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Medium easter egg handmade with dark chocolate. Packaged in a clear bag with raffia bow.
Weight: 300g e
Ingredients: cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter, emulsifier: soy lecithin, natural vanilla (Cocoa solids 55% min).
Allergy information: All our chocolates are made in one environment so may contain traces of nuts. Contains soy. Suitable for vegetarians. Gluten free.
Spend over £25.00 and get FREE DELIVERY.
50 in stock, immediate despatch
Home > Seasonal > Easter


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Event Description
Teachers, State Employees and Local Government Employees, including Law Enforcement & FRSW, take time to discover your benefits. Retirement counselors will have limited availability before and after the conference to answer individual questions concerning your benefits.
The Total Retirement Planning Conference will be limited to the first 120 people that register.
SOLD OUT - Click here for afternoon session information

subset: commoncrawl


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IMPORTANT INFORMATION: Kinetic branches are currently drive-thru only. Lobby service is temporarily suspended. Click here for the latest information on our response to COVID-19.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION: Kinetic branches are currently drive-thru only. Lobby service is temporarily suspended. Click here for the latest information on our response to COVID-19.
Life doesn't always go according to plan. Mistakes happen. Kinetic's Occasional Overdraft Privilege Service (OOPS!) allows us to consider payment of reasonable overdrafts.
Rather than automatically returning, unpaid, any insufficient funds items that you may have, we will consider, without obligation on our part, payment of your reasonable overdrafts.
We will charge our normal non-sufficient funds or overdraft charge, as set forth in our Fee Schedule, for each item that will create an overdraft on your account. Of course, we are not promising to pay your overdrafts, not all accounts are eligible and some restrictions do apply. See the Occasional Overdraft Privilege Service policy for more information.
Overdraft Privilege is included with your eligible Kinetic Checking account.
We provide overdraft services for your ATM and everyday debit transactions upon your agreement (opt-in). To allow us to perform this overdraft service, you must opt-in. You can revoke your opt-in at any time. If you would like access to the Overdraft Privilege Service for ATM withdrawals and one-time debit card purchases, the process is easy:
*Overdraft Privilege (OOPS!) is a discretionary service that a customer may opt-out of any time by notifying a Customer Service Representative. For each overdraft we pay, we will charge the standard per item overdraft fee set forth in our fee schedule (currently $35.00). OOPS! applies to a variety of transactions, including checks and other transactions made using your checking account number, automatic bill payments, ATM transactions and everyday debit card transactions; however, on consumer accounts we will not include ATM and everyday debit card transactions within our OOPS! Program without first receiving your affirmative consent to do so. Furthermore on consumer accounts absent your affirmative consent, ATM and everyday debit card transactions generally will not be paid under OOPS!. The amounts of any overdrafts, including our fees, are due and payable immediately or on demand. We can refuse to pay any overdraft for any reason.


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COURIER-JOURNAL / SEARCH: 51 Shade Tree Lane Farmington, KY 42040
Single Family Detached
- 3 beds
- 1 baths
- $107,000 price
- 101215 mls id
- Square Feet: 1,160 sqft
A complete overhaul in 2016 - electric, walls, flooring, roof, all recently renovated! This beautiful property is minutes away from Murray State University and just miles down the road from Mayfield, KY! Don't miss the built in mini-fridge at the bar in the kitchen! Beautiful cabinets and granite counter-tops in the kitchen and bathroom as well! With only a 3 year old roof and all new life, this one will not last long!
- Site Link
- Style Other Style
Courtesy of: CENTURY 21 Service Realty
Office Phone: +12704422100
Listing Agent: Wesley Harrison
Updated: 7th April, 2020 2:19 PM.
51 Shade Tree Lane Farmington, KY
Real Estate | Courier-Journal Powered by Placester


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Here's why plus size women have trouble finding clothes to buy!
(Image courtesy of Depositphotos)
Color me shocked about this one. Since the Size Acceptance movement gained steam over the years, and America has finally embraced (I guess, to a point) women with curves, I figured that the fashion industry read the tea leaves, and decided to make more clothes for plus size women.
According to several articles, this isn't the case at all. It's still a battle for many plus size women to find clothes from their favorite designers that are made for them. Recently, a group of women in Seattle, Washington spoke with a sportswear company about creating plus sizes for their line (looking at the company's website, the talk worked). A fashion designer who admitted not long ago that his business made a lot more money since he added a plus size line was perplexed as to why more clothing companies haven't done the same thing.
What gives? Do these fashion/apparel companies not think that curvy women…aren't pretty?
They must not think that this is hot…
Or this…
(This is plus size supermodel Ashley Graham, by the way)


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Top 8 Tips on What You SHOULDN'T Do On Facebook
/0 Comments/in News/by Rob Sperry
Everyone has their own opinions on what should and shouldn't be done on Facebook. This is my take on what the best approach to Facebook would be. At the end of the day however, it is up to you whether or not you think the same.
For example, I think it's the opposite of social courtesy to constantly be tagging people left and right by the dozens. You might think it deepens engagement but it really doesn't work a lot of the times. Watch the video for the rest of my tips to make the most out of Facebook!
The top 8 things you SHOULDN'T🙈 do on FACEBOOKSeveral Facebook Algorithm Insights🗝
Posted by Rob Sperry on Friday, July 7, 2017


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RV Jack Pads
Recipients of this set of Trailer Life-branded high-impact polyethylene jack pads can say so long to that sinking feeling and hello to stability. Just place the oversize pads under the leveling jacks of the trailer (20,000-pound weight limit) — smooth side down for hard surfaces or smooth side up for gravel surfaces. Made in the USA, the solidly constructed pads clean off easily with a hose.
MSRP: $19.99/pair
Oversize jack pads keep RVs on a firm foundation, even on grass, gravel or sand.


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Criminals are now targeting people who are interested in moving. One mid-state woman learned just how ruthless these moving companies can be once they have your furniture.
If you're thinking about moving, make sure you do your research on the moving company. There is a nationwide scam that's targeting people who are relocating.
They make sure to make their business website to look legitimate as possible, they even create fake reviews, but it's all an elaborate attempt to scam you. One mid-state woman knows that first hand.
The victim asked not to be on camera for fear of retaliation, but she tells us at first Presidential Moving Services quoted her $2,400 to move her furniture 200 miles from Kentucky. She says it was a great price, so she signed on the dotted line.
But once the movers arrived at 11 p.m. in a rental truck, she knew something was strange.
After the movers loaded up all of her furniture, they told her it would cost $4,200 to transport her home goods.
That's nearly double the original price.
The victim says she felt pressured into agreeing to the new price, once the men already had her furniture.
"I felt like my things were loaded up, and they were going to be taken somewhere and sold to the highest bidder. It was very uncomfortable. It was hard to get anyone on the phone, I sent repeated emails," she said.
Thankfully she did receive her furniture, nearly a month later. Many of her homes goods were damaged, which she is now responsible to repair.
Presidential Movers is one of 12 moving businesses that was indicted for racketeering.
Head over to BBB.org for a list of reputable moving companies, you are also urged to report any business scams you may have encountered through the website.
"We're pleading with you to report it on scam tracker. That's not only going to allow law enforcement to track it and see where it's happening like the federal trade commission and also the Attorney Generals Office, but it also allows us to alert other consumers that this is happening in their area," said Robin Householder, Better Business Bureau, CEO, Nashville.
In many cases, people never get their furniture delivered.


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CBD Trail: Wraps
Dimbulah Coffee
72 Anson Road
Nothing fancy, this smoked salmon wrap is by no means spectacular as compared to the other players. A by-the-way kind of order to go with an order of coffee.
Salad Stop!
Capital Tower
Tuna San ($12.50)
Romaine, seared tuna, avocado, edamame, cherry tomatoes, mandarin orange, sesame seeds, Wasabi Honey Soy dressing
Admittedly, I was drawn to the name of this wrap. Seared tuna sounded good, so did edamame and wasabi honey soy dressing. I watched my fat wrap being toasted, halved and served. One half started dripping on the napkin that I used to wrap and eat with. Not a good start.
There is a choice of wrap: Wholemeal, original, tomato and spinach. I adventurously went for spinach that looked green, and that was the part of spinach.
Not long after, it leaked onto my dress making it almost impossible to hold and munch. So I did the thinkable - eat with a fork like it's a salad, undressed. There was a clear imbalance of ingredients across both halves, one with too many preserved mandarin orange wedges and another heavy on romaine. By the end of picking out the salad, I was left with a dripping wet wrap. I drained off the wasabi honey soy and chomped on my wrap.
That's one deconstructed wrap experience. Once and it was really just enough. Some afterthoughts on this - weren't wraps made for snug eating experiences and on the go? I completely cannot envision myself walking and eating this without looking like a dork.
Mr Coffee Roasters
International Plaza
Chicken Rendang ($6.50)
The tastier of the two with curry and cheese and while this would pass off better as chicken curry than rendang.
Barbeque Chicken ($7.20)
I found this quite tragic, barely tasting like barbeque chicken or even barbeque sauce to begin with.
For both, the wraps tasted quite alkaline. Not a fan of, maybe stick with their coffees?
Kat and Alfie's (CLOSED)
International Plaza
Located just next to Mr Coffee Roasters is this stall manned by well Kat and Alfie, I have been heading back regularly for their wraps mainly because this is possibly the only place that has such an imbalanced proportion of meat to vegetables. This especially pleases on days I feel particularly carnivorous. So far, chicken and bacon have been very comforting and is high up on my list of comfort foods as opposed to turkey and cranberry.
Turkey and cranberry ($9)
Chicken and Bacon ($9)
For unpretentious food and a taste of a chef who has quite an acid tongue, pay homage to Kat and Alfie! A humongous pity they have decided to pull down the shutters but they will be sorely missed.
They are the only ones who wrap their wraps (sorry for the pun) with such concentration. I opted for a pre-created flavour - cobb with the likes of blue cheese, avocado, bacon and chicken. At $10.18 after they imposed a 5% credit card charge on me, I have to say this was the most value for money in terms of portions and also really tasty too!
Blackened Steak Wrap ($10.20)
BBQ Chicken
Icon Village
Marketed as a place by gym bunnies for the health conscious, each meal is carefully curated and does not exceed 700 calories.
Quesadilla with Tortillas and Sour Cream ($11.90)
Tasty flat wrap stuffed with minced chicken and served with chips. This could pass off as the real deal if not for the fact that this was targeted at the health nuts. A good alternative to wraps but less filling somehow without the greens.
Huggs Coffee
MAS Tower
One of those wrap places that miss out on aesthetics but actually taste quite decent!
The Salad Shop
79 Anson Road
Chickpea and Hummus Wrap ($8)
I love everything about TSS, salads, soup, yogurt pots and even their wraps. The only place I willingly order a vegetarian wrap - mainly for the hummus but it was heavy on chickpeas and feta cheese. Very tasty and it filled me up considerably for the rest of the day.
For sure the places that do it darn well are those who specialise in meals and the by-the-way options are usually less generous on ingredients - but sometimes it is about just grabbing lunch and chomping it fast.


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You're in safe hands with Lincoln Green Solicitors
Assisting consumers with compensation claims
Timeshare Related Scams
In the UK it is estimated that maybe up to 700,000 people may own a timeshare, and every year they receive an annual maintenance fee demand, which will have usually increased year on year.
Mis-Sold Investments
Choosing where to invest your savings, or deciding which pension fund to invest in for your retirement, can be a potential minefield. It is usually a good idea to seek independent financial advice from an IFA. But occasionally this advice may be biased or much higher risk than you thought.
Stamp Duty Land Tax
Many people in the UK have purchased a property with an annex or granny flat attached. This type of abode usually comes with multiple dwellings relief but was this picked up during the sale or did you end up paying too much Stamp Duty Land Tax?
Solar Panel Claims
The lucrative 2012-2015 Government incentives for solar panel installations on offer to homeowners in the UK may have not all paid off due to under performing units, over exaggerated claims with high pressured sales tactics. Is your solar panel living up to expectations?
Spanish Deposit Loss
Did you pay a deposit on a Spanish property that was never built? If you were caught out by the Spanish housing crash? We can help get your money back and potentially interest too. The deadline for these type of claims in Spain is 7th October 2020, do not to delay making a claim.
Leisure Credits
It is very common for "cold calling" companies to acquire databases and purposely approach individuals who have purchased timeshares by promising them a way to dispose of their existing timeshare. Often misleading the customer and selling another inadequate product. Were you cold called?
Sales Agents
It is not uncommon for many industries to engage agent's to sell their products. The toy, greeting card and clothing are just some of the many industries, where traditionally self-employed agents are found in large numbers. When contracts are changed or terminated with little or no notice the agent is often stuck as litigation can be expensive. This is why we have created a product that is based on results.
Holiday Clubs
Many people are offered free 'special breaks' only to be lured to attend presentations where they are then pressured into joining a holiday club which is less than ideal. Did you find yourself in a high-pressure sales environment?
Static Caravans
Damaged chassis, the caravan being older than stated, conflict of interest when loan products are sold on site. These are just a few of the problems that our clients have experienced once they have purchased a static caravan which was meant to be their dream retreat.
Leisure Credit Claim
Solar Panel Claim
Leisure Credit Claim
Contact Us
Already know what you want? Get an instant quote for your claim!
0300 30 33 819
Our Promise
Our History
Lincoln Green Solicitors has operated in Milton Keynes for many, many years as part of the Heald Solicitors family. We have a fantastic reputation for customer service and client satisfaction. On the 1st November 2018, while we still continue to work closely with Heald Solicitors, we became independently regulated by the SRA and now look forward to many more years of helping UK consumers claim what is rightfully theirs.
We are the safe alternative to working with an unregulated claims management company. Being a legal practice means there is no intermediary, you are guaranteed to have direct access to qualified legal professionals and we can asses each claim on its own merits.
Lincoln Green has successfully assisted thousands of people, who have been mis-sold goods, services or investments. Our current focus is supporting people who have been mis-sold timeshares, solar panels, investments and stamp duty land tax.
We also recognise that for sales agents, there is limited access to specialist legal advice for times where your contract may have been changed without reason, terminated, or you been unfairly treated by your principle. Often obtaining advice is too costly and prohibits the sales agent in pursuing a claim for compensation. To help you we have put together a service that is purely based on results.
If you believe that you are entitled to compensation for the above or anything else we would like to hear from you.
The information on our website is intended to provide an overview of the services that we provide and does not constitute legal advice. If you wish to discuss your particular circumstances please contact us.
Lincoln Green Solicitors Limited © | Reg. No: 11208799| Privacy Policy
Authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority SRA No. 650601
Registered office: Artemis House, 4 Bramley Rd, Bletchley, Milton Keynes MK1 1PT


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It's sometimes funny how different are your expectations before the trip. Back in Taipei, I was planning to go to Sihanoukville in southern Cambodia to witness the full moon party on Koh Rong island. The full moon party – as the name suggest – occurs when the Moon is in the full lunar phase. The party originated in Thailand and is now blown up to ridiculous proportions (about 10 000 – 30 000 people on Koh Phangan). Koh Rong should still be less touristic and resemble the full moon party in its beginnings few decades ago. Later I discovered the party is going to be in 14 days and I won't be able to make it. I was ready to skip the place completely. But I was convinced by a friend that Sihanoukville is still a great place to visit.
When we arrived at Sihanoukville it was a typical party place for foreigners. The bars offered Happy pizza with special weed ingredients. And if they didn't have it on the menu, you could just ask them to make the normal pizza more "happy". There was even a bar selling rolled up joints. In the evening the bars on the beach get loud with all different types of music. There was even a bar where you could play the beer pong.
Back then I was travelling with my friend Hannah from Taiwan, group of Icelanders and Swedish girl we met in Siem Reap. We decided to take a trip to "some small island near Sihanoukville". The actual name is Koh Ta Kiev. I didn't know anything about it but I expected we will spend one night there, enjoy the beach and head back on road to see northern Cambodia. Little did I know that the island had completely different plans with us.
We took a "party" boat there. Actually there was not much of a party, just a few beers and some snorkelling on the way to the island. The beach looked beautiful and we got couple of hours to stay there. This is what most of people get from the island. They spend few hours on the beach and head back to Sihanoukville. But we discovered there is much to the island than just a beach.
Hidden in the jungle – there is the absinth distillery. Its owner Johann build the high tech distillery in the middle of nowhere. Now it has two floors with chill-out area for visitors. I am not even trying to pretend that I understand the process of distilling the main ingredient – thujone (or wormwood). Johann once made 95% pure thujone extract. That's quite impressive in the middle of the jungle. Even Walter White had better conditions.
The absinth is quite different than the Czech one. Czech absinth is mostly high volume alcohol with some thujone. According to bartenders Czech absinth is shit. And if you try the Syn Absinthe you will know the difference. They usually serve it with cold water and sugar to balance the bitterness. It's very relaxing drink, almost different kind of alcohol. I have to disappoint you though, the hallucination effects are mostly myth. They said you might get some if you drink it maybe few weeks straight.
The guys who work here are volunteers – they work for free accommodation and absinth. Some of them are there for 2 months already. The whole construction is made from bamboo and you can feel it's not the most stable thing in the world. I was there once with 20 other people and the distillery tilted as people walked around. "Aren't you afraid it will fall on your head one day?", I asked. "Well yeah, sometimes I think about it … " one bartender told me while sipping his absinth.
The best place on the island though is Crusoe island. The place is a bit distant from the harbour, maybe 10 minutes walking. That's why a lot of people miss it. Crusoe island is run by Cambodian owner and is operated by volunteers from around the world. Same as distillery they work there for free accommodation, meals and drinks. I noticed that there is a shadow economy on the island. There are also few other places on other side of the island with volunteers. In Last Point they get free pizza, which can be exchanged for cheap beer on Crusoe island, free soft drinks, some food or absinth from the distillery and the other way around.
As a regular customer everything you drink or eat on Crusoe island is added on tap which is very convenient but also quite dangerous. One time I went to check my tap to find it was 13$ after night drinking. My friend also checked hers and it was 65$ for the same night.
The accommodation is either in bungalows, tents or hammocks. I slept in the hammock for three days and it was the best sleep I got in weeks. There is number of activities you can do, including jumping from cliff, walking to naked beach (just a name, no naked people :P) or to the fishing village. But the atmosphere is so relaxed that I had no need to leave. The omnipresent weed might be also one of the factors.
There is no wifi, no ATM and no worries on this island. There are only few boats coming to and from island every day. You're stranded on an island but with awesome people. It's kind of summer camp but for adults and without supervisors. I met some unique characters in Koh Ta Kiev. I can't name everybody but there are few examples:
There was one Finnish guy who wanted to take a boat back to shore to get more money from ATM. There was no other boat coming back the same day, so everybody expected him to stay one night on the mainland. But instead he rented a jet ski and arrived in the afternoon. He paid more money but he didn't want to spend night out of the island. The journey that takes 1,5 hours by boat he made in 15 minutes.
There was also a guy from Canada who was trying to take a morning boat at 8:30 AM to shore to also get money and go back. He didn't have any alarm clock so every day he woke up and sprinted to the Crusoe island. "Did I make the boat?" he asked every day. "No, it's already 11″, they responded. When I met him, it was his third failed attempt.
In the distillery, I talked to the bartenders about the Absinth, I started to talk about Czech absinth and discovered they are from Slovakia. Alan and his girlfriend Lenka worked there for 2 months already and didn't have plan to leave soon.
In the night everybody gathers around bar, drink beers, play guitar or go try to find fluorescent plankton. The plankton appears all around island and lights up when disturbed. One night was the moon covered with clouds and I found big group of plankton. I swam in it for an hour and with every stroke the water just lid up all around me. It felt like in Avatar movie when they running through the jungle in the night.
The island felt like combination of The Beach and Lost. The Beach is one of my favorite movies and even though Crusoe Island is still far fetched from Phi Phi Leh where The Beach was filmed it certainly felt like it. I made a video and recommend you to watch it, it is no accident I used voice-over from the movie (thanks Leo).
And why Lost? The island doesn't let you leave. It took me 3 days to do that. There are few options how to leave the island. Either morning boat at 8:30 or afternoon boat at 2 pm. But everyday I went to say goodbye to all the people and lost track of time and miss the boat. In the end it was simple procrastination. Either I will take my luggage and walk to the harbour to hassle with boat captains about the price or I will just stay one more day. No wonder some people stay for weeks or months. My friend Hannah and two more friends decided to stay and work at Crusoe Island. That made the departure even harder. I wasn't travelling "for indefinite time" and had to be back in Taipei in a month. I still wanted to see Laos and Thailand in the meantime.
I am sad to have to end this article on a bad note. As a lot of islands around it is rented by foreign companies. One of them is Chinese and they decided to build a casino on the other side of the island. Here is an excerpt from the blog of Crusoe island.
Two years ago while we were putting the finishing touches on Crusoe, we witnessed a Cambodian naval landing craft unloading a handful of excavators, bobcats and other equipment onto our beautiful, then untouched beach. The destruction that followed was heartbreaking. The original dense jungle paths were obliterated into bare, wide roads to make way for the Chinese development. Every day we would wake the the "beep, beep, beep" of an excavator in reverse, then listen to trees being felled and general mayhem for the rest of the day.
The development now stopped, but who knows how long it will take them to start again. I recommend you to visit this paradise while its still there.


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In this 2015 Academy Award nominee for Best Foreign-Language Film, six tales of revenge play out in a series of one-act vignettes that take their characters to outrageous extremes. Murder, violence, betrayal and unchecked rage mark the actions of a wide variety of individuals as they respond to situations that bring out the worst in them. 122 minutes. Spanish with English subtitles.
"Wickedly delightful"— Jay Weissberg, Variety
This event is free and open to the public. No registration necessary.


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GDSN® Initiative
Since it's founding in December of 1994, Kast Distributors has continually grown its market presence by continuing to increase our product offerings and customer base. Today, Kast Distributors services a broad section of the market place including family restaurants, pizzerias, bars, delis, seasonal restaurants, hospitals and schools. Our product lines include top manufacturers in the industry along with many value priced items and everything in between to suit all of our customers' needs. Kast is a broad line value added distributor with product offerings in non-foods, (including paper, plastic, and foam disposables), Equipment and Supply, Dry Grocery products, Refrigerated products (including a large assortment of meats and cheeses), Produce, Boxed Beef, and a complete selection of Frozen Foods. Kast Distributors currently inventories and sells over 5,000 SKU's.
Kast Distributors is now adopting GS1 standards and implementing data synchronization for receiving product information via Global Data Synchronization Network (GDSN). Our customers' support and participation in this important initiative is required to help serve you better. Kast Distributors has partnered with 1WorldSync for data pool services. Please visit the links on this page to learn more about the GDSN process with Kast Distributors.
1WorldSync Customer Support
+1 866.280.4013


text: Join us Thursday, May 18th, in St. Isaac Jogues Parish Hall for a fun filled night of games: Bunco and the dollar game! $5 to play, $3 for the dollar game. Doors open at 7:00 pm with the games beginning at 7:30 pm. BYOB. Cash prizes! Snacks and drinks are available.


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Musiplectics: Computational Assessment of the Complexity of Music Scores
In the Western classical tradition, musicians play music from notated sheet music, called a score. When playing music from a score, a musician translates its visual symbols into sequences of instrument-specific physical motions. Hence, a music score's overall complexity represents a sum of the cognitive and mechanical acuity required for its performance. For a given instrument, different notes, intervals, articulations, dynamics, key signatures, and tempo represent dissimilar levels of difficulty, which vary depending on the performer's proficiency. Individual musicians embrace this tenet, but may disagree about the degrees of difficulty.
This paper introduces musiplectics (music + plectics, Greek for the study of complexity), a systematic and objective approach to computational assessment of the complexity of a music score for any instrument. Musiplectics defines computing paradigms for automatically and accurately calculating the complexity of playing a music score on a given instrument. The core concept codifies a two-phase process. First, music experts rank the relative difficulty of individual musical components (e.g., notes, intervals, dynamics, etc.) for different playing proficiencies and instruments. Second, a computing engine automatically applies this ranking to music scores and calculates their respective complexity. As a proof-of-concept of musiplectics, we present an automated, Web-based application called Musical Complexity Scoring (MCS) for music educators and performers. Musiplectics can engender the creation of practical computing tools for objective and expeditious assessment of a music score's suitability for the abilities of intended performers.
Thu 29 Oct
13:30 - 15:00: Onward! Papers - Session the Second at Grand Station 3-5
Chair(s): Karim AliTU Darmstadt
|13:30 - 13:52
Mattias De WaelVrije Universiteit Brussel, Stefan MarrINRIA, France, Joeri De KosterVrije Universiteit Brussel, Jennifer B. SartorVrije Universiteit Brussel, Wolfgang De MeuterVrije Universiteit BrusselLink to publication DOI
|13:52 - 14:15
David H. LorenzOpen University and Technion IIT, Boaz RosenanUniversity of HaifaMedia Attached
|14:15 - 14:37
Junsong LiBrown University, Justin Pombrio, Joe Gibbs PolitzSwarthmore College, Shriram KrishnamurthiBrown UniversityMedia Attached
|14:37 - 15:00
Ethan HolderVirginia Tech, Eli TilevichVirginia Tech, Amy GillickVirginia Tech


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GtG and MPRT are two different pixel response benchmarks for displays, screens, televisions, and monitors.
GtG stands for Grey-To-Grey.
MPRT stands for Moving Picture Response Time.
Why Two Different Pixel Response Numbers?
GtG represents how long it takes for a pixel to change between two colors.
MPRT represents how long a pixel is continuously visible for.
Even when a pixel finishes its GtG transition from one color to another color, a fully refreshed pixel can stay continuously visible or static until the next refresh cycle. Thus, GtG and MPRT numbers are different.
Why Does MPRT Response Affect Motion Blur More Than GtG Resonse?
Even though GtG pixel response time has become faster (e.g. 1ms), the MPRT has not gotten faster because MPRT is limited by refresh cycle duration, and by frametime. High MPRT creates a longer sample-and-hold effect caused by eye-tracking.
(Source: Microsoft Research)
As you track your eyes on moving objects on a screen, your eyes are in a different positions at the beginning versus end of a refresh cycle.
On most 60Hz displays, a frame is continuously displayed for no less than 1/60sec. Your eye movements can "smear" the frame across your vision, creating motion blur.
Demonstration Of Motion Blur From Eye-Tracking Due To Persistence (MPRT)
Here is a popular TestUFO Animation demo of motion blur from persistence (MPRT). Click on the animation for a bigger animation. The background looks different depending on which UFO you look at!
Is Display Persistence Same As MPRT?
Yes, display persistence and MPRT represent the same thing when quoted as a number (milliseconds).
Why Does Instant 0ms GtG Still Have Display Motion Blur?
Even though GtG can be fast, the MPRT can still be slow. Even for 60Hz OLED displays, the MPRT100% of most 60Hz displays is always at least 1/60sec = 16.7 milliseconds. This creates display motion blur even with instantaneous or near-instantaneous GtG. See Why Does Some OLEDs Have Motion Blur.
What Does GtG Look Like In High Speed Video?
In a high speed video, slow GtG pixel response looks like a refresh cycle "fades into" another refresh cycle. Here is a high speed video of an 5ms 60Hz IPS LCD:
More high speed videos can be found at Understanding Scanout Lag Via High Speed Video, which also has high speed video other panels including TN LCD and OLED pixel response.
Why Is GtG Called Grey-To-Grey Instead Of Color-To-Color?
LCD subpixels are actually monochrome, and colors on screens are accomplished via color filters.
The pixel response time for each individual color channel is usually identical.
Imperfect 1ms GtG Pixel Response Is Still Human Visible
Pixel response can be a tiny fraction of a refresh cycle, and still produce human-visible artifacts such as ghosting or coronas — especially if pixel transitions are different speeds for different colors.
One millisecond translates to 1 pixel per 1000 pixels/second motion. Millisecond-scale imperfections and asymmetries in pixel response appears as distortions to motion blur, such as this:
Faster pixel response becomes more important at higher refresh rates such as 240 Hz. For more information, see LCD Overdrive Artifacts FAQ, and LCD Motion Artifact FAQ.
How Do You Reduce Display Motion Blur?
Once GtG is already fast, there are only two ways to further reduce MPRT display motion blur:
(A) Shorten pixel visibility time via adding black periods between refresh cycles.
(B) Shorten pixel visibility time via adding more frames per second at higher refresh rates.
Accomplishing (A) in current technology, is often done via a strobe backlight such as LightBoost or ULMB found in motion blur reduction. See Motion Blur Reduction FAQ.
Accomplishing (B) in current technology, is often done via upgrading to a higher refresh rate along with a faster GPU. 240fps at 240Hz can have one-quarter the display motion blur of 60fps at 60Hz. See Official List of Best Gaming Monitors.
How Does Refresh Rate And Frame Rate Affect MPRT?
Without motion blur reduction, doubling the frame rate (and refresh rate) halves display motion blur.
As a rule of thumb, MPRT is more linked to frame rate on an sample-and-hold display. The motion blur of 60fps can look identical on a 60Hz, 120Hz and 240Hz display, since a lower frame rate creates a longer pixel visibility time (longer persistence) on a sample-and-hold display.
Can GtG Make MPRT Worse?
Short answer: Yes, it can.
Bear in mind, GtG response will also add extra artifacts (ghosting, coronas, blurring) above-and-beyond the above chart. It's important for GtG to be a tiny fraction of a refresh cycle to keep MPRT blurring as low as theoretically possible, as well as avoid other side effects such as strobe crosstalk.
It is possible for the same panel to have a higher GtG than MPRT (some strobe backlight driven LCDs). Conversely, it is also possible for the same panel to have a lower GtG and a higher MPRT (OLED panels creating motion blur). Ideally, GtG and MPRT must be simultaneously very low to eliminate motion blur.
How Does Strobed Motion Blur Reduction Affect MPRT?
Impulsed-driven displays (strobe-backlight, impulsed, phosphor, black frame insertion) can reduce MPRT by shortening pixel visibility time:
Instead of being controlled by the refresh rate, the motion blur (persistence, MPRT) of an impulsed display is controlled by how long a pixel is visible for: The length of the backlight flash, at one flash per refresh cycle.
How Does GtG Affect a Strobed Display?
Usually, most strobed displays (e.g. LightBoost, ULMB) attempts to hide LCD pixel response in the dark periods between strobe-backlight flashes. See High Speed Video of LightBoost.
The faster the GtG, the easier it is to hide GtG in darkness between strobed refresh cycles! As a result, it is now possible to have MPRT numbers smaller than GtG numbers, if the panel GtG pixel response is hidden unseen from eyes in the dark period between backlight strobe flashes.
Manufacturer Specifications Versus Real World
There is a valid reason why manufacturer GtG specifications are often more aggressive than real-world GtG numbers. Measuring equipment often fail to successfully measure 100% of a pixel response. Reason include noise margins in measuring equipment (especially near blacks) and extremely slow pixel response in old displays that sometimes never perfectly reached 100% even after many refresh cycles.
As a result, published pixel response numbers are necessarily only partial because of an industry standard — from a 10% response threshold to a 90% response threshold.
How Is The VESA GtG Pixel Response Standard Used By Manufacturers?
Manufacturers use the VESA GtG measurement method, measuring the GtG pixel response speed from the 10% point to the 90% point:
This can miss the first 10% and final 10% of the GtG pixel response curve, which may sometimes still be human-visible. Measuring electronically is more reliable with cutoff points, especially back in the old days. The same standard 10%-to-90% cutoff thresholds have persisted today.
How Is MPRT Typically Measured By Manufacturers?
MPRT is measured differently, but uses similar 10% and 90% thresholds.
Unfortunately, the omission of the first 10% and last 10% can create MPRT numbers less than a refresh cycle even for a sample-and-hold display.
While MPRT90% is much more accurate in representing display motion blur than GtG90%, there are now some situations where MPRT becomes slightly less accurate the more GtG converges to instant 0ms, and perceived motion blur can be up to 25% more than the MPRT Number (100%:80% range = 1.25x).
Blur Busters Law Formula for MPRT100%
The Blur Busters Law formula is a simplification of the MPRT formula from the scientific paper.
1ms persistence
1 pixel motion blur per 1000 pixels/second motion
This is a universal guaranteed minimum display motion blur that you will get on a display, no matter how good your vision is, assuming no GtG limitations or source material limitations.
Scientific Paper Note: Blur Busters Simplification of MPRT
Blur Busters tends to use the full 0% to 100% where practical, using MPRT100% instead of MPRT90% (in the scientific paper). A 120Hz ideal sample-and-hold display has identical motion blur (MPRT100% = 8.333ms) as a 1/120sec photo shutter for the same physical panning velocity of full frame rate material.
We prefer MPRT100% at Blur Busters for simplicity and to match human-perceived motion blur on fast sample-and-hold displays. This is also easier for blogs to calculate from TestUFO motion tests.
Equivalence of Blur On Displays Versus Your Blurry Smartphone Photos
GtG has been improving over the years, approaching nearly 0. For the same panning velocity, motion blur has become more and more identical between a photograph versus a display. A 120Hz sample-and-hold display adds the same motion blur as a camera photograph taken using a 1/120sec camera shutter — for the same panning velocity on display, versus same panning velocity of a handheld camera.
With GtG becoming less and less of an error margin for MPRT in the era of ultra-high-Hz displays, the MPRT100% motion blur measurement number (milliseconds) is now reaching an equivalence to the motion blur caused by a camera photograph shutter speed, for the same milliseconds count. This equivalence is achieved assuming that the motion material on the display has no source-based blur, and all the blurring is purely persistence (MPRT) blur.
Animation of GtG Versus MPRT
This TestUFO Animation is an excellent approximation that works on certain displays. Track your eyes on the two halves of this moving bar:
There is a bigger clarity difference in the moving edges between top/bottom halves when the GtG-vs-MPRT ratio is much bigger. Try this animation on a TN or OLED display which often has <1ms GtG but 16.7ms MPRT!
This specially-designed animation partially separates GtG effects from MPRT effects via spatial strobing. Make sure you turn off your blur reduction mode (strobe backlight) when viewing the above animation.
Low MPRTs Are Only Possible With Strobing Or Ultra-High Hz
Achieving 1ms MPRT requires either
(A) Strobed display using a 1ms flash per frame, or
(B) Non-strobed 1000Hz display showing 1000 frames per second
Some manufacturers make a major mistake with improperly quoting low MPRT numbers of a non-strobed display. A good TFTCentral article explains this.
Long Term Holy Grail: Low MPRTs Without Flicker/Strobing
In the next ten years, a 1000Hz display running at 1000fps, will be able to achieve 1ms MPRT without the need for any form of impulsing (phosphor, strobing, flicker, black frames, etc).
To help assist future 1000 Hz developments, GPUs can incorporate Frame Rate Amplification Technology to make 1000 frames per second possible with upcomimg GPUs.
Pre-requisite technologies are starting to be demonstrated successfully in the laboratory, and probably will hit the high end gaming market before 2030s as a flickerless MPRT blur reduction technology — for strobeless ULMB — for blurless sample-and-hold.
Sub-1ms GtG and MPRT Is Human Visible!
It's worth noting that Blur Busters had a contract with the Oculus Virtual Reality Kickstarter, convincing them to research low-persistence for their future headsets. Now, today, the Valve Index VR headset can achieve 0.33ms MPRT persistence!
Also, it is not possible to read the street name labels of the TestUFO Panning Map Test At 3000 Pixels/Second unless MPRT is less than 1ms. At 3000 pixels/second, 1ms MPRT100% still generates 3 pixels of motion blurring, completely obscuring 6-point text.
If you have an NVIDIA ULMB display, adjust "ULMB Pulse Width" in the monitor menu to lower your MPRT persistence, and you'll be able to read the street name labels of a fast-panning map! NVIDIA ULMB can achieve as low as 0.25ms MPRT, albiet the screen gets very dark at this short ULMB pulse width.
In addition, sub-1ms GtG is very useful for improved LCD overdrive, as well as reducing strobe crosstalk.
"1ms Response" Is Useless Without Specifying GtG or MPRT
Manufacturers too frequently quote pixel response numbers without mentioning MPRT or GtG. We reward manufacturers that quote both GtG pixel response numbers and MPRT pixel response numbers.
Tell Your Monitor Manufacturer To Quote Both MPRT and GtG Numbers
GtG and MPRT are two different pixel response benchmarks.
Display makers need to quote both for all displays, screens, monitors, and televisions. Please support manufacturers that quote both.
We want to give special thanks to TFTCentral.co.uk as well as PCmonitors.info for covering this important GtG vs MPRT topic too!


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Glow House
The package begins with a facial treatment, with a cleansing oil and a natural oatmeal scrub, followed by a detoxifying clay mask. Then finished with a moisturising mineral spray and sunscreen to protect and leave you with a youthful glow and feeling refreshed! After that, it is time to take care of your nails and make you even more pretty! A Manicure and Pedicure treatment are included.
60 min | facial treatment
45 min | Pedicure
30 min | Manicure
135 mins $179
Please be advised that manicure and pedicure services cannot be performed on gel or acrylic nails. These have to be removed first.


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Operating an office can become as complex as running an entire corporation when you consider how many departments there usually are. You may manage an office for a company where you self-contain multiple departments in one building.
Being responsible for this is going to mean keeping budgets under control, something proving impossible if you leave lights on late into the night. You may have many employees who work late, including floors in the building having lights on all night (for janitors).
If this is the case, what kind of lights are you using? It's time to switch to LEDs if you haven't already.
Typical Lights Used in Office Buildings
According to energy statistics, lighting makes up a good bulk of energy costs in large office structures. This comes to an average of 20 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity each year.
Now you can see why your energy bills are probably going up. It's especially the case if you're still using outdated lighting systems like incandescent or fluorescent lights.
Far too many offices still use these lights, especially fluorescent types. Older office buildings often use these only because the bright light quality is usually attractive.
The problem is that they burn more energy and don't last very long when on for multiple hours.
What LEDs Do to Lower Your Energy Bills
One thing to know before you get started with LED lights is they save up to 50%-80% on your energy bill in your first month of use. They also last up to 17 years if you use them for only eight hours a day.
Plus, you get two times the light output, which is great for your office employees who depend on quality lighting to do their work. LED's are more directional as another benefit, giving the ability to illuminate parts of an office space when working on important projects.
Considering you'll be able to start seeing your energy bill lower in just weeks, imagine what your office could do with the money you save. Many offices using LED's save up to multiple thousands per year, allowing enough money for use in upgrades or buying new equipment.
Office Departments Where You Can Use LED's
Using LED lighting systems in cubicles is a good idea to keep your employees more productive. These lights could even help improve their moods since LED's are known for eliminating depressive feelings. Many studies prove this when LED's become used in retirement homes.
In the office, any drab cubicle surroundings can literally change in appearance thanks to LED lighting.
It doesn't stop there, though. You should use LED's in other parts of your office, including the restrooms. Placing LED's in stalls or over mirrors enable your employees to better see what they're doing (while also making them look better in the mirror).
Installing LED's inside your building's elevator can reduce anxiety in the event the elevator ever breaks down.
Don't forget about using LED's in your parking lot as well. Those of you using parking garages will find a lot of important uses for LED lighting when employees work into the late-night hours.
Finding the Time for LED Installation
An office is slightly different from a franchise, yet can potentially face the same issues when wanting to install LED lighting. While many franchises now find LED lighting beneficial in multiple locations, finding the right installation times is sometimes challenging.
With your office perhaps having multiple floors and departments (or even locations), where can you turn to ensure a quick LED installation without interrupting workflow?
At MultiSite LED, we've become a leader in helping companies with multiple locations or big buildings be able to install LED lighting efficiently.
Contact us to learn about our LightShare program where we'll install LED lighting in all your office departments for no money down.


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On your first visit, your therapist will complete an evaluation. This 60-90 minute session helps us assess your specific needs and develop a program that will give you the maximum benefit in your recovery.
For your first visit, we ask that you:
Learn more about what to expect during treatment
ProAction Physical Therapy
902 N Broad St, Suite 103
Lansdale, PA 19446
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (267) 263-2737
Fax: (267) 663-7648


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Your customers do the same thing.
That lack of engagement with your emails not only hurts your open and click-through rates, but it also impacts your ability to get your emails to your contacts' inboxes in general. The less engagement your emails receive over time, the lower the priority mailbox providers will give to emails sent from your address.
The solution is to keep a "clean" email list, meaning pruning inactive contacts — even if it means a smaller list size. One of the most effective ways to clean your list is with a re-engagement campaign. Re-engagement campaigns first attempt to bring back these cold contacts, reminding them of why they fell in love with your brand and, if unsuccessful, they remove them from your list.
Determining If Re-Engagement Is Needed
If you're monitoring your email open and click rates and notice a decline, it's likely a good time for a re-engagement campaign. In Ontraport, you can view your rates via Performance Mode within a specific campaign or in your Contacts collection.
Additionally, a high number of bounces or unsubscribes are signs it's time to clean up your list.
With Ontraport, you can bypass all these steps by setting up an automated re-engagement campaign to fire any time a contact is inactive for 90 days. Ontraport tracks contacts' activity, such as when contacts open emails or click to visit a landing page. When the system detects that a contact has been inactive for 90 days, it adds the contact to your automated re-engagement campaign.
Creating the Perfect Re-Engagement Email Series
A re-engagement campaign typically involves sending inactive contacts a series of three emails encouraging them to regain interest in your products and services.
Your first email invites them to visit your website and claim a special offer, followed two days later by an email reminding them you value their time and only want to send emails they're interested in. After another two days, your final email will make one final request before you will remove them from your list.
Here's a breakdown and examples of each email:
First Email: Invite them to visit your website and offer a discount on a product.
Jack Wills is a British heritage-inspired, high-quality clothing company for a spirited youth. With this email, the company is reaching out with an enticing offer of £10 off when spending £30 with a coupon code. This not only gives their subscribers a great deal, it shows Jack Wills who's engaged, clicking and ready to buy.
Second Email: Let your contacts know you value their time. Invite them to renew their activity by clicking a link in the email, logging in to your membership site, or taking any other action you prefer.
Duolingo is a language learning app that allows people to learn just about any language they want. In their email, the company states that they haven't seen you in a while and want to know if you are still interested in learning a language.
Another example of re-engagement outreach is from Typeform, a super cool interactive form creator (which by the way, can be integrated with Ontraport using Zapier). Typeform reminds customers of their subscription and urges them to revisit the amazing things their product can do using their template gallery.
Third Email: This is the "sorry to see you go" email, where you thank them for their past activity and let them know you won't be contacting them again … unless they indicate that they want you to by clicking a link or visiting a landing page, etc.
As we saw in the first email example, Jack Wills gave their list a great offer, but sometimes that's just not enough, so they went a step farther and asked if these contacts would like to be removed from their list altogether.
Though this might not seem like something you'd like to do, it allows you to market and tailor your content to contacts who actually want to hear from you. It shows them that you value their time and only want to send them email when they actually want it. Having a large list of unengaged users is not the goal.
Re-confirming permission regularly is a great way to get a solid "yes" or "no" response from your current subscribers as well as a smart way to help keep your email list clean.
Another good example of this tactic is from GoPro. They are reminding their subscribers that there are still great deals on their products, and they are pruning their list for more engaged customers. In a case like this, users can be removed from their list if they decide not to open this email or if they select to opt out from receiving these emails in the future.
They use their clever wording and imagery to entice their adventure-seeking audiences to stay active on their list.
Peace of Mind With a Clean List
Based on your subscribers' actions with your email campaign, they will either be automatically removed from your list or will remain on it. With the campaign running continually in the background, this all happens without any work on your part — leaving you with a continually clean list of active contacts to keep you on the path to high delivery rates.
As an Ontraport user, you can import a pre-built re-engagement campaign into your account through the Campaign Marketplace and get started right away.


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Auburn Bay Back to Home
This former Baywest Homes showhome offers over 3,440 sf of developed space in this modern 2-storey home, including 4 bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms, bonus room has unobstructed lake view, and a "sunshine window" basement.
Main Floor:
- Welcoming entrance leads to open office/ flex room
- Great room with gas fireplace, which is open to kitchen & nook
- Kitchen with large island, stainless steel appliances – including gas range – and a walk-through pantry
- Eating nook looks over back deck & yard
- Mudroom entrance to attached front double garage
Second Floor:
- Large southwest facing bonus room with unobstructed lake views
- Large master suite with view of mountains & downtown, walk-in closet and 5-piece ensuite
- Two additional bedrooms, plus full 4-piece bathroom with granite vanity
- Laundry room with front-loading high efficiency washer/ dryer set
- Large "sunshine windows" and in-floor heating
- Full bedroom with sitting area
- Full 4-piece bathroom
- Large rec. room
This former showhome has a great location directly across from the lake, and is on a professionally landscaped corner lot. Rental includes lake access; home includes 2 furnaces, air conditioning, in-floor heating in the basement & garage. Easy access to Deerfoot Tr., Stony Tr., South Health Campus hospital, and Quarry Park.
This home is available to non-smokers who do not have any pets (no exceptions considered).


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Exchange traded funds are being included in retail and institutional investment portfolios, other ETFs and even mutual funds. Manning & Napier, a pioneer in life-cycle investments, launched a line of actively managed target-date funds that only include ETFs to help achieve a target "glide range."
In early June, the company marketed the Manning & Napier Goal CIT Funds suite, which is qualified for retirement plans, reports Mariana Lemann for Ignites. The series includes 10 funds with maturity dates from 2015 to 2055 and an income fund.
Target-date or life-cycle funds swap from high equity allocations to a more heavy emphasis on conservative fixed-income holdings as the fund reaches the target maturity date. [Target-Date Funds]
The money manager has $17.9 billion in life-cycle assets, including collective investment trusts, separately managed accounts and mutual funds.
Patrick Cunningham, CEO of Manning & Napier, believes their products will standout from the rest as the collective investment trust vehicle and active management overlay will hold an asset mix that will include about 15 to 20 ETFs.
"The reason we offer a collective investment trust is that it typically has a lower cost than mutual funds," Cunningham said in the article.
The funds' average fee for a zero-revenue share class is 0.34%, and the average fee for the ETFs will be about 0.18% and 0.19%. [Trading Costs]


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Schoolwide Theme: Spaces & Places
The schoolwide themes rotate every four years so that the students will be able to see each theme from a new perspective as they move up through the grades.
Last year's theme, "Spaces & Places," focused on an area and era of study, providing a lens through which each part of the curriculum could be connected in context. The integration of the disciplines culminated in a presentation for invited parents and special guests that displayed the students' grasp of the music, drama, art, science, and social studies of the region.
Enjoy the videos below of each grade level presentation!


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The web portal India Biodiversity will organise a nation-wide 'Neighbourhood Trees Campaign' from Tuesday (Earth Day) to Sunday.
The campaign aims to spread awareness on the importance of trees and crowdsource information on trees in the country. Volunteers just need to click photographs of trees in their gardens and neighbourhood and post their observations on them. The campaign will be conducted online at http://treesindia.indiabiodiversity.org/.
There are about 7,500 tree species in India. The organisers of the campaign are hoping to create a web page on every tree species through this venture. Prabhakar and Thomas Vattakaven of India Biodiversity portal expressed hope that the campaign will popularise the portal and help it grow into a rich and open-access repository on biodiversity.
R Ganesan, a plant taxonomist at Ashoka Trust for Research on Ecology and Environment (ATREE), and one of the organisers, said good description of tree species and their distribution is not easily available. "Some recent field guide books by Pradip Krishen and others have helped raise awareness. But seasonality and flowering and fruiting patterns need to be studied to understand local and global climate changes," he said.
He said citizen participation in such environment documentation programmes is vital and should be encouraged. "Projects like SeasonsWatch, Eflora India address some of these issues. It it very important that such efforts get a fillip."
Road-widening and other infrastructure projects have been taking a toll on trees in the country.
Over the last few years, the Million Trees initiative in New York, the tree census project by the Chennai Corporation and the Neralu tree festival in Bangalore have helped increase citizen participation in conservation of trees.


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How It Ends
posted March 23rd, 2019 at 9:01 AM
3 CommentsPost a Comment
Mar 23, 2019 at 5:42pm
You do realize how terrible your internet connection and your device is to the planet right?
God please tell your a woman.
Mar 23, 2019 at 7:46pm
I was looking for date to end of all as we know it. It's kinda like the prom I never got to go to. I need a like mind sweetheart for the end of world debut, she is of a crazy kind mind set lives in a good heart and likes irony laced living. I do not know why but your sounding like a woman with died hair. Mmm.. interesting
Mar 23, 2019 at 11:02pm
Mitch, you're usually better than this.
I'm here daydreaming about the end of the world, and therefore, also the end of my self.
And you're banging on about my internet habit. Bollocks.
In a different context, I don't eat beef, so those two things at least balance out, I think...
Nope. I'm already booked.
Also, totally wrong demographic. But MY date to The End Of The Universe would probably strangle you with your own intestines. Non-ironically.
All in the name of science, naturally. Studying for her paramedic exam, y'see. Be jealous.


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Category: Riding The Western Front
Riding The Western Front
If everything goes to plan. Monday 25th June 2018 I will be boarding the Belfast to Liverpool boat to do myWestern Front Run on my Lambretta, where I'll be riding to Dover. Then riding from Dunkirk in France up to Nieuwpoort in Belgium and on to Pfetterhouse in France by the border with Switzerland.


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Learn Puerto Rican Cooking/ Cocktails
Learn Puerto Rican Cooking/ Cocktails
81 reviews
Paused through April 3rd. To protect the health of our community, all Airbnb Experiences are paused due to coronavirus (COVID-19). Visit the Help Center for the latest updates before you book.
3 hours
Group size
Up to 5 people
Hosted in
English, Spanish
Learn Puerto Rican Cooking/ Cocktails
Learn Puerto Rican Cooking/ Cocktails
81 reviews
Paused through April 3rd. To protect the health of our community, all Airbnb Experiences are paused due to coronavirus (COVID-19). Visit the Help Center for the latest updates before you book.
3 hours
Group size
Up to 5 people
Hosted in
English, Spanish
What you'll do
*If there is another time slot your interested in please contact me and I will try to accommodate you* We will make authentic Puerto Rican foods, paired with an Island inspired cocktail. All made by you! Salsa Music playing while delicious smells fill the air! All while learning about Puerto Rican Culture! I will teach you to make sofrito, which is a staple in every PR kitchen, as well as PR style rice and beans. Then, depending on your preference, we will make a variety of foods: Apps: Passionfruit wings with Sofrito Mayo Ensalada de cameron (shrimp salad) Bacalaito (salted cod fritters) Salad,Tostones and garlic sauce Pastelitos (empanadas beef,chicken,cheese) Alcapurrias (yuca/plantain fritters with beef or vegetarian) Entrees: Jibarito Sandwich (crispy plantain sandwich, steak or chicken) Mofongo (mashed plantains with garlic, chicken or shrimp) Bistec Ensabollado (steak with onions) Pollo Guisado Criollo with Rice (Stewed chicken in a vegetable sauce) Garlic Rubbed baked chicken (pollo al horno) Pasteles (banana leaf wrapped plantain/yuca flour, meat or veggie) Dessert: Guava Pantella Cake with fresh fruit and many more. We also have more vegan/vegetaria
- Passionate cooks
Learn traditional recipes and hear personal stories from local hosts.
- Intimate settings
Share a meal in unique spaces, from private farms to secret rooftops.
- Vetted by Airbnb
Every experience is reviewed for authentic culinary traditions.
Your host
Classically trained NYC bartender and foodie with a lot of love for my culture! Living in Queens since 86'. I have spent my whole life traveling back and forth to Puerto Rico. I have a great perspective on life on "the mainland" as we say on the island. I adore both NY and Puerto Rico and my main goal is to bring a positive perspective and shed light on the greatness and ingenuity of our culture. So all this while filling your belly's with delicious food YOU are gonna learn to make! If you decide to enjoy this experience with me I can guarantee a great time and lots to learn!
What's included
Island Lunch or Dinner I will provide a Lunch or Dinner of typical Puerto Rican Dishes you can make at home with a…
Cocktails I will create a delicious cocktail to include with the dinner limit is 2 per Adult over 21.
Guest photos
Guest reviews
Top 10% worldwide for expertise
Guests say this host has insight and knowledge.
Top 10% for unique access
Guests say they couldn't do this on their own.
Top 10% worldwide for connection
Guests say this is a great way to meet people.
Navigation section for review pages
Where you'll be
This experience will be held in the Astoria neighborhood of Queens. It's a great neighborhood with rich history and relaxed vibe for NYC. The neighborhood is full of cute bars you can pop into after your class if you feel like continuing the evening! Or check out the famous Astoria Park, with amazing views of the city!
This experience is available starting April 04, 2020
To protect the health and safety of our community, all Airbnb Experiences are paused through Friday, April 3rd due to coronavirus (COVID-19). Visit the Help Center for the latest updates before you book.
Things to keep in mind
Dietary preferences
If requested, the host can accommodate the dietary needs listed. You must let the host know before the experience if you'd like an accommodation.
Cancellation policy
Any experience can be canceled and fully refunded within 24 hours of purchase, or at least 7 days before the experience starts.
Communication policy
Always communicate through Airbnb. To protect your payment, never transfer money or communicate outside of the Airbnb website or app.
Guest requirements
Up to 5 guests ages 18 and up can attend. It's up to each guest to understand the ingredients being used and communicate any allergies or dietary restrictions to the host. Guests should also consider that consuming raw or undercooked meats, poultry,…
Government ID
You'll need to take a picture of yourself that matches the photo on your ID. This is so Airbnb can confirm who's actually going on the experience. You'll only have to do this once.
This experience includes alcohol. Only guests who meet the legal drinking age will be served alcoholic beverages.
More tips
You can reach me via @islandlifekitchen Instagram for more pictures and questions! Please be on time for the class, due to time restraints I can't go past the allotted time.
Learn Puerto Rican Cooking/ Cocktails
81 reviews
From $125/person
81 reviews
From $125/person


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Laurel Vail is an upcoming director and actor and was the director, producer, and writer of the short film What Metal Girls Are Into. Scorpius got the chance to have a conversation with her and learn more about her.
Laurel has been acting for around ten years and this is her first crack as a director here is what she has to say about the transition between the two:
"Well, if you're an actor especially nowadays, they say you just have to create your own content. Because waiting around for someone to give you a job, you might be waiting forever. So the strategy now is to at least make something on your own. And I didn't really feel like doing a web series, I didn't have any ideas for that. So I wanted to do a short film and that's kind of where it started, and in the process, I discovered that I really really love directing. And so now I'm kinda more focused on hopefully getting to do more directing. I mean not that I'm giving up acting, but it's just not really my focus right now."
"Jurassic Park which is still my favorite movie. That is one where I think I was like 12 or 13 when that came out. I saw that six times in the theatre. It's still the record for most number of times I've seen something in the theatre. Lot of Spielberg. I guess the standard big pop culture things. I grew up in Idaho so we didn't have an Independent film. Unless the video store had something that may be an older sibling would 've rented I would never have heard of it. My sources were kind of limited to whatever was at the video store."
We also got to learn about some of her favorite movies growing up and who her directing influences and preferred genres are:
" I really like things that are funny. As far as a genre I like action, I like sci-fi. I guess the thing I like the least that might be easier is romance. And I would say favorite
directors is Bong Joon-ho. He's the guy that did The Host (2006), Snowpiercer, Okja on Netflix. I love his stuff sometimes it's very fantastical and or at the same time really it's also very intimate and really character-driven and I really admire that. I like Robert Rodriguez his sense of humor I was kind of going for when I worked on my film, where it's like serious in the movie but the audience can laugh because it's very over the top and silly. Terry Gilliam. I like a lot of world building."
Recently there has been a push for more female directors, and we've seen them more prominently recently such as Greta Gerwig's Lady Bird or Patty Jenkin's Wonder Woman, but there is still a lack of diversity in female directors in Hollywood and this is what she has to say on the matter:
"I'd say it's not as trendy as I like it to be. It's a lot of we need more we need more and then pointing to two or three examples. 2018 was lower than 2017 (in terms of female directors). The independent is like doing better and has a lot more equality but in terms of the studio large grossing movies the stats are actually down and if this awards season is any indication there probably won't be any nominations for women directors and it's really unfortunate. I think people need to stop paying lip service and actually hiring women. They need to put even the tiniest bit of effort. "
"There was an article that went around a couple of months ago where Jason Blum talked about having a hard time talking about finding women directors that want to do horror. The thing is that there is a ton of women directors that want to do horror the problem is finding people who will pay for movies by women. And so what we need are people who can champion women and convince investors to invest in them. And the people in power could do that if they just wanted to put in a little more effort. Yeah sure right now there aren't bankable female directors in the way that the investors want but if that's the case there never will be."
"It's a catch 22. If you don't give people the jobs to make them bankable, they 'll never be bankable to get the jobs. And that goes for women and people of color. Unfortunately, that's still the industry standard. I get that it's a business but if you 're doing a hundred films in a year and zero have any women, not even your bigger budget movies but your mid-budget and have never had a female director for any of the films you've ever done is kind of embarrassing and they need to do better. They need to not just apologize and say that they'll do better, but out of the next hundred movies at least 20-30 should be directed by women just statistically. "
Especially because they do make money. Wonder Woman was one of the top-grossing movies that year, it's a fallacy to say that they don't make money, there just aren't as many of them.
Laurel Vail has created her own production company called Out of Spite productions, which she hopes will create more diversity. These are her plans with the company:
"So I started the LLC to consolidate all the funding for the film that I was doing. I started that and I went with the name out of spite productions because I remember
being in college and being really bitter and angry about people who were more privileged than me, but at the same time now as an adult I'm like a little bit more aware of the world and realize how privileged I am. So it's kind of like this in-between area of using my own personal privilege to make an effort to help other people who aren't as privileged."
"So when I staffed or crewed my film set it was my goal to have as many women filling at least the key roles if not all the roles I could, as many as possible. I think I ended up getting 80-85% of the credited cast and crew were female. I feel like it was pretty good. I probably could've done better on diversity. But then again my next film it's something that I'm actively going to be thinking about. Just across the board above and below the line. Because I think that I'm not powerful but if I'm doing something and making something I can put in a little bit of effort on my part too. And it helps that I've been an actor and I know a lot of people that I've worked with and I kind of have a pretty big network and so it's getting bigger now that I've actually made a film and now I'm in the filmmaker community."
"So I think next time I'm staffing up it'll be easier to find people that Iknow already. But honestly, the people that I met first time on set were incredible and were so great. My line producer had worked with some of them before. So a lot of those people if they want to work with me again I would be super excited. I don't know I just think it's important to acknowledge that I'm in a position of power as a white lady and that I can kind of leverage that a little bit and do the extra work to make sure that it's a little evened out in the grand scheme of things."
Her short film "What Metal Girls are Into" has a very powerful message with the last line of the film being "You are not entitled to the attention of women." This is what she has to say about the importance of this message:
"Well I wrote this before the #MeToo thing had started but it was after the #Yes All Women thing had happened. I think that I was really inspired by the yes all women hashtag and that we were all sharing our stories about being harassed, like constantly, and assaulted, and those sort of things. So I kinda just wanted to do something that was very visceral and feminist. And all women they carry around with them this tiny little core of anger and frustration that there's not much we can do about. And I would like to see the world become a better place so that we don't all have that down deep inside of us. Because again it is all women, it's yes all women. So for me, it was important to do something that had that kind of stance."
"My short film is very on the nose and I know it is but because it's a short film I can get away with that, a feature is going to be a little bit more complicated. But, I think I can still sort of have that feminist power behind it and women taking back their own personal space. And again I think that it is getting slightly better but I think there is a lot more lip service than actual change yet."
"However, it always starts with people talking and I think that it's getting better. And I think it is better with the younger generation. And as time goes on it gets better it's just going at a glacier's pace. But I think making media that like portrays that and is fun and people can get behind, I think that's important. Which is another reason why it's important to have female directors, is that you're going to have the female voice in something whether it's about women or not. Just having that feeling of it's like a different perspective and I think it's a valid perspective."
The film What Metal Girls Are Into is about three metal girls who stay at an AirBnB while going to a metal festival, and the film has a predominately metal soundtrack. This is what she had to say on her choice of the metal setting, and making the metal aspect feel authentic:
"I think initially, I had recently watched Fury Road and I just loved the soundtrack and how like driving, it was like very metal and awesome. And I would love to make something that had this really driving metal soundtrack during an action sequence. That was just sort of in the back of my head it was just a great feeling it was so powerful. So then as I was developing the story and writing it, I needed a reason for them to stay in the AirBnB when things go bad, without making them idiots. Because I hate that when in movies there isn't a good enough character validation for why someone makes a bad choice."
"So I really wanted it to be a bad choice but with a reason, and so I made them very stubborn because they're music fans. And I thought well this would be a great opportunity because they're metal fans which are a very hardcore fanbase, then I can use metal in the climax. So it kind of all came together in that way. But then I had to learn a lot about metal because it turns out I'm not a metalhead, but I have a friend who is so I have a credit called my metal consultant and he basically taught me everything there is to know about metal at least as far as I needed it to be in the story and the characters."
"I really wanted them to feel real and authentic and not cliche. So far the feedback has been very good, like people who are actually metal fans they see themselves in those characters, they like the jokes that they are talking about, like the different bands. So, I put a lot of work into making that authentic and I think it was successful. And so I'm very grateful to my friend for schooling me and helping me pick out the different bands and the different type of genres that they would be into. Even down to the wardrobe that they're wearing, he helped me pick out the t-shirts. So it was great."
Here are some of her future plans as a filmmaker:
"Well right now it's a lot of writing. My next project will probably be another short, cause Metal Girls was my first short and I feel like I need to do 1 or maybe more shorts before I think about doing a feature. Because I didn't go to film school so it was sort of like crash course film school. I've learned a lot but there is still a ways to go. So my plan is to actually do something that is much smaller than Metal Girls because I don't want to crowdfund again at least until I have a feature. I think I have an idea of something I can do on a very small scale, very cheap, minimal crew, and using locations that I can get access to. That'll probably be the next thing I'll do. It'll be different and I think it'll be in a different tone. So it should be interesting. I don't really just want to do one certain type of tone, even necessarily genre."
"I think the next thing that I'll do will probably still be a horror film because they're fun to do and I'm already pretty well established in the horror community in terms of people I know and things like that so I'll probably stay there for a little bit until I get an idea that's not horror because I have some scripts that are not horror but they're bigger budget so they won't really work for now. So that's kind of where I'm at right now."
Talking to Laurel Vail was a great experience and we look forward to what she'll be doing next.


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Join us for a tranquil evening of waterbirds and turtles. Our guides will help you notice hidden natural features and explain the surprising, paradoxical ecology of this heavily engineered natural area. Beginners and children (accompanied by an adult) are welcome.
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Email MePhilipC.Tencer
858-408-6900 (Office)
Mr. Tencer has 15 years of experience litigating, trying and managing virtually all facets of business disputes and commercial litigation as a partner at Cooley Godward LLP. His experience in these wide-ranging and varied roles has provided the Firm with an aggressive, but strategic approach to handling litigation and business disputes.
Mr. Tencer has extensive experience in analyzing, litigating, and trying complex commercial and business disputes, including, securities litigation, patent and intellectual property disputes. He is well-versed in cases involving cutting-edge technology, including biotechnology, software development, telecommunications and the Internet. His trial experience includes both plaintiff and defense verdicts. He has run a docket of lawsuits and arbitrations prosecuting a company's patent portfolio resulting in several million dollars in settlements. He successfully tried a business case where his client was awarded 100% of its actual damages and punitive damages of four times actual damages. He was instrumental in protecting important technical trade secrets from public disclosure at trial, over the vigorous objections of both major media outlets and his client's litigation opponent. He has worked extensively with expert witnesses on damages and finance issues and also with technical expert witnesses in many areas including telecommunications, computer software, and the chemistry and physics of plastics. He managed extensive e-discovery efforts in extremely large cases, both as outside and in-house counsel.
His background in economics and business and his work in cases involving complex financial arrangements also gives him an understanding of the issues involved in today's financial world, such as those involved in subprime-related litigation.
Mr. Tencer began his legal career at Howrey in Los Angeles, where he spent four years litigating trade secret, patent, antitrust and complex class actions. Most recently, he was a litigation partner at Cooley Godward Kronish in San Diego where he practiced for eleven years, representing many of the major public and private companies in San Diego, including QUALCOMM, SAIC, Dot Hill, Amylin Pharmaceuticals, ISIS Pharmaceuticals, Callaway Golf, Charlotte Russe, and others before founding the Tencer Law Firm in 2010.
Mr. Tencer attended law school at Boalt Hall School of Law at the University of California, Berkeley, where he was an Articles Editor on the California Law Review and a member of the Boalt Hall Moot Court Team that competed nationally. He graduated magna cum laude from UCSD.
Mr. Tencer is a member of the State Bar of California and is admitted to practice in all state and federal courts in California. He has been named a San Diego Super Lawyer, has authored numerous papers and has lectured on the topics of Securities and Trade Secret Litigation. He has authored a paper and spoken on "Trade Secret Damages" at an ABA Antitrust Section annual meeting in Washington, DC. He is also the author of "Litigating & Winning Claims Objections in Bankruptcy Court," which was published in Dallas Bar Association "Headnotes" in 2006, and he has presented state-approved CLE seminars on cross-examination and evidentiary issues.
Mr. Tencer was born and raised in North San Diego County. He resides in Del Mar with his wife and three daughters.
Areas of Practice
- General Commercial Litigation and Arbitration
- Business Disputes
- Securities Litigation
- Intellectual Property Litigation
- Bankruptcy Litigation
- Plaintiff Claims
- Patent Litigation
Bar Admissions
- California
- U.S. District Court Central District of California
- U.S. District Court Eastern District of California
- U.S. District Court Northern District of California
- U.S. District Court Southern District of California
- U.S. District Court District of Arizona
- U.S. Court of Appeals 9th Circuit
- University of California at Berkeley, Boalt Hall School of Law, Berkeley, California
- Law Review: California Law Review, Articles Editor
- University of California at Berkeley, Boalt Hall School of Law, Berkeley, California
- University of California, San Diego, San Diego, California
- Major: Economics
- Major: Philosophy
Professional Associations and Memberships
- American Bar Association, Member
- San Diego County Bar Association, Member
- Los Angeles County Bar Association, Member
- Los Angeles Trial Lawyers Association, Member
Past Employment Positions
- Howrey & Simon, Litigation Associate, 1994 – 1998
- Cooley, LLP, Partner, 1998 – 2009


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Indian Point's new siren system goes for a test runPosted: Updated:
The new emergency siren system for the Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant was put through tests Thursday before it goes on line.The old siren system is being replaced because of repeated failures. Work on the new system was supposed to be completed by the end of January. However, that deadline was extended because of structural problems with a county-owned tower in Valhalla. The sirens are used to warn people in a 10-mile radius of the plant in case of an emergency. The new system has six fewer sirens with about 10 in new locations.
Additional tests will be conducted over the coming weeks before the new system is ready to go on line. Until then, the old system will remain in place.
Related Information NRC grants extension for new Indian Point siren system Tower stands in the way of new Indian Point sirens


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Miss Saigon
Michael Coppel Ventures and
Louise Withers & Associates
28 March 2007
Her Majesty's Theatre
Miss Saigon is a simply superb and I dare even the most jaded of theatre goers not to love it. It's about power and grief and situations where you cannot imagine a happy ending, even though your heart and mind search for a way to make it all work out. The outstanding cast are a balance between fresh and experienced performers and the, much anticipated, new staging adds moments that could not have been imagined in the original.
Anyone who has read anything of mine knows that I have some issues with commercial theatre – but when it's done right – it's done right. There are reasons why Miss Saigon has been consistently running all over the world since 1989.
The power of Miss Saigon is in the writing. Spectacle will never compensate for bad writing. The book is structured to reveal every piece of information at exactly the right time, with a balance of emotion that builds, relieves and rebuilds tension to its ultimate breaking point. Its themes and story continue to resonate on so many levels, as it contrasts the personal with a very political understanding of the Vietnam War and its aftermath.
Its French origins are evident with references to the French occupation of Vietnam, as well as a bitter satirical stream of anger towards "Uncle Ho" and "Uncle Sam". It may be one of the most powerful pieces I've seen about refugees and the fear and desperation that makes people want to leave their homes.
This is balanced with an understanding of the unimaginable chaos, control and freedom experienced by the fighting American soldiers. Chris and John are young men who are happy "getting stoned and waking up with some whore", but their lives are changed so profoundly by their experiences in Saigon.
And, of course, it's ultimately a love story. Chris, Kim and Ellen: if you hated any of them, it would be an easy story to resolve, but we are always allowed to see their flaws and their strengths. These are characters whose actions you understand; even when you know that they are making choices that are going to cause pain and grief.
This production does use many theatrical and dramatic clichés. Sunsets, ghosts, guns, weddings and adorable children are all there. However, there is a difference between the uses of a cliché for effect, compared to the use of an archetypal image because of its universal reach. (I still can't believe that a walk into the sunset made me cry.)
And, yes, it is a toe-tapping, hum-along musical. Music can reach ours souls instantly. Words have to go though the brain first. Maybe this is why music can tell the most epic and tragic of stories so effectively. The music isn't as memorable as Les Miserables (the other great musical by Boublil and Schonberg), but it serves the story and characters perfectly.
Laurie Cadevida (Kim), Leo Tavarro Valdez (The Engineer) and Juan Jackson (John) are all unforgettable. Each has played their role in various international productions of Miss Saigon. Their experience and understanding of their characters is evident. It is such a skill to make a character believable and sympathetic when they are prone to burst into song.
The imported cast members are ideally balanced by the Australian cast. The emotion and strength David Harris brings to Chris fare outweighs the one or two notes he missed. He will quickly settle into this role and make Chris his own. Christina Tan (Gi Gi), PJ Rosales (Thuy) and Sophie Katinis (Ellen) all bring a depth to their roles that may soon surpass the experienced cast members. They show us their characters souls through their songs.
The supporting cast and chorus are still the ones who make or break a big show. It only takes one chorus member to drop their energy to ruin the show for everyone. This cast make the show. Each person on the stage is as strong and believable and the principals. Having seen many of the understudies in supporting roles, I suspect that audiences lucky enough to them perform the leads will be in for some amazing performances.
The new design is ideal for smaller stages, but it never looks like a compromise. It's no secret that the famous US evacuation helicopter scene is now done using projections. What makes this so amazing is the 3-D technology used. It could have looked so cheap and so bad, but this is phenomenally effective. Projections are also used to boost the emotion of "Bui Doi" and add a new depth of satire to "The American Dream". The animation used in this number was created by Gerald Scarfe, who designed and directed Pink Floyd's, The Wall.
I have spoken to other people who have seen this production from the balconies. Their response wasn't as enthusiastic as mine. There appear to have been some problems with sound. I really hope that the power of this Miss Saigon isn't lost as the ticket prices go down for a view from the gods.
It is expensive to see this style of show, especially if you are caught up with the additional expense of programs and merchandise. But if you are going to see one expensive show this year, this one is worth is. Just give the extras a miss and use that money to go and see a few smaller, independent productions as well.
This review originally appeared on AussieTheatre.com


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Substance misuse and abuse are unfortunately commonplace in today's society, although there are numerous rehab centers like Elevate offering different routes to recovery. In the past 10 years, there has been a startling increase in the number of Americans addicted to opioid-based drugs as a result of being prescribed highly addictive painkillers.
However, despite these rising numbers and our better understanding of addiction, there still remain some widespread misconceptions and misunderstandings. In this article, we seek to set out the facts and allay the myths surrounding addiction in order to encourage more people to get the help they need.
Addiction Recovery Tips and Facts
- Addiction is an illness affecting the brain.
It is crucial that people understand that addiction is not a lifestyle choice. It is this very misconception that has created a negative stereotype about "drug addicts" that normally bears little resemblance to reality. Although the initial choice to use alcohol or drugs is a conscious one, when someone has developed dependence, they are no longer able to control their cravings or urges to use more.
- There is no "cure."
Addiction is a relapsing illness which means a person can have left a rehab center years prior to returning to substance abuse. This does not mean relapse is inevitable but it does mean that cravings have to be managed effectively and possibly for the rest of a person's life after rehab. Many people are familiar with the term recovering addict and some people continue to use the title for years after attending rehab facilities. This serves as a reminder that a person can't ever be cured of substance use disorder.
- Becoming sober and remaining sober are not the same.
Getting sober is not something that is achieved in detox alone and requires more than just "cleaning up." When a person is on a treatment program, they will move on from detox to the rehab phase, where they will be empowered to make the necessary lifestyle changes that promote a long-term recovery. At Elevate, we place the specific needs of the individual at the center of each and every treatment program.
- Substitute addictions can be problematic.
Elevate Addiction Services believes in the efficacy of holistic therapies of healing patients in a completely natural way. This is quite contrary to the approach used at many other rehab centers which have more of a focus on using medications to treat addiction. While these meds can be useful, they can also serve to provide patients with a crutch to replace the substance they were abusing before. The most important role of rehab facilities is to address the negative thought processes driving addictive behavior. We feel this is best done without introducing further chemicals to our patients in rehab.
- There is no "one way" in addiction recovery.
Everyone has a unique experience of substance abuse and there are other factors at play that make each case even more complex. A family history of addiction, the presence of a mental illness or a challenging or enabling lifestyle can all contribute to make a patient's issues more pronounced. We offer a wide range of holistic therapies for patients in recovery so they are very likely to find the most effective route to recovery that meets their individual needs.
- Be prepared to grieve.
Although recovering from addiction is a fulfilling experience, many patients are initially very disturbed to let go of their lives before rehab. One of the fundamental aspects of rehab is that patients have to make significant changes in the people they mix with and the places they go in order to ensure they remain sober. For some patients who may have been completely immersed in a world of substance abuse at home or work, this can be a painful experience not unlike the death of a loved one. However, this grieving process is entirely natural and just another phase that has to be passed through before recovery is possible.
- Actions rather than intentions needed for recovery.
Although daily positive affirmations are valuable in providing motivation, it is still essential to back up intentions with action. Taking small steps to improve an individual's lifestyle and working towards pre-set goals is important in keeping momentum going while in recovery. Going for a walk each day, working out at the gym or signing up for a class is a good way of motivating individuals in recovery.
- Changing people, places, and things are not enough.
It is not enough to just stop mixing with people abusing substances and avoiding the places where the individual regularly used drugs or alcohol themselves. What is required in rehab centers is that individuals make inner changes in terms of the way they think about substances, themselves, the world around them and their place in it. This is another reason the holistic approach is seen as very beneficial in addiction treatment as it provides patients with the tools for self-exploration.
- Form friendships that include people in and out of recovery.
Support from peers is a crucial component of a successful recovery and this is generally accessed through group therapy in rehab. For many people entering rehab, group therapy is the first opportunity they have had to communicate what they are going through to people who completely understand. Some of the bonds formed in rehab facilities remain very strong and continue to support recovering addicts in recovery for many years after completing a rehab program.
- Overall health is important.
When a person has been abusing substances for a given period of time, they are likely to have damaged themselves mentally, physically and emotionally. This is the principal reason why Elevate's holistic therapies and treatments are used to heal addiction because they address the needs of the individual as a whole. An Elevate rehab program has components of physical fitness, nutritional education and body rejuvenation to build up a patient's strength in natural ways. With a healthy diet and plenty of exercise, overcoming addiction is made much more possible.