 | Earn | Country Inn – Rapid City , SD US Points|Country Inns So Go Country 44,000 Point Bonus | 44,000 |
Jun 19, 2012 | Earn | Radisson Hotel Valley Forge – Jun 15, 2012 to Jun 16, 2012 – Radisson – King of Prussia , PA US Points|Room Earning 20 Points per USD | 2,224 |
I think that in the end this whole ordeal was worth the time we put in to earn 52,759 Club Carlson Gold Points!


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Items where Kingston Author is "Grove-Hills, Julie"
Group by: Item Type | No Grouping Jump to: Monograph Number of items: 4. MonographLivingstone, Sonia, Davidson, Julia, Bryce, Joanne, Millwood Hargrave, Andrea and Grove-Hills, Julie (2012) Children's online activities: risks and safety: the UK evidence base. (Other) UK Council for Child Internet Safety (UKCCIS). 44 p. Davidson, Julia, Grove-Hills, Julie, Bifulco, Antonia, Gottschalk, Petter, Caretti, Vincenzo, Pham, Thierry and Webster, Stephen (2010) Online abuse: literature review and policy context. (Project Report) European Online Grooming Project. Davidson, Julia [Research team head], Huq, Rupa [Research team member], Seetzen, Heidi [Research team member] and Grove-Hills, Julie [Research team member] (2010) Towards engaging with and understanding three BME communities in Kingston: identity, interaction, belonging and belief. (Project Report) Kingston upon Thames, U.K. : Kingston University. 82 p. Davidson, Julia, Lorenz, Mia, Grove-Hills, Julie and Martellozo, Elena (2009) Evaluation of CEOP ThinkUknow internet safety programme and exploration of young people's internet safety knowledge: Final report. (Project Report) Centre for Abuse and Trauma Studies & Kingston University & The Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP). 57 p. |


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Ground-breaking research and technological development can change the world when it comes to early diagnoses, treatment and prevention*
As a leader in diagnostic solutions for breast care, Philips offers advanced imaging for mammography, ultrasound, MR, and PET/CT, supported by leading-edge information management.
When mammography Indicates a need for further testing, our portfolio of breast ultrasound imaging solutions is up to the task. Phillips understands that breast cancer presents differently in different women. New studies and guidelines suggest a multimodality approach for comprehensive screening, diagnosis and management.
Using the breast care cycle as our lens, our solutions solve challenges that patients and clinicians tell us they encounter every day. By looking at each stage of care and the transitions between them. Philips gains a deeper understanding of the progression of women's conditions and opens up real opportunities to improve care, reduce costs and, at our collective best, save lives.
You are about to visit a Philips global content page


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Total Eclipse
1995 Drama | RomanceThis historical drama, directed by Agnieszka Holland, focuses on the rocky relationship between the renowned 19th century French poets Arthur Rimbaud and Paul Verlaine. Rimbaud (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a teenage wunderkind known for his rebelliousness against conventional society and his surrealistic writing. He disrupts the life of Verlaine (David Thewlis), a more conventional writer who is older and married to a dutiful young wife, Mathilde (Romane Bohringer). The drunken Verlaine is unkind to Mathilde, even though her father is providing him with a house and an income to live on while he pursues his writing. Rimbaud overwhelms Verlaine, mocking his conventionality, constantly disrupting his domestic life, and somehow attracting the maniacal love of the older man.~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide
Streaming Links
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D-Con Refillable Corner Fit Mouse Bait Station (12-Refill)
D-Con refillable mouse bait station with. Cholecalciferol formulated to encourage repetitive feeding. 2 entry locations for mice and placement in corners. Window shows how much bait is left. Compact and low profile to fit in tight places. Child (tamper resistant), pet resistant, and weather resistant. Meets California Department of Pesticide regulation rule making. Uses 0.7 Oz. bait block. Includes refills. For indoor and outdoor use.


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Moebius: Empire Rising Review
Ray Ivey evaluates the latest adventure game from Jane Jensen/Pinkerton Road Studios
Whenever the venerable Jane Jensen creates a new game, attention must be paid.1 She's famous for creating games that engage our brains even as they intrigue us with their stories.
Her new project is called Moebius: Empire Rising. As in some other Jensen games, your job is to uncover a startling conspiracy, one that's steeped in history, and which has global ramifications.
The setup of the story is quite effective: Our new Jensen hero is named Malachi Rector. He's a globe-trotting art and antiquities dealer with an attitude, as well as a Xanax addiction. The story of the game begins when his normal orderly life is turned upside down when he gets involved in events which could determine the leadership of the Free World.
Solid setup!
However, it turns out the game is quite a mixed blessing. In fact, I feel like I have to present parts of this review in Good News / Bad News format. So here goes.
The Main Character:
Malachi Rector
Good News | Bad News |
Malachi Rector is a brilliant guy, an authority in antiques and antiquities. His expertise in authenticating rare treasures has given him a worldwide reputation. His antiques business is based in Manhattan. | Rector is a cold, prissy martinet. He's so uninterested in any human connection that it's difficult to care about him. |
He's extremely handsome and is brought to life admirably through the vocal performance of Owen Thomas. | Despite his good looks, Malachi has a deeply weird, gangly body, especially from the back. While reasonably presentable from the front, when he's walking he has this creepy Nosferatu posture. It's quite off-putting. |
As an expert on antiques, he sometimes provides entertainingly catty comments about inferior interior décor.2 | He's a complete sourpuss. |
The Sidekick:
David Walker
Good News | Bad News |
Also very good looking, theoretically well-built, action-hero type. | The graphics don't fulfill this promise at all. He's almost as awkward physically as Malachi. |
Could be a dashing hero. | Hardly gets any chapters of his own (other than the tedious caves; more on that later), and when he does he's dull as dishwater. |
Potential for Interesting Stuff Between the Two Main Characters
Good News | Bad News |
Lead character's sidekick is a devoted, attractive man. Hmm… Brokeback potential here? | Despite ample opportunities for the story to dip into this arena, even in discrete and teasing ways, it goes nowhere. Dr. Quest and Race Bannon had more fun together than this pair. |
Good News | Bad News |
Sometimes the visuals are bright and snappy. A high point is the opening of the chapter set in Egypt, when the introduction is done with a series of floating comic-book panels. It looks great and gets the story going with energy and pizazz. | Sometimes the backgrounds are muddy and unattractive, particularly in the endless cave maze sequence. |
Okay, I'll stop torturing you with my Good/Bad flow chart.
I always look forward to the data-based puzzles in a Jane Jensen game. I enjoyed the historical research and analysis Malachi does as he works on the mystery. Most of these puzzles involve comparing historical figures with characters in the story. It's an intriguing idea, and it plays out in entertaining ways.
On the other hand, the second type of puzzle in the game is the very traditional third-person inventory-based kind. These aren't as much fun, for two reasons: First, they're pretty pedestrian. Now, I know what Jane might think when she reads that previous sentence: We got all complainy about the overly obtuse inventory-based puzzles in Gabriel Knight 3 (anyone remember the cat moustache puzzle?) and now I'm complaining the puzzles are too simple?! There's no satisfying me, is there?
Fair enough. But I'd be happier if the difficulty level of these puzzles landed somewhere in Happy Medium Land.
But there's another problem with the inventory-based puzzles. You're not able to pick up any item until your character realizes he needs it. This breaks a time-honored, grab-everything-that's-not-nailed-down-and-toss-it-into-your-inventory-for-possible-future-use adventure game tradition. And not in a good way.
So you're constantly coming across hotspots for interesting items (hmmm… scissors….) that you're not allowed to pick up. Later, when you may be in a completely different place, you stumble across a puzzle that might need those scissors. You then must a) remember where you saw them, and b) backtrack to that location, find them again, and c) return to the location of the puzzle.
This would be one thing if you were just returning to a previous room. But the game takes it to truly absurd lengths. At one point you actually jump on a plane and fly from Washington, DC to New York to procure an item you could have easily gotten in a thousand places in Washington. It's just laughable.
Sometimes the dialog is very good, particularly as delivered by the aforementioned Owen Thomas. Best line: "Excuse me, I'm just going to take one of these grenades."3
The Worst Thing….
…is an endless sequence which take place in an ugly cave maze near the end of the game. Mazes can be a real trap in adventure game design, because they can get boring very quickly. Remember how tedious the maze in Myst was until you figured out the secret? And let's not forget the painful sewer mazes in Traitors Gate. And am I only one who suffered through the impenetrable maze in Dogs?
The cave maze in this game is just brutally tedious. It goes on forever, and then you have to do it AGAIN with another character! Bleh.
But is it FUN?
Yes. Really. The main setup is interesting and intriguing. Malachi is a fascinating, if distant, character. The research puzzles are entertaining. The settings are far-flung and enjoyable. The puzzles make sense.
I'd probably be easier on this game if it didn't have such a sparkling pedigree. The game is certainly fun and playable, but if you're like me, you'll spend a lot of time just wishing it were better.
1Extra credit if you can source the phrase I just used!
2My two favorites: "Here's a general rule. Nothing valuable ever comes in wicker."
And: "The Seven Wonders Hotel…the first wonder is that anyone stays here."
3Why have I never had the opportunity to ask this question in real life?
+ Solid setup – You're unable to pick up any item until you realize you need it, even if this realization occurs in a completely different geographical area. – A brutally tedious cave maze that must be negotiated twice with two different characters | |


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Sherry Masterclass and visit to The Sign of the Don
Dec 12, 13
As many of my readers know, I am a huge fan of sherry. Not the typical sherry your grandmother sips on Christmas Day. I'm talking about the dry, nutty and aged sherries that have recently gained renewed popularity in the bars and restaurants of London. It seems that more and more people are appreciating the nuances of sherry...
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