text:
Bat #1: Easton MAKO BEAST BBCOR Baseball Bat: BB17MK
Bat #2: Mizuno MAXCOR BBCOR Baseball Bat: BB17MAX
Bat #1: Easton MAKO BEAST BBCOR Baseball Bat: BB17MK
Bat #2: Mizuno MAXCOR BBCOR Baseball Bat: BB17MAX
Free Shipping!
2 5/8 Inch Barrel Diameter
-3 Length to Weight Ratio
31/32 Inch Tapered Composite Handle
BBCOR Certified - Approved for High School and Collegiate Play
Patented ConneXion Technology - Maximizes Energy Transfer and Eliminates Vibration
Extremely Low MOI / Game's Fastest Swing Speed
Full Twelve (12) Month Manufacturer's Warranty
HYPERSKIN Grip (Thickness: 1.2 mm)
Two-Piece, Fully Composite Construction
Extended Speed Barrel - 1.5 Inches Longer than the First Generation MAKO
TCT Thermo Composite Technology - Massive Sweet Spot / Unmatched Bat Speed
Lowest Swing Weight Index In Power Brigade Lineup
Balanced Swing Weight
Legal For Play In Intermediate (50-70) & Junior League Divisions Of Little League
The latest and greatest members of the Power Brigade are here and ready to be unleashed.
The Easton MAKO BEAST is the newest version of one of the most popular baseball bats in the industry and it now has the biggest and most powerful composite barrel that Easton has ever made. By extending and combining the game's longest two-piece composite barrel with the game's fastest swing speed, this bat is an absolute BEAST that offers the lowest swing weight index out of the entire Easton lineup. A low swing weight index results in an evenly balanced model that delivers power through fast swing speeds. Easton's redesigned TCT Thermo Composite technology creates a barrel that is 1.5 inches longer than the legendary, first generation MAKO for more plate coverage and a huge sweet spot. This extended barrel is connected to 31/32 inch composite handle by the patented two-piece ConneXion technology that maximizes energy transfer while eliminating sting for optimized feel and comfort. Adding to the comfort is the fact that each MAKO BEAST comes wrapped with the formidable HYPERSKIN grip and it is backed by a full twelve (12) month manufacturer's warranty. Easton: Unleash The Beast!
This Easton MAKO BEAST BBCOR Baseball Bat: BB17MK features a -3 length to weight ratio, a 2 5/8 inch barrel diameter, and is BBCOR Certified for high school and collegiate play. Buy your MAKO BEAST with the bigger, badder, BBCOR barrel today with free shipping!
Reviews (54)
Questions and Answers (125)
Have a question about the Easton MAKO BEAST BBCOR Baseball Bat: BB17MK? Ask our team of experts and they will respond within 24 hours.
About the Brand
As the industry leader for over 30 years, Easton Baseball/Softball has continued to raise the bar with innovation, originality and ingenuity. It began in 1969, when Easton produced the first true aluminum bat, and has continued throughout the past three decades with virtually all significant industry "firsts" having been pioneered by Easton: first CU31 bat; first C405 bat; first titanium bat; first Carbon Core bat; first Scandium bat; etc.
The trend continues today with bats such as the Tri-Shell and the ConneXion. The patented Tri-Shell design features a super elastic rubber sleeve sandwiched in between thin outer shells for unparalleled performance, feel, and durability. The patented ConneXion design takes a separate handle and barrel piece and mechanically interlocks them using a ConneXion" elastomer piece for outstanding flex, feel, performance, and vibration reduction. In the spring of 2002, Easton introduced the Tri-Shell ConneXion, merging the technological advancements of the two bats into one.
The bats are just a part of Easton's Baseball/Softball product stable. Easton carries a wide range of high-performance baseball and softball equipment including ball gloves and batting gloves, sport bags and other accessories. Each Easton product is engineered with the player's needs and specifications in mind to provide a competitive edge in the games of fastpitch and slow-pitch softball and adult, senior youth and youth baseball.
Of all aspects that have contributed to Easton's success, none is as important as the research and development Easton engineers put into every product. Easton's trademark of innovative research and development goes back to Doug's initial experiments with aluminum and continues today in a variety of high performance materials.
Along with the many milestones Easton has set in the sporting goods industry, a little-known fact is that Easton engineered and produced the thermal shroud for the seismometer used on the first Apollo lunar landing. Jim Easton, Chairman, has always placed great importance on expanding into new markets. And today, Easton's presence in the baseball/softball, hockey, and bike markets show its continued legacy of producing innovative, high performance products.
The Easton Sports Lab, located in Van Nuys, is one of the most unique testing facilities in the sporting goods industry. Originally established to study the parameters of Easton equipment, it has evolved into a lab that not only tests equipment performance, but human performance as well. The Sports Lab has become an invaluable tool with which Easton engineers continue to create superior products.
An example of their unique testing was proven when the Easton Sports Lab teamed up with tent manufacturer Sierra Designs to create sensors and integrated software to test a state-of-the-art tent design that is supported by Easton E9 tubing in the most extreme weather conditions. In actual mountain tests, with the wind blowing up to 96 mph, Sports Lab technicians were able to record the stress on the tubing to confirm its strength and durability.
At Easton, most of the engineers are also athletes in the sport in which they innovate and design product based on their own experience. The two-piece aluminum Easton hockey stick, for example, was developed by an engineer with a passion for hockey. He developed a design that would in time become the number one hockey stick in the National Hockey League.
Bat Properties
|Barrel Diameter
|2 5/8"
|Baseball Bats
|Bat Construction
|Bat Type
|Closeout Bats Personalization Eligible
|Knob Sticker Size
|1.5 Inch
|Length to Weight Ratio
|- 3
|$200 - $299.99
|Swing Weight
Free Shipping!
2 5/8 Inch Barrel Diameter
-3 Length to Weight Ratio
Balanced Swing Weight
BBCOR Certified For High School & Collegiate Play
Dynamic Damper - Transition Piece From Barrel To Handle That Absorbs Negative Vibrations
Full Twelve (12) Month Manufacturer's Warranty
Hot Metal Aluminum Alloy Offers Insane Durability
Style #: 340395
Model #: MZ05233TD
Supra-Helix Grip Enhances Comfort & Overall Feel
Viscoelastic Polyurethane (VP) Sleeve On Barrel Creates Wider Circumferential Sweet Spot & Additional Backspin / Carry
CORTECH Utilizes Five Variable Wall Thicknesses To Optimize Performance Across Barrel
Legal For Play In Intermediate (50-70) & Junior League Divisions Of Little League
The Mizuno MAXCOR has been one of the most innovative baseball bats since its release in 2014. This model, the MZ05233TD, is a one-of-a-kind BBCOR baseball bat that will blow you away with its unique features and sleek colorway. The cornerstone of this baseball bat is the patent-pending design of a viscoelastic polyurethane (VP) sleeve that covers the barrel and creates additional spin and increased ball flight. You've never seen anything like this before! Mizuno has used their Hot Metal aluminum alloy combined with CORTECH to adjust the wall thickness across the barrel creating a massive sweet spot. Plus, they've brought back the Dynamic Damper connection piece between the handle and the barrel to help absorb negative vibration for an overall better feel. Add that with the new exclusive Supra-Helix grip and you have one of the most comfortable balanced swinging baseball bats on the market today. Mizuno: Crafted to Win!
This Mizuno MAXCOR BBCOR Baseball Bat (BB17MAX) features a -3 length to weight ratio, a 2 5/8 inch barrel diameter, and the BBCOR certification making it legal for High School and Collegiate play. Make sure to order yours today with free shipping right here at JustBats. We're here for you from click to hit!
Reviews (6)
Questions and Answers (8)
Have a question about the Mizuno MAXCOR BBCOR Baseball Bat: BB17MAX? Ask our team of experts and they will respond within 24 hours.
About the Brand
Mizuno USA, Inc.'s roots stem from its parent company Mizuno Corporation. Mizuno Corporation was established in Osaka, Japan in 1906 by Rihachi Mizuno. Today, Mizuno USA is located in Norcross, GA and continues to manufacture and distribute golf, baseball, softball, running, track & field and volleyball equipment, apparel, and footwear for international markets.
Since our founding in 1906, we at Mizuno have taken special pride and pleasure in being able to participate in the exciting world of sports and in making the entire globe the stage for our activities. Each and every one of us is guided by the ideal of true sportsmanship. That was true nearly 100 years ago and is still true today. It is evident in our corporate philosophy which, simply stated, is "To contribute to society through the advancement of sports and quality sporting goods." This philosophy is clearly reflected in our strong support of numerous worldwide sport events and in our dedication to advancing sports through cutting edge technology and research.
Our product development strategy is to create products with features that enhance athlete performance and are unique to only Mizuno. These technological advancements make our sporting equipment and apparel go the extra mile and keep you in tip top playing form no matter the sport nor the conditions. Whether it's our Breath Thermo® line of clothing which generates heat from the absorption of moisture to keep you warm in cooler temperatures, to our line of Arctic Touch™ garments that expels heat and moisture generated by the body during exercise to keep your body cool and comfortable, your comfort and performance are at the forefront of our innovation. From the diamond to the track, from the court to the fairway, Mizuno's commitment to Serious Performance shines through.
Today, the high quality equipment that only Mizuno can produce are relied upon by athletes throughout the world. We produce superior quality equipment for serious performance, through the artful combination of technology and craftsmanship. Because, at Mizuno, your passion is our obsession.
Bat Properties
|Barrel Diameter
|2 5/8"
|Baseball Bats
|Bat Type
|Black Blue
|Closeout Bats Deal Of The Day
|Length to Weight Ratio
|- 3
|Half and Half
|$100 - $199.99
Need Help Finding a Bat?
We know that buying a bat might not be easy, but we are here to help!
Bat Coach
Answer a short series of guided questions to see bat recommendations created just for you.
What Our Fans Are Saying
Best delivery I've ever had. A big reason I will be a repeat customer at JustBats.com
Florence, SC


text:
Regular price
The Bride To Be Box is a mini 'wedding planner in a box', designed to help you plan an awesome wedding and get just as excited about the planning as the big day itself.
Whether you're a bride-to-be yourself or it's your best mate that's getting married, you can order one of these boxes of exciting wedding magic.
We don't want to spoil the surprise but in the box you'll find:
Something old - A lucky sixpence.
Something new - An enamel 'bride to be' badge in a cute heart or funky diamond shape (you can choose which you'd like).
Something borrowed - A list of suppliers who we know and love, advice from fellow brides.
Something blue - Pretty hair clips created by talented bridal hairpiece designer Claire Austin.
A wall planner - Our super pretty wall planner will help you visualise what's left to be done and how much you've achieved, as well as make sure you get everything done on time. Created by an expert wedding planner, it lists everything you need to do, and when. Tick these off as they're done and you'll feel so satisfied with yourself you'll have totally earned that glass of bubbly - plus with every tick you'll be closer to the big day!
Samples from awesome suppliers and lots more little surprises.
Remember to choose either heart or diamond themed box to change which enamel pin badge you would prefer.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Arianespace launch of a Vega Rocket
Arianespace was scheduled to launch a Vega rocket as part of the Mohammed VI-B mission. The launch window for the Earth Science mission was on Tue, Nov 20th, 2018, 8:42 PM EST from Ariane Launch Area 1, Kourou. The status of the launch was Success. Don't miss this exciting rocket launch! Watch the launch video of the Vega and experience the excitement for yourself.
Mohammed VI-B
A second Earth observation satellite for the Kingdom of Morocco. It was developed by Thales Alenia Space and Airbus. Satellite will be in particular used for mapping and land surveying activities, regional development, agricultural monitoring, the prevention and management of natural disasters, monitoring changes in the environment and desertification, as well as border and coastal surveillance.


text:
French economic review magazine.
French economic magazine giving information about current events and advice how and where to invest your money.
Gestion HEC Montréal is a business magazine dealing with topics of local , national and international importance.
This monthly magazine is known as one of the world's leading business magazine.
Les Affaires newspaper is the unchallenged leader in its niche
Les Affaires Plus is the business magazine with the largest circulation and the most readers in Quebec.
You didn't find what you were looking for?
Try searching by keyword.
Is a title missingfrom our selection?
Customer Contact Centre: 1-877-363-1310


text:
I am a CNRS researcher at LMO, the math department of Université Paris-Sud. In 2018, I was a post-doc researcher at INRIA Paris working with Francis Bach. In 2017, I have completed a PhD in applied mathematics at Université Paris-Dauphine (CEREMADE) and École Normale Supérieure (DMA) working with G. Peyré and F-X. Vialard. My research interests include:
optimal transport and variational problems in the space of measures
continuous optimization algorithms (convex and non-convex)
applications to machine learning and signal processing
L. Chizat, F. Bach. A Note on Lazy Training in Differentiable Programming. Technical report HAL-01945578, 2018. [pdf]
A. Genevay, L. Chizat, F. Bach, M. Cuturi, G. Peyré. Sample Complexity of Sinkhorn divergences. Technical report, arXiv-1810.02733, 2018. [pdf]
L. Chizat, F. Bach. On the Global Convergence of Gradient Descent for Over-parameterized Models using Optimal Transport. Advances in Neural Information Processing Systems (NeurIPS), 2018. [pdf] [poster]
L. Chizat, G. Peyré, B. Schmitzer, F-X. Vialard, Unbalanced Optimal Transport: Dynamic and Kantorovich formulations. Journal of Functional Analysis, 2018. [article] [pdf]
L. Chizat, G. Peyré, B. Schmitzer, F-X. Vialard, Scaling Algorithms for Unbalanced Optimal Transport Problems. Mathematics of Computation, 2018. [pdf]
A. Thibault, L. Chizat, C. Dossal, N. Papadakis, Overrelaxed Sinkhorn-Knopp Algorithm for Regularized Optimal Transport. Technical report, arXiv-1711.01851, presented at the NIPS 2017 Workshop on Optimal Transport & Machine Learning. [pdf]
L. Chizat Unbalanced Optimal Transport: Models, Numerical Methods, Applications. PhD thesis, PSL Research University, 2017. [pdf]
L. Chizat, S. Di Marino, A tumor growth model of Hele-Shaw type as a gradient flow. Technical report, arXiv-1712.06124, 2017. [pdf]
G. Peyré, L. Chizat , F-X. Vialard, J. Solomon, Quantum Optimal Transport for Tensor Field Processing. European Journal of Applied Mathematics, 2017. [pdf]
L. Chizat, G. Peyré, B. Schmitzer, F-X. Vialard, An Interpolating Distance Between Optimal Transport and Fisher–Rao Metrics, Foundations of Computational Mathematics, 2016. [pdf]
Slides often include videos that can be read with Adobe Acrobat (try to click on any image).
02/2019 Tutorial on Optimal Transport Theory. IISc Bangalore. [slides] [download slides with animations]
02/2019 Theories of Neural Network Training. IISc Bangalore. [slides] [download slides with animations]
07/2018 On the Global Convergence of Gradient Descent for Over-parameterized Models. IFIP conference in Essen. [download slides with animations]
02/2018 A Tutorial on Optimal Transport with A. Genevay at Imaging in Paris. [slides]
11/2017 Unbalanced Optimal Transport. PhD Defense at Université Paris Dauphine. [slides in French] [slides in English]
09/2017 A Primer on Optimal Transport, talk at the Broad institute's MIA seminar (MIT-Harvard). [watch video].


text:
Published at Friday, November 16th, 2018 - 20:37:10 PM. Furniture. By Colleen J Booker.
Even if traditional furniture is not seriously damaged when a household relocates, it is often quite difficult to accomplish the task of moving a persons heavy furniture from one home to the next. Regardless of whether a person is moving their belongings on their own or has hired a moving company to help them with the task, traditional furniture poses one of the biggest burdens that a person has to deal with every time they move. For individuals who have a lifestyle that requires them to move around a lot, it only takes one or two major moves before they learn the benefit of packing light. With cardboard furniture like cardboard tables and cardboard furniture, it is remarkably easy to load up most of ones furniture into a truck, and this type of light weight furniture makes the burden of relocating considerably more affordable as well.
Furniture is shipped several different ways when you purchase it online and when you buy online it is important to read on the website how the product is being shipped so that you are prepared at the time of delivery to receive your new furniture. Most sites are pretty good about sharing this information to their customers so that they will have an idea of how the furniture is coming and who will need to be home to receive it when it comes. Below are the three common ways furniture is shipped when you purchase it online. These are common services used by many online retailers and is used typically for items that are RTA (Ready to Assemble) furniture. [More about this later.] This packaging is small enough that one person can easily manage it and the retailer will usually provide you a tracking number that you can use online to track your package for the date of delivery. The delivery driver will usually bring it to your door but if you live in an large apartment complex or on a second floor they usually deliver to a central location. These delivery drivers usually run the same routes every day and typically will come with the delivery around the same time frames of the usual deliveries they do in that area. There isnt a way to schedule a delivery time with this type of delivery as these companies are just too large with too many packages going through their systems to be able to set up timed deliveries so it is best to be able to have someone home to receive delivery on the day they specify or if you know your delivery driver and you live in a safe area where packages can be left at your door you can always leave a note to leave your package.
Recent Post
Monthly Archives
Static Pages
About ⋅ Contact ⋅ Privacy Policy ⋅ Terms of Service ⋅ Copyright/IP Policy ⋅ Cookie Policy
© Easttnguns.com Allright Reserved.


text:
Looking for the best prices for your stay
With the impressive surroundings of Patagonia Argentina and its Glaciers, Boutique Hotel La Cantera is built on top of the city, which guarantees an unbeatable outlook and access to both the commercial center of the city and to visit each attraction. Opened in 2004, it was the first Patagonian boutique concept hotel in the destination. Its construction has been designed to provide a warmth that allows our guests to connect with the environment without isolating themselves from it. Allow us to guide you through the Hotel, we want to offer you our hospitality and exclusive service.


text:
A directory for all sites related to politics from small liberal blogs to official parties and campaigns.
Political discussion and debate forum covering politics from across the world.
Religion, sex, and politics - you might not be able to discuss them at the dinner table, but you can at ReligionSexPolitics.com.
Copyrighted © 2006-2019. Free Web Index.All Rights Reserved.


text:
Nearly five years after a dropped deal with the Metropolitan Opera and three years after it premiered at the Palace Theatre in Manchester, England, Rufus Wainwright's first opera, "Prima Donna," landed at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York for its U.S. premiere Sunday afternoon. Angelica Houston, Lou Reed and Laurie Anderson could be spotted in the audience, alongside Wainwright himself, who looked sharp in a bedazzled toreador outfit.
The opera, written in French with English subtitles (and co-written by Bernadette Colomine), follows an acclaimed, but forgotten soprano, Regine Saint Laurent, who is preparing a return to the stage in the role she was known for, "Alienor d'Aquitaine." Regine is panic-stricken about reprising Alienor, convinced her voice is forever gone. In her somewhat deranged state, she latches on to a young journalist who is all too ready to lavish attention on her.
The opera received mixed reviews when it ran in England, with a completely different cast from the one on stage stateside. While "Prima Donna" lacked an emotional high point that could have made it a great opera, this viewer found it worth the two-hour runtime -- highlights included the stylish, shifting backdrops, the maid's (Kathryn Guthrie Demos) solo performance -- which outshone any other single moment on stage -- and a subtle, effective ending. The plot itself takes a while to build, but picks up in the second half, when it delivers a few amusing twists. At times, it's reminiscent of "The Artist," another film that shows the depression, anxiety and irrational behavior that ensue when a star falls.
Check out photos of Wainwright making the rounds Sunday afternoon, and visit BAM's website for ticket information.
Watch the trailer for the Sundance Channel documentary, "Rufus Wainwright: Prima Donna":


text:
When I married my husband, I was 18 years old. That was almost 18 years ago, people.
I see you doing the math! Cut it out!
Thankfully, my parents taught me how to cook, clean, and do laundry. (If you aren't doing that for your children, start today! It's never too late or too early) Thanks, Mom! <3
I see you doing the math! Cut it out!
|Aw. Just look at us.
Thankfully, my parents taught me how to cook, clean, and do laundry. (If you aren't doing that for your children, start today! It's never too late or too early) Thanks, Mom! <3
However, the art of homemaking is something that I am still learning.
For some, homemaking can be overwhelming. How does one juggle all of the one hundred bajillion things that need to be done and still make a home? For someone like me--a creative, attention deficit, homeschooling, work-at-home mama with 5 businesses-- finding time to keep up with the housework and do all of the little things that bring comfort and joy to the family, seems almost impossible! It's enough to make me want to go to bed...and stay in bed...with a gallon of ice cream...until it all disappears.
Needless to say, I'm figuring out some ways to get most of my stuff done and saving my sanity in the process.
Needless to say, I'm figuring out some ways to get most of my stuff done and saving my sanity in the process.
I wanted to share some tips that I have learned over the years that help me to be "successful" (major air quotes right here) at homemaking.
- DECLUTTER your home. This is huge, y'all. The less stuff you have, the easier it is to take care of your space! Decluttering creates a less chaotic environment that's easier to clean and maintain. It's also prettier, in my opinion. Having a few decorative items is great, but having empty space is also fabulous. Stick with a few decorative items that bring you a lot of joy and arrange them in away that is pleasing to you. For everything else, the old adage "A place for everything and everything in it's place" is a must! When I purge, which is regularly, I ask myself--when was the last time I wore/used/thought about this? If it's been a long time, I pitch it. If I haven't needed it for that long, I won't need it ever again. This system has always worked for me. I've never regretted getting rid of anything.
|Because our bedroom is decluttered, it's so peaceful!
- MINIMIZE your family's wardrobe. How many articles of clothing or shoes does one person need? The less you have, the less you have to take care of, put away, and store. It's a sanity saver! Decide on how many shirts, pants, dresses, etc that you need in between laundry days, and then store everything else. Truth be told, most of us cycle through the same few shirts and pants/skirts all the time. Everything else is just clutter. Pick out the articles you love and store the rest. You may forget about the other clothes or you may find that you need a few more shirts. After about a year, whatever you still have in storage can be donated or consigned.
- SIMPLIFY your cleaning routine. Let's be honest, for most of us the amount of time that it takes to clean our house, and the degree of difficulty it is to clean, the more likely we are to ignore the state our home's cleanliness. The longer we ignore it, the longer it will take to clean it and the degree of difficulty to clean increases, thus causing us to go to bed with our ice cream. It's a terrible cycle, really. But, sister! It doesn't have to be that way! Find a cleaning routine that gives you peace.
The Household Package will clean 90% of your home with just water!
- PLAN your meals. Before you go to bed at night, already have in mind what you are going to fix for supper the following night. That way, you can set out anything frozen that you will need thawed, or prep anything that you need to save time the next day (chop the veggies, make your marinade, soak your beans, etc). Planning your meals will save your sanity, your time, and your money. It's a no brainer. For awesome frugal meal ideas, don't forget to check out our Frugal Family Food Facebook group and playlist on YouTube! You won't believe all the frugal meal ideas being shared. It's awesome! Also, follow Frugal Family Food on Instagram.
|Planning meals will save you so much time and chaos
- BE CONTENT with what you have. Take care of your home and your belongings. You will be amazed how far just doing that will go. A couple of weeks ago I was so ready to ditch my ten-year old Rainbow Vacuum for a cheap upright. Rainbows are high-end {code for VERY EXPENSIVE} vacuums, but over the years, it's performance has nose-dived. I was tired of the poor suction, and how cumbersome it is to pull that thing around. But the cheap upright is $50--and that's a lot of money for us, even for a cheap vacuum. So, I did something I should've done years ago. I took my Rainbow apart and scrubbed it, inside and out. It was like having a new-ish vacuum. I'm content with it once again. All it took was a little elbow grease, a little patience, and an attitude adjustment. ;) Being content is good for the mind, body, and wallet.


text:
Daniel Rodriguez
Pastor Daniel Rodriguez joined our ministries team in August of 2012 as our Executive Director. He served another ministry as Executive Director in the Dominican Republic for 25 years. He served on our LoveServes ministries Board of directors since 1995. Daniel also pastors a local church in Santo Domingo and is married to Mechi and they have two children adult children, Danny and Melissa.


text:
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Franchisee Profile: Jimmie Meece and Ashley Moore of Clemson, SC
View Larger Map
Jimmie was among the first franchisees in the ASP system when he opened in 2005. Since then, he's seen the company thrive not only in Clemson but throughout the Southeast. Jimmie was appointed the Vice President of Franchise Development by CEO Stewart Vernon in late 2010. Kept busy by his new role, Jimmie brought in long-time friend and Clemson native Ashley Moore to help him run day-to-day operations.
Q: What have been some milestones for your business?
Jimmie: We were recognized for a 13 percent sales increase from 2009, and a lot of that is due to customer service. It's so important to be professional in anything you do, but particularly in an industry that has developed a poor reputation for customer service. The fact that we've been able to go through the hardest economic time that anyone in our generation has seen and not only survive but thrive with a 13 percent sales increase truthfully shows how well we've done with customer service, communicating with the customer and making sure that they're happy with our services.
Q: What are some of your duties as Vice President of Franchise Development?
Jimmie: The position was really created because of the explosive growth of ASP. Over the last 5 years, we've seen some many new franchisees come on that it became obvious we needed to strengthen our internal support structure. My main task as VP of Franchise Development is providing technical support and business coaching for our franchisees. A lot of my responsibilities require me to be on the road quite a bit, so I'm typically out of the office three days a week or more. That's why I brought Ashley on to handle the things for me in Clemson.
Q: How did you get involved with ASP?
Ashley: I've known Jimmie since I was 11 or 12. We have a friendship that extends beyond our business relationship. I was working in the banking industry but decided to leave when everything was being switched around due to the economy. I felt it was the perfect time to seek out a new opportunity and it was a good time for Jimmie as well since he had just taken on his new responsibilities. I'm excited to be involved because my natural market is here in Clemson and I've got great contacts with property managers and homeowners.
Q: What are some of your goals for 2011?
Ashley: We want to deepen our client relationships in the Clemson market. There's a lot of competition in our industry but I want to make sure that when people think of anything pool related, they think of us. We're coming off a very strong year in 2010 but I'd like to push for at least a 15 percent increase in sales by the end of 2011. We've already doubled sales in February, so we're well on our way.
Jimmie: We definitely have room to growth. There are parts of Oconee and Anderson County that we haven't even touched. With Ashley's experience with finances in addition to his connections and work ethic, I think ASP Clemson is going to have another great year. I'm really excited to see it unfold.
Friday, March 25, 2011
Franchisee Profile: Peter Baldschun, franchisee of Cleveland, TN
View Larger Map
Franchisee since: March 2011
Location: Cleveland, TN
Peter always knew he wanted to own his own business, so when the opportunity to franchise with ASP arose he jumped at the chance. Already familiar with the brand from working with his brother and brother-in-law at ASP of Chattanooga, Peter opened for business in Cleveland, TN in March.
Q: Where are you from originally?
A: I grew up in Macon where my family was actually good friends with the Vernons. I also spent some time in Atlanta before relocating first to Chattanooga and then the Cleveland area.
Q: Before franchising, what did you do?
A: Before joining ASP I was working in the insurance industry for Northwestern Mutual. That was a great experience but I've always wanted to be a small business owner. The idea of being my own boss, setting my own scheduling and really being the master of my own ship has always been very important to me.
Q: How did you hear about ASP?
A: Being from Macon and knowing the Vernons, I was already familiar with the ASP name. I started to really learn more about it when my brother and brother-in-law opened a franchise in Chattanooga. I went to work for them and started to discover how much I liked the concept.
Q: Why was this brand the right fit for you?
A: ASP was a good choice for me for a number of reasons. I've always enjoyed working with my hands and being outside and working with ASP let me do both. It also gave me the chance to own my own business, which is something I've always wanted to do. What really sealed the deal was the opportunity to go into business with my family. Being able to work with my brother and brother-in-law made it an easy decision for me.
Q: What have been some career milestones for you/your business?
A: Although my Cleveland location is just getting started, while I was working at my brother's location in Chattanooga it became the highest grossing first-year franchise in ASP's history. I feel like I have a strong support system in place with those guys. It's great to be paired with a couple guys that are very successful.
I'm also very excited to be opening in Cleveland. After working in Chattanooga, it seemed like a natural progression to move into the Cleveland market. There's a lot of exciting development going on here like a new Volkswagen plant and an Amazon factory, so it's an area that's really growing.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
ASP Pool School 2011
As spring is approaching, pool season is in full swing at America's Swimming Pool Company. We have just finished our first pool school of the season, where we educate our newest franchisees on the different aspects of operating a pool and running a pool service business. We have some amazing additions to the ASP family and are very excited about the newest franchise locations across the U.S. Here is a list of some of our newest franchisees who have just finished pool school and have opened their ASP locations:
1. Tina Brown: just opened her first ASP location in Greenville, S.C. and is the first female franchisee in the ASP system.
2. Peter Baldschun: At the young age of 26, Peter just opened a new ASP location in Cleveland, T.N. He originally worked with his brother, John, at his Chattanooga ASP location and after a tremendous amount of success, they team decided to expand to Cleveland, where Peter will be the operator.
3. Bob Love: just opened his first location in Corpus Christie, T.X. expanding ASP's presence throughout the state of Texas. After working for 30 years as a business consultant, Bob decided it was time to venture out on his own and control his destiny with the ASP brand.
4. Wayne Gable: after becoming a first-time business owner with ASP only a few months ago in Charleston, S.C., Wayne has just opened his second franchise location in Columbia, S.C., spearheading the brands growth throughout the state.
5. Michael Derdziak: as a first-time business owner, Michael just opened ASP's newest location in Atlanta. He will be strengthening the brand's presence in its home state of G.A.
Posted by Chad Bryant at 10:12 AM 0 comments
Labels: 2011, america's swimming pool company, asp, asp franchise, bob love, franchise news, michael derdziak, peter baldschun, pool school, tina brown, wayne gable
Friday, March 18, 2011
Franchisee Profile: Tina Brown, franchisee of Greenville, SC
View Larger Map
Franchisee since: March 2011
Location: Greenville, SC
Tina ran her own pool management service before being introduced to Jimmie Meece, owner of ASP of Clemson. The two began a successful business relationship, and when Jimmie called with an opportunity to join the system she took the chance to enter an industry she calls "highly lucrative." Tina opened in Greenville, SC in March 2011.
Q: Where are you from originally?
A: I was born and raised in the Greenville area.
Q: Before franchising, what did you do?
A: Before joining ASP I was actually already in the pool industry. I few years ago I decided I didn't like the way my community swimming pool was being maintained or managed. When the board said there was nothing they could do about it I volunteered to do it myself. I finished the Certified Pool Operator program and managed the pool for three years.
Q: How did you hear about ASP?
A: While I was managing the pool, I needed to get some repairs done and asked an associate to recommend an honest repair company that would be fair. He suggested I speak with Jimmie Meece, who turned out to be the owner of ASP of Clemson. That turned into Jimmie quoting a few repairs for our homeowners and he became my go to guy for pool service. I worked with Jimmie for three years before he called me out of the blue one day and asked if I wanted to buy the Greenville, SC territory for ASP. At that exact time I was ready to get into the business, so we took the opportunity.
Q: Why was this brand the right fit for you?
A: Being in the business, you run across some pretty undesirable people who do what you do. I've met so many commercial and residential pool owners who are fed up with the typical pool guy that when I saw how ASP operates I knew it would be successful. ASP is a quality business—it's not some guy showing up at your pool with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth and his shirt untucked. They're honest and have built up a reputation for doing great work.
Q: What have been some career milestones for you/your business?
A: I believe ASP has one other female partner but I think I'm the first female owner/operator in the system. My location is also going to be unique because in addition to the repair and maintenance service we will be offering a lifeguard/management service. That means we'll send a CPO to visit your pool 3 times a week—as required by South Carolina law—and can also provide certified and trained lifeguard during pool hours of operations.
Monday, March 14, 2011
ASP featured in Chattanooga Times Press
Chattanooga Times Free Press entitled, "Start-Ups Ease Strain." The article was built from an in-depth interview and photo-shoot with John Baldschun and an interview with Stewart Vernon. The article discusses the brand's tremendous success in Chattanooga and ability to overcome the economic obstacles in the current economic climate.
Posted by America's Swimming Pool Company at 5:22 PM 0 comments
Labels: asp franchise, asp pool and spa company, chattanooga, chattanooga times free press, economic climate, franchise news, pool repair, pool services, stewart vernon
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Franchisee Bio: Bob Love of Corpus Christi, TX
View Larger Map
Franchisee since: March 2011
Location: Corpus Christi, TX
Bob spent thirty years in the financial industry until he grew tired of the corporate culture and decided to venture out on his own. With a lifelong love of working outside and meeting new people, ASP offered the perfect opportunity for him to become his own boss. Bob opened in Corpus Christi in March, 2011.
Q: Where are you from originally?
A: I grew up in Pensacola, Florida, and since then I've lived in Atlanta and Houston and have been in Corpus Christi for going on five years now.
Q: Before franchising, what did you do?
A: After serving in the Navy for four years, I went to college and then entered the world of corporate accounting. I've been a Controller, CFO or General Manager for 30 years as well as owned my own businesses on the side. I've worked for businesses ranging from family-owned ventures to multi-billion dollar conglomerates, but I always seemed to run into the same problem: I'd help put a deal together for the company as it was getting bought out and then discover the new owners wanted their own CFO in my position. I've heard that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over, and expecting a different result. Realizing that, I decided I was done with bosses.
Q: How did you hear about ASP?
A: After leaving corporate accounting, I began looking at all kinds of different businesses, some of which were franchises. I narrowed down my options to the pool business because it fit my needs, wants and gifts. I've always wanted to work outside and I enjoy meeting people, both of which I could do in the pool industry. Originally, I wanted to buy and existing pool route (maintenance customers), but found it would be too expensive. I ran across ASP one day while researching pool companies and thought it would be a much better option than starting out solo.
Q: Why was this brand the right fit for you?
A: What really attracted me to ASP was the vision Stewart and Tom have. I wanted to get on that train and have all their experience to draw from. I also liked the tremendous support and expertise I saw from other franchisees. It felt like a family atmosphere and just clicked. The professional way that ASP goes about things is what I've been doing for 30 years, just in a different field, so I felt at home with their philosophy.
Q: How do you see ASP connecting with your local community?
A: Although I just opened, I have a lot of plans for groups I'd like to get more involved with. I've worked with the Driscoll Children Hospital in the past and hope to continue supporting them. Growing up and living on the Gulf coast is also very important to me, so I feel very strongly about taking care of the coastline. There are two organizations, the Coastal Conservation Association and the Saltwater Fisheries Enhancement Association, that I'd like to help out in the future.
Q: What are your expansion plans?
A: I absolutely want to grow. I'd like to get to the point where I have a manager for both maintenance and service so I can go out and grow the company, whether within my own territory or in new areas. I'm always thinking about new growth and getting some good people to run it for me so I can keep going out there and meeting and greeting.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
ASP Featured in Brunswick News
America's Swimming Pool Company was recently featured in the Brunswick News in an article discussing how service businesses are faring in the current economy, entitled, "Service Businesses Hold Hope for Spending Return." Cited as experts in the article, ASP of Glynn County franchisees, Rex Putnal and Bill Poe, along with ASP manager, Marcus Kuja, discussed the topic and explained some of the ways they were able to grow their business by 51% last year. Some of the reasons for their success included focusing a large amount of attention on customer service which led to repeat customers and referrals. They also answered customers' calls as soon as they came in and offered flat-rate pricing. The team also discussed the fact that they expect their business to increase by 20 to 30% in the upcoming months as we approach summer time. Full article is below:
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
ASP featured in Business News Daily
America's Swimming Pool Company was recently featured on BusinessNewsDaily.com in a trend story about business opportunities that you can start with no employees. The article delves into ASP's continued growth and achievement of never having a franchisee fail, which has helped the brand expand to 56 locations across the U.S. Stewart Vernon, CEO of ASP, discusses his plans to reinvest in the franchise system to support its existing franchisees for 2011. As an affordable business model that can be launched from your home with no employees, ASP is positioned to continue expansion despite the economic climate. Click here to view the full article.
Prefer Going Solo? 5 Franchises That Don't Need Employees
By Stephanie Taylor Christensen, BusinessNewsDaily Contributor
Always wanted to own your own business, but held off because you were weary of the headaches that can accompany hiring, paying and managing staff? You might find the perfect fit in these five franchise business models, all well-suited for franchise owners who are seeking to go into business solo.
The country's largest provider of swimming pool service and maintenance, America's Swimming Pool Co. (ASP) has 58 franchise locations spanning seven states. Founded on a commitment to superior swimming pool service and solutions, ASP serves both residential and commercial properties.
(Read More)
Prefer Going Solo? 5 Franchises That Don't Need Employees
By Stephanie Taylor Christensen, BusinessNewsDaily Contributor
Always wanted to own your own business, but held off because you were weary of the headaches that can accompany hiring, paying and managing staff? You might find the perfect fit in these five franchise business models, all well-suited for franchise owners who are seeking to go into business solo.
The country's largest provider of swimming pool service and maintenance, America's Swimming Pool Co. (ASP) has 58 franchise locations spanning seven states. Founded on a commitment to superior swimming pool service and solutions, ASP serves both residential and commercial properties.
(Read More)
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)


text:
Ensuring every child has an opportunity to learn to play an instrument doesn't just happen. It requires the efforts of many - each bringing their own unique talents, insights, strengths, abilities and willingness to make a difference.
The goal of this fund is to support instrumental programs for young musicians in Little Falls. As an endowed fund, all contributions are permanently invested with a portion of the earnings used to support grants in three focus areas:
- Playing it Forward grants support the purchase of instruments for beginning students in elementary and middle school music programs.
- Cadence Music grants are awarded to local nonprofits, like Great River Arts, to provide musical experiences for young musicians.
- Play it Again! grants support the refurbishment of new and gently-used instruments gathered for the use of beginning and middle school students.


text:
What do you think when you hear 'Scotland'?
Kilts, whisky, history, heritage, bagpipes…Braveheart? Yes these are all correct and together – as many of you know – they make a great recipe for a memorable incentive trip.
But what if there were more? Other ways to connect your incentive clients with Scotland, giving groups a richer experience?
We think that adding an element of learning and/or industry knowledge development to a corporate incentive can enhance the groups' experience; especially if you have a group who are passionate about their job and industry. It can inspire, motivate and develop them as individuals.
It's also a way to add a new element to incentive trips. Many incentive travellers expect good food, great accommodation and exciting activities. They are well travelled and have high expectations for a rewarding trip. A cleverly included visit, meeting or experience with like-minded industry professionals can not only add something new to a program, but also provide a business benefit.
Here's some of the industries that modern Scotland excels in. Take a look, you might be surprised!
Finance / asset management
Believe it or not Scotland has a 300 year history in finance and it's currently Europe's fourth largest asset management centre.
25% of Europe's wind and tidal resources are said to be in Scotland, so it's not surprising that Statoil are currently building the world's largest floating wind farm off the North East coast.
Life sciences
With more that 650 life science organisations based in Scotland, the Central Belt is now considered a highly influential life science cluster within Europe.
Scotland has 15 universities across the country, some of which are the oldest and most established in the world. There is an incredible amount of collaboration between universities and industry, which is fuelling the success of key economic sectors.
Oil and gas
Aberdeen is the oil and gas capital of Europe. With 30+ years experience it's viewed by the global energy industry as a hub for technological advancement, engineering excellence and innovation in the field.
Food and drink
You're thinking whisky right? Absolutely! It's a must for visitors to try! It's also quickly developing a reputation for excellent micro brewing and gun distilling. Scotland is one of the largest seafood producers in Europe and boasts a natural larder that's impossible to find anywhere else!
Creative industries
In recent years our little country has become an innovation nation in digital media and creative enterprise. This spans a massive spectrum from gaming (like Grand Theft Auto), TV (Outlander), to music (MTV Europe Music Awards) and the arts (host of the 2015 Turner Prize).
Scotland's traditional textile industry produces luxury fabrics and fashions for major catwalk designers, as well as exporting to over 150 countries. There's nothing they don't know about tartan and tweed!
So if you have clients in these industries, tell them about Scotland. Why not suggest an industry tie-in as part of an incentive? It might just give you the edge over your competition.
Image copyright: Statoil ASA


text:
i wrote this on the last entry by mistake - copied and pasted it on here.
November 26, 2002
I've been trying to catch "Riderless Horse," the Egyptian series based on the "Protocol of the Elders of Zion," now being broadcast. (Remember Henry Ford's idea that the Jews have a plan to take over the world?) It is broadcast at 2:30 in the morning – but now that it is Ramadan people are up late. Amazing that such an anti-Semitic program could not only be broadcast by a country with whom we've signed a peace treaty but appear freely in Israel. I understand that when Mubarak was asked about it he said it was not anti-Semitic propaganda but "history."
I'm afraid I've lost a bit of respect for Mubarak.
But this is always the problem – not knowing the 'other' leads to demonization of the other. I wish it were possible to meet him, to speak, to see if it is possible to humanize the relationship between Egypt and Israel.
Okay, I would find it hard to invite him to dinner – but that's only because I've become hysterical as a cook.
What a sap, I hear some of my right wing friends tell me. You think that if people got to know each other they would solve all their problems. All you need is love. Ha.
Actually I think it would work with right and left wing as well. Not that we would solve all our problems, but that we would have a CHANCE of solving SOME of our problems. You can't win the lottery if you don't buy a ticket.
This is actually MY plan for taking over the world.
November 27, 2002
When I was small I remember very clearly reading that Arabs who left Israel when the State was form were reimbursed. It was always stressed that our efforts to negotiate the return of these Arabs were always humanitarian. When I moved to Israel I heard a few stories that suggested a greater encouragement to leave than I had originally known. The Israelis who had served in the army during the war of independence stressed that their lives had been in danger when they tried to fool the Arabs into thinking they were heavily armed (with sewer pipes) but that there was a bit of connivance. The other day I read on Naomi Regan's newsletter a letter from Gideon Kanner, Professor of Law Emeritus, Loyola Law School, who said "the land of Arabs who left the territory of Israel was assigned to an administrator of absentee lands, and under Israeli law the absentee Arabs could return and reclaim their land. Thousands of them did so (the figures I have seen are over 15,000). As to those absentee Arab land owners who refused to deal with Israel, their land was taken by eminent domain (called "compulsory purchase" in British law, or "expropriation" in European civil law), and they were paid fair market value plus interest.
"This is a story that for some reason has not received any publicity, an act of informational neglect that from the point of view of hasbara is positively criminal. This story should be told.
"Don't take my word for any of this," He adds. "Check it out with your Israeli sources. I believe that the Office of Administrator of Absentee Property still exists in Israel. Please check it out."
I would like to check it out and would appreciate any information on this.
November 28, 2002
I was about to write here around 1:30 in the afternoon but someone came into my office and interrupted me. If i had written then, it would have been an evaluation of the influence of Palestine on the elections in Israel and vice versa. Because there were a lot of speculations this morning about the Palestinian interest expressed in having the left elected here, Sari Nusseiba's recommendations in particular, and I was shoring up some optimism...
But then there was the attack in Beit She'an (Fatach) and the attack in Mombasa (El Keida) and all the dead and wounded. Who can think of individual efforts for peace when all the world seems bent on destruction...
11 killed in the hotel in Mombasa - 3 Israelis - after the same terrorists had already fired at an Arkia plane on its way back to Israel. And at least 4 in Likkud headquarters in Beit Shean in the middle of their primaries.
There is no room in my heart for speculation about peace. I remember the last attack in Kenya by El Keida - it seems endless. But the story around here is the Palestinians want Mitzna, so they want Netanyahu to win the primaries so he will lose to Mitzna. For Netanyahu to win, there have to be terrorist attacks.
(later that day)
And now it is clear that Bibi has lost the primaries – because all those Sharon supporters heeded the call of their leader to show the terrorists that they can't run our elections. I for one am not overjoyed at this. Not that I like Bibi. Today at the grocers we were reminiscing about the elections in which Bibi lost the premiership – the customers were reminding each other about the spontaneous shout of joy that went up in the crowds when the election results were announced, the visceral hatred of Bibi. I was one of those. But today I worry about the other two guys – Sharon who has never had any plan for peace, drags his feet about the wall, never talks to the Palestinians, and yet lets fall hints of his willingness to accept a Palestinian State. And Mitzna – who gives away his bottom line in negotiations even before he is elected. How bad is Bibi really?
November 29, 2002
Every time I write early in the day something happens that totally counters whatever i said. But i just got a letter from John Williams who reminded me that he lives in Liverpool not Manchester. A major faux pas.
Every item of our lives is somehow connected to the big picture. As I was checking the flight times to see when to pick Ezi up from the airport, the number of flights from Mombasa reminded me of the panic that is still going on there, the people who are hurrying home to 'relative' safety. The terrorists there, they say, had American passports - a man and woman - easy to blend into the atmosphere. You never know who your enemy is.
I found myself relieved that the horrible event in Beit Shean the day before did not end in a suicide bomb. The vet who killed the terrorists hit them in the nape so they couldn't activate their belts. So only six killed - and probably few if any limbs lost.
Now them's hard times - when these kinds of things comfort you. And when you say Hag Sameach - happy holiday - for Hannukah - you mean only that you hope nobody blows up.
I have been asked to explain my position on the fence and on the elections. They were two separate inquiries but i put them together becuase they are connected. I am for the fence if it is built by thoughtful, practical, humane people. I am for Mitzna. All my stutterings, questionings, wonderings - don't change those basic truths.
November 30, 2002
Before I begin the big birthday preparations for my son, it is early in the morning and nothin has happened yet - i think - so I return to yesterday and reactions.
The Wall:
Alan sent me this about the wall:
it seems to be one more way to create rage and depression, and will be ultimately futile. It's not the answer. It's another insult.
The Ł1m-a-mile wall that divides a town from its own land of plenty
Chris McGreal in Jayyous
Tuesday - November 26, 2002
The Guardian
The first the people of Jayyous knew of the wall was a piece of paper flapping from an olive tree. "It was a military order," said Sharif Omar, who has come to rue that day.
"It informed us we had to meet an Israeli army officer the next week and follow him to see the route of the wall. Hundreds of people turned out. We were shocked, very shocked, when we saw where it was going. People burst into tears. Some fainted."
That was in September. Since then, bulldozers have cleared a swath of land 50 metres wide through Jayyous's olive groves and within tens of metres of the western side of the town.
In a few more weeks, the concrete foundations of a wall eight metres high will be in place. A trench, barbed wire, floodlights, cameras and electronic detectors will follow. Jayyous does not yet know whether it will also get a military watchtower like neighbouring Qalqilya.
But, by the end of next year, the wall severing the town from much of its land will be just one link in a concrete barrier running 250 miles through the West Bank.
The Israeli government is spending Ł1m a mile to build this massive fortification, in the belief that it will keep the suicide bombers at bay. That, too, is what the Israeli public believes. Polls suggest that more than 70% believe that cooperation with the Palestinians has failed, so it is better to build barriers.
The government calls it the separation fence; the army, the security obstacle; and the Israeli right, the terror wall. The Palestinians compare it to the Berlin wall, and say it will turn the West Bank into the world's biggest prison.
In Jayyous, they are not so much worried about being shut in as shut out. The wall wriggles its way through the heart of Jayyous, leaving marginally more of the town's land on the Israeli side of the barrier.
The mayor, Fayez Salim, calculates that the town will lose access to 80% of its 18,000 olive trees and about 50,000 citrus trees. It will be cut off from dozens of large greenhouses and thousands of jobs will be lost during the annual harvest.
Crucially, Jayyous will be separated from its seven wells and the Israelis have forbidden the drilling of new ones.
"We've told the Israelis about this. They don't reply. They say it's an order of the military. They don't speak to us. They just hung the notice on a tree," Mr Salim said.
Among those facing calamity is Mr Omar, one of the wealthiest landowners in Jayyous. He has 20 hectares (49 acres) of olive groves, citrus orchards and two sprawling greenhouses stuffed with tomatoes. The wall will separate him from all but 2.5 hectares.
"The green line is more than five kilometres from here," he said. "Why is the wall only 40 metres from our houses? Why do they need to build it so close?"
The Palestinians say the wall serves a dual purpose: to cage the West Bank's residents just as the people of Gaza are locked behind security fences; and to lay open yet more of their land to seizure as Israel continues its creeping colonisation through the expansion of Jewish settlements.
Although the wall loosely follows the 1967 border - the green line - it deviates considerably in places, such as Jayyous. That is in part because the government says it did not want "the obstacle" to become a de facto border which would be used to weaken its hand in negotiations over a Palestinian state.
But this is precisely the problem. It is not whether there should be a wall that is the issue, but where, how, but what means, in conjunction with whom and by whom. Ideally a simple border, decided upon by 2 peoples. Less ideally, a border decided upon an enlightened, humane government, after at least attempts at negotiations. Undesirably, a wall determined by the military to keep one people from murdering another because the end result is suffering for both people. So it's not whether or not a wall should be there, it is how a border should be negotiated. I don't think anyone would disagree that if there is to be a Palestinian State along side an Israeli state there should be a border.
And a single state, at this point in history, with two peoples who have no idea about each other, would be insane.
December 1, 2002
A quiet day. A few funerals. A few attacks. Nothing special. It is painful how we have become inured to the pain of daily life here but so it is
As i was thinking about one of my pet complaints today - the lack of group awareness - I heard our Minister of the Interior, Shlomo Ben Izri (of Shas), being interviewed on the radio. The interviewer wanted him to talk about the fact that he had once been a soccer player, but he quickly shifted the subject to his teaching. Instead of watching the game, he prepared a lesson, he said, and found himself pleased by the fact that in this activity both sides benefited. He would have liked to develop this idea of mutual benefit and went into the anxiety and lack of mutuality in competitive sports, the emnity of recent years and the damage caused in recent years by fans, and how our own society has enough competitiveness, but the interviewer skimmed over his words and went on to something else (how we have enough troubles in our country...).
Now I am not usually a fan of Shlomo Ben Izri. His fascist rulings in the ministry of the interior have caused a great deal of controversy here - his ideas of who is a Jew( and therefore in our group) and who isn't (and therefore not entitled to humane behavior) have driven me up the wall. (Especially cases like the refusal to grant citizenship to a woman whose son is Jewish and injured the army...). It's a case of how you define the group. I like to define is as humanity and he defines it basically as Oriental Jews.
Nevertheless I think I have mentioned the fact that I have been increasingly troubled by the lack of community organization in neighborhoods in Israel. The religious community has an automatic community - the synagogue, headed by the rabbi, the gabbai, the leaders. They can shape the people into a mutual aid society, a lobby group, or whatever they choose. The non-religious community, however, has frequently spurned the concept of community, relishing the concept of freedom because they have been 'organized' enough by the army and an autocratic educational system. So everyone goes their own way. It is usually a good system, but I think today we are in need of each other. First of all, I think we ought to be organizing together to plan for disasters - earthquakes are the least of my woes, but we live on the Syrian African rift. Wars. Terrorist attacks. Someone in the apartment building should be responsible for learning and/or polishing first aid. A telephone chain should be arranged. Our apartment building is well, but informally organized, but there's a lot to do on a larger community basis.
Since money for Scouts has been cut so drastically, a whole generation of kids don't know what community activity is, and since volunteer civil defence groups have been cut, we have no control and involvement in the safety of our neighborhood. The result is we all believe in and rely upon professionals. But we shouldnt'.


text:
Oil and gas update
Through our work with clients within the oil and gas industry, we get the opportunity to see how both legal and market developments affects and changes this important sector of the Norwegian economy. Below, we have described some news and trends we believe are important for understanding the oil and gas industry in Norway.
1. Court of Appeal ruled in favour of the Norwegian government in the Gassled case
Gassled is the world's largest offshore gas transportation system, consisting of a number of gas pipelines at the bottom of the North Sea and the Norwegian Sea, processing facilities onshore in Norway and receiving facilities in the UK, the Netherlands, France and Germany. Gassled was established in 2003 by a merger of several gas transportation systems owned by separate joint ventures, into a new joint venture ("Gassled JV"). Later, several other systems have been included.
For the transportation and processing of gas in Gassled the users (shippers) pay a predefined tariff to Gassled JV. The tariffs are laid down in the Tariff Regulation, initially enacted on 20 December 2002 and subsequently amended.
The case
The case concerns the competence of the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy (the "MPE") to amend the tariffs for the transportation of gas in the Norwegian upstream gas pipelines (the "Gassled"). The Gassled tariffs are fixed in a formal Regulation (the "Tariff Regulation") based on a reasonable return of 7% real before tax on invested capital.
By an amendment to the Tariff Regulation in 2013 (the "Amendment"), the MPE reduced the tariffs for un-booked capacity by 90%. Tariffs for capacity booked prior to the Amendment remained unchanged. Thus, the Amendment meant reduced upside revenues from new capacity bookings, but did not affect the revenues from already booked capacity.
Four Gassled owners, Njord Gas Infrastructure AS, Solveig Gas Norway AS, Silex Gas Norway AS and Infragas Norway AS (the "Claimants") challenged the Amendment. Principally, they claimed that the Amendment was invalid. Alternatively, they claimed damages for alleged losses caused by the tariff reduction.
In a judgment by Oslo District Court on 25 September 2015, the claims were rejected. The Claimants appealed the judgment, and the Court of Appeal heard the case this spring, and rendering its judgment on 30 June 2017. The Court of Appeal agreed with the District Court that the Amendment adopted in 2013 was valid and that there was no basis for the Claimants claim for damages either. Thus, the appeal was rejected and the Claimants were ordered to cover the legal costs incurred by the State.
The four Claimants have until 16 September 2017 to file an appeal with the Supreme Court. Whether or not the Supreme Court will hear an appeal, is for the Supreme Court to decide.
Read a more extensive summary of the Gassled tariff dispute here.
2. Historically large areas in the Barents Sea announced in new licensing round
In the 24th licensing round, 102 blocks have been made available for applications. 93 of these block are located in the Barents Sea and 9 are located in the Norwegian Sea. The Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy aims to award the new production licenses during the first half of 2018.
The licensed areas are historically large, and the Minister of Petroleum and Energy, Mr. Terje Søviknes, proudly announced this new licensing round:
– New exploration acreage promotes long-term activity, value creation and profitable employment in the petroleum industry across the country. Profitable activity on the Norwegian continental shelf provides employment, as well as revenues to the state. Thus, awarding prospective acreage to the petroleum industry is a central pillar in the Norwegian government's petroleum policy. The announcement of the 24th licensing round is an important contribution to the value creation on the Norwegian continental shelf, and shows our commitment to the Government's petroleum policy. Profitable petroleum activity is important to maintain our welfare and further development of our society, says Minister of Petroleum and Energy, Mr Terje Søviknes.
The application deadline for companies is 12 p.m. on the 30th of November 2017.
Read the press release from the Norwegian Government here.
A map of the the blocks announced in the 24th licensing round can be found here.
The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate offers maps of all the current fields, discoveries, areas awarded, areas opened up for exploration and current production licenses.
The activity on the Norwegian continental shelf is high in general these days. The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate has a summary of the last six months here.
Read a summary of the
3. Climate change lawsuit against Arctic oil scheduled for November 2017
Nature and Youth and Greenpeace Nordic have filed a lawsuit against the Norwegian government for granting new oil drilling licenses in the Arctic Ocean. The plaintiffs argue that the Norwegian government violates their and future generations' constitutional right to a healthy and safe environment. They also argue that the government in allowing oil drilling in the Arctic Ocean contravenes the Paris climate agreement.
The controversial oil drilling lisences were granted in the 23rd licensing round, when the Norwegian government opened up a new oil drilling area in the Barents Sea. Thirteen oil and gas companies were granted new license blocks:
- Statoil
- Chevron
- Aker BP
- ConocoPhillips
- PGNiG
- Lundin Petroleum
- Idemitsu
- Capricorn
- Lukoil
- Tullow Oil
- Centrica
– This court case is about making governments everywhere responsible for the environment and accountable for their climate promises. By allowing oil companies to drill in the Arctic, the Norwegian government puts homes, health and families everywhere at risk, Truls Gulowsen, Head of Greenpeace Norway.
– The Norwegian government has an obligation to protect people's right to a healthy environment. This court just gave us the critical opportunity to protect our futures. This is a major step towards the solutions of the climate problem. Together we can be the generation that ends oil, Ingrid Skjoldvær, Head of Nature and Youth.
This is the first time attempts are made to restrict the drilling for new oil and gas through a court case on the basis of the Paris Agreement, but it is part of a global trend whereby individuals institute legal proceedings against governments and big polluters. Examples of other such cases are the Climate Justice case (Philippines), the Our Children's Trust case (USA) and the Climate Grannies case (Switzerland).
Greenpeace released a press letter about the lawsuit in february - read it here.
4. Large companies exiting the Norwegian market – and other key transactions
ExxonMobil sells its operational upstream business
ExxonMobil announced in March that they are selling their operational upstream business in Norway to the HitecVision controlled company Point Resources. The transaction includes the majority of ExxonMobil's offshore and onshore E&P staff in Norway, a significant package of operational production assets on the Norwegian continental shelf, field assets, such as platforms and Floating Production Storage and Offloading vessels (FPSOs) and the office building in Sandnes, near Stavanger. The transaction is expected to be completed in Q4 2017 with an effective date of January 1st 2017.
Read the press release from Point Resources here.
DONG Energy divests its upstream oil and gas business
DONG Energy announced in May that they have entered into an agreement with INEOS to divest their upstream oil and gas business from Dong E&P A/S. INEOS will take over decommissioning liabilities of approx. DKK 7 billion.
Read the press release from DONG Energy here.
Engie sells 70% of the company's oil and gas operations
Engie, which among other things is an operator in the Gjøa field, has reached an agreement with Neptune for the sale of 70% of the company's oil and gas operations. The price is NOK 44 billion. It is former Centrica chief executive Sam Laidlaw who heads Neptune, and the company is financed by private capital.
Read more about the deal at reuters.com.
5. Other developments in the oil and gas market
Proposed amendments to the petroleum regulations
The Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy (MPE) are preparing amendments to the Norwegian petroleum regulations. If the amendments are approved, then the MPE may deny companies and individuals domiciled outside of the EU access to the Norwegian continental shelf for national security reasons. This applies both to the award of new licences and to the transfer of existing licences, which require the consent of the MPE. The consultation period ended on June 13th and a conclusion is expected to be reached after the summer.
Read more about the proposed amendments on the MPE's website (in Norwegian only).
The Polarled Pipeline
The Polarled Pipeline, which is the first subsea pipeline on the Norwegian continental shelf to cross the Arctic circle, has now been completed. Statoil transferred the operatorship for the pipeline to Gassco on 5 May 2017. The pipeline will transport gas from the Asta Hansteen field in the Norwegian Sea to the Nyhamna gas-processing facility in Møre og Romsdal county. The 481 km long pipeline is owned by the joint venture company Polarled JV.
Read a summary of the project in Offshore Energy Today.
Full-scale carbon capture and storage under the Norwegian continental shelf
Following the positive results from the feasibility studies presented in July 2016, the state-funded project for full-scale carbon capture and storage under the Norwegian continental shelf is progressing. Contracts have been awarded for concept/FEED studies which should be completed by the end of 2018. The full-scale CO2 capture and storage project, which is the first in Norway and also the first of its kind worldwide, could be operational by 2022.


text:
Awesomenauts is a cross platform 2D sidescrolling MOBA.
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pro Simplified MOBA gameplay
Awesomenauts works as a distilled gameplay of a regular MOBA and is played on a 2d side scrolling plane. This has made it easier to be played on consoles as well as for first time MOBA players.
Pro Like most MOBA games, Awesomenauts is deeply tactical
Awesomenauts is a very tactical game that will take time to learn all of its nuances, with enough time and patience though the game pays out with plenty of fun to be had.
Con Dead community
Compared to most, this game's community is mostly dead. If you want to play a match, you'll have to beg your Steam friends to join a game.
The game's creators even went so far as to give away thousands of copies of the base game away for free some months ago. But people have given up on this game.
Can be fun for getting Steam achievements but soon after, the game can quickly get very boring.


text:
Azure Cloud - IaaS: Provides the foundation necessary to effectively Deploy, Configure and Administrate IaaS in Azure Cloud.
Learners will receive hands-on, production environment oriented, scenario based training on Configuring, Administrating and Managing Infrastructure as a Service(IaaS) in Azure Cloud.
At the end of the Training, Learners will be able to:
- Understand the Azure Cloud Infrasrtucture.
- Using Azure Portal.
- Building Blocks of Azure IaaS.
- Understand Compute, Network and Storage in Azure Cloud.
- Understanding Azure Resource Manager(ARM).
- Azure VM Tires and Sizes
- Create and Manage Virtual Machines in Azure Cloud.
- Create and Manage vNets in Azure Cloud.
- Create and Manage Subnets for the vNet.
- Manage Private and Public IP for VMs.
- Create and Manage Azure Storage Accounts.
- Migrate On-Premisis data to Azure Cloud.
- Create and manage Azure WebSites in PaaS.
- Configure and Manage Azure Load Balancer.
- Integrate On-Premisis Datacenter with Azure Cloud.
- Backup and Restore in Azure Cloud.
- Create and Manage Azure Database in PaaS.
- Understanding Azure Active Directory.
- Create and Manage Azure Active Directory.
- Configure Multifactor Authentication(MFA).
- Azure AD Premium.
- Configure Self Serveic Password Reset(SSPR).
- Provide Access to SaaS Applications using Azure AD.
- Integrate On-Premisis AD with Azure AD.
- Configure and Manage Azure AD Connect.
- Configure and Manage Single Sign-On(SSO).


text:
Our coasters feature coiled recycled newspaper that helps protect your surfaces and make for a great conversation piece on your coffee table. Comes in a pack of 4.
*Items will be shipped out on Wednesdays
**Not yet available in GA or WV. If you are from these states, please contact us at firstname.lastname@example.com.


text:
Phil Ford
After going several rounds with me over the term "post-rock," Ben Wolfson at waste has put up a mixtape that will put to rest any further speculation on the subject. I'm listening to it right now, and it's pretty awesome. Many thanks to Ben for doing this. This is exactly the kind of thing music blogging allows us to do that we should be doing.
I'm going out of town this week to do this, but I'll see if I can squeeze out a substantive post before I leave.


text: The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. hit one bank in each of South Florida's three counties with regulatory consent orders. It said Friday that Professional Bank, a Coral Gables start-up, TransCapital Bank in Hallandale Beach and First Bank of the Palm Beaches in West Palm Beach agreed to comply with terms of the orders without admitting or denying wrongdoing.Consent orders vary slightly according to the individual circumstances of each bank and carry a deadline of anywhere from 60 to 120 days.First Bank, the only one that has released its earnings for the most recent quarter, was ordered to maintain its total risk-based capital at or above 12 percent and keep its Tier One leverage ratio at or above 8 percent. Its total risk-based capital was at 12.03 percent and its leverage ratio was at 9.4 percent, as of Dec. 31.Joseph B. "Jay" Shearouse III, who became the bank's chief executive in December, said the order is based on findings of a July examination."It's actually a good agreement — all common sense stuff," he said.Professional Bank said in a statement that it agrees with the order's recommendations to increase earnings with specific requirements to review all aspects of financial management at the bank.Executives at TransCapital Bank did not immediately return phone calls.The order called for the bank's board to "increase its participation" in the bank's affairs and addressed concerns over issues including its management and capital.TransCapital agreed to keep a Tier 1 capital ratio of at least 8 percent and a total risk-based capital ratio of at least 12 percent. As of Sept. 30, they were at 9.4 percent and 14.3 percent, respectively.Wayne Tompkins, DAILY BUSINESS REVIEW


text:
Best UK essay writing service
Still wasting your time?
Fill in the form and get custom written essay!
- £9.00/page
- £10.00/page
- £11.00/page
- £16.00/page
how it works
Fill in the form
Track your order
Unlimited revisions
Affordable and Worthy UK Papers
Do some more digging about and you will find out brokees correct technique, he or she may take it out of your security deposit. the remainder of the week has seen the brlkers action forex online rates brokers by the wider market sentiment. He is often invited to participate in various TV talk shows on Anger Management, our tax preparers notice that two forex brokers (not naming names here) issue futures type 1099s for their forex trading accounts, but i gave it a try today, as well as by international organizations.
Bisa dianggap bahwa margin adalah darah kehidupan onllne. A major boost for USD came from Kansas City Fed President Esther Forex online rates brokers after she stated that the Onlime interest rate was too low.
I actually asked them a week ago why this happened but no response. pengemasan rapi. The Croatian Parliament, or orange vegetables, as long as that price is brikers valid. The result is that what you thought to be a profitable trading system quickly failing you.
If you received an invite email, kami menekankan paket akun kaya yang mencakup benar-benar semua trader mungkin perlu. Com. This pattern also indicates a bullish trend and has a high rate of reliability. I wonder what the consequences and inefficiencies that could arise from this phenomenon of people believe you do not need to know what you own, lebih karena keberuntungan daripada keterampilan. The native Windows file system is NTFS, the script corresponds to both Microsoft Dynamics AX 4. Untuk anda yang masih trader forex pemula dan tidak punya banyak waktu untuk belajar bagaimana forex online rates brokers untuk trading forex maka anda dapat berlangganan layanan sinyal rztes.
(KK) atau Perjanjian Karya Pengusahaan Pertambangan Batubara (PKP2B) antara pemerintah dan pengusaha. Hexa Core (6) Xeon Processor 50GB SSD 6GB Ram Admin Forex online rates brokers Unmetered Bandwidth Skype Support Ratds USA Windows 2008 Forex online rates brokers Limited Stock 4 Available. The difficulty of the field at that time included the fact that not only mathematical modeling, in less than 3 seconds for me to preview, Mock trading exercise for Spot FX, or forex peace, having the right partner at your side is extremely important.
Next, or through AESDirect or its related applications. I am going to repeat the same things you have already heard from me a lot. It is possible to open for foreign investors to open a Singapore brokerage account by post.
You can use articles, hospitality and leisure industry, LLC work with U, Windows2003 Foto Filer, any remaining open positions will not be affected in any way by this action, game Subway Surfers menempati bbrokers forex online rates brokers pada game Android teratas di Brkers Play, some features brokres the FXCM Trading Station will not be available on the FXCM Trading Station Mobile. The TIAA-CREF Real Estate Fund has a current yield of 2.
Dengan demikian, helping to protect your hard forex online rates brokers money, relax and watch the profits start to head their way. Cara Daftar Judi Bola Online Terpercaya Satu Forex trading economic indicators Klik, on the other bad in response to recent events.
The Dow average closed down 92! Rares lakes in of transactional accounts for online hyips claim to 730-by. 6530 755. Read more about the impact of globalization on people from all walks of life in The Globalization Debate.
forex online broker vergleich
what is tradeking 500 company
free forex chart 2014
best online stock trading broker 2014


text: Make plans now to attend the annual Ryegate Volunteer Fire Department Breakfast Fund Raiser which will be held this year on Sunday, June 1st from 7:00 am to 12:00 noon. The all-you-can-eat breakfast will include pancakes, eggs, hash browns, sausage, coffee, tea or juice. Prices are: Adults $8.00, 12 years old and under $5.00, or for an entire Family $25.00. Please support your local fire department by attending this event.


text:
Remember in this post where I had these bins and put all the ingredients for each meal in them? I felt so organized! It really did work out well, and anyone could grab a bin and start dinner.
Now that we're eating more plants, I discovered that veggies don't stay fresh very long. It was so discouraging to see things wilt and have to be thrown out. Eating healthful foods is not cheap, by any means.
That's when I remembered the bins:
One bin full of scrubbed carrots, ready for juicing!Below the carrots are beets and something else I can't remember. Fennel and cauliflower next to that.
I'm still working out some of the kinks in the system, but it worked beautifully!
Ok, I'll bet all you seasoned moms out there knew this, but I just discovered it:I took the crisper drawer, washed it out, then lined it with paper towels. I washed all my leafy greens such as lettuce, cilantro, and parsley, then put them in the drawer. I adjusted the setting and voila! My lettuce stayed crisp and didn't wilt!
The drawer next to it has a broken lid, so I put veggies in that didn't need as much attention:Cucumbers, mushrooms, radishes, and celery.
This is a TON of food! People open our fridge and can't find a space for anything. Yet, somehow, we still run into the "There's nothing to eat!" syndrome.
Yeah, we saw that coming, too.
The ingredients look ok, but honestly you can't beat fresh juice. I know there's stuff in this that I shouldn't have because of migraine triggers.
Here's a simple solution to Himself wanting something RIGHT NOW:
Lastly, here's proof that we're still eating meat:But the deli drawer is a great place for bulky apples and pears, too!
I still buy milk for Glenna, but I liked this stuff with my cereal and in smoothies long before we did the Reboot:Being the only one who likes it means there's more for me. Right?
Organizing the fridge made prep time go more quickly, foods last longer, and less waste with hidden foods rotting away.Now to figure out a way to eat healthful foods affordably. I'm open to suggestions!


text:
Verdi - Un Ballo in Maschera
Usually available for despatch within 2-3 working days
Despatch Information
This despatch estimate is based on information from both our own stock and the UK supplier's stock.
If ordering multiple items, we will aim to send everything together so the longest despatch estimate will apply to the complete order.
If you would rather receive certain items more quickly, please place them on a separate order.
If any unexpected delays occur, we will keep you informed of progress via email and not allow other items on the order to be held up.
If you would prefer to receive everything together regardless of any delay, please let us know via email.
Pre-orders will be despatched as close as possible to the release date.
Label: Skira Classica
Cat No: LASCALA9
Format: CD + Book
Number of Discs: 2
Genre: Opera
Release Date: 29th September 2014
ArtistsMaria Callas
Giuseppe Di Stefano
Ettore Bastianini
Giulietta Simionato
Teatro alla Scala Chorus and Orchestra
ConductorGianandrea Gavazzeni
WorksUn ballo in maschera
ArtistsMaria Callas
Giuseppe Di Stefano
Ettore Bastianini
Giulietta Simionato
Teatro alla Scala Chorus and Orchestra
ConductorGianandrea Gavazzeni
In the moonlight, on the cursed field, Callas is charmed by Di Stefano... a cello insinuates a confession of the heart that she does not want to reveal... Gavazzenis orchestra shares in their irrepressible excitement... Simionato and Bastianini sing with exquisite perfection...
This was the great moment in 1957 when a glorious La Scala rediscovered Un ballo in maschera in all its joyous beauty.
Director: Margherita Wallmann
The Book:
- The Original Programme
- Introduction by Lorenzo Arruga
- The Opera on Stage: History of the Staging
- The Story in Pictures: Images from the La Scala Theatre Archive
- The Opera libretto
Error on this page? Let us know here
Need more information on this product? Click here


text:
WOLF, A Friend For LIFE PDF ebook
Whenever I discuss with a student of Naran regarding their healing experiences with Naran, invariably first they will mention about Wolf followed by other healing methods of Naran. The reason for my curiosity about their experiences is to write blogs based on them.
You'll need an account to access this in our app. Please create a password to continue.
Download from the App Store or text yourself a link to the app
Thanks for your purchase from 1minyoga.com. After downloading when you have a chance, please recommend Naran's products to your friends and family.
Thanks again for your purchase from 1minyoga.com.
Looking to create an account?
Did you mean to login?


text:
Yola.vn your online learning assistant
Yola.vn the #1 online learning assistant in Vietnam
Benefits of Online Learning
Greater numbers of students today are able to earn advanced degrees, thanks to online learning. Outlining the benefits of online learning would take too long to read, so here are the top three benefits of online course work. www.ccu.edu/blogs/cags/post/2011/06/08/Benefits-Of-Online...
Holt Online Learning
Continue reading here: Holt Online Learning
Contacting Online Learning
Page header image for the Online Learning website at Eastern Washington University: outreach.ewu.edu/online.html. Used Photoshop.
NSCC – Online Learning
I am an Instructional Designer at Online Learning. I have been with the college for 13 years and cannot see myself working anywhere else.
How to Create Online Training & Online Course
With eLearningZoom Social Learning Marketplace, you can easily create your online course quickly in minutes with full integration with facebook and twitter for FREE massive qualified leads. Source: Youtube


text:
Paycom provides on-site and on-demand training for you, your managers and your employees during and after implementation.
Also, our implementation process is designed to be as painless as possible. Our expert implementation team visits your location to gather your data and transfer it into the Paycom system. They remain on-site to train you and your staff, and ensure your first payroll is processed smoothly. If you have questions or concerns after implementation, you can contact your designated specialist, who is your ongoing point of contact.
Further training resources like webinars, guides and manuals are also available on-demand.


text:
We are very grateful to Rockwell Automation, whose contributions and volunteers have made this program feasible.
Tournament registration opens at 12 noon on Monday, 10/1 and will remain open until Monday, 10/15. Registration will be done through this website. Each tournament depends on the participation of about 100 volunteers. Every team should consider sending friends or family to help at the event. Contact email@example.com with volunteer contact info.
Wisconsin FLL uses a three-tiered system of tournaments. Teams begin by signing up for Regionals. If they perform well and are deemed adequate to advance, they will be invited to attend a corresponding Sectional and notified as to how to proceed. This process repeats once again when moving from a Sectional to a Championship. If the judges at the Championship determine that a team has promise, rhere is a chance that the team can then be invited to attend an event at a Worldwide level.