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I have never been on safari. I have read a lot of books on what 'going on safari' is like. I have seen movies, too. I imagine that these are poor substitutes for the actual experience. Kind of like "reading" about the impact of TLE is not exactly like "living" through it. I still imagine sometimes what it would be like to actually go on a safari, riding in a Jeep or Scout and armed with the best cameras I could afford. And when I think about the excitement and beauty of it I also laugh at myself for not really factoring in all the effort and discomfort.
The amazing painting below is by John and Suzy Seerey-Lester. It shows all too well some of the pitfalls of a trip like that. Danger hiding just outside the door. But we all know how that feels. That impending feeling that danger of some sort associated with TLE is right outside the door.
Last weekend I had a lot of time to think about that danger. I was flying from one part of the South to another, coming home from a trip to see family. The trip was expected to take most of the day with me changing planes in Dallas. I was confident that things would be OK even though I was flying alone, because I had added time into my schedule in case of weather delays. I was sure I would make it through the trip and not have any cause for panic.
Panic in an airport was an entirely new feeling for me when I first started dealing with TLE. As early as 6 years of age, I was flying alone between parents. When my sister, three years my junior, began to fly with me, it was no big deal. I simply took her by the hand and set off. If I got lost, I would look for someone in a uniform, such as a stewardess or priest. This was during the 60s. I was safe and had remarkable freedom and no trouble at all, even when required to change planes. And I so loved the beauty I saw out the window of the plane. It calmed and awed me.
In my last two jobs, I flew often and dealt with all kinds of problems and reversals associated with the frequent flyer. I always felt confident and calm, having no fear that things would be sorted out as quickly as possible. I was on the last plane to land in Houston as Tropical Storm Allison hit the city hard. The plane tried the approach to the only runway open three times before the winds and rain allowed a moderately safe landing. Still no panic on my part.
After 9/11 (and I was scheduled to fly across country on that day) I got used to all the extra twists and turns with air travel. I calmly exited Las Vegas airport during a bomb threat and once entered a deserted Banger, Maine, terminal during sub-zero temperatures without a clue as to how I would get to a hotel. I flew without fear, and a problem solved during the journey was a gift. This ability evaporated with the onset of TLE and light sensitivity.
After I began to struggle with TLE, I became more and more light sensitive. No one really understands what or how this began, or even where in my brain the problem exists, only that it causes extreme nerve pain and seizures. The seizures from this are simple seizures. I am conscious during them, but they alter my thinking. Quite a bit. I start to feel threatened, paranoid, confused and panicky. I cross boundaries, too. When I am fine, I would never think of butting to the front of a line and grabbing the arm of an attendant, but I have actually done that after a few hours under the lights.
To be honest, I don't trust myself after a prolonged exposure. But there is no safe place to go in an airport to avoid the lights. And there are so many people, so much noise. I imagine the danger, like the picture above, so close and so intense.
The last weekend when I was traveling, I ran into extreme delays due to weather. I sat in very crowded gates, feeling myself react under the glare of the fluorescent lights and the sound of all those people waiting for their delayed planes along with me. As I sat sandwiched between some very large travelers, I felt the nerve crawl up the right side of my face and the tingling all over signaling the beginning of a major problem. Sit still, I told myself, and you will live through this.
Travel for me must be a bit like I imagine a safari. You must carry your own food, deal with being desperately uncomfortable, learn to avoid stampeding mammals and crowded watering holes, and above all else be aware the threat of danger that is ever present. But like the safari in my mind, the run-of-the-mill air travel can display moments of breathtaking beauty and awe.
I doubt if things will ever be easy again when it comes to travel. The key for me is control and achieving a panic-free experience. The danger is always lurking, but if you are quiet and careful, it might not get you that day.


text: DigitalFacebook Now Accepting Submissions For Grace Hopper ScholarshipBy Justin Lafferty|May 5, 2014 ShareBy Justin Lafferty|May 5, 2014 ShareFacebook is now accepting submissions for its annual Grace Hopper Scholarship, benefiting 25 women who are studying computer science or are looking to make an impact in the tech world. The scholarship includes trip (with travel and hotel expenses included) to the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing in Phoenix, Oct. 6-11.Applicants have until June 16 to submit their application, and they will be notified by June 27 of their acceptance. The scholarship also includes a pre-Grace Hopper Conference program that includes tech talks, mentoring sessions and sightseeing.To be considered, applicants must be enrolled full-time at a college or university (in the U.S. or internationally) and pursuing a computer science, computer engineering or related technical degree. International applicants are welcome, but they'll be responsible for securing a visa for the conference.Raylene Yung, an engineer at Facebook, reflected on her experience at the Grace Hopper Conference:When I went to the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing with Facebook for the first time in 2010, I remember being blown away by the talented and passionate women I met through Facebook's scholarship program and the conference itself. In particular, one of the first GHC scholarship recipients I met, Jenny Yuen, later went on to join Facebook as a full-time engineer and just presented her latest work at the f8 Developers Conference last week.Since then, each time my colleagues and I go back we look forward to connecting with new and old friends from across the tech industry and around the world. In addition to traveling with many of the female engineers, execs, and allies from throughout the company, every year Facebook also brings an amazing and talented group of 25 female computer science students through the Facebook Grace Hopper Scholarship.To apply, click here.Image courtesy of Shutterstock. Sharehttp://adweek.it/2kaYHy2 copy Adweek Adweek

subset: commoncrawl


text: Hey guys, Just day dreaming about amps again. Could anyone suggest a loud combo amp. I have a SWR WM 12 combo that I love but want something louder. I also have a SWR SM 900 and 2x10 & 1x15 cabs, so righ now I'm just looking for a loud combo. Any suggestions?


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Product Description
Made of a unique fabric that mixes wool and polyester, enabling sublimation printing to wool, the WOOL HERITAGE short sleeve jersey is extremely lightweight and soft on the skin. Featuring cool retro elements such as the knitted collar and cuffs, the short metal zipper and the triple back pocket closed with metal buttons, this is a jersey you will fall in love with.
Retro look


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Peter Panzerfaust, the Image Comics series that reimagines Peter Pan and his Lost Boys as resistance fighters in Nazi-occupied France, is winding its way toward television.
Comic Book Resources reports that at today's "Image Comics Presents" panel at Comic-Con International, writer Kurtis J. Wiebe announced the title is being developed as a fully voiced motion comic that could pave the way for a BBC television pilot. According to Bleeding Cool, QT Digital and BBC Worlwide are producing.
Illustrated by Tyler Jenkins, Peter Panzerfaust centers on a mysterious American boy named Peter who rallies a handful of French orphans in Calais to oppose the German invasion of France. The series debuted in February.
Justin Ponsor, Marvel Comics Colorist, Passes Away


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Author Notes: I have long been intrigued by the use of savory elements in desserts. While I feel like a 'Japanophile' in so many regards, I have never been able to enjoy unsweetened green tea (or natto, but the Japanese expect that!). But after adding sugar, I really like green tea (though it truly horrifies my Japanese hosts.) The tricky thing about powdered green tea -is that it can vary a bit in texture, intensity and flavor. So in candy making or baking with it, you have to experiment. In developing this recipe, i found that I wanted a very clear flavor presence of green tea. The correct strength also brought with it an excess of bitterness, but i was surprised to learn that the kosher salt, even in its small amount, countered and removed the bitterness. I find matcha an excellent match for white chocolate because, like coffee, it is bitter enough to counter the cloying sweetness of even the best white chocolate. And its green tea flavor is able to shine through white chocolate, where it is rather obscured by dark chocolate. White chocolate has a lovely creaminess to it, and these small candy leaves rest very comfortably, melting in the roof of your mouth. With the added contrasting textures of a small amount of ground pistachios and krispies, the leaves gain another dimension of elegance. —LE BEC FIN
Makes: approximately 18-20 leaves
ounces Caillebaut white chocolate, shaved/sliced small
1 1/2-2
tablespoons high quality green tea powder (matcha)
pinch Kosher salt (counters the bitterness)
teaspoon ground roasted unsalted pistachios
teaspoon crushed puffed rice cereal
1 or 2
any pan or dish****, or CK # 90-13035 clear plastic leaf candy mold makes 14 leaves @
- Spread out a layer of white chocolate in small ceramic dish or heavy plastic container. Put in microwave and cover lightly (not tight saran or a cover that snaps shut). At medium power, heat for 2 minutes. Stir with rubber spatula til chocolate is all melted , or repeat process til all melted. Should be smooth, shiny and loose. Remove dish from microwave; and add matcha, stirring with fork til smooth. If chocolate is not very loose, try further microwaving. a bit longer. Fill molds or add krispies and pistachios and then fill molds.
- Use a narrow rubber spatula or teaspoon to fill the molds, taking care that the chocolate fills in the leaf stem. This is messy going! After the molds are filled, finish by holding straight up at a 90 degree angle a metal pastry scraper or dough scraper (or a 'graduated icing spatula',held sideways on its edge) and dragging it across the surface of the stationary mold, taking the extra chocolate drippings with it. Refrigerate the mold a minimum of 1/2 hour til leaves set up. Leaves will pop out easily. If you have more chocolate, remelt it, fill mold, chill and pop out as before.
- ****There are many sizes and shapes of leaf molds available on-line. but you can also use things like mini muffin tins as a mold, or just pour the chocolate mixture into any (non-stick sprayed) dish or pan, let set, chill, and cut into any shapes you like. * if surface of leaves is not shiny, wash out the mold with hot water and sponge, dry thoroughly and use again. ** If chocolate cannot be melted thin enough, a tiny amount of oil or crisco can be added to thin it. *** There are many sizes and shapes of leaf molds available on-line. but you can also use things like mini muffin tins as a mold, or just pour the chocolate mixture into any non-stick sprayed dish or pan, let set, and cut into any shapes you like.
- This recipe was entered in the contest for Your Best Recipe with Green Stuff
- This recipe was entered in the contest for Your Best Recipes with 5 Ingredients or Fewer
- This recipe was entered in the contest for Your Best Recipe with Tea
More Great Recipes:
Candy|Chocolate|Pistachio|White Chocolate


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One bed bug has the power to undo what was a wonderful vacation and you won't even know it until long after you've arrived back home. They can hitch a ride in your luggage, clothing, or gear from wherever you've stayed and set up housekeeping once they arrive home with you. Here are 6 solid ways to protect your family and avoid bed bugs when traveling.
1. Be sure to pack a flashlight in your suitcase before ever leaving home. This will aid in checking the bed linens where you're stay prior to unpacking.
2. Upon arriving at your destination and before bringing in your luggage and other items, use the flashlight to do a thorough inspection.
3. Remove the blankets, sheets and mattress pad from all beds and using the flashlight, closely inspect both sides of the mattress and foundation, especially paying close attention to the seams and crevices.
4. It's not difficult to see bed bugs. Signs include fecal spots (small dark sand-like droppings beneath nests), blood smears on sheets (fecal spots that are re-wetted will smear like fresh blood), and the presence of their empty moulted exoskeletons
5. Using the flashlight also check the headboards and around the frames of the beds, other furniture in the room, picture frames and the dark crevices in drapes.
6. If you spot any signs of bed bugs immediately as the hotel or resort owner to give you a different room far from the one you just inspected. Be sure to do a thorough inspection of the new room as well.
It's far easier to avoid bed bugs when traveling than it is to rid your home of them once you have an infestation. If you suspect you may have brought some home with you, and you've seen indications of bed bugs, give us a call at Bug-N-A-Rug Exterminators and we'll pay you a visit and perform an inspection. We can be reached at 910-254-9443 in Wilmington or 910-754-9700 in other Brunswick County areas.


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At the moment you can't schedule a task while adding it. We will create such an option. Right now you can enter the task, view it in the main list and swipe it to the left to schedule it.
Can I schedule a task right when I'm adding it?
Have more questions? Submit a request
Sierra Frischknecht
This is a must have! My ideal task app would have a simple add process that doesn't require additional steps . Just task and the time, right when I'm creating a task .


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Making of Grimrock: Monsters - Under The SkinAugust 15, 2012|
Monsters are an essential part of Grimrock's dungeons and I thought I'd share some in-depth look at some of them. Legend of Grimrock features twenty unique monsters whose shape and size range from green jelly to… well, all you who have finished the game know to what. Here I have picked three of my favorite monsters that I enjoyed making the most and still feel happy about.
The basic consensus that applies to all LoG's monsters is that they should support the gameplay. Monsters are designed based on the needs of varying the gameplay or making the difficulty rise up. When we know what type of enemy we need, we start to brainstorm and looking for references of what the monster could be like. After that I start designing and modeling them. Due to our rather tight schedule, one monster usually took to design, model and texture around one week. Some more complex models took maybe couple of days longer. All the monsters are relatively low spec with 5000-10000 triangles with mostly 1024×1024 px maps on diffuse, specular and normal channels. Modo 501, Zbrush and Photoshop were the primary tools to create the monsters. All the monsters were rigged and animated by Olli in XSI, but maybe more about that later.
I'm also testing in this post a cool new service that enables you to view and rotate 3d-models in you browser. It currently supports Chrome and Firefox, but you should get it working with Internet Explorer if you add ChromeFrame. More about that in here. More info on p3d.in is found in here.
Enough of all that. Let's get down to business!
Wardens are massive golem like creatures that were created to guard The Undying One.
I started designing the Warden with the help of a cool little program called Alchemy. With alchemy you can easily create random silhouettes. I created a couple of different sketches and then did some variations by combining them in Photoshop by overlaying them over each other. This gave interesting unplanned results (also called happy accidents).
After I picked one interesting silhouette, I started painting over it to define it some more.
After couple of iterations, the forms started to take shape and I ended up doing more finalized concept picture that was ready to be taken over to 3d.
High resolution model in ZBrush. The stones were a bit tedious to do at first, but I eventually got the hang of it and picked up the speed.
Final low resolution game model rigged and posed by Olli.
Ice Lizard
Ice Lizards are large carnivore reptiles found in the Frostbites, north of Endless Tundra.
I pretty much knew what I wanted the Ice Lizards to look like. The starting point was a hybrid of a T-rex and velociraptor. Again I started out with blocking in the silhouette.
I continued to paint over the sketch and ended up with full concept.
The concept evolved a bit in 3d compared to the 2d version. I like to continue the design in 3d where you see how certain things that looked nice in 2d just don't work in 3d. With Ice Lizard I painted the diffuse texture on the high resolution model in ZBrush that was baked to the low resolution model.
Low resolution game model.
At one point we realized that we needed another flying creature, but we were running out of development time. So we decided to do a creature that could re-use assets from an already finished creature to save some time. That creature was the Crowern and I was happy to do another version because I wasn't completely satisfied how it had ended up looking, especially the wings.
Here's an early sketch of the Wyvern. It had to have similar structure as Crowern because it would re-use Crowerns' rig and animations as a starting point.
Wyverns' head sketch.
Full body concept.
High resolution sculpt in ZBrush. I was pretty happy how the arm muscles turned out. I also did a diffuse texturing in ZB, but modified it heavily in Photoshop after it was baked into low resolution mesh.
Low resolution game model.
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text:
Each trimester Belmont Day offers a range of exciting classes led by enthusiastic teachers. Our enrichment classes are open to both Belmont Day students and students enrolled at other schools. There is a fee for each class and enrollment is limited. Classes take place:
- Monday through Thursday, from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.
- Fridays, for one hour, between 1 and 3 p.m. (Dismissal from Friday enrichment classes is at 2 p.m. or 3:30 p.m.)
Enrichment classes are open to all Belmont Day students whether or not they are enrolled in the after school program and to students enrolled at other schools. Enrollment information is emailed to Belmont Day families and is also available from the receptionist at the front desk. Download an enrollment form.
Questions? Contact Blair Fross or Joe Jean-Mary.
- Session 1 Classes: Wednesday, September 5 to Friday, November 30
- Session 2 Classes: Monday, December 3 to Friday, March 15
- Session 3 Classes: Monday, March 18 to Monday, June 10


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Are there some brands you can't live without? Are you dedicated to a specific brand of car? Do you line up outside the Apple store every time a new iPhone is released? Is your house filled with easily assembled furniture with names like viktigt, hurdal, slahult, and balungen? Do you laugh maniacally when someone suggests that Star Wars is better than Star Trek? Do you passionately argue that CocaCola is better than Pepsi (even though they taste the same)?
If you answered yes to any of the above questions then you, my friend, are a member of a cult. This isn't the kind of cult where you meet in dark secluded places, stop shaving, wear togas, and eventually drink the KoolAid. You are a loyal follower of a 'cult brand'.
The true definition of a cult brand is a product or service that has an energetic and loyal customer base. Followers of a cult brand can be described as enthusiastically loyal, borderline fanatical, and have a vested interest in the brand's success. Followers of cult brands will defend their brand no matter what and buyin to consumer culture that often contributes to defining an individual's personality. Examples of cult brands include HarleyDavidson, Vespa, Apple, Microsoft, Nike, Pepsi, Ikea, Walt Disney etc.
Like any other brand, a cult brand is represented by a specific logo, symbol, phrase/tagline, or word. However, a cult brand is more recognizable than noncult brands. If we said '_______ give you wings,' you'd likely recognize it as Red Bull's tagline. Or is we asked you which popular brand encourages you to 'Just Do It', you'd know we were referring to Nike. Microsoft and Apple are distinguished by the famous windows symbol or the Apple logo. These are household names that have gained cult brand status through the use of various strategies that have built brand recognition and equity.
"Brand building is about building a deep emotional connection with your customers. It is not just a name or a logo, it is about an innate emotional response from your guest when they think about your brand. When a brand has an authentic and honest relationship with its consumers, its potential becomes unlimited." Robin Chakrabarti, Empresario Capital
But don't confuse a cult brand for a fad. While a fad gains a massive following over a short period of time, the engagement is temporary and interest tends to disappear as quickly as it appeared, whereas cult brands constantly endure.
Here are a few examples of cult brands and how they attained and maintain their status
AMAZON.COM launched in 1994 as a convenient online shopping experience. By offering fast shipping, competitive pricing, free returns, and customer feedback, Amazon quickly took out all the competition and grew to be the largest online general retailer. They pioneered an online initiative centred around 'the customer is always right' and solidified their position as a cult brand. Amazon continues to be more customercentric than most other online companies and has gained itself a customer base of over 30 million people.
Amazon CEO, Jeff Bezos is consistently ranked as the #1 outperforming CEO according to the Harvard Business Review and spearheads Amazon's customerobsessed framework: "If you're customerfocused, you're always waking up wondering, how can we make that customer say, wow?" says Bezos. "We want to impress our customers—we want them to say, wow. That kind of divine discontent comes from observing customers and noticing that things can always be better."
APPLE's growth over the past decade has risen what started out as a computer and software development firm into something that actually resembles a religion. The cult brand status was already achieved when Apple became a household name in computing but was firmly cemented with the creation and announcement (by Archbishop Steve Jobs) of the iPod and, subsequently, the iPhone. With the growth of the digital revolution and mobile phones becoming integrated into our everyday lives, Apple has become a mainstay in mobile communication with almost 50% of users adopting the brand. Apple has become synonymous with building products that fans love.
Their secret isn't actually in the products but in how the gather customer feedback. They run events all over the world, including Macworld Expo, and operate Mac User groups within all their online communities. The difference here is that Apple truly listens to their customers and makes changes accordingly. By doing this, they're constantly delivering products and upgrades that people want to see.
STAR TREK is a different kind of cult brand because it doesn't provide a tangible product or service. Instead it's a 'fandom' that's skyrocketed over the past 50 years and has smoothly transitioned from generation to generation. It took director Gene Roddenberry six years of shopping his idea for a drama set in space around Hollywood before it was picked up. The show struggled with ratings for two seasons before being cancelled but by then it had picked up a modest following. In 1967, the fans of the show began a letterwriting campaign to get the show back on the air. NBC was inundated with letters from distraught fans and the show was brought back on the air.
That undying devotion of the brand's beloved 'Trekkies' turned Star Trek into a cult brand and has resulted in nine motion pictures, five television series (with a sixth on the way), dozens of books, tons of merchandise, yearly conventions, and hundreds of millions of dollars for Paramount pictures.
IKEA isn't just about cheap swedish meatballs and weirdly named furniture. Every time a new store opens, people camp out and line up to be the first to get their hands on the new hurdal and slahult (yes, those are real) lines of furniture and accessories. It's the attention to details that has separated the swedish furniture manufacturer from the competition. With stores all over the world, IKEA was able to recognize that living space needs differ from region to region. Whichever country they sell into, they actually make a point of visiting people's homes to evaluate the way they live and what their needs are when it comes to space, storage, comfort, and style. For example, they determined that North Americans stored more of their clothing in drawers (as opposed to Europe where people hang a lot of their clothes). The result was larger and deeper drawers for the North American market.
That attention to detail has continually paid off and made IKEA a household name. Households that are largely filled with IKEA products. From 1997 to 2005, IKEA doubled its market share and tripled its sales becoming the seventh largest furniture store in the United States.
Unfortunately, creating a cult brand isn't an easy thing to accomplish. It has to grow slowly and consistently, it has to continually cater to its customers, it has to fill a niche in the market, and it has to build a loyal following. Cult brands provide a great example of how you should run and operate your business. It's important to listen to your customers and cater directly to your audience.
That ability to listen and adapt could be the difference between your business or service becoming a cult brand or just being referred to as a passing fad.


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Kyle "really turned KU social media into a national player."
– Todd Kober – Associate AD, External Branding @ University of Kansas Athletics
"Kyle has proven his marketing proficiency in his time at Musictoday. He has come up with some very creative marketing concepts that he has successfully executed and have been used as examples for all of Musictoday."
– Ann Donohue – Director of Marketing @ Musictoday/Live Nation
"Kyle has done a great job and has expanded overall marketing reach…"
– Steve Fore – Director of Account Management @ Musictoday/Live Nation
"…awesome/best in class work"
– David Horgan – Director of Marketing Analytics @ Musictoday/Live Nation
"Kyle was a true instrument in the success of concert initiatives implemented for the Jay-Z and Mary J. Blige "Heart of the City" Tour. His diligence and proactive approach to all possible avenues of promotion were strategic and seamlessly positioned. I look forward to working with him in the near future."
– Aleesha Smalls – Sr. Interactive Marketing Manager @ Rocawear/Roc Nation
"Kyle was one of the best marketing reps we had. He's a model of professionalism and he does what he says he will and gets it done on time."
– Brian Serocke – Digital Media @ Strategic Artist Management
"Kyle is a fantastic colleague and very knowledgeable in both music marketing and promotion. Personality wise, he is able to carry a conversation for hours and is one of those few rare people that truly LOVES music in all its shapes and forms."
– Chrissy Raymond – Promotions Coordinator @ Sony BMG: Red Distribution
"Kyle was excellent to work with. He was always courteous, prompt and accurate in all of my dealings with him. He was creative and easy to contact, quick to respond and very reliable… an overall pleasure to work with."
– Jennifer Morton Hill – Marketing & Promotions Director @ Entercom
"(Kyle) is very good at what he does and very responsive/helpful."
– Chris Herche – Marketing @ RCA Records
"(Kyle) made a great impression on Teddy Geiger's management, and people here at the label noticed. Great Job!"
– Dave Wilson – Lifestyle Marketing @ Sony Music
"Kyle has always been terrific to work with, very knowledgeable and dependable through the years. I would recommend him highly to any future employer and hope that I have the luxury to work with him again soon."
– Todd Coder – Talent Buyer @ Workplay
"Kyle is easy to work with, a great communicator and executer. Highly recommended!"
– Nicole Valles – Online & Lifestyle Marketing @ Science Records
"Working with Kyle at Live Nation was a pleasure and an honor. He was always incredibly responsive, responsible and friendly with his work, and I knew I could always look to him for help or guidance with anything. I certainly hope to work with him again soon!"
– Melissa Detrick – Live Nation Kansas City
"Kyle is hardworking and passionate. He sets high goals for himself and always goes above and beyond the call of duty."
– Abby Johns – PR @ RCA Records
"I worked with Kyle while he worked with Sony/BMG. He helped when I needed assistance with CDs, live shows and other label/performer products or events. Was always friendly, effcient, punctual and reliable."
– Tim Finn – Pop Music Writer @ The Kansas City Star
"Kyle is wonderful to work with! He is a great team player and a very hard worker. I recommend him highly."
– Jessi Hofman – Marketing @ Sony Music Entertainment


text:
Longevity consists a constant pursue for humanity. Find out which are the common traits of centenarians and super-centenarians and keep in mind that we cannot contract with eternity.
What Determines Longevity
visualized by: nowsourcing.com
European Wine Guide
visualized by: Neo Mammalian Studios
Are you that kind of person that can only accept the quality of European wine? Then you must read this infographic.
World Dept Uncovered
visualized by: Doctor Who?
2008 was the year that the economic crisis bell rang. Credit crisis, recession, deficit, austerity, debt are some of the terms that started circulating across the nations hitting both robust and scrambled economies. This infographic outlines the situation with the world debt.
Greeks Travel Habits
visualized by: Travelplanet24
Travel Planet 24, one of the most popular travel and tourism portals in Greece surveyed 23457 Greeks over their most favorite travel destinations and travel habits for Valentine's day celebration.
Seized at customs
visualized by: Doctor Who?
Anythinfg to declare? "No,no,no this little creature doesn't suit your case" You cannot imagine to what extend some fellows have gone! Really funny.
History of olympic medals
visualized by: Epoca Graphics
The medals have been given to athletes as prizes to since the first modern Olympiad in Greece in 1896. Every host country changes the design and dimensions of the symbolic discs. With this interactive infographic you can explore the evolution of the medals over years.
50 abolished Olympic Events
visualized by: findmeagift.com
From experimentation and innovation to the spectacular sport fiesta. Learn about 50 olympic events that have been taken out the olympic frame since the official start in Athens 1896.
Bioplastics In Rhode...
visualized by: Doctor Who?
Recycling of plastics doesn't seem to be a major concern of local authorities on this wonderful Greek island.


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Divine Institute of Media Science or DiMS is envisaged and executed under the leadership of the Vincentian fathers to impart value based technical education in Digital Media Science. Even though the digital revolution has resulted in vast developmental changes in the media sector, the changes were confined mainly to technology and the content part has unfortunately shown a marked deterioration in quality. DiMS aims to bridge this gap by molding media professionals capable of prophetic communication. The Curriculum at DiMS envisages to mould value based media professionals capable of mass communication aimed at the greater good of the society. These professionals will be instilled with the qualities of a researcher and a critic during the course and shall be guided by academically outstanding teachers and guaranteed hands-on training in TV channels. With a clear vision and a well-planned mission, DiMS aims to grow into the best digital media institute in India.
The essential relationship between media theory and media practice, respect for aesthetic, critical, and pragmatic dimensions of communication, recognition of the specific qualities of and relationships between various media forms, attention to the ethical imperatives of communication throughout the world, appreciation of the ways in which media theory and media practice can contribute to intercultural global understanding, acknowledgment of today's challenging marketplace conditions, openness to change and innovation, all form the basis of education at DiMS. Currently, we offer degree programmes in digital media studies under the guidance of dedicated and professionally qualified teachers from the visual media, and the working media professionals.
Divine Institute of Media Science is a centre of excellence by producing talented media professionals with strong human values.
To transform young men and women into technically competent, socially committed and morally upright media professionals to meet global standards.
CORONAT OPERA BONA (Goodness Crowns the Effort)


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The U3-X allows riders to move forward, backward, side-to-side, and diagonally.
Honda has unveiled a new personal mobility concept called the U3-X.
Essentially a fancy Segway unicycle, the U3-X features the world's first omni-directional driving wheel system (dubbed Honda Omni Traction Drive System). Combined with Honda's balance control technology, the device promises to be safe and user friendly.
The U3-X "fits comfortably between the rider's legs" (it has a seat), and allows them to move forward, backward, side-to-side, and diagonally. To speed up, slow down, stop, or change directions, riders simply shift their upper body weight in the direction they want to go.
Weighing less than 10kg (22 lbs), the device is powered by a small lithium-ion battery that provides one hour of operation.
While the U3-X is just a concept, Honda says they will conduct real-world testing to verify the practicality of the device.


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The GoDaddy.com Expression Session provided some serious entertainment for the people packing the pier and lining the beach after dark in Ocean City.
North of the Ocean City jetty and South of the pier, fans packed the beach to watch as Evan Geiselman returned to the scene to defend last year's Expression Sesson victory. Despite the lack of waves, Ocean City rallied till the end to see who woud take home the win and $10,000. Unfortunately for Evan he did not make it past his heat with Nate Yeomans, but his older brother Eric won his heat against local Sebastian Zeitz and advanced to the finals to face Yeomans.
In the classic battle of the regular footed Geiselman versus goofy footed Yeomans, the finals provided some exciting tow-in action on some bumps provided by a local boat. This year the win would go to the elder Geiselman brother, Eric, who scored a 6.0 in his second heat of the finals up against fellow Californian, Yeomans. Eric's winning score came from a frontside air reverse that he then rode in to the sand.
In the end the Expression Session title remained in the Geiselman family, this time thanks to the first born. Still stoked and fresh out of the water Eric had this to say, "The energy was definitely here. We didn't have much for waves but the boat was here giving us waves. I'm just stoked to come out with the win – it's cool to get the upper hand on my little brother, too!"


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What does WSTAA do for you?
The WSTAA has a long and distinguished history in Game fishing conservation. It fights issues such as threats from water quality reduction through acid rain, leaching from old lead mines and agricultural pollution. Never has Pollution been such a problem especially in the rural areas as it is at present. Our salmon, sewin and trout stocks are under threat from all directions. There is a need for decisive and articulate protection.
Metal Mines – Strategy for Wales
This publication , dated June 2002, has been produced by the Welsh Assembly government and the EA Wales after consultation with 27 other bodies which include Councils and Trusts. The EA holds records of 1,337 metal mine sites in Wales and 204 of these are known to be causing an impact on water courses. Of these 50 sites have been identified as causing pollution and many could be tackled within the Objective 1 time scale. Thirty eight of the impacting sites are in Ceredigion – 19 in the Rheidol catchment alone. Remedial work may not be straightforward as the work could affect other interests (stakeholders) as the sites may be of a historic value and/or have rare forms of minerals and lichens, some are in part SSSIs
The 50 sites have been further categorized into five groups to assist planning. By involving the various stakeholders a multiple socio-economic interest may be established which would hopefully attract Objective 1 or 2 funding.
Remedial work usually involves the re-routing or culverting of streams, the capping of spoil heaps to prevent water seepage and the blowing of toxic dust, stabilizing buildings and making the sites generally safe for visitors. Remedial work costs are very high. The recernt work at the small Cwmbrwyno mine (above Goginan) which involved the re-profiling and capping of spoil heaps cost £300,000. For comparison the Wheel Jane tin mine (Cornwall) remedial work cost £3.5M plus £1M annually for maintenance.
There are plans in North Ceredigion to form a 'Miner's Way' linking clusters of mines and establishing information and study centres. One may question the need for preserving so many sites in a small area but if it brings Objective 1 money and improves water quality so be it.
Ceri Evans.
Atlantic Salmon Trust/Atlantic Salmon Federation 6th Salmon Symposium, Edinburgh July 2002 Summary of Proceedings
The 5th Symposium at Galway in Sept 1997 concluded that 'something was happening to the salmon at sea' that science did not understand. As Nathaniel Reed put it, 'What the hell's going on out there in the pond?' The 6th Symposium at Edinburgh heard some of the most recent findings.
Smolts migrating the Norwegian fjords swim near the surface (1.5m) at night then dive to 2.5-3m to avoid cod – which are their main predators at this stage. Larger smolts are the more likely to be predated. Once at sea their speed doubles and they swim in the food- band currents, and have few predators. Temperature and salinity are crucial factors (8-11C salinity 26%)
There has been a dramatic increase in predation by gannet colonies in the north-west Atlantic from the early 1990's with a shift in the pelagic food web. By 2001 their prey was 25% salmon smolts.
NB ( Grassholm gannet colony 20km off the Pembrokeshire coast is the world's second largest > 28,535 pairs, 1987 – potential 75,600 birds during smolt-migration. Moved from Lundy late C16th)
The ASF has so far not succeeded in raising matching funding for the buy out of the North-East mixed-stock drift-nets interceptory fishery.
NB Drifts. Good news:140 nets reduced to 70 (Net Limitation Order)
Bad news: 70 nets are catching more than the 140 – 37,000 tons
1993 -18,000 sal 53.000s/t
2000 – 22,000 sal 54,000 s/t (av 3,400 sal / 33,000s/t)
Irish west-coast drifts: the Irish fished up to quota in 2002 AD: 237,000 'declared' salmon (ie x2 for undeclared take = ?474,000) Very disappointing. Delphi fishery had only recorded 10 salmon to July 1st. ther is a perceived threat to salmon stocks in the light of new cod and haddock quotas: trawlers will concentrate on all other available species.
A by-catch of some 900,000 salmon smolts was calculated lost in the pelagic (mackerel) trawling industry every year. Guidelines to be proposed for setting nets 1- 1.5m lower.
Phil McGinnity's research on R Burrishoole, Co Mayo investigated the inter-breeding of 9 genetic salmon groups, including ranched, hatchery and escapees from aquaculture with wild, discreet populations. His work reveals a temporary maintenance of genetic integrity in all hybridisation, then a decline which did not recover. These findings, when published, will lead to EA guidelines before the likely and imminent withdrawal of licences for hatchery-rearing of wild salmon. This was re-iterated at Westport salmon genetics conference in January 2003.
Lynn Hughes.


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Jessica has a B.S., MEd, CPT, and is a certified Metabolic Efficiency Specialist as well as a graduate from the Institute of Integrative Nutrition. Jessica's focus is on patient education to increase health and wellness.
How is Jessica different than other trainers or nutritionists?
Through her own health journey, the countless clients she has worked with, and the intensive hours of education she has in this field, Jessica has come to understand that Bio-Individuality should be the primary focus for each client relationship. What does that mean? It means that you are genetically and emotionally unique so why would a cookie cutter workout or diet work for you just because it worked for someone else?
Jessica takes pride and care in developing personal, positive relationships with each client on her schedule. You are more than just a face with Jessica!
What exactly is a certified metabolic efficiency specialist and how can you help me?
That's a big fancy word that means Jessica can teach you how to balance your macronutrient ratios to keep blood sugar levels stable and teach your body to burn fat for fuel! The macronutrients are protein, fat, and carbohydrates. All three are vital to keeping your metabolism running smoothly when eaten in the proper ratios. She will review your current nutrition choices and offer you 2-3 suggestions of simple things to add, change or substitute in what you are already eating. After you get that habit ingrained, then she can help you add another 2-3 changes. By looking at your ratios and offering suggestions, Jessica can teach you to look at food as healthy fuel instead of glorified addictions!
"It is my honor as a fitness and wellness coach to support the Whole Person. When we acknowledge the role of nutrition, implement stress reducers, and deconstruct cravings we provide the support the physical body requires so that positive health changes can occur."
–Jessica Sutterfield


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Well, I must say that WTSIM seems to be off to a flying start – Andrew collected fifty (that's five oh, folks!) entries for our inaugural edition of my, Johanna's and Andrew's shiny new event. I think it's pretty safe to say that the roundup is the definitive repository of modern (and ancient!) stew recipes in the blogosphere today…
Clearly, none of you have been able to sleep, what with the excitement of waiting for the announcement of the February theme. Seeing as I'm not by nature a malicious person, I thought what the heck, let me hurry up and put you out of your misery. The theme for February will be (drum roll…) pies!
Aaaaah, pie. One of life's great joys when made well, one of life's great disappointments when not. Sweet, savoury, chunky, dainty, warm cold… there really is a pie to suit every occasion. Now, in keeping with WTSIM's spirit of inclusiveness, we have decided to leave the decision up to you as to whether you want to make a sweet or a savoury pie, so whether it's your Grammy's apple pie or your Uncle Basil's famous steak & kidney pie – either will do! The only little limit we have set, though, is that it must be a closed pie – in other words, no flans or tarts or quiches. The filling must be invisible when the pie is served. So fish pie would be OK, but tarte tatin would not. Everybody clear?
Other than that, let your imagination run wild. As always, it would be nice if you could make something that is connected with where you live or were born. Think all-American apple pies, think English chicken pot pies, think Latin-American empanadas, think Italian calzone. Or otherwise, how about something seasonal where you are at the moment (erm… Brussel sprout pie, anybody?!?). Either way, you get the picture. Anything goes – as long as its modesty is properly covered with some sort of crust.
Here is the small print:
1. Write up your pie (closed, remember!) and please link back to this announcement in your post.
2. E-mail me. Please make sure that Waiter there's something in my features in the subject line.
3. In the e-mail please include:
- the URL of your entry
- your blog's name
- the name of the dish
- your approximate location
4. The deadline for entries is Monday 26 Feb and I hope to have the roundup posted by the end of that week.
So… what are you waiting for? Go and roll that pastry, chop that filling and let your house be filled with the fabulous smell of golden, crispy, delicious, warm pies!


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Dee Hert has asked us to please send her lots of GR recipes; the chapter is considering a cookbook.
It's always nice to have the name of the original family member, as well as yours. Some recipes have been passed down several generations,so note this also.
Any personal comment is important, such as, "My husband's favorite salad."
If you have family who has treasured recipes please include them in this project.
Perhaps this book will be the perfect Christmas present, reunion, wedding, birthday, thank you, etc. The volume of the order will dictate cost.


text: Self Managed Superannuation Funds Self-Managed Superannuation Funds (SMSF) embodies one of the biggest areas of investment for retirement in Australia. Optima Partners has a dedicated, experienced and innovative team of specialists to guide you through the complexity of self managed superannuation. Our superannuation fund specialists have many years of experience and are able to offer guidance on how to utilise your superannuation in order to maximise wealth and financially retire. We provide comprehensive services including: Evaluation of existing Superannuation procedures and policies Rollovers/ Set up and Administration of your own Fund Preparation of Annual Financial Statements and Income Tax Returns Binding Death Benefit Nominations SMSF Trust Deed reviews Estate & Succession Planning Fund Insurance Policies Allocated and Complying Pensions Equity transfer through wills, sale or gift Retirement Planning Generational transfer Limited Recourse Borrowing Arrangements Property Acquisitions with Self Managed Superannuation


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Use the below tabs to navigate to reviews, Q&A, and useful tools.
Take me straight to the 14 User submitted reviews >>
Headquartered in the home of Microsoft in Redmond, Washington, Cabertel provide cloud communication services to the North American small and medium sized business community.
Cabertel keep things simple with a straight forward business VoIP phone service plan. Toll Free and International dialing plans are available but you need to contact them for rates.
Pricing is based on the number of users, with a single user starting at $24.99 per month, and then reducing down to a low $19.99 per month per user for businesses with 10+ extensions. One nice thing is that this fee includes your phone number (DID) costs.
The service is feature rich like many other VoIP services and includes features such as auto-attendant, music-on-hold, call forwarding, ring/hunt groups, conferencing, voicemail to email, mobile app and more. A simple secure online management portal is available to access voicemails and various other features.
A limited time buy one get one free offer is currently available on IP phone's based on number of lines you order, which is a great way to reduce your up front costs if switching to a VoIP based service from an analog service.
One other cool "offer" that stood out was a discount for non-profit organizations. It does not provide details or how much of a discount but something to consider if you operate a non-profit organization.
Besides the standard business phone service, they also provide a "Virtual Phone System" option. This type of service allows a business to use their existing phones (e.g. smartphones) for their business phone system. This service essentially provides a front end auto-attendant which the customers reach when dialing their new business number. The customer is then presented with options, such as "press 1 for sales". Each option is routed to a phone number or device of your choice. This is a great option for smaller businesses, entrepreneurs, or start ups that don't want to use their personal numbers for their business but still want to utilize their personal cell phones. Outgoing calls are also offered with this service when using their mobile app. Outgoing calls will show your business number instead of your personal cell number, for example.
A few add-on features are offered for additional fees. An Internet Fax service, starting at $9.99 per month, and call recording, priced at $5.99 per month, are two such features.
A mobile calling App for Android and Apple is supported and can be used with their standard business phone plans and their virtual phone plan.
Customer service is available Monday to Friday via telephone between 8am and 5pm PST, and 24/7 via email. We contacted them using their form and were pleasantly surprised at how quickly they responded. Customer service seems to be a key goal with Cabertel. They provide a "white glove" service to take away the learning curve associated with a new phone system. Each customer is also assigned an account manager to help facilitate a timely response.
There is currently very little in the way of a knowledgebase on their website for those that prefer to figure stuff out themselves. Tough to really complain though as they provide a white glove service so can help with setting up your phone system or any questions you may have.
Phone support looks to be during work hours Monday through Friday. However, they offer an account manager per customer so the assumption is that you can escalate any out of hours issues through them via email.
There is no mention of video conferencing on their website so the assumption is that they do not provide that feature. Some providers do have this feature at an additional fee, or you can find a dedicated conferencing solution like WebEx or GoToMeeting.
Cabertel provide feature rich plans targeted at the startup, entrepreneur and small business community in North America. Their focus is on providing a personalized "white glove" service so you can focus on your business rather than figuring out a new phone system.
The price and feature package are competitive in the current market. They have some special offers such as a buy one get one free offer on IP phones and discounts for non-profit organizations. Overall worth a look if you need a robust business phone solution with a customer centric provider and at a competitive price.
Cabertel provides cloud communications targeted at the small business community.
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Cabertel reviews are listed in chronological order.
#14 : Andrew : OCT 3rd, 2018
Recommended: Yes
SAVED! I can't tell you how much I appreciate Cabertel. My business has gone through so many different phone issues/service providers the past two years. I happened to come across Cabertel who fixed it all. No sales pitches, honest, and friendly. Finally a phone service that works the way I want and a local business that I can actually talk to and understand. Quick response for any questions and troubleshooting. THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! If you need a small business phone solution you don't need to search any more. I searched and went with over 15 different possibilities only to find out none of the other phone services could do what Cabertel has done with ease. Again, THANK YOU CABERTEL!
#13 : Steven : APR 27th, 2017
Recommended: Yes
CaberTel has been great for us. They are quick to address our concerns and the service is reliable.
#12 : Paula : APR 27th, 2017
Recommended: Yes
Excellent service all around! The order, setup, and startup of this new phone system in our office was seamless. We are a nonprofit so cost was a factor in deciding to switch from Comcast to CaberTel. The price of the phone service is about 1/2 of our previous service. The quality of the phone hardware is great, too. The customer service at CaberTel is fantastic. It is great to talk to someone local (US) who is knowledgeable and friendly! We're pleased to be CaberTel customers.
#11 : Charles : APR 25th, 2017
Recommended: Yes
Other providers had expensive "one size" offerings. Our account manager dialed it in for us to work just as we needed.
#10 : Eric : APR 12th, 2017
Recommended: Yes
We selected CaberTel as our VoIP provider because of their affordability and adaptability to fit their services to meet our business needs. As a start-up, both of those factors were highly important. Not only that, but when I do need help or have a question...I get personal service from a contact I know on a first name basis! I don't have to go through some call center queue and get bounced around. They've been really great and I don't see any reason why CaberTel will not continue to be our phone provider as our business needs grow either! Only con: we use the mobile app a lot for our business. VoIP messaging would be nice to have, but it's not a critical need.
#9 : Kathy : MAR 23rd, 2017
Recommended: Yes
We switched our insurance agency phone service to Cabertel about 5 months ago and are SUPER happy with the experience. Excellent customer service; great phone features and voice quality. Our account manager is very responsive. Plus! We will save at least $3,000 a year from our prior service. Also had the opportunity to use their smart phone app to communicate with our office while in Canada. Worked great! No extra cost.
#8 : Kelly : MAR 22nd, 2017
Recommended: Yes
I couldn't be happier with my experience! It isn't often that you receive such personal service when shopping online for a product or service. Our Account Manager helped me get everything set up from start to finish until I was completely comfortable. A far cry from the service I was getting from my traditional carrier. I was nervous about implementing VOIP because I have had a sketchy experience in the past with another VOIP company, but now I will never turn back. My phones are feature rich and for about 1/2 the price of my traditional land line I have 2 lines, SMS capability and a person to call if I every have problems. LOVE! ** I did research a few other companies before landing on Cabertel. None of them offered everything I was looking for (SMS capability, the ability to port to my cell phone if we should have Internet problems and functional customer service). Stop your search now! You've found the best!
#7 : Caren : MAR 22nd, 2017
Recommended: Yes
Our sales agent has been fantastic in helping us and he continues to make sure our needs are met long after we started the Cabertel service!
#6 : Barry : MAR 21st, 2017
Recommended: Yes
The stand-out feature I find to be amazing is the quality of voice transmission. Even conference calling sounds as though everyone is in the same room. The features are easy to follow, and the customer service is absolutely outstanding!
#5 : Bill : MAR 14th, 2017
Recommended: Yes
The service has been very reliable and at a price that is affordable for my small business. Account manager is always available to answer questions. Very happy customer.
Disclaimer: The opinions, views and ratings expressed in these VoIP Reviews are those solely of the reviewer who submitted the review. Whichvoip.com does not necessarily agree with any of the expressed opinions, view or ratings.
Use the form below to add your comments/thoughts and to interact with us. All comments will be moderated by WhichVoIP.com before going live. We try to answer all questions within 24 hours.
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as i was walking through the house, i heard the sounds of birds, like you hear in the spring when you wake up. i looked outside and thought we were being taken over by grackles like the parking lots of the shopping centers. i hate those grackle get-togethers. they happen during their mating season and they congregate in all the live oaks that are planted around commercial centers. the parking lots are polka dotted with their poop! not only that, you can't park your car there without it being bombarded with poop.
so, i wasn't happy when i first looked outside. then, i looked a little closer and we were overwhelmed with robins instead. they were so cute with their fat red bellies! according to my field guide, the robin song is 'cheerily cheer-up cheerio'. how can you not be happy with sound like that in your front yard. it beats the awful screeching call of a grackle. my same field guide describes it as a sound like ripping cloth or cracking twigs, but it is much more annoying.
it was impossible to take a good picture with my little point and shoot, but i took some anyway.
they left about an hour later. again, unlike those hateful grackles that stay for months (probably only one month, but it feels like forever). did i mention how much i hate grackles!?


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Thursday, December 11, 2008
Ugh. You know when you have so many things to do that you just don't know where to start, so then you sort of procrastinate on doing any of it and wind up in a cycle of being overwhelmed?
Yeah, well that's how I've been.
These are a couple of pictures of our week. Top: I found this Roulette game at a thrift store and it has become a family favorite, it is so much fun (and addicting). Bottom: Enzo and I collaborated on a little booklet documenting his adventures with the red dog from his library school class (they keep it for a week, show 'em a good time.)
7 comments:
- Anne said...
Yep, me too knoweth this feeling.
This week has swished by without accomplishing much of them 85 different tasks wich lieth around my flat and in them pipelines of my brains :)
Oh yes, red dogs for everyone!
- December 11, 2008 at 8:55 PM
- Ryan said...
Overwhelmed? You? But you do it all so well!
Don't sweat it.
- December 11, 2008 at 11:33 PM
- Esti said...
red dog is great!
(I'm waiting a week myself to start feeling overwhelmed :)
- December 12, 2008 at 6:52 AM
- Veja cecilia said...
I remember that game from my childhood. But I can´t remember how it´s played...
My week have been crazy. On monday I´m going on christmasvaccation, finally. During the vaccation I will try to get two contest done... hoho. Thats life:)
- December 12, 2008 at 4:39 PM
- marlo said...
Hope you feel better.
- December 13, 2008 at 1:16 AM
- Cranky said...
I'm always overwhelmed too.
I try to stay productive... but it is hard sometimes.
- December 13, 2008 at 1:55 AM
- Punta Gorda Stampers - Trish said...
You did so good! We never even said a word about Chance the dog. It was amazing it ever made it back to library! He was lost in the back of the van for a week. I am glad that he was nursed back to health in your home! LOL!
- February 10, 2009 at 3:59 PM


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Improv Level Four
sold out
Improv Level Four
Level 4: Group Mind & The Ewing Part 2
7 Week Course | $285 | Improv Level 3 Required
Saturdays 2:30 - 5:30P | May 18 - June 29
In this course, students learn the concept of the group mind and put it into practice. By learning how to be vulnerable and supporting one another unconditionally, this level strengthens the cohesiveness of the group while deepening individual performance.
Course requires a minimum of 8 students registered to make. DCH reserves the right to reschedule the course if the minimum is not met.
Students must be 18+ to register.
Add To Cart


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My research combines computation with the intelligence of crowds—large groups of people connecting and coordinating online—to create hybrid human-computer systems. Combining machine and crowd intelligence opens up a broad new class of software systems that can solve problems neither could solve alone. However, while crowds are increasingly adept at straightforward parallel tasks, they struggle to accomplish many goals: participants vary in quality, well-intentioned contributions can introduce errors, and future participants amplify and propagate those errors. Moreover, crowds that can generate the necessary information might not even exist yet, or their knowledge might be distributed across the web.
My work in human-computer interaction develops computational techniques to overcome these limits in crowdsourcing. These solutions adopt a broad view of how we might integrate crowds and computation: 1) embedding crowd work into interactive systems, 2) creating new crowds by designing social computing systems, and 3) mining crowd data for interactive applications.
Crowd-Powered Systems
I create systems that are powered by crowd intelligence: these systems advance crowdsourcing from a batch platform to one that is interactive and realtime. To embed crowds as first-order building blocks in software, we need to address problems in crowd work quality and latency. This research develops computational techniques that decompose complex tasks into simpler, verifiable steps, return results in seconds, and open up a new design space of interactive systems.
To instantiate these ideas, I developed a crowd-powered word processor called Soylent that uses paid micro-contributions to aid writing tasks such as text shortening and proofreading. Using Soylent is like having an entire editorial staff available as you write. For example, crowds shorten the user's writing by finding wordy text and offering alternatives that the user might not have considered. The user selects from these alternatives using a slider that specifies the desired text length. On average, Soylent can shorten text up to 85% of its original length. By using tighter wording rather than wholesale cuts, the system shortens a ten-page draft by a page and a half in only a few minutes. Soylent also offers human-powered proofreading and natural-language macros.
Bernstein, M., Little, G., Miller, R.C., et al. Soylent: A Word Processor with a Crowd Inside. In Proc. UIST 2010. ACM Press. best student paper award. [PDF] [Video] [Software] [Slides]
To improve Soylent's crowd work quality, I developed a design pattern called Find-Fix-Verify that guides workers through open-ended editing processes. Traditional approaches that ask workers on Mechanical Turk to shorten or proofread text do not work: lazy workers all focus on the simplest problem and overeager workers introduce undesired changes. Find-Fix-Verify splits complex tasks into creation and review stages that use independent agreement to produce reliable results.
Many crowd-powered systems need responses in seconds, not minutes. For example, digital camera users want to preview their photos immediately, before typical crowds could finish any work. In response, I developed Adrenaline, which can recruit workers in two seconds and execute large searches in ten seconds. This realtime crowdsourcing can complete typical tasks such as votes in just five seconds, and can also power complex interactive systems such as digital cameras. An Adrenaline camera captures a short video instead of one frame, then uses the crowd to decide on the best moment. This camera can identify the best smile, catch subjects in mid-air jumps, and decide on the best angle available, all in seconds.
Bernstein, M., Brandt, J., Miller, R., and Karger, D. Crowds in Two Seconds: Enabling Realtime Crowd-Powered Interfaces. In Proc. UIST 2011. ACM Press. [PDF] [Video] [Software] [Slides]
Adrenaline's recruitment approach, called the retainer model, pays workers a small wage to be on call and respond quickly when asked. Its insight is that algorithms can guide realtime crowds to complete tasks more quickly than even the fastest individual crowd member. The Adrenaline camera thus focuses workers' attention on areas where they are likely to agree, reducing a large search space to a final answer in a few seconds.
Creating Crowds: The Design of Social Systems
When existing crowds are not appropriate for the goal, I design social systems that create new crowds. I pair these designs with studies of online communities.
I create crowds that collect information unknown to most people. For example, I introduced the concept of friendsourcing, which collects information known only to members of a social network. Collabio, my friendsourced person-tagging application, gathered over 29,000 friend-authored tags on thousands of individuals on Facebook. Evaluations demonstrated that the vast majority of this information is not available elsewhere on the web. Collabio tags have already been used to create personalized news feeds, question-routing systems, and social network exploration tools.
Bernstein, M., Tan, D., Smith, G., Czerwinski, M., and Horvitz. E. Personalization via Friendsourcing. ACM TOCHI 17(2). 2010. [PDF] [Video] [Software] [Slides]
Friendsourcing applications can also amplify existing social interactions. I developed a friendsourced blog reader called FeedMe that helps active web readers share interesting content, then observes those shares to learn recipient interest models and improve its sharing recommendations. In effect, FeedMe is a social collaborative filtering engine. Other researchers have also applied friendsourcing for applications such as adding edges to social network graphs.
I complement these systems with empirical work studying existing crowds and communities. For example, researchers and practitioners often assume that strong user identity and permanent archives are critical to online communities. However, communities like 4chan /b/ attract millions of users without identity systems or archives. Our investigation of five million posts on /b/ was the first large-scale analysis of an anonymous, ephemeral social system. We found that /b/ moves incredibly quickly: the median thread spends just five seconds on the first page and less than five minutes on the site before new content replaces it. Over 90% of posts are made by fully anonymous users, with other identity signals adopted and discarded at will. The lack of user identity and archives produces a fast-churning ecosystem that encourages experimentation and likely plays a strong role in /b/'s ability to create well-known memes and drive internet culture.
Bernstein, M., Monroy-Hernández, A., Harry, D., et al. 4chan and /b/: An Analysis of Anonymity and Ephemerality in a Large Online Community. AAAI ICWSM. 2011. best paper award. [PDF] [Talk] [Slides]
Interactive Crowd Data
When crowds browse the web or use social media, they leave activity traces that can be mined for interactive applications. I build user experiences that utilize this data, as well as tools that allow end users to directly explore it. These goals often create opportunities for algorithms in data mining and information retrieval.
Query logs offer an opportunity to rethink not just search ranking, but the entire search user experience. Inspired by this goal, I created Tail Answers, which return direct results for thousands of information needs like conference submission deadlines, the average body temperature for dogs, and molasses substitutes. I mine search logs to find common session endpoints for informational queries, then use paid crowds to extract the answer from endpoint webpages. Tail Answers significantly improve subjective ratings of search quality and users' ability to solve their information needs without clicking on a result.
Bernstein, M., Teevan, J., Liebling, D., Dumais, S., and Horvitz, E. Direct results for search queries in the long tail. ACM CHI. 2012.
By analyzing social data feeds, applications can also help users make sense of their network and unfolding events. I developed a Twitter topic browser called Eddi that introduces a web search technique for mining open-world topics out of microblog updates. Using this TweeTopic algorithm, Eddi users can filter and explore their feed via implicit topics like research, c++ or a favorite celebrity. TweeTopic outperforms existing topic modeling approaches for Twitter browsing and the interface doubles users' ability to find worthwhile content.
Bernstein, M., Suh, B., Hong, L., Chen, J., Kairam, S., Chi, E.H. Eddi: Interactive Topic-Based Browsing of Social Status Streams. ACM UIST. 2010. [PDF] [Video] [Slides]


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Someone I had never met before gave me a gift this week—noticing something with which I have long struggled, an expensive need for which all my efforts and funds have not yet sufficed. He offered his skill and resources and kindness, clearing time on a busy schedule and providing the services I have been unable to procure on my own, and then refused utterly my attempts to recompense him for any of that—stunning me into silence and teary-eyed wonder ever since (and long ahead, without question, for I shall carry this one to my grave). What a miracle! I thought, in one long pause and many since, and then I noticed something lovely taking place. All my worries and angst over every little other thing fell gently aside, like snowflakes finding lower branches on a mountainside of wonder. Over and over, the thrill of this gift and ones before and the ones before those going back to infinity have patiently lined up for my attention. No one has to be kind to another being ever. When it happens, it is a miracle.
When I sat down to compose my thoughts for a thank you and this post, though, I realized yet again—for the nth time compelled by more evidence thusward—that I have for years lived in a space of goodness welling up all over. Even in my darkest hours, I have stumbled into grace repeatedly. It has always been easier for me to give than receive, yes, and I have often struggled alone and feeling friendless at least in part because I did not know how to do anything else, but receiving brings deeper humility and a nearly unbearable lightness of being. In the hard edges of now—what with inequalities deepening on every hand and economies no longer reliably offering even the hardest and best-trained workers a steady living and feeling personally assailed thus far too often—it is easy to feel weary and to doubt whether there will ever be a level playing field again. Or simply a field.
And then someone comes along and notices a need and reaches out and, if the shame of having needed anything can be set aside even for a few moments? I walk in grace for good. Knowing not just to bone but to marrow of soul that I belong to all that is.
In the last month I have had the extraordinary good fortune to have enjoyed the hospitalities of three dear friends and one former stranger. Food and lodgings shared, places to work in peace and beauty (first a historic schoolhouse and then a historic house, both of which make my whole being sing with wild joy just for existing!) while I wrestle a gut-wrenching set of stories to the page, time to be in company and alone, conversations on our lives and concerns and hopes: these came to me from three friends who helped to make this month of research and writing possible. Without their assistance, none of it would've happened, for on my own I would've fallen far short of the resources required. And then came the stranger, who helped with not just a tooth, but a slew and the associated, unresolved issues with them, relieving me so much that the pain of said mouth no longer makes the least impression. And then he spoke of providing dental care on missions for people who otherwise would have none, and I realized yet again—for the umpteenth time and then some—that the 'haves' in this society are often just like the 'have nots' in this one thing that so many of us share. And I came home and found a way to give a little bit of my resources to someone in the fight of his and his community's life, facing down ebola half a world away from me and with me having not a single usable skill for that fight? And I remembered, from this month to forever.
What I keep finding is that nearly everyone I meet is looking for a way to help, to render assistance, to make things better, to lighten another's load. No matter how small our offerings might be sometimes, we still find our ways to contribute, to extend the resources we have been given to those who have greater need. If I had to make a list of all who have helped me here? I could not finish, were I given another whole lifetime and no other tasks to fulfill. So the good that comes to me, as ever, I will appreciate for good, turning back every thing I can lay my hands on to keep such grace moving in the world. Widening our connections, our senses of belonging to each other and to all that is: our little lives steady miracles that feed these deep springs of goodness welling up all over: willing at last to receive as well as to give, for it is in both that we find ourselves one.
With special thanks to Randy Burba, John Neely, Christine Sullivan, and Beth Hahn—for every last thing.
And with a prayer for healing to all who are presently assailed.


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Health & Physical Education Department
Board of Education Adopted Policies
Student Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Wellness Policy (6142.101)
*The School Wellness Policy is consistently reviewed by the district wellness team. Any inquires regarding this policy, including the most recent assessment of the document, may be forwarded to Tracy Stefano, Supervisor of Health & Physical Education (firstname.lastname@example.com).
Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) (6164.12)
Gender Identity and Expression (5145.53(a)
Interscholastic/Intramural Athletics (6145.2)
Connecticut Association of Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance.
American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance.
National Association for Sport and Physical Education
Connecticut State Department of Education - Physical Education
Connecticut's Coordinated Approach to School Health
USDA- Online food websites and resources
USDA's Healthier School Meals Summary
Curriculum, Instruction, & Standards
National Standards for Physical Education
National Health Education Standards
S.R.B.I & Physical Education Connecticut Framework
Connecticut Physical Fitness Test (Testing Manual)


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Fine Duvet Covers, Baby Clothes, Homeware & Much More
Our boutique shop in Taupo also stocks beautiful NZ gift ideas to treat someone special or yourself.
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We take pride in our friendly and personal customer service, which comes from our passion for our homeware products and customers. Be enticed by the wonderful fragrances and beautiful displays – whether for special gift ideas, NZ baby clothes, new duvet covers or just a browse – the team would love to see you!


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I have to keep reminding myself that the primary reason for the actions I am undertaking is to create a safe environment for my spiritual development. EVERYTHING else is secondary.
What I need in my environment is the peace and quiet for reflective meditation. I need to be able to get up in the "angel hours," if so prompted, and go meditate. This morning, that was 4:30am. I need a place where I can set up an altar with sacred objects. I need a place where my spiritual activities won't be disrespected. I need a situation in which I can pursue my religious inclinations as I wish. And really, any other considerations are secondary, in spite of how things may appear or whatever else may be happening.
I discovered Veronica Torres and her Eloheim channelings the other day when I listened to an episode of the The Crimson Circle Show with Geoff & Linda. I took notes. One thing she said is:
"If your relationships dim your light, you need to reevaluate why you're in them."
Well, I've been having serious problems of this type for some time now with a primary relationship. I've wanted to get out for some time now, but I felt trapped for economic reasons. Not only that, but the other-vibrational beings have been telling me since late last year that I need to move on because the environment is not healthy for me. The TV is always on when the other person is present, which interferes with my ability to rest or read in my room; and the spiritual work I do is disrespected. But in my stubbornness, I replied to the other-vibrational beings that I wanted to wait until the other person said something first.
That waiting hasn't been going well. The situation has just been getting more ridiculous and crazier. It wasn't long after the first message from an other-vibrational being that I was told by the other person that I had a snoring problem. I decided to take that problem into meditation and ask Jesus to help heal it. The result was not what I expected. I was told that the snoring was there to create disaffection and help loosen the bonds of the problem relationship. I told my meditation guru about this. She told me that it was a common thing for relationships to change when one embarks upon the spiritual path. Inappropriate things fall away, and other things come in. I told her about the financial situation. She assured me that if the ascended masters wanted me to move on, they would also create the provision of support. I need not worry about the finances. It would all work out. But of course I remained concerned, and I remained where I was. As time has passed, other things have been trying to come in; but having remained in the current situation rather than moving on, things have gotten kind of log-jammed. The new can't easily move in because the old is still present. What is really frustrating about this in this moment is the realization that if I had done something when I was first told to do it, I would be completely free of that situation by now. As Eloheim would say, "How ridiculous does it have to get?"
So back to Veronica Torres and Eloheim: I explored Veronica's Eloheim site. I like the message, and it's something I very much needed. For instance, the message about conspiracy theories let me know that I need to rethink my interest in them. Eloheim said that interest in conspiracy theories was fine so long as they could be viewed with fascination rather than fear. Also, the interest should not interfere with the activities of one's purpose. That made a lot of sense to me. I figured that I had better break my addiction to the Before It's News site because a lot of the stuff there was rather fear-inducing. If I want to keep up with alternative media, there are other good sites for that which are better filtered.
Veronica Torres has written some Eloheim-channeled books. One of them, The Choice for Consciousness: Tools for Conscious Living, Volume 1, provides 22 tools for moving from fear to fascination. I've already mentioned one of them: "How ridiculous does it have to get?" Another is "Clarity vs. certainty." Basically, this says we can never be absolutely certain of the future, but we can have perfect clarity. Certainty is elusive, but clarity is real. When we get stuck on needing certainty, we fail to act when action is needed. I've had clarity around the need to move on for quite some time, but I wanted to be certain that it would be safe to move. So here I am, stuck, because I insisted on certainty even though I had clarity that something needed to be done. And we're back to "How ridiculous does it have to get?" And finally, it's just gotten so ridiculous that there really was no choice but to do something.


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I have to confess here that I have ulterior motives for reading this book. I've never been a big reader of travel literature, mostly because it makes me bitter that I am not there with them. I've read some, like Sarah Turnbull's Almost French, which I enjoyed (despite wanting the author to break up with her French boyfriend who seemed like a pain), and Peter Carey's Wrong About Japan, which should be called Wrong About Thinking This Was Interesting Enough To Be Published. Otherwise, it just upsets me, thinking of all these people with their abilities to a) save enough to travel, b) deal with unexpected circumstances, c) learn life lessons and d) not get murdered. Full disclosure: I have been to Japan myself for three weeks and had an absolute blast, and I did bang on about it in my blog and to anyone who walked near me even years afterwards, but not enough happened to write an entire book about. Unless you all want to read about all the different vending machine locations we found Dr Pepper in, or how many arcade games we played while waiting for the torrential rain to stop.
Back to my motivation: Lisa Dempster, the author of Neon Pilgrim, is a friend of a friend of a friend, and she is closely involved with independent publishers. So through local-author karma, interest in helping out a pal (of a pal of a pal), and the fact I'd actually been to the country she was talking about, I thought I'd break my anti-travel-lit stance and read it.
Lisa travels to Japan in need of a change of health and harmony, to take on the henro michi, a 1200 hike through southern Japan and to the 88 temples that a ninth century Buddhist monk and all-round awesome dude named Kobo Daishi traipsed back in the day. Determined to get all the pilgrimage has to offer, Lisa goes on foot and nojuku—which basically means sleeping rough. Instead of staying in the hotels, ryokans and the like, she intends to sleep at temples or wherever she can find. At the first temple, stocked up with all of the accruements of a pilgrim: white vest, incense, name slips, and the staff (an embodiment of the Daishi himself), she begins.
It's a vivid journey, and she doesn't spare us any of its beauty or horror. The heat is oppressive, the landscape glorious, the blisters numerous and the mochi tasty. We learn how to thread blisters and how many times you could throw up in one day from hiking alone; we learn how wonderful the top of a mountain can feel and the astonishing generosity of the people. That affected me more than anything, the amount of everyday Japanese people willing to give settai, gifts to pilgrims without any expectation of return. People offer Lisa rides and food, drinks and advice, anything they can. They drive by and pass a cucumber through the window, wave and take off. It's incredible, and completely unlike anything I could imagine happening here. The people Lisa meets along the hike, as well, are a varied and fascinating bunch; veterans who spend their time looping the circuit and have almost too much advice to offer, gaijin (foreigners) like Lisa, young attractive Japanese men whose casual confidence makes me—ahem, Lisa—weak at the knees.
Unsurprisingly, it doesn't go as planned for Lisa. It's a tough hike, and it wears her down, and leaves her alone with her thoughts. Her physical endurance is amazing, along with her bravery in sleeping alone on benches and in temples, even though she does occasionally find herself in need of proper accommodation to gather her thoughts and health. Not that I'm not in awe of what she did, as you wouldn't find me hiking a) alone, b) with nowt but a sleeping mat as a bed, or c) at all. She fears bears and boars and her own capabilities, and what made me enjoy the book was how honest it is. She doesn't fake enlightenment when it doesn't happen, but she admits to her cynical self feeling astonished at how spiritual some places made her feel. We are there when her feet hurt and the stars shine brightly, when she makes good decisions or bad ones, when she refuses assistance or accepts it. And we are there, with her, at the end. Except not physically, obviously. Some people travel the henro michi by helicopter, and that sounds just dandy to me.
Friday, November 6, 2009
lisa dempster, neon pilgrim
Labels: australian, books, japanese, non-fiction
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Ghana CotL (15th Collection)
The African Children's Stories Program is a Ducere Foundation initiative, where African children are encouraged to write becoming published authors and to build lasting relationships with the elders of their community. Each African Children's Stories Collection captures ideas, preserves tradition and ignites the love of learning and education. It is our pleasure to share their stories with others across the globe.
All proceeds of the sale of these books is 100% invested in the publication and distribution of more books into the hands of children across Africa.
The 15th Collection from Ghana, includes stories from children in Accra, produced in collaboration with Children of the Light Ghana.
Why fish live in the ocean
The argument
Ato and the God-Child
Ananse the mischievious helper
The boy who changed
The rescue of Minaj
The hardworking and the lazy friends
Chi and the strange egg
Ananse and the Lizard
The story of the brave rat
About Children of the Light
Children of the Light (CotL), is a registered charitable organization in Ghana and in New Zealand. CotL runs year-round, after-school learning programs in Ghana for children ages 4 to 16 years in one-on-one and small-group settings. In addition, children also enjoy numerous special programs each year. CotL was founded by Jeanette Brown Opoku, of New Zealand, in 2005. Jeanette has lived in Ghana since 1994 and has three beautiful children. It is her desire and that of CotL, for all children to have a fulfilled and happy childhood, and acquire the skills needed that will allow them to reach their full potential, and, in return, be inspired to give back to humanity and the world at large.


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We would like to introduce ourselves as one of the leading IT Infrastructure Company. We provide IT infrastructure solutions as per the need and requirements of the customer organization. We have a successful track record of 18years in this field and we bring the
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Veterinary clinics in the Redcliffe
It is easy to find veterinary clinics in the Redcliffe city using our catalog, wich contains the clear indication of all information. Our catalog will help all inhabitants of the Redcliffe city, and its guests, to find veterinary clinics, necessary addresses and phone numbers, and also to get all desired information.
Greencross Vets Indooroopilly Address: 3/66 Coonan Street Indooroopilly QLD 4068
Greencross Vets- Dr Layt Edward Address: 224 Wishart Rd Wishart QLD 4122
Forest Lake Village Veterinary Consulting Rooms Address: 235 Forest Lake Blvd Forest Lake QLD 4078
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Dr Nicky Burnheim Address: 232 Bay Terrace Wynnum Central QLD 4178


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This morning, while browsing Yahoo! Sports for NBA Playoffs updates (NBA.com is SonicWalled here at the office), i came across the team standings. Like what I've posted yesterday, Hornets is leading the series, 3-1, against Dallas. Oh, yeah! It's just so sad to see these guys almost at the losing end. Well, there may be miracle and they could still end up a spot in the semis.
On the other hand, I have almost jumped up and down when i saw that Spurs is leading the series against Suns, 3-1. You see, to my dismay, i haven't got the chance to watch any Spurs vs Suns game when I'm at home. But, with what I just found out, I'd say Tim, Tony, Manu and the rest of the guys are doing pretty good. Wah! I just hope they won't end up facing Lakers in the end; i know the road will be tougher when that happens. Oh, but i should not worry too much since Coach Popov will surely find a way out, right?
Anyway, time for me to go back to work. See yah! :)


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Gum Swamp Lake
by Russ Lancaster
East of Hamlet on highway 74 right at the Coca-Cola plant, there is a paved road that forks off to the left. If you follow it long enough, you will run into a series of dirt roads. Once on the dirt roads, keep bearing right through the myriad of crossings and soon enough you will find Gum Swamp Lake. It is right at the county line between Richmond and Scotland counties. As I remember it from the '50's through the '80's, there were no signs telling you where to go, no sign to tell you when you were there and no sign to even tell you which county you were in. You just knew that if you looked through the woods to the left the shimmer of sunlight or moonlight off the water would tell you were there. Just a few hundred more yards and there would be a little wooden bridge with parking areas in the open clay and sand hills as well as in the woods. It was a special place.
I fished there many a day in my time but never caught a fish. I dated there many times but never hit a home run. Fortunately, I picnicked there many times and never left hungry. I guess one of three isn't all that bad.
All kidding aside, it was a special place. I saw it my first time in the early fifties when my Dad bought his first car. He took us there on a Sunday afternoon along with hot-dogs, marshmallows, sodas, and the fixings. Charcoal either wasn't available or we couldn't afford it but that didn't bother us. We kids were sent out to gather dry twigs and wood and marveled at the way my Dad built up the fire against the bank of the large clay hill backdrop. The cool breeze hit us in the face coming off the clear water. It was an adventure. We learned how to spear a hot-dog on a stick sharpened by my Dad's pocket knife and watch it cook and blister over the hot coals. No hot dog ever tasted better than those cooked at Gum Swamp Lake. It was a place we would revisit over and over as we grew up.
Our Cub Scout and Girl Scout troops were introduced to the place with my Mom and Dad taking an active part in our growing up by being Den Mothers and Troop Leaders. We were proud of them. Many merit badges were earned at Gum Swamp Lake.
As I grew older, into my teens, Gum Swamp Lake took on a different role. I soon found out that it was a great place to take a date on a cold October night. With the clouds dancing around the moon and a little romantic music on the car radio you could talk about your deepest feelings with your best girl. There was no one else around to disturb the conversation. Don't get the wrong idea, no hanky-panky ever took place there with my girlfriends. I wasn't raised that way and neither were they. A hug, a kiss... that went a long way back then.
The boldest I ever got was the night I told my gal a tall tale about a man that had escaped from prison and had only a hook for a hand and how he was supposed to be loose somewhere in the area. How he had attempted to get into someone's car once and when they arrived home they found a hook caught in the door handle. That story had been told many times before I ever told it and I suppose it may be told to this day. But the night I told it I succeeded in mostly scaring myself into leaving. Yes, I even checked the door handle when I took my gal home that evening.
I never saw another car during those few times I took my date out to Gum Swamp Lake at night yet I'm sure there are those of you who went there too. Your memories may be a lot like mine or as time has gone by maybe even better. Maybe you didn't live in Hamlet but had your own little town and own little lake. But, memories have a way of leaving us. The older I get the more I appreciate the little town I grew up in. The memories must be written down before I lose them.
Thankfully, I can still remember Gum Swamp Lake
And best of all...... I remember Hamlet!
IRH - Gum Swamp Lake
This section is to honor the works of Russ Lancaster who started the "I Remember Hamlet" web site years ago. Without his pioneering the web at that time we might not have gathered all these memories of our Hamlet, NC. We thank you Russ for what you started in 1996, may you Rest in Peace. Russ was kind enough to let me download his web site before he took it down. Thank you Russ.
Moderator: sigmore
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5 posts • Page 1 of 1
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Re: IRH - Gum Swamp Lake
The best way to get to Gum Swamp Lake is get on Boyd Lake Rd and keep on going Straight until you see a Lake on the Left
Re: IRH - Gum Swamp Lake
Pretty sure you had to take a right off of Boyd Lake Road where it changed to dirt and go for a little ways and the lake was on the right. It was sad when the next generation started making it their dump, sad.
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Re: IRH - Gum Swamp Lake
Sigmore that's the way you go to Crawford's Lake. Back in the later part of the 1990's NO SWIMMING sign's posted at all Lakes in the Sandhill Gameland's because of the way people trashed them up[/b]
Re: IRH - Gum Swamp Lake
I concur with that Freddie. I just had my lakes messed up. Been quite a while since I've cruised them roads. When they got bumpy there was a sweet spot you could hit and the bumps would smooth out. It was right on the edge of disaster, but it was lots of fun.
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