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I struggled a little coming up with blog content for my very first official post! So I decided on…me! I want to tell you a little more about my life…so for starters I am a southern gal (which you have kind of gathered from the website).
Once I moved from the South to the Midwest, I really struggled. Not only with the weather but with making friends up here. People were just rude and they totally didn't understand my sense of humor. It was a daily occurrence. "I can't understand you? Can you repeat that??" I'm not speaking a foreign language people! The huge difference was the words that I used to describe certain things. When I would go into a store and tell someone to grab a "buggy," they would respond, "I'm sorry, a what??" I would be like "Damn, don't you know what a buggy is??" or when I say hill but sounds like heel… I don't know why people where so concerned with my pronunciation. I always thought it was cute.
People called me stupid, said that I sounded deaf, and that it sounded like I had a lisp. This was really disheartening. I was thinking that it was true, people really are a-holes up here. I was so conscious of everything that I did; from my speech, to how I carried myself, and I how I dressed. I was obsessed with fitting in and definitely did not want to stand out. I remember crying on the phone with some girlfriends back home and I have never been that girl. Ever.
It came to a point where I was miserable with life. I was so grumpy all the time and I constantly snapped at people. I was just a miserable person to be around. All the time.
One day something hit me and I just broke down. I told myself that I can't keep doing this to myself or I was never going to be happy. I was changing into someone that I wouldn't even want to be friends with.
My friends have always described me as "the girl who dances to her own drum." Well this girl was determined to get her beat back. I told myself enough with trying to fit in. That is just boring and no way to live. I would find people who enjoyed me for me. I started doing things that I have always wanted to do. I joined a pole fitness class and immediately fell in love. I also found a new job that fit me. I began watching my weight and what I ate daily because I was previously feeling like crap ALL THE TIME. These changes were life altering. I have met some great girls in my dance class and they loveee my accent (which I don't hide anymore). I have a few coworkers that say they like having me around because I'm constantly smiling and it brings a good vibe to the office. This was the moment of recognition for me! I knew I was becoming my old self again!
The point of this story is that you shouldn't change yourself because people say dumb things about you. People are always going to have something to say and one day you'll find a group of people that love you for you! They will make you feel complete and will enjoy your company! These are the people that matter!
That's just a little bit about me! If anyone is reading this, I hope it helps through whatever struggle you're currently facing!
Love ya'll,


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September 21, 2013
Re: Evolution punishes selfish jerks in the long run, study finds (Aug. 1, 2013): I like the article on evolution punishes the selfish which I find is more philosophical. Perhaps it matches with the concepts of mind, body and spirit of the holistic human being and the adaptation of the evolution connected with it.
—Dr B S Prabhu

subset: commoncrawl


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I recently noticed a post on Pink Lady Beauty and figured a "What's in My Bag?" post would be fun. I love pocketbooks. It is no secret. Some of my prize possessions are my bags. As sad as that may sound, I just can't help myself. It started at a very young age. My grandmother worked at A & S and would manage to snag four year-old me the hippest pocketbooks that were on sale. Anyway, my obsession still continues and the wanna-be celebrity in me wants you to see what I have in my bag!
I currently am carrying an MZ Wallace bag. This bag is maybe from two seasons ago but their styles are pretty unique to the brand. I got this bag from my aunt. It sat in her closet for quite some time. It figures that it is one of my favorites and that it gets a lot of use.
The outside has two zippered pockets that are pretty generous in size. I find I don't use them as much unless it is something I need to grab fast.
My only gripe with the bag is the top zipper to the main compartment. If you pull the zipper too far when opening it, it gets stuck and makes the bag pretty impossible to close. I do love that the attached short strap still fits under my arm and over a heavy winter coat and that there is a detachable cross-body strap, making it hands-free and shopping friendly. The inside of the bag is also roomy and there is an inside pocket with a zipper along with a few other pockets.
Oh! There is also a back outside pocket! Hand sanitizer and lip balm are totally accessible in that pocket and I can just grab them quickly as I need them.
Caudalie's Hand and Nail Cream is delightful and leaves my hands feeling silky instantly so I can use my smart phone right after applying. Jouer"s Conditioning Lip Treatment feels lovely and gives lips that pillow look. My blotting papers are from Forever21 and there is also a mirror in the compact. I am hoping to be able to reuse the compact for other blotting papers.
My mom-in-law bought me the "Stuff" pencil case a few Christamases (is that a word?) ago and it is perfect for the work items I need to have on me. There is my random gaggle of pens and pencils, a USB drive that looks like a Carress bottle, some post-its and my work key lanyard. I thought the penguins were cute. I also stuck my "Never Judge a Book By Its Movie" button on there to remind people to READ!
My husband bought me an Elliot Lucca wallet last year. It is a big wallet and I pretty much throw everything that has to do with cash, receipts, credit cards, loyalty cards, change in it… you get the picture. I love that there are billfolds on either side to organize cash and miscellaneous paper. My keys have a Croc on them because my husband loves Crocs. I keep an Italian horn and the charm to ward off the malocchio- the evil eye. I also carry an ipsy pouch for my make-up.
I always have a few staples in my little cosmetics bag that never come out. Too Faced Lip Insurance Lip Primer is a necessity since I love my pigmented lipstick. This sample is perfect but I do have a full size when I finish up this guy. I also keep Too Faced Borderline Anti-Feathering Lip Pencil, which is pretty much a clear waxy lip pencil. It is smooth and terrific because it keeps pesky colors from bleeding without altering the shade. That little nub on the left is Sephora Nano Eyeliner in Pearl Beige. It is great for perking up tired eyes by adding a little to the inner corners or a quick highlight when blended on the browbone. I always have eye drops on hand if my eyes get dry or if my allergies make them itchy. I don't use the drops too often but like them nearby. Ibuprofen Cold & Sinus clears up some congestion or those annoying sinus headaches. Bare Minerals Ready Touch Up Tinted Mineral Veil helps me stay shine free and is great if I didn't get a chance to do my face before leaving the house. Don't even get me started about the three sample perfumes in the pouch. I heart Marni's eponymous perfume and wear it pretty often, so that is pretty much a mainstay. I currently am trying out Cartier's Baiser Vole. It is very sophisticated and I am pretty much done with this sample. The last is D'Anjou by DSH Perfumes. It is a really pretty pear scent and I received it in my October Bergamot box. In fact, I liked it so much, I bought it! Finally, the lip colors. I switch them up daily but I think Smashbox Lip Enhancing Gloss in Radiant may be another product that stays in the pouch all of the time. It is a shimmery rosy pink that is very flattering and great for throwing on in a pinch. My lipstick of the moment is Em Cosmetics by Michelle Phan in Nude. The color is fabulous- it is a nude that does not wash me out and with my primer, lasts a long time!
And that is pretty much it! What is your favorite bag? What do you lug around with you?
I know I would be lost without my pocketbook!
Keep Calm & Primp On! XOXO


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If you're planning a Disney vacation soon, you already know that you need to set a budget and do a little penny pinching to make it happen. To put everything together and turn that Disney dream into a real life vacation come true, you will want a few tricks and tips to help you save money. Check these out and get ready for your Disney adventure on a shoestring budget. Off-Season Traveling Sure, you might be thinking about that Disney vacation during the busy summer season when the kids are Continue Reading
Disney's Epcot for Families – Eating the World at Epcot #BayouTravel
A typical kid-centered vacation usually means eating plenty of mediocre meals. You're after ease, a low price, and something that will keep them happy. Spending a day or two at Epcot may make you rethink what eating at a theme park can mean. There's even an unofficial "eat/drink around the world" challenge that many people attempt to complete. The challenge is simple, eat something and drink something from each of the pavilions! Each one of the country pavilions in Epcot offers at least two Continue Reading
Disney With No Kids? Yes, I did and here are my Favorite Instagram Pictures #BayouTravel
You would think that if I had the opportunity to go to Walt Disney World in Orlando that my children would be with me. NO, mine stayed at home! Although I asked my kids months in advance, they decided to stay home during the recent trip. My teen did not want to miss school and my son did not want to go unless his sister went. The very thought made me feel guilty. how could I have fun without my children? Easy! It was a total blast! Not only do you have the opportunity to race through Continue Reading
Best Family Experiences in Disney Springs {Formerly Known as Downtown Disney} #BayouTravel
Did you know it's possible to have a Disney experience without paying the admission prices to one of the parks? Downtown Disney is home to many shops and restaurants but also has several activities for children of all ages. If you're not eager to pay admission to the parks, or you simply want a different kind of experience Downtown Disney may be the perfect option. If you're driving, parking here is free. You can also take the shuttle buses from any Disney resort hotel or the water shuttle Continue Reading
Walt Disney World Resorts that Celebrate Diversity #BayouTravel
You might think all Disney resorts offer the same packaged deal, but you would be wrong! With twenty-five different resorts available for guests to choose from there's a wide variety of options, experiences and price ranges for travelers. If you want something more than just the typical Florida hotel experience try one of these resorts that celebrate diversity. Caribbean Beach Resort This resort is built around a bay and brings the feel of the Caribbean islands to central Florida. There are Continue Reading
5 Ways Kids Can Learn about the World at Epcot Center #BayouTravel
When visiting Walt Disney World with children many people overlook spending time at Epcot Center. There's no crazy rides, in fact there aren't many rides at all. However, if you want to expose your children to other parts of the world (without needing to buy an around the world flight) there's no place better! Epcot used to be thought of as an adults only park but today, things have changed. Not only will children have a great time visiting, they'll be learning while having fun. Visit 11 Continue Reading
Walt Disney World Resort – Animal Kingdom Lodge: Photo Recap #BayouTravel
Today's #BayouTravel recap is from my recent visit to Walt Disney World in Florida. Although Animal Kingdom Lodge is considered a Deluxe Resort, I find that the lodge is a good value for the experience it offers. Where else would over 200 animals and birds call home? Animal Kingdom Lodge gives guest the opportunity to experience the African experience with lush savannas and one of the largest, pristine collection of African art in the united States. The horseshoe-curved design layout Continue Reading
Advantages to Staying at a Disney Resort #BayouTravel
When you begin to plan your Disney vacation one of the biggest questions that comes up is whether to stay on-site or offsite. There are many advantages to staying onsite however many people balk at the high price tag Disney resorts can carry. Why stay at a Disney resort when you can find other accommodations nearby for less? There are many reasons! Enter parks earlier and stay later Guests who are staying in Disney Resorts can take advantage of Magic Hours before general park opening and Continue Reading
Walt Disney World Resort Options – Disney's Coranado Springs Resort #BayouTravel
Since my first trip to Disney World almost 20 year ago, Disney Resorts have always been ranked above average in terms on comfort. Every Disney resort, even value resorts offers something unique to guests. While comfort, space and amenities are major keys to booking any resort sometimes a resort offers guests much more. During my recent visit to Walt Disney World, I had booked a stay at Coranado Springs Resort which is where the 2014 Niche Parent Conference was taking place. Staying at this Continue Reading


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It is time for our Monthly Craft Room De-Stash Challenge! This is such a great challenge, because not only do we have a talented group of bloggers participating, but we also get to clear out some of our craft room stash!
We had an unseasonably warm weekend and it totally inspired me to think about Spring! So I decided to make a succulent garden that I can bring out to the deck when Spring arrives. Here is what you need to make your own Succulent Garden.
Chicken Wire Shadow Box-found at craft store
Several Succulents
Cactus & Succulent Potting Soil
Sharing At These Great Parties:
Rustic-refined; My Pinterventures; I Should Be Mopping The Floor; Keeping It Simple Crafts; Farmhouse 40; Stone Gable; Cupcakes And Crinoline; Flamingo Toes; The DIY Mommy; Lou Lou Girls; Creatively Living
A Stroll Thru Life; The DIY Dreamer; The Cookie Puzzle; VMG 206;
Savvy Southern Style; Three Kids And A Fish;
The Pin Junkie; The Charm of Home; Crafts a la Mode; The Happy Scraps; Milas Little Things; My Thrift Store Addition; Katherine's Corner; The36thAvenue
Craftberry Bush; Funky Junk Interiors; The DIY Village; The Cottage Market; French Country Cottage; Craft Dictator; I Heart Naptime; Remodelaholic
One More Time Events; Life On Lakeshore Drive; Pieced Pasttimes
Across the Boulevard; Finding Silver Pennies


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Grade Rubric
Introductory Blog Post
|Blog is posted on time, is error free, polished and carefully proofread.
|Blog responds to the introductory post's prompts, effectively introducing themselves to the class. Students are not required to address every question covered in the assignment, but should answer enough to paint a full picture for the class.
|Blog includes the following elements: image, category designations, tags, paragraph breaks, and at least one link. Each of these elements is required in order to ensure students know how to use these blog elements and encourage students to use these elements in future posts.
|15 points possible
Regular Blog Posts
|Entry is posted on time, addresses one of the posted blog prompts, meets minimum length requirement (300-500 words), is categorized and tagged with appropriate information, including assignment number (Blog 1 etc.) and prompt tag (Classic, close reading etc.)
|Entry is error free, polished, and demonstrates familiarity with blog style and formatting, including attention to visual rhetoric, audience appeal and unique blog elements (images, links, tags).
|Entry advances new, independent, and in-depth analysis of the text, textbook, or class discussions. Entries that simply re-hash ideas discussed in class without adding independent or new analysis cannot receive full credit.
|40 points possible
|Comment(s) are present, meets minimum requirements (1 comment of 200 words OR 2 comments of 100 words each)
|Comment(s) are error free, polished and responds to the original poster's blog. Students may disagree with each other, but comments should be respectful and follow the rules of classroom decorum.
|Comment(s) advance the conversation, adding more than a simple agree/disagree. Comment(s) may include additional evidence, a counter-argument, a different way of approaching the argument laid out in the original post etc. A comment that simply summarizes another blog post or comments made in class cannot receive full credit.
|20 points possible
Bibliography from Presentation
|Contains at least 5 sources
Sources are all high quality, academic, peer-reviewed
All sources are properly cited in MLA format
All 5 sources are referenced in the presentation
Bibliography demonstrates thorough research completed for presentation
Posted on class blog prior to presentation by 1 group member
|Contains 4 sources
Most sources are high quality, academic, peer reviewed with one or two exceptions
MLA format is attempted, with minor errors: overall consistent citations
Some of the sources are referenced in presentation
Bibliography demonstrates that some shallow research was completed for presentation
Posted on the blog the same day as (but after) presentation
|Contains fewer than 3 or fewer sources
Sources are unreliable, insubstantial or Wikipedia (or equivalent).
Sources are not cited in MLA format.
Sources are not referenced in presentation, unclear where information in presentation came from
Bibliography demonstrates virtually no research done for presentation
Posted after the date of the presentation = 0


text: This is my third shoot with Alice and her family! I can't believe that Darby & Kevin are turning 5 this month!!! How do they get so big so fast?! I have to say the older they get, the cuter they are! I really enjoyed spending time with them and love how the photos turned out! I have a feeling a few people will be getting some pretty cute Christmas Cards this year!


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While much of the attention for the Scandinavian Noir movement is likely to focus on suspenseful dramas permeating the small screen, the big screen has also seen its share of Nordic gloom, with Stieg Larsson's Girl with the Dragon Tattoo series in particular proving popular in countries around the world. Yet perhaps the highest acclaim for the cinematic export of Scandinavian Noir has come for a film which was never incidentally branded as such; Nicolas Winding Refn's 2011 film, Drive, was not only hailed at Cannes, where it won Winding Refn a best director prize, but it also captured the attention of mainstream film-goers as well, helping solidify the star-power of its Canadian-cum-American lead, Ryan Gosling. And while its American setting and production funding may have precluded its branding as a 'Scandinavian Noir,' Winding Refn (a Dane) had already been making a name for himself in the regional sub-genre with films such as the Pusher series, and the film's stylistic overtones were enough to ensure that it was still (unwittingly) categorized as 'neo-noir.' Indeed, it seemed that Scandinavian or not, everyone could agree there was no mistaking Drive as an exemplary piece of noir.
On the surface, this made sense. The film reveled in the shadows; setting many of its scenes at night, and keeping most of its daytime scenes indoors, using light sources that never quite managed to fill the corners of a room. And it coupled its shadowy scenes with just-as-shadowy characters. The film dealt with the criminal underbelly in LA, complete with mobsters and goons. Then there was its requisite 21st Century 'grit;' fight scenes bordering on the gratuitous, with Winding Refn allowing his own school-boy zeal for violence to bubble over into barbarous territory (a microcosm of this being the elevator scene where Gosling's character too, allows his murderous impulses to overtake him). It put high-brow art critics in the awkward position normally reserved for their reviews of Tarantino films- desperately needing to intellectualize their own base enjoyment of the unabashed blood-lust on-screen. Thankfully there were enough retro synthesizers, throwback fonts, and long takes with sparse dialogue to legitimize its art-house cool, and both critics and mainstream audiences alike felt rest assured in their universal acclaim of this neo/Scanadinavian/noir. Yet, the same could not be said for Winding Refn's next picture, Only God Forgives. The film wasn't nearly as well received, despite much of the same noir-ish veneer, leaving film-goers to naturally compare the two golden Goosling vehicles and postulate where Winding Refn had gone wrong. Or put another way, to question what made Drive work so well (as a piece of noir). Well, like a souped-up Chevrolet Impala, the secret to Drive lay under its hood all along: in actual fact, it wasn't a noir at all. Instead, it was a very formulaic, paint-by-numbers… Western.
What makes a noir a 'noir' (let alone a Scandinavian Noir) can be difficult to put one's finger on. A noir's binding elements are largely superficial and subjective; a darkened look, a suspenseful feeling, and elements of law and order. And yet, suspense and criminality are alive and well in many genres of film. Hence, noir's have always been intrinsically tied to their lighting, first and foremost. And in this sense it's almost excusable that film-goers mistook Drive as such. Indeed, it certainly looks like a noir. Yet, on the other hand, Westerns are relatively easy to plot, formally speaking. There are certain narrative elements which act as the structural core of any good Western, and considering these hallmarks, Drive is most certainly a textbook Western in (Sam) spades, relying on successful tropes and plot devices going back all the way to such canonical classics as The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, My Darling Clementine, and perhaps most overtly, Shane. And although Winding Refn has only spoken (on the record) of the film working as a modern-day 'fable' or 'fairytale,' even from the film's opening he seems all too happy to hint at the film's Western underpinnings.
The very first thing ever seen or heard in Drive is the breezy sound of an open dusty road; a sound which almost begs the visuals of a tumbleweed rolling along. And yet, when the visuals do appear, we're inside a dark hotel room with the windows shut; the previous sound being a diegetic impossibility. We then hear a man cooly offer a personal code of conduct, his face turned away from us. Only a fleeting reflection in the window offers a glimpse of who he is while he overlooks the city he will shortly be riding- er, 'driving' into. The only identification, besides the steely voice, is that of the large embroidered scorpion on his jacket; a classic symbol of the desert.
Aside from these meager clues, Winding Refn keeps his cards close to his chest when it comes to his protagonist, much in keeping with Western hero archetypes. We know little about him- neither where he comes from, nor where he's going, nor what his goals are. In may ways he seems to be a direct update of Clint Eastwood's 'Man With No Name' character in Sergio Leone's Dollars Trilogy; instead of a horse, he drives cars. Instead of the iconic Western cigarillo, he chews on toothpicks. Instead of a cowboy hat, he throws on a ball cap by the end of the intro. He is a nameless drifter of few words who does most of the talking with his fists. We're also introduced to him at a time when he's aiding and abetting criminals. This too is a trope of the Westerns protagonist conventions; we're not sure what side of the law he's on (laws being seen as disconnected or ineffectual in the wake of everyday frontier circumstances) we only know he has his own moral code, and thus, some sort of sense of justice, be it legal or not. This is made clear from that seminal phone call, wherein The Driver mumbles some of his only words, outlining his personal rules for the ensuing (lawless) situation. Winding Refn later even plays a quick sheriff joke by showing The Driver in a cop uniform -momentarily misleading the audience- only to reveal he's actually a part time stunt driver. As Bordwell and Thompson point out in their breakdown of the Western genre:
"The in-between position of the hero affects common Western plots. He may start out on the side of lawlessness, or he may simply stand apart from the conflict."1
Of course, there are some modern transpositions afforded in keeping with the contemporary neo-noir veneer. For instance, instead of a dusty one-horse town, The Driver overlooks the gleaming, glassy metropolis of Los Angeles. But of course, it's likely no coincidence that Los Angeles itself is historically a wild-western city that was once at the edge of American frontier colonial expansion, and which was previously occupied by staple groups of Western-genre 'otherness': namely, Mexicans and First Nations. Furthermore, in keeping with those motifs of setting, a classic trope for opening a Western might be for the drifting protagonist to see a town from afar, ride his way into it on horseback, and then start to integrate with the locals (such as in Shane). And in Drive, although it's later implied that The Driver has been in town 'for a while,' the opening scene echoes this Western structure, starting with The Driver overlooking Los Angeles, then continuing through his drive into the heart of the city, and ending up with his integration into the local crowd via the parkade.
Once we're past this Western-esque introduction and The Driver is installed into a day-to-day life, the next narrative step is to introduce him to characters he'll begin to affiliate with and care for. In short, the Western hero needs to become "uneasily attracted to the life offered by the newcomers on the frontier."2 The newcomers on the frontier in Drive are represented by his neighbour Irene and her son, Benicio. While until now, the protagonist was kept cloaked in moral ambiguity, it's through the plight of these 'civilized' law-abiding townsfolk that the protagonist fully ingratiates himself with the audience. His moral, chivalrous compass ultimately appealing to his sense of justice and compelling him to pick up the gauntlet of peace and order in fighting those who are bent on attacking the defenseless, including damsels in distress, which Mulligan here essentially plays. This too puts him in league with classic Western heroes like Shane, Henry Fonda's Wyatt Earp, John Wayne in Stagecoach, etc.
Winding Refn does little to establish the attraction between the neighbours verbally, adhering instead to the Western conventions of the "shy courting of a woman by the rough hewn-hero."3 Primarily, he does this by offering nothing more than several doe-eyed looks and lingering smiles in awkward silences. And the two characters never consummate their budding attraction either, which works to The Driver's chivalrous credit, as Irene is still married to Benicio's father, Standard. This too echoes Henry Fonda's Wyatt Earp in respectfully keeping his romantic feelings in check for Cathy Down's character in the canonical Western, My Darling Clementine. But perhaps even more closely, the dynamic appears as an almost verbatim extrapolation from Shane, wherein the eponymous hero is smitten by the wife of a settler and her young son. The boys in both films are around the same age, and it's partially through the protagonists benevolent/fatherly interactions with them that the audience rests assured of the hero's good intentions. They even share similar discussions- in Shane, about guns, in Drive, about sharks.
While benevolence towards the son helps ingratiate The Driver further to the audience, the fact Winding Refn has to do so little to establish the romance partially speaks to the director's use of semiotics and the audience's presumptive conditioning. The selective edits of the two leads smiling at each other -often against leading pop tunes whose lyrics speak directly about the characters- tells the audience most of what it needs to know. Then the fact they are also the most youthful and arguably attractive actors (or at least, framed/lit that way) doesn't hurt either. And yet, there is also something potentially more troublesome at play with the way they look that may be swaying the audience's (subconscious) expectations of character: that of their ethnicities. It seems worth noting that Gosling, blue-eyed, clean shaven, and looking positively Scandinavian in the role, gets to be the knight in shining armer amongst seedy characters who are alternately singled out as Jewish, Eastern European, or in the case of Standard: Latino. The only other 'good guy' is his bumbling-but-loveable WASP father-figure, played by Bryan Cranston. Mulligan too, blonde haired and pale, seems ready to be whisked away from her ethnically-mixed marriage (and the trouble its tacitly seen as bringing to her door) by the first guy who carries her groceries home, smiles a bit at her son, and looks more like her. It's almost as if there was some unspoken ethnic empathy at play.
While this may seem like a stretch at first, in the DVD extras of Drive, Winding Refn even notes how he tried many talented Latino actresses for the role of Irene (as the character was written as such in the novella), but 'nothing was working in his head' because despite their beauty, he couldn't "fall in love with any of them." Then he met Mulligan, whom he immediately felt like he wanted to 'protect,' and thus rewrote the part for "a white American woman."4 Whether or not this was all subconscious or coincidental remains to be seen, but it could be argued (with much chagrin) that these representations do nothing to harm the audience's comprehension of the narrative itself, but instead reinforce who's with who, considering how sparse the film is on dialogue and exposition. In other words, since we really don't know much about who these people are (esp. The Driver), Winding Refn may be using the visual similarities (and differences) of characters as secondary supporting cues.
As cringe-worthy as that seems, it wouldn't be out of step with Western conventions either, as the clean-cut hero is often pitted visually against the boorish and unkempt cattle rustlers, Mexicans, or 'savage' Native Americans while he defends the white settlers in 'hostile' territory. A direct correlation in Drive would be the Eastern European henchman who could easily been seen as boorish or uncultivated; his frequenting of strip clubs also making an easy parallel with the cattle rustlers who frequent the brothels in Westerns.
But insofar as the Western hero is "naturally inclined toward justice and kindness, the cowboy is often poised between savagery and civilization."5 And just as we are getting comfortable with the idea that The Driver is a softy, Winding Refn reminds us that he was initially an outlaw capable of his own brand of Wild West justice. In a diner scene, The Driver verbally threatens an unnamed man who reminds him of a job he performed the year prior. It foreshadows the violent lengths to which The Driver will go to protect Irene and Benicio once Standard explains the potential danger they could be in. Compelled by that threat, "the hero decides to join the forces of order, helping them fight hired gunmen, bandits, or whatever the film presents as a threat to stability and progress."6 And indeed, The Driver sets about trying to help Standard in an attempt to shield Irene and Benicio from harm. However, things go awry, leading to a compromising climax where The Driver is forced to brutally dispose of a hired gun in front of Irene. It's a pivotal scene for characterization, as The Driver is coerced into showing his uncivilized side in front of the woman who represents the side of peace and order. Thus, before he annihilates the threat, he kisses Irene for the first time, knowing it might well be his last. And once the henchman has been gruesomely disposed of, Winding Refn again lets silence do the talking, as the elevator doors which stand between Irene and The Driver seem to close both literally and figuratively on their potential romance.
Regardless, the dutiful hero finishes what he started, valiantly moving towards a final showdown with the bad guys for the sake of his unrequited love, ensuring peace and order are left in his wake. For, "the drifting cowboy is condemned to live outside civilization because he cannot tame his grief and hatred. More savage than citizen, he becomes condemned." And as Winding Refn has his cowboy literally ride out into the sunset, we again hear the pulsating confirmation from the soundtrack that he is in fact a real human being, and a real hero.
While this open-endedness in Drive confirmed for many the art-house credentials of a modern noir classic, it was in reality another stylishly executed trope from the blueprints of Westerns of yore, most closely mirroring Shane, where the still-bleeding cowboy rides off after the battle despite being welcome to stay with those he just helped protect. It's one of a number of plot points shared with that film, amongst many other Westerns like it. Regardless, this Western wolf in noir's clothing certainly worked its impressionistic magic on unsuspecting audiences; the aesthetic facade of the film cementing its branding as neo-noir, while upholding its director as being one of the finest purveyors of the Scandinavian Noir sensibility. Yet the truth of the matter illuminates one of the enduring issues for the noir moniker (both Scandinavian or other): that the classification may only go skin deep. Indeed, it may not really mean anything more tangible than a few elusive shadows. And so, if you want to write a great neo-noir, you might want to rent a few oaters first…
(1) David Bordwell and Kristin Thompson, Film Art: An Introduction, 9th Edition, (New York: The McGraw-Hill Companies, 2010) 338
(2) Bordwell and Thompson, 338.
(3) Bordwell and Thompson, 338.
(4) Drive without a Driver: An interview with Nicolas Winding Refn. Drive DVD. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. 2012
(5) Bordwell and Thompson, 338.
(6) Bordwell and Thompson, 338.


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A huge crashing sound created by layering a bunch of my own samples, some of which are on Freesound. They include parts of my "Coke Can Chaos" pack, an explosion or two, some glass shattering and even the sound of a television set being dropped off a balcony.
thanks man....... :)
Not quite sure of the attribution license. Can I use this in a commercial work?
Thank you! Good work.
thanks, man, used it for a combination of trash sounds in the end of the song "auf jeden fall" of the upcoming record of german artist gofi müller & die blasting clowns. http://musik.gofi-mueller.de
Very cool!
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The Column Shoe and Wall Shoe Systems are mainly used to connect precast columns and wall panels with foundations. The advantages of these systems are that it is easier to manufacture the precast units and assembly is faster.
PFEIFER Steel Bearings are available for placing π-beams on girders.
Thus, no scaffolding to support the beams during installation is needed.
Our VarioSonic staircase bearing for precast concrete stairs, which can be adjusted under load during installation, provides simple and effective support. It has sound insulation and is fireproof.
Where earthing of reinforcement of concrete structures is required we offer our BEB Concrete Earthing System. The comprehensive range comprises earthing connectors and earthing bridges. Approvals have been awarded by the "Eisenbahn Bundesamt" as well as the German Railway Company.


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Between wind and water
The town of Lüderitz stands in isolation on a great frontier between the desert and ocean. Beyond the structures huddled together beside the bay and a lighthouse on the peninsula, the surroundings are much as Bartolomeu Dias found them in 1487, when his flotilla of three small ships first sailed into the uncharted anchorage.
The townlands form an enclave in the Sperrgebiet, 26 000 km² of coastal desert rich in diamonds. The greater part of the Sperrgebiet lies to the south. Northward the dune fields of the Great Sand Sea sprawl overland to the horizon and far beyond.
Lüderitz was built on a windswept, rocky hillside and ridge beside the bay. Behind the town, out of sight from the sea, a black-top road runs into the interior. Outside the town limits it passes Kolmanskop, now a ghost town, where diamonds were first mined in the Namib. The next town is Aus, 125km to the east, across the desert.
Lüderitz is located on the only part of the Namibian coast with a rocky shore. A peninsula with numerous coves, locally called fjords and bays, juts out of the coast at an angle to form the bay proper. Three small islands -- Penguin, Seal and Flamingo -- lie within the bay. Shark Island was once also an island in the bay, but a solid causeway now joins it to the mainland. It encloses the harbour and a yacht basin.
Twelve islands lie in Namibian waters north and south of Lüderitz. Collectively they are known as the Penguin Islands or sometimes the Guano Islands. Penguin colonies live on few islands nowadays, but guano still accumulates abundantly, as seabirds -- especially cormorants and gannets -- roost and breed on all the islands. The islands are bleak and barren, except for a few bushes on Possession, the biggest one with an area of 90ha.
Bartolomeu Dias sailed from Portugal in search of a sea route for trade with India. He became the first European navigator to round the southern tip of Africa after he tacked out of the bay he had found on the Namib coast. In time his compatriot Vasco da Gama would follow and sail beyond the Cape of Good Hope to Calcutta.
On his homeward voyage Dias again put into the bay and named it Golfo de Săo Christovăo (Gulf of Saint Christopher) after his flagship. Cartographers later changed the name to Angra dos Ilheos (Bay of Islets) and later still to Angra Pequena (Narrow Bay). Both names describe the locality well, a bay dotted with little islands where -- in the words of a contemporary seafarer -- "a hundred ships could anchor". Small ships, that is, like caravels.
For nearly 400 years after Bartolomeu Dias dropped anchor in its waters, the bay remained an obscure anchorage on a barren part of the African coast, except for a rapacious scramble for whales and guano in the 19th century.
Angra Pequena would change forever after Adolf Lüderitz, a merchant from Bremen in Germany, contrived to purchase the bay and adjacent land in 1883. In addition he later purchased all of the coast to the south as far as the Orange River and to the north as far as the Kunene River.
Within months Imperial Germany placed his acquisitions under its "protection" and proceeded to colonise the future South West Africa. The process took exactly a year, from its inception on 24 April 1884 to the dispatch of a resident commissioner on 23 April 1885, with Angra Pequena utilised as the entrepot. The offshore islands and Walfisch Bay, earlier annexed to Britain, remained in British hands.
For lack of a natural harbour elsewhere, Angra Pequena remained the principal port for German South West Africa, despite its being out of the way in the south. It was renamed Lüderitzbucht (Lüderitz Bay), eventually shortened to Lüderitz, after Adolf Lüderitz was drowned at sea in 1886. A plaque in his memory is located on Shark Island.
Franz Adolf Eduard Lüderitz, the man in the gold-rimmed glasses, was an unlikely empire builder. A tobacco merchant from the German city of Bremen, he inherited the family business from his father after he himself had failed as a rancher in Mexico, where as a young man he bred horses and cattle.
One day he looked at a map of Africa, saw an empty space and decided to take it, since "nothing better (was) left." Foreign powers such as Britain, France, Belgium and Portugal were fast gobbling up the continent.
Lüderitz sought and obtained prior assurance of German protection when in 1882 he declared his intention to build a factory for purposes of trade on a desert coast he had never seen. His grand design was to acquire possession of land in the interior from tribal chiefs and to "introduce German goods under German labels".
For such a project he needed "the protection of the German flag". Besides he did not want to pay duties to the British authorities on imports through Walfisch Bay.
He initially sent out a young man named Heinrich Vogelsang as his agent. Vogelsang persuaded Joseph Fredericks, a tribal chief who claimed suzerainty over that part of the coast, to part with Angra Pequena -- the anchorage along with all land within a radius of 8 km -- for Ł100 in gold coin and 200 rifles.
As it turned out, Lüderitz did not pay the Ł100 in gold, but in trade goods. The good chief for his part chose not to reveal that his predecessor, David Fredericks, had already sold part of the land to someone else.
Less than three months after the first deal, Vogelsang bought all of the coast from Angra Pequena to the Orange River, to a width of 20 "geographical miles". Known for a time as Lüderitzland, the acquisition contained vast treasure in the form of diamonds, although nobody knew it at the time. It would eventually become the Sperrgebiet.
The agreed price was Ł500 in gold and 60 rifles, but as before no gold changed hands. Lüderitz again paid in trade goods.
Vogelsang had plied Joseph Fredericks with strong drink. Moreover he led him to believe that geographical (or German) miles were identical to English miles when they were in fact five times as long. When the chief later became aware of the deception, he rued the loss of "more than half of Bethanie" (his tribal territory).
Lüderitz later bought the coast north of Angra Pequena, as far as the Kunene River, from other chiefs for the princely sum of Ł170 in all.
To all intents and purposes he had bought an entire country, the future South West Africa, in little more than two years from 1 May 1883 to 19 June 1885. He owned about a third of it outright and held mineral rights to a large part of the remainder.
Unfortunately for him he had run out of money. Unable to exploit his acquisitions and concessions, he sold them to the Deutsche Kolonialgesellschaft für Südwest Africa (DKG), a chartered company founded in Berlin to develop the colony.
Lüderitz had failed as a trader and his geological expeditions -- each more costly than the one before -- failed to discover the gold and copper he sought.
With a subsidy from the DKG he went on a final expedition in search of mineral wealth. On his homeward journey in a small boat with a flimsy sail, he and his helmsman were lost at sea, somewhere between the Orange River mouth and Angra Pequena.
Diamonds were discovered 22 years after his death in the desert he had once owned. Almost a century later, they are still being mined.
|The town
Diamantberg, Nautilus Hill, Water Tower Hill, Shark Island.
Lüderitzbucht Safaris & Tours,
P O Box 76, Lüderitz, Namibia
Tel +264 (0)63 20 2719
Cell +264 (0)81 129 7236
Fax +264-(0)63 20 2863
Ghost Town Tours,
P O Box 305, Lüderitz, Namibia
Tel & fax +264 (0)63 20 4031
Cell +264 (0)81 128 4336
Germany in Africa
In streets almost devoid of trees, the townscape today still reflects the colonial past, a remnant of Germany in Africa: edifices with domes, towers and turrets, steep roofs with oriel windows, embellished gables, bay windows on ground level and, for shelter from the wind, Wintergärten or sunrooms in homes.
Uniquely in Africa, the predominant architectural style of public, business and residential buildings, especially in Ring, Bismarck, Berg and Bahnhof streets, is straight out of late 19th century Germany.
Grand residence
Goerke Haus is a grand residence or "diamond palace" built in 1909, restored to its former glory and furnished with period pieces. It is named after Hans Goerke, the original owner and first occupant, who was a prominent businessman.
An apocryphal story once had it that the castlelike house was built to accommodate German royalty on a proposed visit to the colony that failed to materialise.
Situated in Diamantberg Street. Open weekdays 14:00-16:00, weekends 16:00-17:00. Closed on public holidays.
Victorian Gothic
Felsenkirche (Church on the Rocks) is the name given to the German Evangelical Lutheran Church built in 1912 on a rocky hill. The stained-glass windows and the woodwork inside the church are impressive. The window in the altar apse was a gift from the German emperor.
The fine proportions of the church and its verticality of form, especially the helm roof of the spire, represent an English Gothic style -- specifically Vertical Gothic, prevalent in the Victorian era -- rather than the neo-Gothic preferred in the German Church at the time.
The church is on Diamantberg. Open daily, Monday to Saturday, from 17:00.
Flora, history, ethnology.
Open daily, Monday to Friday, 15:30-17:00.
Agate Beach
Agate Beach forms an enclave on its own, 8 km out of town, within a remnant of the Sperrgebiet. It is a long and sandy beach located on the fringe of the sand sea with the dunes clearly in sight. Seal Island is just offshore. The water is calm as the beach is situated on the shore of the bay. Barbecue places are provided. The road to Agate Beach is open to the public and suitable for sedan cars.
Shark Island
A small beach close to town.
Supervised digs for rosette-like desert or sand roses take place at Agate Beach. Desert roses are gypsum or calcium sulphate crystals that form in moist conditions under the desert sand. It is necessary to arrange a dig and obtain a permit in advance.
Ministry of Environment & Tourism,
Schinz Street, Lüderitz
T el +264 (0)63 20 2811
F ax +264 (0)63 20 4188
Radford Bay (Damara terns),
Second Lagoon (greater flamingos).
|The sea
Daily cruises under sail, when weather permits, on the schooner Sedina. Departure at 08:00 from Robert Harbour. The schooner follows a course across Lüderitz Bay to Angra Point, Sturmvogelbucht, Shearwater Bay, Diaz Point, Guano Bay and Halifax Island. Returns to port 10:15-10:30.
Sedina Boat Tours,
P O Box 305, Lüderitz, Namibia
Tel +264 (0)63 20 4030
Fax +264 (0)6320 4031
Wild dolphins
Benguela or Heaviside's dolphins often accompany the Sedina and criss-cross in front of her bows. They are endemic to the west coast of southern Africa. About half of them live in Namibian waters, mostly inshore and on the southern coast, with their highest density around Lüderitz. They are the smallest dolphins in southern African seas, with a maximum recorded length of 1,74m and mass of 70,8kg.
Stone cross
On a lofty point on the Lüderitz Peninsula, Bartolomeu Dias in 1488 erected a padrăo or stone cross on his homeward voyage to Portugal, after he had rounded the Cape of Good Hope. A replica now stands on the spot, known as Diaz (sic) Point, with the original kept -- as found, in pieces -- in museums in Cape Town and Lisbon. Seen from a sailing boat at sea, Diaz Point gains its true perspective, a rocky headland with its back to the desert. A colony of Cape fur seals lives at the foot of the point.
Penguin colony
In open sea south-west of Diaz Point, just off the peninsula, Halifax Island supports a penguin colony. The Sedina tarries offshore for a close look. Classified as vulnerable overall and critically endangered in Namibia, African or jackass penguins are endemic to southern Africa and the only resident species. They breed only in South Africa and off the Namibian coast on Halifax, Ichaboe, Mercury and Possession islands.
|The peninsula
A 65km route around the peninsula runs from Lüderitz to Grosse Bucht (Big Bay) and back to town along the Atlantic shore. Sandy embayments or pocket beaches alternate with rocky promontories. The ground is fairly bare, but supports lichens and -- in sandy places -- hummock vegetation, especially woody shrubs and succulents.
Some of the oldest formations in Namibia, gneisses and other metamorphic rocks, crop out extensively on the peninsula. Visible mainly as darker or lighter intrusions in other rocks, they are remnants of a mountain that was formed 1 500-1 000 million years ago. In the course of geological time the mountain was eroded away.
The gravel roads on the peninsula are maintained in good condition, but a route map is necessary as they are poorly signposted.
Diaz Point, Griffith Bay.
Diaz Point
On the landward side of Diaz Point a wooden bridge crosses a gully to steps that climb up to the Diaz Cross. The top is exposed to the elements, with an atmosphere that can become somewhat eerie, particularly in high wind and thick fog.
An old whaling station rusts away at Sturmvogelbucht (Storm Petrel Bay). From the late 18th to the early 20th century British, American and Norwegian whalers hunted the southern right and other whales in Namibian waters, with no fewer than five whaling stations eventually established on the coast between Angra Pequena and Walfisch Bay.
Grosse Bucht
A 2km sandy beach on the shores of Grosse Bucht is where the Lüderitz Peninsula ends and the Sperrgebiet begins.
Halifax Point (penguins visible on Halifax Island through binoculars).
Essy Bay, Fjord, Griffith
Bay, Grosse Bucht, Halifax Point, Kartoffelbucht, Kleiner Bogenfels, Sturmvogelbucht
and Witmuur.
The Sperrgebiet ......
Namibia Guidebook.


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Our Colorado trip was great. This was the first "family" trip we had taken together, and I was more than ready after five years for some landscape therapy. I was a little worried about how it would all go down, thirteen hour car trip and all, but it went amazingly well. All I can say is thank God for whoever invented the tiny DVD player and decided to put it into cars. Grace watched several movies the first night on our way out but the way back she watched six videos…some of them twice! Sure they'll rot her brain but let me tell you, if it's one more showing of Soccer Dog or whining preschooler…crank it up, Baby!
We were going to leave Saturday morning but inpatient bunch that we are we decide to leave right after work on Friday. I hired Austin to chicken sit for me while I was gone. A quick stop at Mom's in Bolivar to drop off the cat and a lesson on the Garmin Street Pilot GPS from Dad, and we were on our way.
We drove about four hours and stopped in Manhattan,KS at a lame Econolodge where Bryon was sure there were lice in the bath tub (I was pretty sure they were gnats). But we were there, and tired and already paid up, so we let it go and went to bed. Bryon was like a Dateline reporter checking for bed bugs behind the pictures and bed frame, but we managed to sleep the night away and head out the next morning.
Let me tell you, Kansas is one vast prairie that would, in fact, lead you to believe the world really was flat after all and if you just keep going into the horizon you would eventually fall off of it. Thankfully, just outside of Limon, Co that fear was assuaged when the first mountain peaks popped up at the edge of the sage grass.
We had booked four nights at a KOA Kamper Kabin in Colorado Springs and three nights in another KOA Kabin in Estes Park, and they were really great. They were sparse with only a queen bed and a bunk bed, but Grace was thrilled to get to sleep on the top bunk. The KOAs had lots of activities, cheap breakfasts and dinners and ice cream socials every night! I partook quite a bit (I joined WW back Sunday afternoon in fact!)
We pretty much wore out Colorado Springs and did every touristy thing there was to do except Cave of the Winds and Seven Falls. We went to the Royal Gorge because Grace is just ate up with being "big high" and the higher the better. Well you can't get much higher than the Royal Gorge. We went all the way down to the bottom on this ridiculously constructed tram, across the bridge on foot then back again on the aerial tram. Did I ever mention I'm afraid of heights? Grace didn't get her courage from me that's for sure.
The next day we rode the Cog Railway up to the top of Pikes Peak, and I summitted my first (and likely only) peak. Grace saw half of the trip and the top but slept all the way back down. That girl likes trains a LOT and every train we saw she wanted to ride. She ended up riding three: the Cog and two little kiddie trains.
She also ate a TON of candy and now we are paying for that indulgence because you can't take candy away from a preschooler without consequences. We visited Manitou Springs which was just like Eureka Springs but not quite as DIVERSE (you Wild Women know what I mean :). Lots of neat little shops. We had a few really good meals and a couple of bad ones.
Grace also learned to doggie paddle with her life jacket on in the KOA pool which was pretty exciting for her and us. She was motoring around like crazy, she just couldn't remember to keep her mouth closed (a common problem for us Medley's).
Estes Park brought Rocky Mountain National Park and lots of sightseeing. I really didn't expect to see much wildlife because I've been so spoiled by all those years (8) of going to Yellowstone, but we saw probably 200 elk, a dozen big horn sheep way up a mountainside, mule deer, yellow bellied marmots, a million chipmunks (much to Grace's delight) and four moose (much to my delight).
The second day there Bryon really wanted to fish at Deckers, a trout stream where the fishermen were voted most likely to get into a fistfight by one of his fishing magazines. He didn't break into any brawls, but he did catch about a dozen fish over the five hours Grace and I spent at Santa's North Pole riding rides. It was a great park and Grace could ride everything there. The only thing she likes more than candy, trains and big high is fast rides. She was a maniac. Now I know why Dad would never ride the tea cups with us at amusement parks. I was about ready to hurl, and she was laughing like a wild woman!
The third day at the park we hiked around a little lake just inside the park in our flip flops (it was NOT very far) and got a little more confident that maybe Grace could hike a ways farther. We came back the next day and hiked a mile up to Dream Lake where Bryon was planning on fishing. The first 15 minutes of the hike were trying because she wanted to be carried despite the talk we had at the beginning about everyone walking on their own feet. It was a 600 ft. climb over a mile so it was pretty easy but for those who are height challenged it was a real feat! She finally got in the groove and made it, and Bryon fished for about an hour and a half and caught six greenback cutthroat trout.
The last day there we rode horses at the Sombrero Ranch an hour up the mountain to a steak dinner then an hour back. Grace and I rode doubles and Bryon got an ornery horse named Puppy Dog that did NOT want him on her back. She kept trying to knock him off by walking under and against trees. Personally, I was good with the hour ride and would have been perfectly happy to ride the wagon back, or the ranch pickup, but horse it was and Grace talked to our horse, Forrest, all the way back. She said Mama a couple of times and I said, "What, Babe?" and she said, "I'm not talking to you, I'm talking to my horse!" Well then.
A couple of really funny things that happened along the way was one night Bryon was trying to put Grace to bed and cover her up, and I grabbed the little fleecy blanket and it got caught on his fuzzy head and stuck like Velcro. I laughed so hard I almost threw up. It still makes me chuckle to think about it.
One day during our park sightseeing we had to stop at big pull out along the mountainside for Grace to potty. She had been talking to herself and what we thought was her baby for several minutes and after we got back into the car and on our way she said, "Where's my baby?" Well I undid my seat belt and tried to find it in the garbage heap that had become our car and could find it anywhere. When we stopped next several miles later, we all dug around and looked and couldn't find it. We figured it must have fallen out at the pullout and decided to look on the way back. We finally got there and no baby. Thinking someone must have picked it up we headed back to the Kabin and guess what was right there on the top bunk waiting for Grace…her baby. What a wild goose chase, she had been talking to herself the whole time back there. At least she has a good imagination :
We have a ridiculous amount of photos from the trip on my flickr site if you want to subject yourself to that. Just click on the link to the right.
It was such a successful trip that in our post vacation euphoria we decided that next year we would go to Glacier Park in Montana. Now that we are card-carrying KOA members the world (or at least the US) is our oyster.
Happy Kamping 🙂


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On 15/05/2012 00:01, Anton Prowse wrote: > 17.2 (The CSS table model) says: > > # The following 'display' values assign table formatting rules to an > # arbitrary element: > # > # table [...] > # [...] > # > # Replaced elements with these 'display' values are treated as their > # given display types during layout. For example, an image that is > # set to 'display: table-cell' will fill the available cell space, > # and its dimensions might contribute towards the table sizing > # algorithms, as with an ordinary cell. > > So what's the deal with > >  > > where presumably an anonymous table wrapper box is generated around the > image, but no caption box is present. > > Similarly, how about > >
 >  >
 > > for example? > > Does table fix-up occur? Does the image display? If a table formatting > context is established in the first example, does it make sense that the > image then displays? From what I can tell, Gecko takes a replaced element with display:table or display:table-row, gives the replaced element the used value display:block and generates a wrapper box with used value display:table or display:table-row respectively. Then it goes and does all the table fix-up stuff. This seems like a pretty useful heuristic. Can any other implementers comment on what they do? Also, I was surprised to discover that none of Gecko, Webkit and Presto permits a replaced box to be a table-cell box. Instead they appear to wrap the replaced box in an anonymous table cell, and change the display type of the replaced box. Trident seems fine with it though. This issue is filed at https://www.w3.org/Bugs/Public/show_bug.cgi?id=17779 Cheers, Anton Prowse http://dev.moonhenge.netReceived on Saturday, 14 July 2012 23:46:28 UTC
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.3.1 : Monday, 2 May 2016 14:39:01 UTC


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One of the very first purchases new Apple GarageBand users consider making is that of a MIDI keyboard. If you're new to MIDI and aren't really sure what you'll need to start using a MIDI keyboard with GarageBand, we offer an excellent tutorial on MIDI Basics for GarageBand Users. Once you've got these basics down, it's time to shop. For most beginning GarageBand users, a simple MIDI configuration is both sufficient and optimal. If you already have a MIDI keyboard, it is likely the only MIDI device you'll want to use with GarageBand, and therefore you'll only need a simple 1-in/1-out MIDI interface. We recommend the M-Audio MIDISport Uno 1x1 Interface, which is a bargain at $39.95, and includes cables. This device is shown below:
Above: MIDISport UNO 1x1 ($39.95 w/ $4.99 shipping at Zzounds.com)
If you don't already have a MIDI keyboard, then you can skip the MIDI interface entirely and get a MIDI keyboard that plugs directly into your Mac's USB port. You may have seen the two keyboards that Apple sells through its online store and in its Apple Store locations. Those two keyboards, the M-Audio Keystation 49e, and the Edirol PCR-30, are great keyboards. Of course, the M49e, at list price of $99 seems to be all but impossible to find in stock and orders from Apple have yielded estimated ship dates as long as 4 or 6 weeks. And the Edirol is priced at $199 at the Apple Store, which doesn't include the tax charge you'll pay. We can do better. Why not pick up the awesome Edirol PCR-30, which happens to be our favorite compact MIDI keyboard (see our PCR-30 In Depth article) for only $169.95 with free shipping and no sales tax (outside of NJ) from ZZounds?
Above: Edirol PCR-30 ($169.95 w/ free shipping at Zzounds.com)
If you're looking for more than 32 keys but like the PCR-30, then you'll be happy to know about the PCR-30's big brothers, the PCR-50, a 49-key keyboard ($229.95 w/ free shipping at Zzounds), and the PCR-80, a 61-key keyboard ($329.95 w/ free shipping).
If you're a more space-conscious user and are looking for a very small MIDI keyboard controller that you can use for one-handed melodies and to control volume, pan, and other "knob/slider" parameters, then many users have expressed an appreciation of the M-Audio Oxygen 8 25-key keyboard, which is shown below and is $139.95 w/ free shipping at ZZounds.
Above: M-Audio Oxygen 8 ($139.95 w/ free shipping at Zzounds.com)
For all of our aspiring American Idol contestants, a good-quality microphone is probably the next purchase to consider for the well prepared GarageBand user. Anyone who's shopped for a microphone can likely attest that the selection and variety is formidable. So what's a user to choose? We recommend going with the tried and true when it comes to microphones. And when you're talking about a fantastic all-around stage and studio microphone, you will be hard pressed to find one more commonly used and recommended by professionals as the Shure SM58. Known by its '58 nickname, this Shure model can be seen at the vast majority of concerts, shows, and other events where a wired microphone is employed.
Above: Shure SM58LC ($99.95 w/ free shipping at Zzounds.com)
And don't forget a microphone cable, which you'll need if you buy most professional-quality microphones. If you're totally new to music recording equipment, then you should note that the SM58, and virtually all other pro-level microphones have a couple of characteristics you should be aware of. First, these microphones use a special type of connector called "XLR" which is supported on most mixing boards, amplifiers, and related equipment. You don't need to deal much with the XLR format if you just get an XLR to 1/4" audio plug microphone cable, which you'll need anyway. We recommend the Shure C15HZ Microphone Cable (15 Ft) ($13.95 at ZZounds). The other thing to note is that professional-level microphones are typically low-impedence signal devices. By contrast, most devices you plug directly into the mic or sound input port on your Mac have the required high-impedence, line-level signals. As such, if you plug a good quality mic directly into your Mac, you won't hear anything. You'll need to do one of several things first. You can either: (1) buy a cheap audio-mixer (we'll recommend one below) to plug your mic into, and then plug the mixer into your Mac, (2) buy a USB of firewire audio interface for your Mac and plug your microphone into that, or (3) you can buy an impedence transformer/matcher at your local radio shack, and then plug that device into your Mac (our local radio shack has these devices for about $19.95 -- not a great deal considering the deals we'll show you below on an audio mixer that can be used for other purposes than simply getting your Mic to talk to your Mac).
Audio Devices
For many users, a MIDI keyboard and a microphone only scratch the surface of the many possible sound-making devices they want to put in their GarageBand mix. For these folks, who may have instruments, sound modules, radios, walkmans, iPods, or anything else with an audio-out plug, we've got you covered. We'll show you several of our most highly recommended options for getting such sounds into your Mac, and thus into GarageBand.
One of the most common musical instruments to plug in to a Mac when working with GarageBand is an electric guitar. Apple sells a $19.95 plug adapter that serves as a pre-amp so you can plug your guitar directly into your Mac. This option is a quick and easy way to get your Guitar into your GarageBand mix, but you may want to plug other devices in at the same time, or you may want to record both your vocals and your guitar into GarageBand. In these cases, the $19.95 plug is not a very versatile product. As an alternative, you migh consider buying an inexpensive audio mixer which can accept input from your Guitar, a microphone, and any other sound source for which you have the appropriate adapters (most things in the music recording world revolve around the 1/4" audio plug interface, so you'll get used to buying adapters that match the 1/4" plug standard if you're around it for a while).
We like the uber-affordable and hyper-compact 5-input mixer called the Behringer UB502 Eurorack mixer. This mini-mixer allows you to plug in a microphone (with either XLR or 1/4" input) plus two other stereo channels (guitars, keyboard audio, etc.). From there, you can plug the mixer's output into your Mac (the signal will be a line-level signal that will work fine going directly into your Mac), or you can plug in headphones (we will, of course, recommend a great pair below) or a tape deck if you wish. The UB502 is shown below.
Above: Behringer UB502 Eurorack ($39.95 w/ 5.99 shipping at Zzounds.com)
Now, the above solution is an all-analog solution and everything you plug into your mixer will be mixed into a single channel/track when it goes to your Mac. If you're looking for a higher tech solution and are ready to shell out some more money for it, then you're probably ready to consider a USB or Firewire audio adapter. Using these devices, users can plug various sound sources into the device, which will convert the signal to digital and send it to your Mac as a digital signal over USB or Firewire. This process has several advantages, most of which simply mean the signal is cleaner and will sound better. If you're looking for a "pro-amateur" setup, then this may be what you want.
When choosing a USB or Firewire audio device, one should be careful to get one that is on the Apple GarageBand Compatibility List. Of the devices on this list, we recommend, based on our users' reports, the Digidesign Mbox and the M-Audio Mobilepre USB. For the more budget conscious user who wants digital audio input, the Edirol UA1X Digitual Audio connector is a good bargain, but with limited input capabilities. Each of these devices is shown and linked below.
Above: Digidesign MBox USB Interface ($449.95 w/ free shipping at Zzounds.com). Features two analog inputs, with mic pre-amps, headphone output, more.
Above: M-Audio Mobilepre USB Interface ($149.95 w/ free shipping at Zzounds.com). Features 2 XLR inputs and 2 1/4" unbalanced inputs.
Above: Edirol UA1X ($79.95 w/ $4.99 shipping at Zzounds.com). Features stereo RCA inputs.
If you're considering purchase of a Firewire or USB audio device, we caution you to be careful that your chosen device will support the inputs you need to use with your sound sources. Because there is significant variance in the formats of audio inputs in these devices, it is likely that your choices will be narrowed by your particular requirements. Shop carefully if you buy one of these high-end devices. (We note that recommended retailer, Zzounds, features a 30-day 100% satisfaction guarantee on most of its equipment).
You can't really be recording music without a pair of those big, over-the-ear, professional-quality headphones, can you? We don't think so either. But if you've never owned a pair of these wonderful audio tools, you might be a little mystified at all the options. As with most things in the pro-audio world, the market has spoken and there a few clear front-runners when thinking about headphone monitors in the recording studio.
Sony has long made some of the best pro-quality headphones out there. Over the years, several models have come and gone. One of the former champs that can still be found at online retailers is the MDR-V600 model. The MDR-V600 can be had for the bargain price of $74.99 (free shipping). The V600's are shown below.
Above: Sony MDR-V600 ($79.95 w/ free shipping at Amazon.com).
If you're looking for the latest MDR pro-series headphones from headphones, for $25 more, you can have the Sony MDR7506's for $99.95 and free shipping at ZZounds. This model is shown below, however we note that the MDR-V600 model above has the identical size driver but features a significantly greater frequency response range. (We would also note that other Sony model headphones besides those mentioned here should be considered with caution, as we've seen reports of shoddy sound quality outside of the V6XX series).
Above: Sony MDR-V7506 ($99.95 w/ free shipping at Zzounds.com).
Other Purchase Possibilities
Althought there are a myriad of potential goodies to buy for use with GarageBand, we're unable to go into all of them here. However, one thing you probably know if you've used GarageBand on anything but the most recent G4 and G5 computers is that GarageBand is a resource hog. It demands CPU speed, memory, and disk speed. You would be wise to maximize all of the above if you're looking to fully enjoy your GarageBand experience. Although a new computer is virtually the only way to get a faster CPU, and RAM upgrades are specific to your make and model, we can suggest a solution that should help many people and can be used with any computer that will run GarageBand. In particular, we're talking about an external, high-speed Firewire hard drive. If you've gotten a "your disk is too slow" message from GarageBand, we feel your pain. However, this message, and other performance difficulties, can be alleviated by using a Firewire disk that's faster than your own internal hard drive. If you're a laptop user, this is especially true, as every factory hard drive shipped by Apple with its laptop computers is slower than a fast 7200 RPM firewire drive like the ones discussed below.
We've recently stumbled on some great deals for those looking to boost disk speed by acquiring a new external Firewire hard drive. In particular, the LaCie d2-case series provides a great value. The 120 Gigabyte, 7200 RPM model is only $155.74 w/ free shipping at Amazon.com. The same model also comes in 80 Gig ($127.44) and 200 Gig ($220.99) models, both with free shipping at Amazon. On the outside, all of these models look the same, as shown below.
Above: LaCie 120 Gig 7200 RPM Firewire hard drive ($155.74 w/ free shipping at Amazon.com).
And, finally, one other potential purchase for the online GarageBand user is a new webhosting account where you can store your GarageBand creations with the online world. We've searched high and low for the best deal out there, and we think it's 1and1.com's basic webhosting package, which for $4.99/mo (no setup fee) will give you 500 Megabytes of storage, 50 e-mail account, a free domain name, and much more. It's hard to beat this from a reputable webhost, and we're happy to say that as users of 1and1.com, we can recommend their service. Click here to learn more about 1and1.com (full disclosure: MacJams.com receives a referral fee if you sign up).
That's a Wrap!
Well that concludes our MacJams.com Apple GarabeBand buyer's guide. We hope that this has been a helpful look at some of the most-frequently considered purchases to complement Apple's GarageBand software. We urge all of our users to visit our Discussion Forums if you've got questions, comments, or tips on the equipment listed here or ANY equipment that you're using with Apple GarageBand.
Keep on Jammin'!


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Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) has signed an agreement with Kuwait Energy to acquire a 10 per cent participating interest in Iraq's onshore Block 9
The block is located in the Basra Governorate in southern Iraq where it is operated by Kuwait Energy.
EGPC CEO Tarek El Molla said, "We are pleased to announce EGPC's first international investment. The merit of this investment is its contribution to building an economic relationship between Iraq and Egypt. Block 9 has huge potentials of oil reserves and resources, which add significant value for Egypt. This partnership with Kuwait Energy comes as the fruit of the Strategic Alignment Agreement signed in 2011."
The exploration, development and production service contract (EDPSC) pertaining to Block 9 was signed in January 2013 and the first discovery was made in September 2014 in the Mishrif Formation resulting in a flow rate of circa 2,000 bpd on 32/64-inch choke, and the second discovery followed shortly in December 2014 in the Yamama Formation resulting in oil flow rates of circa 8,000 bpd on 64/64-inch choke.
According to Egypt's Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Sherif Ismail, the partnership between EGPC and Kuwait Energy was a successful example of the public sector and the private sector coming together, each sector bringing in its share of knowledge, skills and strengths for the interest of the country.
Kuwait Energy chairman Manssour Aboukhamseen added, "This agreement exemplifies fruitful cross-Arab cooperation, bringing together Egypt, Iraq and Kuwait for one common goal: the economic and social development of the region."
Alain Charles Publishing, University House, 11-13 Lower Grosvenor Place, London, SW1W 0EX, UK
T: +44 20 7834 7676, F: +44 20 7973 0076, W: www.alaincharles.com


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When the Camera's Not Looking: Evaluating Livability
At Apartment Therapy we try to keep the focus on real homes, but it's easy to get distracted by the siren song of a perfectly styled spread. Looking around my apartment, I realized that many vignettes that would look lovely in a photo feel impractical in my space, so with the coming of the new year, I've been trying to ensure that my home is designed for living as well as looking.
Clearly, there's nothing wrong with wanting your home to look magazine-ready, but styling a home and styling a photograph are two different endeavors, and there can be a precarious balance between a vital, livable space and a showroom.
- Situate your home according to use rather than to styling. The desk may look much better positioned directly behind the sofa, but if that means a constant glare on your computer screen, then it's no good! Pay attention to the function of the space and try to find a happy compromise between style and use. If your room is arranged with function in mind, it will always feel more comfortable and inviting, even if it may not be as picture-perfect.
- Take this tip offered by Mario Buatta in the latest issue of Elle Decor: "The best time to look at a room is the day after you've had a party because you see the way people used the space." Sparing a minute to consider how others have used your space can ensure that conversation areas are adequate, that surfaces are being maximized, and that the space enables movement.
- Remember that photos sometimes show only one wall or a portion of a wall, and they can be cropped and placed in discontinuous series. The same spatial layouts may not work as well in a three-dimensional space. In a real room, all areas need to communicate and flow continuously. Furniture and objects will need more room to breathe.
- Accumulate items because they speak to who you are, not to which vignette they may complete. I know which of my pieces have real visual pleasure or memories attached to them, just as I know which ones I bought at Ikea to round out a tablescape. Obviously, it's not wrong to have the latter, but keep the balance heavily in favor of the former to make your home feel warmer and more personal. In the words of Rose Tarlow, "An object added for effect instead of affection will always look like an affectation."
(Image: Samer's 1930's Streamline Moderne Apartment House Tour)


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Technology resolutions? Oh my. That's overwhelming!
Let's start with getting more use out of my iPad! I need to find some good apps to use with my small groups. I have a whiteboard app and flashcard app that I love, but I need to find more.
Speaking of iPads, let's just add maybe trying to get a set from Donor's Choose! I would LOVE to have them for my listening center (or lack thereof). Maybe it'll be this year, maybe next school year. But this is definitely on my wish list!
Did you know that creating digital material is part of the new Common Core? Uggg...this is exciting and frustrating. I can't figure out how I'm going to get my firsties to create something on a computer that's RELEVANT (not pictures or goofy things). This will be a HUGE task that will take some MAJOR thinking. Maybe a new product I'll put out? In a few months? Ha! But it's a goal of mine. I have to get my kiddos creating on the computer!
Ok, that's all for now. :) I know this post was not that helpful in the least bit. :P But one of my personal resolutions is to be in bed by 10:00 every night! As we can see, first night: FAIL. Off to bed anyways! Gotta try! ;)
If you head back tomorrow like me, GOOD LUCK!!!!!


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Serving You Is
What We Do.
Comfort is Our Business.
Since 1985, Mixan Heating and Air Conditioning
has been keeping customers comfortable. Whether it's 100°
and humid or 10° blow zero and snowing, Mixan will keep
you happy.
But being comfortable goes beyond the temperature
of your house or business. At Mixan, we want you to be comfortable
doing business with us. That's our number one objective and
keeps us striving to provide you friendly service that'll
keep you coming back for all your heating and A/C needs.
In 2003, we moved to our present location which we designed
and built and is shown in picture at right. Operating out
of this 7,000 square foot facility, which houses our general
offices and fabrication shop, we can handle any sized project
you have in mind.


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This is a key source of evidence of explosions in the World Trade Center.  Related to the story below is the link to dozens (I thought it was 503 but they are not all here) NYC firefighters, NYPD and other first responders who replied and gave their oral history of the attacks of 9/11. The New York Times sued the City of New York to obtain access to these interviews. The link to those stories is
These were analyzed and described in the article â118 Witnesses:Â The Firefightersâ Testimony to Explosions in the Twin Towersâ by Graeme MacQueen published in the Journal of 9/11 Studies on August 21, 2006.
City to Release Thousands of Oral Histories of 9/11 Today
By JIM DWYER
Published: August 12, 2005
A rich vein of city records from Sept. 11, including more than 12,000 pages of oral histories rendered in the voices of 503 firefighters, paramedics, and emergency medical technicians, will be made public today.
The Sept. 11 Records
Oral histories of rescue workers and audio of dispatch transmissions.
⢠Audio Dispatches
The histories – a mosaic of vision and memory recalling the human struggle against surging fire, confusion, and horror – were compiled by the New York City Fire Department beginning in October 2001, but to this date, no one from the department has read them all or used them for any official purpose.
The city has announced that it will also release today a written log of calls to the 911 system, many from trapped office workers, as well as tapes of fire dispatchers. Other records, including tapes of 911 operators, are being assembled and are not yet ready for release, city officials said.
The New York Times sought the records under the freedom of information law in February 2002, but the Bloomberg administration refused to make them public and the newspaper sued the city. Earlier this year, the Court of Appeals, New York's highest court, ordered the city to release most, but not all, of the records.
Over the last three and half years, The Times has obtained some of these records through unofficial channels, and they can be found on the Web at www.nytimes.com/sept11. These include the dispatch tapes, nearly 100 of the Fire Department oral histories, and a log of calls to Emergency Medical Service dispatchers that were channeled through the 911 system.
A group of families of people who died in the attack intervened in the suit brought by The Times, also urging release of the records. One of those family members, Rosaleen Tallon, noted that Zacarias Moussaoui, an admitted member of Al Qaeda who is accused of plotting with the Sept. 11 hijackers, long ago obtained the same documents in preparation for his criminal trial that were being denied to her and other families by the Bloomberg administration. The city also initially refused access to the records to investigators from both the 9/11 Commission and the National Institute of Standards and Technology, but relented when legal action was threatened.
In the Fire Department accounts, the testimony of many fire officers and firefighters was both moving and blunt. When the accounts obtained by The Times were made public, they opened a new dimension to the discussions about fire operations that day and pointedly raised questions about whether some of the department's deaths might have been avoided.
In the histories, the firefighters recalled losing touch with one another that morning and being unable to deliver or hear warnings about the imminent collapse of the towers. They described the physical toll of climbing 20 and 30 flights of stairs, laden with gear and outfits that weighed nearly 100 pounds. They included descriptions of a loss of command of the firefighters going up the stairs, the lack of communication between the police and fire departments, and the small measures by which people survived or died.
The accounts include such serendipities as an aide to a chief, who stood by his side in the lobby of the south tower at the Trade Center site, then left for the adjoining hotel to use a bathroom. Shortly after he left, the south tower collapsed, killing everyone inside.
For all their power, the oral histories are individual narratives, the accounts of men and women who saw the day, at times yards from death. They were originally gathered on the order of Thomas Von Essen, the city fire commissioner on Sept. 11, who said he wanted to preserve those accounts before they became reshaped by a collective memory. He was succeeded as commissioner in January 2002 by Nicholas Scoppetta. Some of the oral histories were reviewed, but not all, a spokesman for Mr. Scoppetta said last night. Mr. Scoppetta declined to be interviewed.
Sally Regenhard, the mother of Christian Regenhard, a firefighter killed that day with his engine company, had been one of those who joined the suit for the release of the records, in hope that the oral histories might provide some clue on where her son had been.
"It has been almost four years, and I've been waiting for any information on my son," Mrs. Regenhard said. "He disappeared that day with his entire engine company. No one can tell me what happened to him – not even the smallest detail."
Early in his administration, Mr. Scoppetta refused to release the oral histories because he said he had been advised by federal prosecutors that their publication might impede the prosecution of Mr. Moussaoui. The department also advanced the position in court that the firefighters who had provided the oral histories did so with specific promises of confidentiality.
The department withdrew that claim. Mr. Scoppetta later found little support from federal prosecutors, judges, or defense lawyers for the position that Mr. Moussaoui's right to a fair trial would be hampered by publishing the recollections of firefighters or paramedics.
The city found more success in another line of argument: that release of certain records would violate the privacy of the dead, or cause emotional distress to the living. The Court of Appeals allowed the oral histories to be edited under a limited set of circumstances. It also refused to order the city to release all of the 911 tapes, saying that the callers' voices should not be made public. The other half of the conversations, involving the operators who spoke with the callers, will eventually be made public.
"We're gratified that it's finally being done," said David E. McCraw, a lawyer for The Times. "We believe it should have been done a long time ago. We believe the public is ultimately the beneficiary. We hope the city will move quickly to release the 911 tapes."
The source is http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/12/nyregion/12records.html


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Here at Penketh's we have a knowledgeable and experienced team of experts, many with over 25 years' experience. Why not take a look at our team below and see for yourself why businesses throughout the North West trust Penketh's year after year to deliver innovative and reliable cost saving solutions.
Chris is an expert in Office Furniture and has over 16 Years' experience in the industry. Chris knows that the way we work has changed, he is versatile and able to adapt in order to meet different client briefs and looks to industry leaders for new ideas and inspiration.
Customers often come to Chris needing solutions to problems in their workplace. Chris' expertise lies in taking a customer focused approach and finding solutions to a variety of workplace problems. He is knowledgeable on the ever-changing work environments, trends, research and insights.
Adam has been working with Penketh Group for six years, and he ensures that all of our furniture installations run smoothly. It is Adams responsibility to conduct a site survey prior to the installation of any of our projects, becoming aware of every fixture and fitting going into place on a project. He must guarantee that we can deliver the products needed on site when required, Liaising with deliver drivers, fitting teams and staff back at the office – its Adam's job to have it all under control.
Gordon is a familiar face here at Penketh Group, having totted up a massive 20 years of service. Its Gordon's job to support our Logistics and Project Managers which often comes in the form of being on site for many of our larger projects. Gordon ensures that installations run smoothly and on time, his extensive experience means that he identifies issues before they arise, from getting the right fitters on a job, to ensuring the highest standards from all teams, deliveries and giving regular feedback to the team back at HQ.
Paul has been a Penketh Group employee for over 30 years. During this time he has played a fundamental role in the company's growth and progression into becoming one of the leading business supplies solutions in the county. As Furniture Project Director, Paul has a true passion for furniture and project work, from space planning and relocation, to creating environments that support brand, culture or wellbeing.
It is Paul's knowledge and experience that has been behind us working with many high profile brands; Unilever, Princes, Holland and Barrett and GE Energy to name just a few.
Paul takes the time to listen and understand the issues that our customers are faced with. Once he has this information, he uses his experience and combines this with the research and knowledge from Steelcase. Paul presents solutions to customers that meet project objectives and demonstrate measurable results.
Michelle has been with Penketh Group for over four years working within the purchasing department. Michelle has a crucial role in the team, liaising with key suppliers, sourcing products and finding answers for our customers. Her role means that she has gained a wealth of knowledge about the wide range of products we sell, and for that reason, is often a 'go to' member of the team, when a query arises internally or from a customer.
As Purchasing Manager, Michelle supports the Penketh Group's Project Mangers on large furniture installations; she maintains strong working relationships, negotiates competitive prices and terms, as well as ensuring that all procedures are followed. On a daily basis Michelle works closely with our logistic department to ensure that the right products are delivered at the right time, this includes ensuring that product samples are always available for our customers when needed.
Steve has been with Penketh Group for almost 20 years and during that time has progressed to the role of Design Manager. Steve is skilled at observing and understanding how businesses work and implementing design solutions that increase efficiency and productivity. By understanding the needs of our customers, Steve and his team improve workspaces and in return, business performance. Steve has worked on the designs for many of our biggest projects, designing solutions for Thomas Cook, Ipsom and GE Energy.
Each year Steve oversees the furniture section of our catalogue. This has given Steve great product knowledge and the ability to select to best range of products possible for our customers
A core member of the Customer Service Team, Sandy has been an integral part of the Penketh Group family for over 17 years. Sandy is one of our most personable characters and is committed to building relationships with every customer that she works with. We love to reward our customers and Sandy makes it a priority to inform them of the latest special offers, promotions and exclusive deals that are available and can also offer advice across a range of products.
Sandy is also our Ink and Toners champion, if you need a refill or advice on what products are compatible with your machine, she is the person to ask.
Over the past 10 years the workplace has changed dramatically and choosing a preferred office products provider no longer revolves solely around the cost of a product. By getting to know your business and identifying the issues and inefficiencies within it, Chris can deliver a bespoke and cost effective business solution that can reduce your supply chain, streamline your processes and increase your operational efficiency.
Chris leads a department of 11 Business Development and Account Managers. Understanding that every business is different enables Chris and his team to provide the greatest range of services and product solutions to suit all of our customers' requirements.
Lesley is our in-house print expert who also specialises in promotional gifts. With over 27 years of experience in the industry, Lesley knows the right questions to ask and the right printing solutions to use to achieve the best finish every time. Lesley will give advice and share ideas and samples to help customers choose the right promotional gift to reflect their brand and message. From last minute changes to urgent deliveries, Lesley ensures that all dealings are conducted in a proficient manner and that quality is never compromised.
With experience of delivering solutions for both the corporate and education sectors, Martin knows which technology solutions are best suited to which environment. From meeting with schools, to speaking with big corporates such as Money Supermarket, Martin's knowledge and friendly personality means that he can get to know his customers. He fully understands their workplace issues and delivers solutions that enable collaborative and engaging interactions which achieve measurable results.
With over 13 years working in a range of market verticals, Martin provides advice on the latest technologies available. His hard work has seen him and Penketh's accredited Silver SMART Reseller status and continues to work with his customers to enhance collaboration in their workplace.
After working for many years in our Customer Service team as one of the furniture experts, Shelley moved across to our CAD team in 2015 to pursue her interior design skills. Shelley knows that creating great work environments is about more than just nice looking furniture. Shelley takes the time to understand the requirements of our customers before combining her expert knowledge with great design to create inspiring workspaces.
Before Mark became an expert in Print & Workwear, he worked in our Buying Department which gave him a solid understanding of how to source the best products possible, developing his product knowledge. Since changing roles to represent our Print and Workwear Department, Mark has been able to build great working relationships with his colleagues, working closely with suppliers to bridge the link between customers and manufacturers. Mark sees the value in a company's image and how they want to be perceived in their industry, this enables him to provide customised Workwear, personalised to their requirements.
Karen has been with Penketh Group for over 10 years and is one of our most experienced Customer Service team members. Specialising in Office Supplies and more specifically stationery, Karen works closely with our Account Managers to ensure that customer experience is always a priority. Karen takes time to get to know our customers to foster a relationship that is based on service, reliability and trust. This is a crucial element of Karen's role as she liaises with our Account Managers and Delivery Drivers to ensure that any key information and special requirements are passed on to complete the quality of the service we provide.
Tina has over 20 years' buying experience; she has a great understanding of Penketh Group processes and is one of our most knowledgeable experts. With excellent negotiation skills, Tina liaises with suppliers to ensure that we can always deliver savings to our customers. Located close to our in house customer support team, she knows the products that our customers want and ensures that she sources them in the most efficient way.
Tina also takes control of our stock management, making sure that Penketh Group has the products that our customers need and can deliver then when they need them. Tina works closely with the warehouse, understanding the logistics of the business and ensuring that all processes run as smoothly as possible.


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Gundam the Ride: A Baoa Qu was an amusement park in Fujiyoshida, Yamanahi, Japan. It opened on July 20, 2000. On December 31, 2006, the event was scheduled for cancellation, however, business was extended until January 8, 2007, when the ride was finally shut down. It was replaced with Gundam Crisis.
The ride takes place in the final Battle of A Baoa Qu. When people finally get in the ride, they are placed in seats in a small escape shuttle about to be launched out of the battleship Suraga. It has computer graphics, but the humans are hand-drawn by Mikimoto Haruhiko. The escape shuttle is protected by a couple of RGM-79 GM mobile suits. As they make their way through a ship that is unnamed, they come across Amuro Ray's RX-78-2 Gundam, who is on his way to Dolos (In the game), saving them from a blow. The ride closed on January 8, 2007.
Earth Federation
- Jack Bayard
- Adam Stingray
- Amuro Ray
- Kai Shiden
- Sayla Mass
- Henken Bekkener
- Abu Dabia
- Aya Swanport
- Thomas
Earth Federation Forces
Mobile Weapons
Vehicles and Support Units
- FF-X7-Bst Core Booster
- Fuji class (Salamis Kai) (SCRT-229 Suruga)
- Magellan-class
- SCV-73 Blanc Rival
- SCV-70 White Base
- Salamis-class
- SCRT-229-3 Escape Launch
Principality of Zeon
Mobile Weapons
Vehicles and Support Units
Theme Song
- Dears by Gackt.
See also
External links