text:
HIALEAH, Fla. (AP) — Two people died and an estimated 20 to 25 people were injured in a shooting outside a banquet hall in South Florida, police said.
The gunfire erupted early Sunday at the El Mula Banquet Hall in northwest Miami-Dade County, near Hialeah, police told news outlets.
The banquet hall had been rented out for a concert. Three people got out of an SUV and opened fire on the crowd outside, police director Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III said. Authorities believe the shooting was targeted.
"These are cold blooded murderers that shot indiscriminately into a crowd and we will seek justice," Ramirez said in a tweet.
I am at the scene of another targeted and cowardly act of gun violence, where over 20 victims were shot and 2 have sadly died. These are cold blooded murderers that shot indiscriminately into a crowd and we will seek justice. My deepest condolences to the family of the victims.
— Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III (@MDPD_Director) May 30, 2021
Two people died at the scene, police said. As many as 25 people went to various hospitals for treatment.
No arrests were immediately announced.
"This is a despicable act of gun violence, a cowardly act," Ramirez told the Miami Herald.
Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.


text:
Teacher of Food/Design Technology (Maternity Cover)
This job expired on 18 July 2024
Job start date
1 September 2024
Closing date
18 July 2024 at 11:59pm
Date listed
11 July 2024
Job details
Job role
Visa sponsorship
- Visas cannot be sponsored
Key stage
- Key stage 3, Key stage 4
- Design and technology
Working pattern
- Full time: 32.5 hours a week.
Contract type
- Fixed term - 1 year
Full-time equivalent salary
What skills and experience we're looking for
Who we're looking for
We're looking for an outstanding teacher with a proven track record of success and raising pupil outcomes. As a Star teacher, you'll join the Star Academies family, a high-performing and supportive network of primary and secondary schools with some of the best teachers in education.
The successful candidate will have the ability to deliver quality teaching that drives achievement and inspires a love of learning. You will be able to demonstrate experience of achieving positive outcomes for pupils, as well as being passionate about making a difference to the lives of young people. As a committed team player, you will have excellent organisational skills and the natural ability to motivate both pupils and peers.
You will have:
- A degree-level qualification and Qualified Teacher Status
- The ability to teach to GCSE standard.
- Experience of sustained delivery of outstanding attainment and achievement
- Experience of innovation and creativity to engage, enthuse and progress learners.
What the school offers its staff
About Eden Boys' School, Birmingham
Eden Boys' School, Birmingham is a Muslim faith-based secondary school for 11 to 18 year old boys, which welcomes pupils from all faiths and none. We opened in Perry Barr in 2015 and, like all Star schools, we have a leadership specialism. We are extremely proud to be one of the highest performing schools in the country, with the 2nd best Progress 8 score nationally for our 2019 GCSE results. We were graded as 'Outstanding' in all areas by Ofsted during our first inspection in May 2018.
We have an exemplary reputation for excellence in every aspect of school life. We provide a knowledge-based academic curriculum alongside a rich and diverse leadership programme that grows character and inspires charitable and social action. Our pursuit of educational excellence is based upon our fundamental belief that every pupil has the capacity to become a successful and inspirational leader.
Commitment to safeguarding
Our organisation is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. We expect all staff, volunteers and trustees to share this commitment.
Our recruitment process follows the keeping children safe in education guidance.
Offers of employment may be subject to the following checks (where relevant):
childcare disqualification
Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS)
online and social media
prohibition from teaching
right to work
satisfactory references
suitability to work with children
You must tell us about any unspent conviction, cautions, reprimands or warnings under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975.
Upload additional documents
If you need these documents in an accessible format, please contact the school.
About Eden Boys' School, Birmingham
- School type
- Free School, Muslim, ages 11 to 18
- Education phase
- View all Secondaryjobs
- School size
- 620 pupils enrolled
- Age range
- 11 to 18
- Ofsted report
- View Ofsted report (opens in new tab)
- School website
- Eden Boys' School, Birmingham website (opens in new tab)
- Email address
- firstname.lastname@example.com
- Phone number
- 01216577070
Eden Boys' School, Birmingham is a 700 place 11-18 Muslim faith-based secondary school, which opened in September 2015. The school welcomes applications from pupils of all faiths and none. Like all Star schools, it has "Leadership" as a specialism.
Eden Boys' School, Birmingham was graded as "Outstanding" in all areas by Ofsted during its first inspection in May 2018.
School location
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text:
A new technology, but with support now fairly widespread across browsers, Flexbox is starting to become ready for widespread use. Flexbox provides tools to allow rapid creation of complex, flexible layouts, and features that historically proved difficult with CSS. This article explains all the fundamentals.
Prerequisites: | HTML basics (study Introduction to HTML), and an idea of how CSS works (study Introduction to CSS.) |
Objective: | To learn how to use the Flexbox layout system to create web layouts. |
Why Flexbox?
For a long time, the only reliable cross browser-compatible tools available for creating CSS layouts were things like floats and positioning. These are fine and they work, but in some ways they are also rather limiting and frustrating.
The following simple layout requirements are either difficult or impossible to achieve with such tools, in any kind of convenient, flexible way:
- Vertically centering a block of content inside its parent.
- Making all the children of a container take up an equal amount of the available width/height, regardless of how much width/height is available.
- Making all columns in a multiple column layout adopt the same height even if they contain a different amount of content.
As you'll see in subsequent sections, flexbox makes a lot of layout tasks much easier. Let's dig in!
Introducing a simple example
In this article we are going to get you to work through a series of exercises to help you understand how flexbox works. To get started, you should make a local copy of the first starter file — flexbox0.html from our github repo — load it in a modern browser (like Firefox or Chrome), and have a look at the code in your code editor. You can see it live here also.
You'll see that we have a
element with a top level heading inside it, and a

element containing three

s. We are going to use these to create a fairly standard three column layout.
Specifying what elements to lay out as flexible boxes
To start with, we need to select which elements are to be laid out as flexible boxes. To do this, we set a special value of display
on the parent element of the elements you want to affect. In this case we want to lay out the

elements, so we set this on the

(which becomes a flex container):
section { display: flex; }
The result of this should be something like so:
So, this single declaration gives us everything we need — incredible, right? We have our multiple column layout with equal sized columns, and the columns are all the same height. This is because the default values given to flex items (the children of the flex container) are set up to solve common problems such as this. More on those later.
Note: You can also set a display
value of inline-flex
if you wish to lay out inline items as flexible boxes.
An aside on the flex model
When elements are laid out as flexible boxes, they are laid out along two axes:
- The main axis is the axis running in the direction the flex items are being laid out in (e.g. as rows across the page, or columns down the page.) The start and end of this axis are called the main start and main end.
- The cross axis is the axis running perpendicular to the direction the flex items are being laid out in. The start and end of this axis are called the cross start and cross end.
- The parent element that has
display: flex
set on it (the

in our example) is called the flex container. - The items being laid out as flexible boxes inside the flex container are called flex items (the
elements in our example).
Bear this terminology in mind as you go through subsequent sections. You can always refer back to it if you get confused about any of the terms being used.
Columns or rows?
Flexbox provides a property called flex-direction
that specifies what direction the main axis runs in (what direction the flexbox children are laid out in) — by default this is set to row
, which causes them to be laid out in a row in the direction your browser's default language works in (left to right, in the case of an English browser).
Try adding the following declaration to your section rule:
flex-direction: column
You'll see that this puts the items back in a column layout, much like they were before we added any CSS. Before you move on, delete this declaration from your example.
Note: You can also layout flex items in a reverse direction using the row-reverse
and column-reverse
values. Experiment with these values too!
One issue that arises when you have a fixed amount of width or height in your layout is that eventually your flexbox children will overflow their container, breaking the layout. Have a look at our flexbox-wrap0.html example, and try viewing it live (take a local copy of this file now if you want to follow along with this example):
Here we see that the children are indeed breaking out of their container. One way in which you can fix this is to add the following declaration to your section rule:
flex-wrap: wrap
Try this now; you'll see that the layout looks much better with this included:
We now have multiple rows — as many flexbox children are fitted onto each row as makes sense, and any overflow is moved down to the next line. The flex: 200px
declaration set on the articles means that each will be at least 200px wide; we'll discuss this property in more detail later on. You might also notice that the last few children on the last row are each made wider so that the entire row is still filled.
But there's more we can do here. First of all, try changing your flex-direction
property value to row-reverse
— now you'll see that you still have your multiple row layout, but it is started from the opposite corner of the browser window and now flows in reverse.
flex-flow shorthand
At this point it is worth noting that a shorthand exists for flex-direction
and flex-wrap
— flex-flow
. So for example, you can replace
flex-direction: row; flex-wrap: wrap;
flex-flow: row wrap;
Flexible sizing of flex items
Let's now return to our first example, and look at how we can control what proportion of space flex items take up. Fire up your local copy of flexbox0.html, or take a copy of flexbox1.html as a new starting point (see it live).
First, add the following rule to the bottom of your CSS:
article { flex: 1; }
This is a unitless proportion value that dictates how much of the available space along the main axis each flex item will take up. In this case, we are giving each

element a value of 1, which means they will all take up an equal amount of the spare space left after things like padding and margin have been set. It is a proportion, meaning that giving each flex item a value of 400000 would have exactly the same effect.
Now add the following rule below the previous one:
article:nth-of-type(3) { flex: 2; }
Now when you refresh, you'll see that the third

takes up twice as much of the available width as the other two — there are now four proportion units available in total. The first two flex items have one each so they take 1/4 of the available space each. The third one has two units, so it takes up 2/4 of the available space (or 1/2).
You can also specify a minimum size value inside the flex value. Try updating your existing article rules like so:
article { flex: 1 200px; } article:nth-of-type(3) { flex: 2 200px; }
This basically states "Each flex item will first be given 200px of the available space. After that, the rest of the available space will be shared out according to the proportion units." Try refreshing and you'll see a difference in how the space is shared out.
The real value of flexbox can be seen in its flexibility/responsiveness — if you resize the browser window, or add another

element, the layout continues to work just fine.
flex: shorthand versus longhand
is a shorthand property that can specify up to three different values:
- The unitless proportion value we discussed above. This can be specified individually using the
longhand property. - A second unitless proportion value —
— that comes into play when the flex items are overflowing their container. This specifies how much of the overflowing amount is taken away from each flex item's size, to stop them overflowing their container. This is quite an advanced flexbox feature, and we won't be covering it any further in this article. - The minimum size value we discussed above. This can be specified individually using the
longhand value.
We'd advise against using the longhand flex properties unless you really have to (for example, to override something previously set). They lead to a lot of extra code being written, and they can be somewhat confusing.
Horizontal and vertical alignment
You can also use flexbox features to align flex items along the main or cross axes. Let's explore this by looking at a new example — flex-align0.html (see it live also) — which we are going to turn into a neat, flexible button/toolbar. At the moment you'll see a horizontal menu bar, with some buttons jammed into the top left hand corner.
First, take a local copy of this example.
Now, add the following to the bottom of the example's CSS:
div { display: flex; align-items: center; justify-content: space-around; }
Refresh the page and you'll see that the buttons are now nicely centered, horizontally and vertically. We've done this via two new properties.
controls where the flex items sit on the cross axis.
- By default, the value is
, which stretches all flex items to fill the parent in the direction of the cross axis. If the parent hasn't got a fixed width in the cross axis direction, then all flex items will become as long as the longest flex items. This is how our first example got equal height columns by default. - The
value that we used in our above code causes the items to maintain their intrinsic dimensions, but be centered along the cross axis. This is why our current example's buttons are centered vertically. - You can also have values like
, which will align all items at the start and end of the cross axis respectively. Seealign-items
for the full details.
You can override the align-items
behavior for individual flex items by applying the align-self
property to them. For example, try adding the following to your CSS:
button:first-child { align-self: flex-end; }
Have a look at what effect this has, and remove it again when you've finished.
controls where the flex items sit on the main axis.
- The default value is
, which makes all the items sit at the start of the main axis. - You can use
to make them sit at the end. center
is also a value forjustify-content
, and will make the flex items sit in the center of the main axis.- The value we've used above,
, is useful — it distributes all the items evenly along the main axis, with a bit of space left at either end. - There is another value,
, which is very similar tospace-around
except that it doesn't leave any space at either end.
We'd like to encourage you to play with these values to see how they work before you continue.
Ordering flex items
Flexbox also has a feature for changing the layout order of flex items, without affecting the source order. This is another thing that is impossible to do with traditional layout methods.
The code for this is simple: try adding the following CSS to your button bar example code:
button:first-child { order: 1; }
Refresh, and you'll now see that the "Smile" button has moved to the end of the main axis. Let's talk about how this works in a bit more detail:
- By default, all flex items have an
value of 0. - Flex items with higher order values set on them will appear later in the display order than items with lower order values.
- Flex items with the same order value will appear in their source order. So if you have four items with order values of 2, 1, 1, and 0 set on them respectively, their display order would be 4th, 2nd, 3rd, then 1st.
- The 3rd item appears after the 2nd because it has the same order value and is after it in the source order.
You can set negative order values to make items appear earlier than items with 0 set. For example, you could make the "Blush" button appear at the start of the main axis using the following rule:
button:last-child { order: -1; }
Nested flex boxes
It is possible to create some pretty complex layouts with flexbox. It is perfectly ok to set a flex item to also be a flex container, so that its children are also laid out like flexible boxes. Have a look at complex-flexbox.html (see it live also).
The HTML for this is fairly simple. We've got a

element containing three

s. The third

contains three

s. :
section - article article article - div - button div button div button button button
Let's look at the code we've used for the layout.
First of all, we set the children of the

to be laid out as flexible boxes.
section { display: flex; }
Next, we set some flex values on the

s themselves. Take special note of the 2nd rule here — we are setting the third

to have its children laid out like flex items too, but this time we are laying them out like a column.
article { flex: 1 200px; } article:nth-of-type(3) { flex: 3 200px; display: flex; flex-flow: column; }
Next, we select the first

. We first use flex: 1 100px;
to effectively give it a minimum height of 100px, then we set its children (the <button>
elements) to also be laid out like flex items. Here we lay them out in a wrapping row, and align them in the center of the available space like we did in the individual button example we saw earlier.
article:nth-of-type(3) div:first-child { flex: 1 100px; display: flex; flex-flow: row wrap; align-items: center; justify-content: space-around; }
Finally, we set some sizing on the button, but more interestingly we give it a flex value of 1. This has a very interesting effect, which you'll see if you try resizing your browser window width. The buttons will take up as much space as they can and sit as many on the same line as they can, but when they can no longer fit comfortably on the same line, they'll drop down to create new lines.
button { flex: 1; margin: 5px; font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.5; }
Cross browser compatibility
Flexbox support is available in most new browsers — Firefox, Chrome, Opera, Microsoft Edge and IE 11, newer versions of Android/iOS, etc. However you should be aware that there are still older browsers in use that don't support Flexbox (or do, but support a really old, out-of-date version of it.)
While you are just learning and experimenting, this doesn't matter too much; however if you are considering using flexbox in a real website you need to do testing and make sure that your user experience is still acceptable in as many browsers as possible.
Flexbox is a bit trickier than some CSS features. For example, if a browser is missing a CSS drop shadow, then the site will likely still be usable. Not supporting flexbox features however will probably break a layout completely, making it unusable.
We'll discuss strategies for overcoming tricky cross browser support issues in a future module.
That concludes our tour of the basics of flexbox. We hope you had fun, and will have a good play around with it as you travel forward with your learning. Next we'll have a look at another important aspect of CSS layouts — grid systems.


text:
Governing council of the European Central Bank (ECB) decided to increase the three key interest rates of the ECB by 75 basis points. As a result, the interest rates on main refinancing operations as well as marginal lending facility and deposit facility interest rates will be increased to 1.25 percent, 1.50 percent, and 0.75 percent, respectively, starting on 14th September, 2022.
Due to the fact that the deposit facility rate has been raised to a level above zero, it is no longer necessary to maintain a two-tier system for remuneration of excess reserves. It was therefore decided today by the Governing Council that the two-tier system will be suspended by setting the multiplier to zero in order to maintain stability.


text:
Miller's Crossing
1990 Drama | Suspense/ThrillerJoel and Ethan Coen's third collaboration, the gangster film Miller's Crossing, stars Gabriel Byrne as Tom Reagan, the right-hand man of big-city Irish mob boss Leo (Albert Finney). The film opens with Italian mobster Johnny Caspar (Jon Polito) and his second in command Eddie Dane (J.E. Freeman) informing Leo and Tom that they are going to kill bookie Bernie Bernbaum (John Turturro) because he has been revealing Caspar's fixed fights to other gamblers. Leo informs Caspar that Bernie pays for protection and is not to be touched. After the Italians leave in a huff, Tom informs Leo that he should give up Bernie. Tom and Leo are both involved with Verna (Marcia Gay Harden), Bernie's sister. After a failed hit on Leo starts a full-scale mob war, Tom reveals to Leo the truth about his relationship with Verna. This leads to a falling-out between the pair. Tom goes to work for Caspar, but in truth, he is still loyal to Leo. Tom figures out how to manipulate all of the situations so that Leo survives, but this may cost Tom his relationship with Verna.~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide


text:
This week saw the UK Government release their Online Harms White Paper, while a leaked document reveals plans to hold social media bosses to account for user health. Meanwhile, in an effort to increase their trust, Facebook have launched a new transparency site detailing key statistics around the volume and speed of content removal.
- Snapchat has launched Story Kit, allowing other apps to embed Stories and extending their reach. Bonus: it adds a multi-player gaming platform.
- Twitter is testing new conversation labels to show who initiated the exchange and who is commenting.
- Amazon has developed its own Low Earth Orbit internet, potentially offering 4 billion new potential customers.
- WhatsApp's Business app continues to roll out, now launching on the iPhone.
- TikTok's brand safety has been called into question, despite the company hiring a lot of content moderators.
- What's the hidden cost of cashless retail?
- Apple Music has just overtaken Spotify in the US based on subscriber numbers. In related music industry news, streaming now accounts for nearly 50% of total music revenue.
- How Facebook's newsfeed changes have affected publishers and specific verticals.
- 60% of US consumers don't trust Facebook with their personal information and Google also fails to live up to their privacy expectations.
- Here's how Wind in the Willows was used to highlight the deterioration in the British environment.
- How Netflix uses 'sass' to make its social output as entertaining as its shows.
- IGTV is looking to influencers to fuel much needed growth.
- The mystery of who launched 5G first – and some first thoughts from the US, where Verizon has launched 5G in two cities.
- How A.S.M.R. became a phenomenon.
- The Golden Age of YouTube is over, as the platform moves toward premium content.
And finally, on the lighter side of digital news, spare a thought for this football fan who had his Instagram handle 'yoinked' by Prince Harry and Meghan.


text:
There are melodic bass producers, and then there is Nick Miller. The Denver-based producer known as Illenium has been turning heads in the dance music community over the past year and for good reason. Illenium has distinguished himself from the myriad of others through an unrivaled ability to create an immersive emotional experience of highs and lows that pulls on the heart strings and leaves the listener awestruck, accomplishing in the span of just a few short minutes what takes many a full set. He has displayed an adeptness for creating aural arrangements that vary in style, yet always maintain beauty, complexity and emotional depth.
Illenium gave the world a taste of what he has to offer in 2014 with standout originals "Falling In," "So Wrong," "Make Me Do;" remixes of Dawn Golden, Odesza, Oh Wonder; and performances at Global Dance Festival, Decadence NYE and other select dates. However, as foreshadowed by his inclusion in UKF's "Ones to Watch: 15 for 2015," this is poised to be Illenium's breakout year.


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I've never been able to take pirates seriously. I blame Peter Pan. Neverland-centric adventures were the only context in which I encountered pirates during my land-locked childhood. Seeing them perpetually made fools of by a pack of flying children (who may or may not have been vampires, led by one of the darkest Dark Princes since Dracula…and his house-fairy) did not endear pirates to me, and tales of so-called "adventure" on the Early Modern Era's high seas always struck me as horror stories by another name.
If you've read them, you know what I'm talking about: there are parts of Moby Dick fit to make even the hardest hardcore Saw fan curl up into a ball of tears and barf (which is why Moby Dick's screen adaptions usually omit those parts). Really-real life accounts of long sea voyages during that First Great Age of Colonialism are all about misery, deprivation and discomfort. I swear, before the invention of mass media, people could not shut the fuck up about their toothaches. Or "the scurvy." And if it wasn't "the scurvy" it was "the pox." If it wasn't "the pox" it was "consumption." And if it wasn't "consumption…"
You get the idea. Hopefully, by now, you'll also have some idea as to why most Pirate Movies are fanciful romps, set in highly-romanticized alternate universes where grown ass men can spend their whole lives at sea but still come ashore with perfect teeth. Men like Douglas Fairbanks, or Erol Flynn. Or Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. Or Burt Lancaster. By the time my mother was in grade school, pirate movies had at least grown the balls to cast unattractive dudes as sea dogs – like Robert Newton. Or Yul Brenner. But that didn't last. The year I was born was also the year Pirates of Penzance came out, thrilling absolutely no one and proving not a goddamn thing had changed since the Silent Era. Continue reading Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)


text:
Heirloom belt from WWI |
It was passed down by a Canadian relative--mostly likely Captain John Daniel Slatter of the 48th Highlanders of Toronto. Capt. Jack, as we like to call him, was hubby's great-uncle, one of three military bandmasters in the Slatter family.
Capt. Jack was very close to his sister, Mary Slatter Wood (who married James Edgar Wood in Ohio). We have a couple of photos of him: One, above, shows him at Camp Borden in Canada in 1917, where he trained dozens of military bands and 1,000 buglers.
According to the 48th Highlanders Regimental Museum, Capt. Jack's military record was:
1874-6 Training Ship Royal Harry
1876-81 Royal Fusiliers
1881-6 "A" Battery Royal Canadian Artillery (Quebec City and Northwest Battalion)
1916-9 Officer-in-Charge of Training Bands & Buglers, Military District #2
1896-1946 48th Highlanders of Canada (based in Toronto)
Because he was in charge of training, he would have been able to trade badges with many of the military men he trained.
Above and below are the first closeups of the badges on this incredible heirloom belt. More to come soon, leading up to Canada Day on July 1st.


text:
| By Debra Kirby |
The wild, wacky and wonderful world of Dr. Seuss has been the salvation of many an exhausted parent who, ready to call it a night, succumbs to their child's plaintive cry for just one more bedtime story. The easy rhyming flow in Dr. Seuss stories always made it easy for me to read just a little longer. There's a Wocket in my Pocket was a favorite of both my daughters, who could recite word for word, page by page well before they were able to read – providing an opportunity for a little fun with unsuspecting relatives and friends who were amazed at how advanced my 3-year-old girls were.
I've been fortunate enough to continue to enjoy Dr. Seuss through my grandchildren and various mentoring programs through the years. The student I'm currently mentoring is a second grader who says Dr. Seuss is her favorite author, and Green Eggs and Ham her favorite book, though we recently both found Fox in Sox a little trying.
In honor of the National Education Association's Read Across America, which kicks off on March 2, and is also Dr. Seuss's birthday, I decided to learn a little more about the Pulitzer Prize-winning author, whose real name was Theodor Geisel. There are many interesting and some surprising facts to be found in Gale databases. Here are a few:


text:
Each unit includes 12 pieces
Men will surely look ruggedly handsome in these sports sunglasses from the XLoop collection. The wrap frame features a face fitting contour design and the temple is covered in variation of camo pint. The sturdy rims for that snug fit and mirror coated lenses complete the look of this sporty pair. Offering this style to your male customer base will surely entice your stores following. Sold by the dozen in pre-assorted frames and lenses.
Frame Material: Polymer
Frame Shape: Sport Wrap / Semi-Rimless
Frame Color: Carbon Fiber Print / Black, Carbon Fiber Print / Gunmetal
Lens Color: Smoke, Blue Mirror, Red Mirror, Green Mirror
Hinge Type: Pin Hinge
Unit of Sale: Dozen
Pictures Shown For Listed Product Are For Reference To The Frame Style Only.


text:
According to the Wikipedia page on Grizzly Bears,
Mothers defending their cubs are the most prone to attacking, being responsible for 70% of fatal injuries to humans.
Is there any seasonal dependence on this? For example, are mothers more defensive during early summer than during late summer and autumn, when the cubs are a bit older, or is there no significant difference? Does it depend on the kind of bear?


text:
Yup, that's the word, After almost two years and exactly 200 posts of writing about my interest and finds here on www.damnyak.ca, I am closing up shop. It has been a great two years, meeting and conversing with all sorts of awesome people, sharing ideas, and experiences. It really was a hard decision to make and has taken many a months to finally assure myself this is something I want to do. Being part of the blogging world and seeing new things be released and fade to the back (even having a couple items myself), I have found sometimes its all to much. How many leather phone pouches do we need? How many pairs of jeans that can last a lifetime do we need? How many pairs of welted boots do I need (a lot it seems)? Archival clothing's resolutions definitely have it right. I have found that I have all I need and there is not that much room in my life for new. When you buy to last, and you also write about it, you can only write so much till you feel like you are some what repeating yourself.
I will continue to do leather-work, I don't think I will ever stop, but I am for the time being I am not going to be offering any dry goods of sorts. So scoop them where they are available because that's the last you will see for a while, and possibly ever. I might take the odd custom job here and there, but juggling the blog, leather-work, my day-job, and other new interests is ending up being to much. And I still want to hike, bike, partake in some archery, camp and canoe.
So again I just want to say thank you to all the fantastic readers I have had over the past two years. Thank you for all your comments and feedback. Thank you all for your support with the leather-goods, It was truly an amazing experience that has opened my eyes to some great products and consumer morals that I have passed on to many a family and friends.
Another thank you goes out to all my fellow writers and site owners, Thanks to (in no particular order) Donna & Angus, Brian, Alex, James, Obi, Jedd, Jeff, Lesli, Kevin, and many more. It has so amazing to have "met" you all, I hope one day I can meet the ones I have yet to meet face to face to share some laughs.
Also just so everyone rests assured, any damnyak products guarantee of craftsmanship will still be honored for life. If there is a issue or a repair, send me an email and I will look after you the best I can.
In the mean time people looking for some stellar leather goods please hit up some of my cohorts Hollows Leather, Corter Leather, or KG Leather. Tell them Chris from damnyak sent you.
So Thank you all, and I hope to keep in touch. Please do not hesitate to shoot me a email, and for sure there still might be the odd post here and there.
Chris Adamiak.......and for those wondering my last name is pronounced "Ah-Damn-Yak".


text:
Comfort Dentistry
- Are you apprehensive about going to the dentist?
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text:
The Paradox of the Plankton (G. E. Hutchinson 1961. Amer Nat 95:137-145)
"...... how is it possible for a number of species to coexist in a relatively isotropic or unstructured environment all competing for the same sort of materials. The problem is particularly acute because there is adequate evidence from enrichment experiments that natural waters, at least in the summer, present an environment of striking nutrient deficiency, so that competition is likely to be extremely severe."
AQUAPARADOX Project Summary
Planktonic microbes constitute the base of aquatic ecosystems. Protists are typical of the plankton as species richness seems unreasonably high- the 'Paradox'. In addition, each species appears widely distributed. Recent molecular data suggest that many protist species, defined morphologically, may be genetically diverse. Thus, many 'species' of planktonic protists actually may be groups of cryptic species (morphologically indistinguishable, genetically divergent) each adapted to precise ecological niches. Conversely, many species have been catalogued which might be simply variants of a single species.
In the Aquaparadox project, we examined morphological, genetic and physiological diversity in common coastal protist morpho-species, that is morphologically-defined species. Subjects of study included a wide range of protists: 1) grazers of the sea - tintinnid ciliates (one shown on the left) , 2) autotrophs, that is 'plant' or phytoplankton forms- the dinoflagellate Ceratium and the small flagellate Micromonas (image below Hutchinson on left) and 3) the dinoflagellate parasite Syndiniales.
The population structure of protist species was examined at the level of single cells and between populations separated by different scales of time and space. Genetic diversity was evaluated using SSU rRNA and ITS sequences. Morphometrics was used to characterise variability within a species and physiological adaptation using cultures. We also examined patterns of community assembly and historical trends in species distributions. Our goal was to provide a basis for understanding protist adaptation, speciation and ecology in aquatic systems.
Although officially over since 2012, new Aquaparadox contributions continue to appear reflecting the fact that the work goes on, well past the financing. Scientific publications now number 67. Above is a 'Word Cloud' of the titles of Aquaparadox publications all of which are available on the Products & Publications page. The project was financed from 2008 through 2011 and involved 4 laboratories: The Microbial Ecology Group (alas now defunct) of the Laboratoire d'Océanographie de Villefranche), The Oceanic Plankton Group in Roscoff, The Microbial Diversity and Evolution Group of the University of Paris XI (Paris-Sud) and the Virtual Biology Laboratory of the University of Nice Sophia-Antipolis. Financial support was from the ANR and Pôle Mer PACA (France).
C'est quoi 'Le Paradoxe du Plancton' ?
Contact info:
John Dolan
Marine Microbial Ecology & Biogeochemistry Group Laboratoire d'Oceanographie de Villefranche CNRS & Université Paris VI Observatoire Océanologique de Villefranche-sur-Mer
Station Zoologique B.P. 28 F-06230 Villefranche-Sur-Mer France
Email: dolan 'at' obs-vlfr.fr
Tel: 4 93 76 38 22, Fax: 4 93 76 38 34


text:
Other segments from the episode on May 12, 2021
This is FRESH AIR. I'm Terry Gross. My guest, Jean Smart, has been getting roles that really show off what she can do. And as was recently noted in Entertainment Weekly, she excels at absolutely everything. In the TV series Fargo," she played the hardened matriarch of a crime family. Last year in the HBO series "Watchmen," she played an FBI agent. Now, she's co-starring in the HBO crime and family drama "Mare Of Easttown" as the mother of Kate Winslet's character. Her comedic timing was obvious in the '80s sitcom "Designing Women," and in the early 2000s, when she won two Emmys for her guest-starring role in "Frasier." This week, she returns to comedy in the new series "Hacks" which premieres Thursday on HBO Max.
In "Hacks," she plays Deborah Vance, a comic who overcame a lot of the obstacles women comics of her generation faced and became a top act in Vegas, where she regularly performs at one of the big casinos. When the series begins, her career is in decline. Her jokes are kind of funny, but way past their expiration dates. The casino is cutting back her dates and is trying to book an act that can draw a younger crowd. In an attempt to save Deborah's career, her manager pairs her with a young woman comedy writer, Ava Daniels, who he also manages, to write material for Deborah that will sound more up to date.
Ava, played by Hannah Einbinder, thinks of herself as cutting edge and cringes at the idea of writing for a comic she considers washed up and too showbizzy. But Ava desperately needs work because she was canceled after tweeting a joke about a closeted senator who sent his gay son to conversion therapy. So Ava reluctantly flies to Vegas to meet with Deborah, and Deborah grudgingly hires her.
At one of their first meetings, Deborah tells Ava that the joke she's written for her aren't funny. Then, Deborah asks Ava if she's a lesbian, to which Ava responds that Deborah is her employer, which makes it inappropriate for her to ask that. And then Ava goes on to describe, in graphic detail, her sexual experiences with women and men and concludes by telling Deborah this.
HANNAH EINBINDER: (As Ava Daniels) So anyway, I'm bi.
JEAN SMART: (As Deborah Vance) Jesus Christ. I was just wondering why you were dressed like Rachel Maddow's mechanic.
EINBINDER: (As Ava Daniels) Great. So the jokes, you didn't like any?
SMART: (As Deborah Vance) They're not jokes. I mean, like, are they, like, thought poems? I had a horrible nightmare that I got a voicemail. What?
EINBINDER: (As Ava Daniels) It's funny because voicemails are annoying. It's like, just text.
SMART: (As Deborah Vance) First of all, if you start a sentence with it's funny because, then it's probably not. And second, jokes need a punchline.
EINBINDER: (As Ava Daniels) Well, in my opinion, traditional joke structure is very male. It's so focused on the ending. It's all about the climax.
SMART: (As Deborah Vance) Oh, look who's talking. I just got a TED Talk about yours.
GROSS: Jean Smart, welcome to FRESH AIR. It's a pleasure to have you on the show. You're terrific in this as you've been...
SMART: Thank you.
GROSS: Yeah, for so long. So, you know, you've done a lot of comedy, but this is the first time you've played a comic. Do you have any favorite jokes of the bad jokes that your character tells?
SMART: (Laughter).
GROSS: Because they're both funny and bad at the same time.
SMART: Oh, sure, you know? I mean, I don't think of her jokes as bad necessarily. It's just that, you know, she's sort of got her stock-style jokes that she knows. She knows her audience really well. And she knows what they expect and what they don't want to hear from her. And she gives them what they pay for, you know?
I mean, as risque as she gets, it's probably the first joke we hear out of her mouth at the very beginning of the show where you can just kind of hear her before we even see her face, where she talks about being in bed with a guy who keeps saying, you know, are you close? Are you close? And she says, yeah, I'm close. I'm close. I'm close to getting a buzz cut, a flannel shirt and finally accepting Melissa Etheridge's dinner invites. I love that joke.
GROSS: Are there things you related to about the generational conflict in this, you know, because, you know, the young comic who starts writing for your character thinks of herself as so like, you know, cutting edge and a little transgressive. And she really has kind of contempt for your character because it represents everything that she said the younger comic doesn't want to be.
SMART: Exactly. Exactly. Yeah. You know, she thinks I'm a dinosaur, which I am in a way. But Deborah's attitude, I think, is a little bit that Ava's generation has thrown the baby out with the bath water and that all they want to do is shock people into laughing. And that's much easier to do than to come up with something kind of clever that actually makes people laugh, not just out of shock. And so (laughter), you know, she - it's just sort of funny to watch them, you know, navigate this.
They come from completely different worlds, or at least seemingly at first. And Hannah actually is a stand-up comic. So I was a little bit intimidated at first and thinking, OK, she's playing the writer, I'm playing the comic. And she's an actual stand-up comic. Yeah, that's been the fun part is just their conflict. That's just - and the fact that I just get to abuse her horribly.
GROSS: Is there a generational conflict that's similar for actors, either about the material that's acceptable in a play or movie or TV show, or how standards have changed for the language you can use and what you can talk about and how sexual you can get?
SMART: Oh, sure. Oh, sure. Yes, I used to make a joke to friends. I'd say, I would never do any kind of nudity while my parents were still alive, but they lived so long that now I'm at the age where no one asks for me to do a nude scene...
GROSS: (Laughter).
SMART: ...You know? So that kind of took care of it right there. But certainly, obviously, things have changed dramatically. I guess part of that is just natural evolution of anything, you know, when you look at television and movies and what's considered just kind of normal entertainment and what would have been considered X rated two decades ago. I'm not sure it's a good evolution. I still think there's some things better left to the imagination. Sometimes, I think they're actually more effective when they're left to the imagination.
GROSS: So your new series "Hacks," the comedy series, starts on HBO Max, on Thursday. Meanwhile, there's, I think, three episodes left of "Mare Of Easttown," the series that you're co-starring in on HBO that's part crime drama and part family drama. Kate Winslet plays Mare Sheehan, who's a police detective trying to solve a murder. But there's a lot going on in her personal life. Her son died by suicide, leaving behind his young son who Mare is raising because the boy's mother has been in rehab. You've moved in.
You're Mare's mother, and you've moved in with Mare to help her raise the grandson, your great-grandson. But you and Mare are afraid that you're about to lose custody because the boy's mother is getting out of rehab. You've been trying to prepare him for the likelihood he'll be returning to his mother. And that's made Mare very angry with you because she wants to keep custody. And let's hear a clip in which she's showing how angry she is that you're trying to prepare him to go back to his mother. The clip starts with Kate Winslet as Mare.
KATE WINSLET: (As Mare Sheehan) Why are you telling him you might have to go live with this mom?
SMART: (As Helen) Because he might have to go live with his mom.
WINSLET: (As Mare Sheehan) He's 4 years old, mom. We don't know what's going to happen, all right? Don't be telling him stuff like that. He lived in this house his entire life.
SMART: (As Helen) Which is why we need to prepare him. Otherwise, he'll feel like the ground is just falling out beneath him. I called Kathy Dryer's today.
WINSLET: (As Mare Sheehan) You did what?
SMART: (As Helen) She works for the Child and Youth Services.
WINSLET: (As Mare) I know where Kathy Dryers works. Why the hell are you calling her?
SMART: (As Helen) Because I want to find out how this whole custody thing works.
WINSLET: (As Mare) But that not your place, Mom, all right?
SMART: (As Helen) She told me Carrie has a place to stay and a job...
WINSLET: (As Mare) It's so out of line for you to be telling him stuff like that, Mom.
SMART: (As Helen) ...And she stays clean and takes her meds. She's his mother. She's the mother. She'll get custody, and there's not a damn thing you or I could do about it.
WINSLET: (As Mare) I'll figure something out.
SMART: (As Helen) What's there to figure out?
JULIANNE NICHOLSON: (As Lori) Hello.
WINSLET: (As Mare) You're not his guardian, all right?
SMART: (As Helen) I know that. You don't have to say that.
WINSLET: (As Mare) Mom, stay out of it.
NICHOLSON: (As Lori) Hey.
WINSLET: (As Mare) Understand me?
GROSS: Wow. That's - you're really good in this. How did you get the part?
SMART: They offered it to me. It was lovely, (laughter) and I said, HBO? Kate Winslet? Unless I really hate the part...
GROSS: (Laughter).
SMART: ...I'll say yes right now. But I love their relationship because, I mean, even though it's a bit dysfunctional, I hope that there is - that it comes across to the audiences as - that they still - there is still love and respect there between them. They've been through so much. And like a lot of families who go through suicide and divorce and things, that there's a lot of blame, there's a lot of regret, and - but they still manage to, you know, eke out a life together and find moments of humor and moments of happiness.
GROSS: So "Mare Of Easttown" is set in Delaware County, Penn., just outside of Philadelphia. And Delaware County has some pretty wealthy neighborhoods and some working-class suburbs. And you probably saw this, or at least heard about it, that "Saturday Night Live" did a parody of the accents.
SMART: (Laughter) Yes.
GROSS: Did you see it - of the accents of "Mare Of Easttown"?
SMART: (Laughter) Kate sent it to me.
GROSS: Yeah. And she's the one who got the brunt of the (laughter)...
SMART: It was hilarious.
GROSS: ...Of the satire in this. And the premise of the show is that instead of saying murder and daughter because of the perhaps overly exaggerated Philadelphia accents, it's like mu-mu-mu (ph) - I can't even do it right - mordor (ph) and doorter (ph). Yeah, you do it. You do it.
SMART: (Laughter) Well, I don't know quite where they were going with some of it, but yes, they called it murder dirter (ph) - murder daughter. But yes, like one of the examples of that accent is the way they say water. It's wooder (ph), like almost like W-O-O-D-E-R. You know, you say, give me a glass of wooder (ph) - wooder (ph).
GROSS: So did you have, like, an accent coach?
SMART: Oh, yes. Now, we had a couple wonderful dialect coaches. Mine was a native from the area, and she was extremely helpful, extremely helpful. And I would put my lines on a loop tape and just - on my phone and just fall asleep listening to it. I'd - sometimes I'd use my right ear so it would get in the left side of my brain, and sometimes I'd listen with my left ear so it would get in the right side of my brain. And I'd listen to it on the way to work. And - because you want it to be as automatic as possible. Because if you're thinking about it while you're doing your lines, then you're not thinking about the right things (laughter), which you're supposed to be thinking about it, what your character's supposed to be thinking about. That's the hard part of doing an accent, but it's always fun to do accents.
GROSS: Philadelphia has a pretty distinctive O. What were you told about saying O?
SMART: Oh, that was the hardest one. I said to Brad, the writer, one time, I said, really, Brad? I think this sentence has seven O's in it. You're killing me here...
GROSS: (Laughter).
SMART: ...You know? That's a tough one. I mean, or like for instance, I think Kate had a line where she says to her ex-husband, go home, Frank. And you - instead of saying go home, you'd say, geh hem (ph). Frank, geh hem (ph). But it's interesting because the dialect coach told me that - she said the thing that's interesting about that accent from that area is that it's very inconsistent. Some of it is different between the generations. Different members of the same family will pronounce a word differently from each other. Sometimes the same person will pronounce the same word differently in one sentence than they will in another sentence, depending on emphasis, mood, the context. So she said it can seem very inconsistent. I thought, oh, great.
GROSS: (Laughter).
SMART: That's sort of a recipe for making you look like a bad actor.
GROSS: When things shut down because of COVID, you were, like, 85% done with your part for the series. What happened to the other 15%?
SMART: Well, then I started - was in talks about doing "Hacks." And as it turned out, I was able to go back to Philly, finish my scenes just in time to come back into town, back to L.A. and start "Hacks" last, I think, November we started, I think.
GROSS: So you shot "Hacks" during the pandemic?
SMART: Oh, yeah.
GROSS: How did you make sure - how did they make sure everybody was going to be safe?
SMART: Well, they were as careful as could be humanly possible, but, of course, there had to be a certain amount of trust among the actors. We didn't really know each other from Adam. I mean, the only actor that I'd worked with before was Chris McDonald because we were the only people on the set who had to work without masks. So - and it's risky because obviously if one of the actors gets sick, you pretty much have to close, you know, production down. If a crew member gets sick, God forbid that, they can be replaced. The show can continue. But - the - you know, you're doing scenes with actors right in their faces close up, and you're thinking, I don't really know your habits. I don't know who you live with. I don't know who (ph) those people's habits are. I don't know how careful they're being and people that they interact with. And at a certain point, you just have to say, I trust you, you know, that we're all looking out for each other and we want the show to continue. And - but you get used to it.
GROSS: Well, let me reintroduce you here. If you're just joining us, my guest is Jean Smart. Her new comedy series, "Hacks," premieres on HBO Max Thursday. She's currently co-starring in HBO's "Mare of Easttown." We'll be right back. This is FRESH AIR.
GROSS: This is FRESH AIR. Let's get back to my interview with Jean Smart. Her new comedy series "Hacks" premieres on HBO Max Thursday. You can also see her now in the HBO series "Mare Of Easttown" playing the mother of Kate Winslet's character. Her breakout role was on TV as one of the stars of the '80s sitcom "Designing Women."
You've played, like, brassy, cynical, sarcastic women in comedies and in dramas. In Entertainment Weekly, you were described as the reigning Meryl Streep of tough broad types.
SMART: (Laughter).
GROSS: So I want to play an example of that. And this is from your role in "Fargo" when you played the matriarch of a crime family that controls Fargo. And you've taken over from your husband after he had a debilitating stroke. Meanwhile, the Kansas City mafia made an offer to take over your operation. And in this scene, you meet the gangster representing the Kansas City family. And you make a counteroffer, an offer for a partnership between their family and your crime family. So in this scene, you're laying out the terms of your deal and then warn him not to underestimate you. And the mobster from Kansas City is played by Brad Garrett. You speak first.
SMART: (As Floyd) Now - I don't know - maybe when you look at me, you see an old woman. And I am 61. I've borne six children, had three miscarriages. Two of my sons are here today. Two were stillborn. My first born, Elron, killed in Korea - sniper took off half his head. The point is, don't assume just because I'm an old woman that my back is weak and my stomach's not strong. I make this counter because a deal is always better than war. But no mistake, we'll fight to keep what's ours to the last man.
BRAD GARRETT: (As Joe) You're a good woman. I wish I had known your husband.
SMART: (As Floyd) No. My husband would have killed you where you stood the first time you met. So be glad you're talking to his wife.
GROSS: You must have loved that speech when you read it.
SMART: (Laughter) Oh, I did. That was the speech they gave you to audition with for Noah. And I said, that tells me so much about this person.
GROSS: So I read that initially when you got the part and the wardrobe came out (laughter) and the hairdresser came out that you looked at yourself in the mirror and you actually burst into tears. What was the problem? What were you seeing in the mirror?
SMART: (Laughter) Well, I mean, I was very much - it was very much a collaboration. The costume designer and I had great fun coming up with the sort of less than attractive but very practical wardrobe. But - and then I suggested with the hair that they give me one of those kind of poodle perms that women of a certain age wore, especially back then - I know my mother did for a while - because they're just less maintenance. So I said, let's just get the blond out of my hair and cut it shorter and give it a little - give it a perm. And the first time I - but first time I looked at it, I just - my eyes started welling up. I thought, oh, my God. But I said, it's perfect. There she is. There's Floyd. There she is.
GROSS: What about the clothes?
SMART: Oh, the clothes. Well, it was so great to be physically comfortable and not have to worry about - it's kind of like the same with Helen in "Mare Of Easttown." It's such a relief when you don't have to worry about, you know, holding in your stomach and, you know, looking good. You can just be physically relaxed. And I remember the first time I played a character like that where there was no makeup and kind of nondescript clothing. And I thought, this is how the guys get to feel all the time, the men. This is so unfair. My job is so much easier. It's so much more - I'm thinking about the scene completely. I'm not worried about, oh, how am I being shot? Or how am I being lit? Or how am I being - I'm not thinking about anything like that. I'm just thinking about what I'm supposed to be thinking about. And it was such a pleasure. And I thought, this isn't fair (laughter).
GROSS: Well, let me reintroduce you here. If you're just joining us, my guest is Jean Smart. She stars in the new comedy series "Hacks," which premieres Thursday on HBO Max. She's currently costarring in the HBO series "Mare Of Easttown." We'll be back after we take a short break. I'm Terry Gross. And this is FRESH AIR.
GROSS: This is FRESH AIR. I'm Terry Gross. Let's get back to my interview with Jean Smart. Her new comedy series "Hacks" premieres tomorrow on HBO Max. She plays a Vegas comic whose jokes have become out of date and stale. To rescue her career, her manager teams her up with a young woman comic to write more current, edgy material. Needless to say, they constantly clash. Smart is also currently costarring in the HBO series "Mare Of Easttown" as the mother of Kate Winslet's character. Her breakout role was on TV as one of the stars of the '80s sitcom "Designing Women." She won two Emmys for her guest appearances on the sitcom "Frasier."
So I'm going to squeeze in one more clip. This is from "Frasier." This is the role that you won two Emmys for. And you're hilarious in this. So for people who don't know the sitcom "Frasier," Frasier is a psychiatrist who has a radio advice call-in show. And you played Lana Lenley, who was one of the most popular and pretty girls in high school. And Frasier had a crush on you. And now, years later, you run into each other at a cafe. And you're a fan of his radio show. You hit it off. And you end up spending the night together. And this is like Frasier's high school dream come true.
SMART: (Laughter).
GROSS: And in the morning, you wake up in his bed. You still have a glass of wine on the night table next to you, which you used in the scene I'm about to play to swallow some pills later in the scene. You'll hear a reference to that. But you won't be able to see it. And so you wake up in the morning together. Things are still dreamy between the two of you until - OK. Here is the scene. You speak first.
SMART: (As Lana) I had a wonderful time last night.
KELSEY GRAMMER: (As Frasier) Me, too. It was like being back in high school but with sex.
SMART: (As Lana) I don't want this to end.
GRAMMER: (As Frasier) I must warn you, now that I've learned to finally ask you out, I'll be doing a lot more of it. You free this evening? See; there I go already.
SMART: (As Lana, laughter)
GRAMMER: (As Frasier) How about tomorrow night? Somebody stop me.
SMART: (As Lana) Not me. I wonder what time it is.
GRAMMER: (As Frasier) Oh, 10 o'clock.
SMART: (As Lana) Oh, crap. I'm late.
GRAMMER: (As Frasier) Is there something I can do?
SMART: (As Lana) Oh, yeah. Make this lousy hangover go away. Where the hell are those aspirin?
GRAMMER: (As Frasier) You know, perhaps, I should get you a glass of water for those. Would you prefer sparkling or still? Or not - I see you're fine.
SMART: (As Lana) Oh, I'm sorry. Did you want to finish this?
GRAMMER: (As Frasier) No. No. You're the guest.
SMART: (As Lana) Oh. Yeah. It's me. I'm running late. Move my 10:30 to 11:30. Just move it to 11:30.
GRAMMER: (As Frasier) I didn't realize you smoked.
SMART: (As Lana) Oh, yeah. I'm always trying to quit. But my weight just balloons up. I mean, trust me, you don't want to see my ass when I'm off these things.
GRAMMER: (As Frasier) You know, I hate to be a fusspot, but I'd prefer...
SMART: (As Lana) Yeah? Well, who let the dog in? Put your brother on. Put your brother on. Put your brother on.
SMART: (As Lana) Oh, will you be a sweetie and make me some coffee?
GRAMMER: (As Frasier) OK.
SMART: (As Lana) You know, that mess better be cleaned up by the time I get home - both of you. Put your brother on. Put your brother on. Put your brother on the phone.
SMART: (As Lana) Oh, this is nice.
GROSS: Oh, you're so good in that.
GROSS: What do you think about when you hear that back?
SMART: Oh, it was so much fun. That was the first episode I did as that character. And it was my favorite one.
GROSS: Did it say in the script, get louder every time you say put your brother on? Or was that something you just figured out you should do?
SMART: I think I just assumed that that's what it would be (laughter).
GROSS: Right.
SMART: I have women coming up to me in supermarkets saying, oh, my God. That's me. That's me. Oh, my God.
SMART: I'm - oh, dear. OK, you know? People still come up and say, put your brother on the phone.
GROSS: You know, you were so good in that scene, they brought you back for another season. And that - it was the second season. And you won an Emmy for that role. So you grew up in Seattle, right, where Frazier was set? How did you get interested in acting?
SMART: I had a terrific drama teacher my last year in high school. His name was Earl Kelly. He was kind of locally famous because he put on particularly good shows and musicals and things at our high school. And so then I took the class my senior year. And he was great. He was tough. I mean, he taught us - he treated us like we were, you know, a professional acting troupe. He expected a lot from us. He hated the fact that I was a cheerleader. He thought that was just appalling (laughter). But he liked me. And so I really got bitten by the bug. So I told my parents that I wanted to major in theater in college. And my mother was not too happy with me. But after I started doing some plays at the University of Washington, she became my biggest fan, my biggest supporter.
GROSS: When you were getting started, what were some of your day jobs?
SMART: You mean after I got out of college? I'm embarrassed to say I've never had another day job.
GROSS: You never - you were able to make a living acting right from the start?
SMART: Yeah. It wasn't much of a living, but yeah.
GROSS: How'd you do that?
SMART: Well, there's a lot of professional theater in Seattle. And between Seattle and the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland, Ore., where I would do summers, I managed to just get by, you know? You'd always think, oh, jeez, I don't know if I have next month's rent. But something would come along.
GROSS: Did you go through any fallow periods where you thought, I'm never going to get a role again?
SMART: The only time that springs to mind that that happened, ironically, was after "Fargo." I, you know, got great reviews. The show was a big hit. I think I won the Critics Choice Award for that role - and crickets.
GROSS: Why?
SMART: I shouldn't say this. But I think it was because of the way I looked. And all of a sudden, it was sort of like, oh, dear. You know, she's an older woman. And now what do we do with her? And I don't know. I mean, literally, not a meeting, not an audition, not an offer for a long time. But once it started again, it's just been, you know, a steady climb towards, you know, wonderful roles. I mean, I just can't - I'm extremely grateful.
GROSS: If you're just joining us, my guest is Jean Smart. Her new comedy series "Hacks" premieres on HBO Max Thursday. She's currently costarring in HBO's "Mare Of Easttown." We'll be right back. This is FRESH AIR.
SMART: This is FRESH AIR. Let's get back to my interview with Jean Smart. Her new comedy series, "Hacks" premieres on HBO Max Thursday. You can also see her now in the HBO series "Mare Of Easttown" playing the mother of Kate Winslet's character. Her breakout TV role was in the '80s sitcom "Designing Women."
So you have two series now, a comedy and a drama, "Hacks" and "Mare of Easttown." And that's coming off HBO series "Watchmen," in which you played a tough FBI agent. So you're having this really huge success in your late 60s. I mean, you'll be turning 70 soon. Is that a sign that things are changing a little for women? I think earlier in your career, you thought there was nothing for women over 35 unless you were Meryl Streep. And these are, like, three great roles.
SMART: Oh, I know. I've been pinching myself. I've been offered such wonderful opportunities in the last several years. I do think part of it is a changing climate in television. Certainly, they're writing more stories about women than they used to. And since I'm not leaning on, you know, a background of being an au jeune, I'm benefiting from - I'm reaping the rewards (laughter).
GROSS: When you were younger, did you wish you were an au jeune?
SMART: No. I mean, because I knew that there wasn't longevity there. Very rarely could someone who was a classic au jeune sort of make the transition.
GROSS: Well, Jean Smart, I want to thank you so much for talking with us. And I want to say I'm very sorry because you're - I know you lost your husband in March, and I know you must still be grieving. And I appreciate that you're trying to carry on. And I appreciate you coming to our show and talking about your work and your life. I know from my own life and from other people who I'm close to, that there are times when the career seems to be going so well, but there's something that's so awful or tragic that's happened in one's personal life. And I feel like that's the situation that you're in now.
SMART: Yeah, I was talking about a friend with that the other night who said, oh, no, no, no, don't go there. And I said, I don't, I really don't think that way, that the other shoe has to drop or - I mean, I - like I said, I've always been a very optimistic person. I always felt like a lucky person. I mean, I've had loss in my life. I lost my beloved sister 11 years ago. I still miss her terribly. But I don't believe that if one part of your life is going well, that means that something bad is going to happen necessarily. But it did kind of feel that way at first because it was very unexpected. It was his heart. They had no reason to believe whatsoever that he had any issues with his heart. So it was very shocking, and it was right when we just both gotten vaccinated.
There was this wonderful kind of giddy sense of relief. I was doing my dream job. And I just was feeling very, very positive about everything, just feeling like there's so much ahead of us and so many things we have, you know, we can do. And so there was a part of me in dark moments where I thought, this is the universe looking out and saying, oh, you thought you could have it all, huh? Not so fast. I don't like to think that that's true. I hope not. That would sort of prevent you from ever enjoying anything in your life. You're looking over your shoulder all the time. And I don't want my children to be, you know, cynical at all. They're having enough, you know, on their shoulders.
Although, they - I think they're handling this better than I am. Mother's Day was rough. And I didn't necessarily expect that, but that was very, very hard. But, you know, he just - he really kind of put his own career on the back burner so that I could take advantage of these amazing opportunities I've got in these last several years. And I wouldn't be here, you know, without him, you know? And I just wish I could enjoy it with him, you know?
GROSS: He was an actor. You met on the set of "Designing Women."
SMART: Yes, he's a wonderful actor.
GROSS: It must have been strange because he played Annie Potts' boyfriend. So you had to...
SMART: (Laughter). Yeah.
GROSS: We had to watch him being somebody else's boyfriend. Was that strange?
SMART: No, it was funny because, I mean, well, it was the first - we'd just met. And we worked together that first - we were never apart after the day we met. And I'd watch scenes where he was kissing Annie, you know? And I thought, oh, he's so cute.
SMART: And I invited him into my trailer to play Scrabble. And he invited me to come and see a play that he was doing. It was a horrible play, but he was absolutely hilarious in it. And I went, like, three or four or five, six times. And then his producers kept begging me to come back when there were reviewers in the audience, because I would always laugh and I would get the audience laughing. I don't know, I guess something about my laugh (laughter). I don't know.
But yeah, we were never apart. It was that - it's actually a great way to meet somebody at work. When you have to be together, but it's not a date. It's great because you're getting to know each other with no pressure, no feeling like, oh God, we're on a date, you know? Just like, well, we're together all day because we have to be together all day.
GROSS: But then you have to ask yourself, am I supposed to keep this a secret from the other people (laughter) who I'm working with?
SMART: No, I don't remember feeling that way because I remember I found out that Delta had worked with him on "Love Boat" once. So I said, go find out if he's married or has a girlfriend or something. So she marched up to him and said Jean wants to know if you're married or have a girlfriend.
GROSS: (Laughter).
SMART: Yeah, thanks, Delta.
GROSS: (Laughter) So no secrets there. She was in on it at the beginning.
SMART: (Laughter) Yes.
GROSS: It's strange. You know, like, during the epidemic, I've known so many people who've gotten sick, who've had surgery, who've died, who've, you know, like, some horrible health crisis not related to COVID more than usual. I don't - and I don't know if you've experienced that, too - I mean, certainly with your husband. But it just - I don't know. I don't know what to make of it.
SMART: I have two friends who lost their husbands...
GROSS: Really?
SMART: ...In the last six months. Yeah. It's - you know, I mean, obviously, my husband didn't have COVID, but I still feel like he was a victim of the pandemic because I took him - when he started not feeling well, I thought it was a delayed reaction to the immunization because he'd gotten very sick from the second one. So I took him to urgent care because he hated hospitals and doctors. He didn't want to go to the hospital. Took him to urgent care. And even though he was 71 and complaining of tightness in his chest, they didn't do an EKG. And the hospital later was shocked that they didn't. And - but he just started getting worse. And I said, you know, this is crazy. I'm taking you to the hospital. And that was when they realized how sick he was.
GROSS: I'm just so sorry. And I appreciate your strength in continuing to work and to move forward. And I'll just add one thing about that. When I was growing up - and I lived in an apartment building, and the neighbor right upstairs from me, her husband died. And I felt like, well, I know what it's like for women to lose their husband. That means it's the end of their life because most women then - they didn't work. Their identity had so much to do with their marriage. Their income was completely tied up with their marriage. And you know, I thought, like, what is left for somebody after their husband dies? But I - you know, I don't know if you grew up thinking that, too.
SMART: I don't remember thinking that exactly. But for some reason, even though my mom was a housewife, I didn't ever expect that a man would support me or take care of me. And I don't know why I thought that. I really don't. I can't base that on anything. But with "Hacks," when Richard passed, I had to finish the show. I had a week's left - a week's worth of work left to shoot. And that was very, very scary and distressing, but I had to. I mean, we had to finish the show. And I - being the lead of the show, I mean, I feel a huge responsibility, you know, for the success of the show. And I feel a responsibility to the crew and the cast and - but they could not have been more accommodating and more wonderful to me.
GROSS: Well, I just want to end by saying that, you know, I love your acting and...
SMART: Thank you.
GROSS: ...I admire your strength. And I wish you well during this period.
SMART: Thank you.
GROSS: And you know, thank you for coming on our show in spite of the fact that I'm sure you're still grieving. And - I apologize if I'm sounding clumsy in expressing all these things but, you know...
SMART: No, it's hard. I mean, I - you know, I have two friends who lost their husbands this year, and I sympathized and everything. But I didn't have a clue what they were going through - not a clue. It's - yeah. It's indescribable.
GROSS: Yeah. Well, what can I say? Thank you. And I wish you well.
SMART: Well, thank you. Thank you.
GROSS: My interview with Jean Smart was recorded on Monday. She stars in the new HBO Max comedy series "Hacks." It starts streaming tomorrow. You can also see her in the current HBO series "Mare Of Easttown."
After we take a short break, jazz critic Kevin Whitehead will review a new album by alto saxophonist Vincent Herring. He started the album last year before he got COVID and completed it after he recovered. This is FRESH AIR.
(SOUNDBITE OF SUSAN ALCORN QUINTET'S "NORTHEAST RISING SUN") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.


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Fairscale Capital, LLC
402 Amherst St. Suite 203
Nashua, NH 03063
Dow Jones | 37,815 |
Nasdaq | 15,657 |
2 Yr Treasury | 5.04% |
10 Yr Treasury | 4.69% |
10 Yr Municipal | 2.80% |
High Yield | 7.99% |
Dow Jones | 0.34% |
Nasdaq | 4.31% |
MSCI-Europe | 2.05% |
MSCI-Pacific | 1.82% |
MSCI-Emg Mkt | 2.17% |
US Agg Bond | 0.50% |
US Corp Bond | 0.56% |
US Gov't Bond | 0.48% |
Gold | 2,297 |
Silver | 26.58 |
Oil (WTI) | 81.13 |
Dollar / Euro | 1.07 |
Dollar / Pound | 1.25 |
Yen / Dollar | 156.66 |
Canadian /Dollar | 0.79 |
Macro Overview
Fear has been permeating capital markets worldwide as the impact of the (COVID-19) coronavirus continues to evolve. Global economic forecasts have been revised downward by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank as factory closures, quarantines, and travel bans continue to hinder numerous industries.
The Federal Reserve helped alleviate markets with a rate reduction announcement as a result of a rare emergency meeting. The rate cut was made in order to maintain liquidity and structure in an already stressed environment caused by the virus outbreak. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said that "the fundamentals of the U.S. economy remain strong," yet the coronavirus may pose evolving risks for the economy. Yields on Treasuries fell to historical lows as funds migrated from equities to bonds, driving bond prices up.
U.S. equities registered their largest weekly losses since 2008, with $3.6 trillion worth of stock values erased within the last week of February. The rapid decline was among the swiftest in market history, creating havoc in all sectors and industries. Global equity markets also saw similar losses as large capitalized international stocks and emerging market equities gave up gains. Global equity valuations retreated due to uncertainty surrounding the extent of the outbreak and its effects on the global economy. Analysts are closely following companies with supply chains tied to China, which has become a widespread concern.
The virus outbreak has affected financial markets differently relative to other more traditional disruptions. Supply chains tethered to China are creating a shortage of supplies and products, while demand had not been an issue until the virus outbreak. Should a vaccine emerge making the coronavirus outbreak a shorter term incident, then pent up demand could propel economic activity higher.
The National Center for Biotechnology Information reports that advancements in medical technology over the years has allowed the development and creation of new vaccines to combat viruses at a faster pace than decades ago.
The extent of the coronavirus can be put into perspective as related to influenza, also known as the flu, which currently affects over 32 million Americans. Flu-related deaths in the United States are estimated to reach between 18,000 and 46,000 this flu season alone, as reported by the Centers for Disease Control. The center also estimates that as many as 45 million Americans will suffer flu-related symptoms and illnesses during this year's season. (Sources: IMF, World Bank, Fed, U.S. Treasury, NCBI, CDC)
Equities Slump As Concern Elevates – Stock Market Overview
February saw stock valuations retreat to where they were in July and August 2019. Analysts believe that the pullback has helped identify several overvalued stocks. Valuations are considered to be more in line with historical standards relative to where they were at the beginning of the year. The final week of February saw all equity indices fall substantially. The S&P 500 Index slumped 11.49%, the Dow Jones Industrial Index fell 13.6%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Index gave up 10.54%.
The pullback among all major equity indices has been one of the fiercest in market history, yet reigning in valuations that were considered lofty by many analysts. Fortunately, the stellar performance of the equity markets in 2019 is serving as a buffer for the dramatic pullback.
When U.S. equity markets fell 14% over two months in 2003 during the SARS outbreak, rates were much higher, with the 10-year Treasury yielding over 3.5%. The yield on the 10-year Treasury on Feb 28th at 1.13% is lower than the current S&P 500 Index yield for stock dividends at 1.97% on Feb 28th. Analysts view the yield difference as a benefit for stocks for yield seeking investors. (Sources: S&P, Dow Jones, Nasdaq, Bloomberg, U.S. Treasury)
Treasury Bond Yields Drop To Historic Lows – Fixed Income Update
Treasury bond yields traded at record low levels, driven by global investors seeking safe haven assets. All Treasury maturities yielded well below 2% at the end of February, lower than the Fed's inflation target of 2%. The dramatic drop in yields brought the 10-year Treasury bond yield to 1.13 % at the end of February, the lowest yield for the 10-year Treasury on record. An insatiable demand for global bonds brought yields lower across all bond sectors, elevating positive returns for bonds in nearly every sector thus far this year.
The Federal Reserve reduced the Fed Funds rate, a key monetary tool rate, following a rare emergency meeting. The rate reduction was made with hopes of stemming market uncertainty and shoring up liquidity for extended periods of volatility. The announcement triggered a drop in bond yields across various bond sectors. (Source: U.S. Treasury)
Economic Cost of The Flu – Domestic Economy
As a gauge of how a virus can affect the U.S. economy, the National Center for Biotechnology Information monitors and tracks the economic costs related to the flu every year.
The estimated average annual total economic burden of influenza, also known as the flu, to the healthcare system and society stands at $11.2 billion, which includes medical expenses such as hospitalization, physician visits, and vaccines.
A present concern with the coronavirus is the productivity costs associated with the loss of employee attendance, business travel restrictions, and amplified preventive measures. The flu virus has for decades inflicted companies in all industries with heightened productivity costs. (Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29801998)
U.S. Household Size Shrinks – Demographics
Family size is shrinking in the U.S., with only 2.52 members per household on average in 2019, making it the smallest size ever in the country's history. Historical data tracked by the U.S. Census Bureau showed an average family size of 5 in 1880, double by today's standards. The decline in family size is believed to be attributable to various economic and social changes over the decades.
Roughly 63% of households in the U.S. consist of two or fewer family members. The Census Bureau also tracks family size by state. Utah has the largest household size at 3.12 family members, while Maine has the lowest at 2.28 members.
Smaller households materialized over the past 60 years, with one-person households accounting for 28.4% of the U.S. total in 2019, up from 13.1% in 1960. Households of four or more decreased from 40.2% in 1960 to 22.1% in 2019, nearly dropping in half. (Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Historical Statistics of the United States)
Past Pandemics & What Came Of Them – Health Overview
Over the decades, pandemics have evolved and lasted for varying periods of time, yet always culminating with the containment and/or elimination of a virus. Should history repeat itself, a vaccine will eventually emerge to combat the COVID-19 virus, thus alleviating the threat of further immediate contamination.
Even though scientists have not identified how to stop a virus outbreak before it starts, advancements in medical technology over the past 17 years have drastically reduced the time it takes to develop and implement a vaccine after a new virus emerges.
The current coronavirus outbreak has been preceded by two similar outbreaks since 2003, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS). SARs originated out of China in 2002, spread worldwide and was contained within a few months. The World Health Organization (WHO) tracks deaths related to pandemics globally. The organization found that the SARs virus resulted in 774 deaths in 17 countries. MERs, also known as the camel flu, resulted in 862 deaths.
Joint efforts among international governments and nonprofit research entities have allowed extended research on emerging infectious diseases worldwide. Several groups and scientists from various countries are already underway trying to develop a vaccine for COVID-19. (Sources: The National Center for Biotechnology Information, WHO)
China's Share In The Global Economy – Global Trade
The global spread of the coronavirus has affected consumers in countries across the globe, curtailing demand for products mainly manufactured in China. It is expected that as worldwide demand for Chinese products decreases, the country's primary economic component, manufacturing, will abate, thus hindering the country's economic expansion.
Based on 2019 data, the top five economies in terms of GDP are the U.S., China, Japan, Germany, and India. These five alone account for 55% of total global GDP of $86.31 trillion. China accounts for roughly 16.3% of global GDP. China is referred to as "the world's factory,"producing a broad range of items from shoes and socks to hammers and computers. The country's enormous manufacturing base allows it to export massive volumes of goods globally, meeting demand from nearly every consumer in the world. China has experienced exponential growth over the past few decades, from a GDP of $305 billion in 1980, to over $14 trillion this past year, making it the second largest economy after the United States. The difference in GDP between the two nations' economies has been shrinking over the years, as Chinese economic growth has consistently outpaced that of the United States. (Source: World Bank)
Sudden Drop In Mortgage Rates Spurs Housing Buffer – Housing Market Update
The abrupt drop in interest rates has brought about a boost to the housing market in the form of lower mortgage rates. The rate for a conforming 30-year loan fell to 3.45% at the end of February, nearly a full percentage point from a year earlier.
Falling interest rates have prompted an increase in mortgage activity as the cost to borrow for homebuyers has become less expensive. Mortgage rates fell in late February approaching the lows last seen in 2012, when the rate for a conforming 30-year loan was 3.37% in October 2012. The challenge for many homebuyers has been rising home prices and affordability throughout the country. Slow rising wages and stagnant incomes have, for the most part, not kept up with rising home prices. Even though mortgage rates have dropped, housing prices are still elevated to the levels that force many to wait or rent until housing prices drop.
Mortgages accounted for two-thirds of the $14 trillion in U.S. household debt in the last quarter of 2019. Because they are typically paid off over decades, mortgage rates tend to be correlated with 10-year Treasury bond yields rather than with the short-term rates controlled by the Federal Reserve.
Sources: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Freddie Mac


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Apple announced a restructure of it's executive team very recently. Craig Federighi and Dan Riccio are now SVPs of Apple. Dan Riccio's new role is the SVP of Hardware Engineering. He has been at Apple for 14 years. He first joined as the VP of Product Design and was appointed VP of iPad engineering in 2010.
Craig Federighi's new role is the SVP of Mac Software Engineering. He is a face you may recognize for he has been on several media events and promotional videos. He has been at Apple since Jobs came back and was at NeXT with Jobs. He was also responsible for the release of Apple's most successful Mac OS to date, OS X Mountain Lion.
Both people have been and will continue to be a huge key to Apple's success but there is one more thing. The former SVP of Hardware Engineering Bob Mansfield will stay at Apple and report to CEO Tim Cook. He will still have an influence on future products at Apple.
So there you have it, short and sweet, the new management team, or actually part of the new management team at Apple. Let me know your thoughts on the new team in the comments.
Thanks for reading,


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The Electoral College: State of the Presidential Race
The above graphic is how the Presidential race will turn out in the Electoral College on November the 6th. I have Mitt Romney defeating President Obama 271 Electoral Votes vs. 261 Electoral Votes.
Most notable recent changes I have made have been the loss of Ohio to the President and the pick up of Colorado for Romney.
Here is my Electoral College map I made after Mitt Romney chose Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin for his Vice President running mate.
To say the least, the race is tight.
Mitt Romney continues to make a play for Nevada and I understand as of yesterday, he made a very large television ad buy in Northern Nevada – the Reno market.
Recent polling by Rasmussen and Gallup have Ohio all tied up – well within the margins of error. Ohio could go either way. I think Obama now needs Ohio more than Romney in order to win, which goes against the maxim that GOP Presidential wins go through Ohio.
Stay tuned as more polls roll in throughout the next few days.
However, I think, my first map with a 271 Electoral College Vote win for Romney will probably be the end result.


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A new year, a new batch of resolutions! Alas, these promises to ourselves rarely produce long-lasting results. (Depending on the source, nearly nine in 10 resolutions don't take.) Worse, failed resolutions could be harmful if they lead to depression, self-loathing or what we might call "boomerang behavior," i.e., when disappointment from a failure to tame a bad habit causes us to pile on—binge eating, say, after a broken diet. With this in mind, here are five pieces of advice, gleaned from behavioral economics and related fields, to help you make this year's resolutions a little stickier.
Limit your promises. In a much-cited experiment, marketing professor Baba Shiv divided study participants in half, asking some to remember a two-digit number and others to store a seven-digit string. Participants then walked to another room, passing a table where they could choose either a piece of cake or some fruit salad. Result? About six in 10 of those who'd memorized a seven-digit number chose cake, while roughly the same percentage of two-digit memorizers picked fruit! Willpower, you see, is not an infinite resource. Our ability to focus on multiple goals or ideas that require self-control is limited; even the seemingly small difference between two and seven digits influenced how diligent people were about healthy eating. Although it's tempting to pursue several related goals at the same time (losing weight, quitting smoking, exercising more), it's likely more productive to stagger resolutions. Better to trim debt in 2012 and save more in 2013 then not accomplish either year after year.
Write them out. Tales of people who wrote down goals before achieving them get repeated frequently—and exaggerated nearly as often. That said, research suggests that it helps when we put pen to paper before embarking on projects. Tough to say why, but our best guess is that we experience the act as a kind of investment, which likely results in the sunk cost fallacy kicking in: People generally place too much importance (consciously or otherwise) to prior investment when making current decisions. Writing resolutions down, then, is a way of turning a decision-making bias in your favor. So if you haven't already, sit and inscribe your goals in a journal or on a note card.
Involve a friend. Teaming up with others is particularly powerful given our social natures and reluctance to let other folks down. In fact, there's been considerable research over the years into and around the subject of conformity, showing that difficult undertakings of all kinds are far easier when we have even just one ally. (There's a reason why Mormon missionaries always come to your doors in pairs.) Some resolutions, in other words, are better achieved by including others—say, having a friend safeguard your credit cards, with instructions to let you use them only in prescribed circumstances; or by agreeing with a buddy to work out three times a week, regardless of weather or the previous night's late partying.
Get out of your own way. Regardless of the intensity of your desire, you may still find that motivation is not enough to insure that resolve is enough to achieve a goal. This was was demonstrated years ago by researchers at Yale as part of a program to spur seniors into getting tetanus shots. After students heard a lecture on the importance of inoculation, most said afterwards that they planned to get one—but only 3% actually did so. Meanwhile, students in another group—given the same lecture—were almost 10 times more likely to get inoculated. Why? They also got a map of the campus, and were asked to plan their route to the health center and pick a date and time to go.
The lesson: Sometimes motivation isn't the problem. The problem, rather, is "channel factors"—simple but powerful obstacles that stand between us and our goals. Put another way: If you want to cut late-night snacking, throw out your snack food. If you want to stop abusing credit cards, close your accounts. If you want to save more, use direct deposit rather than asking yourself to write a check or transfer funds every month. Removing Y-O-U from a New Year's resolution is a great way to achieve it.
Expect missteps. Just because you smoked one cigarette doesn't mean you're a cigarette smoker again. But some folks experience such slip-ups as tremendously deflating, which leads them to abandon their goal entirely. One way to avoid that is to imagine—before you embark on a resolution—a wide range of ways it may turn out, then ask yourself how you would react to each. Your answers, though, are not as important as the process. Research suggests that contemplating unpleasant or surprising future outcomes will make you less likely to overreact to them. There's no guarantee, but encountering a problem you've even briefly anticipated might just give you that small boost of comfort or self-esteem that will translate into useful self-control


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Zagat Doctor Reviews. Zagat?
February 19th, 2009 Brian HerzogLast year I talked about the resources available that offer consumer information and rankings of doctors. According to the New York Times, there's now one more.
The ubiquitous Zagat guides are known for an assortment of mostly leisure-related topics...Now the editors are asking people...to post reviews of their doctors and rate them...
Huh. I didn't see that coming (maybe I should have), but I don't see why it won't work. The Times article quotes Dr. William Handelman, a kidney specialist in Torrington, CT, as saying, "It is curious that they would go to a company that had no experience in health care to try to find out how good a doctor is."
But it's the patients writing the reviews, and if the public (be they patients, customers, passengers, subscribers, or patrons) are experts on anything, it's customer service. So once a critical mass of reviews is reached, it'll be useful. And Zagat already has the experience and infrastructure in place for publishing such information, so it seems like a good match to me*.
To begin with, it looks like this information will only be available online, and only to customers of one health care provider. But hopefully, this information will eventually be available to the general public and libraries.
In fact, I think it'd be interesting if Zagat chose to review public libraries. I know most people wouldn't travel to libraries outside of their community, but in some areas, communities are larger than individual towns. And we can all build off of the good ideas and practices of others.
Via Huffington Post
*To truly display how much of a dork I am: The doctor-restaurant crossover has a precedent - the idea appeared in an episode of the Dilbert animated series. The Zagat reviews make much more sense in the context of that episode.


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May is here. This also means that exam will be arrived soon. Actually I just finished two examinations this week (Three more on the coming weeks). Very busyyyy month and good luck to me! Anyway I'm super excited now. I'll be going on a vacation on June! It's kind of a sudden decision haha. Only a few days tho. I'll be updating Instagram on June more frequently. So stay tuned!
As mentioned before, my recent favourite colour is grey. I decided to create a every casual outfit that students normally wear to school. All the colours in this outfit is grey. With light and dark grey colours, the outfit will not be that boring. It's always a good way to wear the same colour with different colour intensities/textures in the same outfits. This is another tips for people who want to wear in a casual way but still give people good impression.
I was wearing
T-shirt - Lowrysfarm
Jeans - Uniqlo
Backpack - Vans
Shoes - Lacoste


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Bipartisan compromise bill would restore abortion rights
Aug 1, 2022, 4:16 PM | Updated: 8:58 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — A bipartisan group of senators is pushing compromise legislation to restore abortion access in the wake of the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, a long shot effort to put a majority of the Senate on the record opposing the decision.
While the bill is not expected to pass — and is unlikely to even get a vote — the legislation introduced by two Republicans and two Democrats on Monday is intended to send a signal to state legislatures and the public that a majority of the Senate supports codifying Roe, even if they can't get the necessary 60 votes to pass it in the 50-50 Senate.
"We still think there is utility in showing there is a bipartisan majority that would want to codify Roe," even though the bill doesn't have enough votes, said Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia, who introduced the legislation with Democratic Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska.
The legislation would prohibit most state regulations that prevent abortion access before fetal viability, generally considered to be around 24 weeks. It would allow state restrictions after that point, as long as the mother's life is protected. It would also protect access to contraception, an issue after Justice Clarence Thomas suggested in a concurring opinion to the decision overturning Roe that decisions guaranteeing access to contraception and other rights may need to be revisited.
The bipartisan bill is narrower than legislation preferred by most Democrats — passed by the House but blocked by Senate Republicans — that would have protected abortion rights and expanded them beyond what was allowed in the landmark 1972 Roe v. Wade decision. Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Collins and Murkowski all voted against that bill despite opposition to the overturning of Roe.
Kaine said he felt like Democrats "left votes on the table" after that effort. He said he was encouraged by a new law designed to reduce gun violence that passed the House and Senate after horrific shootings in Texas and New York.
"There were not 60 votes either" for that legislation until members decided that inaction was no longer an option, he said.
Democrats would need 10 Republican votes to overcome a filibuster and get a bill through the 50-50 Senate, but only Collins and Murkowski have publicly backed abortion rights.
By overturning Roe, the court has allowed states to enact strict abortion limits, including many that had previously been deemed unconstitutional. The ruling is expected to lead to abortion bans in roughly half of the states.
Already, a number of GOP-controlled states have moved quickly to curtail or outlaw abortion, while states controlled by Democrats have sought to champion access. Voters now rank abortion as among the most pressing issues facing the country, a shift in priorities that Democrats hope will reshape the political landscape in their favor for the midterm elections.
The support of Kaine and Sinema, a moderate, comes as some activists have accused President Joe Biden and other top Democrats of failing to respond forcefully enough to the decision.
Kaine said there is an increased sense of urgency since the June decision, and suggested he or others may go to the floor at some point and request a vote, an effort that is unlikely to succeed but could call attention to the bill as majorities of Americans say they disagree with the Supreme Court decision.
"People are paying attention to it," Kaine said.
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