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Chloe Panel Upholstered Bed Frame High Footboard
Additional Information
- Hand crafted in the UK
- Unique floor standing headboard
- Bed in images is grey naples & mink plush velvet
Credit subject to status and minimum order value.
Fast check - won't affect your credit rating.
Delivery and Shipping
Delivery and Shipping
Request Fabric Samples
Fabric samples are sent daily via 1st class post. Please note only order samples if your looking to order a bed from us in the next two weeks as fabric shades can change.
Note: Fabric samples sent in the post the shade could slightly differ as fabric roles come in every few months.
Bed Frame Size
3FT | 210cm | 105cm | 45cm |
4FT | 210cm | 135cm | 45cm |
4FT6 | 210cm | 150cm | 45cm |
5FT | 215cm | 165cm | 45cm |
6FT | 215cm | 196cm | 45cm |
Finance Available
0% Finance Available
Ample Storage Space
Enjoy clutter-free living with large storage compartments cleverly integrated into the bed's design.
Luxury Velvet Fabrics
Elevate your bedroom aesthetic with our range of velvet fabrics, each one chosen to provide a lavish sleeping experience.
Various Size Options
Choose from a range of sizes to suit your needs, ensuring a perfect fit for any bedroom layout.
Handcrafted Excellence
Each bed is meticulously crafted by skilled artisans, ensuring exceptional quality and attention to detail.
Selecting the right bed is crucial for ensuring quality sleep and overall well-being. At Heavenly Beds, we offer a range of features designed to cater to individual preferences. With various sizes available, customers can find the perfect fit for their bedroom. We provide free fabric samples, allowing customers to visualize their bed before making a decision. Our beds come with the option of a headboard, increasing your bedroom aesthetic
Frequently Asked Questions
What warranty do you offer on your beds?
What warranty do you offer on your beds?
We provide a comprehensive 12-month warranty on all our beds, ensuring peace of mind for our customer
How does the delivery process work?
How does the delivery process work?
We offer delivery with tracking, so you can monitor the progress of your order every step of the way.
What sizes of beds are available?
What sizes of beds are available?
Our range includes beds in single, small double, double, king, and super king sizes, catering to various preferences and room sizes.
Do you offer financing options?
Do you offer financing options?
Yes, we do! We provide interest-free finance options to make purchasing your dream bed more accessible and affordable.
Are mattresses included with the beds?
Are mattresses included with the beds?
Our beds are typically sold without mattresses, allowing you the flexibility to choose the perfect mattress. However, we also offer mattresses for added convenience.
Do you offer beds with storage options?
Do you offer beds with storage options?
Yes, we have beds available with different storage options, perfect for maximizing space in bedrooms where storage is limited.
Is the headboard included with the bed purchase?
Is the headboard included with the bed purchase?
The headboard is not included by default. However, we offer the option to add a headboard of your desired size.
Is assembly difficult for Ambassador beds?
Is assembly difficult for Ambassador beds?
No, Ambassador beds typically come with clear assembly instructions, and assembly is manageable with basic tools. Some models may also feature easy-to-assemble designs. We also provide an assembly option
for some little added charges.


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Lakewood Village Luxury Custom Homes
Jimmy Lambert is an Award Winning Master Builder. With over 33 years of construction experience in the Lakewood Village, Texas area, Jimmy handles all issues during and after construction. He is involved with the design of every home and in every meeting with the architect as the home is planned. Communication is extremely important throughout the project and our goal is to establish a long term relationship built on trust and the integrity to stand behind our work. Learn More
Lakewood Village Home Construction
We have built multiple homes for families that we have worked with over the years. As a family business for over 30 years, Jimmy Lambert is the President and takes the responsibility of lot purchases, home designs, working with the buyers and helping buyers with the selection of granite, paint colors, faux, carpet, trim, tile, hardware, and fixtures. Click here to view available homes.
Contact J. Lambert Custom Homes
At J. Lambert Custom Homes, we know that your new luxury home is so much more than a house. This is where you will enjoy good times and good company with your family and friends, where you will enjoy all that Lakewood Village, Texas has to offer. We believe that your experience building your custom home should be as enjoyable as your life in your new home. Contact us today!

subset: commoncrawl


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Gadget Guard Black Ice + Tempered Glass Screen Guard
The Gadget Guard Black Ice + edition glass screen guard offers superior protection for a user's device. The optical grade tempered glass is incredibly strong, scratch resistant and treated to repel annoying smudges. The Black Ice glass screen protector allows for simple install; just lay the glass screen over the touch screen, tap it in place and it will affix itself to the touch screen.
Black Ice + edition black screens are so strong Gadget Guard is willing to bet $150 that your customers' screens won't break. In the rare event this happens Gadget Guard will send your customer a $150 check – upon receiving the repair receipt or the damaged phone should they decide to replace it – to help cover costs.
Product Features:
- Accidental damage coverage for screen repair or phone replacement - $150 check for consumers
- Superior Gadget Guard protection
- Optical grade tempered glass
- Simple installation
Gadget Guard Black Ice + Tempered Glass Screen Guard Best Practices
- Register the PIN for the customer in store during install process
- Ensure the customer keeps the guard on the device
- Encourage customer to hang on to packaging which includes 1-800 number and instructions
Manufacturer's Part Number: VTBIPLC208AP24V


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Get a Fee QuoteTell us a little about what you need, and we'll respond quickly with our price and estimated turnaround time. Order OnlineNeed an appraisal now? Order securely online for an accurate, reliable appraisal to fit your specific needs. What's an AppraisalWhen you need to know the true value of a property, you need an expert. Find out about the appraisal process. We are experienced in providing valuation services for residential, commercial and industrial properties. Whether its a skyscraper or vacant land, we are the full service firm you can count on to provide professional real property appraisals quickly and affordably. As a full service real estate appraisal and consulting firm we provide valuations, market and feasibility studies, highest and best use analysis, and consultations for developers, institutional, government, and private clients. We take pride in providing a consistent service of thorough, accurate analysis of your real estate problems. Our reports meet all requirements of government agencies, lenders, courts and the Appraisal Institute under the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP). We can provide full narrative or form based reports to best serve your needs. |
Got a Question?
Do you have a question? We can help. Simply fill out the form below and we'll contact you with the answer, with no obligation to you. We guarantee your privacy.


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Jennifer Kathleen Gibbons is the author of Ella Bella, Take What You Got And Fly With It, and I Woke Up In Love This Morning. She lives in Lafayette, California.
What is your latest book?
My latest e-book is Ella Bella, a YA novel that tells the story of Ella Drake, a girl whose father dies (I'm not giving anything away; this happens in the first pages!) then her mother loses her job a month later. I know it's a lot for a girl to handle, but I always want to read about people who have survived the worst yet somehow manages to survive—maybe even thrive—when the world is against you.
What else have you written?
I've written a mini short story collection for Middle Grade/YA readers called I Woke Up In Love This Morning, which has done quite well on Amazon. I call it my "Babies, Blood and Boobs" book, because the short stories deal with those issues. My other ebook is Take What You Got and Fly With It, a collection of essays. The title is a quote of Jim Henson's that I just love.
What was the most valuable class you ever took in school? Why?
In high school, I LOVED all my English classes. I also took Creative Writing my last two years. My teacher was Jane Juska, who wrote the bestselling memoir A Round Heeled Woman. She was very honest and held me to the fire when I wasn't writing. At the time I resented it, now I'm glad she did it. My freshman year I took a Human Relations class which was one of the most popular classes at my high school. No topic was off limits, which was great.
In college I took many many lit classes, and of course writing workshops. All of them helped me become a better writer.
What do you think some of the greatest misconceptions about indie authors are?
That we're no talents. Or we're lazy. One of the best YA ebooks I read last year was How To Repair A Mechanical Heart by J.C. Lillis, who'd been through the query cycle with agents and was burned out by it. It's incredibly funny and daring, but some might dismiss it because she's an indie writer. The sad thing is they're missing out on a wonderful story. That's not saying I've read some bad indie books, but I've read bad traditionally published books, so it's all the same.
Some authors, like me, always write scenes in order. But I know some people write scenes out of order. How about you?
It depends on the story! Ella Bella was written in order. It was my senior project for college and I was required to write an outline for the story. However the WIP I'm working on now deals with a tragic time in Bay Area/American history, and every time I tried writing it in order I froze. I simply couldn't do it. However this summer I decided to write from the end and go in reverse. When I started doing that, I became unfrozen. It's far from perfect but it's better than before.
Do you have any advice for first-time authors?
The best advice I heard when I was a teenager was from Anne Tyler: Read read read and revise revise revise. Keep going. Do the best you can. Don't be too hard on yourself. Most of all, keep going.
What's your favorite film of all times? Favorite book?
Fave book is a three way tie: East of Eden by John Steinbeck, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith, and To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. I loved all the movies based on the novels as well. Favorite movie? Nashville directed by Robert Altman comes to mind, along with Auntie Mame. All of John Hughes' films.
What music soothes your soul?
All types! All my writing has music connected with it; my characters are like me in the fact they love music. With Ella Bella her dad loved the Beatles, so I listened to them as I wrote, or Beatles covers. The WIP I'm doing right now has flashbacks to the seventies, so I've been listening to the Bay City Rollers! They had such energy when they sang; it was obvious they received energy from their young fans.
If you are a TV watcher, would you share the names of your favorite with us?
Having a DVR helps a lot; I get all my TV watching done within a couple of hours. Current shows I love are: Big Bang Theory, Call the Midwife, Downton Abbey, Mad Men, Major Crimes and Project Runway. I love vintage shows way too much. I just got a new channel that shows the old Bea Arthur show Maude. I've been known to binge watch the show and sing the theme song. It's not pretty.


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Nourish overtaxed hair back to life, and make dry, damaged, frizzy over-processed hair a thing of the past with a little help from REPAIR-ME.WASH. Prepare to renew and restore frazzled locks with our reconstructing treatment shampoo enriched with powerful proteins and amino acids. It will help to strengthen the hair from root to tip, while gently removing impurities and soothing damage.
- A power-packed blend of proteins and enzymes
- Helps nourish, restore and replenish the hair
- Helps hair look and feel smoother and stronger
- Provides a boost of essential moisture
- Ideal for all hair types in need of targeted repair
- Sulphate, paraben and cruelty-free
WASH. RINSE. REPEAT – Apply to wet hair and massage gently through the hair and scalp. Rinse. Follow with REPAIR-ME.RINSE. Can be used daily, and as part of our REPAIR regimen.
Note: You might not need to wash your hair daily, but remember to always use REPAIR-ME.WASH and RINSE for two consecutive washes even if they are apart, and then replace both with RE.STORE for the third wash.
Bromelain is an enzyme from the Pineapple that has the ability to penetrate the hair and provide targeted nutrition without weighing the hair down.
Another powerful enzyme, Papain is from the Papaya, and is known to help unlock and boost the potency of other ingredients that work to bind moisture and improve hair's overall elasticity.
A superfood rich in Amino Acids, Green Pea Protein delivers intense hydration to help nourish and replenish the hair.
Richly conditioning and moisturising, Silk Amino Acids help to improve hydration and draw in moisture for hair that appears more flexible, manageable and softer.
Packed with an abundance of antioxidant and vitamin goodness, Bamboo Extract is also a rich source of mineral nourishment and a key ingredient to help protect the integrity of hair health. Adds a natural-looking shine and lustre to the hair.


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Counseling in Cumming, GA
Counseling is a "bandage" for emotional wounds, it allows them to heal without "infection." You've probably participated in some form of counseling at some point in your life. You likely experience it at least once a week, maybe even every day. Articles on how to do accomplish something, tips for this, hacks for that, advice from a friend or family member, this is all counseling to some degree.
Some people, though, are specifically trained to provide sound advice and get you through tough times; these people are counselors or therapists. The main job of a counselor is to help you view things differently, break out of destructive patterns and get the most out of life. "Getting the most out of life" may seem far-fetched and more than a bit optimistic, but many of the limitations we experience, we've placed on ourselves, even unknowingly. Take several recent articles on how to become a millionaire or billionaire, the vast majority of "self-made" people say the key to success is mental, not factors outside your control.
What do Counselors Fix?
Counselors provide the tools needed to fix your problems. What's that saying? Give a man a fish and you'll feed him for a day, teach a man to fish and you'll feed him for life, it's a similar situation. Counselors—or anyone for that matter - can't make another person do anything (apart from torture and other questionable practices). To receive the benefit of counseling or therapy, like cognitive behavioral therapy, you have to want to change.
But for those who are open to change and willing to look at things from a new/different point of view, counseling may show you the "way out" from common problems including:
- Relationship/Marriage issues
- Anger management
- Parenting difficulties
- Communication problems
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Learning difficulties/disabilities
- Stress
- Substance abuse
- Work-life problems
- Grief/Loss
- Life transition struggles
- And many more areas
Counseling is not a sign of weakness or failure; it's the action of those wise enough to recognize a problem and address it head-on. Burying your head in the sand solves nothing. If you feel you may be stuck in a rut, trapped in a destructive cycle or struggling with a problem, counseling from a trained professional may give you the tools needed to break free and create a better life for you and your loved ones.
Request more information about counseling today. Call (770) 674-6311 or contact Dr. Gail Ravello online.
Natural Medical Solutions Wellness Center
1130 Upper Hembree Rd.Roswell, GA 30076
(770) 674-6311
9:00 am - 4:00 pm
9:00 am - 4:00 pm
9:00 am - 4:00 pm
10:00 am - 6:00 pm
9:00 am - 2:00 pm
9:00 am - 2:00 pm


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Google+ | |
URL | https://plus.google.com/ |
Status | Offline (consumer version) |
Archiving status | Profiles: Saved! (98.6%) Communities: Partially saved |
Archiving type | Unknown |
Project source | googleplus-grab googleplus2-grab |
Project tracker | googleplus googleplus2 |
IRC channel | #archiveteam-bs (on hackint) (formerly #googleminus (on EFnet)) |
Data[how to use] | archiveteam_googleplus |
Google+ (Google Plus) was Google's social media platform. The consumer version shut down on 2019-04-02.
Shutdown of the consumer platform
On October 8, 2018, Google announced that they would shut down Google+ for consumers over the next 10 months, i.e. by the end of August 2019[1]:
Project Strobe: Protecting your data, improving our third-party APIs, and sunsetting consumer Google+
At the beginning of this year, we started an effort called Project Strobe—a root-and-branch review of third-party developer access to Google account and Android device data and of our philosophy around apps' data access. This project looked at the operation of our privacy controls, platforms where users were not engaging with our APIs because of concerns around data privacy, areas where developers may have been granted overly broad access, and other areas in which our policies should be tightened.
Finding 1: There are significant challenges in creating and maintaining a successful Google+ product that meets consumers' expectations.
Action 1: We are shutting down Google+ for consumers.
Over the years we've received feedback that people want to better understand how to control the data they choose to share with apps on Google+. So as part of Project Strobe, one of our first priorities was to closely review all the APIs associated with Google+.
This review crystallized what we've known for a while: that while our engineering teams have put a lot of effort and dedication into building Google+ over the years, it has not achieved broad consumer or developer adoption, and has seen limited user interaction with apps. The consumer version of Google+ currently has low usage and engagement: 90 percent of Google+ user sessions are less than five seconds.
The review did highlight the significant challenges in creating and maintaining a successful Google+ that meets consumers' expectations. Given these challenges and the very low usage of the consumer version of Google+, we decided to sunset the consumer version of Google+.
To give people a full opportunity to transition, we will implement this wind-down over a 10-month period, slated for completion by the end of next August. Over the coming months, we will provide consumers with additional information, including ways they can download and migrate their data.
At the same time, we have many enterprise customers who are finding great value in using Google+ within their companies. Our review showed that Google+ is better suited as an enterprise product where co-workers can engage in internal discussions on a secure corporate social network. Enterprise customers can set common access rules, and use central controls, for their entire organization. We've decided to focus on our enterprise efforts and will be launching new features purpose-built for businesses. We will share more information in the coming days.
On 10 December 2018, in the wake of another security issue, Google announced that the shutdown was being moved to April 2019 and that the API would shut down "within the next 90 days"[2]:
In October, we announced that we'd be sunsetting the consumer version of Google+ and its APIs because of the significant challenges involved in maintaining a successful product that meets consumers' expectations, as well as the platform's low usage.
We've recently determined that some users were impacted by a software update introduced in November that contained a bug affecting a Google+ API. We discovered this bug as part of our standard and ongoing testing procedures and fixed it within a week of it being introduced. No third party compromised our systems, and we have no evidence that the app developers that inadvertently had this access for six days were aware of it or misused it in any way.
With the discovery of this new bug, we have decided to expedite the shut-down of all Google+ APIs; this will occur within the next 90 days. In addition, we have also decided to accelerate the sunsetting of consumer Google+ from August 2019 to April 2019. While we recognize there are implications for developers, we want to ensure the protection of our users.
We will sunset all Google+ APIs in the next 90 days. Developers can expect to hear more from us on this topic in the coming days, and can stay informed by continuing to check the Google+ developer page.
We have also decided to accelerate sunsetting consumer Google+, bringing it forward from August 2019 to April 2019. We want to give users ample opportunity to transition off of consumer Google+, and over the coming months, we will continue to provide users with additional information, including ways they can safely and securely download and migrate their data.
Another announcement was sent out through email on 2019 February 1st.
You've received this email because you have a consumer (personal) Google+ account or you manage a Google+ page.
In December 2018, we announced our decision to shut down Google+ for consumers in April 2019 due to low usage and challenges involved in maintaining a successful product that meets consumers' expectations. We want to thank you for being part of Google+ and provide next steps, including how to download your photos and other content.
On April 2nd, your Google+ account and any Google+ pages you created will be shut down and we will begin deleting content from consumer Google+ accounts. Photos and videos from Google+ in your Album Archive and your Google+ pages will also be deleted. You can download and save your content, just make sure to do so before April. Note that photos and videos backed up in Google Photos will not be deleted.
The process of deleting content from consumer Google+ accounts, Google+ Pages, and Album Archive will take a few months, and content may remain through this time. For example, users may still see parts of their Google+ account via activity log and some consumer Google+ content may remain visible to G Suite users until consumer Google+ is deleted.
As early as February 4th, you will no longer be able to create new Google+ profiles, pages, communities or events.
See the full FAQ for more details and updates leading up to the shutdown.
If you're a Google+ Community owner or moderator, you may download and save your data for your Google+ Community. Starting early March 2019, additional data will be available for download, including author, body, and photos for every community post in a public community. Learn more
If you sign in to sites and apps using the Google+ Sign-in button, these buttons will stop working in the coming weeks but in some cases may be replaced by a Google Sign-in button. You'll still be able to sign in with your Google Account wherever you see Google Sign-in buttons. Learn more
If you've used Google+ for comments on your own or other sites, this feature will be removed from Blogger by February 4th and other sites by March 7th. All your Google+ comments on all sites will be deleted starting April 2, 2019. Learn more
If you're a G Suite customer, Google+ for your G Suite account should remain active. Contact your  G Suite administrator for more details. You can also expect a new look and new features soon. Learn more
If you're a developer using Google+ APIs or Google+ Sign-in, click here to see how this will impact you.
From all of us on the Google+ team, thank you for making Google+ such a special place. We are grateful for the talented group of artists, community builders, and thought leaders who made Google+ their home. It would not have been the same without your passion and dedication.
Google LLC 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043
You have received this mandatory email service announcement to update you about important changes to your Google+ Page, product or account.
The shutdown began on 2019-04-02 around 15:40 UTC with pages being replaced gradually by either a "Google+ is no longer available" message or a redirect to the Google login. By 16:55 UTC, virtually every request was being redirected to the login page.
How can I help?
Archiving data from Google+ is over. Hundreds of volunteers took part in ArchiveTeam's biggest action to date that resulted in over 1.56 PB (petabytes) – that's 1,560,000,000,000,000 bytes – of WARCs in less than four weeks.
This, as usual, is hosted by the Internet Archive. This amount of data, unlike the result of most of ArchiveTeam's project, is considerable even for the Internet Archive, given that the total size of their collection is about 40 PB as of 2019.
Keeping all this available for everyone, for free, for a long time (hopefully forever), costs them a lot. You can help by donating to the Internet Archive.
Content archived from Google+ is being uploaded and ingested into the Wayback Machine, and the raw archive files are also made available in the archiveteam_googleplus collection of the Internet Archive.
Read more
- https://www.reddit.com/r/googleplus/comments/9nph98/google_mass_migration_community_on_g_helping
- https://social.antefriguserat.de/index.php/Main_Page


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Past Blue Peter presenter Konnie Huq has a brand new book out!
It's called 'Cookie and the Most Annoying Boy in the World' and Dan heard all about it!
In the story, Cookie's life is basically over.
Her best friend in the whole world is moving to Solihull because one of her dads has a new job there. Solihull?! Where even is that?!
Cookie begs her parents for a pet to fill the void but they have given her an absolute NO. It would be way too expensive and way way too messy.
But Cookie has never been a fan of the word 'no' so she visits the pet shop anyway and sets her heart on the sweetest cutest kitteniest kitten ever: Bluey.
But then… DISASTER!
The most ANNOYING boy she's ever met in her entire nine years goes into the pet shop, buys Bluey and renames her Nigel!
And then he joins her year at school! And if that wasn't bad enough, he moves in next door to her.
But it's not all bad… Cookie gets the chance to go on her favourite TV show, Brainbusters.
It's only a chance though – she'll have to win the school science competition first.
It shouldn't be too hard. All she has to do is keep her head down, and not get too over-excited.
Unfortunately that's not Cookie's strong point…
Add a comment


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These tracks show the density of RAMPAGE reads from different developmental stages of D. melanogaster embryos.
The datasets were retrieved from the Gene Expression Omnibus database at NCBI under the accession number GSE36212. The RAMPAGE reads were mapped against the D. melanogaster (dm6) assembly using STAR.
Dobin A, Davis CA, Schlesinger F, Drenkow J, Zaleski C, Jha S, Batut P, Chaisson M, Gingeras TR. STAR: ultrafast universal RNA-seq aligner. Bioinformatics. 2013 Jan 1;29(1):15-21.
Batut P, Dobin A, Plessy C, Carninci P, Gingeras TR. High-fidelity promoter profiling reveals widespread alternative promoter usage and transposon-driven developmental gene expression. Genome Res. 2013 Jan;23(1):169-80.


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This charming little cottage looks to have come straight from the pages of a fairy tale, and is aptly named The Storybook Cottage. Located near Nashville, it sits on eight scenic acres. House & Sanctuary says it's "the perfect place to get away from your fast-paced world to find the things that matter most."
The cottage is a cozy 800 square feet that consists of two bedrooms and one bathroom. Staying in this home would truly be a memorable experience thanks to the cathedral ceilings, painted wood floors, and unique décor. Check out the lovely interior design throughout the home in the full tour below.
The painted wood floors in a yellow and white diamond pattern give the home a special look. The furnishings are neutral, allowing the floor to be the star of the show. A vintage chandelier highlights the cathedral ceiling.
White walls keep the small space feeling bright and spacious. A stairway flanked in light sconces lead to the upstairs loft bedroom.
Two twin beds are housed in the open loft. A one-of-a-kind window shade adds interest and a focal point to the space.
The small kitchen features gray cabinets, open shelving, and crystal light fixtures. The bay windows above the sink offer natural light and beautiful nature views.
A small dining space is located off of the kitchen. An antique table can be used for seating or extra prep space while cooking. A wall-mounted china cabinets is a perfect space saver where there isn't room for a buffet.
The cathedral ceilings are carried into the main bedroom, and further emphasized with a blue accent wall. Rustic wall decor, a crystal chandelier, and bedside mirrors finish the look.
The enclosed rear porch offers more dining and sitting areas. The numerous windows allow you to enjoy the surrounding woods, and enjoy the peace of seclusion that this cottage offers.


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American Idol, The Sing-Off, The Voice — there's no shortage of over-the-top, glitzy, ratings-driven music competitions on TV. And now Aretha Franklin is getting in on the singing contest circuit, but she's turning her searchlight on the world of classical music. That's right — the Queen of Soul is searching for the next great opera singer.
"Some of the older classical singers like Jessye Norman, Leontyne [Price] and Barbara Hendricks are retiring, they're not singing anymore, and I'd like to see some younger singers come along and take their place," Franklin says. (Actually, Price retired from the opera stage in 1985.)
If she likes what she hears, Franklin will sign one, two or maybe even three performers to her label, Aretha's Records, and help them get established in the world of classical music.
The competition itself is decidedly low-tech. Franklin is asking interested 18- to 40-year-olds to send their demos — via CDs or cassettes — to her directly. There's no studio audience and no toll-free number for you to call or text your vote. Just your demo, an 8-by-10 head shot and a resume. And no original songs allowed.
If you're interested, the address is:
Aretha's Records
c/o Thav, Gross, Steinway & Bennett
30150 Telegraph Road
Bingham Farms, MI 48012
"I'd like to hear them sing the classics," Franklin says. "Things like 'Nessun Dorma.' " Giacomo Puccini's aria from his opera Turandot is what Franklin herself famously sang when she filled in for Luciano Pavarotti at the 1998 Grammy Awards.
Franklin says she's seeking "just the classical aspirants, just the people who are actively studying," someone she describes as a person "who is very close to being accomplished."
And Franklin herself will be the judge. "If they're a new artist who's really got it, I'd like to hear them," she says.
But Brian Carter, a singer who is wrapping up his doctorate degree studies in vocal performance at the University of Michigan, is leery of Franklin's idea: "My reaction to that is, if someone asked me to judge who was going to be the next big R&B person, I'd be equally wary." Carter says that he doesn't mean to question Franklin's credentials, but that he hopes that "if she's going to do this right, that she's going to get good people who are going to help her make the right decision, and that the person they get really is a serious opera singer and not a pop-culture version of a good opera singer."
Carter contends that singers should be "peer reviewed" by real opera professionals, not "pop reviewed" like the singers on shows like Britain's Got Talent, where amateur singer Paul Potts won for his rendition of Puccini's "Nessun Dorma."
Mezzo-soprano Sarah Nisbett, 29, says pop review or peer review doesn't matter; she definitely plans to audition. She thinks the blending of pure classical with something a little more funky and popular is exciting.
"Anything that can bring opera into a more mainstream world I think is great," Nisbett says. "I think it could be good to have a 'pop music' chaperon to say, 'Hi, everybody, I'm pop music, you might enjoy my friend opera!' "
Nisbett's so excited about the competition that one might even say she's hallucinating — like the other day, when she got an email from a friend telling her about Franklin's open auditions. Nisbett says that as she was reading it, "My phone starts ringing, and it's a 313 area code so I know it's Detroit, and I'm thinking, 'Oh my gosh, she knows I'm reading it, she's already selected me!" Nisbett laughs.
Well, a girl can always dream.
Copyright 2020 Michigan Radio. To see more, visit Michigan Radio.


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It is easy to judge other people. Judgmentalism and blame come naturally to us. Other people's faults and failures are not difficult to identify. Many of us can remember a time in our lives when throwing the first stone was not just easy - it was what we thought good Christians were supposed to do.
One of the most dramatic changes which takes place early in the recovery process is an increase in self-awareness. We begin to see patterns in our own lives that need changing. We see our own self destructive tendencies. We see how we have brought pain to others. As these insights dawn on us, we begin to lay down our stones.
Of course, as our self-awareness increases, many of us attempt to refocus the blame and judgmentalism from others onto ourselves. We can blame and judge ourselves as ruthlessly as we may once have blamed and judged others. But it's not really progress in recovery to give up throwing stones. . and then start banging our heads against a stone wall.
Judgmentalism and blame are not helpful in recovery. What makes recovery possible is when increased self-awareness leads to an increased capacity to experience forgiveness. Gradually we learn to accept forgiveness from God and others. We receive mercy. As a result, we begin to treat ourselves and others with mercy.
It is increased self-awareness and the humility which self-awareness makes possible that are the soil in which true community can grow. When we accept ourselves as humans even though we struggle and sometimes fail, we can become far more gentle with ourselves and with others.
Lord, you know how quick I have been to throw stones.
Thank you for the self awareness that has allowed me to see more clearly that
I am not without sin.
I know that I am in need of forgiveness.
Give me the courage to accept your forgiveness and mercy
and in this way begin to live in true community
Copyright Dale and Juanita Ryan
National Association for Christian Recovery


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Turns out that Bart used some rather unorthodox surgery to regain his 95 mile per hour fastball as a 37-year-old (albeit on stadium guns, so, let's call it 92 to be safe). Joseph R. Purita would like to take credit for Colon's return to relevance. I don't blame him either because it sounds like this guy is on to something. Here's a blockquote from the NY Times (I hope they don't charge me for this)...
A doctor in Florida would like to take some of the credit. Joseph R. Purita, an orthopedic surgeon who runs a regenerative medicine clinic in Boca Raton, said he and a team of Dominican doctors that he led treated Colon in April 2010. Purita said he employed what he regards as one of his more pioneering techniques: he used fat and bone marrow stem cells from Colon, injecting them back into Colon's elbow and shoulder to help repair ligament damage and a torn rotator cuff.See? I told you Dr. Purita wanted some credit. I'm pretty sure this is going to be a big deal down the line. Yanks GM Brian Cashman admitted that he was unaware of this procedure before he signed Colon and immediately contacted MLB once he found out about the situation.
While I doubt MLB can find any kind of violation against Colon's treatment, the doctor in question has used HGH and platelet-rich plasma therapy to treat ligament injuries. Selig will investigate.
Will this new treatment be a new breakthrough in science to keep players healthy or the next thing banned? I'm obviously in favor of any and all of these new developments in science but I'm also fine with steroids and HGH being administered under the supervision of a doctor. I realize that anything "stem cell" related is still a controversial topic so I dug up a clip of Christopher Reeve on Larry King to help shed some light on the subject.


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The American Dialect Society, founded in 1889, is dedicated to the study of the English language in North America, and of other languages, or dialects of other languages, influencing it or influenced by it. Our members include academics and amateurs, professors and students, professionals and dilettantes, teachers and writers, undergraduates and graduates. Anyone can join the society!
Current officers and editorial board.
Become a Friend of the American Dialect Society!
Benefits of membership include:
- A subscription to American Speech, the society's quarterly journal.
- Access to the American Speech online archive dating back to 1925.
- One book in the PADS (Publication of the American Dialect Society) monograph series each year.
- The society's annual conference, held in conjunction with the Linguistic Society of America.
- The annual word-of-the-year vote.
- Access to the society's member list.
- Access to the members-only ADS-M email list.
- Access to the ADS-L email list (also open to non-members).
- Being a part of an organization that supports the Dictionary of American Regional English.


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Portland, Oregon, 25th March 2024, ZEX PR WIRE, Profit Rocket AI, an AI-powered crypto investment platform, announced its relaunch following a project re-design and a new, community-oriented focus. An ongoing presale event for PRAI tokens and an airdrop are part of this momentous relaunch.
Profit Rocket AI revolutionizes collective investing in the cryptocurrency market by integrating AI-powered trading bots, offering both new and experienced investors unparalleled opportunities for passive income. This innovative platform leverages artificial intelligence to democratize decentralized finance (DeFi), making it more accessible and profitable. With the integration of cutting-edge technology, Profit Rocket AI enhances investment strategies, ensuring optimal performance and higher profit margins for its community members.
The platform's native token, PRAI, has a total supply of one billion tokens. Purchases of PRAI tokens include an 8% transaction fee, directly contributing to a transparent community investment pool. This pool is meticulously managed by Profit Rocket AI's trading bots, which tirelessly work to maximize community profits. Furthermore, the platform introduces robust financial safeguards through a loss protection fund, ensuring that investors are shielded from potential trading losses. Investors also have the option to reinvest their monthly distributions back into the community pool or engage in staking, further enhancing their investment growth and yield. Each month, 75% of the profits generated are distributed to PRAI token holders, with 15% reinvested into the pool for future growth, and the remaining 10% allocated to development and marketing, securing a sustainable and prosperous ecosystem for all participants.
Profit Rocket AI is organizing an airdrop to mark the landmark occasion of its relaunch. Here are the main details of the event:
- 15,000 entries will each receive 1,000 PRAI tokens.
- The Top 50 referrals will receive an additional 5,000 PRAI Tokens with a value of $100(USD).
- Participants must be at least 18 years old. Each person will receive one airdrop, and participants must complete all the steps in the airdrop process.
- Tokens will be distributed to qualified participants after the presale ends to the Binance Smart Chain wallet addresses they provide during registration.
- Referral bonuses are subject to verification and are capped at a maximum of 5,000 additional PRAI tokens per participant for the top 50 registrants with referrals.
You can register for the Profit Rocket AI airdrop here and read more about the event's terms and conditions.
About Profit Rocket AI
Profit Rocket AI is a crypto investment platform built on the Binance Smart Chain aiming to change how individuals invest and earn with crypto. It uses highly sophisticated AI bots to help traders and crypto enthusiasts navigate the DeFi landscape and reap its opportunities.
In September, Profit Rocket AI embarked on its ambitious journey with a crypto ICO presale launch, aiming to redefine the cryptocurrency investment landscape. The journey, however, was not without its hurdles, including challenges related to the project's contract, website, and payment dashboard. Recognizing these challenges as opportunities for growth and improvement, the Profit Rocket AI team dedicated themselves to a comprehensive overhaul of the platform. The result of their hard work is a reimagined platform that not only addresses the initial issues but also enhances the user experience significantly. Today, Profit Rocket AI stands as a testament to the team's commitment to its community, offering a more user-friendly and community-focused platform that enriches the experience of its growing user base.
Profit Rocket AI has been fully audited, and the team has completed KYC with BlockSafu.
The project is community-driven, prioritizing the investors' interests and community growth. According to its whitepaper, Profit Rocket AI plans to transition to 100% community governance within the first year of existence.
The presale of PRAI tokens is currently live via the Profit Rocket AI official website, with a $0.0215/PRAI price-per-token.
You can learn more about Profit Rocket AI by following these links:
Website | Telegram | X (Twitter) | Discord | Facebook | Instagram
Email Profit Rocket AI at email@example.com


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Congressman Bernie Sanders
2202 Rayburn Building
Washington, DC, 20515
Dear Bernie,
This letter explains the matters of conscience that have led me to resign from your staff.
I believe that every individual must have somelimit to what acts of military violence they are willing to participatein or support, regardless of either personal welfare or claimsthat it will lead to a greater good. Any individual who does notpossess such a limit is vulnerable to committing or condoningabhorrent acts without even stopping to think about it.
Those who accept the necessity for such a limitdo not necessarily agree regarding where it should be drawn. Forabsolute pacifists, war can never be justified. But even for non-pacifists,the criteria for supporting the use of military violence mustbe extremely stringent because the consequences are so great.Common sense dictates at least the following as minimal criteria:
The evil to be remedied must be serious.
The genuine purpose of the action must be toavert the evil, not to achieve some other purpose for which theevil serves as a pretext.
Less violent alternatives must be unavailable.
The violence used must have a high probabilityof in fact halting the evil.
The violence used must be minimized.
Let us evaluate current U.S. military actionin Yugoslavia against each of these tests. Evil to be remedied:
We can agree that the evil to be remedied inthis case — specifically, the uprooting and massacre of the KosovoAlbanians — is serious enough to justify military violence ifsuch violence can ever be justified. However, the U.S. air waragainst Yugoslavia fails an ethical test on each of the otherfour criteria.
Purpose vs. pretext: The facts are incompatiblewith the hypothesis that U.S. policy is motivated by humanitarianconcern for the people of Kosovo:
In the Dayton agreement, the U.S. gave Milosevica free hand in Kosovo in exchange for a settlement in Bosnia.
The U.S. has consistently opposed sending groundforces into Kosovo, even as the destruction of the Kosovar peopleescalated. (While I do not personally support such an action,it would, in sharp contrast to current U.S. policy, provide atleast some likelihood of halting the attacks on the Kosovo Albanians.)
According to The New York Times (4/18/99),the U.S. began bombing Yugoslavia with no consideration for thepossible impact on the Albanian people of Kosovo. This was notfor want of warning. On March 5, 1999, Italian Prime MinisterMassimo D'Alema met with President Clinton in the Oval Officeand warned him that an air attack which failed to subdue Milosevicwould result in 300,000 to 400,000 refugees passing into Albaniaand then to Italy. Nonetheless, "No one planned for the tacticof population expulsion that has been the currency of Balkan warsfor more than a century." (The New York Times, 4/18/99).If the goal of U.S. policy was humanitarian, surely planning forthe welfare of these refugees would have been at least a modestconcern.
Even now the attention paid to humanitarianaid to the Kosovo refugees is totally inadequate, and is trivialcompared to the billions being spent to bomb Yugoslavia. Accordingto the Washington Post (4/30/99), the spokeswoman for the U.N.refugee agency in Macedonia says, "We are on the brink ofcatastrophe." Surely a genuine humanitarian concern for theKosovars would be evidenced in massive emergency airlifts anda few billion dollars right now devoted to aiding the refugees.
While it has refused to send ground forcesinto Kosovo, the U.S. has also opposed and continues to opposeall alternatives that would provide immediate protection for thepeople of Kosovo by putting non-or partially-NATO forces intoKosovo. Such proposals have been made by Russia, by Milosevichimself, and by the delegations of the U.S. Congress and the RussianDuma who met recently with yourself as a participant. The refusalof the U.S. to endorse such proposals strongly supports the hypothesisthat the goal of U.S. policy is not to save the Kosovars fromongoing destruction.
Less violent alternatives: On 4/27/99 I presentedyou with a memo laying out an alternative approach to currentAdministration policy. It stated, "The overriding objectiveof U.S. policy in Kosovo — and of people of good will — mustbe to halt the destruction of the Albanian people of Kosovo. .. The immediate goal of U.S. policy should be a ceasefire whichhalts Serb attacks on Kosovo Albanians in exchange for a haltin NATO bombing." It stated that to achieve this objective,the United States should "propose an immediate ceasefire,to continue as long as Serb attacks on Kosovo Albanians cease.. . Initiate an immediate bombing pause. . . Convene the U.N.Security Council to propose action under U.N. auspices to extendand maintain the ceasefire. . . Assemble a peacekeeping forceunder U.N. authority to protect safe havens for those threatenedwith ethnic cleansing." On 5/3/99 you endorsed a very similarpeace plan proposed by delegations from the US Congress and theRussian Duma. You stated that "The goal now is to move asquickly as possible toward a ceasefire and toward negotiations."In short, there is a less violent alternative to the present U.S.air war against Yugoslavia.
High probability of halting the evil: CurrentU.S. policy has virtually no probability of halting the displacementand killing of the Kosovo Albanians. As William Safire put it,"The war to make Kosovo safe for Kosovars is a war withoutan entrance strategy. By its unwillingness to enter Serbian territoryto stop the killing at the start, NATO conceded defeat. The bombingis simply intended to coerce the Serbian leader to give up atthe negotiating table all he has won on the killing field. Hewon't." (The New York Times, 5/3/99) The massive bombingof Yugoslavia is not a means of protecting the Kosovars but analternative to doing so.
Minimizing the consequences of violence. "Collateraldamage" is inevitable in bombing attacks on military targets.It must be weighed in any moral evaluation of bombing. But inthis case we are seeing not just collateral damage but the deliberateselection of civilian targets, including residential neighborhoods,auto factories, broadcasting stations, and hydro-electric powerplants. The New York Times characterized the latter as "Theattack on what clearly appeared to be a civilian target."(5/3/99) If these are acceptable targets, are there any targetsthat are unacceptable?
The House Resolution (S Con Res 21) of 4/29/99which "authorizes the president of the United States to conductmilitary air operations and missile strikes in cooperation withthe United States' NATO allies against the Federal Republic ofYugoslavia" supports not only the current air war but alsoits unlimited escalation. It thereby authorizes the commissionof war crimes, even of genocide. Indeed, the very day after thatvote, the Pentagon announced that it would begin "area bombing,"which the Washington Post (4/30/99) characterized as "droppingunguided weapons from B-52 bombers in an imprecise technique thatresulted in large-scale civilian casualties in World War II andthe Vietnam War."
It was your vote in support of this resolutionthat precipitated my decision that my conscience required me toresign from your staff. I have tried to ask myself questions thatI believe each of us must ask ourselves:
Is there a moral limit to the military violenceyou are willing to participate in or support? Where does thatlimit lie? And when that limit has been reached, what action willyou take?
My answers led to my resignation.
Sincerely yours,
Jeremy Brecher


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The Black Death continues to cast a shadow across England. Although the modern English population is more cosmopolitan than ever, the plagues known as the Black Death killed so many people in the Middle Ages that, to this day, genetic diversity is lower in England than it was in the 11th century, according to a new analysis.
Rus Hoelzel at the University of Durham, UK and his colleagues looked at the mitochondrial DNA from human remains at 4th and 11th century archaeological sites in England, and compared them to samples from the modern population stored on DNA databases such as GenBank. They found there was more variation in the ancient mitochondrial DNA sequences than in modern sequences.
Hoelzel thinks random genetic drift may have lowered genetic diversity naturally. But the large unexpected drop in diversity was more likely to have been caused by population crashes following major outbreaks of the Black Death in England during the 1340s and the 1660s.
"The main factors in support of a role for plague are the timing and the fact that it affected different families [to a differing degree]," says Hoelzel.
Vulnerable families
The Black Death did not reach England until the mid-14th century. No-one knows exactly what caused it, with the bubonic plague bacterium Yersinia pestis, and various viruses all having been implicated at some point.
However, it is known that plague affected some families more than others, so their mitochondrial DNA would have been less common among survivors, Hoelzel says.
"I'm not at all surprised with the result," says Susan Scott at the University of Liverpool, UK. "We're talking about one of the worst disasters humans have faced. It destroyed about half the population of Medieval Europe in three years."
But the effects may have been most severe in northern Europe. Hoelzel and his team note that DNA sequences from modern Italians are just as variable as those from their 7th century ancestors.
According to Hoelzel, this finding may reflect migration patterns after the Black Death, rather than a less severe outbreak in southern Europe. "Throughout the recent past, there have been movements from the Middle East into southern Europe, and the Middle East population retains a great mix and diversity," he says.
Effective measures
Scott has a different theory. "We have to listen to the people who were suffering at the time," she says. "The disease came in from Sicily and seemed to settle in France where it was endemic for almost 200 years."
France was probably the source of the periodic epidemics elsewhere in Europe, and these were infrequent in Italy because of the vigilant actions of the Italian authorities, Scott thinks.
"They closed down ports and stopped people travelling at the first sign of infection," she says. "And they had a 40-day quarantine period. I think the Black Death was the result of a virus that probably had a 37-day incubation and infection period, so the Italian quarantine period was just right."
"In England, King Henry VIII reduced [the quarantine period] to 30 days at one point, and the country suffered," says Scott.
Journal reference: Biology Letters (DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2007.0269) .


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Sample preparation in cassava field banks
Contributors to this page: IITA, Nigeria (Dominique Dumet), Bioversity International/ILRI, Ethiopia (Alexandra Jorge); INIA, Peru (Llerme Rios); independent consultant (Clair Hershey).
Source of planting material
Cassava has a typical growing cycle between 9 and 24 months, depending on the genotype and the environmental conditions.
- It is best to regenerate within 18–24 months, when most plants complete their growth cycle, to avoid lodging from excessive growth and build-up of pests and diseases.
Visual inspection of plant material
- Inspect all plants in the plot to make certain they all appear to be the same clone. If there is a mixture of clones, reconfirm through the standard descriptors, by comparison with the previously recorded genebank descriptors, which of the plants are the true accession and which are the 'contaminants'.
- Select plants as sources of planting material based on their apparent health status. Plants should be free of virus symptoms and of other pests or diseases.
- Select plants that will provide well-lignified cuttings with well-distributed, healthy buds.
- Prepare stakes from healthy plants, identified earlier in the season before leaves drop off when pest and disease (especially virus) symptoms and other foliar diseases are apparent. Also inspect roots for pest and disease symptoms.
- Select the mature portion of the stem, avoiding the top green stems and the bottom section of the plants.
- Take care to avoid mixing of genotypes.
Preparation of planting material
- Cut stakes (stem pieces) at least 20 cm long with at least 4–5 nodes with viable buds to ensure crop establishment. Use well-lignified stems, generally from the middle section of the plant. Cut them at a right angle with a machete or saw to create a smooth cut.
- Handle stems with care to prevent bruising and peeling. Do not place the stems on a hard surface to cut them, as this can damage the nodes, reduce their quality and provide entry points for pathogens and insect pests.
- Tie cuttings of each accession firmly in separate bundles. At least one cutting in each bundle is labelled, and for extra security it is best to label two stakes (with accession name and number and date of harvest). The label must be sturdy and secure and able to withstand the handling (e.g. packaging and shipping) and treatment of the stake bundles.
- Treat the bundled stakes with a mixture of broad spectrum insecticide and fungicide.
- Add zinc sulphate in regions where zinc is limited in the soil.
Disposal of contaminated material
- Incinerate or autoclave contaminated material (to avoid spreading diseases and pests).
- Rogue and burn diseased plants regularly during the growth season (if it does not compromise the survival of a specific accession).
- After harvest, destroy discarded stems and roots that have disease symptoms or pest contamination
Recording information during sample preparation in field banks
The following information should be recorded for each step:
- Site name and map/GPS reference.
- Name of collaborator.
- Field bank site name (a code to identify the site location).
- Plot reference (the plot number at the field site).
- Accession number; population identification.
- Name of staff (name of staff recording the data).
- Source of cuttings.
- Number of generations since acquisition of germplasm or date of previous multiplication (if generation is not known).
- Preparation of planting material (details of pre-treatments applied).
- Details of plants removed or destroyed (due to type mixtures or pest or disease contamination).
References and further reading
Fukuda WMG. 1996. Banco de germoplasma de mandioca: manejo, conservação e caracterização. Cruz das Almas, BA: EMBRAPA-CNPMF. 103 p. (EMBRAPA-CNPMF, Documento, 68).
Hershey C. 2008. A Global conservation strategy for cassava (Manihot esculenta) and wild Manihot species. A consultancy report to CIAT, on behalf of the Global Crop Diversity Trust, Rome. (Final report under review).
IITA Genebank Manual Series, Cassava field bank operations at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA). International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, Ibadan, Nigeria.
Mohd SS, Rao VR, editors. 2001. Establishment and Management of Field Genebank, a Training Manual. IPGRI-APO, Serdang. 121 p. Available here.
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Element #1 Chocolate Dacquoise (Almond Cake)
The dacquoise was the easiest part because the recipe was originally dairy-free. I made a double batch of the chocolate version given which includes 3 tablespoons of sifted cocoa.
Thoughts: I spread the batter a little too thin. It wasn't quite enough to cover the entire mold and I would have liked the bottom layer thicker. I liked the chocolate flavor a lot. It could have used a pinch of salt, I thought.
Element #2 Dark Chocolate Mousse
For the dairy version I made no changes to the dark chocolate mousse recipe given. For Alex's dairy-free log I used Rich Whip, a dairy-free whipped cream substitute also know as BCoW (Blue Can of Wonder). I learned about Rich Whip from another blogging mom from Michigan who writes at Speedbump Kitchen. The ingredients in Rich Whip are just short of plastic but it does taste just like Cool-whip and is safe for Alex. Sometimes nutritional compromises must be made. For my small dairy-free log I used ¾ cup of unwhipped Rich's Whip Topping, 2 teaspoons of cocoa powder, a tiny pinch of salt and ¼ teaspoon of vanilla extract. I whipped the topping, added the vanilla and salt and sifted in the cocoa. Then I whipped it until the cocoa was evenly distributed.
Thoughts: The dairy-free version came out beautifully. It was light with just enough chocolate flavor. The dairy version was good but a little too heavy and rich for me. I would like to try the dairy milk chocolate Chantilly recipe instead.
Element #3 White Chocolate Ganache
For the dairy log I followed the directions for the white chocolate ganache insert with no changes. For Alex's dairy-free log, I used 2 oz of dairy-free white chocolate chips with 2 teaspoons of soy milk and 1 teaspoon of Earth Balance margarine. I melted the ingredients carefully in the microwave (1.5 minutes), stirred them together until smooth and piped them in.
Thoughts: The dairy version of this is wonderful! I love the caramel flavor and the slight caramel chew to it. I wish I had made Alex's with caramelized sugar and will be trying that soon. I have had trouble finding a reliable dairy-free ganache recipe but this was spot on. I'll be keeping it around to use again.
Element #4 White Chocolate Praline Feuillete (Crisp) with Cocoa Crispy Rice Cereal
To save time, I made a double batch of the crisp with dairy-free white chocolate and used it in both logs. I used homemade praline paste with pecans from the Filbert Gateau recipe, which was part of July's DB challenge (link at the end of this post). Then I melted dairy-free white chocolate chips and Earth Balance margar+-ine in the yule log recipe proportions in the microwave. I hate the mess of a double boiler and melting chocolate in the microwave is so easy. I had some New Morning Cocoa Crispy Rice Cereal in the house and so used that for my crisp component. Thus the crisp became another expression of the ebony and ivory theme. (I was getting carried away by this point.)
Thoughts: That praline paste is to die for! I wasn't in the mood for another nut-based cake back in July but I loved the recipe for homemade praline paste. Thanks Chris for choosing that recipe, I've used the components several times.
Element #5 Vanilla Crème Brulée
I didn't change anything in the vanilla crème brulée directions for the dairy log. For Alex's dairy-free log I decided to cheat and made a Tofutti ice cream insert. I used Tofutti Vanilla Almond Bark which is one of their best flavors.
Thoughts: I made the creme brulée layer too thin. It was the first component I made and I thought with my size pan I could get a small log and a full-sized log out of the recipe, but it gave me too thin of a layer. Also, creme brulée without that crispy, caramelized sugar top just doesn't seem right. Creme brulée is all about the cracking the top! Alex's ice cream layer was really good.
Element #6 White Chocolate Icing
For the dairy-log I followed the provided recipe for white chocolate icing. For Alex's dairy-free log I tried using the recipe as written using dairy-free ingredients, which was a big mistake. After letting it cool, it was too runny so I added another ounce of chocolate and warmed it until the chocolate was incorporated. Still too runny, so I tried adding a teaspoon of soy milk powder. This helped a little but by now I was done playing with it and just went ahead and poured it over the log. It didn't coat thickly enough and the mousse showed through. Bah, you can't win them all.
Thoughts: I coated my dairy-free log first and with the different properties of dairy-free white chocolate it just didn't get thick enough to coat well. Then when I made the icing with dairy I was nervous about it not covering well and let it cool too much. This caused the icing to set into drips on the sides which was not the look I was going for. I wasn't a big fan of the gelatin texture of either icing and would have preferred a gelatin-less ganache coating.
Element #7 Decoration
For the dairy log I made a chocolate ganache, again using a component of the Filbert Gateau recipe (link at end). For Alex's log I used the same proportions as in the ganache insert (1 oz of chocolate, 1 teaspoon of soy milk and 1/2 teaspoon of Earth Balance margarine).
Overall impressions: This was a fun recipe with a lot of techniques that I have never used or only used once before. It was a great learning experience and very satisfying to complete. Overall the two logs were interesting to try side by side. My favorite components were the caramel-white chocolate ganache from the dairy log and the mousse from the dairy-free log. And what did Alex think? He pulled the icing and ganache decoration from the top and that was all he wanted to eat. Kids-- you just never know what will please them! My husband was a big fan of the dairy-free log and my family seemed to enjoy the dairy log. I served both on Christmas Eve and the leftovers on the day after Christmas. Here are some more pictures:
This month's challenge is brought to us by the adventurous Hilda from Saffron and Blueberry and Marion from Il en Faut Peu Pour Etre Heureux.They have chosen a French Yule Log by Flore from Florilege Gourmand.
Recipe Links:
For the complete recipe (Beware, it's huge!) visit Saffron and Blueberry or Il en Faut Peu Pour Etre Heureux.
The original recipe comes from a French recipe site, Florilege Gourmand.
The recipes for the praline paste and chocolate ganache with dairy came from the Filbert Gateau with Praline Buttercream recipe at Mele Cotte.
Dairy-free Ingredients:
Rich's Whip Topping, New Morning Cocoa Crispy Rice Cereal, Tofutti Vanilla Almond Bark, and my source for dairy-free white chocolate Chocolate Emporium


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Snowflake Achieves "Protected" Status After Completing Australian Information Security Registered Assessors Program (IRAP) Assessment
New security status enables Snowflake Data Cloud to assist all Australian Government departments and agencies to easily unify, integrate, analyse, and share their data
SYDNEY – April 19, 2021 – Snowflake, the Data Cloud company today announced it has completed an Information Security Registered Assessors Program (IRAP) assessment confirming that Snowflake's Data Cloud has achieved the Australian Government security status of 'protected' on selected deployments.
The Snowflake Data Cloud was assessed by a certified, third party IRAP assessor and found to be aligned with IRAP's Protected level control requirements, enabling Australian Government agencies to deploy a huge range of workloads on the Snowflake Data Cloud. The IRAP assessment ensures cloud services are secured with automated and comprehensive security controls for authorised use by the Australian Government.
Snowflake was assessed against controls identified in the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD) Australian Government Information Security Manual (ISM), a necessary requirement before departments can adopt any platforms and tools provided by external vendors.
Australian Government agencies can now procure Snowflake's Data Cloud to leverage scalability, elasticity, and data sharing for near-instant, secure, and governed access to their entire network of data.
"The completion of the IRAP assessment now allows Snowflake to work with all Australian Government agencies since many departments require the 'protected' status to have been reached," says Peter O'Connor, Vice President of Sales – Asia Pacific, Snowflake.
"We anticipate strong growth for Snowflake in the Australian Government marketplace and look forward to providing agencies with an automatic approval solution to process, store, or communicate sensitive or classified information on Snowflake."
"Meeting IRAP compliance at the 'Protected' level signifies Snowflake's commitment to putting the customer first, and our continuing dedication to investing in improving our security posture," says Siddique Chaudhry, Manager – Government Product Security, Snowflake.
Thousands of organisations – including, as of January 31, 2021, 186 of the Fortune 500 companies – mobilise their data with Snowflake's Data Cloud to unite siloed data, discover and securely share data, and execute diverse analytic workloads. Wherever data or users live, Snowflake delivers a single data experience that spans multiple clouds and geographies.
A unique group of capabilities power the Data Cloud, including the near-unlimited scale and efficiency of a multi-cluster shared data architecture as well as the seamless interoperability of working with data across multiple public clouds as if they were one. In addition, it includes integrated security features and modern data sharing, which allows any number of organisations to share and receive live data with each other nearly instantly, without having to move or copy data.
"Achieving protected status will allow Snowflake to work with agencies both at the Federal Government levels as well as with state and local governments to significantly support their cloud-first strategy," says O'Connor.
"We now look forward to supporting government agencies to manage ever-increasing amounts of data through a platform which provides for governed and secure data sharing in real time, while encouraging a government-wide data culture."
Globally, Snowflake is also FedRAMP Authorized at the Moderate baseline on selected deployments. In addition, Snowflake complies with SOC 2 Type 2, SOC 1 Type 2, ISO 27001, FIPS 140-2, AICPA/SOC,CMS ARS 3.1, PCI DSS, and HISTRUST. To learn more about Snowflake's security compliance program, please visit the Snowflake Security and Trust Center.
About Snowflake
Snowflake delivers the Data Cloud — a global network where thousands of organizations mobilize data with near-unlimited scale, concurrency, and performance. Inside the Data Cloud, organizations unite their siloed data, easily discover and securely share governed data, and execute diverse analytic workloads. Wherever data or users live, Snowflake delivers a single and seamless experience across multiple public clouds. Snowflake's platform is the engine that powers and provides access to the Data Cloud, creating a solution for data warehousing, data lakes, data engineering, data science, data application development, and data sharing. Join Snowflake customers, partners, and data providers already taking their businesses to new frontiers in the Data Cloud. Snowflake.com.
SOURCE: Snowflake


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Archived Items
Knotted Bodega in Blue
'Standard Deluxe' is a simple statement on turning the ordinary upside-down and subverting it into something more extraordinary by combining two extremes.
Generic grocery and market bags are executed in fine leathers for live object oxymorons.
Features the original bodega bag silhouette with extended knotted handles and side-zipper opening.
12.75 in L. x 4 in W. x 12.5 in H. x 5 in handle drop
100% Leather
Made in New York.


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My version of Club Med's white chocolate bread |
We spent spring break this year with my extended family at Club Med Sandpiper Bay in Florida. I've been to other Club Meds, so I knew the food would be good and the bread truly outstanding. You can take the baker out of France, but you can't take France out of the baker.
At every meal we had a choice of nearly a dozen different breads. Baguettes, of course, and brioche in various shapes. I ignored the breakfast omelettes and loaded up on the raisin bread, dense with sweet, plump raisins, with a few triangles of runny Brie.
But the hands-down family favorite, and one of Club Med's signature recipes, is the white chocolate bread. Despite the name, it's not too sweet. As I learned from head pastry chef Charles, that's because there's no sugar in the dough. It's basically a standard French bread dough with white chocolate chips, which melt and caramelize to give the bread its characteristic golden coat.
Club Med Sandpiper lead pastry chef Charles making white chocolate bread |
Chef Charles's tip: Hershey's white chocolate chips work much better in this bread than fancy, expensive white chocolate. Why? He's not sure - they might have a higher sugar content, he thinks, which helps them caramelize more deeply in the hot oven.
And my tip: When you vacation at a resort or large hotel, tell the manager you're interested in meeting the chef and seeing the kitchens. If you write a food blog, give him your card and explain that you love writing about the places you travel to. As I always say: Ask for the story you want. At Club Med Sandpiper, manager Lionel was more than happy to arrange a private cooking demo for me so I could take pictures.
My version of Club Med's white chocolate bread is a little simpler and adds some whole wheat flour. Don't forget to get some steam into the oven - you won't get a good crust without it.
White chocolate bread a la Club Med
Every Club Med around the world serves white chocolate bread on its pastry and bread buffet at every meal. This version is adapted slightly from Club Med's signature recipe. White whole wheat flour is a lighter whole grain flour, made from winter white wheat; it is widely available in the baking section of major grocery stores.
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup white whole wheat flour
- 1 tsp dry yeast (instant or regular active)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- approximately 1 cup warm water
- 1 1/2 cups white chocolate chips
Add the flours, yeast and salt to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. Mix briefly to make sure all dry ingredients are evenly distributed. With the mixer running on low, add half the water. Add the rest slowly, stopping when the dough comes together and starts moving around the bowl in a ball. You want the dough to be somewhat wet, but it should still move as one around the bowl. I wish I could tell you exactly how much water to add, but bread doesn't work that way - it depends on the flour, the humidity in the air, and other mysterious and unpredictable things. When the dough has come together, feel it. If it feels dry, add a little more water. Mix briefly, then add the chocolate chips. Set the mixer on the next to lowest speed and walk away for about five minutes. The mixer will do all the hard work kneading the bread dough.[If you don't have a mixer, put the dry ingredients in a big bowl, add the water, and use your muscles. Add the chips after the dough has come together into a shaggy but recognizable mess. You'll need to knead at least 10 minutes by hand. Good luck.]After kneading the dough will be relatively smooth and the chips will be more or less evenly distributed. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, put it in a warm place, and leave it to rise until it's doubled in bulk (around 2 hours, but again, it depends heavily on your local conditions). Turn the dough out onto the counter and punch the air out of it. For large rolls, divide it into approximately 12 even pieces. You can make smaller rolls or one big loaf if you prefer. Put the rolls or loaf onto two parchment-lined baking sheets, leaving plenty of room for rising. Cover loosely with plastic wrap. The second rise will be shorter, about 45-60 minutes.Heat the oven to 450. Fill a spray bottle with clean water; if you don't have a spray bottle, put a heavy baking dish or cast-iron skillet on the bottom rack of your oven while it's heating up.When the oven is hot, quickly open the door, slide in the bread, and either spritz the bread with the spray bottle or pour some water into the preheated pan on the bottom rack. Close the door immediately to trap the steam and turn the oven down to 400 degrees. If you used the spray bottle, spray again after about 5 minutes of baking. Bake about 30 minutes (maybe 20 for smaller rolls, 45 for one large loaf), until the outside of the bread is golden brown and studded with dark-brown caramelized chips. Cool on a rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Prep time: Cook time: Total time: Yield: 12 rolls


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Aug 4, 2010
Last Cake, Next Cake
For one thing, several people balked at the idea of turning their oven on to 500 degrees on a sweltering August day, and instead used their mini-propane torch, which had hitherto probably been used only for creme brulees, if used at all.
Monica ("apparently all I needed to do for Tom to propose to me was to make this cake"), Jennifer ("the curd has been bullied into tasting good by the rest of the components"), Nancy B. ("didn't set the cardboard round on fire either"), and Mendy ("I bet [friend who turned down the cake because she only eats things sweetened with agave] is having second thoughts now about her whole off-the-sugar kick") all opted for the torch. Candi briefly considered the torch, but decided Rose must have had a reason for not recommending it, so she went with the hot oven. I wonder if there is a reason. Torchers, what do you think?
Nancy B., Jenn, and Jennifer all made half-recipes. This seems to be a growing trend. (A shrinking trend?)
Katya was one of the very few who took liberties with the recipe, using rhubarb curd instead of lemon curd, which would seemingly make it a rhubarb meringue cake. Katya's post is also noteworthy for comparing her technique of removing the cake's crusts ("pinching and rolling and peeling it") to peeling off sunburnt skin. Katya also said this was the best Italian meringue she's ever made--very impressive in my eyes, as it implies that she's made a whole cartload of them.
On the other hand, Vicki deserves a cartload of credit for making this cake because she hates meringue. Her childhood question: "Why did meringue have to shove whipping cream, the stuff of [her] dreams, off a perfectly good pie and runin it?" And yet, turning from the Sunday paper to the computer to see what the Early Posters made of this week's cakes, she decided to jump on the bandwagon and started her "meringue monstrosity at 3:30 a.m." Good news--Vicki's now a convert, and "Baked Alaska is suddenly calling [her] name."
Raymond just plain loved this cake, calling it "light, tart, and refreshing," and "just what the doctor ordered this week."
This week's FEATURED BAKER is Gartblue, who baked this cake for her own birthday! Happy belated birthday, Gartblue! Even though "Malaysians don't quite fancy sour cakes," Gartblue took this into the office, where "Azlan was sent deliriously ecstatic to LemonHeaven and Hazel licked her fingers shamelessly." Her own review of the cake: "It's a magnificent cake. A show-stopper. A drama queen and not an ounce of fat in sight. It was so decadently rich in appearance but tasted as light as a feather." (Well, there is some fat in the lemon curd, but let's just forget about that and pretend we're eating non-fat cake this week).
Next week is a fruit dessert, but you would be stretching it a little if you called it healthy, what with its glorious-sounding caramel sauce. And you wouldn't have to serve it with whipped cream, but don't you think you should? Remember to make this cake the day before you want to eat it.
The following week, we're back to chocolate, and I hope that you're ready for the Chocolate Feather Bed cake after our 2-week chocolate hiatus. If I'm remembering correctly (which I wouldn't bet on), Katya made this cake for Passover, and praised it highly. If this is true, maybe you could pass along some tips? If I'm hallucinating, never mind.
11 comments:
- Lois B said...
Congrats Gartblue and belated happy birthday.
Thanks for the summary, Marie. I had missed Monica's teaser!
I've already served next week's cake and it was a big hit despite my clumsy efforts. - August 4, 2010 at 5:38 PM
- Katya said...
I did make this cake for passover, and my family was so into it that I think it's going to be a frequent flyer, especially as we now have two gluten-free eaters.
I remember it being quite a process, but none of it difficult except for the gelatinized whipped cream, which I always seem to have trouble with. The whole thing was just very delicate, but very impressive when assembled.
I also didn't really take good pictures, so I might have to make it again.
Just finished the upside down torte--with 80% less caramel, as I ran dangerously low on sugar. I'll let you know what it tastes like tomorrow, it was good so far today. - August 4, 2010 at 7:28 PM
- faithy said...
Congrats Gartblue!! and Happy Birthday to you too!
I have yet to read the recipe for the next cake..lol! ..so i hope it better be good cos blueberries and plums are very expensive here! - August 4, 2010 at 7:35 PM
- Monica said...
Boy am I glad for your recaps.. because I was totally under the impression that the feather bed cake was this week and that the up-side down was next week.
I think it was all that lemon induce cloud that we been in the last couple of days - it has clouded my brain!
Congratulations to Gartblue! and happy belated birthday too. I'm sort of glad that I'm not the only crazy person that has baked their own birthday cake. - August 4, 2010 at 7:46 PM
- Vicki said...
Congratulations Gartblue. Your Lemon Meringue Cake post was so fun to read.
- August 4, 2010 at 8:42 PM
- gartblue said...
*dances gleefully*
yay! I cut the list!
thanks heaps for featuring me this week, marie ..
*continues grinning sheepishly* - August 5, 2010 at 7:17 AM
- Jenn said...
Congrats Gartblue and Happy Birthday!
Marie - yes it's a "shrinking" trend :).
And I'm sooo looking forward to the feather bed. That was one of 1st ones I marked when I got the book! - August 5, 2010 at 7:52 AM
- evil cake lady said...
i don't know if torching was the better way to go, all the oven-toasted cakes had this nice golden color. however with a torch i could control which parts of the cake i wanted toasted.
i made the upside down cake last week and although really great the first day, it was better the second day--the moisture from all the fruit was reabsorbed into the cake, and not in a gross mushy way either. it smelled so good coming from the oven that it was hard to wait! just a warning to you :)
congrats gartblue! - August 5, 2010 at 9:58 AM
- Jenn said...
ECL, the grass is greener on the other side of the fence! I actually thought the torched cakes looks really nice - that I want to get a torch (or put one on Xmas list) just to try it out.
- August 5, 2010 at 1:19 PM
- Alpha Baker Joan said...
Everyone's cakes looked so fabulous! Our Heavenly Bakers are, indeed. And the 'shrinking trend' so funny, Marie. I would tend to shrink if I weren't so fearful of that factor of Rose's. Love love the shape of those little fat 6 inch pans. Maybe this revelation will spur me on.
- August 5, 2010 at 9:03 PM
- Mendy said...
Congrats Gartblue. Funny post and well done! - August 5, 2010 at 9:39 PM


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As a holistic doctor, I have come to realize that most of the hurt and failure we experience as adults is rooted in childhood experiences where our heart was broken. It could be your parents divorced and you lost your family or a parent or friend died. A teacher or coach may have humiliated you with criticism in front of your peer group. You may have been the child who was always alone and left out. You may have been witness to your father abusing your mother or you or a sibling. Your heart could have been broken just being left by your mom because she had to go to work. A child's heart is a fragile thing and there are many experiences that can break it.
These early experiences of childhood emotional hurt get stored in cellular memory in our bodies. Some people call it "emotional scarring". These stored cellular memories become the energetic root of physical illness, pain, failed relationships, financial failure, depression and self-hatred.
Quickly identifying and releasing your emotional scarring is step one and step two of EPTworks' three part formula to transform your life. Muscle testing along with deductive dialogue allows you to identify the exact memories the body has stored that have left emotional scarring. Through a series of deductive questions, you can identify the emotional root of a current problem existing in your life.
For example, a woman came to me with low back pain from a work related injury. She was in perfect shape for her age and was otherwise healthy. I figured she just needed a few chiropractic adjustments to align her pelvis and spine. By her third visit, she still had no relief. I used muscle testing and deductive dialogue to discover the emotional root of her pain came from age one. I discovered she felt fear, depression, and grief with adults around her who were not family. She told me at age one, she spent an entire year in a restraining pelvic orthopedic device. She still remembered the doctors in their white coats and that it was painful for her. Coming to a doctor for her minor back pain, triggered her emotional root memory of the medical care for her back from age one. Her pain was released that day and it never returned.
Determining the emotional roots of the problems that exist right now in your life will help you heal your broken heart and open the door to a greater awareness of who you are and what you may need to let go of to make massive room for more of what you really want to create in your life right now.


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Barry Callebaut plans to acquire Carma-Pfister AG, the leading Swiss specialty chocolate manufacturer
Barry Callebaut plans to acquire Carma-Pfister AG, the leading Swiss specialty chocolate manufacturer
Barry Callebaut and Carma-Pfister announce today the signing of a take-over agreement. Both parties have agreed on a due
diligence process and expect to conclude the transaction on March 1, 1999.
Barry Callebaut is the world leader in specialty chocolate and cocoa with annual sales of CHF 2,2 billion. Carma-Pfister AG, with sales of CHF 60 million, is the Swiss leader in specialty chocolate with an extensive range of products, comprising chocolate couverture, cocoa and decoration items, instant desserts, dessert toppings and fruitsauces. Both companies complement each other very well. Carma- Pfister AG will be the world manufacturer of Swiss chocolate for the Barry Callebaut Group and will also act as a support for the sales of the Barry Callebaut chocolate and cocoa products in Switzerland.
Barry Callebaut will establish its worldwide Barry Callebaut Institute for the "Gourmet" business at Carma-Pfister AG in Dübendorf.
Pierre Vermaut, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Barry Callebaut AG, comments: "With this acquisition, we can enlarge our product offering of specialty chocolate and cocoa globally. We so far missed Swiss taste and products in our range. Many Swiss chef cooks, pastry cooks and confiseurs all over the world will welcome this move. We are also happy to have now an excellent distribution power in the Swiss market for our world products. It is an exciting moment to welcome Carma-Pfister's associates as colleagues in the Barry Callebaut family to enhance our global expansion."


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Families will start receiving child tax credits next month and the IRS just launched its tool for non-filers eligible for the credit. But there seems to be a lot of questions still surrounding how this all works. So, we visited Turbo Tax to get an expert to help explain.
"People who should look forward to these advanced payments are those that meet the income eligibility requirements and also the dependent requirements for age," said Lisa Greene-Lewis, a CPA at TurboTax.
She says "advanced" is a keyword to pay attention to. For tax filers, this is money you would normally receive on your tax return.
By taking it as a credit, it's just breaking the payment up between now and your next refund. It's also important to note that it's not required to apply for this credit.
The IRS will automatically base it off of your latest tax return or the information you provide through the agency's non-filer tool. That means if there are reasons you shouldn't receive the credit, you must opt-out.
"So, your income is going to go up where it makes you not eligible in 2021 or your child's age is going to increase where you would not be eligible, then you should opt-out because one thing with the advanced payments, it is an advance and if your situation changes, you will have to pay it back," said Greene-Lewis.
This same concept also applies if your situation changes in the opposite direction. So, if your income drops or you have a new baby, you could be eligible for more money.
And if you're divorced, the same rules apply to the child tax credit as filing your taxes.
"The parent that has custody, so that's the parent that the child lives with the longest usually, gets to claim them as a dependent, and then they're eligible for the child tax credit now. If the child is with the parent 50/50, then it usually goes to the parent whose income is higher, but then there's also situations where the parents can have an agreement," said Greene-Lewis.
If you have more questions about child tax credits, Turbo Tax has a blog with updated information.


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By now, if you follow the technology world at all, or if you use Gmail, you've probably noticed a new thingy released by Google in the last few days. The thingy is called Google Buzz and it is billed to be a "status update" tool to allow your friends to know what you're up to?
Sound familiar? Yeah, it's supposed to be going after Twitter or some nonsense like that.
I enabled Buzz on my Gmail account and then promptly disabled it (you too can disable it, if it's already turned on for you, by clicking on the "turn off Buzz" link in the footer of your Gmail account).
I'm going on record today to say that Google Buzz is and will continue to be an absolute failure. The reasons why are fourfold…
No one cares about the Google community
This thing is all about tying the Google community together, though they do have support for Twitter and Flickr as well because, well… no one can ignore those massive communities and have legs for the long run. People care about the YouTube community (a Google property). To a lesser extent, people care about the Blogger community (a Google property). No one cares about the Gmail community. It's email!!! It's not about community, it's about utility and communication. Not community. I get spam in my Gmail. I get business conversations in my email. I get a searchable index of messages sent back and forth over the last five years in my Gmail. I don't get community in my Gmail. The only community feature in Gmail is Google Talk and I don't use that in Gmail. I use it in an IM client (Adium).
Google is too spread out to worry about community. They have products to meet needs and diversify web experiences, but their forays into community have sucked. Badly. Last time Google's OpenSocial was a factor in the collaborative, community space was… oh, well, never. That's dominated by Facebook. Not Google. Last time Picasa was an actual factor in the photography community was… oh that's right… never. That's controlled by Flickr.
And the next time Google tries to be a player in the "status update" community will be… oh, that's right, never. That's because Twitter dominates. Just ask Identi.ca. Oh, and Facebook.
Friendfeed is still something small and irrelevant
Why do I bring up Friendfeed? Well, my argument against Friendfeed still exists. Even Louis Gray, one of the biggest historical champions of Friendfeed, acknowledges that it remains a small community. It never has and never will go mainstream. So why has Google essentially ripped Friendfeed off and expect different results?
Comment? Like? Sounds familiar…. Oh, Facebook and Friendfeed do that.
Buzz is insecure
It's well documented at this point that Buzz is actually pretty insecure. Because it operates out of Gmail, it assumes that your most frequently emailed people should automatically be friends. Except that that assumption is inherently insecure because friends are publicly viewable. Take these hypothetical situations for instance:
- Bill has been corresponding with a major possible client under NDA. For any number of reasons, the communication should not be revealed to the public. Yet, due to the volume of email between Bill and his contact, his contact is automatically made a Buzz contact.
- Kelly is negotiating an acquisition of a company. If this information were public, the deal could be off.
- John is trying to take his wife on a big, secret getaway for her 40th birthday. In emailing with a variety of resorts over the period of several weeks, those resort contacts become part of John's publicly viewable community.
Are we seeing the problem here? This is like Facebook Beacon all over again.
Why add more workflow and more social networks?
The argument has been made in favor of Buzz that Google has a huge Gmail userbase to jump off of. While this is true, this is one more area of workflow for users to utilize. Why do it? We have YouTube and Flickr and Twitter and Facebook? Do we really anticipate Buzz being added to the repertoire? I think not.
Buzz will have the same result as most other social networks: it will die. Very few have legs because very few are innovative and do new things. Twitter was an accidental success because it innovated on the concept of microcontent over SMS… yes, that's how it started. Buzz is just one more has been and offers nothing new. It will stay in the bowels of early adopter-hood until it is forgotten.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
Update: VentureBeat reports that Google has tweaked their privacy settings.


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Saab and ThyssenKrupp have signed a MoU on an acquisition of ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems AB
ThyssenKrupp Industrial Solutions AG, a subsidiary of ThyssenKrupp AG, and Saab AB today signed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding concerning the sale of the Swedish shipyard ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems AB (formerly named Kockums) with operations in Malmö, Karlskrona and Muskö to Saab AB.
Both parties agree that during the negotiations phase, the integrity and the operating ability of ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems AB must be safeguarded. The transaction will be subject to regulatory approval. The negotiations between Saab AB and ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems AB are at an early stage and more information will follow.
The Memorandum of Understanding is in line with Saab's ambition to expand its activities in the naval area and meets the needs of Sweden for an industrial solution regarding design, production and maintenance of submarines and warships. An acquisition of ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems AB will enable Saab to meet this ambition.
Saab serves the global market with world-leading products, services and solutions ranging from military defence to civil security. Saab has operations and employees on all continents and constantly develops, adopts and improves new technology to meet customers' changing needs.
For further information, please contact:
Saab Press Centre, +46 (0)734 180 018, email@example.com
The information is that which Saab AB is required to declare by the Securities Business Act and/or the Financial instruments Trading Act. The information was submitted for publication on April 14 at 07.00.


text:
Delivery & Assembling
Usage & Care
- Avoid Water, use moistened cloth for cleaning.
- Avoid Direct and Prolonged Exposure to Sunlight.
- Avoid all types of chemicals as it may harm the furniture.
- Use table mats/runners/coasters for furniture that may be exposed to hot utensils.
- Minor scratches and burnt marks can easily be removed by fine sandpaper and the application of mineral oil.
Customization & Disclaimer
- The accessories displayed in the image represent the setup and are not included with the product unless explicitly stated.
- The wood grain may differ slightly from one product to another regarding solid wood furniture.
- Intricate designs or hand-painted elements in 3D pictures on the website may exhibit minor variations compared to the actual product.
- Due to variations in screen settings and resolutions, there might be a slight disparity in fabric colour and wood finish between the images on the website and the physical product.
- The primary material refers to the main substance used in manufacturing the product. Additionally, other secondary materials may also be utilized in the production process.
Joey Walnut Wood Desk – Black Leatherite
Welcome to Sand Colour!
At Sand Colour, our topmost priority is to deliver the product to our valued customers at the earliest possible. We offer free delivery across India for our customers.
Shipping Time:
Time taken to Dispatch a product depends upon the type of the product and Quantity. Large Quantities generally take more than usual time which are conveyed to the customers once the order is confirmed.
Most orders are delivered within 10-14 business days. Monday to Friday are considered as business days except for public holidays.
Delays in delivery can occasionally occur around public holidays or at times because of unforeseen circumstances, but we do our best to provide timely deliveries to all our customers.
Cash on Delivery Shipping -
To proceed with Cash on Delivery (COD) orders for furniture items, we require a 10% advance payment. This confirmation amount is essential due to instances of fake orders and denials at the time of delivery. As our furniture is custom made on each order, your cooperation in providing this advance ensures a genuine commitment to the purchase. We appreciate your understanding and look forward to fulfilling your order with care and attention to detail.
Courier Partners:
We only work with reputed courier partners like FedEx, Delhivery, Bluedart etc. for domestic deliveries. For remote locations sometime Speed post is used where no other courier services are available.
For customised and bulk orders, customers are requested to get in touch with us at [email protected] or contact through WhatsApp( +91 - 9999239777 ). The above shipping terms are not applicable in these cases and customers are informed about it upfront.


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The family gatherings, wrapping presents, holiday movies, and all of the yummy goodies are my favorite things about the holidays :) What are some of yours?There are over 200 blogs participating and each blog has a giveaway! There are also Three grand prizes! You can comment on Each blog with your email address to be entered to win. Over 200 entries possible!
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Item #: 691668741
Out Of Stock
Hand painted 21.5 micron Merino wool roving for spinning and felting in Three Waters Farm colorway Velvet Night. 4 ounces. The first photo is two braids wound together; the next four photos are all of the same braid. Merino occupies the most exalted place in the fiber world. A long stapled fiber with exuberant bounce and memory, it is perfect for spinning. The fineness of merino makes it perfect for felting. This merino is superfine and is perfect for next-to-the-skin garments.