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Hello friends, I hope you are faring well in this sweltering heat wave. Today's post is about a birthday cake I prepared for a co-worker's daughter's 4th birthday. She was having a rainbow themed party and we must have both been on the same wavelength because we both knew if I was going to make a cake, there was only one it could be.
The Rainbow-Doodle Birthday Cake created by Rosie Alyea over at Sweetapolita. The inspiration cake was a six layer creation covered in fondant and decorated by her daughter using food coloring markers. My co-worker asked if I could not only make the cake, but replicate the doodling of a 4-year-old. I should also mention at this point that until this request came in, I have been avoiding using fondant like the plague. I'm not going to lie, it scared me. I had fears of it breaking at the edge, falling, dragging, condensation, and the horrors I heard about the taste had me uneasy. Not to mention that I was apprehensive about the effect the weather was going to have on the cake because the party was outside. In June. But, how could I disappoint a little kid, so I forged ahead and was up for the challenge!
Using Sweetapolita's cake for inspiration, I created a 6 layer ROY G BV (no "I") from my favorite butter cake recipe coloring it with AmeriColor Electric Ultra Bright Colors and covered it in fluffy homemade buttercream.
Then I mentally prepared myself to win the battle of the fondant. Thankfully, I did enough research online to try Satin Ice in White/Vanilla. Wow, what a product! Not only was the taste on par with a vanilla Tootsie Roll, the texture was amazing and with minimal effort I had it rolled out to a 25″ circle, had it onto the cake and smoothed out in a matter of minutes. I was totally surprised at the ease of it. However, I am not going to lie- I watched hours of online video and did have to psych myself into it.
Once the fondant was on, the fun started! Using Americolor Food Color Markers, I used the final Sweetapolita image as a guide for the top of the cake.
Since I wasn't able to see all the sides, I created some of my own doodles and even drew a little girl holding a birthday balloon. I also left a space at the top for the birthday girl to write in her own name.


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"Welcome to the Leeds University Union Trading and Investment Society.
It is an honour to serve a society which has brought so much value not only to my life but to so many. Since joining the society in my first year of university, I received the invaluable opportunities to connect with and learn from my peers, network with investment banking professionals, visit elite corporate offices and learn from an abundance of advanced workshops. The knowledge I gained from participating in the ongoing Virtual Fund competition unquestionably contributed to my successes securing internships at top firms. Following the success of our Virtual Fund, we are in a position to launch our Real Investment Fund. This is incredibly exciting for us, and we expect that this will provide an excellent opportunity for our members to gain even more. Through our events and our community, I hope that you find LUUTIS offer you the same personal development that I have been able to benefit from and I encourage you to make the most of it!
I am confident that newly elected committee for 2017/18 will be just as strong, adaptable and committed as former committees in securing you the events, forums and activities that will inspire and propel you into the careers of your dreams.
LUUTIS President 2018/19
The Leeds University Union Trading and Investment Society (LUUTIS) was founded in 2010 with the purpose of bringing together like-minded students, developing their investment skills and knowledge base to help create the platform to secure a career in the financial services industry. We take students on the journey from applying for insight weeks right through to securing a graduate job. Having consulted the industry, the clear consensus is that academic success shapes only part of the formula in creating successful candidates. We endeavour to offer our members profound exposure to the highly competitive world of finance through invaluable first-hand experience gained through networking events, Virtual Fund management, conference trips, our market-watch discussions and skills workshops.

subset: commoncrawl


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Thursday, January 19, 2017
Dark Days Journal - National Day of Resistance
National Day of Resistance on the day before the Trump Inaugural. And the 21st is the Women's March on DC and about 300 other sites around the world. Imagine that.
And yet divisions run so deep even in the midst of what appears to be a united front against the Republican agenda and the illegitimate president elect.
Now suddenly we have to show our bonafides to those who have been on the battle lines longer. Johnny and Joan come lately's are being called Lexus Liberals by some. Let me make a couple things clear: 1) I don't own a Lexus. A 1989 GMC 4 x 4 occupies my driveway, 2) I have fought for one cause or the other since I was in college and demonstrated for the Free Speech movement and after that the Civil rights and ERA and end the war in Vietnam and end the draft, 3)Equal rights for women is my heart cause but I have also researched and written about water issues and the stripping our schools of the arts.
And in the midst of all that I have fought a brain injury, and a crooked contractor who wanted to take my home, and become deeply committed to the arts community.
Okay, I will grant you I have not been in the same trench with some of those fighting for freedoms. But then my trench, and the enemy trying to breach that line are different than the trenches in Dakota or Ferguson or Flint. But be it in Africa or Syria or Selma or in front of the dais in DC tomorrow one thing is clear: Women are not equal. We get dissed as soccer moms or Lexus ladies. But, damn it, women through our history have fought for voting rights for blacks and won even when they could not vote themselves, and we fought for equal rights for blacks and still do not have them ourselves.
In the midst of the lobby efforts to end the war in Vietnam I manned desks to advise boys with low numbers on the draft how to avoid it. Provided them with the information of emigrating to Canada. And when not on the desk I knocked on congressional doors to advance legislation to end the draft. Then one day advising a blonde white boy about how he could avoid getting sent to an illegal war he noticed my small ERA (Equal Rights Amendment) lapel pen and started talking to me about how that was so stupid because we weren't equal law or no law.
I have a horrid temper but all the non-violence training we went to in order to march peacefully showed up instead of my right hook. And I stood up and walked out of the basement we were allowed to use in the National Council of Churches building and never went back.
That is what I want to virtually do on the internet last night when I was denounced as a sudden resister. But, baby boy, I have more to lose under the GOP and Trump than you do. I will continue to resist but it is for me and all my sisters and the land we live on. So just F**k off with your Lexus Liberal shit.
BTW the soccer moms in their Lexus cars get in to audiences with Senators and Congressmen and have the money to fly to DC for marches. Do not cut them short. And I wasn't for Hillary but I am for a woman president. They don't grab pussy.
1 comment:
Brilliantly said. Today, seeing all the posts re Trump, Pence, I am disheartened. I am afraid. Not just for the women of America but for all women, for all movements, for the demolition in a swipe of a pen and on the government website for everything that whiffs of Human Rights. I am afraid that the media will be stifled I am also very afraid of Russia's involvement in your election. I am not a Hillary supporter either but the proof is there for everyone to see - she won the election and it was stolen from her.ReplyDelete
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Wigan Atheltic striker Jason Scotland is wanted by Derby County, Burnley and Bristol City suggest reports.
Rams boss Nigel Clough is believed to be keen on making a move for the Trinidad & Tobago international and wants him on loan for the season.
However, Derby face competition from Burnley and Bristol who are both showing considerable interest for the former Swansea man.
Need your Wigan Athletic news fix? Click here for all Latics news and transfer rumours.


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Family Reading & Writing Night
Thursday, November 19th
Please join us for this fun-filled family night that will be centered around the book, Chasing Vermeer.
Student projects, contests, activities and food will be available, as well as our Scholastic Book Fair.
Franklin Pierce Schools does not discriminate on the basis of sex, race, creed, religion, color, national origin, age, honorably discharged veteran or military status, sexual orientation including gender expression or identity, the presence of any sensory, mental, or physical disability, or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal by a person with a disability in its programs and activities and provides equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups.
Questions and complaints of alleged discrimination should be directed to Dr. Shaun Carey, Compliance Coordinator for State and Civil Rights Laws; Wendy Malich, Title IX Officer; or William Rasplica, 504/ADA Coordinator at 315 129th ST S, Tacoma, WA 98444-5099 or at (253)298-3000.


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Just a quick post…because it follows on so well from my last one in which I posted photographs of the two Queen Elizabeths. I spent the whole of Monday and the whole of today performing my own interpretation of the first of them at work. The greatest queen ever to rule Britain…as I've been telling people all day. I'm not sure whether she is or not, but I certainly believed it while I was still in the wig, costume and make up. What do you think? 🙂
True, my interpretation probably owed more to Miranda Richardson's fabulous Queenie in Blackadder II than historical accuracy. But I still found myself embodying the character. It struck me how similar creating a character in a novel as a writer is to creating a character as an actress. I always try to embody the characters in my books for a while too. It's a fascinating process.
And it was amazing fun. I don't know where the girl who was terrified of public speaking went…but I can't say I miss her!
Oh, and just in case you wanted to know, I didn't win the Lambda Award I was nominated for. But I honestly don't mind at all. I'm thrilled Ghosts of Winter was nominated, it was a real honour. And I don't write for awards. I'm getting good feedback already for The Locket and the Flintlock. One reader writing to me to tell me how much they enjoyed it…that's what keeps me going more than any award ever could.


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It's a long sunny drive to Jaisalmer. ANURAG MALLICK test-drives a brand new Toyota Innova to bring back tales from the desert
When it comes to Rajasthan, Jaipur has always been like foreplay, that preliminary bit of fooling around until you get down to business—Rajasthan itself. With a road trip to Jaisalmer staring back at me from the odometer, it was my fastest ride to Jaipur ever. Besides, it was late at night, the four-lane highway was excellent and I had the unfair advantage of a brand new Toyota Innova I was asked to test drive. The mid-point Behror and Kotputli whizzed past and we wheeled into Jaipur at the break of dawn. The doodh mandi was stirring to life. Elephants were being readied for their daily ritual of 15-minute rides to the top of Amer fort.
After zipping along the near empty streets of Jaipur, we finally drove into Raj Palace, our first halt. Built in 1727 and owned by the royal family of Chomu, it is believed to be the oldest mansion in Jaipur, even older than the city palace. It is a local joke that every visitor gets lost in the maze of corridors at least once. Thankfully we had stopped by only for a wash and breakfast; our tight schedule didn't even allow us to explore the twin holy cities of Ajmer and Pushkar. Besides there's a belief about Ajmer that 'Ajmer-e-sharif wahi jatey hain, jinhe khud khwaja bulatey hain'. It's a divine calling and perhaps no one had heard it as loud and clear as Salim Shah.
He was our first major road discovery. On a highway with whizzing traffic here was a man for whom the world moved at 10 km/hr. For over three decades, since the age of eight, Salim had been running his own messenger service. Every year he cycled to holy Muslim shrines preaching the word of Allah, from Rajasthan to Assam and Gulbarga to Kashmir. He slept, ate, prayed and lived his life in his green contraption. As we talked over some good dhaba tea, a thousand questions erupted in my head. Why? How? What next? And almost every query was disarmingly countered with a simple shrug of the shoulders and a motion towards the heavens above. I left my Sufi Forrest Gump with his rag tag band of followers and moved ahead.
We crossed Bhim by nightfall and soon took a 20km diversion from the main highway to Udaipur towards our halt for the night, Deogarh, the citadel of the gods. Bhajans from the nearby temples—Jain mandir, Sri Ram mandir, and the Karni Mata mandir—intermingled clamorously. We stayed at Deogarh Palace, built in 1617 when the Maharaja of Udaipur appointed Sanghaji as the jagirdar of 260 villages. Over the years, the cannon store has given way to a swimming pool and the horse stable to a string of shops. The rest of the town though remains pretty much the same—narrow galis, shops jostling with each other and the great spill of humanity.
From Gomti we turned right towards Charbhuja, and the terrain slowly mutated from flat shrub land to hilly tree-lined roads as we made our way towards Kumbalgarh. Before long we were alongside the second longest wall in the world, after the Great Wall of China. Kumbalgarh is also a wildlife sanctuary and a longer stay would have probably rewarded us with a leopard sighting. However, content with a visit to its magnificent fort we headed for Jodhpur with a brief stopover at the richly carved Jain temple of Ranakpur.
Having crossed Pali, Rohit and Loni we entered Jodhpur, Rajasthan's second largest city. Winding past the first city gate and the clock tower, we stumbled upon the Pal Haveli—our halt for the night. The inclined driveway and the gate looked almost perpendicular to each other and it was the toughest access to any hotel I have ever known. Once inside, we could barely hear the chugging engine of the city.
The better part of the next morning was spent joining dots on the map of Rajasthan. This part of the state was once an important link in the Silk Route, and legend has it that local kings used to loot caravan parties carrying gold and other riches. From Lodarwa, Amar Sagar, Osian, Chautan, Tannoth, Kishangarh to Ranjitpura (the middle of the desert and hence a den for opium smugglers), this was one desert highway I didn't want to venture on, at least not in a car. An armoured tank might have been better.
I got a lesson in history the next morning, as the car wound its way up a hillock. In the 15th century, Rao Jodha was on the lookout for a secure bastion. He came to this hillock and found a holy seer meditating. The king's men had just about evicted Mehran Baba when the constructed walls collapsed. Mehran Baba refused to stay anymore, but blessed their project and asked that his dhuni (place of penance) be left undisturbed. While leaving he also told the king's men that the place was cursed and that any structure built there would remain incomplete, unless a human sacrifice was offered. Rajiya Bhambi, a skinner by caste, offered his life and was bricked alive into the fort walls to guard over it as a spirit. There's a small memorial slab at Rao Jodha's Phalsa, which marks the exact place. Every year on May 12, the founding day of Jodhpur, the Maharaja worships the humble skinner's tools and felicitates the kin of Rajiya Bhambi.
After a brief visit to Jaswant Thada and Ajit Bhavan we were off to the Bishnoi villages of Kejarli and Guda Bishnoiya. We stopped at Jodha Ram's house, and while his son took out the paraphernalia for the opium ceremony, Jodha Ram elaborated on the Bishnoi cult. It was founded in the late 15th century by Guru Jambhoji, who laid down 29 (Bish-noi) conservation principles. According to local folklore, in 1730, a Bishnoi woman named Amrita Devi courted death by clinging to a tree being cut to provide fuel for the cement lime kilns to build the Maharaja's palace. Following her example, her two daughters, husband and 363 people in total clung to the trees and gave up their lives. This sacrifice was commemorated at Khejarli village, where there is a grove of khejri.
The opium was good. In fact the drug is so potent and caustic in its pure form that it has to be stored in lumps of milk and sugar. "When two warring parties consume opium together, it means they've made peace with each other," Jodha Ram elaborated. "And it is very good for a cough." That was my cue to cough ostentatiously till some more was hastily procured and packed for the rest of the journey.
The drive from Jodhpur to Jaisalmer was a four-hour daze. I wanted to see the nuclear test site of Pokhran but was told that visiting the actual site involved a 20km detour. I thought I was hallucinating but there were actually milestones with place names like Baap, Chacha and Lathi. I was still laughing as we reached Jaisalmer. It was late evening, so we decided to stop overnight at the Himmatgarh Fort, and visit the sand dunes of Sam early next morning. Sunsets on the dunes are supposed to be spectacular, and I was hoping sunrise would be the same. It was.
Even before the car could come to a stop, camel riders came rushing towards us. After a couple of teas and a lot of persuasion we were ready for a camel ride across the dunes. "Michael. Michael!" a man shouted and shortly Bablu, Raja Hindustani and Michael Jackson trooped in. The oont-wala laughed when we quizzed him on the names, saying that the names were pretty much left to the imagination of whoever bought the camel. We were informed that only male camels are used for rides, since even as sedate an animal as the camel can find the presence of a female distracting. Keeping a camel is no easy task either.
What it saves on water, it makes up with everything else. It needs a diet of jowar ki phali, ghee and gur, involving an expense of about Rs 200-250 every morning and evening. Since we had a little time we decided to explore a section of the Desert National Park and managed to see some chinkaras. To add to the adventure the oont-walas made the camels gallop at breakneck speed. Half an hour of riding and we were ready to get back to the car.
It was going to be a long 1,000km ride back to Delhi but oddly, I wasn't perturbed. The Innova was proving to be the perfect ship of the desert—smooth in handling, excellent road grip and roomy interiors. As we approached Bikaner, I could see nothing but a bewildering succession of Ramdevs—Ramdev dhaba, Ramdev ji Bhojnalaya, Hotel Ramdev—lining the highway. It was a truck driver who enlightened me about the Ramdev cult. The Tomar king Biram Dev, he told us, had given up hope of producing an heir to the throne, and had decided to kill himself at Dwarka. As he was drowning, Lord Krishna appeared before the king. Not only did he save the king, but also promised Bikram Dev that he (Lord Krishna) would take birth as his son.
Ramdev grew up to be a man of great spiritual powers. He produced bowls for five Muslim fakirs from Mecca out of thin air, and with his lance he created a well in the middle of the desert, which still supplies water from Ramdevra to Pokhran. Till some years back, I was told, people used to jump into the well to heal themselves and an iron grille had to be installed to prevent accidents. Thousands still apparently flock to Ramdevra during the annual mela in August.
We stopped for tea and some Bikaneri bhujiya in Bikaner. By now four days of crazy driving were catching up with us, and as the car rolled down the highway, the surrounding countryside passed in a blur of hazy images. We were soon knocking on the doors of Delhi—the colours of the city coming as a shock after the austere browns of the desert—and shaking the dust from our clothes.
The Route
Delhi – Jaipur (258km) – Deogarh (240km) – Kumbalgarh (200km) – Jodhpur (90km) – Pokhran (180km) – Jaisalmer (120km) -Sam (45km) – Jaisalmer (45km) – Bikaner (350km) – Jaipur (350km) – Kotputli (118km) – Delhi (140km).
Delhi-Jaipur-Deogarh: The four-lane NH-8 to Jaipur is probably the best highway in the country. If you are averse to dhabas, Behror is a good midway stop with restaurant facilities. Thirty kilometres from Jaipur on the route to Ajmer is Mahela, a traditional village known for its blue pottery artisans. Take the Ajmer/Pushkar bypass and continue via Bhim onwards to Deogarh. The roads are excellent but off the main highway, many stretches are single-lane, which can increase driving time considerably.
Deogarh-Kumbalgarh-Jodhpur: From Deogarh, drive 35km to Gomti chauraha, turn right towards Daisuri (20km) and Sadadi, from where it's a 15-minute drive to Kumbalgarh. To get to Jodhpur you can either return to Sadadi and head via Sayra and Ranakpur or you can backtrack the way you came via Kelwada, Charbhuja, Desuri, Narlai. Both routes will take you via Pali, from where Jodhpur is a little over an hour's ride.
Jodhpur-Jaisalmer: The road from Jodhpur to Jaisalmer is a ramrod-straight road via Agolai, Baleshwar, Dechu, Pokhran, Lathi, Chaandan and Hayat Hamira. Despite the distance of 300km, the road is perfect and the journey takes just about four hours. Manwar Resort & Camp is a good midway stop. To visit the sand dunes from Jaisalmer, you need to drive 45km to Sam. There's another set of dunes at Khuri, 45km in the opposite direction from Jaisalmer town crossing.
Jaisalmer-Bikaner-Delhi: You will need to backtrack to Pokhran and then take the left towards Bikaner. Though on the same route Ramdevra, Khichan and Deshnok are all diversions from the highway. On your way back you needn't go to Jaipur city. Thirty-three kilometres before Jaipur, you turn left from Chomu towards Samode and join the Delhi-Jaipur highway near Chandwaji. It saves you about 70km. Just ask for the Chomu-Chandwaji bypass.
Jaipur: The Raj Palace (Rs 2,999-10,000; 0141-2634078, www.rajpalace.com) is a good heritage hotel located on the Ajmer road. Some of the cheaper and convenient options in Jaipur are the Alsisar Haveli (Rs 1,850-2,650; 2364685, www.alsisarhotels.com) and Jaipur Inn (Rs 500-700; 2201121).
Deogarh: Deogarh Mahal (Rs 4,200-11,750; 02904-252777, 253333, www.deogarhmahal.com) is an imposing 17th- century palace that offers beautiful views of the surrounding Aravalli ranges.
Kumbalgarh: The Kumbalgarh Fort Hotel (Rs 1,695-5,000; 02954-242057, email@example.com) can also organise visits to the Kumbalgarh Sanctuary.
Jodhpur: Pal Haveli (Rs 1,300-1,800; 0291-2638344, www.palhaveli.com) is a beautiful haveli, which is still occupied by the family of Thakur Bhawani Singh.
Jaisalmer: The Himmatgarh Fort (Rs 2,900-3,500; 02992-252002) is located just outside the Jaisalmer fort.
Kumbalgarh Sanctuary safari: Apart from lingering to explore the magnificent fort, you can stay longer for a visit to the wildlife sanctuary for leopards and sloth bear sightings.
Bishnoi village safari: Kejarli, Guda Bishnoiya, Rohet, Loni are all bastions of the Bishnoi tribe though Kejarli is the closest to Jodhpur. A good person to contact is Jodha Ram Ji Budhiya (0291-2838666) of Guda Bishnoiya village.
Camel safari in Sam: The oont-walas usually quote a low rate of Rs 30-50 up till Sunset Point. However, a more extensive tour of the dunes can take up to an hour and set you back by Rs 300. On busy evenings you may end up paying a lot more.
If you'd rather have some of these activities organized for you in advance contact Exclusive India (9314620141, 0294-2529015). They organize everything from camel safaris to trips to Bishnoi villages.
Author: Anurag Mallick. This article appeared in the January 2006 issue of Outlook Traveller magazine.


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Just so I can spare you all the chip-by-chip technical details, I've started a new blog at www.raingerfx.wordpress.com to go into all that gruesome stuff. (Also done to be easily incorporated - soon - into the main Rainger FX website itself www.raingerfx.com ).
Meanwhile this one you're looking at right now will continue, going on about everything else in the world that interests me - including electronics, but from a more 'user' perspective.
------------------------- Rainger FX guitar pedals vs. everything else in the world -------------------------
Monday, 13 June 2011
Monday, 6 June 2011
Theory Of Everything - sorted
So there's quantum physics, where scientists are delving into the inner workings of the tiniest particles. And there's relativity, where scientists deal with the exact opposite; how objects and waves behave when moving at speeds close to - or at - the speed of light, over colossal distances. Like stars, interstellar space, and light itself.
And one of the main things they're trying to find now, is how to link these two fields...
So I like to do electronics, dealing with the movements of some of the tiniest particles - electrons, moving as one to appear as an electric current. And I also like to draw and paint, basically dealing with how light behaves. Along with music, these two things are big bits of me; not saying I'm any good at them or anything, but is this not linking the two fields?
Anyway, here's my drawing of Detective John Munch from 'Homicide' and 'Law & Order'. He's the first character in TV history to crop up in two totally different shows.
Turned out way better than the drawing I did of Detective Frank Pembleton ('Homicide' only).
Turned out way better than the drawing I did of Detective Frank Pembleton ('Homicide' only).
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Here's a break from your regularly scheduled programming. I teach drums at a local high school and here's one of their competition runs. They've got champs this weekend and I'm excited to send off my first year of teaching with a bang. https://youtu.be/gsSk6eLTXuo
Blissful Binge
Here's to our tendency to BINGE! Welcome! This page is run by 7 students who are eager to share their interests with the world. Each day is something new from someone new so be sure to check up frequently. Advertisements


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Research Project
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (A)
New results and conclusions obtained through the systematic studied on the design and mechanism of function creation for rare earth materials are as follows :(1) The epoxy resin-bonded magnets produced from the Zn/Sm_2Fe_<17>N_X composite powders were found to possess high-performance permanent magnetic characteristics : (BH) max=-176kJm^<-3> and good resistivity for oxidation.(2) Lanthanide complexes, [LnL_2] Cl_3 (Ln=Eu, Tb ; L=bpy, phen) were incorporated into silica or ORMOSIL (organically modified silicates) and their optical properties were characterized by measurements of absorption, reflection, excitation and emission spectra, and life times. The resulting transparent ORMOSIL composites provided strong red and green emissions and, by optimization of the preparation conditions and the concentration of complexes, high relative emission intensity values against standard phosphors, used in practice, were attained to be-80% and-100% for the ORMOSIL : [Eu (phen) _2] Cl_3 and ORMOSIL : [Tb (bpy) _2] Cl_3, respectively. This demonstrates that they have great potentials for practical uses as one of new phosphors with good transparency and mechanical strength.
Published : 1994-04-01
Modified : 2016-04-21
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I've been thinking about this a lot over the past few weeks. For the first time in my entire life I'm separated from all but one person with whom I spend time around December 25th. While I don't adhere to the belief systems that celebrate the birth of Jesus, others in my usual crowd of family and close friends do to one degree or another. This got me to questioning myself while I was out shopping for that one, non-religious person left from my inner circle. Does this mean all I really am is a consumer whore who's been hiding behind the skirts of the believers all these years?
It's hard to face the idea that all I am is a member of the mindless horde combing the stores for stuff, regardless of how thoughtful and/or useful the gifts are, in order to justify time off work for a statutory holiday that has nothing to do with my beliefs. But after some soul searching I can answer the above question with a wobbly, 'no.' The following are the reasons why.
I love giving. Truly and honestly love giving. The receiving isn't bad either, but for me it's about spending a lot of time thinking about what I can make or find for that other person. While I didn't do so well making gifts this year, I generally craft up to 75% of what I give. I think it's understandable that that percentage is a big, fat, round 0 this year. I've been a bit more than busy. Those gifts I do buy tend to be in support of smaller, local businesses that often don't have the large pull bigger, international stores do. Yes, that part is definitely consumerism, but it's also a way for me to support an economy I believe in. (Didn't do so well with that aspect this year, either, sigh.)
Then there are the socks. You know what I'm talking about. The wild and crazy socks I've been knitting over the past decade or so. If you haven't received a pair yet it's just a matter of time. Now those, I do for myself. Yup, I'll admit it, the socks are a bit of a selfish gift. I love making them so much I usually have a massive smile plastered on my face from the time I start hunting for the wacky yarn to the moment I finish tucking in the last of the ends. Does it help make it seem less selfish if I say that I'm smiling because I'm imagining the grin on your face every time you pull on your handmade, rainbow-striped, fuzzy socks?
Ok, so I'm a thoughtful gift-giver. It kind of justifies the gift part of the holiday. But I'm not sure it's really necessary to find a reason to support giving gifts. So what's left?
I think the key element is quality time with the people I love. Family is a big part of the meaning behind x-mas for me. And I don't mean just my bio-family, I'm including an extended set of chosen family in this definition. If the government is going to give me time off with pay so that I can spend hours cooking, eating, debating, laughing and all the other things I do with the people who are most important to me, then I'm going to say, 'thank you!' and leave it at that. Which makes X-Mas another date on the calender reserved for my family, along with Thanksgiving and Easter.
Reading over this I'm realizing that I've stated the obvious. It was even obvious to me in the past (I guess the change of scenery has sparked a re-evaluation of my habits). I'm happily molding someone else's religious day to suite my own needs. Isn't that what the Christians did when they moved Jesus's birthday to it's current date? If they can justify rearranging their calendar to blend better with another culture, then I sure as pie don't need to worry about ramifications for my adaptation of Christmas.
After all that, I just want to let my family know I'm thinking about them. I'll have to send out the socks later, tho. It's hard to motivate the little knitter inside when it's summer in December.
And now for photos!
Some more pix of my garden in bloom.
The neighbourhood in bloom, bumblebees hard at work.
On my way to work.
Ahead is work.
Behind is the way home.


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Milton and Horton
30 Thursday Jun 2011
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30 Thursday Jun 2011
28 Tuesday Jun 2011
27 Monday Jun 2011
It's the start of another business day at the DMV.
The line forms early and long, filled 1/4 with people who were forced to take a half-day off work to handle a transaction that should only take 10 minutes and very easily could be handled over the internet if the DMV had only arrived into the 21st century. The other 3/4 of the line is filled with people who obviously are not missing work, but have missed a few baths. Everyone in line is talking loudly on their cellphones.
In seeing the long line, the DMV personnel respond quickly and decisively by all going on break except for two of them.
After 2 hours, the Goat Triplets are finally at the counter, only to learn that they are missing a form. The form resides at a table across the room, which will cause them to lose their place in line. Should have taken the whole day off, silly goats!
22 Wednesday Jun 2011
18 Saturday Jun 2011
Posted bernese mountain dog, Kiwi, maltipoo, Picturesin
Sometimes I post on facebook and forget to post here… did I neglect to tell all ya'll about the Lightscoop? (Read about it here, but save shipping costs and buy it from Adorama through Amazon.)
I have two cameras. An older model Nikon Coolpix that takes crappy pictures, but it's point-and-shoot, and a fancy Nikon D40x that would take great pictures I'm sure, if only I'd read the directions for it. Well my Nikon's flash pics have always left me lamenting the $700 I spent on that camera. The Lightscoop won't fix all flash photos, but for residential home snapshots it works like a charm. Best $30 I ever spent. Behold! (Click the pictures to see them as God intended – BIG!)
18 Saturday Jun 2011
So Kiwi celebrated her 8 month birthday by taking a trip out to Shannon's kennel. Back to the breeder from whence she came, for a little spa time. We were calling it "farm week" but since Shannon is working on training her, it's more like a boot camp. Paw Camp!
I miss her but am enjoying getting to sleep through the night.
24 Tuesday May 2011
I was so mad at Kiwi yesterday! First, she started her usual "wake Mary up at 3 am" antics. After about an hour and a half of that, I gave up trying to sleep and decided to get an early start on the chores of the morning.
I was taking the trash out to the bin in the garage when I heard the deadbolt on the door to the house slide shut. Kiwi had just locked me out of the house by jumping on the inside of the garage door and turning the deadbolt! It was 4:30 am and I was in nothing but a t shirt and underwear and all doors to the house were locked!
So I'm locked in the garage thinking f*%k, how do I get out of this one. No key, no cell phone, nothing. Luckily a shower curtain was in my truck for Goodwill donation, so I wrapped that around me. I knew the back window over the kitchen counter was open only a crack and had a wooden dowel in the track for security so it wouldn't open further. Could I get in that way? (The window is really high off the ground, like about 8-9 feet.
The window was not open wide enough for me to get through though, so I took a stepladder from the garage (luckily I had my crocs on or walking in the back yard rocks would not have been fun) and I climbed up and ripped a giant hole in the screen and got the screen off, then used the pooper scooper rake in a "power McGyver move" to reach over to the inside window frame and wiggle the wooden dowel out of the window track so I could open the window. Much to my amazement it worked, and the dowel popped out! I was barely able to climb in the house using the top step of the stepladder. So I hurled my fat ass through the window, shower curtain, crocs, and all.
Once inside, I found a spare housekey and hid it in the garage to prevent such a travesty in the future. This is the third time she's deadbolted me out into the garage (I leave and she frantically jumps at the door). The first time I had left the back door open, and the second time I had my housekeys with me – not so lucky this time.
If that window hadn't been open, I would have had to wait a few hours in the garage, then go to my neighbors wearing a shower curtain and had them call a locksmith, or wait in the closed garage until 2 pm until my dog walker showed up to let me in.
I guess no one called the cops so its nice to know someone can break into my house without anyone caring 🙂 I'm still pretty mad. And now I have to buy a new screen.
*&%&^%^& Kiwi!
24 Tuesday May 2011
19 Thursday May 2011
Posted Uncategorizedin
16 Monday May 2011
Posted Uncategorizedin
Kiwi, at seven months old, has cataracts in both eyes. I guess the white thing I saw in her left eye a week ago (that alerted me to a problem in the first place) that has since went away wasn't the cataract but a glob of fibrin that was caused by severe inflammation – the cataract made her immune system go crazy and the firbrin glob is a by product of that. The good news is we caught the cataracts early. Right eye stage 1, left eye stage 2 (stages go up to 4).
Diagnosis right eye: Incipient juvenille cataract with good vision
Left eye: Juvenile hypermature cataract with marked resorption (the resorption is the good news)… limited vision and secondary severe lens-induced uveitis
I'm giving her steroids left eye four times day, right eye once day, atropine both eyes once every other day, and we go back next Saturday for a checkup.
The assistant told me that cataracts "never" go away on their own and "always" need surgery. But the doctor was amazed – he said it appears Kiwi's immune system is attacking the cataract, at least in the left eye, and making it better. But she may still need surgery. The right cataract he said she could live with, since it's not limiting her vision.
He said the apparent resorption of the left one would be amazing but will have to check next week.
(She weighed 52 pounds at her appointment by the way.)
The first visit cost $192 bucks, and next Sat the visit alone will be $135 bucks not counting meds and tests.
If surgery is necessary, pre op tests run $600. Surgery for both eyes will be another $3200 if lenses are needed. $2950 if it's only removal of the cataracts needed.
Needless to say there is no way I can afford that so I'm trying not to get upset just yet, and wait and see what he says next week.
I'm so sad. 😦 I've been crying all weekend.


text:
Wow, its December
Ok so I havent kept up on this and I certainly do not know how to do this like Tami does. I like reading her blog.
So whats been going on with me?
Thanksgiving we spent in Minnesota. It was a rough flight to get there (took a red eye) ugh. Weather was a bit warmer than it was in San Ramon Ca. I like that. It was in the 50's so I never had to put on the warm layer underneath or anything. While there, we saw some of Shannon's friends. Went to dinner at one of their favorite places they all used to go, King and I thai food. These are college friends of Shannon's. He keeps in touch with a few. We went to a Russian Vodka bar after that. They had vodka "flight samplers". The samplers are 4 shots or tastes of different vodkas. Some are all from a certain country or maybe the bartenders recommendations. We all went over to Alison and SHawns house. (They have a cute golden retriever puppy, Apple, who is 10 months) Alison and Shawn have a great house. It was built in the 40's. It looks tiny from the outside but has 3 levels, I think. The bottom has a furnished and finished basement. Actually now that I think about it, the house has 3 or 4 bathrooms or more. Its a very different but great layout. Lots of potential. Ok.....the basement has a game room with a tv and fireplace and bathroom. The games are all computer games (remember shannon and friends are computer guys) So they were playing the guitar game, where you play the guitar by whats on the screen, kinda interesting.
Thursday was Turkey day. It was a nice day. Shannon's MOm is doing so much better. Last year, shannon and I made the Thanksgiving dinner. Anne was on oxygen and easily got tired so she was not up to it. We had fun with it. Well this year, she made the Turkey dinner. We (Shannon, Anne and I ) made some things on Wednesday in preperation for Thursday. We had a maple glazed turkey, mashed potatoes, corn casserole, cranberry, brussel sprouts (sort of), rolls, and not sure what else. There was pumpkin bars for dessert (like a pumpkin cake with cream cheese frosting and pecan pie.
So Shannon woke up in the morning not feeling great. I felt bad as I was keeping an eye on him and not helping Anne with dinner as much as I wanted to. Fortunately, by dinner time 3 pm Shannon was starting to feel better and improve and joined us for dinner. It was SHannon and I, his brother Donn and Katrina (girlfriend) and CHuck and Dan and Anne. It was a nice dinner. The excitement was about the brussel sprouts. They were not cooked enough the first time so they were not edible. Then dan decided to put them in the oven and cook them longer. It still didn't help, so the joke was what to do with them. I think one suggestion Dan made was to drop them off the overpass, then when I liked that idea, he chickened out. We went and saw the James Bond movie that night. Shannon loved it, I didnt care for it.
Anyway, I even looked for Brussel sprout ornaments but the one i found was about $30 so decided against that.
Friday we didnt do a lot, shopped a little, went to the Minnesota shops and the University of Minnesota shop. We went to dinner with Shannon's parents. I wanted Olive Garden so we went there.
Saturday was a long day. We left at 8:30 and drove to Iowa to see and meet Shannon's Grandfather, its about 3-4 hour drive. This was a new State for me so that was nice. Not much to see as you drive, flat farm land. Cute traditional farm homes and stuff. We went to Shannon's grandfathers, Bob. We went to lunch in Cedar Falls and then to the mall. Tiny little town. Then we went to the cemetary also. Apparently where his grandmother is, which is also the place where his grandfather and grandmother had their first kiss. Cute. We drove back that evening.
Sunday we went through boxes and the closet that had stuff of Shannon's. Childhood stuff and a little older. We packed a box of stuff to ship to us. I am sure Shannon's mom liked that we made a little room in the closet. She said she has other things they have saved such as : legos, bassinet, and who knows what else. So apparently we are supposed to take this stuff. THat is fine, we just didnt get to it this time. Kinda nice to have things like that, especially if we do have kids.
Sunday night we went to dinner with Shannons friends, to Caspian, the persian place they like. First we went geocaching and it was fun. Dinner was good. We went to see Stranger than Fiction after that. I enjoyed that movie.
Monday was work day for shannon and we got a box ready for UPS to pick up and I shopped and we made dinner for Dan and Anne. We then went to the airport to go home. Nice thanksgiving trip away. No snow this year, oh well.
Other than that, I have been getting ready for the Christmas and new years holidays. Working on wedding picture stuff and getting to the scrapbook. Getting new years invitations created and sent out. Need to finish holiday shopping so I can send that stuff. Started working on xmas cards.
We went to the only holiday party I have been invited to. Kennys house in Discovery Bay. He had a 16foot silver noble tree. Beautiful tree, they went and cut down. Probably saved a fortune doing that. They are expensive.
The other news is I was able to use the "injectease" and give myself a shot, so it looks like the insulin thing will start to take place.
Now through the end of the year and into the next I guess: a few things going on. Going out to see Route 111, xmas and new years, having a new years party if anyone shows up. Crab feed Jan 13, not sure what else.
I am supposed to get working on the riding a bike since I am doing the tour de cure for diabetes in May.
OK enough for now I think


text:
British Cycling and CTC have joined Sustrans in calling on cyclists not to use apps such as Strava that allow them to log personal best times or virtually compete against other riders on traffic free routes that are also used by walkers. Saying that such routes "should be safe and accessible for the entire community," Sustrans has reissued its code of conduct for the National Cycle Network (NCN), which it develops and maintains, emphasising that cyclists should give priority to those on foot.
The Bristol-based charity's revision of the code, backed by British Cycling and CTC, follows an incident shown on last week's BBC One documentary The War on Britain's Roads in which a cyclist collided with a woman he was passing from behind on a shared use path.
While it can be argued that the woman suddenly stepped sideways without looking behind her and into the path of the cyclist who had altered his line to ride round her, Sustrans' stance on the issue, made in a tweet immediately the incident was screened and reiterated today through the revised code, is unequivocal – pedestrians have priority at all times.
Nor is it just people on foot who are menaced by cyclists riding too quickly on off-road paths - others on bikes can suffer too, as we reported in October when a woman was knocked off her bike by another female cyclist on the Bristol to Bath Bike Path.
As Sustrans points out, despite its name much of the NCN is on shared, traffic free paths, intended to be used by cyclists, pedestrians and people with disabilities alike. British Cycling and CTC say that cyclists who want to train or ride fast should do so elsewhere, suggesting that they find "appropriate safe routes on rural roads."
While it is acknowledged that actual incidents on walking and cycling routes is uncommon, Sustrans says that "irresponsible behaviour by a small minority can be unsettling."
The charity's chief executive, Malcolm Shepherd, said: "Traffic-free walking and cycling paths help many people get around safely and enjoyably without the need for a car. They are great for a family walk, teaching a child to cycle or for people with disabilities to get about without the added danger of traffic.
"Unfortunately, a minority of people on bikes choose to speed as fast as they can on these routes, which makes them less safe for everyone else. These paths are a real asset for the entire community, which is why we want all cyclists to respect this Code of Conduct.
"As cyclists campaign for greater respect on our roads, it's vital those of us using bicycles give respect to everyone using traffic-free paths."
The revised Code of Conduct for cyclists on traffic-free paths reads:
* give way to pedestrians and wheelchair users and take care around horse-riders leaving them plenty of room, especially when approaching from behind
* be courteous and patient with pedestrians and other path users who are moving more slowly than you – shared paths are for sharing, not speeding
* slow down as needed when space is limited or if you cannot see clearly ahead
* be particularly careful at junctions, bends, entrances onto the path, or any other 'blind spots' where people (including children) could appear in front of you without warning
* keep to your side of any dividing line
* carry a bell and use it or an audible greeting – avoid surprising people, or horses
* however, don't assume people can see or hear you – remember that many people are hard of hearing or visually impaired
* in dull and dark weather make sure you have lights so you can be seen.
Born in Scotland, Simon moved to London aged seven and now lives in the Oxfordshire Cotswolds with his miniature schnauzer, Elodie. He fell in love with cycling one Saturday morning in 1994 while living in Italy when Milan-San Remo went past his front door. A daily cycle commuter in London back before riding to work started to boom, he's been news editor at road.cc since 2009. Handily for work, he speaks French and Italian. He doesn't get to ride his Colnago as often as he'd like, and freely admits he's much more adept at cooking than fettling with bikes.


text:
One of the first things me and my "travel buddy"/cousin/best friend, Nicole (also called Nickel in India) did when we got to India was to go to the Kumbh Mela festival. It's said to be the biggest religious festival in the world. Last year, 2010, Purna Kumbh Mela was celebrated from 14th january to 28 of April in Haredwar, about 75 million people attended. On April 14, 2010, approximately 10 million people bathed in the Ganges river. I was one of them :)
According to the story, during a fight between gods and demons trying to get the elixir of immortality, four drops fell in four different places of India, one of them in Haredwar.
In the feet of the Himalayas, everybody wants to see the sadus Nagha Baba, warriors and defenders of knowledge, but also ex fathers, husbands, architects and doctors who left everything to reach knowledge and illumination. As a kind of penitence they can decide not to speak or to stand on their feet for years (even sleeping, I saw many babas with deformed legs because of that). They live isolated in caves and forests, and only come out in festivities like this.
After squeezing in in a "Sleeper bus" with another 100 indians (nos exagerating, in every 1-person seat there were minimum 3 people sharing, as well as the whole floor full of ppl) for about 16h from Delhi we arrived in Haredwar. Thanks to Couchsurfing we even had a place to stay (would not have been easy or cheap to find a hotel in those days!), we met up wih Deepak, a local guy, and then we left our stuff at his families' house, and then we went to the Kumbh Mela.
Deepak already hosted 3 other "westerners" and one japanese girl, and we all went together to the Kumbh Mela. There were not many "westerners" there, so we dragged a lot of attention! But it also gave us some privileges, since it gives "status" to the sadhus to have westerners in their camping. We were aloud to go in in the Sadhus camping, were we sat down with them, smoked chillum and tried to understand each other using the international sign language :P
Our "boss" sadhu moking charras (indian hashish) from a Chillum
The sadhus were completely naked, covered in ashes and with long dreads. And they were constantly stoned and smiling :)
Smile :)
One of the strangest things I saw, over and over again, was a sadhu rolling his penis around a stick and then letting another baba stand on the stick...
I don't have a penis myself, but I'd think that HURTS!!
Good friends this guys...Auch!
This sadhu has had his arm up in the air for more than 30 years. Check out his nails!
You could get a blessing from the sadhus (after leaving some rupees, of course..)
The "western crew" with a clean Karma after a bath in the Ganges :)
We were really lucky, Deepak managed to fix so that we all could sleep in the camping with the babas! So after a long day enjoying the Kumbh Mela we were aloud to "sleep" in the little camping of one of the main sadhus. We were not allowed to lay down though, nor to put our feet towards the sadhus, that's really disrespectful. After a while "the boss" felt pity for us let us lay down on the ground with a stone as a pillow :) that was def an experience!!
I don't think I'll be sleeping on the ground surrounded by hundreds of completely naked sadhus many more times in my life!
Before going to bed we were invited to sit down, sing and smoke with the sadhus
Next morning. The camping where we slept. Me and my cousin are sitting to the left,
that was our bed for a few hours :)
This is the cutest baba ever, he was soooo sweet and funny and smiley :)
BFFs :)
The boss sadhu had read hair...hmmm...that makes me think he wasn't indian...
(I had just woke up, like 6am..)
I felt like i'd traveled hundred of years back in time! Like to 1001 nights or something!
There are even Bob Marley styled Babas :)
(Check out what he has in his hands...)
"Bob Marley Baba" helps "Cute Baba" fix his hair to be a Bob Marley Baba
and sweet baba is really proud and ask "picture picture!" and pose :)
This guys were having tantric sex or something through eye contact...
Still some time over to get pretty and the local hairdresser ;)
Sadhus walking for the holy bath
Holy bath
Of course such an adventure had to end with another adventure. The day after we were trying to get to Delhi. But we were not the only one.
After walking and walking and asking for buses to the capital a bus passed buy, without stopping, the driver screaming "Delhi Delhi Delhi Delhi Delhi!".
We had to jump up on the back of the bus, while it was moving, and climb up on the roof. So we were actually travelling on the roof of the bus for about 4h, watching the stars.
Until the bus broke down and we had to fit in an already full indian bus (I'm telling u that's crowded...) with ppl on the roof into another full indian bus, but without letting anybody travel on the top of the bus.
I'm telling u it was not a comfortable journey, but def memorable!
When we got to Delhi we could barely move our arms and legs, but the experience was SOOOO worth it :)
"Hindustan me, sab kuch milega"
In India everything is possible
And it's true...
Photos: my own.
Callejeros Viajeros en el Kumbh Mela (Spanish)
Kumbh Mela Wikipedia (Eng)
Kumbhamela Wikipedia (Spanish)


text: One of the big surprises from the MWC is Fresno State. Though they've been good, I'm surprised they have this much talent in the NFL. This could speak to Fresno's recruiting. Utah (not shown) would be second currently in the MWC. The other big surprise is Boise St. If Boise continues to see the success they have, I suspect they'll put more players in the NFL and their current standing will rise, but I'm surprised they're so low. Air Force is the obvious caveat here since student-athletes have service obligations upon finishing their schooling. UNLV should just stick with basketball.


text:
Empire Waist Sunflower Print Dress by 66girls
Get ready to bloom whenever you wear this Empire Waist Sunflower Print Dress. Features a split neckline, drop shoulders, three-quarter length sleeves, a loose fit bodice with an allover sunflower pattern, an empire waist and a pleated skirt with a mid-thigh level hemline. Team it up with a brown wide brim straw hat, a white cardigan and ankle strap sandals.
*Link may not lead to product if it is no longer available.
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


text:
Hello everyone,
It has been a while since my last blog post, but so many things has happened. For one, for those of you that caught my live broadcast, I got married!!! Yep!!! Vicky and I finally tied the knot!!! The wedding was wonderful and thanks for everyone that attended the wedding. I will post videos and pictures on my wedding website as I get them.
More updates, one week after our wedding we took a really quick honeymoon in Kauai, Hawaii. Oh the small island was beautiful and wonderful. So peaceful and relaxing. I will try to post some pictures later. So as this month ends and the next month begins, more and more stuff are happening. I will be speaking at the 2011 IWCE this year. I will also be attending my little sister's wedding. Congrats!!! Min-Jye!!! Fun Fun Fun!!!


text:
Extremely Bad Taste
what is Helvetica and why is it capitalized/
@Beth: Helvetica is arguably the most used typeface (a.k.a. font) in the world. It was used to create the graphic in this post. I've watched the documentary film almost everyday this week. Addictive. Boring.
Here's a better link to the documentary film.
um.. i'm confused.. help?
dude u dislike to many things...you're too picky! "manias"
so why is "Helvetica" emphasized more than "tracy" lol. anyways...take a look at Rafiq Hassan Rosado
@Pollos: And that's keeping it short.
Sometimes I wonder why my girlfriend's still with me.
Still why do you emphasize it more than Tracy? Come on man, I thought you were romantic....
I am not confused but I am kinda speechless. Take care man. No worry you are romantic in your own way Beth just pushing the red button.
red button? Is that male code for something? Since I am pushing it tell me what it is so i can repent!
Hi, I'm Leonardo Melendez, I live in Belize with my girlfriend and our stupid dog that doesn't eat lettuce. Wait, what? Yes he does. Actually, I had a dog which has been replaced by two kids. I also have no car, not even a house. I do have a camera however which I use very often.
Belize is a tiny piece of Earth's real-estate located in Central America. I heard the snorkeling is great too.


text:
No, list_to_binary and iolist_to_binary are not considered harmful.

The problem is that they both implicitly convert integers on the range 0..255 inclusively. This works based on the definition that iolists only contain bytes or binaries. list_to_binary will accept all iolists (deeply nested lists of bytes (0..255) and binaries) and iolist_to_binary will accept both iolists or flat binaries.

They were apparently meant to convert between lists and binaries of bytes, not lists or binaries of arbitrary large (or negative) numbers. Because we Erlang programmers have been so relying on the idea of lists as strings, using ASCII and most Latin1 sequences of bytes made for fine conversions to binaries and nobody ever had a problem.

Unicode standards (and their respective UTF encodings) break this assumption that strings most of the time only contain ASCII and Latin1 integers for their codepoints. This is why you need the unicode module's conversion there.

The same is then true of binary_to_list. The trouble there is that the binary representation (in bytes) of unicode strings doesn't match the list representation of unicode as accepted by ~ts printing and whatnot. The raw bytes representation isn't good enough, and that's what binary_to_list gives you. Again, the unicode module is clever enough to handle that.

iolist_to_binary, list_to_binary and binary_to_list are fine when you know they're meant to be used for bytes, not arbitrary data.

What's hurting Erlang more, I think, is the lack of Unicode algorithms as described by Michael Uvarov. If we have a unicode string, we currently can't get its length (in terms of graphemes, or 'characters to the human mind') in any reliable way. We also can't specify locales, can't do casing and whatnot, etc. Ideally those would be the next step for Erlang's unicode support, I think.

On Thu, Oct 20, 2011 at 4:23 AM, Joe Armstrong <firstname.lastname@example.com> wrote:

Interesting comment: this is almost where I could write an article with the
 title "list_to_binary considered harmful" - I guess if Erlang is
 serializing terms
 to be stored on disk etc. term_to_binary and its inverse should be used.
 list_to_binary seems to imply that you are going to send something to the
 outside world - and then you should stop and think hard, this is
 because there is
 no universal agreement in the outside world as to what an integer is
 (ie is it bounded or not)
 fixing a notion of an integer to something in the range 0..255 allows
 communication of
 integers, but requires a framing protocol (ie UTF8, or ASN.1) that
 tells how integers
 are encoded - but this is out of band.

 The problem is that I might write

 X1 = "10$" (10 dollars) or
 X2 = "10\x{20ac}" (10 euros)

 Now list_to_binary(X1) will succeed but list_to_binary(X2) will fail

 So maybe I should write

 X1 = {ansii, "10$"}
 X2 = {unicode,"10\x{20ac}"}

 If the libraries were written this way then life might be easier

 /Joe


text:
As for the gym: My month-long membership runs out next week, on Tuesday I think. I don't want to go there anymore. It's dirty and semi-creepy there. Harold goes with me, but that is part of the problem. I don't want to pay $50/month for the two of us to go. I mean, if I don't love it, why pay so much?
However, I have no other workout plan and if I don't have a plan then I won't exercise and that is not an option. So I either have to come up with a new plan by Tuesday, or suck it up, pay the money and deal with the icky gym.
Did I mention that one of the new owners is constantly wearing a shirt that supports running as a way to get dopamine into your system instead of pornography? Yep, its true. And the other day I noticed on the bulletin board a notice that was something like this:
6. Choose to Exercise. Exercise helps your physical and mental being, suppressing depression which so often accompanies addiction.
WHAT? This whole exercise instead of look at porn crusade that is going on is creeping me out. I agree, exercise instead, but not at the gym I'm at! Ewww. I am probably going to be banished to you-know-where for being so judgmental, but I'm having a hard time with this.


text:
Digital Comics of Harlequin Novels to Be Made Available for Mobile Distribution in China
This press release went out a couple of days ago and I thought we might be interested in how other part of the world are embracing reading on mobiles. Plus it's our entry into China.
Toronto, Canada, May 22, 2009 – Harlequin Enterprises Ltd. have announced that digital comics based on Harlequin novels will immediately be made available for mobile distribution in China.
Harlequin Enterprises Ltd. is the global leader in series romance and one of the world's leading publishers of books for women. Harlequin Comics are adaptations based on the publisher's romance novels. The digital comics are currently distributed in Japan jointly by Harlequin and SoftBank Creative Corp, one of Japan's leading digital content providers. Each month almost one million Harlequin digital comic files are downloaded making Harlequin digital comics among the most popular comic content downloaded by Japanese women. Harlequin Comics are also available print editions in Japan.
The digital comic titles sold in Japan are now translated into simplified Chinese characters and made available in Celsys's ComicSurfing format for mobile digital distribution on a Wireless China mobile site. Wireless China is one of the largest mobile portal and E-channel providers in China. Launch titles include comics based on books by New York Times bestselling authors such as Debbie Macomber, Sharon Sala and Betty Neels.
Harlequin Comics are digitalized into a "frame-by-frame" format utilizing innovative new technology that allows the user to see each comic frame individually and then slide forward to the next frame. Each frame can be easily enlarged or shrunk via the touch screen.
"Reading novels and comics on mobile phones is a way of life," said Belinda Hobbs, Vice President, Harlequin Asia. "As Harlequin celebrates 60 years of pure reading pleasure we are thrilled to be able to bring digital comics based on the original English novel to a new audience. This reflects both the world-wide appeal of our editorial and Harlequin's focus on providing entertaining reading to women via innovative new channels and formats."
Harlequin is a leading digital publisher and the first major house to make its entire frontlist available in eBook simultaneously with print. Harlequin titles are frequent residents on eBook bestseller lists.
About Harlequin Enterprises Limited
Harlequin Enterprises Limited is the global leader in series romance and one of the world's leading publishers of books for women, with titles issued worldwide in 28 languages and sold in 114 international markets. The company produces over 110 titles monthly and publishes more than 1,100 authors from around the world. Harlequin Enterprises Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation, a broadly based media company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TS.B). Harlequin's Web site is located at http://www.eHarlequin.com. Harlequin has offices in 19 countries, including offices in Toronto, New York and London. For more information please visit www.eHarlequin.com or press.eHarlequin.com.
- Posted in: digital publishing ♦ Harlequin
- Tagged: china, digital comics


text:
Thank you all so much for your support, I'm pleased to tell you NOWHERE LEFT TO HIDE is now available on Kindle.
The paper back will be available shortly, hoping Amazon will have put it up before the 11th November.
Thank you, enjoy!
Natasha has fled her home many times. When she's offered the chance to go to California, she can't wait. Thousands of miles to free herself from her past. She might even find love if she can shed her last fears.
Sometimes sad, sometimes funny, sometimes romantic, a story of hope, fighting against the odds & the determination to do the right thing.
"A heartfelt tale, told with a deft touch." Rowan Coleman, author
"Lyrical from start to finish, Elle Amberley embraces the essence of women and friendship in Nowhere Left to Hide. Natasha, a young poet and writer, is wise beyond her years, as she lets us accompany her on her year long journey from England to the sunny coast of Southern California as she finds courage, her true calling and love."
Ana Lewis, Founder, WomenontheVerge.net
"Inspirational! I absolutely loved this book. The underlying story should make you pity the main character but she's so strong and full of life that you can only admire her."
Lily Richards
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- Ever wanted to rent a book on your Kindle? Well, now you… (shortformblog.tumblr.com)
- Amazon Kindle Owner's Lending Library offers 5,000 borrowable books (slashgear.com)


text: At 08:44 99-03-02 -0500, Samir Shah wrote: >What, if any, are the differences between an 87-88 5000 Turbo Quattro >Wagon and a 89-90 200 Wagon? Visual: completely redesigned interior, very good and modern looking on the 200 vs. rather boring and old-fashioned (IMHO) on the 5000. Flush doorhandles. Different OEM rims. Technical: Torsen center differential vs. open with manual locking. From 89.5, smaller K24 turbo and dual knock sensors. Aleksander Mierzwa Warsaw, Poland mailto:email@example.com 87 Audi 5000CS turbo (mine) 88 Renault Medallion wagon (mom's) 91 mountain bike (just in case both cars break at the same time :-)


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Food & Wine Weekends at Waldorf Astoria Orlando and Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek is a celebration of fine wine and the culinary arts...the perfect complement to the Epcot® Food & Wine Festival, for the serious epicurean.
Designed for those who truly savor the artistry of fine culinary preparations - each plate a canvas for delight and each vintage an invitation for couples to indulge in each other - we invite you to experience Food & Wine Weekends at Waldorf Astoria Orlando. Come for an evening, or immerse yourself in a weekend retreat.
Food & Wine Weekends events will be held from September 16 through November 13, 2016.
Weekend Highlights
The Taste of Bull & Bear
Friday and Saturday, 6pm - 10pm, Bull & Bear
Experience an exclusive tasting four-course menu comprised of exquisite food and wine pairings - prepared by the illustrious chefs of Waldorf Astoria Orlando. Reservations recommended, please refer to, "The Taste of Bull & Bear," when making a reservation. Call 407-597-5413. ($)
View Dinner and Wine Pairing Menu
The Taste of La Luce
Friday and Saturday, 6pm - 11pm, La Luce at Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek
From the kitchen of La Luce at Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek, enjoy an exclusive four-course menu with recommended wine pairing featuring the best of La Luce. Menu may be paired with wine flights for an additional fee. Reservations recommended, please refer to, "The Taste of La Luce," when making a reservation. Call 407-597-3600. ($)
The Art of Sushi Pairing
Friday and Saturday, 5pm - 10pm, Zeta Bar & Sushi Lounge at Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek.
Guests can enjoy an exciting epicurean journey at Zeta Bar & Sushi Lounge, exploring perfect pairings of sake or beer with favorite sushi dishes. ($)
Cocktail Creations
Saturday 4:30pm - 5:30pm, Peacock Alley
Muddle, mix and sample! Guests partake in an interactive experience creating their very own specialty cocktails.
Sip, Swirl & Savor - A Wine Tasting Experience
Friday and Saturday, 5pm - 7pm, outside of La Luce at Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek
Before dinner, sample an array of wines which will be offered as a complement to The Taste of La Luce dinner menu. Regardless of your wine knowledge, this is a wonderful opportunity to learn more from an experienced sommelier. Select Weekends.
Bar du Chocolat and Champagne Tasting
Friday and Saturday, 6:30pm - 10:30pm, Peacock Alley
A decadent selection of à la carte chocolate treats hand-crafted by Waldorf Astoria Orlando's world-class pastry team. A selection of champagnes are available, as well. Highlights include chocolate truffles, exotic chocolate cakes and bowls of beautiful bon-bons. ($) Select Weekends.
Macaron Bar
Friday & Saturday, 6pm - 10pm, MYTH Bar at Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek
Whether indulging in a pre or post-dinner treat, guest can visit the Macaron Bar to try an assortment of flavors, hand-made by the resort's world-class pastry team. ($) Select Weekends.
Craft Beer Experience
Friday & Saturday, MYTH Bar at Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek
The resort has teamed up with local breweries to bring this interactive experience to guests. Enjoy a selection of craft beers each weekend. Select Weekends.
Live Entertainment
Nightly, Peacock Alley at Waldorf Astoria Orlando
Royal Tea - A Waldorf Astoria Tradition
Sundays, 2pm - 4pm, Peacock Alley
Treasure time together as you savor finely-prepared tea sandwiches and house-made pastries, while sipping premium hot tea and listening to live piano music. Add a glass of champagne for a "Grand Royal Tea." Reservations are required 24 hours in advance. Please see Concierge or call 407-597-5450. ($)
Astoria After Dark
Friday and Saturday, 6pm - 10pm, WA Kids Club
Adults are not the only ones to have fun. The WA Kids Club is offering a nightly children's program including dinner and a non-stop roster of fun activities - providing parents some "adult time" in which to experience Food & Wine Weekend activities. ($)
Waldorf Astoria® Spa Tuscany Wine Special
Daily, Waldorf Astoria Spa
Experience the powerful antioxidants of red wine powder, red grape seed extract, crushed grape seeds and pure grape seed oil as you indulge in an extravagant Tuscany Wine Wrap or Pedicure. To book an appointment at Waldorf Astoria Spa please call 407-597-5360. ($)
All guests of Waldorf Astoria Orlando and Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek are invited to enjoy Food & Wine Weekend experiences.


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That's not enough for Randy Moore, though, who dramatizes a Disney World visitor's 24-hour mental breakdown for Escape from Tomorrow with footage shot on-location, guerrilla-style. That fact alone is what drew me and, I'd wager, the lion's share of audiences, to the film. Credit where credit is due: it's an impressive feat. The alternately cramped and lopsided framing is a striking index of Moore's choice of consumer-grade DLSRs to bypass park authorities under the pretense of garden-variety family vacation documentation. Ditto the oblique angles and jittery handheld once the psychosis starts setting in. Presumably when and where shooting would have brought too much notice (to understand the depth of the filmmaker's paranoia, consider that he outsourced editing entirely to South Korea to escape surveillance), the on-the-fly stuff is supplemented by green screen effects self-consciously crude enough for a Kids in the Hall sketch.
Not that anything is compromised by such formal levity. Escape from Tomorrow is a comedy first and foremost, as its subtle-as-a-sledgehammer premise requires. It's also a pretty consistently funny one, due in no small part to the lead performance by no-name Roy Abramsohn, a dowdy Dennis Quaid type who faces with lethargic incredulity the combined pressures of joblessness, fatherhood, demonic animatrons, nubile French teenagers, his nagging wife, a dowdy Linda Hamilton type, and his needy boy and girl, two shock blond children of the damned. Said joblessness frames the story nicely by underwriting Disney's tyrannical good cheer with white-collar humiliation, and said animatrons are put to unsubtle work with After Effects horns and fangs, wisely subtly applied; even wiser is leaving It's a Small World entirely to its own already terrifying devices. Said French girls lend the film rising action (in more ways than one, har har) lifted wholesale from American Beauty, except with girls who look cringe-inducingly like girls, and without the Oscar pandering, mercifully.
Indeed, Moore's violation of bourgeois good taste becomes more and more coterminous with his takedown of the House of Mouse as Escape from Tomorrow progresses. The laughter surrounding me the night I saw Escape from Tomorrow at the Music Box lapsed evermore to groans as the pedophilia thread progressed, which in turn gave way to matters of the lower bodily stratum. A series of half-baked gags involving ejaculation, sonorous vomiting, and a poorly-dressed toe laceration punctuate spotty B-movie vignettes that flail about like so many agitated tentacles. The narrative, such as it is, culminates in a wide angle bird's-eye view of our hero in the throes of violent diarrhea, followed by the hacking of alarmingly hairy phlegm before he collapses half-cocked against the wall, paralyzed in a fiendish grin. All of this is intercut with long shots of Epcot's iconic Spaceship Earth, exalting a commodified space-age future, the film's brilliantly saccharine score soaring effusively as fireworks explode in the sky. Manufactured majesty, meet the abject body. Take that, culture industry!
What may be a snotty confrontation in theory plays on screen as basically a reasonably well-staged gross-out. What gives it any edge at all is the extratextual knowledge of how and under what conditions those intercut long shots were taken, a knowledge with which anyone coming to this necessarily undermarketed indie presumably comes equipped. But those are some slim pickings; it's hard to imagine Bob Iger losing any sleep over R-rated toilet humor. Escape from Tomorrow can be described accordingly as an exercise in warmed over anti-establishment ethos, a sort of National Lampoon's Vacation by way of the Cinema of Transgression.


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COLUMBUS — Fourteen Lowe's stores in central Ohio will hold seasonal hiring events from noon to 6 p.m. Tuesday at the stores. The company expects to hire more than 100 for positions that include cashier, loader and customer-service workers in the lumber and lawn and garden departments.
The company said these seasonal positions often turn into ongoing jobs. In 2016, nearly half of such employees continued on as part-time and full-time workers.
Applicants can apply online at www.lowes.com/careers or in-store.


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Yes-yes I know, it's been weeks since my last posting and I do apologize, I've been rather lazy these past few weeks, but I'm feeling much better now that the weather has improved. It looks like the cold dark months of winter are finally behind us and everything is once again turning green. The days are getting longer and the air is getting warmer. I feel like spring has finally arrived and all is right with the world again.
Today was just a wonderful day, not just because it was warm and sunny, but also because Mom and Dad were home today, and got to spend a little quality time with us out in the yard throwing the Frisbee and the bumpy ball. Two of our favorite games. Marley, Zoe and I spent a couple of hours playing in the yard with our toys and running just as fast as we could. Marley's not too swift on her feet anymore, but she does well enough in a short sprint. Zoe on the other hand can run almost as fast as me, pretty impressive considering her old age. Speaking of which, tomorrow is her birthday, she'll be nine. Only one year short of the big "1-0." I've been kidding her about that all day.
Dad took a couple of nice pictures of us this morning so I thought I'd post a few. I'll try to do a better job keeping up with my posting over the next few weeks. Now that spring is here I'm sure I'll have a lot to talk about. Blogging is a lot of work and really cuts into my play-time so please try to understand if I happen to get a little behind.
After all, I'm just a dog....
I'm going long for this one..
I think it's about time for a rest.


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VRFocus - Developer Fresh3D Inc has launched a new Kickstarter campaign to reboot Outcast, an open world action title that launched on PC in 1999. The project is looking to raise $600,000 USD by 7th May 2014 to fund development, which a stretch goal of $1 million promising to add support for the Oculus Rift virtual reality (VR) headset. If successful, then Outcast will be essentially remade with HD visuals and a general presentation and gameplay overhaul.
I can't believe it one of the greatest adventure games is getting a remake. I don't care about Oculus Rift but I do care about this game getting remade. Everyone that says they love video games needs to do themselves a favor and Kickstart this remake. I can't tell you enough how great this game is. Just take my word for it. You won't regret it.


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Comfy chair, pink fuzzy blanket, sunshine, and a cup of tea. I have cold. Since I am a busy mother, as a general rule I just don't get sick. I don't have the time. Yet somehow this nasty cold snuck up on me and settled in for some serious down time. So despite the beautiful weather today, I am bundled up inside instead of out working in my berry patch, or helping Craig prune apple trees. Life can be unfair.
I've spent the last week madly preparing for a huge dinner party for Craig's parents's 75th Birthday. We hosted the entire family (about 24 people) at our house. Seating that many people is no joke and even though we have an enormous 9' dining room table for our 'regulars', this was a bit of a challenge. But extra tables and chairs were rented, linens purchased at hugely discounted prices at Ross, and everything turned out beautifully. It did not help, however, that the day before the party this nasty cold came to visit. Life can be unfair.
Hosting duties are endless, so Craig and I really worked our tails off yesterday. I, of course, spent the entire party jockeying between strategically placed boxes of kleenex to blow my nose, and then wash my hands. Life can be unfair.
I am wonderfully blessed to have Craig to take care of me, bring me fresh boxes of kleenex and cough drops, and generally shower me with TLC. And while I soak it up, at the same time I am itching to be well. Inactivity is completely alien to me. So this afternoon, I will head outside for some sunshine and a short walk around the property to get some fresh air into my lungs. Just a short 15 minutes to show this ill-timed and utterly unwelcome cold who's boss. It may be planning on setting up shop for a week or so, but I just don't have the time. Sorry Mr. Cold. Life can be unfair.


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On Wednesday night I voted in favour of standardised packaging for cigarettes.
If the House of Lords also backs the measure, from 2016 every packet of cigarettes in the UK will look the same except for the make and brand name, with graphic photos accompanying health warnings. It's been a long hard slog to get to this point but I think it will have been more than worth it if it puts off more young people from smoking.


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People vs Rangel Case Brief
Issue:When a search warrant is issued on the grounds of proving someone to be a part of gang activity, is it logical to be able to search their personal items such as a phone?
Facts: San Mateo police believed that supposed gang member Eric Rangel was responsible for the felony assault that took place in a local park and also that it was a gang-related crime. As a result police obtained a search warrant of Rangel's home on the grounds of proving "gang indicia". This particular warrant although not very specific on what they would search for included graffiti, notebooks, photographs, sketches, poetry, and red clothing which all could possibly link him to a local gang. Also the warrant said that gang indicia could be found in such items as newspapers, artwork, compact disks, audio and video cassette, cameras, undeveloped film, address books, and telephone lists.
During their search of Rangel's home police came across a smartphone in his bedroom which the court described as "a cellular phone that has the ability to store data, photographs, and videos" all of which is crucial. When the police arrived back at the station an investigator searched the phone and found text messages on his phone that put him to the scene of the crime, Rangel's motion to suppress the text messages was later denied as he then pled no contest.
Discussion: During his appeal Rangel argued that the police's search of his phone was unlawful because as stated in the warrant there was no particular mentioning of such devices. He also stated that that even if the warrant did authorize the taking of his phone police would need a second warrant just to be able to search the phone. The court disagreed with both of his arguments.
As stated in Warden v. Hayden (1967) officers that are executing a search warrant may search for the items in any place or thing where the evidence could be found on the premises of where the warrant was issued. The precedent...
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On Wednesday I had the privilege of meeting for the first time Fern Nichols. She flew in from San Diego to Houston to speak.
Fern is the founder of Moms in Touch International (MITI).
She shared with us about leaving a Legacy of Love for our children. The way to leave a legacy of love is by praying for them. I can even be praying for future generations of my family right now and those prayers will outlive me.
Prayer is such a powerful tool....from that first prayer of surrender to God when we give our life to Him and know we have no hope for eternity without Jesus and his saving work on the cross... to the daily prayers we lift up interceding for others and offering praise and thanksgiving to God.
As Fern reminded us that God shapes the world through prayer and Intercessors can shape history.
If you are a mom go to the Moms In Touch website and see if there is a group of moms praying at your child's school. There are groups all over the world.
I know you probably pray for your children on a daily basis, but just meeting with other moms and hearing them pray for your child will mean more than you can imagine.
At Moms In Touch they reassure Moms that: When you pray God's Word you pray God's will.
That is why at MITI we use scripture to pray for our children. We simply insert their name into a scripture.
For example: a prayer to be safe from harm....
God Most High, I ask that You would command Your angels concerning ____ to guard____ in all his/her ways (Psalm 91:11)
Me and a couple of my praying mom friends along with Fern:
It was a wonderful day...head cold and all...hopefully I didn't contaminate too many people.


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An exceptional Great Barrier Reef adventure. Snorkel the Great Barrier Reef with expert guides! You will be taken on an unforgettable day with your choice of 2 outer reef locations. Cruise on a modern comfortable vessel, and have a friendly professional team to look after you.
This experience will give you access to more than 16 unique sites on the outer Great Barrier Reef. You will visit 2 sites on the day, selected as the days' best in accordance with the weather and tides. Each day is a new adventure! You will sit back, relax and cruise for 90 minutes to the outer reef on board Cairns' newest reef craft, the TUSA 6, custom-built for ultimate comfort and easy access to the water. Your day trip is enhanced by the on board experience, with couch style seating, huge picture windows, flat screens throughout, plus plenty of alfresco seating.
Your friendly crew will serve you a delicious lunch and plenty of refreshments to ensure your day is fun, safe, and memorable. You will also be able to choose from other activities on the day including a marine interpretation presentation, or take a guided snorkel tour. You can also try your hand at an 'introductory' dive, or for the more experienced, you will have access to certified diving with up to 3 dives in the day. Diving is an additional charge and payable onboard.
Trips are subject to weather conditions and may be cancelled at the discretion of the provider
Casual clothing and a jacket in the cooler months are recommended
Please note there is a Reef Levy of $10pp for all passengers entering the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park
The minimum age for introductory dives is 12
Once this experience has been confirmed, changes are at the discretion of the experience provider and arranged directly with them according to their policy.


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Waterfall with flowers
- Code: 313249
- Loopable: No
- Duration: 18 s
- Aspect: 16:9
- Alpha / Matte: No
- Model Release: No
- Property Release: No
- License: Royalty-Free
- Location: Istanbul
Beautiful waterfall at one of Turkish parks. Yellow flowers on the side. Perfect for your backgrounds. FullHD.
Buy with Confidence
Quality Assured
MotionElements warrants the content to be free from defects in material and workmanship for 30 days from the date of license sale.


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Twitter finally seems to be growing. After years of promise, the micro-blogging platform finally looks set to reach some of its goals—though some of the loftier ones are far off. Social media and games has certainly been a huge hit this century.
Just days after Dick Costolo made good on his promise to make tweets downloadable, the company is announcing more growth among users. This time it's the monthly active users metric which according to Twitter has breached the 200 million mark for the first time. This new milestone represents an increase upon the 140 million monthly active users reported in March, and the 42% increase at least shows that Twitter is no longer stuck in sand.
The announcement was made by Costolo who also took the opportunity to reveal that tweets are also up. Twitter is now seeing over 400 million tweets per day, a jump from the 340 million daily tweets reported back in March. The increase on both metrics seems largely tied to the amount of social activity generated by the recently concluded Presidential elections in the United States. Twitter was used heavily by both candidates and the platform saw increased visibility and engagement among users who would otherwise not log in and use the service.
Although the numbers are solid in terms of active engagement, many have questioned if the new numbers will slow again in the coming years. Indeed, some are saying Twitter may take what in internet speak is "ages" before it reaches the lofty goal of 1 billion active users.
10 year estimate
According to some analysts looking at Twitter's growth over the years, the company wouldn't reach the target of 1 billion active users for another decade—all things being equal. The estimate is based on the average number of users that Twitter has added monthly since coming on stream back in 2006. That figure in some circles is tagged at 1.95 million and many believe only a sizable increase (50% by some analysts) could help Twitter achieve the 1 billion mark in another four years or so. This is to say if Twitter does not branch out into Games or Search, as facebook has done.
These projections I am sure are not lost on Costolo who joked months ago that his aim is to have all 7 billion people on the planet using the service. At his present pace and even with downloadable tweets, that may never happen.
One of the things holding back Twitter is its lack of reach outside of the developed countries. Indeed, where Facebook has managed to grow is in places like India, Brazil and other parts of Asia. Twitter by contrast hasn't had the mindshare in these countries and presently relies heavily on English-speaking users to keep its numbers healthy.
It is also interesting to point out that Google+, Google's social networking alternative to Facebook has shot past Twitter and it's barely 2 years old. No matter how you slice it, Twitter seems to have hit maturity and saturation and only a fundamental rethink can make it more appealing to unconverted users. Perhaps its time Costolo and co move away from this 140-caharacter limit business; it may be the thing holding Twitter back. Twitter may consider a free movies online section which would draw additional users, as in the case of Facebook.


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Lavender and Silver Horn Ring
[For sale here on Etsy!]
Once I tried making head-wear horns out of polymer clay, but I quickly realized it's been done before. So I invented a way to mount them into rings and other flat woven bracelets.
Introducing, Horn Rings!
This light, curled horn is the perfect accent for any kind of faerie, nymph, or satyr costume.
The claw is made of polymer clay with a light metallic finish, which makes it MUCH lighter than a metal claw. It also won't tarnish. The ring itself is woven by hand out of purple and clear seed beads. Ring size 9.
Queen of the Cat People, class with a cult following.