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Energy populism is too costly for us to swallow
Jun 29. 2014
Pichaya Changsorn
The Nation
Besides the messy Thai politics, energy is one particular area that has been subjected to a public backlash on a massive scale during the past few years.
Much of the information spreading over the Internet (websites, Facebook posts, Line chats and so on) are half-truths, and some are completely absurd, such as the premise that Thailand is as rich as Saudi Arabia in terms of oil reserves. But people, including some who are educated, are seemingly ready to believe much of this propaganda.
The public are deeply discontent and distrustful of politicians, bureaucrats and the media. They like to hear what they like to hear. They want to believe what they would like to believe. It has also been mingled with politics, to be specific, the so-called Thaksin Shinawatra regime. Energy was among the top subjects that demonstrators fiercely raised during their months-long rally in Bangkok against the previous elected administration run by Thaksin's sister Yingluck Shinawatra.
So it is no wonder the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) has put energy reform at the top of its agenda. The military junta has vowed to finalise a reform package for the energy sector by the end of this month. To that end, the junta has called for meetings with groups who have widely differing opinions on the issue of energy reform.
The public has some grounds for its discontent. Domestic prices of electricity, cooking gas, and petrol have all gone up by more than 20 per cent since 2011 (see the "Thailand's soaring energy prices" graphic).
Electricity tariffs have been increased by 23.7 per cent, from Bt3.16 per kilowatt-hour in 2011 to Bt3.48 in 2012, Bt3.78 last year, and Bt3.91 at present. Prices of octane 91 petrol with 10 per cent ethanol (E10), for example, have gone up by 20.2 per cent, from Bt31.84 at the beginning of 2011, to Bt32.74 in January 2012, Bt35.38 at the start of last year, and Bt38.28 at present.
Through a few rounds of adjustments beginning last September, prices of liquefied petroleum gas for cooking have been raised by nearly 25 per cent to Bt22.63 per kilogram.
The cooking-gas prices were increased to reduce the huge subsidy burden carried by the Oil Fund, while the policy to fix the diesel price at Bt30 a litre has kept petrol prices unreasonably high. E85 petrol has also received a huge Oil Fund subsidy, at Bt11.60 a litre.
A major cause of the rising price of electricity is the cost of natural gas, for which the wellhead prices in the Gulf of Thailand have gone up by more than 50 per cent over the past six years.
But these Oil Fund cross-subsidies and undisclosed formulas for natural-gas prices are not obvious to the public, who have seen their end prices only go one way: up.
They have also read many reports, some true and others untrue, about the hefty bonuses and benefits PTT has paid its board members and management, and its nearly Bt100-billion annual profits (which were in fact meagre when compared with its own sale figures and those of its industry peers).
Moreover, the public takes note that in contrast to the local price rises, the world oil prices have been relatively stable during the past few years.
In nominal terms, crude-oil prices averaged US$87.04 a barrel in 2011, $86.46 in 2012, and $91.17 last year. Last Friday, West Texas Intermediate crude was trading in New York at about $105 a barrel, affected by the unrest in Iraq.
However, all of the above problems and misperceptions reflect an inconvenient truth: The more government meddles with energy-price policies, the more they get into trouble.
Politicians have found energy prices among the easiest ways to win voters' favour, but for Thailand, energy populism is too costly for us to swallow. As a country that is importing all types of energy – 81 per cent of its oil consumption, 70 per cent of domestic coal usage, and 20 per cent of natural gas – subsidising energy to achieve low prices is a sure path to disaster.
Instead of stepping into the shoes of politicians, the NCPO should take this opportunity to reform the energy sector for a sustainable future.
Instead of fixing short-term symptoms, it should focus its efforts on doing good things that are normally difficult to implement by populist politicians.
Overhauling the energy industry's regulatory bodies should be among the junta's first priorities, as well as finding effective laws and mechanisms to prevent or minimise political interventions in energy policy and agencies.
With dwindling domestic gas reserves that are estimated to last only seven years, and rising imports of liquefied natural gas whose prices are double those of domestic gas, Thailand is already in an energy crisis.
And populist energy policy can only make things worse.
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Teaching Abroad as a Career Choice
If you're thinking about teaching abroad, there is every possibility that you got the desire to travel and is not bothered about leaving your home country for a long period of time. Just about everybody desires and longs for an opportunity to travel abroad to see the beauty of nature and the world in its complexity.
There is no better way to fulfill that dream than a rewarding career of teaching abroad. If you have compared and contrasted the advantages and disadvantages of doing this, it is very possible that you already know what you need to bring this aspiration to fruition.
Nevertheless, not everybody is well suited for this type of job. We have provided information that will guide you to check is this type of profession is suited for you or not.
You definitely can choose to travel or nor travel but you must bear in mind that most institutions that will employ you for teaching abroad may require more commitment than you would have envisaged.
The majority of them would require you to be away for a complete whole year before traveling for a holiday. You must therefore organize yourself to be away for at least one year at a time.
Even though you have obtained a teaching certificate, it will benefit you the more if you could as well register for ESL courses either in a college or in institutions that offer a short time ESL programmes.
You must as well know what you want to do overseas because it is not every teaching abroad opportunity is based on the school environment. Even though you would get a lot of available job if you choose to teach children but there are other different programs that are business and corporate organization's inclined as many adult overseas desire to know the English Language as well.
Find the right type of job to suit your need. When it is time for you to start applying for teaching overseas, there are many different job options available to you.
If you have a teaching certificate the best place to make a job search is by going through schools. Endeavor to narrow your search to specific teaching areas you are more interested in.
With the internet resources available you could easily search for schools or organizations in a particular country and area you are interested in. Most of the schools and organizations specify if they accept oversea teachers.
You could as well regularly check the database of Job bank to stay informed about any new teaching abroad job opening in your area of interest. If you enroll for a teacher's certification program, there is every possibility that they will provide you with a job posting service that can unite you with the correct people and places. This is one of the reasons why you are in a better situation when you take up a certification program.
Conversely, if you are not certified for teaching abroad, you would still be able to find employers that may want to hire you. It might help to join the Peace Corps for an opportunity to teach abroad in addition to a possibility of being assisted by them to advance your education.
Speak to your college about teacher exchange programs. Some overseas' schools may offer you the opportunity to be an assistant teacher for a semester or two while a teacher from that oversea school visits your school.
These are additional ways to get experience teaching abroad but if you hope to teach English as a second language overseas, you need to work on getting a certification ultimately. It is the best way to get a job teaching overseas as well as being rewarded for your work financially

subset: commoncrawl


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Understanding how much your deliveries will cost with Sendle is really simple - because Sendle uses reliable, flat-rates.
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Existing account holders
If you have sent a parcel with Sendle before, the only information you'll need is:
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For International parcels
For international parcels, you will need to do a test order using the 'Send a parcel' button. Just change the default setting from Australia to the country of your choice and select the parcel size to get a quote (you'll never be charged for anything without your confirmation).
You can also have a look at our international prices in this article.


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I protested our property taxes. When we purchased the home, our realtor told me that our taxes were way too high, especially since we purchased the home as a foreclosure. Well, I wasn't at all familiar with the process and looked online for protest instructions (subsequently after writing this post I found this awesome instructional video). I found a website with a phone number, but whenever I called I looped through automated responses and then ended up leaving a voicemail for an anonymous county clerk.
After leaving several voicemails for a few months, sometime in March I finally received a letter in the mail with a website and login, directing me towards the Collin County Central Appraisal District Electronic Filing website. Upon entering the site, I could file an e-protest. I quickly filed out and submitted the online form. I knew that our home's market value was listed too high, so I challenged the county on the basis of the market value being too high.
A week later, I received an email saying that my protest had been updated. I logged in, and saw that the county had rejected my offer, and proposed a counter offer, which was the same starting value I was protesting. There was one other option remaining, and that was to request a formal hearing date. I had no idea what that meant, but if I was going to do this, I was going to do this big and all the way, so I selected the option to protest at a hearing.
I received the hearing notice in the mail, and put a task item on my mental agenda to call our realtor and research how to be best prepared for these things. Well, before I knew it, it was the day before my hearing and I hadn't done any of my homework. I called the realtor, and he quickly gave me some advice. I went home and spent the evening hours and well into the early morning preparing my case and gathering evidence. After learning what the process was all about, I crafted my story. I was protesting on the basis of unequal appraisal. My case was the following: based upon the average assessed property tax per square foot of other similar homes on my street, my property taxes should be lower. In layman's terms, there are bigger homes on my street with lower property taxes, and therefore I wanted my taxes lowered.
I was able to locate a handful of essential websites, which helped me put together my case. The first required website listed the addresses on my street (once you get there, search for 'property valuation of your street, your city, your state). I figured using my street was the most direct comparison, because I wouldn't have to explain the proximity of the homes if the street address was identical to mine. Using the website was extremely helpful and more convenient than trying to zoom in using googlemaps, or walking down the street stalking homes with a flashlight at 1AM (yes, it was 1AM by the time I got this far in my case preparation). After collecting the addresses on my street, I went to the Collin County Property Record Search Database and entered each address. Here, I was able to read all the property details in order to build my case: the address, market value, appraised value, tax rate, square footage, year built, the deed history and much more. The goal here was to find the three largest square footage homes, but with the lowest property taxes. I averaged the taxes per square footage for three homes, and this gave me the county assessed average tax ratio I would use. I then multiplied my home's square footage by this value in order to determine my recommendation for my tax assessed property value to present at the hearing.
So what does all this property tax mumble jumble really mean? Basically, Texas has one of the highest average property tax rate, and I wanted to save us some money. I estimated that our assessed property tax should be $37,000 cheaper, which is the equivalent of reducing the tax component of our mortgage payment by $814 a year, or more than $24,000 over the course of our mortgage. To calculate how much you pay in taxes, divide your home purchase amount by your tax rate as a percentage. Somehow I've digressed from the story…
So, my hearing was schedule for 8:30AM, but the county office opened at 8AM, and they heard the cases in the order of arrival. I got there at 7:45, and I was number twelve in line outside the door. Once inside, I dropped off my pages and pages of evidence and wait inside a hearing room. The review board came in, and I realized they are just regular tax paying people just like me, so that boosted my confidence. I was second to go, and the first woman had a very weak case, and that boosted my confidence even more. She was protesting the market value of her home on the basis of a junk yard next to her home, where she could hear coyotes howling at night. Seriously. So this news gets me very excited for my case, because I'm all prepared with my average-tax assessed-value-per-square-foot calculations and what not.
When I sit down at the computer, they bring up my case, and then proceed to offer their evidence, supporting why their market value number is valid. They have several homes in my neighborhood, recently purchased for far more money than we paid. Humph! I think, that's not part of my argument, and was irrelevant. But then I began to wonder why their only evidence centered around market value evidence, when clearly the tax value was too high. Then they told me it was my turn, and I was two sentences into my argument when the panel chairwoman stops me and points out one little problem. All my evidence challenged the property tax value based on unequal appraisal and not market value. Then I flashed back to when I hastily completed that online form, way back in March, and the only protest reason I selected was market value argument. It was a technicality, that could mean hundreds of dollars I would overpay in taxes in 2012. The board confirmed they could not hear the argument I had stayed up until the wee hours of the morning putting together because of this technicality. You see, they had not prepared a supporting argument for tax value and I guess you can't just show up and have all these arguments if you didn't tell them before hand. I can understand that, but mine was a pretty darn strong case!
Already defeated, they asked me for my closing arguments, and I offered my HUD-1 settlement papers which showed the purchased price of my home was much lower than the market value, and they agreed with on that. So, the good news is that they lowered my tax assessed value to the purchase price of my home. The bad news was that if I had just selected the correct option online months ago, I could have lowered my 2012 taxes even more.


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In reality, there were huge numbers of colonists who didn't support the American Revolution. After the initial fervor died down, just getting people to enlist proved tough. The patriots had to offer large bounties to get people to sign up for the war, and when that didn't work, most colonies resorted to conscripting men, sending the conflicting message, "Cast off the chains of oppression or we'll throw your ass in jail."
On top of Americans being far more divided than the movies would have you believe, even historians forget about the opinions of a huge population, one that the fledgling U.S. government also conveniently overlooked: the slaves. It's easy to see why many American slaves would have been on the side of the British: They didn't like being fucking slaves. And as a slave, that's probably your number one political issue.
Slavery was already outlawed in the United Kingdom and its island territories, which meant that it would likely be on its way out in the Colonies if the British prevailed. In fact, Lord Dunmore, the royal governor of Virginia during the revolution, announced that any slave who joined the British against the rebellion would be granted freedom. "Tyranny" under the British monarchy meant freedom for the slaves.
As a result, many slaves fled -- or attempted to flee -- including Harry Washington (three guesses as to who his master was). Henry Washington joined the British army in Lord Dunmore's regiment, who wore uniforms embroidered with "Liberty to Slaves." Unfortunately for Henry and thousands of other slaves on the run, the British surrendered to the colonists fighting for "freedom" -- including the freedom to keep slaves. Many former slaves scrambled to make it aboard retreating British ships. Female slaves who were pregnant were especially incentivized to make it across British lines, because any baby born there would receive a "BB" certificate (which stood for "Born Free Behind British Lines").


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ED Treatment Bellerose Queens
ED Treatment Bellerose Queens
Be certain to visit Manhattan Medical Associates if you're looking for erectile dysfunction therapy in New York City . Manhattan Medical Associates is New York City's premier facility for ED treatment and make sure that each patient receives the full benefit of cutting edge research. Our goal is for your sex life to be revitalized. Unfortunately, erectile dysfunction more common than you'd think it might be. However, taking the steps to address it or even to just discuss it is capable of being difficult for many. This is not just an issue that impacts older men, but can also impact younger men as well. If this is something you've just been living with however, there is hope. Many of the treatments you'll find are either unreliable, expensive, or come with dangerous or painful side effects, which discourages a large number men from getting the help they need. Thankfully, the cutting edge technology used by SwissWave treatment is here to offer results that will truly work. Don't wait any longer if you're interested in ed cures in Bellerose Queens. SwissWave can make a difference in your life. Find out more by checking out Manhattan Medical Associates today.
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Providing you with highly effective and revolutionary erectile dysfunction treatment in New York City is what we are here for at Manhattan Medical Associates. SwissWave is approved by the Food and Drug Administration and is highly effective when it comes to treating ED. SwissWave technology uses low intensity acoustic waves. This will enhance blood flow and repair soft tissues. A lot of other ED treatments simply treat the symptoms. By attacking the source of the problem, this type of therapy genuinely works. Erections that are stronger, longer-lasting, and natural are reported by those who take part in SwissWave therapy. Many men have become very discouraged after trying other treatments for ED. There are a lot of medications out there for ED, like Cialis and Viagra. However, many men discover that they are either not effective, or they bring with them harmful side effects. There are other available options such as surgical procedures or injections, but these bring with them their own discomforts and serious side effects. When you are looking for highly effective erectile dysfunction therapy in Bellerose Queens there's no need to go anyplace else before visiting Manhattan Medical Associates.
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Are you looking for New York NY in ED therapy? At Manhattan Medical Associates, we are here to provide the help you need. It's normal for men to be skeptical, particularly if they have unsuccessfully tried other treatments. Because this treatment is new you might have a lot of questions, and we're pleased to provide you with whatever information you need. Like many patients, you might be worried about safety considering it is a new treatment. Thankfully, you're not going to find a safer procedure for ED treatment. There isn't any recovery period either. As a matter of fact, you can go about your normal daily routine after each session. It doesn't matter what age you are – this treatment offers amazing results. Never settle when it comes to your sex life. Make a real difference with Swiss wave therapy in New York NY .
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ADA Braille Push Button Exit Sign | 9" x 6"
With security systems being incorporated into more business, office, and retail spaces, clearly marking exit buttons is important to safety and traffic flow. All signs are Made in the USA. Several color combinations available.
Additional Information
|Art Process
|Two Color


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In this app you will find:
- Information and application examples of more than 60 Covestro materials
- Interactive collages from our materials – Dive in, learn something or be inspired
You already know your way around? Filter by area of application, aesthetic or technical properties and find the right material for your needs.
Covestro is one of the world's leading suppliers of high-quality polymer materials: innovative, sustainable and versatile.
We manufacture the precursors for polyurethane foam. As a hard foamed material, it insulates houses or makes refrigerators energy-efficient – and can be found in soft form in mattresses or upholstery.
We also make polycarbonate. The material has been used for CDs and DVDs for a long time and today, for example, makes electronic devices light and robust. As a perfect replacement for glass, it can also be found in car roofs or headlights – making the car lighter and less fuel-efficient.
Our materials are also used in coatings, adhesives and other specialties – for example to make bridges weather-resistant.
Examples of all this (and much more) can be found in the Covestro Sample Lab. Download it now!


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Follow the Twitter updates from the Free Press' Alex Abrami and Austin Danforth, who are covering tonight's D-I boys basketball semifinals.
— PREVIEW: Rice-Rutland, Burlington-BBA square off in D-I Final Four
PHOTOS: Rice beats Rutland 54-35 in Division I boys basketball semifinal in Burlington
Rice boys beat Rutland 54-35 in basketball semifinal in Burlington
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Helping young people in our community to progress and succeed
All our full time courses require students to take part in work-related activities, work experience and/or work placement. First-hand experience of the work place is vital to a student's training. It helps young people make up their minds about their future and develop the confidence and skills they need to get their career off the ground.
There are also many benefits to employers, from answering skills shortages, becoming a real part of the community, a chance to see how potential employees suit your organisation's culture.
Employer Toolkit
The toolkit has been designed to support employers who agree to offer work experience placements to students with special educational needs, learning difficulties and/or disabilities.
Why should my business get involved?
Immediate Benefits
- Bring a fresh perspective and new ideas into your business.
- Give your employees opportunities to coach and mentor your future talent.
Long Term Benefits
- Help address the current and future skills shortages in your industry.
- Strengthen your recruiting pipeline.
- Inspire the next generation to work in your industry.
What do I need to do?
- Provide a minimum 45 day work placement for a student studying a course relevant to your business.
- Arrange the placement with a participating Post-16 provider for some time in the next academic year.
- Contact New College Stamford to arrange a meeting with a Work Placement Co-Ordinator who will be responsible for matching your business with a student.
- Provide a safe environment for the student to work in and opportunities to develop their technical skills and knowledge within your industry.
What does it cost your business?
Absolutely nothing! It only requires a little of your time and minimum administration – and could make a real difference to the life of a young person. And who knows they could potentially even be your next star recruit.
Becoming a supporter
So, if your business could benefit from an extra pair of free hands, please call 01780 484362 or email firstname.lastname@example.com


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We describe a novel approach based on topology optimization that enables automatic discovery of wavelength-scale photonic structures for achieving high-efficiency second-harmonic generation (SHG). A key distinction from previous formulation and designs that seek to maximize Purcell factors at individual frequencies is that our method aims to not only achieve frequency matching (across an entire octave) and large radiative lifetimes, but also optimizes the equally important nonlinear-coupling figure of merit , involving a complicated spatial overlap-integral between modes. We apply this method to the particular problem of optimizing micropost and grating-slab cavities (one-dimensional multilayered structures) and demonstrate that a variety of material platforms can support modes with the requisite frequencies, large lifetimes , small modal volumes , and extremely large , leading to orders of magnitude enhancements in SHG efficiency compared to state-of-the-art photonic designs. Such giant alleviate the need for ultranarrow linewidths and thus pave the way for wavelength-scale SHG devices with faster operating timescales and higher tolerance to fabrication imperfections.
© 2016 Optical Society of AmericaFull Article | PDF Article
7 April 2016: A correction was made to the funding section.
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Good morning Sunshines!
I hope you are having a happy Sunday! This morning I rolled out my mat for some morning stretching. Last week I was so busy, and it felt like I would never be able to slow down. So this morning I made time to slow down a bit.
Even thought I did have these few minutes of calm relaxation time, after, once I'm back to reality I still feel like there so much I have to tackle and not enough time. Between work (my day job),writing on my blog, a project that I'm doing on the side, working on a certification, attempting to study for a test to get into grad school, and putting the finishing touches on our, on top of living my day to day life I think I may be getting a bit overwhelmed. (A bit may be an understatement.)
Whenever I feel this way, what gives me the best peace of mind is planning on how I'm going to tackle all of these things, create timelines, and reach my goals. And on that note, I'm going to go eat a yummy breakfast and get started on my day.
How do you guys tackle your list of To-dos when you feel overwhelmed? Comment below and Share your thoughts!!!


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1 oz whole almonds
1 oz plain flour
1 level tsp baking powder
a pinch of salt
4 oz butter
4 oz caster sugar
2 eggs
6 oz sultanas
2 oz glace cherries
2 oz walnut halves
2 tsp liquid honey
1 oz chopped mixed peel
Put almonds in small pan, cover with water and bring to boil.
Drain and skin and split in half.
Sift flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl.
Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Beat eggs and gradually add to creamed mixture, beating all the time.
Fold in flour and sultanas.
Spread evenly in greased 1lb loaf tin.
Bake in centre of pre heated oven for 30 mins at 350°F then reduce to 300°F for 20 mins.
When cool cut cherries in half and put in pan with nuts, honey and peel.
Heat gently until honey is liquid then boil rapidly for 3 mins.
Let cool.
Pour over top of loaf when it begins to thicken.


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Jacques du Manoir Women's Designer Watch Swiss made Watch Executive Classic Wrist Watches (Inspiration) 23497
Regular price
- Quality Swiss quartz movement with Analog display
- Steel Metal case with mineral dial window
- Case Diameter: 26mm, Silver Metal Bracelet
- Round shape case with Black Dial and mineral glass
- Water resistant 5 ATM
Classy executive women's watch Wrist watch Ladies watch gift set. Attention ladies! This fine stainless steal watch "Inspiration" will be your new best companion. The watch is manufactured in Switzerland by the master craftsmen at the Jacques de Manoir institute of Geneva. Perfect for the classy lady, this elegant time piece will compliment any outfit due to its classic appearance. The Jacques de Manoir brand is trusted and internationally recognized for quality and is sure to create an impression that says understated elegance. The watch features a Swiss made movement, a three hand dial, a date window and a bracelet band. The dial face measures 26.00 mm and is adorned with beautiful diamond-inspired stones in either single or double setting. The watch comes in a variety of color combinations and in two different sizes (26.00 und 36.00mm).


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Strawnana Blast 80ml E-Liquid by Stylex Cloud
Strawberry, Banana
We have now brought together the perfect blend of fruity smooth banana's blended with freshly picked sweet strawberries. This E-Liquid will make your taste buds dance with excitement.
- 80ml Bottle
- Available in 0mg - Add Nicotine Shot
- 30% PG (Propylene Glycol) - 70% VG (Vegetable Glycerin)
- Made in Malaysia
- Authetic Gorilla Bottle
Stylex Cloud Bio
Hand picked by Stylex Cloud is your most wanted Classic e-liquids. Stocking a wide range, Stylex offers the sweetest flavours to the strong tasting tobacco flavours. In Their range, there is an e-liquid to suit everyones taste. A higher PG ratio in their classic blends means it asll about a strong throat hit and perfect flavours. You can pick and choose your nicotine strength all the way from 0% to 1.8%. Now they have introduced there 80ml E-Liquids high VG which has great flavour and huge cloud!
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New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi opens up to Game Plan For Life about the journey God has taken him on as a player and manager for Major League Baseball's most legendary organization. Says Girardi in the video, "I was afraid that I would never get an opportunity (at managing a team)…God had his hand in it all." Click HERE to watch more videos and testimonies from Game Plan For Life.
Sport By Sports Spectrum Apr 29, 2015


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From the leaves to the temperatures, fall represents a season of change. However, there's one thing that stays the same this month: Downtown will bustle with fun and engaging activities. These Main Street events will bring people together to celebrate the season, the local culture and the brighter future that local businesses can create for the community.
Chili Festival
October 12, 2018
Tupelo, Mississippi
Fall's cooler temperatures make it the perfect time for Tupelo's annual Chili Festival. This lively event has brought the community together for nearly 20 years, and this year promises to be no different. The festival will include competitions for best chili recipe, best team spirt, best costumes, most creative tent and most original theme. Visitors will get to vote for their favorite teams and dishes, while live music sets the festive scene. Learn more from Tupelo Main Street.
Seton Village Food Truck & Craft Beer Festival
October 19, 2018
South Orange, New Jersey
This annual event, now in its fifth year, will highlight a particular neighborhood and a collection of local businesses. The Seton Village Food Truck & Craft Beer Festival will feature more than 20 local food trucks, two live bands and a wide array of local beers. Visitors can expect a barbeque, tacos, cupcakes, waffles, international cuisine, healthy meal choices and a selection of beer, wine and cider. They can also expect crowds, as the participation in this event has grown each year. For more information, visit the South Orange Village Center.
Mother-Son Halloween Dance
October 23, 2018
Gainesville, Georgia
Be sure to register in advance for this annual event. The 15th annual Mother-Son Halloween Dance will offer a catered dinner and a night of dancing. In the spirit of its title, the event will also feature a costume contest. Take advantage of this opportunity to create lasting memories or start a new family tradition. More information is available from the City of Gainesville.
Scare in the Square
October 27, 2018
Rapid City, South Dakota
Rapid City will kick its Halloween celebration off early with a family-friendly event the weekend before the big day. During this free event, Main Street Square will fill with kid-approved activities, including trick-or-treating. Kids are encouraged to show off their costumes and bring their trick-or-treating bags. Learn more from Main Street Square.
Downtown Trick-Or-Treating
October 31, 2018
Grand Haven, Michigan
Young ghouls and goblins in Grand Haven will have twice the chances for Halloween tricks and treats. From 4 to 5:30 p.m., children can trick-or-treat throughout downtown Grand Haven, where local stores and restaurants abound. Then, they can explore their own neighborhoods for traditional, residential trick-or-treating from 6 to 8 p.m. More information is available from Visit Grand Haven. If you're not in the area, try finding a similar event in your neck of the woods – downtown trick-or-treating opportunities will take place in communities across the country on Halloween.
Read more about main street events.


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29 Jan Shantanu Prasher Case Study: How Shantanu Built A Cover Model Physique
You may have heard the sayings,
'Nothing worth having comes easy'
'Good things come to those who wait'
And you may have seen them written on motivational quote cards for business, relationships and life.
But where I see these equally applicable is in body transformation. More specifically, in those of you who want to build muscle and develop the real physique you're after.
You see, muscle building is a process that rewards those who are patient, laser focused and willing to play the long game.
It's nothing like a leaning phase, where you can see week on week improvement. Instead, it's about ticking daily boxes, trusting your actions, and keeping the goal the goal.
The last bit is crucial. The most critical muscle building mistake all of you will make at some point is not embracing the fluff, and forgetting that a muscle building phase will lead to some fat gain. It's unavoidable (contrary to what you may see or hear in magazines or on social media…), and resisting it will only damage your own progress.
This is especially applicable to those of you who after leaning down, may have realised that you don't actually have as much muscle as you originally thought. Not uncommon at all. And the only solution is a lengthy and strategic building phase where you double down and focus on setting PRs in the gym, and PRs on the plate.
Back in the middle of 2017, Shantanu came to us at RNT with all of these mistakes wrapped up into one.
With an extremely busy life as the editor in chief at India's biggest men's online lifestyle magazine, he was growing frustrated at his lack of muscle building results.
He was always program hopping in search of the best workout, prematurely cutting at any sign of body fat, and unaware of the process required to build the physique of his dreams.
Interestingly, when I asked him now what he felt what his biggest mistake, his response hit the nail on the head:
Shantanu: Of all the mistakes I made before, the number one mistake by far was my mindset. I was always looking for a quick fix, especially when it came to muscle building. But I had NO idea the truth behind natural muscle building, and the mindset required to be truly successful in it. Shifting to a long-term approach changed everything, and I'm now enjoying the fruits of my labour!
Using this change in mindset, Shantanu then began what I like to call the 'ideal physique journey', which involves our triphasic approach:
Phase 1– Initial leaning period to prime him for future muscle growth
The length here is always dependent on the initial goal; for many people, this may be to get as lean as possible. For Shantanu, this was a short 'tidy up' so he could begin his year of building.
Phase 2– Developing as much strength as possible in a calorie surplus to fuel muscle growth
This is the investment phase, and where you deposit your pennies for the future.
Phase 3– Fat loss with the aim to build further, or consolidate towards a lifestyle solution.
This is when you lean down and cash out on phase 2. What you do with your returns depends on if you want to continue to make improvements. For many of you, the answer will be yes, but for some of you, it'll be about maintaining your results and managing how to do so in accordance with your lifestyle (a great goal in itself!)
In this case study, we're going to look over how Shantanu used this triphasic approach to build a cover model physique, and some of the insights gained along the way.
Shantanu's Comments:
From athletics at high school, to fetching sporting laurels for my college during under-grad, I was always an active dude growing up. But then came in a busy 9-5 desk job at India's biggest men's lifestyle online magazine, MensXP, and right along with it, a sedentary and party driven lifestyle with a 4-hour return commute! I ballooned up and decided to do something about it. Being well versed with the concepts of calorie counting and macro distribution, I successfully drove my first transformation myself. But then I hit the dreaded plateau. I wanted to build muscle but didn't really succeed. It was a struggle. I was lacking somewhere. I was hurting mentally because all the efforts I was making were resulting to nothing. My mindset towards building muscle was all wrong as well. I was fed up of unstructured training and the wrong diet plans, so this made me look out for a coach who I could myself accountable to and guide me. Enter RNT!
Phase 1: Priming
When your goal is muscle growth, there's one golden rule you need to abide by before starting: you must be lean first.
If you start a building phase when you're 'skinny fat', you're only going to become more skinny fat. At high levels of body fat, your body is very efficient at getting fatter and fatter when you combine a calorie surplus into the mix.
Instead, when you start lean, you can experience these three key benefits:
1) Increased insulin sensitivity. This is a measure of how 'receptive' your cells are to insulin, which then allows muscle building nutrients such as glucose, creatine and amino acids inside.
2) For every pound you gain when you're lean, a higher percentage of it will be muscle, and a lower percentage will be fat.
3) You can 'bulk' for longer. You'll always gain some body fat when you're trying to build size, so if you start lean, you give yourself more 'space' to grow into without plateauing.
Shantanu was well aware of these benefits, and so we agreed to start by undergoing a 6 to 8 week priming phase to tidy up any unwanted body fat. His starting condition at 71kg looked like this:
To begin with, we started with the following macronutrient set up:
Protein: 190g
Fats: 60g
Carbs: 150g
His diet was set up as follows (bear in mind this was tailored according to his food preferences and choices):
M1 – Eggs, Rice, Veggies
M2 – Whey Protein, White Potato, Olive Oil
M3 – Chicken Breast, Rice, Olive Oil, Veggies
M4 – Whey Protein, Banana, Olive Oil
M5 – Chicken Breast, Rice, Butter, Veggies
The supplements were nothing fancy. We stuck to the bare basics of whey protein, vitamin D3, creatine monohydrate, and some fish oil. On occasion, he'd add in magnesium to help with sleep.
With regards to training, this is where Shantanu needed most work. He had no real structure, was doing too much volume, and his strength wasn't going anywhere.
From the start, we dropped from five high volume 'bodybuilder' style sessions to four days a week with an extra rest day, with the focus being on progressive overload and perfect form in the 5 to 10 rep range.
Because we knew the goal of this dieting phase was only to prime for future growth, we started with cardio right away and introduced 30 minutes of steady state on his three rest days.
The plan worked well, and we got Shantanu to just under 67kg before deciding to reverse back up. As you'll see, he's a lot tidier in this picture, but still has a way to go to be considered 'lean'. But for Shantanu, the bigger picture was more important, and we knew we had the real leaning phase coming in the future. It was now time to start investing.
Shantanu's Comments: Since I always knew that building muscle naturally was a long and taxing process, I was never in a hurry. I was OK with an initial leaning phase. To build muscle was my primary goal and this was the path to it. It takes time and I was ready to put it in. I kept calm and ate as instructed without making any excuses. Sometimes the food did get too much to cope with as the bulk progressed, but I sucked it up anyway. I always had my eyes set on my goal.
Phase 2: Investing
With Shantanu primed for building, we began to walk his calorie intake up over the course of the year from 1600-1700 all the way up to about 3500, with carbohydrate intake around the 400g mark.
This was a slow progression, and the real goal here was to provide sufficient fuel for his training, which now became the main focus. We set performance targets on his key lifts, and he trained like an animal to reach these goals knowing that the process of doing so would hold the key to more muscle mass.
Building muscle is always tougher psychologically. There's no immediate deadline nor instant gratification to give quick wins. It's a long slog; which is why it's arguably harder than a leaning phase. It requires more accountability, more support, and more reassurance that you're on the right path. Otherwise it can be very easy to get lost. I see it all the time, whereby ambitious trainees lose all their drive, end up demotivated, and so either diet to spark an illusion of progress (and look the same as before), or worse, give up.
However, Shantanu was different. He treated this seriously, and knew that this where he was going to make all his money in the future. He knew you 'can't carve a pebble', and so had his eyes set on building as big of a foundation as possible for the future.
Over the course of nearly a year, we ended up pushing his bodyweight all the way up to just under 80kg. This was completely new territory for Shantanu, and admittedly, we may have pushed a little too high in bodyfat. Nevertheless, I'm a firm believer that pushing into new bodyweight territories, even if a little sloppy, can be what's needed to 'solidify' your muscle mass gains, and take you to the next level.
At the same time of peaking his bodyweight and calorie intake, Shantanu also got married. During the month long (!) wedding celebrations, calories were naturally very high, but he continued to train hard and heavy, and actually set some big PRs in this period.
Shantanu's Comments: During the peak months of my bulk, I decided to get married. That meant an unregulated influx of food and drinking. As expected, I bust the calorie cap right out of water and touched the 80 kilo mark. Though I knew I had put on unnecessary fat, I took full advantage of it by training as hard and as heavy as possible. I was ruthlessly consistent about it. To a large extent, it did pay off when we chipped away the fat. I lurked into the territory of dirty bulking and I wouldn't want venture into it again. Though I was concerned about the fat gain but since I barely had any choice, I went with it and decided to diet down hard, which I later did.
Phase 3: Cashing Out
It was time.
Shantanu was 80kg, back from his honeymoon, and ready to cash out on his investments. If we look at the target bodyweight according to our 'How Heavy Will You Be When Lean' scale for someone of Shantanu's height (5ft 8), it's 58 to 65kg.
If we consider in his before picture he was 71kg, and he finished his first 'mini cut' at 67kg (while nowhere near 'lean'), you can see why a muscle building phase was so critical for him.
With this general range in mind, we began dieting through traditional means of increase activity, and reducing calories.
But we had two challenges to overcome:
1) Shantanu's four hour stationary commute to and from work in the crazy Delhi traffic. Coupled with a ten hour work day, this meant Shantanu had to be ruthless with his time to fit his training, meal prep, cardio and step targets into his day.
2) A torn meniscus in his right knee. Terrible timing. A freak injury meant no leg training, no traditional cardio and a controlled number of steps. I guess the first obstacle of time and a stationary commute solved itself! We just had to now go harder on the diet.
This was a real disappointment though, as Shantanu explains: 'I was the most excited about how my legs would come out after the final cut after months of blasting them hard. Sadly, the right knee meniscus got torn and typical cardio and all leg training went out the window. A real shame, but these things happen I guess!'
As the shoot date approached, we needed to decide what type of look we were going for. Original plans for a solo shoot with a top photographer in Mumbai changed, and he was now going to be featured as part of a MenXP Health campaign (a big moment for him!). The look we needed was lean with a 'cover model' look, not completely shredded.
Shantanu nailed it:
During the course of the diet, we dropped a total of 17kg, and Shantanu ended up at 63kg, falling at the higher end of the predicted scale, and validating all the months of building. Had he avoided a structured period of muscle gain and continued dieting first time round, he'd have ended up in the high 50s. It's hard to say exactly how much muscle Shantanu built, but rough calculations would point at a solid 7-10lbs, which is a very healthy return of investment!
Key Lesson To Learn
If there's one lesson to learn from Shantanu's story, it's knowing how and when to keep the bigger picture in mind.
At the beginning, Shantanu started with a dieting phase despite having a goal of muscle growth. Through this period, he knew it was priming him for future success.
When he was getting heavier, fluffier and losing all definition, he could easily have panicked and started a mini cut. But he knew it was going to be worth it when the time was right.
Playing the long game is tough. In a world where we're drawn to instant gratification, good things really do come to those can wait out the longest.
Stats & Pictures:
Starting Bodyweight: 71kg
Peak of Bulk: 80kg
Lean Bodyweight: 63kg
These are his comparison pictures:
This was the comparison from the peak of his bulk to his leanest – you wouldn't think he was 17kg lighter!
Next Plan?
At the end of a leaning phase you typically have one of two options:
1) Maintain your gains for a while, and if you're happy with your size, focus on building strength while staying lean (and accepting very slow muscle gains)
2) Push hard into a muscle building phase again to make improvements and come back in better shape (more muscle and leaner) next time.
Shantanu is going for the latter! He knows this is all part of the journey, and after a solid reverse diet phase, aims to begin depositing the pennies again.
To read his testimonial:
From athletics at high school, to fetching sporting laurels for my college during under-grad, I was always an active dude growing up. But then came in a busy 9-5 desk job at India's biggest men's lifestyle online magazine, MensXP, and right along with it, a sedentary and party driven lifestyle with a 4 hour return commute! I ballooned up and decided to do something about it. Being well versed with the concepts of calorie counting and macro distribution, I successfully drove my first transformation myself. But then I hit the dreaded plateau. I wanted to build muscle but didn't really succeed. It was a struggle. I was lacking somewhere. I was hurting mentally because all the efforts I was making were resulting to nothing. My mindset towards building muscle was all wrong as well. I was fed up of unstructured training and the wrong diet plans, so this made me look out for a coach who I could myself accountable to and guide me.
I remember reading on T-Nation an article authored by Akash and I was like, wait, that's an Indian dude with some great work in fitness! Being the editor at MenXP Health, I'm always looking for great coaches who can write too, so I got in touch with him. I asked him about RNT, and while RNT was still a new baby at the time, I knew Akash was onto something here with it. The rest is history!
The results have been off the charts! I lost over 15 kilos of body fat and gained a ton of muscle mass. We did a cut-bulk-cut cycle over the course of 18 months and the ride has been amazing. I never thought I'd be used as stock pictures for MenXP Health! Alongside the coaching, I've also learnt plenty about what true customer care and satisfaction is. I couldn't recommend RNT enough.
Related Articles
How Heavy Will You Be When Lean?
How To Invest In Your Ultimate Physique
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To read more case studies like Shantanu, have a read of the different articles here.
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With the British Rally Championship (BRC) kicking off this weekend, we thought we'd shine the spotlight on all things BRC in this blog post. The British Rally Championship after all holds a very special place in our hearts here at U-Student as we are proudly one of the sponsors for Alex Laffey and his team. We are now going into our 7th year of sponsorship, alongside title sponsor Nuevo Club and with M Sport running the car for its 3rd consecutive year the new rally season should be a good one! The BRC is however first and foremost a fantastic event that celebrates the most spectacular motorsport in the UK. Here we pay homage to the British Rally Championship ahead of its first round this Saturday with five facts you may not have known about the event.
Posted in: Entertainment | News | Out and about | Sport
One of the happiest cities in the country, Carlisle is known for its unquestionable beauty and the nearby Lake District. Sprinkled with historic landmarks, award-winning attractions and open parks, the Great Border City combines the city environment with a close community.
Posted in: Carlisle


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A documentary by Rianne Blok, Martijn Brouwer and Iris Hakvoort (Hogeschool van Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands)
Pammetje in Man's world. The Dutch Pam might look like a girly girl but this twenty-three-year-old woman holds her ground as one of the few female truck drivers in the business. How does she keep her head up amongst all guys?


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Exhibition catalogue published in conjunction with show held April 27 - June 12 1966. Essay by exhibition's curator Kynaston McShine. Includes works by Carl Andre, David Annesley, Richard Artschwager, Larry Bell, Ronald Bladen, Michael Bolus, Anthony Caro, Tony DeLap, Walter de Maria, Tom Doyle, Dan Flavin, Peter Forakis, Paul Frazier, Judy Gerowitz, Daniel Gorski, David Gray, Robert Grosvenor, David Hall, Douglas Huebler, Donald Judd, Ellsworth Kelly, Phillip King, Lyman Kipp, Gerald Laing, Sol LeWitt, John McCracken, Tina Matkovic, Robert Morris, Forrest Myers, Peter Phillips, Peter Pinchbeck, Salvatore Romano, Tim Scott, Anthony Smith, Robert Smithson, Michael Todd, Anne Truitt, William Tucker, Richard Van Buren, David von Schlegell, Isaac Witkin, Derrick Woodham. ... [details]
Catalogue published in honor of the Storm King Art Center. Text by John Beardsley, with a foreward by J. Carter Brown, and an introduction by H. Peter Stern. Photographs by David Finn. Artists featured in the publication include Douglas Abdell, Saul Baizerman, Max Bill, Louise Bourgeois, Alexander Calder, Anthony Caro, Dorothy Dehner, Mark Di Suvero, Herbert Ferber, Richard Friedberg, Charles Ginnever, Emilio Greco, Robert Grosvenor, Gilbert Hawkins, Barbara Hepworth, Jim Huntington, Meashe Kadishman, Lyman Kipp, Jerome Kirk, Grace F. ... [details]
April 1973 issue of Arts Magazine. Cover features Richard Serra's "Shift." Contributors include Andrei Boris Nakov, Jean-Claude Bonne, Willis Domingo, William C. Lipke, Cindy Nemser, Richard Serra, Rosalind Krauss, Jack Burnham, Howard Fried, Dan Graham, Bruce Boice, John Loring, Cara Montgomery, Paul Stitleman, Rosemary Mayer, Robert Pancoast Smith, Jane Bell, Ellen Lubell, Bill Dykes, Nancy Murray, Judith Tannenbaum, Andre Mikotajuk, and Gordon Brown. ... [details]


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Below is a collection of Vancouver MLS listings recently listed or sold by Pete Shpak. Of course it would be impossible to display all Vancouver MLS Listings on one page so use our map search to find the exact homes for sale you are looking for. Or you can contact us and we'll help you with your MLS search.
Over 1,150 sq ft of one level living at Woodwards! This oversized 2 bed, 2 bath corner home features wood floors, 9' polished concrete ceilings, floor to ceiling windows, new quartz countertops & backsplash, s/s appliances, gas cooktop, custom lighting, built-in closets, spa-like bathrooms, new washer & dryer, a large NW balcony & two OWNED parking stalls (tandem). Strata Fees include heat, h/w, concierge, internet & access to the 4600' Club W on the rooftop...with some of the city's best amenities - wrap around terrace, indoor/outdoor kitchen, gym, hot tub, climbing wall, pool tables & more. Rental & pet friendly. Steps to the trendiest restaurants & shopping in the city.
Clothes Washer/Dryer/Fridge/Stove/DW, Drapes/Window Coverings, Microwave
Bike Room, Club House, Elevator, Exercise Centre, In Suite Laundry, Swirlpool/Hot Tub
TAC Real Estate Corp.
The data relating to real estate on this web site comes in part from the MLS Reciprocity program of the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver. Real estate listings held by participating real estate firms are marked with the MLSR logo and detailed information about the listing includes the name of the listing agent. This representation is based in whole or part on data generated by the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver which assumes no responsibility for its accuracy. The materials contained on this page may not be reproduced without the express written consent of the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver. Copyright 2019 by the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver, Fraser Valley Real Estate Board, Chilliwack and District Real Estate Board, BC Northern Real Estate Board, and Kootenay Real Estate Board. All Rights Reserved.
Pete ShpakBCom, Associate Broker
Vuppie Real Estate Team
Oakwyn Realty
400 - 1286 Homer St Vancouver,
Phone: 604-220-7490
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