text:
Comments on living the Christian life, arts and crafts and just living in general
Why practice creation care?
With the passing of Earth Day, I've been thinking a lot about social justice and creation care. As Christians, what is our part in taking care of the earth and in ensuring social justice for those who cannot fight for themselves?
The issue is more complicated that it appears, unless you look at it from a biblical standpoint. There are many verses that talk about taking care of those less fortunate — the poor, the widow, the orphan — and in Genesis we find a mandate to "have dominion over the earth." This means to rule over the earth and to take care of the earth as God would, according to some commentators.
When looking at scriptural references to creation care, which really includes social justice if you think about it, the desire of God seems straightforward. According to Jesus, we are to treat others as we want to be treated. We could use that same thought process when trying to decide how to treat our only home, the earth.
The matter gets complicated, however, when real life enters the picture. Nothing, except the love of God, is black and white in this world. Ethical issues complicate matters. We just need to follow God's word and prayerfully try to do what is best.
Recently, a well-known radio and television talk show host, Glenn Beck, made matters worse by placing the desire to win social justice on the same level as communism and naziism. He said, "I beg you look for the words social justice or economic justice on your church Web site. If you find it, run as fast as you can. Social justice and economic justice, they are code words. … Am I advising people to leave their church? Yes!" According to several news sources, later on in the show, Beck held up a picture of a swastika and one of a hammer and sickle, declaring again that "social justice" has the same philosophy as the Nazis and communists and that the phrase is a code word for both.
If Beck is drawing his conclusions from the Jesuit practice of 'liberation theology,' which incorporates a strong social justice component, he may have a point, but he also misses a very significant point. The Jesuits became politically active in support of the poor and oppressed of Latin America, especially Central America. In so doing, they tended to lean toward revolutionary movements with Marxist ideologies. The point that Beck misses - or chooses to deliberately ignore - is that the oppressive regimes of the nations in question were so far to the right they were arguably fascist. But most importantly, those fascist governments were backed by the United States — something that Beck fails to mention. In their exercise of liberation theology, seeking relief and justice for the poor and the oppressed, the Jesuits chose the lesser of evils.
Average Christians in America simply want to help the suffering. If that means changing laws, so be it, but we will follow the process of democracy, Mr. Beck. We have no inclinations toward death camps and genocide, thank you very much, and to insinuate that any mainstream Christian church would support such things is an unconscionable pandering to those who see conspiracies under every rock. But then, that is how Mr. Beck makes his living.
In Genesis 18, we find Abraham pleading with the Lord about Sodom and Gomorrah. "Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; will you then sweep away the place and not forgive it for the fifty righteous who are in it?" Abraham asked the Lord, taking the number down to 10. The Jewish Study Bible commentary says that Abraham was practicing social justice and we must do the same. It's not communism, Nazism or socialism, it's biblical. Creation care and social justice means simply to care for others — treating them as we would ourselves.
"Jar-based" Living
As I sit on my couch writing this commentary, I am enjoying a beautiful spring evening. The doors are open, letting the fresh air in, and I can hear birds chirping. I can also hear my son and his friend, who are outside playing catch. They are yelling and having a good ol' time. In the kitchen, my other two sons are making dinner and joking around. It's all very pleasant indeed.
These evenings won't last long. They'll be gone in a flash. Next year my eldest son will be a senior and that year will go quickly. It seems like yesterday I was starring at his wriggling form just after he was born wondering what to do.
The apostle Paul said that "we have this treasure in jars of clay …" The term "jars of clay" describes human beings perfectly. We are here today and gone tomorrow. One day we are a child, the next we day we are graduating from high school. Two days later, we're retiring and our bodies just are not what they used to be. Well, I'm not anywhere close to retiring and my body is not what it used to be!
A church in our town is conducting a class called "A Bucket List for Dying." The Rev. Terilynn Russ derived the name from the movie "The Bucket List," starring Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson. In this movie, the two men, who are dying, make a list of everything they want to do before they die. Their adventures get a little crazy, but it's a great idea. While Russ' class is not so much about doing everything you want before "kicking the bucket," so to speak, it is about making preparations before death, such as what kind of care is desired and living wills.
As someone who became a widow before the age of 40, I cannot stress the importance of thinking about death before it is necessary, before emotions are raw, or before an accident happens. I will never forget what it was like to sign a "do not resuscitate" order right in front of my husband minutes after the hospice worker told us that he only had a few days to live. I will also never forget that one of our last conversations, just a couple of days before cancer stole his voice, was how he wanted his funeral to be conducted. No one thinks that they will go through this kind of thing before they are old, but remember "we have this treasure in jars of clay." Jars of clay are easily broken. We have to be prepared as much as is humanly possible.
God has given us good things in life. As Christians, we can also look forward to eternity with him, but taking care of those we leave behind is essential. It is the best kind of care and will relieve some of the burden for ourselves and our families.
The Church is in a good position to stop abuse
In a recent online poll, our newspaper asked readers if the Catholic sex abuse scandal affected their opinion of the church. Out of 82 total respondents, 12 percent said "Yes, I'm Catholic and I stopped going to church when the problems surfaced before." Thirty-nine percent of respondents said that they were Catholic, but they didn't believe that all priests were bad and that the scandal has had limited impact on them. Forty-three percent answered, "I'm not Catholic, but clearly church officials shouldn't have covered up the abuses."
My answer to the question would be the last two choices. I'm not Catholic, but I believe that there are good priests as well as bad. As a Protestant who's been around for a while, I can say the same thing about our leadership too. There are good leaders and bad. As much as laymen like to deny it, pastors are human beings too. They may have a so-called "special" call from God, but they are also susceptible to temptation.
Hurting people hurt people, a pastor said on Sunday, and it is true. Many pastors and priests go into the ministry with skeletons in their closets. Or, if the skeletons have come out of the closet, so to speak, they are shared in dramatic testimonies while parishioners stand in awe. Those skeletons can either be redeemed through prayer, professional counseling, if necessary, and a lot of love from the body of Christ. If the skeletons have remained hidden, they will haunt that leader and eventually a congregation in terrible ways.
"I'm not Catholic, but clearly church officials shouldn't have covered up the abuses," is easy to say from a Protestant standpoint, but none of us can point fingers. Remember Ted Haggard, Jimmy Swaggart and Jim Baker? These men fell, but they are the ones who are out in the open. What happens to the ones who are not? Most of the time, they move from church to church imposing their brokenness on everyone they meet.
Shifting a priest from parish to parish, just like allowing a Protestant minister to go from church to church, just reinforces the behavior. The intricate web of deceit and sexual abuse keeps reoccurring, thus increasing the number of victims and the amount and intensity of the hurt. It also continues to hurt the abuser. They are incapable of helping themselves. The source of temptation must be removed. They must have counseling and spiritual renewal. Certainly, sweeping these kind of situations under the rug never helps, it only makes things worse.
Pope Benedict is in a good position right now to stop the pain. Despite his past mistakes of sweeping incidents under the rug, the pope can decide to take a very tough stand on this issue so that dysfunctional priests are removed from their positions and placed into counseling. Priests, like pastors, are in a position of trust. I believe when this trust is broken by something as heinous as sexual abuse, it both saddens and angers the heart of Jesus. Why would we hurt Christ and insult him by allowing these sins to continue?
The reason this happens is because we view the church as an organization that must be preserved. We may say that this preservation is in the name of Christ, but is it? Would Jesus allow sin to continue?
These are hard questions, but they require answers. The world is watching.
"Christian" militia? That's not Jesus
A few years ago, Christian singer Wayne Watson came out with a song called "That's Not Jesus." In the song he describes how Jesus is embarrassed publicly whenever Christians behave badly and how the body of Christ is to demonstrate what he is really like by their obedience to his new commandment.
Well, once again "Christians" have espoused unlawful violence in Jesus' name and engaged in other spiritually embarrassing behaviors.
In light of the celebration of Maundy Thursday, I just wanted to expound a little on the so-called "Christian" militia group that was recently arrested for plotting to kill a police officer and others who attended his funeral.
This group claims to be preparing for the last days when they will have to proclaim the message of Jesus Christ while they are at war with the Antichrist, once a one-world government is created.
Now, without getting deeply into the complicated genre of Biblical prophecy, we can say that they are partially right; however, I have read the Bible several times and I have never found a passage that says, either literally or metaphorically, that Christians are supposed to kill anyone in order to defend the gospel. Period. Self-defense is a separate issue that we won't touch at the moment.
As we celebrate Maundy Thursday, we are reminded that Christ gave his people a new commandment: "... just as I have loved you, you also should love one another," John 13:34, NRSV. Jesus gave his disciples this command after he completed the degrading task of washing their feet before eating the Passover together — a task that was usually reserved for the lowliest servant in the house! Within 24 hours, Jesus had sacrificed his life on a cross after suffering a horrendous scourging — more degrading experiences that he did not deserve.
The truth is that Jesus loved people unconditionally. He also commanded his disciples to love their enemies and pray for those who persecute us. Jesus did not overthrow any governments, nor did he take out his aggressions on innocent people (the defilers of the temple were hardly 'innocent'). This militia group does not represent the Jesus I know and love. I really wish the media would call them what they are: an "extremist group" rather than a "Christian" group.
Are Christians supposed to stand up for what is right? Yes, but when we do conflict should not be our goal. Unfortunately, conflict is often an inevitable result when we stand up for what is right because there are many who will not agree with us. However, I do not believe that we are supposed initiate a conflict, nor are we supposed to aggravate one maliciously. We are not supposed to be at war with people within our spirits, nor are we supposed to be "puffed up" with pride because we believe that we are right.
In fact, our life should flavor the situation in which we find ourselves. Remember the salt concept of which Jesus spoke? "Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can you make it salty again? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with each other," Mark 9:50, NIV.
This is not an easy way to live when we depend on ourselves. We need the Holy Spirit to help us, and this is what Maundy Thursday is about.
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)


text:
8-2-1918 -16-2-2013
Prominent Australian doctor Evelyn Livingston Billings AM, DCSG, MBBS (Melb), DCH (Lond) has died in Melbourne aged 95, after a short illness.
Dr Lyn, as she was known to everyone - though she was always Honey to her family - founded, with her husband Dr John Billings, the Billings Method of natural family planning, which has been adopted worldwide.
Her book The Billings Method: Using the body's natural signal of fertility to achieve or avoid pregnancy, written with award-winning medical writer Dr Ann Westmore, has sold a million copies in 22 languages. The book was first published in 1980 at a time when women had become tired of the side effects of the Pill and the IUD. It quickly became a bestseller in Australia and went on to sell at auction in New York for the largest amount then paid for an Australian work of non-fiction. The book has been constantly in print in Australia for the past 33 years.
It made the Billings Method a household name and gave hope to millions of women seeking to know more about their bodies and what Dr Billings called "the treasure of their fertility".
Born in Melbourne, Lyn Thomas spent her childhood in Jerilderie where her father was the shire engineer. She was educated at St Michael's Church of England Girls' Grammar School in St Kilda. Both she and her future husband were dux of their respective schools.
Lyn Billings began her medical studies in 1937 at the University of Melbourne. She liked to tell the story of first meeting John "across a sea of cadavers" in the dissection room of the university's anatomy department. It was a situation that ensured she "didn't have a lot of competition". She was a determined young medical student at a time when few women studied medicine. He was a medical student from the year ahead who was working as a demonstrator in anatomy.
Their loving and productive partnership, which was to continue for more than 60 years, was nearly stillborn. She was an Anglican while he was a Catholic, a difference that quelled many a budding romance in mid-20th century Australia. At one point she wrote a letter from Jerilderie breaking off the courtship. The letter never arrived and was not mentioned again. They married in 1943, the year after she graduated.
Dr Billings worked first at the Royal Children's Hospital where she became interested in paediatrics. In 1946-47 she gained specialist credentials, taking out a diploma in child health at the Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children in London. Paediatrics, though her great love, was not to be her life's work.
In 1953, John Billings, by then a leading neurologist, was approached by a Catholic priest, Father Maurice Catarinich, to research a possible natural alternative to the notoriously unreliable and restrictive rhythm method then advocated by the Catholic Church. John Billings began work on a simple yet substantial theory: that women themselves could recognise when they are fertile or infertile by changes in the mucus that can be observed at the vagina. Scientists had long recognised the presence of a lubricative cervical mucus around the time of ovulation but no one had thought to question women about their own observations of it or to correlate it with the hormonal variations of the menstrual cycle.
Much of the early scientific research on the Billings Method was carried out by Professor Jim Brown, a renowned biochemist who moved to Melbourne University from Edinburgh in 1962. He correlated the mucus changes with reproductive hormones and with ovulation, confirming that the method was firmly based in science. Research by endocrinologist Professor Henry Burger of Monash University and Professor Erik Odeblad in Sweden added further scientific validation.
In the mid-1970s the World Health Organisation conducted a five-nation trial among diverse cultural and socio-economic groups and found that while some women did become pregnant during the trials for a variety of personal reasons, there was a method-related pregnancy rate of 0.9 per cent, equivalent to that of the Pill, when the method was used strictly according to the guidelines formulated by the Billings.
A decade earlier, in 1966, Lyn Billings had joined John Billings in working on what became known as the Billings Ovulation Method. They had by then raised nine children, the youngest of whom was seven.
Lyn's warmth and empathy meant she communicated easily with women on how to use the method and she was responsible for many important refinements to the Billings Method guidelines, especially for pre-menopausal women and breastfeeding mothers.
The Billings travelled to more than 100 countries to teach the method. They travelled to China more than 20 times at the invitation of the national Family Planning Commission of China, to establish a training program. The Billings Method became a recommended method of fertility regulation in three provinces of China. Lyn and John were honoured by the Chinese government for their contribution to the welfare of couples in China.
Though the initial impetus for the work came from the Catholic Church, the method has found wide acceptance across the spectrum of belief: among Muslim, Buddhist, Christian and Hindu communities, and people with no religious affiliation; and all nationalities. As Lyn Billings herself said, "biology does not recognise national boundaries".
Today in Australia, most women coming to the Billings clinics want to become pregnant. With the changing demographic of partnering later and declining fertility through the 30s and 40s, this is the bigger challenge. Here the Billings Method has achieved remarkable success. In a recent unpublished study, the Australian Billings centres found that more than 60 per cent of women clients conceived within five months of learning the method; the women in the three-year study had been trying to conceive for an average of 15 months.
Lyn Billings received honorary doctorates from universities around the world, including from Tor Vergata University in Rome in 2005. She was made a Dame Commander of St Gregory the Great by Pope John Paul II.
In 1991 she and John Billings were both made members of the Order of Australia for their work in the field of women's reproductive health.
Lyn Billings was a woman of great personal charm and wit. She faced the hardships of travelling to remote areas with equanimity. She had a genius for relationships. Marie Marshell and other teachers have noted her unfailing courtesy and generosity to the poorest of the poor.
Of her nine children, eight survive. She had 39 grandchildren and 31 great-grandchildren and was intimately acquainted with the lives of every one of them.
Anne O'Donovan is the publisher of The Billings Method. She wrote this obituary with contributions from the Billings family, Dr Ann Westmore and Marie Marshell.
Doctor who made pregnancy predictable
Want access to our latest research and new buy ideas?
Start a free 15 day trial and gain access to our research, recommendations and market-beating model portfolios.Sign up for free
Join the Conversation...
There are comments posted so far.
If you'd like to join this conversation, please login or sign up here

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Of neckchins and thumb-sucking
Our little family unit took Valentine's Day a day early this year. Me and The Missus dropped The Boy off with The Last Boy Scout, his mom and two little girls and went to the local art house theater to see "Crazy Heart."
I was not terribly into the movie initially, but it's been growing sweeter and smoother in my memory ever since. I figured Jeff Bridges would acquit himself nicely in a role that sounded like The Dude meets Hank Williams. But who knew Colin Farrell could act, let alone sing American country & western music convincingly? This move is full of little revelations. Between Bridges' lived-in performance of what press notes describe as basically "the fifth Highwayman," the fact that I know the world of spiraling-down-on-their-luck musicians backwards and forwards plus the welcoming vibe created by the film's soundtrack, this is the little movie I can't shake. Maybe it was the Townes Van Zandt tune playing in the background of one scene...
I even went on the iTunes to try to buy a copy of Bridges singing the movie's title track only to find, not without some appreciation of the irony, the song was only available in a weeping-strings-laden version by its author. I wish they had offered a Bridges version and an acoustic version by the songwriter, one Ryan Bingham. But if wishes were fishes, beggars would float. Or sink. Or something. That metaphor always gets away from me.
Anyway, the movie really worked for me. I bought Bingham's tarted-up version of the title track out of respect for the songwriting and I look forward to Mr. Bridges' acceptance speech come Oscar night. Remember the Academy loves to reward films about principals with handicaps, and what handicap can anyone in showbiz relate to more easily than substance abuse? Bridges is a virtual lock.
But oops, I got off track. What does any of this have to do with neckchins? Or thumb-sucking, for that matter?
After the movie (and the fine meal that preceded it), we picked up The Boy and thanked his hosts sincerely. I accidentally gave TLBS the wrong mix disc, containing a batch of songs he is bound to hate, but his mom seemed to genuinely appreciate the flowers we brought her, so it was a wash on the gratuities front. TLBS should listen to more Tom Waits anyhow. Goddammit, he's our Leonard Cohen. I guess every country gets the Leonard Cohen they deserve. Oh, Canada…
Anyhow, later that night, TLBS sent in a report on his babysitting stint that included the following about our sometimes-reticent scion. His daughter, the same age as our son, discussing him as if he were a science experiment: "He talked a lot today, and he didn't suck his thumb at all, the whole day."
This morning during couch-time I told him about his peer's comment, and as I spoke, he pulled his thumb out of his mouth. Which led to a big talk about thumb-sucking in general. "Who else at school sucks their thumb?" "Just Me." "That's right. Because all the other kids used to do it but stopped when they weren't babies anymore, huh?" "Yeah..." And so forth for quite a while. We ended up agreeing that thumb-sucking really was a baby thing to do, and that he is certainly no longer a baby. (Thank you, fragile male ego!)
It was one of those talks I've been dreading but still waiting for an opportunity to present itself to tackle. We ended agreeing that starting now, there will be no thumb-sucking in public. Once that starts to stick, we'll work on cutting it out altogether.
But it got me to thinking. I was asking him to do something pretty tough. When The Missus got up we talked to her about it, and she jumped on board, adding that I, his very Daddy, had had to quit a lot of stuff that I used to like to do, too.
Instinctively sensing an opportunity to turn the conversation toward myself, I lept. I told him that there was still one bad habit Daddy had that he could use to quit. I'm sure The Missus was trying to figure out which one I had narrowed it down to.
I was thinking of the drawing he had made a couple nights before (see inset). The Missus had brought it in to show me (she is his creative engine but I, apparently, am his muse, at least when he's not drawing super-villains and exploding eyeballs). She told me how he had explained what he was doing as he sketched it out, body-part by body-part. Nose, eyes, ears, you get the idea.
She was especially impressed with the scruff of Beaker-esque hair (that's how we knew it was a picture of me), and the neck, which as she pointed out, looked like a real drawing of a neck, not a childish stick-neck. She complimented him on this and he corrected, "No, that's a neckchin." Just like Daddy.
Oh man I hate my neckchin. And I blame it all the Dew®.
I've shrugged off most of my other major monkeys over the years, but the soda pop lingers. The social stigma just hasn't been strong enough to motivate me to quit.
But all it does is make me fat and it's hell on my teeth, too, according to my dentist. And she doesn't even know we're discussing Mountain Dew, which is like drinking a sweetened industrial solvent. It even looks radioactive. It literally does nothing but further destroy my teeth, fatten me up and make me jumpy and irritable. And a likelier candidate for adult-onset diabetes.
God, I love the stuff.
It's also the current oral-compulsive element of my creative process. I can't imagine what I would replace it with.
And I am just plain psychologically strung-out on the stuff. Every morning starts with a mental calculation of what time I need to put the Mountain Dew in the freezer to have it at peak slushiness by the time The Missus and The Boy are scheduled to leave that day.
Classic junkie behavior.
But the neckchin thing was, hopefully, my wake-up call. I'm gonna try to make it that. If not for me, for The Boy. He shouldn't have to go through life thinking there is a body-part called neckchins and that they are okay to have.
So I expressed the Dad-to-4-year-old version of this whole sorry situation to The Boy and proposed that I tried to quit doing my bad thing at the same time as he tried to quit doing his. He seemed reassured by the idea that he wouldn't be taking this unwelcome journey of self-denial alone.
So we're both starting out the same way. None of our respective "that"s in public any more, with the understanding that the goal is eventually none of those thats in private anymore, either.
Maybe there's even a movie to be made of this. As I noted earlier, the Academy just eats up stories of triumph over addiction; throw in the father/son angle, a couple Townes Van Zandt tunes and we're practically guaranteed to go home with the gold. And not just in my fillings.


text:
Stylish Girl Free Vector
Design by: Free Vector | License : Check Original source
Fashion and beauty vector graphics of a pretty girl. Cartoon portrait of a girl with pale skin and dark hair. Girl with long bright colored nails, big shiny lips and trendy eye makeup look. Free vector footage to design fashion, style, makeup, cosmetics, beauty, models, accessories and trends visuals. Fashionista Girl by LiDou for FreeVector.com License: Digital Art License. Vector tagged as Beautiful, Beauty, Cartoon Girl Face, cosmetics, face,
Related Vector Images
You may also interested
Mega Free Sampler Pack from Stock Graphic Designs
Download Now It's Free
Download sample files in one pack. Pack contains all free sample vector, brushes and T-shirt designs available in stockgraphicdesigns.com.


text:
Goodie Bags for me, didi and neighbours
Mummy has especially decorated my celebration corner to a castle background.
I love the balloons with all Disney Princesses most. Thanks mummy!
I was all dressed up and ready to receive all my guests.
I waited and waited patiently for everyone to reach.
My pressies corner at another side of the corner.
ah ma's specialty pasta and mummy's specialty potato salad.
What's a buffday without cake?
Papa's fave ice-cream cake with my fave figures on top of it.
Yeah! I was officially 5. *Saw my hand-sign* :)
cling, clang, bing, bong.......everyone has a piece of chilly ice-cream cake to cool down. Thanks to ye-ye who used his strong arm strength and gave the cake a good 'post-mortem' till nothing left to be cut. :)
Didi was one happie boy too cos he got himself 3 pressies (machiam like his buffday). Mummy was afraid he will feel sad without pressie so bot him a Thomas Code 1 DVD that comes with a small Thomas toy. Nai-nai felt the same way and bot him a mini book. Ah ma specifically instructed jiu-jiu to get same pressies for 2 but different colors. No wonder u could see the big grin on his happy face.


text:
Did you see the Close Up interview with Dr. James Hansen? Hansen is billed in the Close Up website as having invented the first climate models, itself a rather dubious claim. Mark Sainsbury interviews Hansen about his views on climate change, and the interview is, to be quite frank, an embrassment. I generally have a great deal of respect for Mark Sainsbury, who manages to ask interviewees many of the difficult questions without coming over as aggressive or partisan. It is quite a talent.
However, and it is a big however, the interview with James Hansen was an embarassment. It was bordering on the fawning, and absolutely no difficult questions were asked. We can assume, for example, that the Close Up researchers would have undertaken some kind of background search on Dr. Hansen and might have found his Wikipedia entry. This is a little excerpt from the introduction to his entry:
In recent years, Hansen has become an activist for action to mitigate the effects of climate change, which on several occasions has led to his arrest.
The key point here is that Dr. Hansen has become an activist, and is not simply a scientist. He has taken on a role that moves him away from being a disinterested scientist (okay, no scientists are entirely disinterested, but there is line that can be drawn), but this was not how he was portrayed on Close Up. Instead, Mark Sainsbury placed strong emphasis on his scientific credentials, with a particularly strong emphasis placed upon his leadership of the NASA Goddard Institute. Mark Sainsbury might just as well have said that he is a rocket scientist, and we all know how clever they are.
What kind of difficult question could Mark Sainsbury asked of Dr. Hansen? One question might have addressed the accuracy of the climate models that have been developed by Dr. Hansen. For example, a critique of the accuracy of the models can be found here. Instead of addressing any area of controversy, Mark Sainsbury appeared to present a series of questions which were purposefully designed to allow Dr. Hansen to present a series of frightening and emotive scenarios. If watching the interview, it would be impossible for any viewer to be aware that the anthropogenic climate change might be the subject of intense debate and controversy. Instead, scenarios of doom and disaster were presented one after the other without a single probing or difficult question.
Just to add to the sense of alarm, the editors of the program pulled and displayed scary quotations as the interview progressed, such as:
Just as Dr. Hansen has moved from scientist to advocate, Close Up likewise moved from being news to advocacy. This is not to say that advocacy does not ever have a place in news programmes such as Close UP, but advocacy on issue that is quite rightly such an area of controversy seems to be inappropriate. On an issue of this kind, a news programme should at the very least inform viewers of the fierce debate that is taking place. The programme should at least include some difficult questions, and identify that there are scientists who are questioning the foundation of Dr. Hansen's views.
I can only conclude by expressing my disappointment with Mark Sainsbury and the Close Up editorial team. Whilst they may believe the scenarios presented by Dr. Hansen, they owe it to their viewers to give them an opportunity to make up their own minds, not to be spoon fed horror scenarios by a climate change activist.


text:
Five Questions with Tabitha Barrett
I'm having so much fun connecting with all the smart authors and bloggers I've met online. This is the latest entry in my series of conversations with other romance authors, who join us to share about their creative process, their habits, their inspiration, and more. Our guest today is Tabitha Barrett.
1. You've been writing stories since middle school, however, you weren't really introduced to paranormal romances until you read Twilight and realized you wanted to write in that genre too. What did you love so much about paranormal romances?
Tabitha Barrett: I wanted to thank Julie for this amazing opportunity to talk about my steamy Paranormal Romance series, The Third Throne, and say hello to all the readers!
Paranormal Romance offered me complex characters that were flawed so that I could relate to them. Romances tend to be light and fun, in many cases, so I didn't really identify with them. There were billionaires and young girls, there were neighbors falling in love, and there were office romances, but these people were normal. They met, they flirted, and they fell in love. Paranormal Romance appealed to my darker side.
The first series I read was the Carpathian series, followed by the Dark Hunters. Both series had characters struggling with darkness who believed they were beyond redemption. Having survived a troubled past, I found myself crying over these characters. I felt that if they could be redeemed by love, then maybe I could be too. I know there are plenty of people who feel the same way. Love isn't perfect and we have to work at it. These books highlighted the fears we all have about finding a person who can accept us for who we are, while bringing out the best in us. Add a dangerous vampire, werewolf, or angel and it makes the story more interesting. There are always two different stories going on in Paranormal Romances. The couples are fighting to get together or stay together and fighting for their lives. It's exciting.
2. The character for your first book lived in your head for a long time before you had a story for them. How did you go about building a story around the characters in your head?
Tabitha Barrett: My characters in the Third Throne series were created over the years whenever I was bored and needed something to think about. When I finally got serious about writing them, I sat down and created the main characters…my Predznak. I knew that the angels carried various sins inside of them in order to tempt the mortals. Once I decided on my sins, Death, Vengeance, Fear, Distrust, Illness, Desire, Anger, Agony, Deception, and Hunger, I had to give them their own personalities. I did character treatments for each of them and found photos to match their personalities. (I have photos of nearly all my characters. It helps to motivate me.)
Once I had the characters, I created the framework for the series. Each book takes place in a different city across the world, though the bulk of the story takes place in Hell. I also had to create all the Realms and prison locations within Hell.
From the start, I knew this would be a longer series with about twelve books. I didn't want to write one book and see how well it did before deciding to write the next book. I wanted a cohesive world, so I created the storylines for each book in the series. I made sure to change up the plots to keep things fresh, but kept the basic premise of my main character Anjali having to tame one of the Predznak and then finding a mortal from her past that she once loved. I've had a lot of fun changing up the plots while creating a forward-progressing story arc. Sometimes I feel like I'm juggling because the lives of these characters span thousands of years, in some cases.
3. On your Q&A page, you said the first book in your series was the hardest one because you had to establish the rules for the world your characters live in. How do you keep track of the rules of your worlds?
Tabitha Barrett: I use every piece of technology I can get my hands on to keep my storylines, time frames, and characters straight. Excel was used to create a master list of characters that details which book they appear in, are mentioned in, or die in. I have a spreadsheet for various time lines. I use PowerPoint to create my room layouts and organizational charts so that I remember which Fallen Angels work in which Realms. I even have a general layout of Hell. My most important program is OneNote. The drag and drop feature makes it easier to use than PowerPoint. I plan battles there, create short character descriptions for each book, and jot down my ideas. I also drop in the photos of the characters to create my story visually. The best feature is the checkbox list where I can keep track of my plot holes so that I can fix them later.
4. What is your writing routine like?
Tabitha Barrett: When I started the series, I actually wrote the first three books at the same time. I found that it was easier to create the world when I knew which direction I needed to go in. Characters vital to the series have been created by using this method. Though I am currently working on Book 5, Distrust, I have already have over 50,000 words written for the last book of the series. Again, it's easier to write a series when I know where I need to be in the end.
Writing in general takes place after work and on the weekends. I can madly type out about 7,000 words on a Sunday if I know what I need to write. Most of the time, I think about what I want to write while driving to work, driving the kids somewhere, washing my hair in the shower, or sitting in any place where there are no distractions for five minutes. I see the characters in my head and I speak for them, when I'm alone…so that people don't think I'm crazy. Then, when I have the concept, I sit and write it down only to find that my fingers have gone down a different road, a darker road, and the story starts to write itself. I love when that happens! In November, I challenged myself to enter the NaNoWriMo challenge and write 50,000 words in 30 days. I accomplished it in 14 non-consecutive days. It was a major boost to my writing process and it proved that I can create a story in a short amount of time when I'm motivated to do so. I challenged myself again in February, and finished the last half of my fourth book, The Third Throne: Angel of Fear!
5. What advice would you give to new authors?
Tabitha Barrett: I have so many things to say to new authors, but they have to be willing to listen and willing to work at it. Success won't just come to you; you have to work for it. Don't immediately brush a new marketing opportunity aside because you think it won't work; otherwise you have already lost the battle. Do ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING you can to promote your work, even if that means taking a hard look at your book and rewriting or reediting it if something isn't working. Be honest with yourself and listen to your book reviews. If the same comments keep popping up, then you might have to accept that you need to change something.
I recently posted a description of an "Indie Author" on Facebook and had a great response from the others authors I know. I said, "What is the definition of an Indie Author? An Indie Author is a writer who is insane and creative enough to find new ways to promote their book 365 days of the year, year after year." I had so many authors love this quote. It means that you have to work hard to promote your book and you can't stop if you want to succeed. You have to try new things. You have to create new ways of talking about your book. You need to change up your ad strategies. Figure out how to interact with others authors and readers. Join events on Facebook, sign up for newsletter promotions, blog about your writing, or join live book signings. No two authors will achieve success the same way, but successful authors have the same thing in common. They busted their backsides to become successful!
Special thanks to Tabitha Barret for participating in this series! To find out more about Tabitha Barrett, visit her website. You can also follow her on Twitter (@tabithabarret), Facebook, and Goodreads, You can purchase her books on Amazon (US).
Categorised in: Advice from Other Authors, Blog, Five Questions Series
This post was written by Julie Tetel Andresen


text:
mission burger @ duc loi market, 18th & mission, san franciscoMission Burger is CLOSING! Saturday, May 29th is your last chance to get in on this greasy, salty, granulated beef heartstopper!! In fact, they aren't even making fried chicken or vegan burgers anymore, so its just burgers and fries left. This pains me immensely, because I heard great things about the chicken sandwich and never got one. But at least I got to eat a burger before they closed! I suggest that you make your way to Duc Loi post-haste. Don't forget, they are closed Thursday! Don't miss out on yr last chance for Mission Burger!
last chance for mission burger!
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


text:
Smoothie bowls are amazing!! They are big enough to fill you up, and they are the perfect base for any topping you desire.
This Purple Power smoothie bowl is filling, cold, and super healthy! It's packed with protein, and it's vegan + gluten-free.
Purple Power Smoothie Bowl
Prep Time: 7 Minutes || Total Time: 10 minutes
A filling, healthy smoothie bowl, perfect for summer.
Author: Simply Sacia
Recipe Type: Smoothie, Breakfast
Servings: 2 smoothie bowls
- 4 cups mixed berries
- 2 large handfuls spinach
- 2 tbs hemp powder
- 4 cups vanilla soy milk, unsweetened
- 2 tbs maple syrup
- Toppings: Rasberries, blueberries, bananas, sliced almonds, chia seeds, popped amaranth.
- Blend spinach, hemp powder, and soy milk until thoroughly combined.
- Add all other ingredients, blend until smooth.
- Add any desired toppings.


text:
We hear The Palace by Luke Mangan is now just The Palace, although we have high hopes for new head chef John King (ex-Church Street Enoteca and Royal Mail Hotel, Dunkeld – click here to check out our review).
So it seems there is no time like the present to put up this post – to celebrate all that Luke achieved at this great South Melbourne eatery. We recently attended a wine-matching dinner presented by Coldstream Hills Winery at The Palace by Luke Mangan.
The Palace is what Londoners like us refer to as a gastropub. A mutation of top-notch pub with the addition of a new breed of chef willing to cook pub meals at a consistently high standard in a refined but unpretentious setting. There usually serve a pretty good drop, too. Plus boutique beers and ciders, you get the picture.
The place is in an unassuming building along City Road and walking through the doors you find it harbours a bar and seating area. Continuing through a doorway you enter the dining room proper but if you bypass this you get to a great outdoor seating area – I will definitely be back to try it out in the next few months.
The Coldstream Hills Wine Dinner was to take place in a separate are behind the bar where gold framed prints and large mirrors line the walls. As we were taken to our table we were offered to start with a glass of Coldstream Hills NV Sparkling. It was a great glass of bubbles that kicked off the first of four courses. Rob Hay from Coldstream Hills took us through the wines that were going to accompany the meal and gave us insight into the peculiarities of grape growing in the region.
We started off with a sashimi plate. This dish was a hit with everyone. New Zealand King Salmon on confit potato, ponzu dressing.
Sitting next to that was Kingfish sahimi, ginger eschalot dressing. Kingfish is the seafood of choice of WordMonkey and this did not disappoint her one iota.
To finish off the trio Scallop, cauliflower puree, black bean dressing, baby shiso. I tried to take my time to savour each flavour but as I was attempting to do that, all the plates around me were wiped clean in just a few minutes.
The next course for me was what I would term a revelation. People who know me know I have more than a slight aversion to anything 'egg-y'. Well, the second course had to be prawn omelette, bisque sauce, truffle oil didn't it…. I had an unhealthy urge for all the other ingredients. Well, after WorkMonkey said that if the dish passed my lips, the perfect combination of flavours would mask anything to do with egg. And for the first time in my life I not just swallowed egg but ate the whole dish leaving nothing on my plate. This was matched well with Coldstream Hills 'Deer Farm Vineyard' Chardonnay – nice and smokey to complement the truffle.
Onto the reds we went – Coldstream Hills Reserve Pinot Noir. Dear Lord, this was the stuff dreams are made of. If I could drink one red for the rest of my life, then start stocking the cellar. Yes – you may think I am going overboard but I have good reason so don't knock it 'til you tried it my friend. This was served alongside Confit duck, Asian style brique pastry, char sui mushrooms, duck and ginger broth. The duck looked like it was encased in a spring roll and the pungent broth was poured over the duck and into the bowl. light, tasty and tender wrapped in a crispy shell. Yum.
To finish the evening off chai panna cotta was cleverly matched with Coldstream Hills Reserve Shiraz. Not normally one to opt for chai anything, this turned the tide and we wiped the decks with this light sweet dessert.
So there you have it – Luke Managan had a darn good gastropub going here. Watch this space for what the future holds, and Follow @shark4chipdrink
The Palace by Luke Mangan
505 City Road
South Melbourne, VIC 3205
Tel. (03) 9699 6410


text:
Yeh Faasle Teri Galiyon Ke Hamse Tai Na Huye
Hazaar Baar Ruke Hum, Hazar Baar Chale
Na Jaane Kaun Si Mittee Watan Ki Mittee Hai
Nazar Mein Dhool Jigar Mein Liye Qaraar Chale
Ye Kaisi Sarhadein Hein Uljhee Huee Pairoon Mein
Hum Apne Ghar Ki Taraf Ruk Ke Baar Baar Chale
Singer : Jagjit Singh
Poet : Gulzar
The Ghazal is from film "Mammo" -directed by Shyam Benegal
Friday, December 22, 2006
Yeh Faasle Teri Galiyon Ke
Posted by Kus Tavan !!! at 12/22/2006 05:05:00 PM
3 comments:
- Sameer Mahoolkar said...
A few corrections and a remaining couplet.
Yeh FaaNsle Teri Galiyon Ke Hamse Tai Na Huye.
Hazaar Baar Ruke Hum, Hazaar Baar Chale.
Na Jaane Kaun Si Matti Watan Ki. Matti Thi.
Nazar Mein Dhool, Jigar Mein Liye Ghubaar Chale.
Ye Kaisi Sarhadein Uljhee Huee HaiN Pairoon Mein
Hum Apne Ghar Ki Taraf Uthh Ke Baar Baar Chale.
Last/Remaining Couplet:
Na Raasta KahiN Thehara, Na Manzilein Thehari,
Ye Umra UDti Huvi GaRd Mein Juzaar Chale.
Hazaar Baar Ruke Hum, Hazaar Baar Chale.
- December 02, 2013 11:45 AM
Hi Sameer, do you who is the lyricist?
- May 19, 2016 10:21 AM
Gulzar sahib
- November 08, 2016 6:13 AM
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


text:
The next few days passed rather uneventfully with Richie and Jon in the studio most of the time. Amanda's routine continued much the same. She was getting more used to always having someone with her when she went out and at times found herself letting them slip into the background while she shopped or went to a movie.
As Jon's birthday approached, she found herself thinking constantly about what she could get him for a present.
What the hell can I possibly get him? What does he need? What does he want? Help!
March 1st found her lying in bed dozing after Jon had woken her an hour earlier, making love to her until she was breathless, and then kissing her softly as he left the room to go to the gym in his home.
Snuggling deeper into the covers to retain his warmth and scent, she let her mind wander. She was getting more and more anxious about the upcoming birthday. As far as she knew, no party was planned and her thought was taking him out to dinner and then a romantic evening at home. Today she would ask Richie if he had any plans that night so she could gently suggest he make himself scarce so the evening would not be disturbed.
Several minutes later following a quick shower and dressing in warm clothes, Amanda wandered downstairs for a cup of coffee. Meeting Richie at the coffee pot brought a smile to her face as she realized this would be a good time to talk to him.
"Good morning." Richie raised his cup to her and then took a sip.
"Hi hon. How are you today?" Amanda poured the cream and took her own drink.
"Not bad for an old man." He grinned at her as she looked him up and down, taking in the boots, jeans, deep blue opened shirt, and hair trinkets.
"Richie, you're never gonna be old." Amanda assured him. "You're always gonna be you."
"Yeah, but if I say that then I get to rag on Jon for getting up there too." His eyes lit at that as he thought of all the sly comments he had been able to get in over the last few days while they were in the studio.
"I know, it's tomorrow." Amanda paused and then took the leap. "Richie?"
He turned to her and widened his eyes in question.
"About Jon's birthday…" He nodded at her. "I thought I would take him out to dinner and then we might spend the evening together."
Slowly setting down his cup, he took a deep breath.
"Manda, there's a party set for tomorrow night. Jon's mother arranged it." His voice slowed as he saw a look enter her eyes. A sigh escaped him.
"You didn't know about the party?"
Amanda shook her head, her eyes dropping to the floor. She felt foolish and embarrassed.
Of course Jon would be having a party.
Of course people would come for his birthday.
Of course she was an idiot.
Her jaw tightening in anger at herself, she raised her head.
"It's okay, of course there's a party for Jon." She worked on relaxing her jaw and throat as she saw Richie looking at her intently.
"Where and when?" She turned to get another coffee as he answered her.
"The BLT Market at the Ritz-Carlton in Manhattan and we're supposed to be there by seven."
Richie stood there in the short awkward silence that followed, waiting for Amanda to answer him.
"That sounds great." She rapidly drank her coffee, setting the cup down, softly on the counter.
Turning back to face Richie, she flashed a falsely bright smile and nodded at him.
"I have a few errands to run. See you later."
Richie watched as Amanda left the kitchen without looking back, then set his cup on the counter and headed for the gym.
Jon was in the middle of his last set of weight reps when the blaring music that accompanied his workout was abruptly shut off. The sudden silence caused his head to whip around and he staggered a little under the weights until he saw it was Richie. He nodded and finished the set. The weights clinked as they hit the floor and Jon stood, grabbing a towel to wipe his face. A few deep breaths brought his breathing back under control.
"Hey man, what's up?"
Continuing to lean against the wall beside the stereo, Richie's eyes squinted slightly as he spoke.
"Did you tell Amanda about your birthday party?"
His lips pouting lightly in thought, Jon shook his head as he answered.
"No, I thought mom had called her. She said she was going to." Jon heard his own words as he answered and his eyes quickly matched the narrowed look in Richie's.
"We've been so busy writing I didn't even think about her not saying anything. There's gotta be some answer, Rich. Maybe mom tried and didn't get her."
Richie's eyebrows raised slightly, but he said nothing. Jon wiped the back of his neck and nodded at his friend.
"I'll talk to her. It was just a mistake, I'm sure." He started to walk towards the door when Richie's voice caught him.
"She's gone out. Said she had some errands."
Pausing briefly, Jon replied.
"Then I'll catch her when she gets back. Let me shower and we'll hit the studio again, okay?"
Jon didn't wait for Richie's answer, throwing back the door and heading towards the stairs.
Richie gave a half smile at Jon's determination. When he was in a song writing mood, there wasn't much that distracted him. He hoped it was a mistake, that Mom B. had tried, but his smile faltered when that thought didn't quite ring true.
"Paul?" Amanda called out quietly to her bodyguard of the day.
"Yes Ma'am?" The large man moved quickly to her side.
A smile met him. "Would you mind taking some of these packages?"
Reaching out for the bags, Paul's 6 foot 3 height towered over her. He was by far the largest of the men who went out with her and she had to admit that she always felt very safe when he was there.
Amanda had not tried to outdo anyone with her gifts for Jon. She had found a buttery leather jacket in a soft cream color and after having seen his battered briefcase, had replaced it with a new one of the same type. Her big surprise was arranging shipping of the motorcycle Jon had bought in Florida, with delivery scheduled for the following day.
As she wandered the shops, she found herself thinking about the birthday party the next day. She still felt foolish that she had assumed that someone of Jon's stature would be happy to celebrate with just her. She was still so new in his life that she wouldn't have known who to invite if she had thought of a party and again she felt a flush at knowing how inadequate her plans for Jon had been.
It wasn't a feeling she was used to.
Chapter 216
Wednesday, December 23, 2009 at 5:29 PM | Posted by Sunstreaked
2 comments
Bayaderra Says:Posted on December 23, 2009 at 6:38 PM
Soooo, mommy dearest strikes again! Jon, you need to set her straight once and for all!
Amanda, don't worry about a gift...all he wants is YOU!
Sandy Says:Posted on December 24, 2009 at 10:36 AM
So glad you are back Sun! Just found these two new chapters today...what a great Christmas present. Thank you!
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)
Warning and Disclaimer
The content of this blog is pure fiction. Actual places and real people are named, but in no way should anything be taken as fact. This is a story, with adult content and mature situations. If you are offended by such, please do not read.
Please do not copy any of this material to any other web site.
No harm of any sort is meant to the real people in the story and there is no disrespect intended towards anyone's family.
This is PURE FICTION and hopefully those that like this type of story will enjoy it. Comments are GREATLY appreciated!
Please do not copy any of this material to any other web site.
No harm of any sort is meant to the real people in the story and there is no disrespect intended towards anyone's family.
This is PURE FICTION and hopefully those that like this type of story will enjoy it. Comments are GREATLY appreciated!
Other Great Fan Fiction Sites
About Me
- Sunstreaked
- Sunstreaked, South Florida, United States


text:
Go Back
Go To Articles Directory Home Page
To get the current article, - See Below (at the bottom of the page) -.
For top news titles, see below.
Web sites and videos listed in this page are frequently updated.
If you find that this page is useful (quality of web sites, images and videos, ...), you can add it to your favorites.
Bookmark Page !
FREE Kit Tells You How To Laser Hair Removal
As we all know, this subject is something that we could all use a little education on no matter who you are.
About the Author: Maypopup is the owner of What's Involved in Laser


text:
|Governor Rick Scott
|DCF Secretary David Wilkins
|Left Robin Jensen Right Brena Slater
Number 3 is a tie to the two wonderful ladies in the picture. Robin K Jensen and Brena Slater. They claim to have the best interest of children in mind but seem to enjoy using their position of power to rip families apart.
Number 4 Judge James S Parker, a Judge and has not upheld his oath, his conflict of interest, and abuse of power is legendary.
|Pam Bondi
Number 5 Pam Bondi covers up for Department Children and Families, protecting the best interest of the state not the families.
|Chief Kevin Vespia
Number 6 Chief Kevin Vespia for not protecting the citizens of North Port Fl from illegal search and seizure. He swore to defend the Florida and State Constitution and last time I check both had amendments protecting citizens.
|Dr Sohail Punjwani
|Carl Littlefield


text:
ELIZABETHTOWN — Lower Cape Fear Hospice will host a Begin the Conversation clinic about end-of-life and healthcare decisions. It will be from 1 to 2 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 11, at LCFH's Bladen County office, 116 W. Broad St. in Elizabethtown.
This session, which is free to adults 18 and older, will provide attendees information and resources to think about and plan for future healthcare decisions.
"At any time in your life, you may be unable to communicate your healthcare choices as a result of an injury or serious illness," said Jason Clamme, LCFH director of community outreach. "Begin the Conversation clinics can help you think about your healthcare wishes and create a plan to ensure your wishes are known. Having a plan will make it easier for you, your doctor and your loved ones to ensure those wishes are honored, especially when you cannot speak for yourself."
The first step in the advance care planning process is to learn what you can about it. This clinic will increase your knowledge about healthcare choices and the importance of planning, and will encourage communication with loved ones, caregivers and healthcare professionals so all can share in that knowledge.
Advance directives, such as living wills and healthcare power of attorney forms, will be supplied so healthcare instructions can be legally documented.
For information, contact Clamme at 910-796-7943 or firstname.lastname@example.com.


text:
- Home
- Submit Press Release
- Free PR Website List
- PR Resources
- Press Release
- Our Services
- About Us
- Contact Us
Changing the climate of environmental law
News from Harvard schools, offices, and affiliates
After the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and the ensuing reorganization of the Department of the Interior, Frances Ulmer, a member of the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling, turned to Harvard Law School's Emmett Environmental Law and Policy Clinic.
She asked the clinic to recommend best practices for regulating offshore drilling. "I leapt at the opportunity," says Wendy B. Jacobs '81, clinical professor of law and director of the clinic, who chooses complex projects that will challenge her students and provide opportunities to present their work to high-level officials – opportunities they would get nowhere else. "It was timely, and presented a novel and critically important set of issues."
In a single semester, three students under Jacobs' direction analyzed 40 regulatory regimes and traveled to Washington, D.C., to present recommendations to the Department of the Interior and congressional staffers. They did such a remarkable job that last year, the clinic was asked to consider ways to predict whether companies proposing to drill for oil and gas in the Arctic would do so safely and in an environmentally protective way. A new group of students worked with Jacobs to develop such a set of indicators. Their report, released in December, suggests ways to protect the environment from the impact of routine drilling as well as major oil spills, and is currently being circulated among legislators and regulators.
Copy this html code to your website/blog to embed this press release.
Post new comment
This press release is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. Read full copyright information here.
More like this
- Judge Rules BP at Fault for Deepwater Horizon Oil Disaster
- Trump Administration Advances Arctic Drilling Project in Polar Bear Habitat
- Five Year Anniversary of BP Oil Disaster Highlights Risks of Expanding Offshore Drilling into New Areas
- Gulf Oil Spill Preview for Potential Arctic Disaster


text:
Selasa, 11 Desember 2007
Mount Gede-Pangrango is ecotix mount location near Jakarta and Bandung Indonesia
Mount Gede-Pangrango is the single most mount often in mounting in Indonesia, more or less 50.000 climber of per year, though regulation made by as tight as possible, it is possible that because its location is nearby by Jakarta and Bandung. To bring back its habitat is monthly usually August closed for the climber of also during the month of December till March. To lessen the experienced damage [is] hence made by some climb band, but popular band is passing door Cibodas
Start 1 April 2002 to visit the National Park of Gn.Gede-Gn.Pangrango gone into effect [by] system booking, 3-30 day of before climb have to former booking. Sum up the climber limited only 600 people [of] per night, 300 passing Cibodas, 100 passing Selabintana, 200 passing Mount Putri. Climber Registration only dilanyani in Experienced Wisma Love of office of Hall of National Park Gn. Gede-Pangrango on job Monday-Friday of office clock. Post Cibodas, Gn. Putri And Salabintana have [do] not serve the climb permission. Only as control post
Governmental of Dutch Indies specify the forest area for the width of 150 km2 in top of the mountain of Gede Pangrango Regency Cianjur as experienced asylum in the year 1889. Government RI later;then alter the regional status of Gede Pangrango become the National Park in the year 1980
Gede Pangrango is one of place in island jawa which is a lot of its rainfall, mean pertahun reach 3.000 till 4.200 mm. The Rains started at October month;moon till month;moon mei with the rainfall more than 200 mm per month, and more than its 400 mm month;moon among December month;moon till March and garden is usually closed. This national park of vital importance to permeate the rainwater
Best moment to visit the garden and also climb is among dry season of about juni till september, where at that moment rainfall descend under 100 mm. temperature of Mean berfariasi from 18ºC in Cibodas till less than 10ºC in top of the mountain of gede and pangrango, with the dampness of among 80% and 90%. At night temperature in top of the mountain can reach below/under 5ºC, so that for every mountaineer have to bring the thick jacket. Climber also require to take a care because easy pohon-pohonan fall down
Its dampness is very high especially in nocturnal forest, but [at] dry season [in] top of the mountain change to descend at night about 30% till daytime go up to reach 90
1 komentar:
- Tukang Copast mengatakan...
Ayo wisata liburan bersama keluarga, dengan mengikuti paket wisata karimun jawa kita yang termasuk biro wisata karimun jawa berpengalaman karena memberikan paket karimun jawa murah, ada paket backpacker karimunjawa, paket tour karimun jawa 4 hari 3 malam, paket karimun jawa 3 hari 2 malam, paket murah karimun jawa 2 hari 1 malam, atau paket karimun jawa honeymoon. paket karimun jawa kami sangat memuaskan dan berkesan, info tour jadwal kapal ke karimunjava island lebih lanjut bisa menghubungi www.karimunjawakita.com,
Tapi bila anda ingin belanja online mebel jati atau mebel jepara or furniture jepara yang bisa anda jadikan pilihan karena ada harga perabot murah dari kami, silahkan berkunjung ke website http://www.jeparaapik.com yang juga menjual ukiran jati, kursi tamu meja makan murah almari jati bufet lemari jam bangku minimalis sofa ukir bale-bale kayu dipan antik, terimakasih
- 1 Maret 2014 16.49


text:
It is now Friday morning and I'm just now writing the lesson plan for last Wednesday night. I sat at the computer Wednesday to write it down, and the computer was running so slow, I just quit. Whenever I don't get the lesson plan done, I realize how much I depend on it to help me teach. Having a lesson plan in front relieves me of the job of thinking what to do next. Wednesday PM's class was fine, but I had a trouble moving from one activity to the next. I taught for year without a written lesson plan. I don't know how I did it. Maybe it's just that I'm getting old and need the extra help.
The Lost Sheep lesson went well. We had a blacklight story already prepared in the resource room. I pulled the shepherd hats and the toy sheep out of the David box. I would like to have these in this box, but since we're just talking about the Lost Sheep for one class session, it hardly seems worth it to buy or make all of this stuff. Maybe next time around we can add them.
I asked one of my helpers to bring her camera so I can get some pictures from the Life of Christ lessons online. She was glad she brought it when the shepherd hats came out. She got lots of good pictures.
I introduced two new songs: The Bright Red Crab and Bumbling Bumble Bee. These songs were inspired by two new toys that arrived to our "store". Scroll down to see the pictures of these cute toys.
My lesson plan is:
Sing: Jesus Loves Me and The B-I-B-L-E with sign language.
Encourage the children to let me put the Shepherd's hats on.
The Lost Sheep Magnet Puzzle
Sing: Parables of Jesus. This song teaches the kids what a parable is for. It doesn't actually use the word parable though. It calls them stories. The parables highlighted are the 3 lost parables.
The Parables Flip Chart. We'll just go over the introductory card and then the 3 lost parables. Later we'll add the other parables. This is really a short flip chart. I could just find 1 picture for each parable.
Pop-up Book. We'll be making a pop-up book this month. Each parable will have a page in the book. This week we will be making a turn the wheel page. The wheel is behind a mountain (or large rock) and as the child turns the wheel, they help the shepherd "find" his lost sheep. Each class we will do a different page and glue the pages together to make a book.
Attendance Chart: The attendance chart has a picture of Jesus teaching people. Each class, the children will add a picture of the parable we learned that day.
Before class I hid toy sheep around the room. Let each child take a turn finding the "lost sheep".
The Lost Sheep Blacklight Story
Sing new songs: The Bright Red Crab and Bumbling Bumble Bee. I have a toy wooden crab to help illustrate the crab song.
I have a toy wooden bee to help with the bee song. I gave each child a toy flower to hold and while we sang I flew the bee from flower to flower. Then each child got a chance to help fly the bee.
Review previous lessons with the Song Timeline.
End class with a prayer. Let each child that wants to say a prayer.
Friday, August 11, 2006
Parables -- The Lost Sheep
Posted by Diana Dow at 8/11/2006 08:14:00 AM No comments: Links to this post
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)


text:
School is tough, no matter how you dice it. There is peer pressure at school, parental pressure at home, and social pressure every time you go out. If you're a young athlete, the pressure to perform at a high level can be even more intense.
The pressure may be crushing, and some teens look to escape through drugs – and not just the usual drugs. Steroids are included in the list of drugs banned by the United States government. Taking steroids is not only illegal, but they will likely leave you in a worse state than many of the other drugs you may try.
The appeal of taking steroids is high; the increase in muscle mass and improvements on the field are strong draws. But, the fallout is huge and the side effects are immense. Whether taken by needle or as oral supplements, steroids shut off the parts of your brain that tell your body to produce hormones. This means that boys could begin to grow breasts, start balding, or even lose the ability to have children.
Even when you put aside the nasty side effects away for a moment, the drawbacks are still bad. Imagine you have an opportunity to play baseball in college. That drug test is going to show that you have used steroids. Your career will end before it begins.
While you may see an increase in muscle mass and endurance, you, and everyone else will see the negative side effects as you break out with a serious and unavoidable case of acne. You may also see testicular shrinkage. Girls are not immune to side effects either and can develop deepened voices.
Even small amounts can start destroying your organs right away. You'll notice higher cholesterol and blood pressure levels. You may think you can lengthen your career with steroids, but your heart and liver simply don't work that way. Long term effects will develop even if the steroid use is short term. These include liver failure, heart attacks, stunted growth and the conversion of muscle into fat. Not to mention the paranoia, anxiety and depression that ultimately took the life of local baseball player Taylor Hooton.
Your dreams of making it to the Major Leagues can be crushed by a decision you make as a teenager. There are many stories about the negative effects of steroids. Don't take our word for it, do some research of your own about the dangers of steroids. Your findings will haunt you. You have the talent, don't squander it! If you're struggling with steroids, or just want more information, ask the Taylor Hooton Foundation. They're dedicated to steroid awareness and ensuring you have a safe and healthy baseball career.
The Taylor Hooton Foundation
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Steroids? You Better Think Twice
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


text:
So here's the shot I had to get of Kalli so she could have a picture of herself without the tooth.
And here's the cutest thing she just had to leave for the tooth fairy. Apparently she's gotten real smart when it comes to buttering up the tooth fairy so she even made her a note with a little gift. The note says: "Dear Toothfary, I lost a tooth and you can have THIS to remeber me. Hope you like it. Love, Kalli" Her gift to the tooth fairy was her new melted bead design star she had made this afternoon.
Now, the tooth fairy will really be broke if Dylan's teeth ever start falling out. Kalli's been on a roll and has made a killing off of her loose teeth. You got to love it though because she gets so excited to get it under her pillow each night and it's the first thing she checks when she wakes up. Ahhh, sweet childhood. :)


text:
Research Project
Grant-in-Aid for General Scientific Research (B)
(1) The questionnaire survy of 1600 agricultural workers engaged in various kinds of crops revealed that the average of 6%, from 4% to 13%, of the subjects complained of work-related symptoms associated with hypersensitivity pneumonitis. The highest prevalence rate of that symptom was seen in the poultry and other animal husbandary groups.(2) The allergologic case studies of a melon growers, Japanese mshroom (shiitake) workers and a potato (taro) grower who complained of developing manifestations associated with hypersensitivity pneumonitis following with their agricultural works confirmed that the etiology of those cases was hypersensitivity pneumonitis sensitized by some fungi and shiitake hyphae generating in the work environments.(3) An experimental study was conducted to develop the animal model to predict of allergenicity of the third type allergy among agents exposing to agricultural workers in their work environment and clarify the dose-response and effect relationships of those agents. Finally, we adopted the nose-injection method using syngenic mice proposed by Takizawa et al., and confirmed preliminary that the fungal extract of Fusarium sp. identified in the patient's work environment showed allergenicity of the third type allergy. The result indicated that the animal model we developed was useful for predicting third type allergenicity of agents generated from agricultural work environment.(4) The results of our present investigation and the reference survey conducted to summarize the present knowledge of hypersensitivity pneumonitis induced by agricultura works indicated that various kinds of new type hypersensitivity pneumonitis might being occurred among agricultural workers engaged in various kinds of crops and further investigation for the etiology of that disease should be advanced.
Published : 1990-04-01
Modified : 2016-04-21
Terms of Use


text:
Couldnt find its etymology, but the Anagram Oracle can tell you 'bout whats in it :)Chanthaboune=Haunt on beachBathe 'n' an ouch (what do you expect, the beach is haunted!)Ache on Bhutan (Laos giving Bhutan a hard time?)Cheat hub anon (OK, but please try not to get caught)
Post a Response


text:
Our pizza was looking a little rectanglish...
LOVING it!!
Did you notice her apron??
I thought it turned out so cute. I secretly didn't want her to wear it (while cooking) because I though it was so cute! I think I had more fun looking at her in her cute apron than the actually cooking! :-)
Daddy helping out when he got home from work...
Happy Election Day!
I'll have my little helper with me to help me vote! :-)


text:
Squidoo is a wonderful site that allows people to write "lenses", articles on a particular subject or interest. It's simple, fun, and an easy way to promote yourself and make a little extra cash.
Click on this link to join Squidoo!
My "Squidboo" Halloween Lenses
Scare-Tastic Halloween Movies For Kid's of All Ages
Throw a Buffy the Vampire Slayer Halloween Party
Vegan Halloween Treats
The Best Villains in Buffy the Vampire Slayer
My Childhood Halloween Costumes
Health and Spirituality Lenses
Add More ~Ing to Your Life: A Hip Guide to Happiness
Superfoods for Optimal Health
Vegan Freak: Being Vegan in a Non-Vegan World
12 Steps to a Healthier You
50 Ways to Lift Your Spirits
My Kripalu Spirit Junkie Adventure
Jane Austen Book Lenses
Lost in Austen: Jane Austen Lives On
Mr. Darcy's Daughters: A Book Review
What Would Jane Austen Do: A Book Review
Willoughby's Return: A Book Review
Book Lenses
Female Sleuths
Female Sleuths Part 2
Shanna's Guide to Urban Fantasy
Crazy Sexy Cancer
Entertainment Lenses
Chuck: The Ultimate Guide
Squid Paws Lenses
For the Love of Loki
Cancer LensesMy Cancer Journey
Crazy Sexy Cancer
Cancer: Step Outside the Box
Recipe LensesSimple Gluten Free Pasta Recipe
I'm always updating and creating new lenses. Coming soon: SquidPaws lenses! These lenses feature the furry friends in our lifes. I'm also developing more health focused lenses, a few more for Halloween, and some just for fun. You can check out my Squidoo profile here:


text:
Naomi Ragen sent this out on her mailing list:
Oncologist Speaks Out
By Dr. Nathan Cherny
That I care for the well being of tens of Palestinian cancer patients and
their families is irrelevant. As a Jew living in Israel, and, more
specifically, Jerusalem, I am a potential target worthy of maiming or
assassination. That is the miserable nature of the Palestinian struggle for
That I am here to recount these thoughts is by sheer virtue of timing.
Minutes after I passed through the Patt intersection en route to the Shaare
Zedek Medical Center, Bus 32 was exploded by a young suicide bomber. Almost
everyone on the bus was killed, most instantly. Shrapnel and flying sheets
of metal killed and maimed passing pedestrians and the drivers and
passengers of adjacent vehicles.
Besides caring for Israeli and Palestinian cancer patients, I teach medical
students a course in Palliative Medicine; the care of patients with
incurable illnesses. At any one time I usually have 10-15 students; Jews and
Palestinians together. Among my current group is a wonderfully bright,
sensitive and caring 24 year old woman: Shelly Nahari. Wednesday's
tutorialwas cancelled. Instead my students were learning the harsh realities
of acute grief as they attended the funeral of Shelly's 22 year old sister,
Shiri, who was killed in the carnage that I had barely escaped.
Jerusalem is small and the circle of my patients, colleagues and their
families is wide. In this week alone, I have shared one degree of
separation from four miserable tragedies.
Dr Eisenman is a young opthalmologist at Shaare Zedek. His wife,
mother-in-law, 5 year old daughter and eighteen month old son were waiting
at the bus stop at French Hill, in northern Jerusalem, under brilliant blue
skies when a terrorist jumped from a passing vehicle and ran toward them.
As his belt exploded he showered all those in proximity with gore and a
malicious salad of bolts and nails. The storm of shrapnel did its intended
job. Dr. Eisenman's young daughter and mother-in-law were killed instantly.
Today his infant son is in intensive care. This afternoon, his injured wife
by his side, he buried his golden haired daughter next to her beloved
Devora Margalit is a community nurse who helps cancer patients, and
others,cope with stomas. Helping people cope with the whole new world of
bags to collect their urine or feces is unromantic but vital work. In her
former days she was a hospice nurse caring for the terminally ill. In the
past days she has needed all of her skills in pain control as she has helped
nurse her 15 year old son who received burns to 50% of his body. His school
(Yeshiva) had an ongoing project tending to a cherry orchard. Last week as
they left the orchard a booby trapped gas canister that was rigged as a
shrapnel laden bomb was set off. In the past week he has had 3 operations as
the surgeons gradually debride his wounds and fight infections. For now,the
pain is the challenge. It is now controlled with a portable morphine pump.
The future holds years of work managing skin grafts and scars.
In the eyes of the Hamas, The Islamic Jihad, The Hizbolah, and Fatah, all of
this is a justifiable expression of national self determination. In their
eyes, the path to statehood is legitimately strewn with the bodies of
children, pensioners, grandparents and bus drivers. If they had here way, it
would be strewn with my body as well.
In becoming the symbols of the battle for Palestinian independence, these
elements undermine the legitimacy of the Palestinian cause; for they present
the Palestinians as a fundamentally uncivil, lawless, cruel and undeserving
Suicide bombings, murder and vilification serve only to delegitimize the
cause and distance the prospect of an independent Palestinian State. A
community and a people that tolerates and condones such behavior is
fundamentally unworthy.
Mr Arafat's denunciations ring hollow. The paper trail uncovered by the
Israeli Defense Forces show, beyond reasonable doubt, that he is directly
and intimately involved with the provision of funding to the militias
responsible for this civilian carnage. You can't call for a million martyrs
to liberate Palestine and still call yourself a peacemaker.
Zero tolerance is what is called for. If there is a responsible Palestinian
leadership, let them join forces with the Israel Defense Forces in
eradicating this sick and pernicious element in their society.
As long as I, my friends, colleagues, patients and their children are
targets; the Palestinians cannot be entrusted to responsibilities of
I know that things can be different. I work with Palestinians; as patients
and as colleagues. Our relationships are warm and mutually supportive.
Indeed, in the awful darkness of the past 18 months these relationships have
been a vital part of my coping. I know, from my first hand experience,that
there is the real potential for love and respect. Though we may have
political differences, we appreciate the potential for mutual benefit
through cooperation. This is the human thread that sustains my hope.
Utlimately then, I support the emergence of a Palestinian state; but my
support is conditional. It is conditional upon the prospect of living, in
security and trust, side by side with a civil and humane Palestinian
society; in respect and cooperation.
The ball is in their court.
Director, Cancer Pain and Palliative Medicine
Dept of Oncology
Shaare Zedek Medical Center
Jerusalem, Israel


text:
Any kind of user-generated tags can suffer from a severe case of selfishness and lack of self-control. User tags are the ultimate in uncontrolled vocabulary. Ever notice how a search for the word 'dog' in Flickr retrieves some cute, furry dogs, but also hot dogs and some guys with the nickname Dog? People tend to apply tags that are very personal.Someone who owns a dog named Blueberry might tag all photos with the word blueberry despite the fact that the canine in question is not blue, round nor a fruit. In this way, user generated tags are also fairly ambiguous. That said, there are many advantages to allowing user tags in library catalogs. With some guidelines, tags can contribute greatly to personal rediscovery of items, a sense of community building, the tracking and displaying of item popularity, and if employed correctly, a potential reduction in cataloging costs coupled with enhanced metadata. Libraries enabling user tagging should follow a few steps to ensure success.
- Policy: Prior to enabling user tagging, develop and post a policy on tagging similar to a policy on blog comments. Simple guidelines like no profanity, limit of number of tags, or formats will help users focus their efforts.
- Moderation: In conjunction with a clear user tagging policy, libraries should develop a plan to monitor tags periodically to ensure compliance.
- The Look of Tags: Tags should look different from the catalog record. Tag clouds, lists in the sidebar, or a different font or colors can help users distinguish the user-generated tags from the formal library generated subject headings.
- Keep It Simple: Users won't tag if it is not easy, fun and beneficial to their use of the catalog. Too many steps, a complex interface and too many rules will be off putting.
- "Tag-gregate" Content: Does your library have eight copies of The DaVinci Code – four regular books, one e-book, an audio book, a large print book and a movie? Find a way to cross-pollinate the relevant user tags on all related records.
User-tags can complement and add value to library records and to the user experience of searching the online catalog. People like to contribute, which is one of the brilliant things about harnessing the power of collective intelligence. While it may be a while before the entire library collection is crowd sourced, the strategic integration of user content is here now. Let's use it.


text:
The blog of Eric Blauer...officially known as Frederick Christian Blauer IV
Saturday, May 02, 2009
Saturday work...
The church gnomes were out and at work today...I came by and saw the work they knocked out....the beds are almost complete. Good job folks! It's so cool to have self motivated people on mission...they got the vision! I was talking to one of the hammer slingers, who has been recently laid off from work and he was sharing how it was good to get out and work. It's been amazing to see how projects like these can minister to different people at various places in their lives.
Posted by
Eric Blauer
Post a Comment
Newer Post
Older Post
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)


text:
Words that end in evres
Found 2 words that end in evres. Browse our Scrabble Word Finder, Words With Friends cheat dictionary, and WordHub word solver to find words that end with evres. Or use our Unscramble word solver to find your best possible play! Related: Words containing evres
- Scrabble
- Words With Friends
- WordHub
- Crossword


text:
5 Simple Techniques For SEO trainingThe lessons are created for all Mastering styles and ranges of information, and geared in direction of any Qualified who performs a part within the development and advertising and marketing of a web site and business enterprise.
Currently know the basics? We have launched a brand-new Sophisticated Web optimization Training for Administrators training course concentrating much more on approach and scheduling for the long run. Blend the courses collectively to get a whole toolkit to spice up organic site visitors.
Certification also offers the proper to display our certification seal on your website and other marketing materials; this is an field-regarded typical of excellence and motivation to white hat Search engine optimisation procedures.
The Group and clarity of presentation and materials, the knowledge with the presenter and williness to industry a number of inquiries
class is new and enhanced. Wholly up-to-date and now full of more practical Search engine marketing suggestions and reference data.
Intellipaat System Completion certification will likely be awarded within the completion of Venture function (on expert review)and on scoring of no less than sixty% marks while in the quiz.
Eventually, that you are responsible for the actions of any firms you use, so it's best to be sure you recognize particularly how they plan to "assist" you. If an Search engine marketing has FTP use of your server, they must be prepared to clarify each of the alterations These are making to your site.
Attendees of your State-of-the-art system receive a SEOToolSet Pro membership for 5 Web site projects, valued at Pretty much just as much as the training course charges.
Google Rank and Workshop – understand why rank (even now) issues for Website positioning, how you can measure it, and the way to deploy it for finest gain – plus we give attention to 'college student volunteer' Internet websites all through this enjoyable-stuffed session.
Shortly all promoting might click here be electronic promoting and there could well be no must specify the term 'digital'. That's the pace at which electronic advertising is observing mainstream acceptance. Several of the most recent development In this particular area tend to be the improved shift towards Marketing and advertising Automation, Omni-channel advertising and marketing, and clubbing advertising and marketing with income in what HubSpot phone calls as 'Smarketing'.
If becoming next very best is actually not good enough, then our training is the one method to go. This study course will empower you to create an actual distinction as part of your Search engine optimization tactic — just study our testimonials.
From technological nitty-gritty to information development and social networking, and from PPC Campaigns to reputation administration ways, We are going to educate you what you need to know so your internet site and on the net model will likely be noticed by as many applicable persons as you can!
SEOToolSet 6 provides distinctive data and is healthier and a lot quicker than other instruments. A professional subscription towards the tools includes two Web-site initiatives, unrestricted consumers and spend-as-you-go options For added Web page initiatives, url monitoring, and keyword position checking. This membership on your own costs $89/mo, or more than a thousand pounds every year, but once you take the SEOToolSet Standard Training, SEOToolSet Professional is yours cost-free for a complete year with a person more Internet site undertaking for a total of a few Internet websites.
When our Search engine optimization Specialists can observe Every single scholar since they make conclusions and map-out Each individual process to optimizing Every web page of their Site and It can be composition we are able to alter and (or) tweak their imagining or process on anything at all that may not be 100% correct.


text:
Home /
Our Sources / About Us
/ FAQs /
Advanced Search
Not what you're
looking for? Try an advanced search.
Download the entire decision to receive the complete text, official citation,
docket number, dissents and concurrences, and footnotes for this case.
Learn more about what you receive with purchase of this case.
November 13, 2006
VERONICA SIVERLS-DUNHAM, INDIVIDUALLY AND AS PROPOSED AMINISTRATRIX OF THE ESTATE OF JULIA MARGARET SIVERLS, DECEASED, ALLEN SIVERLS, ROBERT SIVERLS, STEPHEN SIVERLS, AELEPHIA ANN GELBER, JAMES SIVERLS, JOHN SIVERLS, VIRGINA WILSON AND RONALD SIVERLS, PLAINTIFFS,v.SEUNG HUEN LEE (A/K/A GRAND MASTER SEUNG HUEN LEE), ET AL., DEFENDANTS.
The opinion of the court was delivered by: P. Kevin Castel, Usdj
Plaintiffs, all living siblings of the decedent, Dr. Julia Siverls-Dunham, Ph.D., allege that beginning in December 2001, decedent was actively solicited to join the "Dahn Hak Cult". They further allege that, as a direct result of Dr. Siverls-Dunham's association with the Cult, she was drugged and killed during a hike in the course of a training retreat at the "Dahn Hak Cult" headquarters in Sedona, Arizona.
Throughout the complaint and affidavits submitted on this motion, plaintiffs refer to all defendants jointly, both moving and non-moving, as either the "Dahn Hak Cult" (the "Cult") or the "Dahn Organization". The complaint alleges that the corporate and individual defendants committed certain "wrongful acts" which ultimately lead to the death of plaintiffs' decedent in Sedona, Arizona in July 2003. Plaintiffs further allege that defendants mishandled the decedent's body, causing severe emotional distress. Plaintiffs assert claims for wrongful death and for intentional infliction of emotional distress against all defendants.
Defendants Tao Fellowship, Dahn Institute, Inc., Healing Society, Inc., BR Consulting NJ, Inc., Dahn Center, Inc., Dahn Hak Sun Won Co., Ltd. and Dr. Seung Huen Lee (individually, "Moving Defendant" and, collectively, the "Moving Defendants" or "Movants") now move to dismiss all claims against them, asserting, pursuant to Rule 12(b)(2), Fed. R. Civ. P., that this court lacks personal jurisdiction over them. Plaintiffs contend that this court has personal jurisdiction over all Moving Defendants under CPLR § 301 or, alternatively, under CPLR § 302(a)(1). For the reasons discussed below, I grant defendants' motions.
The complaint in this action was filed on July 12, 2005 in Supreme Court, BronX County, and removed to this court by defendant Mago Earth, Inc. ("Mago") on August 25, 2005 on the basis of diversity jurisdiction. 28 U.S.C. § 1332. On January 25, 2006, plaintiffs moved to remand this action to state court citing a lack of unanimity among the defendants in removing the action. I denied that motion on February 27, 2006, finding that this non-jurisdictional defect in removal had been waived by plaintiffs. See Siverls-Dunham v. Seung Huen Lee,2006 WL 510504 (S.D.N.Y. Feb. 27, 2006).
At a pretrial conference on March 17, 2006, I granted the plaintiffs leave to conduct discovery during a 60-day period, limited to the factual basis for personal jurisdiction over the defendants. Pursuant to the requests of counsel, I extended the period for jurisdictional discovery until August 4, 2006. Following the close of the jurisdictional discovery period, the Moving Defendants filed their motions to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction.
On October 12, 2006, defendant Bell Rock Development Co., an Arizona corporation which is authorized to do business in New York, withdrew its motion to dismiss with permission of this court. According to an affidavit submitted on behalf of defendant Bell Rock, it has merged with Dahn Meditation, Inc. and Dahn Meditation, Inc. is no longer an independent corporate entity. (Kong Aff. ¶ 3) Dahn Center Sedona is another name under which non-movant Bell Rock does business. (Kong Aff. ¶ 4) Defendant Dahn L.L.C. was dismissed with prejudice on February 23, 2006 as having been improperly and fraudulently joined by plaintiffs. (2/23/06 Order) All claims against Dahn Hak Sun Won Co., a Korean corporation, were discontinued with prejudice on August 28, 2006 by stipulation of the parties. (4/28/06 Order) In addition, the court notes that defendants John Doe (1), (2) and (3) have never been served with the complaint and the one-hundred and twenty day period, set forth in Rule 4(m), Fed. R. Civ. P, has expired. Accordingly, the Doe defendants are dismissed.*fn1
A. The Complaint
According to plaintiffs' complaint, the "Dahn Hak Cult" is comprised of "several multinational for-profit and non-profit business entities and organizations" which include, but are not limited to, the organizations named as defendants in this action. (Cmpl. ¶ 3) The complaint alleges that the individual defendant in this action, Seung Huen Lee, is the founder, leader and controller of the Cult. (Cmpl. ¶ 11) Plaintiffs assert that the Cult poses as a South Korean Dahn Yoga exercise program, employing meditation and spiritual retreat, which is based on the philosophy and beliefs of Dr. Lee. (Cmpl. ¶ 3) There are now over seventy Dahn Hak Yoga centers in the United States, eleven of which were operating in New York at the time plaintiffs' cause of action arose.
Plaintiffs allege that the Cult recruits new members through advertisements and word-of-mouth solicitation by existing members, and that new members are "lured in" with free Dahn Yoga classes after which they are "pressured to take private Dahn Hak lessons and drink spiritual tea that Defendants lace with drugs." (Cmpl. ¶¶ 7, 9) Student recruits are also allegedly pressured to attend expensive lectures and training seminars, some of which are in Sedona, Arizona, at which they are "drugged, exploited for money and brain-washed" by Cult leaders. (Cmpl. ¶¶ 6, 9-10) Plaintiffs contend that it is during one of these training seminars that decedent died.
Dr. Siverls-Dunham was a resident of New York and a Professor in the Department of Social Sciences at Queensborough Community College in Queens, New York. (Cmpl. ¶ 44) A sufferer of chronic back pain, decedent practiced yoga, used holistic remedies and watched her diet. (Cmpl. ¶ 57) Plaintiffs allege that decedent was solicited by the Cult when she enrolled in yoga classes at the Queens Dan Hak Center in December 2001. (Cmpl. ¶ 58) Plaintiffs further allege that as a result of her involvement with the Queens Dahn Hak Center, Dr. Siverls-Dunham was pressured to enroll in yoga retreats, including an advanced retreat at the Dahn Hak Sedona Center. (Cmpl. ¶ 62) During this retreat, plaintiffs contend that Dr. Siverls-Dunham and others had their food laced with drugs, including marijuana and methadone, and were pressured to take part in difficult and dangerous rituals and tests to prove their devotion to the Cult and to achieve the stature of Dahn Hak "Master". (Cmpl. ¶¶ 63, 64) While plaintiffs allege that defendants were generally responsible for leading these activities, it is unclear from the face of the complaint who, among the defendants, is alleged to have been in charge. One of the activities allegedly lead by defendants was a hike through the Arizona desert which took place on July 12, 2003. Dr. Siverls-Dunham is alleged to have collapsed during the hike and died of dehydration and exposure. (Cmpl. ¶ 95)
B. Evidence on this Motion
Based, in part, upon evidence developed during the jurisdictional discovery period, plaintiffs have submitted affidavits in opposition to the Moving Defendants' motions. Plaintiffs' description of the operation and structure of the "Dahn Organization" is heavily reliant on the affidavit of Robert Rueb. Rueb was employed by non-movant Bell Rock at two New York Dahn Yoga Centers, the Woodside Dahn Center and later the Syosset Dahn Center, as a yoga instructor, "healer" and "Master". (Rueb Aff. ¶¶ 1, 49) Rueb was on the hike in July 2003 when Dr. Siverls-Dunham died and his affidavit is descriptive of that event. There is no sworn assertion, either in Rueb's two-hundred and thirteen paragraph affidavit or elsewhere, that Rueb and Dr. Siverls-Dunham had met prior to their arrival in Arizona or that Dr. Siverls-Dunham ever confided in Rueb or explained her motivation for traveling from New York to Arizona. While plaintiffs also submit the affidavits of Veronica Siverls-Dunham and Robert Siverls-Dunham, both siblings of the decedent, those affidavits are not informative on the subject of personal jurisdiction. The affidavit of Veronica Siverls-Dunham describes her experience collecting the decedent's car and personal belongings. Robert Siverls-Dunham's affidavit describes his trip to Sedona, Arizona to recover decedent's body. Both affidavits also discuss the decedent's intention to give up all of her "worldly possessions".
According to Rueb's affidavit, the Cult is run by Dr. Lee from his headquarters in Sedona, Arizona (the "Sedona Retreat"). The Cult is purportedly a "family business" and Dr. Lee acknowledged during his testimony that Moving Defendant BR Consulting employs Dr. Lee's son ...
Our website includes the first part of the main text of the court's opinion.
To read the entire case, you must purchase the decision for download. With purchase,
you also receive any available docket numbers, case citations or footnotes, dissents
and concurrences that accompany the decision.
Docket numbers and/or citations allow you to research a case further or to use a case in a
legal proceeding. Footnotes (if any) include details of the court's decision. If the document contains a simple affirmation or denial without discussion,
there may not be additional text.
Download the entire decision to receive the complete text, official citation,
docket number, dissents and concurrences, and footnotes for this case.
Learn more about what you receive with purchase of this case.
LRC, Inc. About Us