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A society that does not value honour above all else is a society in decline. Did tool making separate us from the animals? Certainly breaking nuts open with a rock could be viewed as a learning development but it was a sense of honour that allowed us to trust one another enough to form flexible, purpose-driven, social groups that were the basis of our society. It was this sense of honour that allowed us to have justice based on a code of laws and civilisation could grow. Our leaders could be trusted, our warriors could be admired, our farmers, craftsmen and academics could trade and trust in the efforts of their colleagues and families could flourish in the knowledge that they would be secure. Unless we re-establish honour into our homes and schools and demand it of our leaders, our societies will continue to fragment, our planet will continue to be ravaged, 'right' and 'wrong' will continue to be perverted, our laws will lose all compassion and all that is good in this world will die.
As our societies developed from tribes and villages, it became convenient for many self-interest groups to stylise, pervert, and marginalise honour. It ceased to be a practiced code of behaviour and only survived in a perverted form where it was deemed necessary. This perversion was confused with duty and used on the battlefield to inspire valour or to shame those who would run. Consequently, 'honour' became 'manliness' in regard to war, duelling and revenge, and when directed at women it equated to them keeping their virginity until marriage. Sadly, even today in some parts of the world, women still die in what are called, 'honour killings'. With such shameful perversions it is understandable that few even know what honour is. We see the remnants of true honour in lawyer/client confidentiality, in the Hippocratic oath, in notions of free speech, in the pursuit of justice for all, in the scientific method, in the belief in the 'equality of man', and in the work ethic. For a time, men lived by the ideal that 'a man's word is his bond' and the criminal world realised that without a code of honour, they could neither survive nor prosper, hence the term, 'honour amongst thieves.' With the push for profit at any cost and the merging of class boundaries, honour was seen as a mere nicety and order was thought to be better served by lawyers. Unfortunately, we didn't just forget what honour is, we also lost an understanding of what it does.
Anyone can be honourable; a man, woman or child but to aid in the phrasing, I shall illustrate with a man.
An honourable man holds his honour as his most valuable possession. He never lies nor breaks his word. An honourable man will only enter a debate when he believes he is right, he would never argue simply to win the point. An honourable man will admit when he knows he is wrong and give credit to the truths of his opponent. An honourable man seeks the company of other honourable men over those that only share his viewpoint on a subject. He will listen to others, even those he disagrees with. An honourable man would never steal or cheat, such behaviour would lessen his honour. An honourable man would always do what he believes is right but he would never sacrifice the few for the good of the many, nor ask others to do so unless he was one of the few. An honourable man would never allow injustice of any kind to go unchallenged nor will he accept any rationalisation for the injustice. An honourable man seeks solutions without regard for who is suggesting them. An honourable man is humble and allows his actions to speak for him. An honourable man helps others to be honourable.
The planet is in trouble. These corporations like demonic beasts without a soul or liability, are sustained by greed and the lust for power and all that is evil in man. They create need and desires where none existed and grow fattest in war. They seek out the poorest and the starving to enslave in sweatshops, to produce goods that break or tarnish soon after purchase. They poison our rivers and consume our forests and turn our homes into waste dumps. In the temples of consumerism, profit is good and loss is evil and our elected leaders betray us, all for the benefit of 'jobs'. Craftsmanship is dead, ruthlessness is rewarded and lying is now the art of 'spin-doctoring'. The thieves are in charge of the treasury and the corrupt have wormed their way to the top and we feel overwhelmed and powerless to bring about change and we no longer trust those who wish to.
Every politician and leader, no matter who they are, would have us believe that they are never wrong and that their opponents are never right. Where is their credibility? In this Orwellian society, where we are bombarded with lies everyday simply to imprint brand names is it any wonder that honour is dead? Relationships, friendships and families are failing because without trust, nothing can be counted on, no foundations are solid, and no problems can be solved. When we must divorce a viewpoint from the intent of the speaker because the agenda is rarely the pursuit of truth, we are left with a perception of the truth from a grey-scale of views. Armageddon was never proceeded by the four horsemen and trumpets, it seeped in during a commercial break.
Everyone loves an honourable man regardless of his viewpoint. His sincerity and honesty earn him respect and his endeavours are trusted. He will have credibility and anyone entering into debate with him will already know that the outcome will be a growth experience for all. Even the most difficult problems facing us today, such as the cultural clash between Islam and the rest of the world, could be solved if honourable men from both sides sat down to talk. Starvation and poverty could be wiped from the globe if honourable men tackled the problem.
We must insist that our leaders always tell the truth to everyone. Excuses like 'national security' or 'political sensitivity' have been overused and have lead to a foundation of decay. It is our future at stake and 'side-stepping the issue', blaming the last government in power, omitting pertinent facts or putting a 'spin' on it only hurts us more and must be viewed as the crime it really is.
We must reward truthfulness and shun the liars. We must teach our children a code of honour and insist it be re-enforced in schools. We can start by being honourable ourselves. Honourable people trust one another and stand shoulder to shoulder. Dishonourable people may pretend to be honourable and for as long as they do they are honourable. The moment they commit a dishonourable act, they stand alone as do all dishonourable people, because neither the honourable nor the dishonourable trust them. Be proud of your honour and stand by your word no matter what. Say to others, "I am an honourable person" and the moment you do, magic happens. You will be measured by those who hear you and they will put you to the test from that moment on. If you fall, be the first to admit it and do all that you can to redeem your honour. You will earn the admiration of others and all that you do will be trusted. Those around you who have been dishonourable will be shamed and will seek to be honourable themselves. Once honour is reinstated as a valued attribute, those that cling to dishonour will standout and be unmasked. Honour is a thing that grows and all it needs to flourish is to be valued. It is the one thing we can do because we do it for ourselves, for our own self-esteem and for our children. It costs us nothing but it earns us everything. It is stability for our families; growth for our industry and it allows problems to be solved. We can have a golden age even though we have different ideals, different beliefs, different needs, and identify with different groups because the one thing we all desire is to be treated with respect and this can only be done if we bring back honour.
I am an honourable person.


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What Can You Do with Family During Hour Without Power?
Going through the craziness of the day, we sometimes find downtown while catching up on our smart phones or smart tablets and honestly, our kids are now doing it. There are so many times that I will look over at my kids and they are just sitting on the ipad playing a game or watching an unboxing and I often think that if I were to leave and run to the store for a few minutes that they wouldn't even know that I had left. Now, I know that's not possible to even test out because I can't just leave my kids, but I can try to get them to unplug and challenge myself to do the same. When Project Envolve challenged us to just spend an hour without using any power, I tried to think of some fun things for the kids to do without using the ipad or playing video games. By participating in the Power Hour challenge, my goal was that my family would realize how much we all depend on energy and how often we use it without even realizing it.
Before bed one night, rather than watching a movie or tv, I challenged the kids to shut the lights off and play. They were really excited to try playing with just a flashlight, but I don't think they expected it to be as difficult when trying to find the pieces they needed to play Legos. Mollie and I decided to put together a scrapbook of pictures that we had developed from different milestones of the past seven years.
What I realize now is we need to Make Time rather than Find Time. Especially when it comes to doing something we have been putting off month after month.
I can't remember the last time that I developed pictures and put them into an album. I have gotten so used to creating digital family albums with all my online photos, but I wanted to do something special with Mollie that she will always remember- not only as a keepsake, but the time we spent creating the album. Rather than just putting the photos into an album, I thought we should create a scrapbook. This was something that I did as a teenager with all my pictures, so it was the perfect opportunity for us to spend some time together without any interruptions and also to create and preserve some memories.
One of the biggest challenges was the amount of light we had to work with. We had to keep putting the stickers up to the lantern in order to look closely before choosing the right stickers for the page. One of my favorite parts of the challenge was telling stories and sharing memories about the pictures. It was interesting to listen to her interruption of the pictures because most of the time I am so caught up in the moment with trying to take a thousand pictures that I never step back enjoy the moment. Mollie told me some of her memories from those special moments that I had forgotten or didn't even know about. We had some laughs and even caught up on things that were happening this week in her life. Sometimes I feel like I am always rushing from one activity to another or making/cleaning up meals that I don't even listen to my kids. Having no other distractions allowed me to really listen to Mollie and enjoy our time together.
The boys wanted to try to play Lego in the dark. This is their first attempt at playing Lego in the dark. Sometimes I like to just watch them play and listen to the way they create characters and stories to go along with their Lego creations. Playing in the dark was definitely fun, but they kept coming over to the flashlight to see the pieces they were putting together. We had a talk about how they usually have all the lights on in the basement and how really, they can play Legos with just one light one. If they can play in the dark, they can definitely play with just one light.
I am always screaming at my kids about shutting off lights in rooms as they leave, but now I think they realize that although it was very hard to go without lights for one hour, it's still possible to use less light.
Are you willing to take the Power Hour Challenge?
Here are some Ideas and Activities To Spend An Hour Without Power or at least without Technology:
Make a fort and have kids create a puppet show…
—Here are a few other ideas to take your fort construction to the next level:
- Use string for structure: Attach a length of string between pieces of furniture or curtain rods and throw your blankets over for a structured look. Pro tip: use clothes pins to secure the blanket to the string.
- Use an old umbrella: If you're not afraid to open an umbrella indoors, no judgment if you are, throw a blanket over an old umbrella for a big, castle- like canopy.
- Turn your books into a wall: Stack books on top of each other to create walls where you don't have furniture.
- Make a door out of cardboard: If you have a few boxes laying around from your last Amazon order grab some tape and scissors and use a big piece to give your fort a front door worthy of a secret password.
Tell jokes—These kid and adult friendly jokes are hilarious:
- Hilarious jokes for kids
- Clean jokes that are actually funny • Terrible kids jokes to crack you up
Play Board Games—Try putting your own twist on the game, like a rule that every drawing has to be a character from Frozen.
Make a collage out of magazines or put together a scrapbook—Try making family portraits only with the pic- tures from the magazine.
Have an indoor scavenger hunt—You can make a list of decorations that are already out or put a hide and seek twist on it and plant your own items.
*Disclosure: This post is sponsored by PPL Electric Utilities. I am a Project Envolve Ambassador and have received product/compensation to facilitate this post. As always, all opinions are 100% my own. Visit PPL Electric Utilities Pinterest boards for more money and energy-saving tips!

subset: commoncrawl


text: No need to go overboard on your child's big day. You can create a memorable experience without breaking the bank. By Janet Bodnar, Editor-at-Large February 22, 2006 A friend of mine recently called my attention to a story in our local newspaper about a popular entertainer at children's birthday parties. He charges $300 for a half-hour show, and parents are happy to pay -- which the author attributed to the "fundamental desperation of suburban parents.""It's an insane, indulgent thing to do," admitted one mother. "You could just have a party where you all played pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey or musical chairs or something. But that is just not done in this area. If you did that, you would be talked about." Two things about this newspaper story upset my friend. First was the fact that parents would pay $300 for a half-hour of entertainment at a preschooler's birthday party (not counting the moon bounce and the cotton-candy machine). Second was the assumption that everyone does it. "Not in my neighborhood," says my friend. As the mother of twins, my friend is particularly concerned about keeping parties under control. She makes it a point to have a single celebration for both of her daughters, and to limit the guest list. Advertisement Last year, for instance, when the girls turned seven, they invited three friends for a sleepover. Mom invited a friend to give the five girls hula lessons (no fee, just flowers as a thank-you), bought plastic leis and grass skirts at the dollar store and cooked Hawaiian chicken for dinner. This year's affair was bigger. The twins are fans of the Felicity character in the American Girls series of dolls and books, and they requested a "colonial" party. Mom and Dad took the girls and five friends to a colonial-themed restaurant for dinner. The girls ordered from the menu, then went home for birthday cake and watched the Felicity movie. The guests left with full tummies, so my friend dispensed with goodie bags. Total cost: $200 for the restaurant bill. Not cheap, but not excessive, considering that it included nine meals (no desserts) and two parties. My friend is already thinking about next year's activity -- possibly taking the girls to a college women's basketball game for $3 a ticket. Advertisement I could go on about how parents who get caught up in birthday-party mania -- starting with clowns for preschoolers and ending with lavish sweet-16 parties that cost thousands of dollars -- send kids the wrong message. And I could make a pitch for birthday sanity. But my friend's actions -- and her creative party planning -- speak more eloquently than my words.


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« Stage 9 underway | Main | McEwen takes Stage 9 »
July 13, 2004
Caught at the line; McEwen takes a 2nd stage win
Another tragic breakaway, as two riders who were away for about 80 miles were just nipped by the sprinters with less than 200 meters to race.
I hate to tell Jens Voigt "I told you so", but it's Robbie McEwen (as I predicted overnight) taking the stage.
The Tour site reports Inigo Landaluze and Filippo Simeoni were caught in the last 50 meters, while VeloNews says it was "less than 10 meters from the line...!!!"
Looks like:
1) McEwen (Lotto-Domo)
2) Thor Hushovd (Credit Agricole)
3) Stuart O'Grady (Cofidis)
4) Jerome Pineau (Brioches La Boulangere)
5) Erik Zabel (T-Mobile)
6) Janeck Tombak (Cofidis)
7) Tom Boonen (Quick Step)
8) Danilo Hondo (Gerolsteiner)
9) Sergio Marinangeli (Domina Vacanze)
10) Inigo Landaluze (Euskaltel-Euskadi)
Landaluze's breakaway partner, Domina Vacanze's Filippo Simeoni, finished in 17th on the day.
No effect on the overall leaderboard, except that O'Grady takes a time bonus to move within 3 minutes of Thomas Voeckler, who will wear the yellow jersey on Bastille Day in the longest stage of this year's Tour.
Current GC top 10:
1) Voeckler (Brioches La Boulangere)
2) Stuart O'Grady (Cofidis) at 2:53
3) Sandy Casar (fdjeux.com) at 4:06
4) Magnus Backstedt (Alessio-Bianchi) at 6:27
5) Jakob Piil (CSC) at 7:09
6) Lance Armstrong (USPS) at 9:35
7) George Hincapie (USPS) at 9:45
8) Jose Azevedo (USPS) at 9:57
9) Jose Enrique Gutierrez (Phonak) at 10:02
10) Erik Zabel (T-Mobile) at 10:06
Posted by Frank Steele on July 13, 2004 in Robbie McEwen, Stage results, Stuart O'Grady, Thomas Voeckler, Top Stories | Permalink
okay, i'm hooked on the tour, but i'm a novice and don't know what they are talking about half the time! Where can I find information on racing? For instance, I went to the official tdf site, but there was no info about what makes a mountain a category 3 or what the king of the mountain is and all that 'insider' stuff. Help!
Posted by: katie at Jul 13, 2004 11:49:47 AM
I backed you and you were right, although there was a breakaway and it nearly won. That is the worst word in cycling - "nearly".
Posted by: David Tiley at Jul 13, 2004 11:51:07 AM
i'm pretty new to all of this, too. i did find this link a few days ago that provides a "beginner's guide" to the tour:
it was written in 2002 and 2003, but all the basic stuff is still relevant.
this wiki page is also decent:
and one of my favorite blogs so far (other than this one):
Posted by: dan at Jul 13, 2004 2:42:18 PM
It is setting up very nicely for Lance if he can come through on the mountains this year, with some strong competitors.
Posted by: Mark E. Foster at Jul 13, 2004 8:16:23 PM


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This article was originally featured in our ADP Eye on Washington update.
Of the many substantive employer compliance provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that take effect in 2014, HR and Payroll departments may find that the most immediate impact will be in determining which employees qualify as "full-time employees" under the law.
This new calculation and recordkeeping requirement is part of a series of ACA measures collectively known as Employer Shared Responsibility Provisions, which will put into effect the basic premise that large employers will need to offer affordable health coverage that provides minimum value to full-time workers, or pay a new "Shared Responsibility" assessment to the IRS.
Only large employers (generally those with 50 or more full-time equivalent employees) are subject to the Shared Responsibility assessment and related provisions. See the Eye on Washington dated June 5, 2012 for a definition of "large employer" under the ACA.
Full-time Employee Determination
Beginning in 2014, large employers must track each employee's monthly status as full-time (defined under the ACA as an average of 30 hours per week, or at least 130 hours in a month) or part-time, report each employee's full-time status to the IRS, and keep as part of their tax records the status of each employee. Hours of service include hours worked, and hours for which an employee is paid but does not work, such as vacation, holiday, illness or disability, jury duty, military duty, or leave of absence (up to a maximum of 160 hours for any continuous period). Special rules apply for certain situations.
Hours of service must be tracked on an actual hours-basis for hourly employees, but there are optional days-worked and weeks-worked rules designed to facilitate tracking for salaried employees.
Alternate Measurement & Stability Period Approach
On August 31, IRS Notice 2012-58 was issued to modify and expand on the safe harbor guidance previously provided in Notices 2011-36 and 2012-17; in particular concerning newly hired employees.
Under the guidance provided, employers may determine each employee's full-time or part-time status each month; however, many expressed an interest in alternative methods to permit more certainty and improved administration of benefits eligibility, enrollments and possible Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Shared Responsibility Assessments. As a result, the IRS proposed an optional safe harbor alternative to help employers establish each employee's full-time status for a future ("stability") period, such as the next six or twelve months.
Under the proposed safe harbor method, employers choose and analyze a prior period (the "measurement period") of three to twelve months to determine whether employees met the hours of service thresholds. For employees determined to be full-time, the stability period must be at least six months, and no shorter than the measurement period. For those determined not to be full-time employees, the stability period can be no longer than the measurement period. While measurement and stability periods for all existing ("ongoing") employees can be scheduled at regular intervals, assessing newly hired employees may be more complex.
Generally, the revised rules permit measurement periods of between three and 12 months for employers to determine whether new "variable hour" employees are full time. Employees are variable hour employees when it cannot be determined at the time of hire whether a new employee is expected to work full-time or if an employee's full-time status is reasonably expected to be of limited duration (e.g., a retail employee hired to work full-time during the holiday season, but who is reasonably expected to work only part-time afterwards). (Employees who are expected to work full time at the time of hire qualify immediately as full-time, and should be offered health coverage with no more than a 90-day waiting period.)
The notice clarifies that initial measurement periods for new variable-hour employees can start on the employee's first day of work, or shortly thereafter (such as the start of the following week, month, or pay period).
Employers are also permitted to use "administrative periods" between measurement and stability periods to make determinations, offer coverage and administer enrollments. The rules are designed to prevent delays or lapses in coverage.
Employers may use both a measurement period of between three and 12 months and an administrative period of up to 90 days for new variable hour employees, but the measurement and the administrative periods combined may not extend beyond the last day of the first calendar month beginning on or after the one-year anniversary of the employee's start date (totaling, at most, 13 months and a fraction of a month).
New variable hour employees must also be tested after they have been employed for the first full standard measurement period for ongoing employees. Special rules and limitations may apply depending on whether the individual is full-time under either measurement period.
Employers May Apply Different Measurement and Stability Periods
Employers may determine when measurement periods start and end, although this must be done on a uniform and consistent basis for all employees in the same category. Employers can apply different measurement and stability periods only to certain specified categories of employees, which are collectively bargained employees and non-collectively bargained employees; salaried and hourly employees; employees of different entities; and employees located in different states. As in the case of new variable hour employees, workers that transfer between these categories may be simultaneously subject to two sets of measurement and stability periods.
Reporting and Recordkeeping
Even large employers that generally provide health coverage to all full-time employees will need to track and record hours of service under these rules in order to comply with reporting and payment obligations of the IRS Shared Responsibility assessment, which is based in part on the number of full-time employees, and whether any full-time employees receive subsidized health coverage through a Health Exchange. (See the Eye on Washington dated June 5, 2012 for more details.)
Notice 2012-58 provides that employers may rely on safe harbor methods described in the notice for compliance with § 4980H at least through the end of 2014.
If you would like to subscribe to receive Eye on Washington email alerts, please visit: www.adp.com/healthcare or www.adp.com/regulatorynews.
If you haven't yet participated in our "Eye on Washington" feedback survey, please do so by clicking here:
Learn more about employment tax solutions from ADP that work with your existing payroll system.


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How Aluminum Beverage Cans Are Recycled/
Have you ever wondered what happens to an aluminum beverage can after you put it in a recycling bin? Or how the can came to be manufactured in the first place? Understanding the life cycle of a product will help us make better decisions about how to use and properly dispose of them.
Before an aluminum beverage can arrives on a store shelf filled with the sugary soda or flavored waters we enjoy drinking, it is manufactured. This process begins with mining bauxite ore from the Earth's crust. Mining may require the removal of trees and vegetation from the site, as well as the use of drills, large bulldozers, and blasting. When the bauxite is loose and broken down into more manageable pieces it is loaded onto trucks that transport the raw material to an alumina refinery.
At the refinery, the aluminum is extracted from the bauxite then melted into a molten pool of hot metal. This electricity-intensive process is called smelting. After further refinement, the aluminum is formed into a large column or slab called an ingot. These are typically about 25 feet long and weigh more than 50,000 pounds. You may have seen one before strapped onto a flatbed tractor trailer. At this point, the ingot is transported to manufacturers who may make products like serving utensils, foil, metal for airplanes or construction projects, and more.
Aluminum ingots that will be used by beverage can manufacturers will first be pressed into a long continues sheet and rolled up. Some of the rolls can weigh as much as twelve tons and measure almost six miles long. According to the book "Make Garbage Great: The Terracycle Family Guide to a Zero-Waste Lifestyle" by Tom Szaky and Albe Zakes, "These massive spools are unrolled with a machine called an uncoiler, which then lubricates the metal and sends the flattened sheet through the beverage can assembly line."
Next, circles are cut out from the aluminum sheet. The circles are formed into small cups then stretched into the shape of a taller longer can. After being trimmed and washed the cans are sent to a printer that applies the exterior label and protective coating. Later the cans receive a protective coating on the inside to prevent liquids from coming into contact with the aluminum. Cans are tested for leaks and defects before being sent to beverage suppliers who fill the cans with drinks.
After being filled with the tasty liquids we enjoy so much, cans are sealed with pop-tab tops and shipped out to stores. At the store, cans are put on display on store shelves where consumers, like us, select the beverage can we want to buy and drink.
When the beverage is consumed we are left with a decision to make. Should the empty aluminum can be thrown in the garbage can or a recycling bin? If thrown in the garbage the can will be taken to the landfill where it is mixed with other types of waste and buried. Recycling, however, allows the aluminum can to be remanufactured into a new product. This means that the bauxite ore which was mined from the Earth can be used again.
Thanks to recycling it's estimated that nearly seventy-five percent of all aluminum ever produced is still in use today. Aluminum is a resilient metal that can be recycled over and over again. It's important to note that only the products that are separated for recycling correctly are sent to be remanufactured. Recyclable products mixed in with the garbage are not sorted at the landfill or at any point in the waste disposal process.
When you send your empty beverage can to the recycling center it is combined with other aluminum cans in a holding area. After there is enough for a truckload the cans are crushed and shaped into a large bale. The bales are sent to the aluminum recyclers where the cans are shredded into tiny pieces. These are then heated into molten aluminum along with thousands of other cans and are formed into an ingot.
Manufacturing aluminum beverage cans from recycled cans, instead of raw bauxite ore, saves an average of ninety-five percent of the energy required by the smelting process. As a result, recycling one beverage can save enough energy to run a television set for three hours. Recycled cans can become new beverage cans we can buy, drink, and recycle again in as little as sixty days. The average beverage can contain seventy percent recycled content.


text:
The Mint eShop stocks the latest Royal Australian Mint coin and numismatic releases, ready to be shipped straight to your door.
The Royal Australian Mint prides itself on producing high quality coins commemorating significant national anniversaries, or celebrating what makes our country unique. While they display a denomination, these coins are not intended to be put into circulation, and are worth a lot more than their face value.
Our proof coins are our flagship products, exquisitely crafted from hand polished gold and fine silver blanks, the dedication and care that is bestowed on each coin from its inception is evident in our breathtaking final product. Our status as a world class, technologically superior mint can be seen in our product range, which often features colour printed, selectively gold plated and uniquely shaped coins.
Our coins cover a wide range of themes, and if you're a sports fan, nature lover or a history buff, chances are you will find something that interests you in our product range. At our eShop, we don't just sell coins, we also stock everything coin enthusiasts would need to keep their hobby going, as well as coin related gifts to buy the collector that has everything!
So if you're looking for coins to complete your own personal collection, or even a gift to celebrate a wedding or anniversary, you'll find it at the Mint eShop.
The Royal Australian Mint is now offering you another incentive to purchase your favourite coins. The Mint will waive the postage charge for all deliveries within Australia, if your order is over A$350.00 in one transaction.


text:
David and Goliath ~ The Power of Organization Tuning
By John Hewitt
Founder & CEO of Liberty Tax Service
First in a series of articles on managerial and company building successes by John Hewitt.
Is success about thought or action - or both? Is it instinctive or can it be learned?
For many business leaders, me included, this is a conundrum that can be argued successfully on either side. However, the one thing I'm sure of is that in order for a small company to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with a more mature competitor, it takes a great deal of leadership foresight, tenacious imagination, a little luck and a lot of hard work by everyone involved. Most importantly, for a "David-sized" company to become or overcome a "Goliath", it takes careful implementation of a successful formula. This is where the power of organizational tuning steps in.
To read the rest of the article click the link and download the PDF.


text:
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Expletive deleted.
In introducing Fi'zi:k's Superlight Classic Touch Bar Tape, allow us to wander down memory lane a bit. When we were impressionable young cyclists travelling abroad, we happened to notice a magazine clipping on the wall of a European mechanic's shop. It showed a 1970s-era pro (who shall remain anonymous) climbing through one of l'Alpe's switchbacks.
The mechanic had circled the cyclist's bars just behind the shifters because a triangle of metal was showing through where the team wrench had gotten sloppy and not properly wrapped the tape. Next to the circle was a handwritten expletive that served to communicate in no uncertain terms the mechanic's lack of enthusiasm for this tape job. We won't relate it here.
The moral of the above anecdote is: A well-wrapped bar is a thing of beauty, but shoddy wrap jobs will earn you the scorn of crotchety wrenches and salty crit dogs alike. Whether you're a seasoned taping pro or a neophyte with a cold beer and 20 minutes of spare time on a Sunday afternoon, a well-applied wrap of Fi'zi:k's Superlight Classic tape will not only add a fresh pop to your machine, but it will also improve bar feel and help maintain grip during sweaty climbs. The tape's Microtex composition resists ripping, tearing, and wear better than old-school cork tape, too. Do yourself a favor by not incurring the wrath of cycling's greatest generation. Get new tape and apply it right.
- A synthetic bar tape with classic appeal
- Longer wearing than traditional cork
- Maintains comfort across a variety of conditions
- Item #FIZ004Y


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I was pointed out today at the limitation of our controller in measures of lines per minute/second executable.
So my thought was to try and grasp how the relation could be of path tolerances and amount of lines of NC code.
Theoretical example:
- I can drive up to 60m/min my axis,
- and up to 0.5ms /line of code.
> so I can only program 120 000 lines of code /min,
> so per line I can take steps of min. 0.5 mm per line?
When I enter a intol and outtol of 0.001mm , would that not produce on a freefrom surface too much lines of code to be running at full feed?
Ofcourse this situation is a bit extreme, I haven't been anywhere near this point.
But is the thought behind it correct?
What would be the expectable relation between intol and outtol values and the lines of code for general freeform milling?
Solved! Go to Solution.
Pretty simple:
The tighter the tolerance, the more lines of code ;-)
If you are looking for an equation, that is much harder, as it is surface dependant. A smooth, "large radius" surface will need fewer points than a wavy, "small" radius surface. I would suspect for a given surface, you can develop "rules of thumb", but if those rules are usable on other surfaces. And I would guess they are non-linear.
I'm not sure if you can analyze the internal toolpath for distance of each move (I think you can, but I'm not sure), but you can definitely do this in the post (although that may 'break" turbo mode, assuming you use turbo mode in your post).
Production: NX10.0.3.5 MP16/TC11.2
I'd rather be e-steamed than e-diseaseled
@Michiel2, this is not a simple question. But in theory you are correct. However, most of the time you don't need to tighten the tolerance too far. Instead, activate one of the high speed modes on your machine, give it enough points to represent your surface, and let it smooth out whatever happens between the points. Assuming your contours are smooth the machine's algorithms will do a nice job of point fitting and smoothing. If your machine supports NURBS, this might be an even better way to go. Most machines will have different flavours of smoothing, some optimizing accuracy, others smoothness or speed.
@Michiel2, you might need something in the range of 0.001 for close mold work, but that's about it. Unless I'm doing optics I rarely go below 0.003mm in/outtol. I've understood that NX will put the line end points on the actual surface and let the connecting chords differ according to the specified tolerance. This means that the end points will always be as true to the surface as possible. But this is info that will be hard to find in print. Think I picked it up in one of Alexander Freunds posts regarding high quality surface machining a while ago.
One afterthought which you are probably aware of:
When roughing/semi-roughing or even semi-finishing you'll always be leaving some material, so tight tolerance isn't necessary, it just slows toolpath generation and bogs up the controller. When finishing, I'm pretty sure you are not going to be maxing out the feed. 60m/min would require some serious spindle RPM for any reasonable sized cutter. So in real life you'll probably be lucky to be running 10m/min, particularly if the surface needs a good finish or high accuracy.
Together all these factors mean that you should be just fine with any modern machine, capable of this kind of work. If you are lucky enough to have a 100.000-200.000RPM spindle, my guess is that the controller will be happy chomping through the code - or you'll be driving it directly with equations or NURBS.
Older controls did have issues processing lots of little steps.
Older DNC systems as well, if you were "drip feeding" the data (depends on baud rate vs. feed rate)
But with newer machines/controls & lots of local memory (so you can copy the file locally, instead of drip feeding it) those problems should be much reduced (if not eliminated)
Production: NX10.0.3.5 MP16/TC11.2
I'd rather be e-steamed than e-diseaseled


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Quartz/YouTubeIn a more than alarming statistic, RAINN reports that in America, one out of every six women and 3 percent of men have been victims of an attempted or completed rape. While we should be working to figure out ways dismantle rape culture and take the onus off victims, it is good to know that there are those seeking out creative solutions. This bra, or rather this incredible sensor-triggered sticker, may just be one of them.
MIT scientists, led by researcher Manisha Mohan, developed a sticker that can sense "force," alerting others if clothing is removed without consent.
Using sensors and a microprocessor, the chip memorizes how you routinely take off your clothes -- that way it can detect irregular force.
It then sends a signal to your phone and gives your 20 seconds to confirm consent. If you can't get to your phone, the sticker sounds off an alarm.
Check out the full video here for more details on how this amazing product works:
Hopefully a fully developed sticker will be available to the masses soon.


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Special Thank you to Roatan Online Community
The Bay Islands are comprised of three large islands and a few Cays. The largest island, Roatan, has a new golf course with spectacular views of the ocean and one can even get around in an electric vehicle. Now, if we are on any other Caribbean island, I wouldn't be so shocked. But in Roatan, the cost of electricity is so high that it begs the question, who made the decision to bring in a fleet of electric vehicles into the island?
Electricity in Roatan is four times the cost of electricity in the US. The island of Roatan is too small to support a large infrastructure investment in its power grid. Local power is produced via diesel turbines. Importing diesel into the island is expensive and that drives up the cost for businesses and ultimately visiting tourist.
The electric car in Roatan is a luxury items. It will go a long way in catering to the afluent tourist. But don't expect a wide spread of electric cards throughout the island anytime soon.
We recently visited the island or Roatan, in Honduras. We enjoyed our stay spend most of our time diving. However, we did manage to play a little golf, and the folks over at Roatan Online Community were able to connect us with a few electric golf carts. When we told them about our forum, they agreed (they offered) to a free rental of the golf carts.
We appreciated the gesture and all the hospitality. Thank you to their community for pointing us in the right direction and for taking a moment to enhance our visit to Roatan with kind gestures. If we are ever back in Roatan, we will be sure to contact our friends at Roatan Online.
Thank you again,
The Electric Forum


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Our school relies on active committees led primarily by energetic and committed parents. Each committee is charged with specific annual tasks and is required to report their progress to the board of directors. Presently, there are four standing committees. Meeting agendas are posted at school entrances. Meeting details can be viewed on the school calendar.
Accountability/Academic Excellence
The Accountability Committee is an advisory committee charged with monitoring the fulfillment of our mission, goals, and objectives as stated in our charter. The committee communicates its findings annually via written report to the board of directors and to the district, and makes this report available to the community. Recommendations are forwarded to the board for review and action.
Accountability/Academic Excellence – Charge Letter 18-19
Community Development
The Community Development Committee is a committee charged with making sure TPCA presence is known in community events. The committee also makes sure we are conducting good marketing tactics, monitoring and improving our online presence and building key relationships. Parent participation is encouraged.
Community Development – Charge Letter 18-19
The Finance Committee monitors the financial concerns of the school and reports its findings to the Board of Directors for review and action. This committee partners with Administration to develop TPCA's 5-year business plan, the annual budget, and reviews periodic financial statements. Twin Peaks Charter Academy's financial policies, staff salaries, student fee schedules and other policies that have a financial impact on the school are brought to this committee for review.
The Governance Committee is a committee charged to make sure the alignment between policy and curriculum are in line with one another. The committee also will also review identify conflicting policies and recommend changes to the board of directors. Also, the committee will have policy standardization implemented and enforced.


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This is the home Danish designer & stylist Rie Elise Larsen, with a sweet Christmas touch.
One can easily spot her colorful products throughout her house, such as her playful ornaments or bright trinkets. It's also great to see some design classics combined with vintage pieces and flea market finds. Simple and unpretentious. Check out her advent calendar made of a branch painted white, on which she suspended small treats. Great idea!
Photos: Bobedre


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Rag Bag Fundraising
Galashiels Academy Physical Education Department will again be using the Rag Bag Recycling Scheme to raise money for the school's sport teams. Last year we raised £175 which has bought new hockey balls, footballs and rugby balls.
Through Rag Bag we can help to recycle textiles and clothing that may have ended up going to landfill. It is estimated that approximately 1.75 million tons of clothing waste is produced in the UK every year.
Out of this vast tonnage around 1.2 million tons is sent unnecessarily to landfill.
If we can divert some of this tonnage away from landfill we will directly help the environment and help provide good quality clothing to some of the poorest developing nations in the world.
We would very much appreciate your help. If you have any unwanted textiles that you would like to donate, we accept the following:
- Wearable Clothing
- Paired Shoes
- Handbags
- Belts
Please bring them in a black bin bag and drop them off at the PE department between 8:15am and 4:30pm (Mon- Thu) and 8:15am and 2:00pm (Friday).
The pupils and staff are very grateful for any help you can give,
Thank you,
Robyn Ballantyne, Thomas Otton, Steven Patterson, Aidan Turner and Rachel Spence
Galashiels Academy Senior PE Working Group


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Finally the site is looking a bit more site-like! I've still got plenty to do though, so stay tuned. For now, I'm just uploading over 900 captures of James from his appearance in the "ShakespeaRe-Told" TV specials from 2005. Big thanks to Mandy for the captures.
Gallery Links
Television Productions > ShakespeaRe-Told (2005) > 1.02 | Macbeth


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Meet us at pure
Little Black Dress is a luxury online marketplace specialising in LBDs, dresses and accessories for parties and special events. Our goal is to make every woman feel fabulous from head to toe! We are always looking for brilliant fashion brands to sell through our site so if you are interested please do get in touch here.
Showcasing your products on Little Black Dress is completely free. We'll market your products and brand extensively through our beautiful website, as well as SEO, advertising, PR and social media. If required, we also offer photography and video services to display your products at their absolute best.
We are a young company with big ambitions and will become a major contender in fashion ecommerce over the next few years. We look forward to taking you with us. So please do get in touch here.


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Hi friends! Just wanted to give you a bit of a heads up... I'm participating with UGG for a campaign where they will be bannering the background of the site for a hot second. I haven't done one of these before and I know it's not the most gorgeous thing to be lining the sides of my site, however it's going to allow me to have some EPIC giveaways while it's up there. That's the one thing that I'm excited about and hopefully you guys will bear with it (and me) while it's there :) Here's the piece that you guys are going to see shortly!! Who doesn't love a romper??
It's all done, however it hasn't been shot yet. My usual Wednesday routine is to shoot the piece on the street after my dance class, however as it's been getting darker earlier, the lighting was just off. You'll see this along with a handful more of my 31 Days of Thrift pieces up today!
It's catch-up Thursday, friends!! More in a bit :)


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More outtakes from my favorite kids! Enjoy. :-)
P, wearing a cape and holding a stick: I am St. Peter. My superpower is catching a fish every time I put my pole in the water.
-2-P: Anne, do you want to argue about can openers?
A: Yes!
P: OK, let's go somewhere where Mommy can't hear us.
-3-Jeremy has taught him the expression, "Fortune smiles upon you."
P: Mommy, unfortune smiles upon you because that is not what I want to do.
-4-me: Who did John Bosco teach?
P: Kids
me: And what did he teach them?
A: Words!
-5-P: Can you do the mermaid verse?
me: I don't know a mermaid verse. The only other one I know is a mule verse.
P: Yeah, that's what I meant.
-6-P: Seal (his stuffed sea lion) wanted to see the big sharks, but she didn't want to have tooth marks on her so she took a boat.
-7-me: Wow, that's cool.
P: What's cool?
me: We just got $350 from the State of New York.
P: Wow, that's a lot! Can I have five dollars of it to buy something?
7 Quick Takes is hosted at Conversion Diary


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DARIUS Eurobusiness offers expertise in multiple areas globally. This extends to providing professional and effective business development solutions using our highly experienced and committed team.
Formed by a highly experienced team, DARIUS is able to successfully develop your business and maximise your investment needs.
Choosing the right partner is key to success with any business venture, and at DARIUS we believe we are the perfect choice to develop your business.
If you are looking for smart investment opportunities DARIUS can help you search for the best and most suitable options available.
Partners generate benefits and also share challenges. At DARIUS we have a multitude of revenue sharing options available to take your business forward.
With DARIUS you will have access to leading professionals for your business development. Our experience, knowledge and high level of commitment will help take your company to the next level.
We do business with maximum transparency. DARIUS will always keep you well informed on project progression, negotiations and agreements throughout the process; easily and without intermediaries.
We guarantee to take care of your investments because we see them as our investments too. We work hard to maximise the profitability of projects, always looking for benefits and ways to optimise investments.
DARIUS Eurobusiness offers expertise in multiple areas globally. This extends to providing professional and effective business development solutions using our highly experienced and committed team.
We are experts in the buying and selling of commodities. We carry out every step of a product acquisition and can successfully transport goods throughout the world, without the need to hire brokers. Our strong network means we can reach beneficial agreements and ensure an optimum service.
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We have a wide range of stones available, especially diamonds of various carats, colour and clarity, and with excellent cuts. For added assurance, all traded stones come with a certificate of authenticity that guarantees the specifications and quality.
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As a financial intermediary Darius Eurobusiness connect businesses that require funding to both launch or take a company forward, finding investors and/or funds that are also seeking an adequate return.
Every investment project requires several key steps, including the identification of an idea or opportunity, market research and the capital investment itself. At DARIUS we can help you in the search and management of your required financing, offering you partners that best suit your business needs.
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Whether you need to buy or sell a building, office, apartment or another type of property, DARIUS Eurobusiness can offer you professional and effective management of the process. Investing in the right property can provide you with an optimal yield, but finding the right partner to advise you throughout the process is the key to success.
Don't waste time trying to manage this process by yourself or by sourcing several different companies to manage the different aspects. At DARIUS, we provide comprehensive service management, offering you complete confidence and discretion from the search of a buyer or seller to funding and making the final transaction.
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At DARIUS we have over 20 years experience in multiple sectors, together with an extensive portfolio of clients that have selected us as their business development partner. Our experience, combined with our extensive knowledge of new technologies, allows us to successfully address a myriad of projects with necessary guarantees and the added value that is hard to find elsewhere.
We are completely focused on the needs of our clients, utilising our extensive experience to undertake projects collaboratively and professionally.
We will keep you up to date with the latest news from other sectors. Check out our current business news now.
The Swiss National Bank may have abandoned its currency cap, but that doesn't mean it has stopped capping its currency. While policy makers haven't...
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Wisconsin Humane Society - Ozaukee Campus
Saukville, Wisconsin
The Victoria Wellens Center for the Ozaukee Humane Society is a state-of-the-art animal care facility located next to a busy state highway in Saukville, Wisconsin. The new facility was designed with a prominent grand lobby to attract interest from passing motorists. Program elements include an adoption center, veterinary clinic, and educational classroom spaces. The tight site includes wetlands with walking trails. The multi-purpose grand lobby has saw-tooth light monitors that provide an ethereal quality of natural light – its adjacent interior spaces are visually-linked to the lobby by glass storefront and doors.
The building aesthetic reflects the unique culture of the Humane Society and the semi-rural character of the area. Building materials were selected and designed for durability and easy maintenance—they also and to minimize disease and noise transmission. The Wellens Center is the first "green" animal shelter in the Midwest and earned a LEED Silver rating.
"The design and the construction has the best animal experience deeply in mind. The facility is incredibly quiet, easy to keep clean, comfortable, attractive and has a powerful ability in this work to keep healthy animals healthy and help ill ones recover faster. It is a shining example of how buildings support animals and the visitors who want to take them home."
Matt Whitte, Vice President of Operations
Completion Date: Oct 2011 • Size: 21,150 sf • Cost: $4.5 million • Dog Habitats: 54 • Cat habitats: 37 • Small Animal Habitats: 12
Contact: Sarah Deering, MS-NPM, Shelter Operations Manager, Ozaukee Campus • 262-988-5946 • email@example.com


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Colorhouse Inspired interior paints have superior coverage and durability, are self-priming, and 100% acrylic. Our paints are available in 3 sheens: Flat, Eggshell, and Semi-Gloss. Colorhouse Inspired Multi-Purpose Primer has excellent hide and adhesion. Our Primer is designed for many surfaces like new wallboard, raw wood, cured masonry and galvanized metal.
Greenworks has been carrying Colorhouse paint since we opened and they have been our go to paint ever since. Colorhouse has 4 colour collections. Earths`s Colour, Colours of Hope, Sprout, and the newest Handcrafter collection. They have paired all the colours with suggestions for trim, ceilings and adjoining rooms which is very helpful. If you have your heart set on a colour that is not in the range we can do a colour match for you. A few years ago Colorhouse launched a Chalkboard paint with a selection of 10 colours. Check out or blog from more details!
We ship Colorhouse Paint all over Canada so even if you are not here in Vancouver you can have beautiful in your home.


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Sunday, Dec 16, 2018 from 5:00pm to 9:00pm
Hop in the car and head over to Discovery Park of America for the Let It Glow Lightshow! You can see thousands of twinkling lights on display, and you can sing along to your favorite Christmas songs and some remixes with the custom radio station! And, we have some good news.
$5 per car
$10 per 15-passenger van
$25 for church or school bus
$50 for charter bus
On Yahoo, Yelp, SuperPages, AmericanTowns and 25 other directories!
Add your social media links and bio and promote your discounts, menus, events.
Be sure your listing is up on all the key local directories with all your important content (social links and product info).


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by Theresa Lütge-Smith – guest writer for Imaginet
Don't forget to download your free eBook on Website promotion.
Online markets are becoming increasingly competitive. Search engines are continually listing more and more sites that offer similar products. And let's not dismiss the power of comparison shopping; people are increasingly going to remarkable lengths to discover high-value, cost-effective deals. But just when you think you've improved operations to remain competitive, given your site a fresh slant and created a new approach to feature your range, your competition seems to have had the same brainwave and you're back at the start line. A key route to boost your bottom line is to commit to a policy of continually developing multi-valued propositions to augment your sales tactics. This is done by capitalizing on major changes in consumer behavior; achieve growth and outperform competitors by enhancing the consumer experience with personalized customer service. Consider that consumers today use social media as a tool in the purchasing process to interact with suppliers and fellow consumers and to research brands, share opinions, and recommend or condemn a business. Consumers are "demanding" products and services tailored to their specific needs.
Online marketing experts recommend capitalizing on merchandising tactics such as search technologies, product enhancement features and customer services to increase sales. Here are a few tips to consider when developing strategies to boost your bottom line:
- Invest in advanced search optimization applications such as SEOMOV or Google Analytics. Clients and customers need to find the right information quickly, and a slow and ill-defined navigation reading on your site can drive them away;
- Become skilled in SEM and SEO.SEM refers to Search Engine Marketing. This broad term describes any form of web traffic or web marketing coming to your site via search engines such as Google, Bing, Yahoo and others (either through free organic traffic or paid traffic). SEO refers to Search Engine Optimization, including on-site (ensuring that search engines can determine what your site is about, what to rank it for and to make your site much easier for search engines to crawl) and off-site SEO (focuses on driving relevant, authoritative links from other sites back to your site or blog so it will rank well in the search engines). To obtain good rankings, the search engines need to easily find your site when it is "crawled" and easily see what keywords you want to be ranked for. As your site is indexed it should move up the rankings with the correct SEO in place. It's therefore imperative to invest dedicated time and effort in developing your website to reap the rewards;
- Put in place "flexible" organizational models that enable the company to be more responsive to change, including modifying existing revenue sources. Companies feel pressured to assume greater efforts to optimize available resources. Work organization is instrumental in developing human resources to interact better with customers and promote an organization capable of adapting to market contingencies, its social and technical skills, and capacity to adopt new concepts;
- Create "rich" information. In other words, the information must be informative enough to prompt the customer to cultivate a good impression and make a positive purchasing decision;
- Continually evaluate and redesign your site; use the latest editing and developing tools such as template-driven WordPress or Macromedia Dreamweaver to make your site interactive and customer friendly.
- Communication with customers should be continual. Simply updating your site, sitting back and hoping it will attract visitors is no longer feasible. Keep the site current with newsworthy content, an active blog and uncomplicated response forms are important tools to boost sales figures and prompt return visits.
- Plan ahead by determining clear quantifiable goals and making it measurable; a number of variables will determine the structure of an incentive program that will appeal to your target audience. Whether it's an open-end or closed-end program, there should be a reward that will motivate participants to perform the desired behavior. In order to make the rewards tantalizing to recipients, research must be done to identify their interests.
- Track time and stick to a budget;
- Meet deadlines and initiate scheduled milestones;
- Rejuvenate past successes. Capture the intelligence in these projects to explore a huge opportunity to make you and your team more productive, effective and efficient;
- Create a consistent approach to Project Management with the intention of becoming a valuable player in financial discussion. The primary challenge is to achieve all of the project goals and objectives while honoring any preconceived constraints such as scope, time, quality and budget. The more ambitious secondary challenge is to optimize the allocation of necessary inputs and integrate them to meet pre-defined objectives.
- Consider selling self-liquidating branded merchandise on-site as part of your complete marketing mix. Profitable items include clothing and electronic equipment. When you make logoed products available to clients it's often a win-win proposition, whether you make a profit or not. Keeping stock fresh and adding new merchandise is essential since trends come and go and people look to you to be cutting edge.
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Hvar, Croatia with my special
lady friend!
Laxa River, Myvatn, Iceland.
For guide services, contact www.icelandfishingguide.com
Teddy (right) and Beau (left)
Thomas Charles ("TC") Turner, Jr. is a by God Texas Longhorn and a founding member of Buckley & Turner, PLLC. A native of Midland and a reluctant Houstonian, he is Board Certified in Oil, Gas and Mineral Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and is additionally licensed in Louisiana and New Mexico. Although trained in the common law at the University of Texas School of Law, TC has come to admire the finer points of Louisiana civil law.
TC's oil and gas practice involves transactional and title work, as well as litigation. He routinely examines complex mineral title and has rendered countless title opinions, including drilling, division order, and acquisition title opinions. His work in Texas and Louisiana spans all major basins, while his work in New Mexico encompasses state, federal and fee lands in the Permian Basin of Eastern New Mexico (Lea and Eddy Counties). TC is proud to report he can correctly pronounce potash, and humbled to admit his wife first corrected him.
In addition to title matters, TC routinely negotiates and drafts Purchase and Sale Agreements, as well as all industry standard contracts such as Operating Agreements, Surface Use Agreements, Farm In/Out Agreements, etc. TC also counsels his clients on regulatory and operational matters involving the Texas Railroad Commission, the Louisiana Office of Conservation, the New Mexico State Land Office and the Federal Bureau of Land Management. TC's litigation practice involves the proper construction of deeds and contracts under declaratory judgment acts as well as suits for unpaid/underpaid royalties.
TC's wills, estates and probate practice centers on estate planning and will drafting. He has drafted numerous complex wills and estate documents, including powers of attorney, HIPAA releases, and end of life directives. TC is most at home in his probate practice when deciphering multigenerational intestacy issues. He routinely clears title through heirship proceedings or small estate affidavits, and conducts independent and dependent administrations in Texas. He similarly probates estates in New Mexico, and conducts succession proceedings in Louisiana.
Outside of his law practice, TC is an active member of the AAPL, serving as Assistant Chairman of their Publications Committee. TC additionally serves on the Louisiana Social Committee of the HAPL, and is also a member of the PBLA.
TC is a very active member of the Texas Lawyers Assistance Program as a volunteer and is a former member of the State Bar's Standing Committee for the Lawyers Assistance Program. He is also an active member of the Texas Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers group and was the 2016 President of the organization. TC is a staunch advocate for recovery from mental health and drug and alcohol addiction issues that plague the legal profession. He routinely speaks at conventions and local meetings about recovery methods and resources available to the legal community.
When not in the office, TC can be found fly fishing in New Mexico or Colorado, walking his two toy poodles, Teddy and Beau, or traveling internationally with his wife, Kathleen
Tel: 832-930-6846
Fax: 866-407-3342
University of Texas School of Law
- "New Mexico Water Law," Permian Basin Landmen's Association Newsletter, March/April, 2019.
- "Oil, Gas, and Energy Law Year in Review," Texas Bar Journal, Vol. 82, No. 1, January 2019.
- AAPL New Mexico Land Institute "New Mexico Title Issues," September 12, 2018, Albuquerque, New Mexico.
- AAPL New Mexico Field Landman's Seminar "New Mexico Title and Curative Matters," September 11, 2018, Albuquerque, New Mexico.
- Fort Worth Association of Professional Landmen's July Luncheon "Overview of New Mexico Oil and Gas Law," July 19, 2018, Fort Worth, Texas
- New Mexico Landmen's Association Spring Seminar "Overview of New Mexico Oil and Gas Law" May 4, 2018, Roswell, New Mexico
- "A Primer on New Mexico Oil and Gas Law: State, Federal, and Fee Lands"
– AAPL Landman Magazine,
Vol . 63, No. 4, July/August 2018, at Page 26 – 43;
– LSU Journal of Energy Law and Resources,
Vol. VI, Issue 2, Spring 2018.
– Section Report of the Oil, Gas and Energy Resources Law Section of the State Bar of Texas,
Vol. 42, No. 2 (Winter 2018).
- "Backwardation Is Here (To Stay?)" – Rocky Mountain Landman – Vol.25, Issue 6 – Denver Association of Petroleum Landmen, January, 2018.
- "Killers of the Flower Moon – Book Review," Dallas Association of Professional Landmen Newsletter, September, 2017.
- "85th Legislative Update," Houston Association of Professional Landmen Newsletter, May, 2017.
- "Louisiana Update" (Part 1) (Part 2), AAPL Landman Magazine, Vol. 62, No. 2, May/June 2017.
- South Texas College of Law Wellness Forum March 28, 2017 – Houston, TX – Speaker: "Mental Health and Substance Abuse Issues in the Practice of Law." (TX CLE #901376066)
- "Allocation Well Update," (updated) Dallas Association of Professional Landmen's Newsletter, March, 2017.
- "Allocation Well Update," Permian Basin Landmen's Association Newsletter,
January, 2017.
- "Louisiana Update 2016," Section Report of the Oil, Gas and Energy Resources Law Section of the State Bar of Texas, Vol. 41, No. 1 (Fall 2016).
- "The Federal Helium Reserve," Houston Association of Professional Landmen Newsletter, November, 2016.
- "Potash in the Permian Basin of New Mexico," Permian Basin Landmen's Association Newsletter, October, 2016 (revised).
- "The Price of Oil and the U. S. Dollar," Houston Association of Professional Landmen Newsletter, October, 2016.
- "Potash in the Permian Basin of New Mexico," Houston Association of Professional Landmen Newsletter, September, 2016.
- "The Price of Oil and the Commitment of Traders Report," Houston Association of Professional Landmen Newsletter, August, 2016.


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America's Not-So-Dirty Secret: The Sexless Marriage
As a CSAT (Certified Sexual Addiction Therapist) I see more and more married couples coming to Wings of Hope Counseling who say they rarely have sex. For some it's been years, for others, they have never even consummated the marriage months and even years into the marriage. Check out what Robert Weiss, CSAT-S says about this topic in his article America's Not-So-Dirty Secret: The Sexless Marriage from Psychcentral.com.
America's Not-So-Dirty Secret: The Sexless Marriage
By Robert Weiss LCSW, CSAT-S
Behind closed doors, millions of couples are harboring a not-so-dirty little secret: We still love each other, but we don't have sex anymore.
Can a romantic relationship exist without sex? For an estimated 40 million people in the United States, the answer is yes. Whereas the average married couple over age 30 has sex 58 times a year (just over once a week), 15 to 20 percent of couples are "sexless," according to national surveys.
What Does 'Sexless' Mean?
There is no shortage of opinions about what constitutes a sexless marriage. Some couples aren't having sex at all, while others do the deed multiple times per week but would still describe their relationship as sexless. So how does a couple earn this dubious distinction?
The U.S. Health and Social Life Survey defines "sexless" as having sex fewer than 10 times per year. But a number can't neatly quantify intimacy; frequency of sexual contact depends on the unique desires of each couple.
Some partners are content to connect sexually once a month or less, perhaps because both have lower levels of sexual desire or one has a low sex drive or medical problem that the other accommodates. To other couples, once-monthly sex would spell the end of the relationship; instead, multiple times per week is the status quo.
The real question is whether one or both partners feels there isn't enough sex in the relationship. The issue gets heated when one partner has a higher libido than the other, or when sex fulfills a need other than intimacy or enjoyment, as may be the case when one or both partners suffer from love, relationship or sex addiction.
Some committed spouses struggle with underlying emotional disorders like sexual addiction, which can leave even the individual having daily sex feeling deprived because they are using sex more as a means of reassurance or control than to playfully improve an intimate connection. Those who seek intensity as a substitute for intimacy may find emotional comfort and distraction through compulsive masturbation, with or without pornography, and by using prostitutes, casual hook-ups and extramarital affairs instead of being sexual with their partner. In these cases, couples can only begin healing their relationship once the underlying sexual addiction or intimacy disorder has been identified and properly treated.
Is a Waning Sex Life Inevitable?
Although both men and women can have a low sex drive, studies show that twice as many women as men are in this position. This means that in many marriages, a woman will be with a spouse who wants sex more than she does.
It is common for sexual desire to ebb and flow over the course of any long-term relationship. Sex isn't abundant in every relationship, even in the early days of romance, and for many couples the demands of daily life get in the way. Busy schedules, illness, work pressures, child rearing and money problems can all dampen the mood. The prospects of a steamy sex life get even slimmer if a spouse suffers from low self-esteem, depression, trauma, anxiety or another mental health issue.
Although it is common, sexless marriage is not the fate of all committed couples. Most people know at least one couple that remains hot for each other decades into a marriage. But it requires ongoing effort and frequent communication about each partner's sexual and emotional needs. Ironically, people are more willing to think about sex, watch others having sex and actually have sex than they are to talk about it with their partner.
If two or three months have passed without sex, and the deficit is troubling to one or both partners, it's important to discuss the situation before a lack of intimacy threatens the future of the relationship. For some couples, a change in routine is all that's needed. Scheduling regular date nights, taking a vacation away from the kids, and developing joint interests can help spouses reconnect. For others, there may be marital problems or personal issues that need to be worked out with an objective third party such as a therapist or marriage counselor.
Sexless and Proud?
Is a relationship without sex doomed to fail? Sex is a natural, healthy way for a couple to bond emotionally and is an important contributor to overall health and happiness. Studies show a close correlation between sex and happiness, and those in sexless marriages are more likely to report considering divorce.
A marriage without sex also may be more vulnerable to infidelity, and infidelity may deprive a marriage of the trust and communication needed for ongoing intimacy. Whereas women tend to cheat because of unmet emotional needs, men often cite a greater desire for sex as the reason they strayed.
But a sexless marriage isn't necessarily a loveless one, and sex is by no means the only way to show affection. Someone who "gives in" to sex every week may do less to build intimacy in their relationship than someone who spends a lot of quality time touching, holding and talking to their partner. As long as both partners are satisfied with their level of intimacy, and honest about their feelings and needs, the relationship can thrive.
It all boils down to priorities. If sex is a priority for one or both partners, the couple will be strongest if they engage in an open dialogue and take steps to create a mutually satisfying sexual relationship. For those who achieve intimacy in other ways, sex may be an optional part of an otherwise happy relationship.


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Events Search and Views Navigation
Events for February 23, 2019 › Calendar
9:00 am
Get out of the house and into a snow-filled paradise! Saturday February 23rd is our Mardi Gras Themed Nordic Nibble & Nosh. Start off the day with an exceptional breakfast in the Tamarack Dining room. Next, enjoy cross country skiing along Garland's snowy trails. You will experience toasty campfires, delicious snacks and drinks, and cocktails [...]Find out more
Get your trail passes, rent ski equipment, shop for winter gear, arrange for cross-country lessons, go ice skating, or borrow some sleds for the kids!Find out more
4:30 pm
Enjoy an enchanting sleigh ride, pulled by these gentle giants. Bundle up with blankets and hot cocoa for your sleigh ride through our 3000 acres where you may get a chance to see wild game such as deer, elk, and turkey. Enjoy the winter peacefulness and tranquility you can only experience at Garland.Find out more
8:00 pm
Come and put your knowledge to the test! Covering a wide range of common knowledge questions along with history from the 60's, 70's, and 80's.Find out more


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Please include your contact information, so we can get in touch with you if the person you nominated is chosen.
The TOPS Rochester St. Patrick's Day Parade Committee thanks you for your commitment to the parade, and for your efforts in putting a deserving individual(s) in place to celebrate our Irish heritage, and the largest single-day family event in the City of Rochester!
Here's your opportunity to become involved with the greatest single-day event in the City while, at the same time, bringing forward a most deserving individual(s) to be recognized for their achievements / leadership in the greater Rochester area.
Nominations may be submitted electronically to our Board of Directors at www.rochesterparade.com
Rochester St. Patrick's Day Parade Committee, Inc. 6558 4th Section Rd Box 199 Brockport, NY 14420-2472


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Jarad J. Vartanian, CPA, is Shareholder and Director of Assurance Services at Vachon Clukay & Company PC. Jarad is a Certified Public Accountant licensed in New Hampshire and has been with the firm since 2003. Jarad's fields of expertise are concentrated in governmental and non-profit auditing and accounting, including federal compliance audits. Jarad advises the firm's governmental and nonprofit clients in a variety of capacities ranging from standards compliance to strengthening internal controls and has over 12,000 hours of applicable audit experience.
Jarad is a member of the Association of International Certified Public Accountants (AICPA). He received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting from Stonehill College and is also a recent graduate of the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce Leadership Program.
Notable Expertise:
- Assisting municipal and not-for-profit clients in understanding and meeting federal reporting compliance standards
- Supporting clients in strengthening internal controls over cash to ensure accurate information is available to management for guiding essential business decisions
- Assisting governmental clients in identifying and understanding pertinent information contained in financial statements
- Providing guidance to municipal clients on present and upcoming GASB Statements and related financial reporting implications


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This week on the Geek I/O Show, we were joined by the king geek himself, Jonathan Strickland (FW:Thinking, Large Nerdron Collider, and Podcast without Pretense)! He led us in the way of the geek, and we learned much. We were also joined by Dale Campbell and Princess JD sitting in for Rachel.
We discussed hooking a Wiimote to your phone, black cigarettes, who's your favorite Who, Sleeping Dogs, Teenage Mutant Ninja Podcast, moving your internet connection to 2010 standards, what is the greatest animated television series, putting the X in Xubuntu, Dale plays with his new Wii, wirecast, and the Farmville to Simpson Tapped Out meets The Hobbit game, and Neil's new ebook This Working Droid (Episodes 1-25) on Amazon! Plus! There's a new Ant Man movie coming out! Does any body care?
Join us on Geek I/O, won't you? We promise you will like the talk of our jib.
You can send us an email to email@example.com, subscribe on iTunes (or via RSS), or find us on Stitcher (use the code geekio and help us out a bit).
Geek IO is brought to you by Tweaked Audio! 7 colors, 7 types, ultra durable AND sound AMAZING! Both with and without microphones as well, so you can sound awesome on your iPhone, Galaxy S4, Nexus 5 or pretty much ANYTHING else! Use the code "GEEK" at checkout to get 33% off AND free shipping!
If you want to help support the show (e.g. - help us get new equipment, pay website costs, help us go see new release movies to review, etc...) consider donating to the show: www.geek-io.com/tipjar
We also want to let you know about our newest sponsor: ProXPN! Keep your internet activity private and anonymous. With free and premium accounts to take care of your every browsing need. Premium accounts start at $6.25/month, giving you access to their security and privacy options not only on your computer, but on your android or iOS devices.Go check them out and don't forget to use our coupon code "Geek20" for 20% off your purchase!
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The Geek I/O Show: Episode 45 Show Notes


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I am using GetTempPath() to get temporary directory path.
GetTempPath() returning on High Sierra is
and GetTempPath() returning on Maverics is
I need /private/var/folders/zz/zyxvpxvq6csfxvn_n0000000000000 also on Maverics.
Even I tried cocoa function NSTemporaryDirectory() on both High Sierra and Maverics, Its returning same path.
Why do you want to use that folder?
This api may be not implemented on such an old mac OS version. I have seen someone opening an issue here: https://github.com/dotnet/corefx/issues/13710.
You can also raise an issue on Mono: https://github.com/mono/mono/issues
At /private/var/folders/zz/zyxvpxvq6csfxvn_n0000000000000 location i can perform write operation without any restriction in compare to other location. I need to write file without restriction using my App. So I want to get this path at runtime.


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What are probiotics and why are they good for you? [Sponsored]
By Kathleen Wood, in partnership with Whole Foods Market
Have you avoided getting a cold this winter? If so, you might have probiotics to thank! Probiotics are live bacteria and yeasts that live in our bodies and are good for our health.
Hopefully you didn't cringe when you heard the word bacteria… often when we hear this word we think of disease, but your body is full of bacteria, both good and bad, and probiotics are the "good bacteria"!
They support our digestive system where most of our immunity work is done so this is how probiotics help us fend off illness. There are hundreds of different species of these friendly probiotics that are present naturally in our bodies, but they can also be created in food through the process of fermentation.
During fermentation, food is broken down by bacteria, yeasts, or other microorganisms and probiotics are created. Adding these fermented foods to your diet is a great way to boost immunity, and in addition, probiotics will help you synthesize vitamins, eliminate toxins, digest your food and absorb nutrients.
So how can you get more of these beneficial bacteria into your system? Try some of these foods, but make sure the package reads "Live" or "Live cultured":
- Yogurt (not all commercially sold yogurts have live cultures, so you have to check!)
- Kombucha -a fermented tea drink (Try GT's organic raw kombucha!)
- Live cultured pickles
- Live cultured sauerkraut-Fermented cabbage
- Live cultured kimchi-Spicy Korean fermented cabbage
- Live pickled veggies
- Unpasteurized miso
- Live cultured cheese
- Kefir-a popular cultured dairy drink
- Probiotic supplements-At Whole Foods Market we keep a large selection in the Whole Body department
Here are some tips for incorporating probiotics into your day:
- Incorporate kefir and yogurt into your meals.
- Make smoothies like our gorgeous Sunrise Breakfast Smoothie, or enjoy fruit salads, hot cooked cereals and more, topped with fresh yogurt or kefir.
- Have a kombucha drink with your lunch!
- Cook with Miso. Here's a recipe for a delicious Miso Soup with Garlic and Ginger
- Add kimchi or sauerkraut to your sandwiches or burgers, like we have here on our Kimchi Burgers.
Kathleen Wood, a Nutritionist with Whole Foods Market, leads Healthy Eating programming for the Mid-Atlantic region. She graduated from Dickinson College and then did a Master's degree in Public Health at Boston University where she focused on theories of health behavior change. She also completed a certificate in plant-based nutrition from Cornell University. She's happy to offer you advice on food, recipes and nutrition. Please feel free to contact her at firstname.lastname@example.com.


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I'm not clear on the origin of "Dry Run."
My personal favorite is from, "...prohibition when moonshine runners would run the route without carrying any alcohol to get to know the route better, and improve their speed for the actual run (hence a "dry" run)." (Joel Glovier). But it's most likely from fire departments giving exhibitions of their prowess at carnivals or similar events.
Regardless, I'm on one right now.
Even though I'm traveling by car through Southern California, I'm pretending that I'm in an exotic land with few services. That is, except when I'm hungry and need to make a dash to the nearest Mexican restaurant. (BTW: I had a chicken mole yesterday to die for!)
So far, I've discovered just a few flaws in my packing strategy. My approach is to put what I think I need in my Lowepro Pro Tactic 350, which would be my carry-on across the hemisphere. Then put the questionable items in my suitcase. If I discover that I need something that isn't in my backpack, I still have it with me.
So far, the only adjustment I've made was moving the WD My Passport Wireless hard drive. It was in my suitcase. I need to find a place for it in the backpack. I've discovered that I have to have it with me.
Other than that, just a few tweaks here and there. I still have a couple days to go on this trip, so there might be more fiddling to do.
But for now, I'm ready for the whiskey.
(Hmmm, that might not be allowed on the plane.)


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This is one of those weird Monday mornings when I sit at my computer and try to remember anything from last week but my mind is as blank as the screen in front of me. I have scrolled through my phone but apparently I took no pictures besides food pictures with my DSLR so I think I will have to wing this Week in Review. Though I obviously never give the full picture of my life (how could I), this week's post might be a bit fragmental.
But anyways as long as I remember the good fragments everything is alright, right? I am also linking up with Meg 🙂
Let's get started…
- I guess I went to work a couple of times and I remember I sent out a survey to all 180 of my former clients. We are conducting a study on the long-term outcome effects of Mentoring programs in academia. That actually sounds more posh than it is!
- I tried to work on my own thesis but couldn't quite concentrate. I have to give a talk about it in exactly one month. Time to hurry up! Time to wrap up that damn thing eventually.
- I was at home alone a few evenings and pretty much every time I got a chance (and light) I got out my camera and practiced. I slowly get where I want. Means, I slowly can get a picture I like not only by chance but on purpose. A brand new feeling!
- But that doesn't mean I don't have ugly photo shoots in between as well. The colors kinda put me off. Maybe it's the general theme. I have three Pina Coloda flavored recipes and I have to re-shoot them all. When I have managed that I will celebrate a Pina Colada themed week on here!
- Nonetheless as I get a bit more serious with my photos now – at least as serious as a hobby can get – I decided that it's time for a new camera this year.
- I made a Curry Soup with Meatballs and took some to work for lunch. The soup leaked on my laptop in my bag. My computer now smells of curry. Good luck it's one of my favorite flavors!
- I wrote a travel related post that I will publish at some point this week.
- I plucked my eyebrows. Or better I made two eyebrows out of the really fat caterpillar in my face
- I published a round up posts of 10 easy Summer Recipes with Lemon and Lime. I also took the opportunity to update the ones from last year.
- I got a manicure
- We went to friends for a BBQ and I brought Pesto Pasta Salad. I took the oportunity to re-shoot the recipe as the original pictures are horrendous! I need to put them up soon.
- I went to Crossfit twice. I really enjoy it at the moment. It doesn't feel like something I should do but something I want to do. Maybe it's the summer months and the fact that is bright outside so long. I don't know and I don't question it either.
- One day I ate half of a cold Pizza for breakfast and 2/3 of a bar of dark chocolate for lunch. It was awesome!
- I binge watched several hours of youtube.
- We booked the final accommodation in Toronto and the car for the second part of our trip. Big thanks to Cora who helped me out with a ton of information about Toronto and made finding an apartment in a good area really easy! In seven weeks and two days we are on our way to Denver! I seriously can't wait. My last vacation has been in November.
- I tested my BBQ Bacon Burger recipe again this weekend and it is my favorite Burger recipe ever! I also love this picture. It's almost ready to go online. I will quality control is once more this week 😉 I am also excited for my lunch now. Leftovers!
But now we have another week and another to-do list though I'd much rather crawl back under my duvet and pretend there is no outside world. I wonder how long I could do this. I know. Probably 2 minutes until I get bored and find me a distraction!
Game plan for today: Not killing anyone who murderes my patience, trying not to snap at the people who think it's acceptable to make the elevator stop twice for not having to walk one flight of stairs, Crossfit tonight and in between some work….


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Project: Elizabeth Quilt
It's…been a while!
So I have, as usual, dived headlong into a million projects after being dormant for far too long. I welcome this creativity though, after what seems like a few years of doldrums. I was even inspired to resurrect this journal after a threeish year hiatus! I don't know if this means I will have a spectacular flameout or this will settle nicely back to the new normal. That would be nice.
So, without further ado, I seem to have gotten sucked into quilting. I have started hand-piecing a Christmas-themed lap quilt that I will talk about soon, and I am also planning on making quilts for the kids. Here's the first one.
I fell in love with the Elizabeth fabric line from designer Tula Pink so ordered a fat quarter bundle. It is absolutely gorgeous, fun patterns and great imagery and colours. For once in my life I am being somewhat restrained and I chose what appears to be a pretty straightforward pattern for the fabric. I am going to be slightly modifying this tutorial from Sew Mama Sew. I have started cutting out the squares from the fat quarters, and it is going well so far.
I had a rotary cutter and tiny mat from a long-ago crafting experiment, and I started cutting out squares for the Christmas quilt project. I quickly realised that the gridded clear rulers are an essential, so I bought one of them from the local fabric store. I was planning on going back and buying a larger mat and some other notions later in the month (nothing like dropping a large wad of cash on a new project!) but I was lucky to mention my project to my Mum, and she had a large cutting mat and rotary cutter stashed in her sewing closet.
So, my plan is to get all the squares cut out and then start sewing! I brought my trusty old sewing machine out from exile, and it seems ready to go. The last time I used it was a couple years ago when I made flot bags for archaeobotanical analysis…or maybe it was when I made beanbags for the kids. I can't remember, which is a sign I haven't used it in a while! I have had this machine since my 16th birthday. It just is labelled "Imperial" and all it does is go forwards and backwards. The motor is a Janome, so I assume Imperial must have been one of their lines? Worth poking around on the internet, anyhow. There is so much stuff out there now that was impossible to find 20+ years ago.
I've played a bit mocking up what the blocks will look like, and I am super excited to see this come together.