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Buying a car is one of the most important investments you make. However, one thing that makes everyone worry is the cost of a brand new car. New cars are expensive and require a considerable amount of investment that reduces your options. However, if you opt for Second hand cars brisbane has to offer, you can own a car at reduced price very easily.
There are however numerous considerations that you have to bear in mind when you decide to get second hand cars Brisbane companies provide. After all, you will be buying a car that has been used before. Considering it's your first time getting your car this piece provides some tips to follow when you decide to buy second hand cars Beaudesert car dealers have for customers.
Read reviews
The best thing about living in the digital age is that you can find a review of anything online. Whether its furniture, computers and even cars, you can find reviews online where you can read the pros and cons of any product or service. So when you decide to buy second hand cars don't forget to read reviews online. For example, if you want new cars beaudesert market has, it is possible to get a plethora of websites where reviews are given for brand new cars.
When it comes to buying second hand cars Brisbane market has for consumers, you can easily compare prices. When you choose a car to buy, you can find the same model from different sellers. This means that once you determine the condition of the car and other key areas, you can simply compare the prices. This will allow you to buy the car that you want at a reasonable price.
Test it out
This is one of the most common steps taken by those buying a car. As advised by reliable car dealers Beaudesert market has, buyers should always check out a second hand car by taking it for a test drive. A test drive can reveal many things about your preferences and car. When you drive a car around, it provides the opportunity to test whether you are comfortable driving it. There are now numerous cars available to you.
Get it inspected:
When you are looking for second hand cars Brisbane dealers have for customers, have in mind that car inspection is an important aspect of the project. There are good reasons why you should have a car inspected before buying it. After all, you going to buy a car that has been used before and want to assure yourself that it will meet your objectives. If you are buying a car from someone and not a dealership, then take the mechanic to the car and have him check it. A mechanic will be able to point out to the mechanical value of the car and help you decide whether buying it is worth it or not.
Second hand cars are an ideal investment for someone that cannot afford a brand new car. Second hand cars are easily available not only on dealerships but also online where sellers have posted their ads for potential buyers. Always take along someone if you have not bought a car before, as another pair of eyes will catch what you might miss.


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From the back of the book:
Years ago, the world began to end, and the rules for reality were torn asunder.
Today, the end is still nigh, but the rules are clearer than ever.
The Torg First Edition Revised and Expanded Rulebook combines a decade's worth of rules updates, additions, and player comments into one comprehensive volume. At nearly double the size of the first edition rulebook, this is the biggest and most comprehensive resource for the Torg roleplaying game ever produced.
Whether a neophyte in the Possibility Wars or a long-time defender of reality, the Revised and Expanded Rulebook serves as the most important repository of the rules, skills, spells, miracles, special abilities, and equipment necessary to keep up the fight.
Your devotion to preserving the real is your greatest asset.
This book is your greatest tool.
You'll need both.
Natter, comments, TactiCon, TORG (new version)
Real Life (personal Update); TORG Revisited (review); Recent Gaming (updates); Comments on A&E #437; 1992 Man
Red Rambles On (natter); Summer Mini-Cons and West Coast 2035 (d20 Modern Fantasy baseball session report); Better
All About Me (Personal Update); Comments on Ignorable Theme (Metagame currencies); Musings: Plotting for Your

subset: commoncrawl


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Don't see your question? Visit our help section.
Get access to great in-store deals and local pick-up
Sign up for our email deals newsletter!
Project Runway: The Video Game is the most engaging and authentic fashion title available. The only title based on the award-winning reality series, Project Runway The Game gives aspiring designers the tools and inspiration to create and model their own unique fashions. The game lets designers choose the model and create hair and make-up styles that enhance their fashions.


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|❤ Etude House June 2011 SALE ❤
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Etude House 20% All Items!!! ❤
Posted by Unknown at 12:33 AM
Labels: Etude House, Hallyu Love, Health and Beauty, Korean Wave
3 comments:
- march on... said...
Oh, I love Etude House. I swear by the BB Cream and their massage mask! Thanks for sharing :)
- June 16, 2011 at 5:55 PM
- Kasai said...
hi! I had been searching for a skin care product lately, pimples are popping out on my cheeks lately, do you think etude house have something for me :)
I had been seeing them here in SG but never got chance on checking their products.
- June 19, 2011 at 6:39 PM
- Des said...
@March On: Your welcome! I have yet to try their BB Cream. ;D Enjoy your shopping! :)
@ Kasai: Hi Sis, I had a break out too...I used other brand though for that...SkinFood but they're kinda pricey! ;(. I haven't tried Etude House Facial Care Lines...maybe soon. :) I applied Differin for my breakouts though. But I learned it the hard way, you really need a BFF skin care line. so far I'm happy with mine.
- June 21, 2011 at 2:01 PM
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Gibraltar in a Day
I had heard mixed reviews about Gibraltar, but something inside of me desired to see 'The Rock'. I decided to base myself in Seville for 4 days in order to explore the Moorish architecture and history of the south whilst being able to take in The Alhambra, the Seville Alcazar and of course Gibraltar.
Being an Australian, I am used to driving on the opposite side of the road and would surely cause an accident if I were to drive in Europe. This being said I decided that I would navigate Seville on foot and take day tours to The Alhambra and Gibraltar. Whilst this was the most practical option for me, it resulted in me nearly missing the chance to see Gibraltar. At 9:30 the night before my tour was due to depart, my tour guide called to cancel. I expressed my annoyance at the extremely late notice and luckily, for quite a few Euros more, the guide managed to find a driver to take me on a personal tour.
Slightly poorer, but happy, I was picked up in a new BMW by a driver who spoke as much English as I speak Spanish. We communicated through hand signals and the odd word translated on Google. Located around 2.5 hours south west of Seville, it is a comfortable and scenically pretty drive on the highway.
Crossing the Border
The Rock looms so high that it is visible well before you near the border. With traffic rather hectic, and time at a premium, we parked on the Spanish side of the border and crossed by foot. Lesson 101 for Gibraltar is to make sure you bring your passport, or identity card if you are European. Its unlikely anyone will check it leaving the Spanish side, but you will be checked on entering Gibraltar. Alas, I did not get a stamp in my passport, which was slightly disappointing! Passport control are quite efficient, so it shouldn't take too long.
On arrival across the border you are swamped by people offering you tours. Cleverly taxis are utilised as tour buses during the day and then take fares of an evening. Tours are offered in a multitude of languages, and before long I had an English speaking guide and was off.
Now, one of the coolest things about Gibraltar, and one I was hoping to experience, was to stop for a plane. Gibraltar has no ordinary runway. Because it is so small, its runway runs across the only road into town. Manned by two guards, marked by barriers similar to those at a train crossing and with tyre spikes laid, planes taxi and take off whilst the traffic waits. I was lucky enough to sit in the front of the van and witness this first hand. A travel goal well and truly ticked off!
The Rock
The Rock consists of residential housing at the base and then becomes the Upper Rock National Park. You can either walk, catch the teleferique (cable car) or drive to the peak. Our first stop was the park entry where we got our park tickets and got our first glimpse of Africa. A short and very windy drive later we reached St Michael's Cave where we had around 30 minutes to explore.
St Michael's Cave is a network of limestone caves up to 300 metres in height at points. Although they are a natural phenomenon, the caves have been somewhat 'pimped' and feature colourful LED lighting and thematic music to add to the 'vibe'. I am quite ok with the natural vibe of a cave (ok, somewhat lit is good!) and this was more like being inside of a cave night club or rave, but without the people. Despite the sound and lighting, the cave system was absolutely beautiful and enjoyable to explore
The Peak
Standing 426 metres high, the view from the top is spectacular. Luckily it was a clear day and the coastline of Morocco was clearly visible. It felt so close you could almost reach out and touch it. You do have to have your wits about you whilst exploring the top of the rock. The road is extremely narrow and very heavily populated with Barbary Macaques. Far from shy, these cheeky apes will catch a ride on top of taxis, get into taxis (if given the opportunity to), steal food and water from you and in the case of one woman, may run across you like a fence if you stand too close to the actual fence!
It is kind of obligatory at this point to take a selfie with one of the macaques (if you dare), to get a shot at the 'peak' of the rock and to also get a view of the horizon with Africa in the distance. I was lucky to take all three, although the ape in my selfie looked less than impressed!
The World War II Tunnels.
Unlike St Michaels Cave, which is naturally occurring, The Rock also features miles of tunnels that were built to create a strong hold during the war. These World War 2 tunnels require a level of fitness as they are on a fair decline, so walking back up definitely is not as easy as going down. They feature interactive displays and information on their creation and also how they were used during the war. The tunnels cover around 52 kilometres in distance, so they are quite significant in size, however only a portion of them is open to the public.
The People
I was lucky enough to have a talkative tour guide who was happy to answer my questions about the people of Gibraltar. Known as Gibraltarians, their ancestry lies with the Italian, British, Spanish and Maltese. As they are a British colony, all of their schooling and business is conducted in English, however due to their size, and proximity to Spain, everyone also speaks Spanish. This has lead to a mixed Spanish / English dialect being created where Spanish words are Anglicised and vice versa. When asking my guide about what kinds of foods he eats, he heartily replied that he gets to enjoy Italian and other mediterranean foods during the week, whilst getting a lovely traditional roast dinner on a Sunday. Their most popular dish is a sweet called Calentita. Each year the Calentita food festival is held in June where locals join together in a large street festival to eat, drink and be merry.
The Town
We had skipped the main town and headed directly to The Rock, so I hadn't had a chance to get a glimpse before being dropped off at the end of the tour. The town itself is quite small and is really only one main cobbled street. It was just like being back in the UK with all of the prices in pounds and familiar stores such as Next and Boots lining the street. From what I hear the Morrisons (supermarket) in Gibraltar is one of their best trading stores, as Spaniards regularly cross the border to collect English foods and then head back to Spain. For many visitors it is the opposite however, as Gibraltar's tax free status means that liquor and other luxury items can be bought for much cheaper than Spain. I skipped the shopping and ended up having lunch in a British pub - feeling a little sad that I wasn't eating lovely Spanish food but a baguette instead.
After a bit of a wander around, it was time to again meet with my driver for the trip back to Seville. Now I was quite excited about driving over the runway, but walking back to the border meant that I also got to walk across it. Technically you're meant to walk at a good pace and not stop, but a lot of people stop briefly to take photos (myself included). I mean where else do you get to do this at an airport of this scale?
The verdict
Ok, other than The Rock there is not a lot to do in Gibraltar, but there is definitely enough to do for a day trip. The scenery is beautiful, the people are friendly and The Rock is just darn iconic. If you're lucky you'll get to stop and see a plane take off, but even if you miss this (it happens 6-7 times per day) between caves, monkeys and cheap shopping there is plenty to keep you amused. In my opinion it is a visit once and you're happy you've been, but probably wouldn't return kind of destination, but I definitely recommend that you visit at least once!
If you've been I'd love to hear you thoughts on Gibraltar.
Momina Arif
9/22/2016 12:27:00 am
I would love to visit this place, the name itself is enchanting. I would love to try the calentita as well, even if I'm not a fan of sweet dishes.
Gabriele Pires
9/22/2016 12:27:42 am
What a beautiful place, I never considered visiting it until now.
Jonathan-Samantha Broyles
9/22/2016 12:29:17 am
What an adventure you had! I would love to go there and experience it for myself! Thank you for sharing!
Mai Cochico
9/22/2016 12:30:54 am
I would love to go to Gibraltar some day. I am so curious about the World War II tunnels and I definitely wouldn't mind the effort to climb down or up.
Lorelei Marie
9/22/2016 02:18:03 am
Gibraltar is something I wouldn't mind seeing once. I definitely mostly want to spend my time in Seville and check out other big cities in Andalusia. #theweeklypostcard
Ruth Reickhoff
9/23/2016 07:16:46 pm
I would like to visit Gibraltar but hopefully, it is during a road trip so I can move if I run out of things to do. Being cancelled by your tour company the night before is really annoying. Recently I was told there was no room for me at a hotel I had made reservations. No fun!
Lyn Linfield
9/26/2016 02:16:11 am
David and I visited Gibraltar with our young boys many years ago. I just loved it. It was such a relief not to struggle with the language for a little while!
Tonya vincent
5/21/2019 10:30:49 pm
Just got back from a day trip to Gibraltar! In a nutshell...I said and I quote myself, "if there were a top of the world this would be it!" Absolutely worth the trip to see the view. The town did not do too much for me. But the view will not disappoint. And the monkeys were cute too.
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More from the Passport Collective
April 2019


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Moment Parents Find Spider In Their Daughter's Grapes
No one likes the thought of coming in close contact with a spider. And so this story is seriously the stuff of nightmares.
Sure when I walk through a spiderweb I think that I can feel the creepy crawly on me for about an hour after. And yes it creeps me out to no end that by the time you're 35 you'll have had several spiders walk across your face while you sleep.
But no thought is worse than sitting there innocently eating a healthy snack only to find a massive, hairy, black spider sitting there staring back at you with it's several beady eyes!!
And this is exactly what happened to a father in Perth after he took a closer look at the Grapes that he had packed for his daughter's school lunch. Hiding beneath the juicy fruit and the vines was a massive, black spider!
"It was horrible. What is she swallowed it? I mean I did't know what type of spider it was and I wasn't prepared to find out," said Matt Honnor.
"I just kept thinking, what if it was a redback?"
Thankfully, the parents found the spider, which turned out to be a black house spider, before anything terrible happened and they returned the bunch of grapes to the IGA store that they were purchased from.
But seriously, you'd be scarred for life after seeing this moving around in your snack!
Speaking to the Daily Mail, a spokesperson for IGA said that they were disappointed that a spider was found in their produce.
"IGA stores are subject to high standards around food safety and the store checks stock upon receipt as well as having a thorough pest control program in place,"the spokesperson said.
"However, due to the nature of fresh produce in attracting insects we do recommend that customers thoroughly wash items before consuming."
So here's a PSA: Check those grapes before you pop one in your mouth next time peeps! You never know what could be hiding in that bunch.


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By Joe Vansickle Sometimes it's hard to feel secure about biosecurity when boars are being culled and replaced fairly often.
That's today's commercial boar stud where, to consistently upgrade genetics, boars are turned within two years.
At that pace, a strategy for biosecurity becomes paramount to survival of the boar stud, stresses Malcolm De Kryger, vice president of business development for Belstra Milling Co. Inc., DeMotte, IN.
"Our boar stud is more or less considered sacred ground by all of our employees and service people," he says. "We have a separate staff that never goes into anybody else's farm and none of the farm staff ever go into the boar stud. They just don't do it."
De Kryger, who supervises Belstra Milling's four gilt multiplier farms, and consulting swine veterinarian Tom Gillespie, Rensselaer, IN, are only allowed in Belvarken AI Center at St. Anne, IL, after being away from hogs for 96 hours. The 84-head boar stud sells semen on contract to its PIC producer customers. The boar stud is 31/2 miles away from any other hogs.
Minnesota swine practitioner Darwin Reicks says producer customers shouldn't fear they are "buying" disease when they make their semen purchases.
"For the producer, I think it is important to realize that the risk of transmitting disease in semen is very, very minor compared to the risk of live animals transmitting disease," the St. Peter, MN, veterinarian says.
In terms of live animal introductions, the bigger biosecurity risk is to the boar stud itself. If that stud goes down with a serious disease break, semen sales stop, income goes immediately to zero and clients are without a source of semen, points out Reicks. Expensive stud boars quickly become culls worth $100 or less, he explains.
Establishing Disease Status Reicks recommends setting up a two-phase biosecurity program of isolation and acclimation. The first-phase, 30 to 60-day isolation should be done, if possible, in an off-site facility at least a mile from the main boar stud and any other hog farms. After 30 days of isolation, new boars should be blood tested for pseudorabies (PRV), porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS), and brucellosis.
Other diseases should be tested for as needed. Explains Reicks: "Probably one of the most important things is to have a good vet-to-vet relationship with the genetic supplier; that will dictate what your testing program needs to be."
For instance, if your genetic supplier is free of Actinobacillus pleuropneumonia (APP), there is certainly no need to test every boar for APP.
If transmissible gastroenteritis (TGE) has been a problem in the area, it might be wise to blood test for the disease.
Reicks also suggests using highly sensitive PCR (polymerase chain reaction) to test for PRRS.
During the isolation phase, stud boars are vaccinated, as the client, animal status and geographic area dictate. The only boar stud client requiring PRV vaccination is located in Iowa, where the prevalence of the disease is higher. Normally, Reicks advises vaccination for PRRS, swine influenza virus, parvovirus, leptospirosis and sometimes Mycoplasmal pneumonia. One boar stud that is negative for PRRS has chosen not to vaccinate for the disease, he notes.
Isolation Is Not A Cure-All Indiana swine practitioner Larry Rueff, who is part-owner in a 50-head boar stud near Greensburg, IN, doesn't see isolation as a cure-all. "I always tell clients that isolation should have a purpose. We would be naive to think that we can eliminate all of the diseases through isolation. It's more a case of disease matching. You can't do disease elimination. That's not the name of the game.
"Isolation should have a purpose, and that purpose should be a definitive list of things you are trying to keep out, and that you can truly monitor through isolation," he says.
According to Reicks the second phase of the 30-60-day acclimation should occur in a separate facility on-site at the boar stud. "In most of the studs I am working with, we are trying to train these young boars prior to their entry to the main barn and also acclimate them in the facility," he says.
Reicks uses acclimation to accomplish two goals. First is to expose new boars to pathogens in the main barn so they don't get sick when they enter the stud. This is done by fenceline contact of the young, cull boars with the new boar stud candidates. "If the culls get sick, then you know the new ones aren't ready to move on into the stud," he explains. Young cull boars are those that weren't trainable for AI collection.
Second goal of acclimation is prompted by the notion that it is usually better not to vaccinate boars in the main stud barn because it increases stress, believes Reicks. Because of that, those animals in the main boar stud tend to become fairly naive over time. To protect them, after the young cull boars are removed from the acclimation area, old cull boars are introduced to the acclimation area. If the old cull boars get sick, then the boar stud staff knows the new boars are infected with something that could possibly make all the boars in the stud sick, says Reicks. Clinical observation of those old cull boars is really important in providing a disease barrier for the stud. Blood testing is also done to determine the cause of illness in the old cull boars.
As added insurance, Reicks does a lot of PCR testing for PRRS during acclimation while boars are being trained for artificial insemination (AI). "We will use PCR testing on the semen and make sure the new boars are negative prior to entering the boar stud," he notes. (See sidebar on page 30. )
Biosecurity Checklist Sherry Clark, DVM, University of Illinois, provides a summary checklist of recommended steps she devised for isolation and acclimation for boar studs. It appeared recently in the IMV International newsletter.
1. Understand health of source herd(s). Communication between herd veterinarians concerning disease profiles is key.
2. Isolation (first 25-30 days): Boars arrive at stud for isolation. While performing daily chores/feeding of isolated boars, monitor boars daily for any clinical signs of disease such as coughing, loss of appetite and loose stools. Begin training boars with the dummy sow for semen collection. Clean coveralls, boots are essential.
Blood test at 14 days and start preventive medicine program (deworming and vaccination).
3. Acclimation (second 20-30 day period): Continue to monitor boars daily for any signs of clinical disease. Continue training boars with the dummy. Expose boars to microorganisms of the main stud herd through material feedback from most recently introduced boars and/or direct exposure to cull boars. Do second blood test 2-4 days into the acclimation period. Re-treat for internal and external parasites and give booster vaccinations.
4. Other considerations: If boars are clinically healthy throughout the isolation period andhave passed the blood tests, they are then introduced into the boar stud.
Clean and disinfect isolation facility and equipment before bringing in the next group.
Monitoring Program "Monitoring feed intake is probably the best single indicator of a problem with individual boars in the boar stud," suggests Reicks. A boar may be off feed for many reasons, but if he is sick and has a fever, it will affect his sperm quality in 10 days to two weeks. These boars should be blood tested to check for infection. Also, have a diagnostic workup done on any boars that die while in the stud, he says.
Make sure external boar stud biosecurity is maintained. Besides limiting people traffic, make sure all vehicles - feed trucks, manure handling equipment or other delivery trucks - observe guidelines requiring them to be away from pigs for two to three days before entering the stud site. Semen delivery drivers should alternate work days, advises Reicks. The Genetipork USA, Inc. boar stud at Morris, MN, has added a fumigation room in the stud as a biosecurity tool, says Tom Spaeth, AI program director. All coolers, gel packs, paper products, pails, veterinary products and equipment and repairman's tools are fumigated before entry into the stud.
"With a fumigation room, if you've got any question about something, take 10-15 minutes and you've eliminated the risk," he says.
For external biosecurity, studs should be totally enclosed, bird and rodent proof.


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Follow The Daily Ticker on Facebook here!
In recent years, it's become conventional knowledge that the dollar's status as the world's reserve currency is under threat. In his new book, Currency Wars: The Making of the Next Global Crisis, James Rickards makes a compelling case for not just why the dollar will lose its reserve status, but how.
In the book and the accompanying video, Rickards, a veteran investment banker and hedge fund manager, describes four different scenarios by which the dollar will lose its reserve status, which he calls the "Four Horsemen of the Dollar Apocalypse":
The "Kumbaya Approach": Since 2000, the dollar has fallen from 70% of the world's currency reserves to 60% today as nations diversify their holdings into euros, gold, yuan and other dollar alternatives. U.C. Berkeley professor Barry Eichengreen, among others, argue this diversification trend will continue until we live in a world of multiple reserve currencies. But Rickards says this "Kumbaya approach" is destined to fail because without a gold standard it will be "a race to the bottom" as nations seek competitive devaluations. (See: The Next Global Crisis: Currency Wars Have Already Begun, Rickards Says)
IMF as Global Central Bank: Since 1969, the IMF has had the ability to print Special Drawing Rights (SDRs), which nations can use to maintain a portion of their currency reserves. Although not available for use in private transactions (yet), Rickards notes SDRs can be used by nations to settle trade balances with other nations. "The SDR is world money, controlled by the IMF, backed by nothing and printed at will," he writes. The 2008 financial crisis led to a "new concerted effort by the G20 and IMF to promote the use of SDRs as the global reserve currency alternative to the dollar."
If and when the world loses faith in the dollar, expect the G20 and IMF to redouble efforts to make SDRs the globe's new reserve currency, Rickards says.
Go for Gold: Like many others, Rickards advocates a return to the gold standard. (See: Bye-Bye Bernanke? The Case for the Gold Standard)
Unlike most fans of the gold standard, he actually has a plan to return to a gold-backed monetary system without causing major upheaval to the global financial system by addressing three key questions: What's the definition of 'money' (M1, M2, etc.)? What percentage of the money supply should be backed by gold? Will the U.S. act alone or in concert with other nations? "Answer those questions and it's really just 8th-grade math" to figure out what the implied price of gold will be, he says.
While arguing it has the "best chance of success," a return to the gold-standard is the "least likely" of the four scenarios, Rickards says. "The power elites hate [the gold standard] because it takes away their ability to print money; when you print money you rig the game, you control the game."
Chaos: Given myriad challenges to the three scenarios above, a "sudden, systemic collapse" of the dollar-based financial system is the "most likely" outcome, Rickards says, predicting the ensuing chaos will be "much bigger" than the 1987 crash or the crisis of 2008.
Faced with such upheaval, Rickards suggests the U.S. will invoke the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1997, which gives the President "near dictatorial powers to respond to a national emergency."
In addition to seizing all foreign gold on U.S. soil, Rickards envisions the President closing the stock exchanges, suspending trading of U.S. Treasuries by foreigners and prohibiting exports of gold from the U.S., among other draconian steps.
In the aftermath, the U.S. would control about 70% of the world's gold system and all us to "reboot the system and have a new gold-backed Bretton Woods," he says. "That would be a good scenario if we got their by consent and by multilateral action...but to do it on an emergency basis in the face of a collapse in confidence in paper currencies; it would solve the problem but it would not be a good scenario."
Aaron Task is the host of The Daily Ticker. You can follow him on Twitter at @aarontask or email him at email@example.com


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The punk-rock singer and raconteur Henry Rollins has lambasted Robin Williams for taking his own life. In an editorial for LA Weekly entitled Fuck Suicide, Rollins wrote:
I simply cannot understand how any parent could kill themselves. How in the hell could you possibly do that to your children? I don't care how well adjusted your kid might be — choosing to kill yourself, rather than to be there for that child, is every shade of awful, traumatic and confusing. I think as soon as you have children, you waive your right to take your own life. No matter what mistakes you make in life, it should be your utmost goal not to traumatize your kids. So, you don't kill yourself.
Rollins's piece also acknowledges Williams's acting talent, and "that his personal struggles were quite real," describing depression as being "more isolating than anything else you have ever experienced". He also praised his performances for US troops: "On more than one of my USO tours, Robin Williams had been on the same stage a few days before me. That's all I needed to know about him. As far as I was concerned, he was a good man."
However, he continues to elaborate on suicide, and goes on to say that "when someone negates their existence, they cancel themselves out in my mind... I no longer take this person seriously.
"Almost 40,000 people a year kill themselves in America... In my opinion, that is 40,000 people who blew it. Fuck suicide. Life isn't anything but what you make it. For all the people who walked from the grocery store back to their house, only to be met by a robber who shot them in the head for nothing — you gotta hang in there."
There have been a smattering of other critics of Williams, including TalkSport's Alan Brazil and Fox News's Shep Smith – TalkSport apologised while Brazil was unrepentant, though Smith expressed regret for his words. Other controversial voices were Barry Norman, who wondered if Williams's battles with mental health led him to take on sentimental film projects, and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, whose tweet reading "Genie, you're free" was seen as glorifying suicide.


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how did you make it use 0.10.2 instead of the (if remember right) included 0.10.1?
Viewing post in Start Gamedev comments
Hi qubodup
I didn't use Love 0.10.1. However, I did manage to get my game using the latest Love2d library working on Android by following this guide
My game loads well on android but I'm getting another issue that may be related to my code and little understanding on how LOVE works.
You can read more here


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Society for the Museum of Original Costume
Deed of Gift
Would you like to find a good home for your treasured garments from past generations, where it will be taken care of following museum standards for clothing and textiles.
Contact us, send images and description to the SMOC Curatorial Team will be in contact with you and, if appropriate, arrange an appointment to assess the items.
Donors will receive a signed Deed of Gift document and a tax receipt, if desired. A value will be determined for each item by our curator.
Thank you for considering donating to SMOC
You can also mail us photographs to the address below
1489 McRae Avenue,
Vancouver BC V6H 1V1
Donations with Tax Receipts
Donations of garments can be given a tax receipt based on our curators estimate of value. For further details please email


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How we did it:
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Scott Meyers
"This is Effective C++ volume three - it's really that good." - Herb Sutter, independent consultant and secretary of the ISO/ANSI C++ standards committee "There are very few books which all C++ programmers must have. Add Effective STL to that list." - Thomas Becker, Senior Software Engineer, Zephyr Associates, Inc., and columnist, C/C++ Users Journal C++'s Standard Template Library is revolutionary, but learning to use it well has always been a challenge. Until now. In this book, best-selling author Scott Meyers ( Effective C++ , and More Effective C++ ) reveals the critical rules of thumb employed by the experts - the things they almost always do or almost always avoid doing - to get the most out of the library. Other books describe what's in the STL. Effective STL shows you how to use it. Each of the book's 50 guidelines is backed by Meyers' legendary analysis and incisive examples, so you'll learn not only what to do, but also when to do it - and why. Highlights of Effective STL include: Advice on choosing among standard STL containers (like vector and list), nonstandard STL containers (like hash_set and hash_map), and non-STL containers (like bitset). Techniques to maximize the efficiency of the STL and the programs that use it. Insights into the behavior of iterators, function objects, and allocators, including things you should not do. Guidance for the proper use of algorithms and member functions whose names are the same (e.g., find), but whose actions differ in subtle (but important) ways. Discussions of potential portability problems, including straightforward ways to avoid them. Like Meyers' previous books, Effective STL is filled with proven wisdom that comes only from experience. Its clear, concise, penetrating style makes it an essential resource for every STL programmer.
Martin Odersky, Lex Spoon, Bill Venners
Presents an introduction to the new programming language for the Java Platform that blends object-oriented and functional programming concepts.
Mladen Gogala, Peter MacIntyre, Brian Danchilla
If you are a web programmer, you need to know modern PHP. This book presents with many new areas in which PHP plays a large role. If you want to write a mobile application using geo-location data, Pro PHP Programming will show you how. Additionally, if you need to make sure that you can write a multilingual indexing application using Sphinx, this book will help you avoid the pitfalls. Of course, Pro PHP Programming gives a thorough survey of PHP post-5.3. You'll begin by working through an informative survey and clear guide to object-oriented PHP. Then, you'll be set for the core of the book on modern PHP applications. Now, you'll be able to start with the chapter on PHP for mobile programming and move on to sampling social media applications. You'll also be guided through new PHP programming language features like closures and namespaces. Pro PHP Programming deals with filtering data from users and databases next, so you'll be well prepared for relational and NoSQL databases. Of course, you can also learn about data retrieval from other sources, like OCR libraries or websites. Then the question of how to format and present data arises, and in Pro PHP Programming, you'll find solutions via JSON, AJAX and XML. What you'll learn PHP 5.3 object-oriented programming and new PHP features Writing programs talking to SQL-based and NoSQL-based databases alike Using modern PHP programmer's tools Writing social media applications Investigating NoSQL datastores Writing PHP programs for a cloud ecology Who this book is for This book is for intermediate and advanced PHP programmers, as well as programmers coming from other languages such as Python, Perl, C/C++. It can also be utilized by programmers with knowledge of a previous PHP version who want to return to PHP. Table of Contents Object Orientation Exceptions and References Mobile PHP Social Media Cutting Edge Form Design and Management Database Interaction I Database Interaction II Database Interaction III Libraries Security Agile Development with Zend Studio for Eclipse, Bugzilla, Mylyn, and Subversion Refactoring, Unit Testing, and Continuous Intergration XML JSON and AJAX Conclusions Regular Expressions


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Wow, time certainly flies and I can't believe 2011 is now history. Well, it was a memorable year, one that helped me find focus on cycling again, after a great finish to 2010. We recently posted short blogs by Renaissance Man & Masher with their Goals for 2012, but we have yet to publish the Goals for RAM Cycling, until now.
First, let's reflect on the awesome happenings by RAM Cycling in 2011, then we can take a look at where the road leads for 2012 and beyond. Some simple, but important events accomplished by Renaissance & Masher in '11:
* First century ride of the year (first ever for Renaissance Man) was the "Wheels O' Fire" in Hamilton County, Georgia on April 2, 2011
* The idea of RAM Cycling first came to light on a Renaissance & Masher shared spring break vacation at Jacksonville Beach, FL during the week following that 1st century ride
* Our second century ride of the year was "Horsey Hundred" in Georgetown, KY on Memorial Day weekend 2011
* RAM Cycling was officially launched on the world wide web & twitter around the start of July 2011, we are claiming 4th of July as our Birthday
* Renaissance & Masher cycled in the sunshine state some more on vacation at Panama City Beach in July
* The months of August and September saw RAM put in miles and miles in prep for GABRAKY
* RAM Cycling rode in GABRAKY 2011 in October, a 3 day cycling event that travels around Kentucky (this was our second consecutive year, and included our 3rd century of the year)
* RAM Cycling closed out 2011 moderately by posting several hundred more miles before rolling into 2012
Now that we have reflected on the recent past, RAM Cycling can only move forward by setting some Goals, just like Renaissance & Masher did personally. The good news is, RAM is a reality, and here are some of the goals we hope to achieve this year or in the very near future:
*** Bring excellent news and memories from our charity and group ride events to life right here at the RAM Cycling website
*** Fight to have legislation introduced and passed into Kentucky Law to raise awareness and safety for bicycling, including a 3-FEET TO PASS LAW, more bike lanes, more Share The Road signs on roadways, more local bicycling events for the public & more
*** Gain corporate backing of some close partners, in order to help support our push for legislative updates and help us promote a more healthy and bicycle friendly America, and also help us support local charity groups that host events we intend to ride in this year and in years to come
*** RAM Cycling intends to host it's own bicycle ride event, however the details are still in the planning phase for time of year, course, total miles, and location (expect this to be 1st class when it happens!)
*** Design and purchase our own cycling jersey to wear at events to help promote RAM Cycling, and t-shirts to give away
*** Obviously, we intend to support Renaissance & Masher in all of their bicycling endeavors
*** We want to develop a free membership club for the purpose of distributing important cycling information and legislative updates through a monthly newsletter
*** Finally, we will be excited to publish all of the good news we can find and relate to regarding bicycling
Thanks for visiting RAMCycling.com We hope you will continue to visit throughout 2012, as we try to accomplish our mission. So far it has been a wonderful ride, but it's a journey that we are glad you are sharing with us. PLEASE feel free to leave a comment on any post we publish, or send us an email at any time. Your feed back is important to us and helps us improve our site for you. You can also follow us on Twitter @RAMCycling. Here's to a great year in 2012!
RAM Cycling recently completed the Redbud Ride in London, KY. This was the 5th anniversary of this cycling event in southeastern Kentucky. Tim, the Renaissance Man, and Kevin, the Masher, both had been training since the start of 2012 for this and several other century rides that are on the wish list. We have done a pretty good job of taking advantage of the mild and moderate winter weather, and building our base for a busy cycling season.
Leading up to Redbud, all the talk with locals that had previously done it, and all the social media talk was positive and complimentary info. After having completed it, I have nothing but good things to say. I'm not personally a Facebook user, but on the night before the ride, I read some of the posts by others on Renaissance Man's page regarding the Redbud Ride. I was anxious, with this being my first century of the season, and the thought of how bad the weather could turn out to be, I didn't sleep very well at all.
Our ride started out by meeting Jim Simes from South Carolina for the first time in person. We have communicated via Twitter this year and he surprised me when I sent out a random tweet inviting followers to join us at Redbud or Horsey Hundred, by replying "see you at Redbud!" I'm also looking forward to meeting another twitter friend Adam Crowe from Kentucky at the Horsey 100. It was an honor to ride with Jim, who happens to have ridden over ten thousand miles in about a year while losing over 80 pounds! He destroyed us on the climbs and eventually pulled away and finished well before RAM Cycling. I gave Jim a bottle of KY Bourbon after the ride to take home as a souvenir from our great state, and he commented "The Redbud 2012 will be one to go down in books as a ride to remember."
He's absolutely right, and the following review of the 2012 Redbud is my random thoughts from a great ride, definitely one to remember! We pulled out of the London Farmers Market around 8am on the Red Route (100 miler), and the sky was gray, the air was cool, and we knew moisture was on the way. Around the 10 mile mark the 4 routes became 2 as the 25 & 50 milers turned right, while the 75 & 100 mile routes went left up our first climb. At that point, I was uncomfortably cool, but rapidly warmed up. This climb separated Jim, Tim & I for a while. Then came rain … it was a drizzle, then steady, and then it poured. I caught back up to Jim at a turn, where he stopped to put on some rain gear. We tried to talk, but it was more important to watch the road at this point, considering the heavy rains and unknown roads. He kept moving as we arrived at the first rest stop, but I was ready to stop for a moment. A few minutes later, Tim arrived saying, "Are you kidding me? This is crazy." I played it off smooth by responding, "What do you mean?"
Inside, I was freezing cold, as I chose not to carry rain gear (extra weight in my mind at the start), but I saw frustration in his eyes, and knew he needed some motivation to pick him up. He had an abnormal work week leading up to Redbud having to work over 40 hours in a couple days as his company made some equipment changes at one of the mines they own, and now with the weather set in, he chose to continue on the 75 mile route. So I pushed off immediately, to try not to finish too far behind him. Still raining, I ventured through the beautiful Daniel Boone National Forest over some rugged terrain and difficult pavement that I know was complicated by the weather. My second stop was along the Rockcastle River with a local group playing true KY Bluegrass music in a gazebo! I spoke to several riders and volunteers, and then set back out following a guy from the area that actually told me we would pass by his house on the route. We reconnected with the 75-mile route, crossed a wooden bridge where we had to get off and walk across. Then I slowed to check on a tandem couple off the bike. The husband said "we are just taking some pictures" and the wife said, "We are not yet ready to turn right here." I soon found out why, as I turned right myself and read the message on the pavement "Gear Down Baby!"
I had arrived at the infamous Tussey Hill, a climb that actually has its own Facebook page. Uhm yeah, I knew I was in for a work out immediately because it is one of those hills where it turns out of site from the bottom, so you don't know what lies around the bend until you get there. As I made it up to the first turn it slowly tapered off with another bend ahead. Just as I made it through that sweep and caught my breath, the road went up. Straight up. I saw a sign near the top of this section, then I put my head down and just mashed the pedals and mashed until I could read the sign. It said "Congrats: 22% Grade!" As the road slowly began to flatten out again, I was struggling to catch my breath, and doggone it; we had more to go up. Up, up and away, I finally reached the summit, and know the toughest part of the ride was behind me. Shortly after peaking Tussey Hill, I arrived at my next stop.
Pulled pork BBQ sandwiches, and snacks, and beverages. I warmed up, refueled (regretfully, I passed on the BBQ), and headed back out behind a good friend from Frankfort that I ran into at the break. After a mile or so, I caught and passed him up, only to have him blow by me on a steep winding descent, the pay back from Tussey, but now with the rain steady again, I was timid. Moments later, I heard what sounded like "On your left" being screamed, and sure enough, a crazy female cyclist hauled past me, her bike was doing the wobble as she negotiated the slippery wet sweeps on the downhill. We all came together at the bottom, and I gave her props (I just knew I was going to witness a bad accident, glad I was wrong). They all turned off, as the red route forged straight, I spent the next 15-20 miles in deep thought, with soreness starting to set in on my legs, thanks to Tussey. Next stop was the official lunch stop, where I had a piece of Papa John's pizza, and took twenty minutes or so to warm up. One of the volunteers approached me as I pulled in and asks, "Are you the Masher?" Stunned and surprised I answered, "Yes sir," then he informed me that the Renaissance Man waited on me for a while at this stop, but went on and headed back out. It was nice to know he was doing well, since my phone battery had died.
Before I left the stop I ask an elderly gentleman cyclist if this was the last stop for the red route. He said "no, there's one more at a turn, and then you hit a steep climb immediately after that." I though to myself, how steep can it be? Surely my thoughts of steep were considerably different than his idea. I mounted up and took off feeling strong still, passing several riders. I did stop at the last stop, only to use the restroom, the caught another group of guys at the base of the elder's "steep climb." I felt pretty stupid about half way up it, when it took all my energy just to keep pushing the pedals. Near what I hoped to be the top, painted on the pavement was "20% Baby!" I told the guys in front of me "I hope that doesn't mean where only 20% of the way up." The elder cyclist spoke the truth, and the last 10 miles were tough as I was beginning to wear down both physically and mentally, I recall passing a family (a couple with several teen girls) all on mountain bikes, then I pulled back into town and strolled into the finish, very excited to be greeted by Tim the Renaissance Man along with his wife Kelly, and my lovely wife Maria just before 4pm!
What a feeling of accomplishment I had by completing the Redbud Ride, considering the rain, cold, breezy weather. I never once had a close call with a vehicle. I didn't even get honked or yelled at. The ride was very well organized, with plenty of up front info leading up to the ride, SAG was awesome, I witnessed numerous vehicles on all sections of the route, all the turns were well marked, all the volunteers were very pleasant and overly friendly. The only disappointment I can report is that I didn't get to see any of the beautiful Redbuds along the route, but that's due to the fact that half the miles or more that I rode were behind rain drop covered glasses.
In closing, I am glad that I was able to ride in the 2012 Redbud Ride in London, KY. I would give the overall ride an A rating, and will highly recommend it to cyclist to try for 2013! Thanks Redbud, for a ride that will never be forgotten.
Stay tuned for more cycling event reviews coming in May. Tentatively on the upcoming schedule are Gran Fondo Louisville, and Horsey Hundred in Georgetown, KY! For questions or comments regarding RAM Cycling info, please feel free to contact us in the tab on the right hand column of this page.
Wow, it's hard to believe it's already a new year, 2013! Time truly flies, it seems like only yesterday we were finishing with George at the "Gran Fondo Hincapie." I went into this off-season with a head of steam from that great final group ride event, and have begun to train for the upcoming season that will be upon us before we know it. It is awesome to think that we have already passed the winter solstice and already the days will slowly begin to gradually shed more and more daylight. It is also a little scary to think about how soon the first century ride of the new season will be here, followed by what I hope to be my most challenging month ever in May.
What I Learned In 2012
End the season with a great group ride event as late as possible! It definitely helped keep me motivated to work hard going into the off-season, rather than just hang the bike up and get lazy for a couple of months. I came home from a very tough ride in the Blue Ridge foothills craving more, and it has translated to putting in work for this next season. I definitely plan to find another tough ride to tackle near late October, early November.
I'm putting GABRAKY back on the schedule. That is one ride I truly missed last year, that I have done frequently in the past. I wouldn't dare trade the fall vacation I had with my wife from last year, because it was spot-on, but I will make my plans around that ride this year. I know averaging around 60 miles per day doesn't sound like a whole lot towards the end of the season, but when you do it for 4 consecutive days over the rural bluegrass landscape of Kentucky's back roads, it is challenging enough to give you a real sense of accomplishment and I'm always ready for that finish line. Not to mention the cycling camaraderie that is felt by the passionate cyclists I have met on GABRAKY. See you in the fall!
Maybe the most important lesson I learned from last year is to make plans for June and July. As I reflect on my riding from 2012, I notice a big fall off in rides and miles in the middle of the summer. This year I will find rides in those months to keep my cycling stamina strong throughout. I will also utilize a great cycling tip for the busy dad that came to me from my good friend Chris "Schmidty" Schmidt (a.k.a. the Big Dog): when my children play games on the weekends, I should ride my bike to the county where they play and then meet up with the family; and if parents have to go separate directions with children, just simply take your bike with you and ride in between games. Great tip, Schmidty, now I can be a multi-tasker like my wonderful wife. No more excuses.
On The Slate For 2013:
Slate is a great term for my proposed ride schedule for 2013, it should also be somewhat colorful and tough just like the rock. I definitely plan to continue what I started in '12 by riding with my local club (Bluegrass Cycling Club) out of the Georgetown location on Tuesday nights, along with some of our varying local group rides on the weekends. As far as organized events, here's what I am thinking for now, of coarse, always subject to change, but I'm confident that I will complete the century routes at these great venues:
1. Redbud Ride in London, KY on April 13
2. 3 State-3 Mountain Challenge in Chatanooga, TN on May 4
3. Assault On Mt. Mitchell in Spartanburg, NC on May 20
4. Horsey Hundred in Georgetown, KY on May 26
5. Preservation Pedal in Frankfort, KY on June 22
6. Old Kentucky Home Tour in Louisville, KY on September 7
7. GABRAKY across the state of Kentucky in early-mid October
I also plan to get some good rides in down in the south central heart of the bluegrass with Schmidty and some of the Lindsey Wilson College crew. There is an outside shot that I may tackle the RAIN Ride (Ride Across Indiana), but it will depend on summer vacation and my summer work schedule before I will commit. I would love to do another ride or two or more in other states as well, but it will have to depend on timing and investment, I do this as a recreational hobby. Please feel free to send us your favorite ride and I will attempt to get there and ride in it, then publish my official review!
You can also send us your thoughts or comments about various rides via Twitter, and consider following our journey: @RAMCycling
Cheers to a safe, happy, and healthy new year with plenty of cycling in 2013!
I began to ride a road bike in the summer of 2006, and it became a passion immediately after completing my first big ride event, GABRAKY (Grand Autumn Bicycle Ride Across Kentucky). I was instantly referred to as "ate up" by my cycling friends, and I liked it. At that time I was not familiar with "The Horsey Hundred," a century ride hosted in my hometown every year on Memorial Day weekend by the Bluegrass Cycling Club, but it was the talk of all the local cyclists as the season came to a close that first year. "You should join us for the Horsey next May," my close friend Ed Stodola and plenty others told me. Like they said, I was ate up, so that's exactly what I planned to do. Ride my first century in Georgetown, KY in the 2007 Horsey Hundred!
Keep in mind, just because you may be "ate up" about something, doesn't mean you're an instant pro. As the weather began to cooperate, I began to ride my bike, every chance I had. However, I truly had no idea how to properly train for a century ride. The longest day of GABRAKY was 89 miles, so I just assumed that I had another 11 in me, surely. Well my journey over those hundred miles, my first century proved to me that those 11 more miles were a full season ago. I was not yet in good riding shape, not like I was at the end of my first season.
A few lessons I learned on my first century ride: once you complete your first, you will have the confidence that anything is possible on your bike; take advantage of the rest stops, they can be the difference between success and failure; the better you train before the ride, the easier it will be on game-day; sometimes you will need to stay with your friends to pull them along, because there will times when you need them to be there for you.
I took off on the century route for the 30th anniversary Horsey Hundred in May 2007 with my good friend Ed, and he told me early, "We'll follow the century arrows, and when the 3/4 century route splits, we'll decide how far we're going." I thought, "yeah we're doing the 100 no matter what." We set out pretty strong and I was on cloud nine as we ruled the rural roads of north central Kentucky, surrounded by tons of cyclists of all shapes and sizes, riding all types of bikes, wearing all colors of spandex. At the first stop, I was ready to keep going, but taking Ed's advice, we stopped briefly, refueled, and set back out. We actually skipped the second stop, because both of us still had plenty of water and thought we only had about 13 or so miles to the next stop (the official lunch stop). That proved to be a mistake, because the lunch stop was actually about twenty miles away, the heat was starting to set in, and the hills were beginning to take a toll on my legs. Numerous times I would catch Ed looking back to make sure I was still there, and occasionally slowing up to wait on me. As we pulled into the lunch rest stop, I was whipped, and actually thought to myself, I'm not sure I'll make it. Again, I heeded to my friend's advice and got some fuel, then he saved my life (well actually he saved my ride), and said "I'm going to lay down in the shade for a minute. If I fall asleep, wake me up when you're ready to roll." That half hour nap under a shade tree proved to be my saving grace.
We saddled up and took back off with plenty of others, but shortly after starting back, we were separated from most of the crowd as the majority of riders complete shorter routes. We cruised along at a pretty good pace for the last forty miles across some beautiful scenery with rolling acres of horse fields lined by wood plank fences (a bluegrass region staple). We enjoyed conversation with ourselves, and I had caught my second wind, thanks to a little rest. I have had similar experiences on some century rides since that first one, in fact,I can vividly recall a heck of a challenge it was to complete the "Wheels O' Fire Century Cycle" ride in Georgia in the early spring in 2010, which happens to be the first century ride that Renaissance Man completed. It all depends on how hard I train leading up to an event. It's true, every time. The more you suffer before the "big ride," the easier that ride will be. Promise.
I am doing a little suffering right now, as I'm planning a big year in cycling. First I will ride in the Redbud Century ride in London, which is the first of four centuries I plan to complete in the Kentucky Century Cycling Challenge. Next, I plan to ride in the Assault on Mt. Mitchell in South and North Carolina, then back to where it all started for Horsey Hundred in Georgetown. Into the summer, I have several rides on the agenda. All with the knowledge in the back of mind: either suffer now, or suffer later, but it's always worth it, if it's on the bike!
The My Old KY Home Tour, an annual bicycling event hosted by the Louisville Bike Club, was the fourth and final chance to complete the innagural century challenge sponsored by Adventure Tourism KY. Some numbers from the century challenge: nearly 560 riders signed up, around half accomplished the challenge by completing 3 of the 4 century rides, and only 34 completed all 4. My good friend Chris Schmidt and I were 2 of those 34, while the Renaissance Man was able to finish his first century of the year at OKHT!
The ride began in Louisville and departed from E. P. Tom Sawyer State Park, heading southwest towards it's finish point in historic Bardstown. The weather was very nice for a day to spend on the bike as it started with little humidity in the 70s, however it would rise through the day to a scorching low 90s as we found the toughest stretch of the ride, the last fifteen miles. The LBC offers three distances of 50, 70, or 102 on day one, with the option to camp and ride back to Louisville on Sunday on a 50 mile route or you can make your own arrangements for a pick up. I had planned to stay in Bardstown with good friend Chuck Allran and ride back on day two, but after listening to my bottom bracket snap, crackle, and pop all day long (and maybe hurting a little), I gladly took the pick up offer from my very gracious sister and brother-in-law Charlsie and Jamie Garrett. My hurting was mostly self inflicted from poor ride prep, but that happens sometimes.
My starting group consisted of Tim, Chuck, Chris, Toby, Becca, and Ann and we rolled out around 9am. We all hung together for about the first ten miles as we got warmed up then it split up a little over the rollers of the next section. The road marking leaving Louisville was eventful itself, but it did get better, especially after the "lunch stop" at mile 36 when the routes separated. From there on, the rest stops became fewer but the road marking was much better. It seemed like around four stops available up to the lunch stop, not sure because we only stopped once, but the meal was very nicely served at a Catholic church community by some Boy Scouts and friends. I normally won't eat a full meal on a ride, and I would have preferred to have a lunch stop past halfway but I enjoyed half a chicken salad sammie and some power-aide to drink. I understand the meal was so early because of the way the routes stay together up to that point.
As we rolled out from there, our group was feeling strong and we attacked the next 20 – 30 miles, I don't really remember any groups passing us. There was another rest stop at mile 50 and we skipped it because everyone still had plenty of water, not realizing the next stop would be some 28 miles later. So there were five stops, maybe more, through mile 50, then 2 for the last 50 … I'd recommend some type of change there. The entire route was beautiful, as much of cycling in the bluegrass state always is, and the last fifteen miles of this ride was probably the toughest stretch of the day with the climbing involved and the hottest part of the day. Earlier in the ride on the stretch just after lunch, I felt like I could pull my group strong to the finish, or even drop them. But when we ran low on water and had to conserve for many miles, it took a toll on my energy level. Thankfully, we found a farm hydrant along a country road and some very pleasant gentlemen graciously allowed us to refill our bottles. From that point on, it was the two Ironmen (Chris and Toby) who set the pace and eventually dropped me. Their level of endurance amazes me, I have learned by riding with them this year that they don't try to kill a ride early, but they finish strong! And sometimes get off the bike and go running for good measure.
I simply couldn't hang with them and Jamen, a Lexington cyclist we picked up along the way, over the last 8 miles which including the climbing section along the infamous Pottershop Rd. I did get to finish with some familiar faces, however, as I found several folks from Bluegrass Cycling Club (my local group ride) that had started a little earlier than us. Another Ironman (ironmom) Courtney pushed me the last couple miles to the finish where a celebration festival was in full force. There was a BBQ meal, music, a bike raffle for the Red Cross, and much more. Overall, it was a very nice day, despite some of the suffering I endured. Any time I get to ride my bike with some of my best friends is always a good day.
I think the ride was well organized, although for a long standing ride, I think they could benefit from a few changes. All of the volunteers were great as always. Huge thanks to all who helped, we couldn't enjoy it nearly as much without you! Thanks to Louisville Bike Club for hosting the event, I'm glad I finally completed this ride, and thanks to Adventure Tourism for hosting the century challenge, I'm especially glad I accepted the challenge and look forward to receiving my cycling jersey! As far as the bike issue goes, it was somewhat normal wear and tear. The bottom bracket has been replaced by Pedal Power bike shop in Lexington, and is ready for another century ride. And since I felt a little guilty about not riding on day two with Chuck, I decided to donate blood when I saw the bloodmobile at church that morning. I would recommend the Old KY Home Tour bicycling event to any cyclist that enjoys road cycling, since it is later in the season, all riders have a chance to train and complete the route that best suits them. If any event planner would like to hear my opinion on the changes I would recommend, feel free to contact me through our site here and I'll gladly help. Kudos once again to LBC and the entire OKHT team. Hope to see you next year!


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This is an enhanced version of our favourite tonearm cable – the Black Rhodium Stylus, which in our listening tests has consistently out-performed some much more exotic and more expensive competitors. The main differences over the 'ordinary' Stylus cable are DCT (cryogenic) treated connectors, and Garham Nalty's vibration stabiliser which controls physical vibrations travelling in the cable.
Here are some words from Black Rhodium:
- Black Rhodium's STYLUS tonearm cable can be relied to deliver very clear diction of a singer's voice and to separate musical instruments superbly through a dramatic reduction of 'Transient Phase Distortion'.
- 'Transient Phase Distortion' is reduced by using thicker insulation than is usual in interconnect cables, increasing the distance between conductors. This reduces the magnetic field seen in each conductor wire as a result of the magnetic field created by the current in the other conductor wire. The benefit in listening is a clearer and more open sound quality.
- STYLUS employs separate coaxial screened cables for each channel. The screens protect the sensitive low level signals from the turntable's cartridge from picking up high frequency noise and interference present all around. Further protection against noise and distortion is provided by placing both channel cables in an outer jacket, preventing the return conductors of both channels from acting as a 'loop aerials' for RFI.
- Complementary filtering techniques are additionally applied to ensure that any interference that does penetrate the cable's very effective defences is effectively neutralised preventing audible distortion interfering with the music.
- All these treatments are designed to reduce the amount of audible distortion in the cable, allowing cleaner, clearer sounds to be enjoyed from your equipment.
- STYLUS uses two silver plated copper cores, insulated in low loss PTFE dielectric, for positive signal flows. PTFE insulation is used because its low dielectric loss ensures extremely low distortion due to dielectric absorption effects in which sound energy is absorbed in the insulation and released at a later interval of time to create highly audible time-smearing distortion.
- 5 Pin Din – RCA termination, treated with our DCT++ and crystal sound processes for improvements to depth, clarity and timing of the music. The Crystal Sound process refocuses the outer skin of the conductor wires to bring further improvements to
- Fitted with a Graham Nalty Legacy Range VS-2 Vibration stabiliser to further reduce distortion by controlling mechanical vibrations travelling through the cable


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This paper examines the available data that may shed light on the carry trade in Japanese yen. We define an individual or a sector to be engaged in the carry trade if it has a short position in yen and a long position in other currencies. The tendency of large yen movements to be skewed toward appreciations is consistent with the existence of substantial carry positions, and other evidence from market prices provides some modest support for an effect from the carry trade. Data on bank loans and bond holdings by currency reveal a large apparent yen carry position of the Japanese official sector and modest carry positions in the Japanese and foreign banking sectors. The Japanese private non-banking sector has a large long foreign-currency position, but does not have a short yen position, and is thus not engaged in the yen carry trade in the aggregate. However, it is possible that exporters and investors in Japan use the derivatives markets to hedge some of their long foreign-currency exposure, with the private non-banking sector outside of Japan (including most hedge funds) likely to be taking on most of the associated carry exposure.
Full paper(432 KB PDF)
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VI Fitness Centres Inc. filed for bankruptcy on May 1, 2018 and has now permanently closed all its locations.
Despite the company's best efforts, our business model was no longer sustainable due an increasingly competitive landscape.
We can no longer afford to keep the business operating at a loss. We sincerely regret the impact our closure will have on our members,
employees and business partners, and truly appreciate their support over the years.
For any further information regarding the bankruptcy process, please contact The Bowra Group, the Licensed Insolvency Trustee:
§ Members and Business Partners: If you have any questions related to membership fees, personal property or the bankruptcy process,
please contact Kevin Koo at (604) 608.6248 or by email at email@example.com.
§ Employees: Please provide your contact information, including email address, to email@example.com.
If you have any immediate questions, please contact Sofie Parker at (604) 608.6246.


text:
In This Section
If you have received an Infringement you may choose to do one of the following things:
If you do not wish to have a complaint of the alleged offence heard and determined by a Court, full payment of the penalty amount may be paid to an authorised person at the City of Busselton on or prior to the due date.
Part Payments are not accepted
Payment can be made:
In person - to the cashier at 2 Southern Drive, Busselton (Mon-Fri, 8.30am-4.30pm) OR
By mail - using cheque or money order sent to City of Busselton, Locked Bag 1, Busselton WA 6280. Cheques and money orders must be made payable to the City of Busselton. Please include your name, infringement number and if applicable the vehicle registration number details with your payment.
Be aware that if the penalty is not paid on or prior to the due date additional costs will be incurred if any further notices are issued.
If you believe you have unfairly received an infringement notice, you do have the right of appeal. Your appeal must be in writing and should be submitted by letter to: City of Busselton, Locked Bag 1 Busselton 6280 or by email to firstname.lastname@example.com.
To avoid additional costs, an appeal must be lodged within 28 days from the issue date of the infringement.
Details of the infringement which need to be included in your appeal are:
It is advisable to retain a copy for your own records until the matter is resolved.
All appeals are lodged and processed through an appeal administration system. A letter of response advising the outcome of the appeal will be posted to you.
All infringements will be placed on hold once an appeal has been received to prevent further fees being applied while we review the appeal.
If you were not the driver of the vehicle at the time the infringement was incurred, you have 28 days to nominate the person in control of the vehicle by informing the Chief Executive Officer of the City of Busselton in writing with the driver's full name and current address. In the absence of proof to the contrary, you will be deemed to have committed the offence.
You may elect to have this alleged offence heard and determined by a court by making application in writing to the Chief Executive Officer, City of Busselton, Locked Bag 1, Busselton WA 6280. On receipt of such a nomination, the City will make all necessary arrangements for the matter to be heard in the Magistrates' Court. Be aware that if a matter is elected to be heard by a court a prosecution notice may be issued without any prior or further advice and additional costs may be incurred.
This matter may be registered with the Fines Enforcement Registry and additional costs will be incurred and your driver's licence and/or vehicle licence may be suspended.
A few simple tips will help you to avoid incurring a parking fine:
For information regarding the time limits in public car parks in the Busselton CBD, please see the 'Busselton Public Carp Park Map', located on our forms page.
View on Map
Telephone : (08) 9781 0444
Fax : (08) 9752 4958
Email : email@example.com


text: MANY COCKTAIL aficionados I know have a problem: that slow-growing swarm of tiny bottles on our bar carts, each one nearly full of bitters. And not just the usual suspects like Angostura or Peychaud's—any self-respecting cocktail nerd will have rhubarb and celery and lavender bitters too. Used only a dash or two at a time, these artisanal tinctures could easily last well after you move into a new age demographic. Even the Angostura is probably looking a little long in the tooth.


text:
Museum68 online boutique. Especially for Stylist and discriminate clients.
MUSEUM68, a favorite store for ten years on the east coast has now reopened online.
A private boutique, featuring one-of-a-kind reconstructed tops and custom orders. An exclusive house for stylist and stores owner with distinguished customers.
Owned by a music producer, entertainer, who appreciates the art of individual style and has a hard time finding beautiful, unique tops to wear. Museum68 will be a great place to check in for your clients who appreciate out of the ordinary.
I'd like to Introduce my first collection 'R.S' Designs (Rockstar Review). A hand studded and stone tribute to entertainment legends. Seasonal? Not! Both guys and dolls can wear with turtlenecks underneath, and ladies can rock them as dresses or with tights and long gloves.
This line is a limited edition collection. However, stone and stud designs are available for custom orders if your customer prefers a top of their creation.
All tops are unisex and complimentary with the purchase of the designs or custom orders. Most are new, deadstock or slightly worn and collected during my travels. Once again, ladies, I think wearing one as a dress could be mind-blowing.
The final details depend on the customer and their stylist. Thus, all orders come without interfacing or shoulder pads,
Please email for questions.
The R.S, collection, is available at www.museum68.com
Bernadette Cooper /owner
The Crown
"This top took four days to complete, a total of six hours each day. I thought that two types of studs in silver and gold would work best. I knew that this shirt had to have a Royal splash." The top is original, found in Toronto Canada; I call it art.
Size M/L Loose fitting
Rock it as a shirt or a dress...
White Chocolate
"This beauty took four days to complete. Four hours a day! I envisioned squares in spiked and flat silver studs. I hope that I did him, proud."
Raina Shaw
Size M/L Loose fitting
Rock it as a shirt or a dress.
I Harley Knew His Name
"I found this awesome top in a vintage store! I strategically outlined and the design took twelve, four hour days to complete. Both silver and gold studs were used. This shirt is weighty and could be worn as a dress or a fabulous top (unisex). Most definitely a conversation piece."
Raina Shaw
Size M//L Loose fitting
Rock it as a shirt or a dress...
Is There A Doctor In The House?"
Completed in two six-hour days, I gave this stunner a splash of round and flat studs. This beauty is star-studded in the back. Representing one of the best producers of the rap era."
Raina Shaw
Size S/M
The Weapon Of My Desire Is A Flower.
"More heavy metal! This was completed in sixteen hours. It's a simpler design that the fellas may be drawn to. Ladies could also rock this as a dress or top. I added two types of silver studs to give it some hot variety."
Raina Shaw
Size L/XL Loose fitting
Rock it as a shirt or a dress...
Guitar God
"This shirt took two full days to complete. Hendrix was, heavy metal so I added thick lines of silver and golden studs. And, put Jimi's name in lights once again by adding stones to his name and guitar. This one will be difficult to let go of."
Raina Shaw
Size S/M
I'm Not Afraid To Fly
"We all should be fearless! I gave this shirt splashes of silver studs, stones and a fabulous star on the back! Finished in three days, I devoted four hours a day to bring this petite cutie to perfection. Representing tenacity and the remarkable ability it takes to become a star."
Raina Shaw
Size S/M
Ride The Cowboy
"One of my twelve-hour designs. I added two types of silver studs and stones to Tobey's chain. I love country music."
Raina Shaw
Size M/L Loose fitting.
They Found The Gun
"Silver Spike, bubble studs, and stones! I was Inspired to give this shirt the royal treatment! I completed this awesome design in seven days working six hours per day. This shirt rocks!"
Raina Shaw
Size S/M
Arrest Me Baby
"Star power galore! Spiked studs and stone trim with stars on the back. This took ten days to complete; fifty hours went into the making of this masterpiece. Sting and the Police are the ultimate rock stars. Therefore, I armored the shoulders with studs, dazzled the front with stones and adorned the back with two huge stars. Stud trim and stones were used in the letters! A show stopper."
Raina Shaw
SIZE M/L Loose fitting
Rock it as a shirt or a dress.
Little Richard Lovers
"Wow! I went way out on this! This design took me two weeks to complete. I used silver and gold spike studs, placing stones on the lettering and on the back. I let Imagination guide me to, beyond, beyond."
Raina Shaw
Size M/L Loose fitting
Rock it as a shirt or a dress
White Linen
OMG! They Said The N-Word
Not Politically Correct
The Dude And His Band
"Classically designed for a classic! I used white studs staying true to the simplicity of the artwork;.and because the top is tiny. This beauty took one full day to complete. Stay tuned for my elaborate "White Line' collection."
The Mad Vision Boys
"Although the design is simple, I was so happy to be working with white studs for the first time.This design took two days to complete.The new 'White stud' Collection is coming in March 2018!"
Creativity Embraces Torture
"I kept the stud work simple because the artwork is already quite elaborate. I decided on gold studs to match the shirt design that took 16 hours."
Everybody is a star when wearing this twist on the typical blazer. Custom order only; you send and we stud.
The Men All Pause.
Searching for the right top is difficult. Here is a twist on the typical top to create a work of art.
Custom order.
Bras Or Death
Don't just wear a bra knock em out drop em dead in a corset designed for you.
Custom order only.
Stud In A Dress
This dress is available but don't worry when it is sold. Just send us one of your fabulous simple dresses and let designer Raina Shaw stud it for you. Bring your A game.
To Inquire about tops currently being designed, sizes or custom orders. Please contact us. Thank you. email@example.com


text:
I am intrigued by the Labour Party Conference in Manchester brought to you in association with Wal-mart, Nestle and Murdoch. As a result of Labour inefficiency (or efficiency?) poor Old Bob Piper (and others) didn't get his police clearance in time, leading to an unfortunate queueing incident which he "mentions" today in his blog. No such problems for Labour's offical blogger, conference virgin Jonathan Roberts.
"So, arriving at Manchester Piccadilly circa 2pm, I was instantly impressed. A sea of eager staff in yellow jackets guiding you (ed. singular) from station to tram to G-Mex to hotel."
JR has plumped for two to three posts a day and I've just read his first five. In his opening post he dampens the idea that he is in competition with other Labour blogs - which is pretty evident as he's only had one comment so far from some anon who's asking whether they can just walk into the Conference off the street (I wonder if this was posted to wind Bob up specifically). Despite the lack of encouragement from his comrades I particularly enjoyed the following excerpt from post number four -
"After a few glasses of wine, the rumours started. "The PM's on his way", "The PM will be hear in 10" and so on."
Clearly, distinguishing between hear and here gets tricky after a few drinks, but I thought the fact that TB's on the way was a bit more than a rumour. Is this apparent lack of proof-read a deliberate ploy or have they simply decided that nobody will read it?
I make no claim to design guru status, but it's a bit disappointing that JR is using the same template as Political Hack.
Anyway, enough background noise. After the Wolfgang incident last year, I fully expect the NuLabour spin machine to do their usual "smoke and mirrors" over the next few days. Let me know what you spot.
24 September 2006
Labour Conference - Smoke & Mirrors Forecast
Posted by Praguetory at 10:56 PM
3 comments:
- Ellee said...
I did a a trawl on Labour blogs today which I have posted on, I was not impressed with the official site, it seems more like an interactive press release. My favourite is Antonia Bance's, to date.
- Praguetory said...
I shall pay your blog a visit. Thank you for this information.
- John East said...
A bit disappointing so far, end of day one, and only one cock up (Cheries' off the cuff comment).
Let's hope for more disarray tomorrow.
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


text:
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You can also request a call back by emailing E: email@example.com
Or to find out more, simply select one of the following policy types:


text:
Matt- I hope you enjoy this!
A collection of images and other items from Disneyland, theme parks and other amusement parks. Also look for images and items I find interesting, amusing or both.
Matt- I hope you enjoy this!
Those pictures are very mimsy!
You know I do! Thanks Patrick!
I AGREE (in all caps): The outside descending track was just a perfect way to advertise the ride. "Alice" may have made a so-so movie, but I think an excellent ride. After Peter Pan, my favorite.
Oh yeah, the surprise bonus room they added in the 80's is double plus good too.


text:
|It is tough looking for the right Christmas gifts for your loved ones. But when we are around, do you need to worry? We have done the hard work for you and presented you with the links to purchase awesome Christmas gifts from the most reliable business houses. So click any of these links and shop till you drop! We have also provided you with some useful gift ideas for Christmas. Make good use of this article and make this Christmas an unforgettable occasion for your loved ones. If you like this article, click here and pass it on to your friends and dear ones. Merry Christmas!
|Floral gifts
Flowers are traditional gifts and are great to present to someone during any occassion. Christmas is a wonderful occassion to gift flowers to a dear one. Apart from being a nice festive present, it also signifies that you intend to invoke divine blessings and happiness upon the recipient. A nicely chosen floral bouquet will work wonders and also be a nice indicator of your taste. Whether you go for the ordinary or the cut ones, make sure they are well arranged and bear your personal touch. The occassion being Christmas, it will be very appropriate for you to gift flowers in designer vases with messages such as "Jingle All The Way" or "Merry Christmas & Happy New Year" imprinted on them. Check out the link below to buy some lovely flowers.
Object d'art
Gifts under this category can be anything from fountains, clocks, wind chimes, dream catchers to hand-carved and ceramic hand drums, fountains made of lightweight acrylic sculptures and picture pals.
Books and writing materials make aesthetic gifts, provided the gift-giver makes his/her selections carefully. Adventure stories, mythological books and biographies are good choices for kids while books on self-help topics, subjects like nature and countries or even fictions and non-fictions are apt for adults though they should be suited to the taste of the recipient.
Writing materials
Writing materials like pens, pen stands, notebooks, diaries or writing pads can go well with all ages and make for good gifts for all occasions. It will be even better if you can personalize these items for the recipient with a good festive message like "A Christmas gift for ____".
Gifts for children
If your budget permits, the latest toys and video games will bring you the little smile that you want to see. But that is not the only option for good thinking and not mindless splurging is what goes on to make a present a hit. If the kid is creative and loves activities like drawing, you can gift him/her a drawing set comprising of a drawing book as well as coloring materials like crayon, brush and palettes. School bags and lunchboxes are also great items to gift.
Musical gifts
An audio or video cassette or CD comprising of Christmas music related to the tastes and preference of the recipient is always a safe idea to fall back on, even though it needs some research on your part. If you have problems, you can download these traditional Christmas music from here and make a CD out of these melodies that catch the true spirit of the season.
Dresses and fashion accessories
Christmas fashion is always something that is talked about and if you are aware of the latest fashion trends, pick the dresses and fashion accessories in vogue for your recipient. Apparels can range from an internationally famous designer's collection to those of the Fashion school freshers, ready-made brands to the locally tailor-made ones. Items can range from designer silk scarves and ties to tie-pins, waist belts and trendy leather footwear.
Good fragrances are always safe gift. Go for deodorants and perfumes from brands like Ocean Spirit, Fairy Spells, Tranquility and the like that promise good quality but do not cost a bomb for you.
Utility items
These can range from a nice looking useful school bag to a fancy leather bag or even a sizeable kit bag, a watch band, belts, key rings, telephone index, electronic notebook and so forth.
If you have some bucks to splurge, jewelry items can be great gifts to spend on. Choose from designer rings, bracelets, and necklaces, to photographic charms, handcrafted jewelry and beaded votive holders.
Finally, top it all with some true love for the recipient from your heart. Nothing can substitute that!
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Friday, May 11, 2012
My Summer Bucket List
20 comments:
So fun!!!! I love sleeping in too :)ReplyDelete
Thanks for linking up!
I'm your newest follower. Come enter my giveaways if you have a chance.ReplyDelete
Love that banner!ReplyDelete
First Grade Blue SKies
The Animation resort looks cool! I just got back from Disney and I'm ready to go back already! Have fun!ReplyDelete
Sara :)
Smiling In Second Grade
I will definitely be sleeping in!! Thank you for joining the party!! :)ReplyDelete
A Cupcake for the Teacher
Your idea for next year's classroom is so cute!! I love the banners! How fun! Thanks for linking up!ReplyDelete
aww i love disney... so much fun...im your newest follower...drop byReplyDelete
Just Wild About Teaching
I love schoolgirl style!! I just purchased items from the Rainbow Collection that I just blogged about too! I love that red & teal combo!! :)ReplyDelete
Color Me Kinder
I love schoolgirl style too! I am going for the owl theme next year.ReplyDelete
❀Beth Ann❀
Taming My Flock of Firsties
Hi! Just found your blog! Adorable! I'm your newest follower!ReplyDelete
Kindergarten Korner
Love SchoolGirlStyle!!! I blogged about one of her collections too :) Come visit!ReplyDelete
The Learning Tree
I would love to go to Disney this summer. I just found your blog. I am your newest follower!ReplyDelete
Your classroom is gonna be super cute!ReplyDelete
Jen's Kinder Kids
Come by & visit!
Love it!!!ReplyDelete
Jessica Stanford
Mrs. Stanford's Class Blog
My TpT Store
- AnonymousMay 13, 2012 at 3:21 PM
That YMCA waterpark looks like too much fun. Working out should be on my list too, but it's not. I may "fit it in" somewhere. You can see my bucket list on my blog.ReplyDelete
The classroom ideas looks so inspiring. I am a new follower.ReplyDelete
April @ ideaback.blogspot.com
What a fantastic YMCA!! My girls would be in heaven!! I have never been to Disney...someday:)ReplyDelete
Surfin' Through Second
I love Disney World! We haven't been in about 7 years now but I want to go back so badly. Hope you have a great summer! I am your newest follower!ReplyDelete
KinderKids Fun
I haven't heard about the new resort opening. That sounds amazing. I so want to take the boys as they have never been.ReplyDelete
Think, Wonder, & Teach
The moment your blog popped up on my page I found myself smiling. The colors and theme are so sweet! I am following you.ReplyDelete
Kelley "Still Smiling" Dolling
Teacher Idea Factory


text: Ever wonder what the Titanic would look like… In minecraft!? Here it is, today I bring you very close, and well done model of the Titanic. For those who don't know, the Titanic is a ship that was determined to be unsinkable, a cruis ship to be exact. But on its first sail, it crashed into an iceberg and sunk. But right now is not the time for tears, right now it's time to download this map created by Babtiste7201. Enjoy!


text:
Opinion Columns & Blogs
Help one another get through tough times
We don't need any reminders about how tough the past year has been to Wichita. We've all heard the news about the numerous layoffs and the state of the economy. No one is going to forget about that. We know what kind of struggles this recession has created — struggles that do deserve our attention.
What we haven't heard much about, however, are the issues that are with us year after year, whether there is a recession or not — issues that programs funded by United Way of the Plains tackle year in and year out.
Let's not forget about people with cerebral palsy who need a wheelchair fitting for their health. Let's not forget about our seniors waiting at home for a hot meal. Let's not forget about children who need the help of mentors to succeed in school.
Those reasons — along with the additional struggles created by the economy — are why it is so important for those of us who can still give to do so this year. That's why United Way's goal of $16.4 million is so important.
As 2009 campaign chairman, I can tell you that at United Way we are doing everything we can to help make this goal happen. This year, my campaign cabinet established three goals:
* Increase the number of volunteers who serve on the campaign cabinet. This year we recruited more than twice as many volunteers as last year. That volunteer increase has allowed United Way to significantly extend its reach in the community.
* Focus on leadership giving. This year we are asking current leadership givers to increase to the next level and encouraging donors who are not currently at the leadership level to increase their gift to that level.
* Recruit new companies to the United Way campaign. We have worked to identify and contact companies that have not held fundraising campaigns. That work has led to United Way securing 66 commitments for new campaigns that will reach more than 5,000 employees.
To make a real difference, though, we also need you. So what can you do? If you are running a business in the Wichita area and do not have a United Way campaign at your office, please call 316-267-1321 to find out how we can help you get one started there.
Many times we hear people say, "We're just a small company. Our gift won't really make a difference." Nothing could be further from the truth. Last year, more than $2 million came from "small" businesses.
Finally, if you are an employee at a business that is running a United Way campaign, please consider giving five minutes of pay per day through payroll deduction. If you're not sure if you can give at your workplace, you can give online at the Web site unitedwayplains.org.
Yes, times are tough, but we can rise up and start a comeback. We can help one another get through these difficult times. Now is the time.


text:
I've been MIA for the last couple of weeks. No, the baby hasn't come yet (due date is tomorrow: 12/12/12, which was always too perfect to ever happen; I'm just hoping it doesn't arrive too close to Christmas).
But I have delivered my other baby (for the second time).
Last Tuesday I sent The Mannequin Makers back to my publisher after spending two months making some tweaks, thanks to the useful feedback I received.
Now the manuscript is with an editor who I'm excited to work with. Maybe it's the masochist in me, but I enjoy this process of giving my baby over to someone else and letting them cover it in red ink, this game of manuscript tennis that eats up month after month. So long as you don't forget who you are and what you set out to write, you'll make the right changes, lessen the areas readers can get mired, lost, annoyed, or misled and amp up those moments you always thought should sing but maybe never quite nailed.
Every new version is an improvement on the last. Every new version is an improvement on the last. Every new version is an improvement on the last.
Maybe, by the end of this, we will have a book that some readers read through to the final page. Maybe some will like it, steal it from the library, name their children after its characters… Maybe it will annoy great swathes of people, get thrown across drawing rooms (I don't think my target market has 'drawing rooms'…), prompt lengthy ad hominen blog posts and snarky tweets. Maybe it will sink like a stone next year and I will be too busy fathering a real baby to notice. Maybe I will be juggling a real baby and another book-baby.
At this stage, I cannot say – not because I am being coy, but because I do not know.
I have entered the territory of 'What Next?' I have no map. I don't speak the language here. Maybe I do, but I speak it poorly and when I ask the locals for directions they turn their noses up at me and walk away.
Deciding on your next project is a lot like your first week in Paris. You're busy, confused, bumbling. Embarrassment is there to meet you at every turn. You're surrounded by houses with plaques declaring the famous writers who've lived there. They've made their name, staked their claim. There's nothing for you here, move along.
But eventually you will find that small café down an alley the other tourists don't seem to notice. A place where the waiters humour your mangled recitation of the menu. A place to sit and let the world come to you. To get to know the regulars and the pigeons, the bitter kick of the coffee, the quiet hour after lunch when the wind toys with the morning's newspapers.
Soon it will feel like home, this place. It will be knowable. Your knowledge of it will become comprehensive, then godlike, omniscient. You will use this knowledge to toy with the regulars, the pigeons, the headlines on the morning papers – petty games, but it keeps you occupied.
And then, one day, you are done with this place and it's time to move on. It's off to the airport and another foreign city, another busy, confused, bumbling week, or month or year.
As you lie on another lumpy hostel mattress, you tell yourself: next time I will read the travel guides in advance. Next time I'll take language lessons beforehand. Next time I will draw up an itinerary and stick to it.
Or maybe you'll just write short stories…