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Congratulations to Our 2019 Graduates!
You did it. We're so proud of you. All of your hard work has paid off. Best wishes for a bright, productive future.
Check out our Academic Programs.
Interested in Business, Technical Studies, or Health Sciences? We have a program for you.
See Something, Say Something.
Please be aware of your surroundings, and quickly report any activities or conversations that seem suspicious.
HOPE Career Grant.
A financial award for students attending a TCSG college who meet certain criteria and who are enrolled in HOPE Career Grant-eligible programs.
We're here to help!
We provide real support for Student Success: Counseling, Disability Support Services, Free Tutoring, and more.
Hands-on experience.
We equip our students to find meaningful and gratifying employment. Our high job placement rate proves that we're good at what we do.
Visit the Jim Cunningham Veteran Services Center in Marietta.
We support students and their families who are active military service members or veterans.


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BIM is the process of modelling buildings in 3D where the various elements are linked and by changing one the others are automatically changed also. It has the advantage of being efficient and accurate and with the capability to manage out clashes and conflicts between, say, structural and finishings components it minimises coordination risk and prevents expensive "on site" remediation solutions. The construction industry, particularly during the recession of 2007 onwards, has been slow to adopt the implementation of BIM largely because of the cost to change, the training required and the potential short term disruption to the business whilst technical staff become familiar with the software while still working towards project timetables and deadlines.
It is interesting to note that around 75% of architects work in practices with less than 10 staff and that the recession has seen significant changes to many of the larger practices with both senior and bright young staff moving on to "do their own thing". This has probably created the highest number of new start- ups for many years. We believe that these smaller and newer businesses may make the transition to BIM more easily and we wanted to be in a position to respond. To date very few Surveying practices have considered using BIM and even fewer have invested the time and money to become involved.
Quantity Surveying
Project Management
Development Monitoring
Building Surveying
CDM/Health & Safety
Heritage Surveying
Digital Surveying

subset: commoncrawl


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VThis is for the 1st Mojo Monday challenge of the month. I have loved the sketches from this site! I've had such a busy week--I wasn't sure if I would get this in, but I did! http://mojomonday.blogspot.com/
I used the new Very Merry Tags cartridge for the peppermint. I love all the tags on this cart and you don't have to just make tags! I also just got my Cuttlebug but only have the dots folder, but just had to use it!! Stamp is from Studio G, I think. Skittles and stickles, plus striped ribbon. It was a quick and easy card (once I finally made up my mind!!)
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Mojo Monday 111 Contest Card
Labels: Very Merry Tags
2 comments:
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Yes, it's really funny.
As some of you know I'm working on the third book of Mirror Earth. As usual I don't have the foggiest idea what will happen once I've determined the main story line.
Stop laughing!
It's true!
I never know the details of what I'm going to do. I've tried making good and thorough plans for stories and those always go belly up unless they fall flat on their face.
So I was writing this and that and here and there, and then it was time to go to work. Got dressed, into the car and off I went. Along the way I was thinking about what I'd just done and I had this odd idea which I'm not going to tell you or you won't need to read the book and then I've written it for nothing so forget that.
Anyway, at work I took a few moments to Google what I had thought up and blimey, buster, it fit the story perfectly!
It's like clockwork clicking together its cogs and sounding the bell at the right time. I was totally stunned about that. Sometimes I have to twist some detail's arm a bit to cooperate but this just worked.
It has to do with this thing on the right. That's all I'm going to tell you about it. If you know what this is then I congratulate you on knowing things. Well done indeed.
I'll now continue working on Mirror Earth 3, for which I don't have a proper title yet. That's okay though. It's not a proper book yet either. It will come.
Be happy, be nude!


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Marco Tempest – Open Source Magic
Comments on this post
I appreciate your work Mr. Tempest. Those digital illusions seem wicked!
@Chong Ivan : Thank you for your comment.
That kickass Marco. good job! :)
Stunning digital Illusion. Unbelieveable really. Its great to be excited by magic again. all the best, and thank you Marco
Whats the name of the video that had the cell phone?
This is so true: magic will never stop to be a hugely inspiring and creative force that touches the hearts and souls of every person on earth (which also includes the performer). Magic rulez! I wish you and your team all the best and a lot of success with this great project!
I love how animated you are about it ver inspiring, get it animated!
Met Marco briefly at a technology breakfast in Los Angeles last year. What a fun, smart and humble guy. I'd love to find a way to work with him on some of our crazy theme park and environmental projects.
Your are not allowed to comment on this video.


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source: Wellness directory of Minnesota
If you surf the web, no doubt you will find dozens of web sites singing the praises of Louis Pasteur.
Here is something we found at: http://www.accessexcellence.org/AB/BC/Louis_Pasteur.html
If one were to choose among the greatest benefactors of humanity, Louis Pasteur would certainly rank at the top. He solved the mysteries of rabies, anthrax, chicken cholera, and silkworm diseases, and contributed to the development of the first vaccines. He debunked the widely accepted myth of spontaneous generation, thereby setting the stage for modern biology and biochemistry. He described the scientific basis for fermentation, wine-making, and the brewing of beer. Pasteur's work gave birth to many branches of science, and he was singlehandedly responsible for some of the most important theoretical concepts and practical applications of modern science.
Pasteur's achievements seem wildly diverse at first glance, but a more in-depth look at the evolution of his career indicates that there is a logical order to his discoveries. He is revered for possessing the most important qualities of a scientist: the ability to survey all the known data and link the data for all possible hypotheses, the patience and drive to conduct experiments under strictly controlled conditions, and the brilliance to uncover the road to the solution from the results.
From http://ambafrance-ca.org/HYPERLAB/PEOPLE/_pasteur.html we got the following:
Louis Pasteur was born on December 27, 1822 in Dole, in the region of Jura, France. His discovery that most infectious diseases are caused by germs, known as the "germ theory of disease", is one of the most important in medical history. His work became the foundation for the science of microbiology, and a cornerstone of modern medicine.
Pasteur's phenomenal contributions to microbiology and medicine can be summarized as follows. First, he championed changes in hospital practices to minimize the spread of disease by microbes. Second, he discovered that weakened forms of a microbe could be used as an immunization against more virulent forms of the microbe. Third, Pasteur found that rabies was transmitted by agents so small they could not be seen under a microscope, thus revealing the world of viruses. As a result he developed techniques to vaccinate dogs against rabies, and to treat humans bitten by rabid dogs. And fourth, Pasteur developed "pasteurization", a process by which harmful microbes in perishable food products are destroyed using heat, without destroying the food.
UNESCO proclaimed 1995 as "The Year of Pasteur." Just prior to that, Pasteur's family proudly released his notes and research. Gerald Geison, a science historian, was among the first people to thoroughly review those notes. In 1995, The Year of Pasteur, Geison wrote an article in the New York Times proclaiming that Pasteur had lied about his research on vaccines and germs and that most of his ideas had been plagiarized from his contemporaries. His article, "Pasteur's Deception" claimed that Pasteur was, in the end, a fraud.
Now this is a terrible proclamation to make over anyone, especially one so highly revered in modern medicine. The French erected statues and built an institute dedicated to this great man. What on earth would make anyone wish to believe he was a fraud?
Personally, it's not an easy task to rewrite history, as it is not easy to denigrate someone of Pasteur's stature. When faced with two opposing viewpoints, I've often been accused of taking the side of the most pernicious, the least favored, and the most dramatic. In reality, an investigative journalist is only as good as the information s/he digs up. What is truth and what is fiction must be determined by the facts. And as "Deep Throat" of Watergate fame said, "Follow the money."
In researching medicine, following the money has always led to the truth. The money, in Pasteur's case, has led to unnecessary and mandatory vaccination programs. Wouldn't we all like to own a company that gets support from a government that will enact laws to make the purchase of our product mandatory?
Where to begin? Well, let's begin with the Germ Theory.
As discussed in The Lost History of Medicine, the Terrain is more important than the Germ.
Pasteur described germs as non-changeable. We know today, from the use of Darkfield Microscopes that microorganisms are pleomorphic, that they can change and often do. A virus can become a bacterium which can mutate into a yeast or fungus. Modern medicine has yet to acknowledge this because it would turn the pharmaceutical interests on their backs like a helpless tortoise. Again, we follow the money.
Medical tests take your blood and then fix it with a dye. They freeze the blood in a fixed state. The germs therein are frozen in time. This is not real life. Germs change, blood moves; life is a process, not a fixed state.
It was Bechamp who discovered the pleomorphic nature of germs, and later on Bernard described the "milieu" or environment that affected/caused those changes. Bernard is the one responsible for our theories today on pH and how the nature of the microorganisms change as the body moves from an alkaline pH to an acidic pH. (This is covered in depth in our article The Lost History of Medicine.)
On his deathbed, Pasteur recanted, saying that Bernard was right; the Terrain is everything, the Germ is nothing.
However, since the Germ is so profitable, the medical world has written off his final statements as the madness of a dying man. We should all be so mad.
Another problem with the Germ Theory of medicine is discovered when we look at Koch's Postulates:
- The germ which causes a disease must be found in every case of the disease under the conditions which could explain the disease.
- The germ must not be found in other diseases or healthy people.
- The germ could be isolated and used to induce an experimental disease in animals which resembles the original disease in humans.
Pasteur never quite fulfilled all the rules. He was not able to find the germ in all cases of a disease, and this is where his research became fraudulent. Additionally, many so-called pathogenic germs are often found in healthy people. And finally, when Pasteur passed a germ from one animal to another to cause the disease, he did not pass the germ alone, but took some blood with it. Injecting toxic blood from one animal to another will guarantee the receiving animal becomes sick.
One of the first books published that took a serious look at the work of Pasteur in an unfavorable light was Bechamp or Pasteur, written by Ethel Douglas in 1923. It has since then been reprinted under the heading, Pasteur Exposed, a more dramatic title that would guarantee more sales.
Douglas's book describes Pasteur as an ambitious self-promoter. She shows how Pasteur plagiarized Bechamp's work in unraveling the mysteries of fermentation and the causes of disease in silkworms. But Pasteur wasn't as bright as Bechamp and made some very serious mistakes in both his interpretation of Bechamp's work and subsequent theories and practices which he later espoused.
Joseph Lister, the young surgeon who developed antiseptic surgery methods wrote to Pasteur thanking him for his research in sepsis. We know this to be true since many of Lister's early surgeries, using carbolic acid at the strengths advised by Pasteur, ended successfully, though the patient died. Bechamp was the first person to experiment with carbolic acid, and he warned against its toxicity. Pasteur poo-pooed this fear and presented his own theories to the world that Lister had picked up on. It took Joseph Lister a few more years of refining his techniques and using less and less carbolic acid to finally produce an antiseptic surgery in which the patient survived.
While Bechamp spent years proving that germs were the consequence of disease and not the cause, Pasteur's theory was much simpler and highly profitable. It made economic sense. It made money.
Another book that came out on this subject is The Dream and The Lie of Louis Pasteur, and can be found on the web in a few locations. Here is just one: http://www.sumeria.net/dream/7.html. If you are interested in learning more about the fraudulent research of Pasteur, this is where to start.
Pasteur instructed his family never to release his lab notes. After his grandson died in 1975, they were finally released. This was when Professor Gerald Geison got a hold of them and presented his findings in 1993 to the American Association for the Advancement of Science. The New York Times, seeing how UNESCO had named 1995 the Year of Pasteur, felt that this would be the proper time to release Gerald Geison's research. Don't you just love a good drama?
The Myth of Pasteurization
One more thing before we go. Our second reference above makes this statement: "Pasteur developed 'pasteurization', a process by which harmful microbes in perishable food products are destroyed using heat, without destroying the food."
This is not entirely true. Pasteurization does NOT kill ALL harmful microbes in milk and it DOES harm the milk.
In her book, The Medical Mafia, Dr Lanctôt debunks pasteurization with a one-two punch:
- The temperature is not high enough.
- The temperature is too high.
First off, Dr Lanctôt points out that germs that bring us typhoid, coli bacillus, and tuberculosis are not killed by the temperatures used, and there have been a good number of salmonella epidemics traced to pasteurized milk.
Secondly, the heating process injures the milk. She points out that pasteurization destroys milk's intrinsic germicidal properties, not to mention healthy enzymes. She goes on to state that 50% of milks calcium is unusable (the body cannot assimilate it) after pasteurization. So much for all those milk commercials.
Here's something we found online that was drawn up for a Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors concerning outbreaks from pasteurized milk:
1997, 28 persons ill from Salmonella in California, ALL FROM PASTEURIZED MILK.
1996, 46 persons ill from Campylobacter and Salmonella in California.
1994, 105 persons ill from E. coli and Listeria in California
March of 1985 19, 660 confirmed cases of Salmonella typhimurium illness FROM CONSUMING PROPERLY PASTEURIZED MILK. Over 200,000 people ill from Salmonella typhimurium in PASTEURIZED MILK
1985, 142 cases and 47 deaths traced to PASTEURIZED Mexican-style cheese contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. Listeria monocytogenes SURVIVES PASTEURIZATION!
1985, 1500 persons ill from Salmonella infection
August of 1984 approximately 200 persons became ill with a Salmonella typhimurium from CONSUMING PASTEURIZED MILK
November of 1984, another outbreak of Salmonella typhimurium illness from CONSUMING PASTEURIZED MILK
1983, over 49 persons with Listeria illness have been associated with the consumption of PASTEURIZED MILK in Massachusetts.
1993, 28 persons ill from Salmonella infection
1982, 172 persons ill (100 hospitalized) from a three Southern state area from PASTEURIZED MILK.
1982, over 17,000 persons became ill with Yersinia enterocolitica from PASTEURIZED MILK bottled in Memphis, Tennessee.
It is the author's conclusion that pasteurization is simply a quick fix that allows large cartels to profit from the sales of milk. Instead of relying on safe, sterile handling procedures of raw milk (which would make the costs of milk much more expensive), we've incorporated this quick fix, which might or might not work, but certainly helps the cartels profit. If you live near a farm, go get yourself some raw milk. Heck, I'd even drink that!
References And Further Reading:
Dr Ghislaine Lanctôt, The Medical Mafia – To order a copy, you can call the publishers at: 450-297-3930.
Ethel Douglas, Bechamp or Pasteur (later published as Pasteur Exposed) – there are copies on the web; here is just one place:
R B Perason, The Dream and Lie of Louis Pasteur – can be found online at: http://www.sumeria.net/dream.html


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What is art? Better still, who is the artist? Is he Major Tom, floating out into space? Ziggy Stardust, bringing us hope at a time of despair? A Thin White Duke? A Man in Berlin? A Rebel? A Tin Machine? Lazarus? Or is he just David Bowie?
To say Bowie is gone is like saying Picasso is gone. The artist always remains. He remains in the orchestra interpreting The Planets Suite. She remains in adaptations of her tales of the English countryside. He or she even remains in the cave paintings of Lascaux.
If you have the chance today, take a listen to Bowie's last album, "Blackstar." Here, he uses his impending end as an opportunity to inspire us one last time.
(c) 2016 D.G. McCabe


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Alonso 'reasonably pleased' with F138
Ferrari was back on track today in testing, this time with Fernando Alonso behind the wheel of the F138. Alonso made his first outing this year today and lapped 110 times around Circuit de Catalunya. Afterwards, the Spaniard seemed rather optimistic about the new car.
The entire day was dedicated almost entirely to acquiring data for use in the development of the car and on gaining a greater understanding of the Pirelli tyres. Fernando completed a total of 110 laps, with a best time of 1.19.952.
Fernando Alonso: "I feel reasonably pleased with this first day and I can say I share Felipe's opinion that the car is on another planet compared to the one we began with on the first day of testing last year. The programme for this first session in Barcelona is aimed mainly at improving reliability, with the target of completing more than a hundred laps every day. Then, at next week's test we can concentrate on performance. Tomorrow, we will complete what we were unable to do today and we will focus on car set-up, to adapt it as well as possible to the tyres. I knew from looking at the Jerez data what sort of car I would find here today, as in fact we know more or less what we will see at the first race in Australia, in terms of what new parts we will have and how many tenths they will produce. This is down to all the work done over the winter in the wind tunnel and the numerous tests which confirm that the parts that are on their way will give the expected results."
Testing continues tomorrow at this track, again with Alonso at the wheel of the Ferrari.Weather: air temperature 13/17°C, track temperature 13/28 °C. Cloudy in the morning, then sunny in the afternoon.


text: Shop OUTLETSophia long maternity dress - Ink blue size 14uk €89.95 €58.47 Order By Phone Sophia long maternity dress - Ink blue size 14uk Size: M M A long maxi dress with double function for pregnancy and nursing. V-neck and pleated overlap section across bust. Wide hem below the nursing overlap and bands which can be tied front or back. Slightly flared model. Length from shoulder 140 cm in size M. Soft, knitted stretch fabric in 95% lyocell and 5% elastane. Machine washable 40° C. Made in Portugal Perfect for those suny days or if your planning a trip away, simply wear a denim jacket and pumps for an affortless chic look. Size Guide: small-10uk Med-12uk large-14uk


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Garcinia Cambogia is a plant belonging to Asia, Australia, Africa, and Polynesia. It grows as a beautiful evergreen tree. Recently, scientists have discovered that an extract of the fruit includes substances that function as hunger suppressants and work for losing weight.
More and more people every day are learning how this remarkable plant can help them resist their food cravings and slim down. As it is all natural, it is a great alternative for those who do not want to ingest manufactured substances that are typically discovered in other weight loss products.
How Garcinia Cambogia Works
In order to get into its last extract type first, the fruit is harvested. The fruit of Garcinia Cambogia is small yellow pumpkin like fruits. These fruits are then processed so that the weight reduction compounds are securely and cleanly removed. When consumed Garcinia Cambogia helps to decrease feelings of being hungry and craving food. It also enables you to feel fuller and more content for longer after eating a meal. This is best as it helps to fight over-eating at its very roots and in a natural way. Beyond just reducing sensations of cravings, it also changes the way your liver transforms sugars. It makes it much harder for your body to produce fat and thus reduces considerably on belly fat. Many who have had a tough time getting rid of stubborn belly fat have found this to be the last step for them to get to their optimum weight.
Beyond simply affecting your weight, Garcinia Cambogia has been revealed to be beneficial for mental health. Scientists have discovered that when taking it cortisol levels are decreased, and serotonin levels are increased. Cortisol is a hormone connected with tension and has been shown to trigger over-eating. The hormone Serotonin, on the other hand, is a hormone related to satisfaction. It is launched after an excellent meal is eaten. Garcinia cambogia extract will certainly not just eliminate your additional weight however it will put you in a much better mood more conducive to concentrating on eating right and exercising.


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Kevin Mazur/WireImage
UPDATE: A source confirms to E! News Beyoncéwill be performing with the Dixie Chicks at the 2016 CMA Awards this evening.
Surprise, y'all! Beyoncé will be performing tonight at the 2016 CMA Awards, E! News can confirm.
Although her country song "Daddy Lessons" is not up for an award, the Lemonade creator will be taking center stage in Nashville at the 50th Annual CMA Awards, hosted by Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood.
(CMT was first to report Queen Bey would be performing at the CMA Awards.)
Although we don't know yet what song Bey will be perming, Fuse TV is speculating whether it could be a collaboration with one of the many country acts scheduled to appear.


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Supercomputer to benefit Rice, Medical Center
IBM supercomputer to benefit Rice, Medical Center
Modern biology little resembles the subject taught in high school: rat dissections, dizzying wafts of formaldehyde and eyeing cells under microscopes.
As much or perhaps more than any other field, the information age has deluged biology in data as scientists seek to characterize the inner workings of the body cell-by-cell and gene-by-gene.
All of this information is collected, stored and analyzed not in lab notebooks, but on computers.
So the biologists who learned their trade in dissections and magnifying cells are finding themselves in something of a mid-career crisis as they discover that their skills with computers are more important than their ability to resolve a microscope.
To scientists in the Texas Medical Center grappling with these issues, Rice University and IBM say they want to help.
IBM has given Rice one of its first supercomputers with the company's new POWER7 microprocessors, a $7.6 million award, on the condition that Rice open up access to the computer to all in the Texas Medical Center. For free.
"During their educations its common for physicists and chemists to be exposed to this kind of technology," said Vivek Sarkar, a professor of computer science at Rice.
"But for other communities, including biology, they may find it harder to adopt this kind of bleeding-edge technology. "There's a great need for this kind of computing, but there isn't always the kind of training they need."
Sarkar and other computer scientists at Rice want to build upon existing collaborations between Rice and the Texas Medical Center to help biomedical researchers incorporate more sophisticated computing into their work.
The new computer should certainly help entice them. The system is made of 18 'nodes' that each have a processing power — nearly 1 trillion calculations per second — matching the performance of the entire Deep Blue system that beat world chess champion Gary Kasparov in 1997.
Mountains of information
When combined, Rice's 'Blue BioU' system is accordingly 18 times more powerful than Deep Blue. It doubles Rice's existing supercomputer capacity.
The completion of the Human Genome Project in 2003, the sequencing of a person's complete, 3 billion-chemical-bit-long DNA, catalyzed the transformation of biology into a data-intense field.
Since then it's become much faster and cheaper to sequence DNA and scientists are sitting upon mountains of information.
Baylor College of Medicine is participating in a federal project to ascertain the genetics of 20,000 tumor samples from 20 different cancers.
As part of this effort Kim Worley, a Baylor geneticist, said the college has sequenced the DNA in the healthy cells of 50 patients, and the DNA in tumor cells of these same patients with ovarian cancer.
That's 90 billion bits of DNA, roughly the equivalent of digitally storing about 25,000 King James bibles.
But Baylor doesn't want to just store the information, it wants to cross reference each of these 100 DNA sequences with the originally sequenced version of human DNA to see which gene mutations might contribute to ovarian cancer.
So they'll try to run the analysis on Rice's new machine. Worley expects it will take hours, when it now takes weeks.
Newer supercomputers, then, bring science closer to real-time analysis of large chunks of data.
"From our perspective the timing of this deal was key," said Kamran Khan, Rice's vice-provost for information technology. "Rice is trying to increase its profile in the biological sciences and the architecture of this system is suited well for the life sciences area."
Modeling body systems
One advantage of the new system is that, rather than just focusing on a single task, its design allows it to be partitioned out to run many smaller tasks, and then nearly seamlessly brought together to focus on a particularly computationally intensive task.
The new POWER7 microprocessors were largely developed at IBM's Austin facility, said Tony Befi, the state's senior IBM executive.
He said the grant allows IBM to expose students to the company's technology and also have its computers used to make scientific breakthroughs.
"When people realize the type of results they can get with this kind of technology, I think it's going to get filled up pretty quickly," Befi said.
And it won't just be geneticists. As they seek to understand the body's basic building blocks scientists need sophisticated computers to model the behaviors of proteins, blood vessels and other highly complex systems.
Ultimately, scientists say, medicine will reach the point where most diseases can be diagnosed from a single drop of blood, and then, based upon the person's genetics and other biological characteristics, an optimum therapy will be devised on the spot.
But to reach the point of personalized medicine, scientists will have to collect and crunch through a lot of data as they boldly enter the Information Age.
"I view this as just the start of the revolution," said Cindy Farach-Carson, an associate vice provost for research at Rice. "In five years we're going to look back and laugh at what we have now."


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A blog about my zentangles, zentangle inspired art, and other artistic pursuits. In the Chicago area.
Tuesday, May 26, 2015
Blurred lines
8 comments:
I love how you tangled that Paradox. It really gives an illusion of movement. Nice tile!ReplyDelete
A terrific Tile, Sue. I love when Paradox is used as a string. Well, done.ReplyDelete
i like your tile composition. very harmonious resultReplyDelete
This is so good. The layering, and your precision.ReplyDelete
Like the contrast of the bold lines in the background with the detail in the foreground. I almost never do Paradox in a square shape. Never like the way it turns out. Using it as a string does give a unique perspective. Almost hides the Paradox.ReplyDelete
Your tile has a great curvy movement without a single curve! I do that all the time, by the way, tangle late and take too-dark cell phone pictures, but sometimes I think it enhances the mystique!ReplyDelete
Love the idea of paradox as a string, and to be honest, I didn't even notice that until I read the comments. I was just thinking that I really liked your title "blurred lines" because your shading has given a very bold piece such softness. Nicely done!ReplyDelete
Fantastic tile :)ReplyDelete
Your comments are always welcome and most appreciated. Please email me if you want a response sent to you.
I regret that I've had to add the verification again due to a large amount of spam.


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|Well, everybody, um... wow, it has been an honor and a pleasure to work with you all. The time I have spent at Parks and Rec have been the happiest days of my life here in the government. And I know everyone says it, but I sincerely hope that we stay in touch.
|— Jerry Gergich
"Jerry's Retirement" is the twentieth episode of Season 5 of the NBC television series Parks and Recreation. It originally aired on April 18, 2013 to 3.34 million viewers.
Storyline Edit
Over her first year as a city councilwoman, Leslie Knope has worked nearly non-stop. Ben Wyatt feels it is time she take a day off to relax and spend with him. However, upon discovering that Jerry Gergich is retiring, she gets back to work in an attempt to send her colleague off on the right note. Jerry has worked in the Parks Department for 40 years without doing anything noteworthy, so Leslie goes about helping Jerry tick off his goals that he set when he filled out his original entry paperwork. She feels obliged to help Jerry as she doesn't want him to leave this job with nothing and go home to an empty life. The first goal she attempts to achieve is eat in city council dinning room, which can't be done. Next is to meet Mayor Knudson, which also can't done as Knudson died in 1985. Another absurd goal was to have a building named after him, so as a compromise, Leslie decides to name the Parks Department's conference room after Jerry. The department then sends him off with a cake, but in true Jerry fashion, his blazer catches on fire, which requires extinguishing. Leslie is not satisfied, so the next morning she visits Jerry at his home where his entire family welcomes her with open arms. Jerry explains he is not fussed about not achieving his goals; he is more pleased with the fact that his time working at the Parks Department allowed him to always get home to his family in the evening. Leslie realizes that, while not how she would picture such a life, it is how Jerry filled his life and he is quite content with it.
Meanwhile, Ann Perkins and Chris Traeger visit the fertility clinic where they are told they have every reason to suspect their child will be completely healthy, and if they'd prefer, Chris can provide his sample that day. But, with the concept of artificial insemination no longer just a distant thought, Chris and Ann get cold feet and decide to take a few days to think things over once more before rushing any decisions. At her house, Chris and Ann review the clinic's pamphlets on artificial insemination and are put off by the medical, emotionless verbiage throughout. After reminiscing on they good times they had "physically" together, the pair are immediately compelled to approach her fertility with a more "natural" route. This leads to Ann thinking it might be good for their child to have a stable parenting situation, fuelling the idea that the pair should be a couple once again.
In a B plot, with Jerry leaving the office, Ron Swanson proclaims someone will inevitably assume his place as the office joke. Tom Haverford takes every precaution to make sure he doesn't become the "new Jerry," but when he has a verbal flub in a meeting, his worst nightmare comes true. He is mocked to no end and implores Ron to hire a new intern so he can pass the torch on. This doesn't work, as everyone in the office immediately finds the intern to be a perfect specimen. Ron decides instead to let the intern go and bring in Jerry on a once-a-week basis, just so everyone can still enjoy the normalcy of ragging on their inept friend and his clumsiness.


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Congo revokes work permit for human rights researcher
KINSHASA, Congo – Human Rights Watch says Congo has refused to renew a senior researcher's work permit, requiring her to leave amid tensions over November elections.
The organization said Tuesday that by revoking Ida Sawyer's work permit President Joseph Kabila's government is restricting human rights reporting before the elections. It said several other researchers have also been expelled.
The organization said immigration authorities renewed Sawyer's work permit in May, but annulled it later and then denied her a new visa.
Sawyer, in Congo with the organization since 2008, has researched human rights abuses by the government and has criticized its crackdown on those opposed to Kabila's attempts to remain in power.
Government spokesman Lambert Mende said the decision was made by immigration officials and that Sawyer was not considered persona non grata.


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A brief chat with Guided By Voices
Holden Mesk, writer for Asheville Music Guide, spoke to Guided By Voices bassist Mark Shue ahead of their show tomorrow night at The Grey Eagle. Read the full thing below!
Hi Guided By Voices! Thanks for doing this interview with Asheville Music Guide. You've been to Asheville a number of times, what's your favorite part about coming here?
We love Asheville. It's a beautiful part of the country and we always look forward to coming through town. The shows are a blast. You guys have a lot of great record stores too.


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|Head Women's Water Polo Coach
|Alma Mater:
|Graduating Year:
|5 Years
Arriving at the Institute in September of 2014, Ryan Pryor is poised for his fifth season at VMI as the team enters its eighth year of existence in 2019.
Over the past two seasons, Pryor has led the program to unprecedented levels by amassing 42 wins (22 in 2017, 20 in 2018) paced by Shelby Barkley '18 and Natalie Rivas '18. After scoring a program record 107 goals in 2018, Barkley was named the program's first ever All-American presented by the Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches. Barkley finished her career with 314 goals, shattering the previous school record of 191, as she ended her career a two-time First Team All-MAAC recipient and two-time Secon Team All-MAAC honoree. Rivas was also named to the All-MAAC First Team in 2018 a year after claiming Second Team All-MAAC honors.
Given the Institute's Nathaniel W. Pendleton award for excellence in coaching in 2017, Pryor led VMI to its first postseason appearance in program history as the Keydets qualified for the MAAC Tournament as a No. 3 seed. For these accomplishments, Pryor was named the 2017 MAAC Coach of the Year. The Keydets again qualified for the MAAC Tournament in 2018, this time as a No. 4 seed.
In 2017, the Keydets defeated MAAC foes Marist (ranked No. 23) once and Iona College twice, both schools that VMI had never been defeated in the first five years of the program. He also coached freshman Isabel French to MAAC Rookie of the Year honors as she led the league in saves with 286 for the year.
Over the past four years under Pryor's watch, 10 Keydets have been recognized on the MAAC All-Academic team. VMI also received its first national ranking in program history on April 19, 2017, as the Keydets earned a No. 25 ranking.
Pryor came to the Institute after a brief stop in Providence, Rhode Island at Brown University. Prior to his time with Brown's program, he served as the acting head coach for men's and women's water polo at Connecticut College, stepping in midway through the 2014 season. During his tenure as the interim, the women's program captured the Collegiate Water Polo Association's Division III championship.
From July 2011 to April 2014, Pryor was the assistant coach for both programs in New London, Connecticut. In addition to organizing practices and designing the offensive and defensive structures for both programs, Pryor served as the primary recruiter, including initial contact, evaluation and arrangement of campus visits. He was an integral part of the programs going from 35 percent recruited student-athletes to over 82 percent, in addition to carrying the largest rosters in program history.
While at Connecticut College, Pryor saw both programs achieve a high level of success, both in the pool and out. Under his guidance, the men's program finished third in the CWPA Division III Championships in 2012 and earning the program's first-ever rankings, No. 10 in 2012 and No. 12 in 2013. The men's team was also ranked in the top 10 for team GPA all three seasons, including fifth in 2013.
On the women's side, the Camels won back-to-back conference championships in 2013 and 2014 while becoming the only Division III team to reach the CWPA Eastern Championships, finishing ninth in 2013 and eighth in 2014. The Camels had a potent offense under Pryor, leading Division III in scoring during those same seasons, earning Connecticut College its first rankings on the women's side, eighth in 2013 and ninth in 2014. The women's team was also ranked third in team GPA in 2012 and held the top spot in 2013.
Before Connecticut College, Pryor was the head coach for the University of Michigan women's club water polo team. His duties included organizing and distributing practice plans, running drills and other tasks to ensure the efficiency and effectiveness of practice. The squad went 27-1 during his tenure as the club coach, claiming the Big Ten championship and finishing third in the country among club teams.
A standout in his own right, Pryor was a four-time All-Big Ten selection in 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2009, while earning CWPA All-America honors in his final season. Pryor has four years of coaching experience at the high school level as well, leading those teams to program records for wins in each season.
Pryor has earned three degrees from the University of Michigan, graduating in 2007 with a pair of bachelor of arts degrees in English and communications studies. In May 2010, Pryor completed his juris doctor degree from the University of Michigan Law School.


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Lamby Lake, Lumby Way, Cardiff, CF3 4AJ.
Lamby Lake is home to many specimen coarse fish, including tench, perch and thousands of beautiful golden rudd. There are mirror, leather, common, ghost and grass carp to 30 lb.
Tickets from £6. Tel: 07878 831048.
Be sure to read Angler's Mail magazine each week for the latest hotspots coverage from this region.


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Miami-Dade County
Southwest Miami-Dade slaughter farm raided
As police officers hauled off three suspects in a stomach-turning, Homestead-area animal abuse case Friday, rescuers with livestock trailers, travel crates and cages swooped in to take about 75 surviving creatures to safety.
The raid, based on undercover video and eyewitness accounts by independent investigators from Miami Beach-based Animal Recovery Mission (ARM), took place at VIP Animal Sales, Southwest 257th Street and Krome Avenue in South Miami-Dade.
It was the culmination of an eight-month undercover investigation by ARM, which included a video that showed men repeatedly stabbing a squealing pig, tossing an apparently live, trussed goat into the trunk of a car, and cracking a rabbit on the back with a stick or rod, then skinning it alive.
ARM founder Richard Couto said that he and his colleagues saw young children — one of whom appears on the video — watching animals being inhumanely killed. He also reported seeing "the entrails of butchered animals being force-fed to starved animals on site that will also eventually be killed and butchered for human consumption.''
All this, according to investigators, took place in the back part of VIP Animal Sales, which by law is allowed to sell live animals, some of which are used for religious sacrifice.
A sign out front depicts pigeons, turkeys, chickens, rabbits, guinea hens, turtles, ducks and goats.
Miami-Dade police arrested on animal felony cruelty charges: Andre P. Martinez, 45, of the 12000 block of Southwest 268th Terrace, Homestead; Daniel Lombana, 36, of the 26000 block of Southwest 139th Court, Homestead; and Juan M. Bazan, 51, of the 3100 block of West 78th Street, Hialeah.
Martinez and Lombana have lengthy criminal records.
Bazan and Marta A. Castillo are listed in county records as owners of the 4.89-acre property.
"This was a joint operation with the State Attorney's Office, ARM, and the 'Ag patrol,''' said Lt. Sheree DiBernardo of the Miami-Dade Police Agricultural Patrol unit.
According to the warrants, the suspects inhumanely slaughtered animals for meat in filthy conditions in the rear of the property, far from the roadside pens where buyers legally purchase live fowl and pigeons.
Even those unmoved by animal cruelty should be alarmed that tainted meat is making its way into the South Florida food supply, said Couto, who founded ARM, a nonprofit, after rescuing a thoroughbred horse from an illegal slaughter operation in 2009.
He called the suspects "violent and dangerous criminals'' who "got enjoyment'' from watching animals suffer.
The affidavits describe how Couto paid cash for animals that the suspects slaughtered on site. He said he was also offered fighting roosters starting at $500.
Cockfighting is illegal in Miami-Dade County.
As she loaded an underfed mare with diseased hooves into a trailer, Laurie Waggoner, director of ranch operations for the South Florida Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, said "ag patrol'' officers called her to the same farm several weeks ago to take two starving paso fino horses: a stallion and a gelding.
The mare she fetched Friday is lame, Waggoner said. "Our vet gave her painkillers.''
All three horses are recovering at the South Florida SPCA's ranch in Southwest Miami-Dade.
Katha Sheehan, of Rooster Rescue, loaded fowl and pigeons into crates for a trip to a sanctuary. She said the chickens had fowl pox, a viral infection that produces both internal and external lesions.
She called the conditions in which the birds lived "nasty,'' and said she'd been to VIP before.
"I'd stop in and buy chickens just to rescue them,'' said Sheehan, who used to run The Chicken Store in Key West. "They looked so dirty, miserable and sickly.''
The affidavits describe Bazan sawing the head off a live sheep that was writhing and bleating as he dragged it through "assorted construction trash,'' then forced water "into the face of the sheep while it was still conscious, bleeding from the neck and struggling, attempting to turn its face away from the water.''
Bazan then hoisted the animal by its back legs "all the while the sheep continued to bleed from the neck, cry out and struggle until the sheep finally stopped moving and was butchered,'' according to the affidavit.
Lombana, the affidavit says, struck a rabbit on the back, then threw it "approximately four feet to the ground,'' where it "began to move, twitch and struggle for approximately three minutes...
"The defendant picked the rabbit off the ground and sliced the rabbit in the center of is back with a long knife. The rabbit continued to struggle...,'' the affidavit reads.
"The cruel dispatching of these animals at an illegal slaughterhouse is exactly what the Florida Legislature wanted to end when it created the animal cruelty statute," said Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle. "Such unnecessary brutality demeans not just the people who do it, but those who would stand by and let it happen."


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****Comment below to win a copy of TEEN Agents in the Plundered Parent Protocol.****
This week we are excited to introduce you to Joshua Unruh, author of the fabulously fun TEEN Agents series. Today he shares with us how his childhood interests influenced the writing of The Plundered Parent Protocol. (This is my daughter's new favorite book! And she is "totally a huge fan of Mr. Unruh. He's so cool!" Well, there you go. I can't top that as an introduction. Here's Mr. Totally Cool himself, Joshua Unruh.
Sausage Innards
Heather asked me to talk a little bit about how the things I liked when I was a pre-teen and teenager (I'm old enough that there wasn't a questionable label like tween when it would have fit me) fed into my fevered brain and came out as TEEN Agents in the Plundered Parent Protocol.
Well, this ought to be easy. A lot of the stuff I liked then is stuff I still like now!
I like it in a different, more grown-up way (or so I've convinced myself). But it's still a lot of the same stuff from back in the day. That age is when I started to discover things other than superheroes that were going to gnaw into my brain like a worm and stay there forever. The second most important of those discoveries was espionage fiction. More specifically, it was Spy-fi.
For ease, I'm going to use the Wikipedia entry's definition of Spy-Fi:
It often uses a secret agent (solo or in a team) or superspy whose mission is a showcase of science fiction elements such as technology and ideas used for extortion, plots for world domination or world destruction, futuristic weapons, gadgets and fast vehicles that can travel on land, fly, or sail on or under the sea.
My dad was a HUGE Man from U.N.C.L.E. fan when he was a kid. He got me watching it and, for some reason I still can't understand, whatever channel ran it had Avengers afterward. No, not the superheroes with Iron Man and Captain America. Rather, a British male and female duo calmly and coolly handling all of Britain's weird scientists and would-be worldbeaters. The godawful movie Wild Wild West, a Western Spy-fi, also came out around this time and, thank goodness, my dad was there for me on that one too. He let me know the seed was a television show that was not godawful.
Spy-fi felt to me like spies, which I loved, married with superheroes, which I loved EVEN MORE. The final nail in the coffin was discovering Nick Fury: Agent of SHIELD. This was superspies set in a comic book universe with existing superheroes and supervillains. Peanut butter meet chocolate.
My favorite Young Adult literature will always be superheroes. But when I decided to have female protagonists, I had to deal with the fact that the ladies don't really dig on superheroes. But heroines have always had a strong place in Spy-fi. Emma Peel was at least as popular as John Steed. Contessa was a supporting character for Nick Fury, but she still managed to get a lot of solo stories. There was even a Girl from U.N.C.L.E. spin-off that I liked as much as the Man.
In the modern era, you have Bond girl Wai Linn (Michelle Yeoh) showing up the titular character. You've got Sydney Bristow (Jennifer Garner) leading an everything-and-the-kitchen-
sink Spy-fi show called Alias for five seasons. There was a La Femme Nikita remake starring Maggie Q. Batwoman is the best Bat-Family book on the shelves. ABC Family, of all places, gave us Natalie Morales in The Middle Man, which feels like TEEN Agents after it graduated from college.
Clearly if I wanted to write a book with female protagonists that would appeal to young ladies as well as 12-year-old-me, it had to be a Spy-fi book. And that's a biggest part of how TEEN Agents was born.
****To leave a comment, please choose an "identity" in the drop down box below. You can choose Name/URL and just leave your name. If you come to us from Facebook, you may have to leave the Facebook site and return to us from your browser in order to post your comment.****


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Recruitment #170801-007451-003
|Tampa Police Department
|Open Date
|Filing Deadline
|Position Open Until Filled
|$26.51 - $43.05/hour; $4,595.07 - $7,462.00/month; $55,140.80 - $89,544.00/year
|Type of Recruitment
When assigned to uniform districts: initiates preliminary investigation of incidents requiring police action; preserves the crime scene; renders first aid; interrogates subjects and witnesses; searches for and arrests offenders; records all relevant facts; appears in court; inspects every area of assigned beat as often as possible, giving particular attention to crime hazard areas; applies knowledge of departmental policies, rules and regulations and standard operating procedures to situations which occur; promptly takes appropriate action against all persons who are seen violating the law; assists persons who are lost, senile or mentally deficient and makes proper dispositions; takes lost, stolen or abandoned property into custody and makes disposition of same; enforces traffic laws and conducts accident investigations; patrols assigned area to eliminate the opportunity for crime to occur; responds to and attempts to settle domestic disturbances or refers individuals involved to appropriate social agency; advises citizens on protection of self and property; maintains an awareness of active felons in assigned area, their whereabouts and methods of operation.
When assigned as a field instructor in the districts: trains recruits in duties of police officers as assigned; evaluates and makes recommendations to squad sergeant regarding recruits' progress and suitability for work; accompanies recruits to court and gives advice relative to court presentation; reviews reports and recommends improvements if needed; insures that recruit is aware of any changes in laws, rules, regulations, and standard operating procedures; recommends end of training period when recruit is considered ready.
When assigned to the selective enforcement unit: participates in crowd and traffic control at major events; assists vice control section in investigation and enforcement activities; utilizes informants in latent investigations; participates in stakeouts and surveillance of burglary and robbery targets in high crime areas; conducts prostitution, gambling and other criminal investigations as required; performs business license application investigations; assists in processing special event permit applications; processes and investigates requests by alcoholic establishments to employ extra duty officers; works in conjunction with federal, state and other local agencies to coordinate joint police activities; protects political candidates and other dignitaries.
When assigned to marine patrol: enforces navigable water laws within the city limits; makes safety checks for required equipment on all vessels; maintains police boat and all equipment used; aids disabled vessels and passengers; patrols all boat races and sailing regattas.
When assigned to the information desk: assists the public by given general information; verifies ownership of impounded vehicles and gives authorization for release; checks impounded vehicles in the computer for stolen notices; maintains records, makes copies and distributes as necessary.
Performs work related to the purposes of the Department as required.
(Proof of successful completion of the Basic Recruit Training and a passing score on the Florida State Law Enforcement Certification exam are required to be eligible for employment)
For out-of-state Police Officers and Military Police candidates, Equivalency for Certification is required. Contact the Florida Department of Law Enforcement at 850/410-8600 or visit the website at: http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/CJSTC/Officer-Requirements/Equivalency-of-Training.aspx for information on the Equivalency of Training process.
Note: Applicants will not be eligible for Police Officer until copies of all required documents have been submitted to the City of Tampa Employment Services Office.
Possession of a valid Florida driver's license.
* SPECIAL QUALIFICATIONS: - Must be a U.S. Citizen, at least 21 years of age. - Must satisfactorily pass a medical examination including a drug screen.
Applicants selected for Employment Must Pass:
Click on a link below to apply for this position:
|Fill out the Supplemental Questionnaire and Application NOW using the Internet.
|View and print the Supplemental Questionnaire.
|This recruitment requires completion of a supplemental questionnaire. You may view and print the supplemental questionnaire here.


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Ayago power project 'snatched' from Turks
Thursday August 15 2013
KAMPALA- The government has reallocated the $1.9 billion (Shs4.9 trillion) 600MW Ayago Hydropower Project from a Turkish company to China Gezhouba Group.
The deal, which is said not to have gone through competitive bidding, restricted or otherwise, is $210 million more than what Sinohydro Corporation will get for the 600MW Karuma HPP.
The reallocation comes against the backdrop of Japan's International Cooperation Agency (JICA) pulling out of studies that would have helped establish the feasibility of Ayago HPP.
According to a source, the government's decision to hand Ayago HPP to China Gezhouba Group was taken after the government's trump card to get the Japanese to fund the project backfired.
The government had in April upped the ante by 'awarding' the Ayago HPP engineering procurement and construction (EPC) contract to Mapa Construction, a Turkish company.
That did not impress the Japanese who had already sunk about $2 million (Shs5.2 billion) in Ayago's feasibility studies. It is then that the Japanese decided to pull out. The ministry of Energy claimed that the Japanese had pulled out of the study "due to the perceived adverse environmental impacts" that could manifest themselves once the project kicks off.
A document seen by this newspaper indicates that the $1.9 billion project along River Ayago, and straddles the Murchison Falls National Park, would affect the daytime habitat of the hippopotami "permanently".
It remains unclear how the government plans to reassure other potential investors in the energy sector that what happened to the Japanese and the Turks will not happen to them.
Meanwhile, the government handed China International Water and Electric Corporation (CWE), which the Inspectorate of Government faulted for falsifying its portfolio, the $535 million (Shs1.3 trillion) 188MW Isimba HPP.
CWE had claimed it constructed a 600MW dam so that it could meet the benchmarks for Karuma.
In June, the company asked for "a lead role" in the construction of Karuma, claiming that Sinohydro had copied CWE's construction blueprint. We could not independently verify CWE's claim with Sinohydro.
In the same month, CWE petitioned the East African Court of Justice (EACJ) to compel Uganda to follow procurement laws in sourcing for an EPC for Karuma. The court is yet to decide on the issue.


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Communication: Ingrid Kroeze
Since 2013 involved in Inspire2Live as part of the Communication team. I'm responsible for our website and social media channels.
Everybody is faced with cancer; is it not yourself then it's somebody around you. For me the latter but therefore not less important to help and be a facilitator to all those Patient Advocates in their fight against cancer.
I'm proud of taking part in this organisation and thus contributing in trying to make cancer curable or at least a chronical disease in which patients can have a good quality of life. Please join us! And follow us on:


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26th January 2019 - 2nd February 2019Every year members from around the world meet in the Arlberg for the renowned SCA Week.These members are all enthusiastic about the same things – they are united by a love of ski sports and they are all proud of being members of this most traditional of ski clubs.
During the SCA Week, the Ski Club Arlberg offers its members a diverse and comprehensive program of activities and entertainment.
The highlight of the week is the traditional SCA Club Championships in which members can put their race technique to the test.
The Ski Club Arlberg manages again and again to create special moments for its members. Immerse yourself in the unique alpine environment of the Arlberg and celebrate the SCA Week 2019 with us.
Please take into consideration that this program is exclusive for members. If you are interested in joining the club, please inquire at the SCA office.


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"This post is my gratuitous offer to Microsoft to help them track down websites of piracy advocates who store and/or share activation cracks and similar nuisances. I've cherry-picked two methods to delve into, then listed some action items to follow through with in taking said methods into consideration," writes Stephen. Don't know, if Microsoft benefits with the methods used in the post, but it's certainly gonna help new users, who're still away-of-underground fourms. Anyways, here'e Stephens search tricks, just google using following query to see the magic of WAT cracks:
Method 1: Use intitle:index.of removewat21 | removewat22 | removewat*.
Method 2: Go to Google. Click "more" and then click "Blogs." Now, perform a search using removewat21 | removewat22 | removewat* query and then, on the left-hand side, click, "Sorted by date".


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Archdeacon Harte retires
A special event was held in the Derry Raphoe Diocese to mark the retirement of Archdeacon Scott Harte.
Archdeacon Harte retired from full time ministry and has served as Archdeacon of Raphoe for thirty years. Until his retirement he was Rector of Dunfanaghy, Raymunterdoney and Tullaghobegley on the beautiful coast of north Donegal.
He spent his early life in Belfast. He was ordained in 1971 and served curacies in Bangor Abbey and Ballynafeigh. His move to Raphoe diocese came in 1976 when he was appointed as rector of Ardara, Glencolumbcille and Killybegs.
In 1998 he took up his current post in Dunfanaghy.
An event took place on 12th June to mark the Archdeacon's retirement took place immediately after the monthly meeting of the Diocesan Council and was attended by Council members and key office holders in the diocese.
A number of speeches were made expressing appreciation for the Archdeacon's contribution to the life of the diocese. Mr Geoffrey Kelly (Diocesan Secretary) and Dean William Morton (St Columb's Cathedral) expressed their thanks for the ease with which they worked with the Archdeacon and for his helpfulness.
Bishop Ken Good talked of the important contribution that Scott Harte made to the life of Derry and Raphoe over many years. In thanking him for his faithfulness he wished him a long and happy retirement as he begins this new stage in his life.
The Bishop said "Archdeacon Harte brought great warmth, humanity and compassion to his ministry in our diocese. This, along with a high level of practical wisdom and insight, will be greatly missed. I speak on behalf of myself and the diocese in offering our warmest good wishes for his retirement".


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Quiet Zone at the Conrad Maldives, adults only
Maldives…we have all heard about it. We have all seen pictures on Instagram or online of the beautiful water villas. Prince William and Princess Kate chose the Maldives for their honeymoon and it always ranks among the top travel magazines (CondeNast Traveler and Travel and Leisure) as the most luxurious travel destination with some of the best beaches in the world. So how do you book a trip to such an amazing destination? Before booking a trip, Tom and I research, research, and…….do more research.
With so many hotel options in the Maldives, I didn't know where to start so I reached out to my friends Kat and Sai, who have both been to the Maldives. They both recommended the Conrad Maldives Rangali Island. With over 13 different restaurants and bars, the Conrad Maldives is one of the biggest properties in the Maldives (Tom loves to eat so this was a must). We read the reviews (they were all positive) and we looked at photos (the hotel and island looked amazing). It's also a Hilton property so you can expect a high service standard. We decided on the Conrad Maldives.
A short 4 hour flight from Abu Dhabi, we couldn't wait to start our trip. As soon as we landed on the main island of Male, a member of the Conrad Maldives Team was waiting for us and whisked us in a hotel car to the Conrad Maldives lounge at the seaplane airport (a 10 minute drive from the international airport). At the Conrad lounge and while we waited for our seaplane boarding, I had a quick back massage from the in-house masseuse.
Wearing beach coverup via Hamac The Beach Boutique also here
The Conrad on Rangali Island is only a short 30 minute flight from Male (some hotels are as far as 1.5 hours from Male). I don't know about you, but this was my first time taking a water plane! We spent our first 2 nights in the renovated beach villas; I personally loved the outside shower and tub and I know Tom loved the oversized glass doors that opened straight to the beach. Being a beach lover, I counted 13 small steps from our room to the beach…paradise.
We had dinner at a different restaurant every night and even though it might be a bit overwhelming choosing among all the different restaurants, I am here to help. A must visit is the first ever undersea restaurant, Ithaa. Tom and I experienced the afternoon canapé; had a glass of champagne and canapés while admiring this unique restaurant and the different sea life around (and above us). The staff at the Conrad was nice enough to give us a heads up, mentioning they were about to feed the fishes. It was absolutely amazing to watch the different fishes (and sharks) from under water as they ate and fought for their meal. We also loved Koko Grill, a more personal dining experience with a nine-course Japanese menu. Not to miss is also Mandhoo Spa Restaurant, which offers an amazing view of the water and healthy meal choices. Tom and I might have re-ordered the chicken skewers….they were so good.
Outdoor seating at the Mandhoo Spa Restaurant
One of my favorite activities at the Conrad, boxing!
We spent our second two nights in a water villa…and if you have seen any pictures of the Maldives this is what you have probably seen. A water villa with stairs directly to the beach, a private jacuzzi, complete tranquility and privacy. Our water villa at the Conrad was spacious with a walk-in closet, two sinks, a desk with clear glass to look down to the water while working, an entire private outdoor terrace with stairs to the beach and jacuzzi. We took the short stairs of our villa down to the water and snorkeled for hours! Staying in one of these rooms was one of my favorite travel experiences so far, definitely very special.
The Conrad Maldives offered everything Tom and I were looking for; exceptional service, refreshing drinks, multiple dining options, the most beautiful crystal blue waters we have ever seen and most importantly an entire list of activities for us to choose from. If you have been following my blog or InstaStories then you know Tom and I are a pretty active couple. We love working out together, taking tours, exploring and anything active. So when we saw the "activity list" at the Conrad Maldives we booked an activity for every day. We did a romantic sunset boat tour, a snorkel tour, a boxing class and a cocktail class. We promised each other that we will visit the Maldives again, mostly to have the opportunity to swim with the whale sharks; everyone raved about this experience, but unfortunately our schedule was pretty busy already.
Thank you for all your comments and likes on my Maldives pictures! If any of you have any questions on how to travel to the Maldives from the US or where to stay please don't hesitate to ask. Cheers to discovering new destinations and to all the travels ahead. I look forward to sharing all the different images with you and as always, thank you for following.
This post was brought to you in partnership with the Conrad Maldives Rangali Island Hotel.
Conrad Maldives from Soraya Pena on Vimeo.


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After many countless hours of researching, registering and reviewing countless products for my little womb occupant, I saved the best item for last. Mommy's diaper bag.
As you know, I take great care in my choice of accessories and was not about to resort to a bag splattered with daisies, cars or hungry hungry hippo motifs. I had been told that you can use any bag as a diaper bag, but upon further investigation I decided that I still liked the additional features that baby specific bags brought to the changing table - i.e. waterproof lining for milk/sippy cup spills, included changing pads/insulated bottle holders, easy key finder attachments, and lots and lots of pockets. Oh yeah, and with my small stature and lack of upper body strength, it had to be lightweight.
Here are my favorites, with all styles priced at $85 or under.
Since I'm having a boy, I immediately found myself attracted to crisp clean navy nautical stripes that are boy-friendly, yet more gender neutral than the selection of yellow, cream and mint green mommy bags I spied. There are bigger stow everything satchels for those early days when you're practically transporting the entire nursery to the mall with you, as well as quick change crossbody options that will hold all the bare essentials. The last option strays away from the versatile, go-with-everything French stripe theme but I had to get at least one super sexy designer bag because well, that's how mommy and her new stroller roll.
Babymel Satchel - Babymel, $85
Skip Hop Soho Crossbody- Layla Grayce, $30
Skip Hop Duo - Layla Grayce, $64
Russel Matos Diaper Bag- Amazon, $15.99
Rebecca Minkoff Marissa Baby Bag - Layla Grayce, $345 (I scored one on ebay for $85(!)
*p.s. Get 10% off any $150+ purchase at Layla Grayce with code LGCATALOG*