text:
Grand Central complimentary tickets
To redeem your Grand Central complimentary ticket, please enter your journey details in the orange "Train times & Tickets" panel to the left of this page. Please note that only one journey can be redeemed at a time so you should select the 'Single' box. Click 'Get train times'.
On clicking 'Get train times', you'll go through to a screen requesting your 10 digit PIN code which you will have received on email or in your letter. You must enter your 10 digit PIN code exactly as shown and click 'Continue'.
Once the 10 digit PIN has been validated, you will be able to continue to select the Grand Central train you wish to travel on.
Terms and conditions
- Grand Central complimentary tickets are only available online through grandcentralrail.com/comp by using a PIN code.
- Grand Central complimentary tickets will only be valid on Grand Central services and will not be accepted by other train operators. For details of the Grand Central network, please see our route map.
- If part of your journey is with another operator then you must buy another ticket for that part of the route.
- Grand Central complimentary tickets are subject to availability so may not display for all journeys and/or times. If there are no tickets available for your selected journey please select a different time or an alternative date.
- Grand Central complimentary tickets can be used for Adult or Child travel.
- Grand Central complimentary tickets are only valid on the date and time printed on the ticket. Changes to travel plans are not possible.
- Break of journey is not permitted.
- The PIN code/s you were sent are to be used to book complimentary tickets and are unique to you - so please ensure you keep them in a safe place.
- PIN codes can only be issued once. Grand Central will not take responsibility for any lost PIN codes.
- Please note that the PIN code provided can only be used once for one transaction.
- The booking made with the PIN code is for one person only and must be completed in one transaction.
- The PIN code is valid for redemption for up to 12 months from the date of issue.
- Grand Central complimentary tickets can be used in conjunction with Weekend First upgrades to First Class. These can be bought on board our services, subject to availability.
- The Website Terms and Conditions apply when booking your complimentary tickets.
- The National Rail Conditions of Travel apply to travel on all Grand Central trains.
- Grand Central reserves the right to withdraw the PIN code, complementary tickets or amend these terms and conditions at any time without notice and without liability to you. No cash or other alternative will be provided.
- The cash redemption value of this voucher is 0.001p.
- By accepting the PIN code you agree to be bound by these terms and conditions.
- Grand Central accepts no liability for any damages, losses, liabilities, costs, injuries or disappointment suffered as a result of using the complementary tickets or the PIN code.
- These Terms and Conditions are governed by English law.


text:
Who Are We?
We are a bunch of people who are in love with life and other people! We are tired of the artificial friends of Facebook and we know that a Tweet cannot satisfy our deep need for connection.
You see, we believe what you believe... that it is NOT the ultra-modern, expensive home nor the fancy new car nor the latest electronic gadgets that make a lasting difference in life. But rather it is people. Friends, family, relationships, bonding and community. We once heard someone say, "No one, on their death bed, will say, "I wish I spent more time at the office." We could expand that death-bed scenario and say, "I wish I had gotten the latest iPhone" or "If only I had that shiny new Lexus..." No. Because when we really come down to the inner core of what we believe and who we are understand that it is the people, family and the fulfillment of relationships that really matter.
We want to show you how to unfold your life, as we have, to breathe in the fullness of a life lived with others. We will show you how to make the place where you live to be a source of joy and energy to you, your family and your community.
A big part of what makes our life here at the Joyful Community is FOOD! Charlie has been called a "chef" but he tends to disagree. False humility! As a part of our mission we have taken on the task of teaching others how to engage and entertain over some good food. You're gonna love it!
We will be giving recipes along with some stories of entertaining and some tips on good hospitality. We will share with you the experience and knowledge we have gained from having thousands (literally) sit down at our dinner table.
We are excited to share and grow with you!
Creativity in the Common Place (which sort of makes it Uncommon!)
"Oh, I'm not creative" or "I haven't got an artistic bone in my body." or "I haven't got imagination!" To those statements we say, "Shut yo' mouth!" You were created in the Image of the most Creative Being in the Universe. You are creative. You just need to learn to recognize it and learn how to unleash it. We're not talking Rembrandt or Picasso. But we are talking about making the ordinary moments shine. And making the mundane sparkle with your unique touch.
A few words about the key folks on staff here at City 616.
Charlie and Ruth Jones
In our life time we (between the 2 of us) have been a janitor, salesman, dance instructor, hamburger slinger, nanny, cashier, cosmetic counter girl, street performer, manager, CEO (of a non-profit, sorry), stars, supporting actors, and extras. But most of all we have been Peculiar People. For 25 years we wrote, directed and acted in productions for our touring theatre company, Peculiar People, Inc. During these 25 years our lives had little chance to connect with others as we were travelling constantly. A normal month would find us on the road for 21 days or more. We had little chance to make and establish relationships. But nine years ago, God turned our lives upside down.
Nine years ago, after thousands of miles, 21 countries, gallons of coffee, and hundreds of performances, we finally settled in Greensboro, North Carolina. We had been on the road for so many years and felt a great longing for connection with a community. We began having dinners in our home. Out of that has grown the Greensboro Grub, a community dinner we host every month for 60 people.
As a grassroots community began to sprout out of the Grub we realized how little we knew about growing and sustaining community. We began voraciously reading what we could find about it. A vision began to grow in our hearts of a place where people were nourished and loved, supported and welcomed, where doors were open and conversation was up-lifting. But most of all, we envisioned a space where all the barriers that usually divide us would be obliterated.
And so, City 616 was formed with a mission to bring the diversity of our city together for the advancement of community through the arts, hospitality, education and service.
Darren Faber
Last year Darren joined us. Before coming to us he's been a student, a fisherman, a wrestler and a barista. He was looking for a place where hope still thrived. He has been our right-hand man, our encourager, our friend.
Since graduation from Wheaton College with a degree in philosophy in 2013, Darren has spent time traveling and being involved in various ministries. His main inspirations for the vision of the Art House Fellows have been the time he spent at L'abri in Boston and in the Greensboro Fellows program. Some of his in interests include phenomenology, the philosophy of science, the philosophy of mind, aesthetics and Eastern Orthodox Spirituality.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Four Times In A Row – ArchiCAD Wins The Hammers
ArchiCAD 18 – BIM Product of the Year & Product of the Year, Runner Up
Exciting news for GRAPHISOFT from the Construction Computing Awards – our BIM software, ArchiCAD 18, has won BIM Product of the Year award for the fourth year in a row. For four years running, ArchiCAD has dominated the BIM Product of the Year category, surpassing competitors Autodesk Revit (2014) Autodesk BIM360 Glue (2013) Nemetschek Vectorworks (2012) and Autodesk Revit Architecture (2011).
ArchiCAD 18 is a BIM solution that features smooth integration of rendering that never interrupts the design workflow. No need to buy, install or learn any new software. There are "point and click" type settings as well as advanced. Powered by Cinema 4D – MAXON's world-class engine guarantees high quality, photorealistic presentation-ready images with the best architectural workflow.
"It's great to see votes from users and readers deliver GRAPHISOFT a strong showing not only for ArchiCAD and BIMx, but also for the outstanding work of our partners and customers," said Akos Pfemeter, Vice President of Marketing, GRAPHISOFT.
The Construction Computing Awards; affectionately known as "The Hammers", showcase and reward the technology, tools and solutions for the effective design, construction, maintenance and modification of commercial buildings, residential and social housing and civil engineering projects of all sizes. For 9 years now, the Construction Computing Awards event has become a place where members of the industry gather to network and exchange ideas while having fun.
Along with the highly prized product awards won by GRAPHISOFT, ArchiCAD architect LSI Architects was honored with Collaboration Project of the Year. UK Partner GRAPHISOFT Connect was runner up for Channel Partner of the Year.
Mobile Technology of the Year, Runner Up – BIMx
GRAPHISOFT was also recognized with an award for Mobile Technology of the Year. This is the second year in a row BIMx has been recognized with a Hammer award for Mobile Technology.
BIMx, has been in use since 2011 and it has been recognized as a revolutionary, game-changing app. As a presentation tool, it is unmatched in its ability to help architects communicate design intent and provide understanding to clients – even those with limited experience or exposure to architectural concepts.
GRAPHISOFT expanded the capabilities of BIMx – with BIMx Docs to high acclaim and the app has helped ArchiCAD users see its benefits on the job site. BIMx Docs offers lightning fast navigation within and across large layout books. Even if you are only working with 2D drawings, BIMx Docs offers unbeatable performance based on Map app technology.


text:
We provide a wide range of hearing loss treatment options as well as hearing aids and hearing care services to improve your overall hearing health.
Learn More
Our hearing center is staffed with the best hearing aid specialists to treat your hearing loss and fit you with the best hearing aids in the hearing healthcare industry.
In order to fit you with the proper hearing aids it is essential that we first conduct a thorough hearing aid evaluation to ensure what type of hearing aid is best for you.
Our hearing survey is quick, easy, and can help you decide if hearing aids are right for you.
We offer a wide range of hearing aids from many different manufacturers as well as large selection of hearing aid styles.
Make informed decisions on the purchase of your next hearing aid device!


text:
Latest Posts
B Cyde Battle of the Song Birds – Teena Marie vs. Chaka Khan
Chaka Khan is a singer/songwriter whose career spans four decades beginning in 1970 as the frontwoman for the band Rufus. This year Chaka has been nominated for the second time to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Her hits include; Through the Fire, What You Gonna Do For Me?, Sweet Thing, and I Feel For You to name a few.
Teena Marie (1956-2010) born as Mary Christine Brockert was an singer, songwriter, and producer. Known for her distinctive soulful vocals she quickly earned the title Ivory Queen of Soul. She recorded 13 studio albums throughout the course of her career with hits including; Square Biz, Lover Girl, Cassanova Brown, Ooh La La La and many more.
VOTE below for Your Fav and JOIN the JAM Today at 11am to hear how this B Cyde BATTLE ROYAL goes down LIVE on the Back on the B Cyde show only on 7mileradio.com
[poll id="4″]
Tracie Christian
November 28th, 2015
No comments


text:
Our ProcessHow we run our projects.
Before beginning development we will meet with you to ensure we fully understand your strategy and website goals. We will also review any other material you think may be useful to us. This will help us to present information in a clear and succinct manner on your site. We'll prepare a detailed project plan to ensure the project stays on budget and is delivered on time.
Site Design & Illustration
Based on our understanding and fact gathering in Phase I, we will prepare a home page design. We will structure your home pages to create a clean, visually appealing page layout with intuitive site navigation and links to key sections. Your home page will also include a quick search feature so visitors can quickly find content and services.
We will post the prototype page layout on our staging server for you to view. You will have an opportunity to suggest up to three rounds of revisions to ensure your complete satisfaction. For visual images we can use images that you provide or you may select from online stock photography libraries.
We will incorporate your suggestions into a final page layout and ask you to sign off on this design. At the end of this phase you will see how your home page and site navigation will appear.
We will prepare your new site ensuring a consistent look and feel throughout. Within your site we will incorporate elegant, professional page layouts to reinforce your brand and provide visitors with a very favorable impression of your company, your listings and your services. We will also ensure that your site is easy to use for both your audience and your staff.
Site Usability
We will design your site for maximum ease of use. In designing your site navigation we will assume users are not proficient with web technologies. We will implement intuitive navigation that allows site visitors to access most, if not all, pages with just one or two mouse clicks. We will convey a strong and reassuring message of quality and authority throughout. All pages will be designed so they load quickly.
Content Management System
We will incorporate a full content management system (CMS) into your site so that you may add/edit/delete pages and content at any time.
We will set up your content management system and include content as you make it available to us. We will upload pages to our staging server as they become available. In this phase we will also develop the search capabilities. You will have an opportunity to review and suggest changes.
At the end of this phase your site will be complete. All page content will be available for final review on our staging server and we will ask for any final changes. Once we complete your suggested changes we will ask you to sign-off on your site.
This phase will be completed at the end of the fifth week of development.
Upon sign off we will upload your site, upon your go-ahead, to a live web server. If you decide to host your site with us we will also set up all your e-mail accounts. Once your site is live we will prepare an xml site map and submit to Google, Yahoo and Bing to enable your entire site to be indexed by their respective search spiders.


text:
Recycled glass from city and sea, reclaimed and transformed into something beautiful...
Tuesday, 17 May 2011
A quick intro... I promise!
I am a glass artist, I love what I do and you have no idea how good it feels to say that!
I am passionate about working with glass - on reflection, I'm fairly sure that the slight element of danger has something to do with this!
I work mostly with reclaimed glass, broken greenhouse glass, glass from picture frames and indeed pretty much any odd bits of glass I can recycle! My favourite finds are the fabulous gems of colour that you spot amongst the sand and pebbles at the seaside - the irresistible gleam and sparkle of Sea Glass!
I hope in this blog to keep you updated with my latest creations, trips to the sea and fabulous seaside finds.
First hand you will see the pieces evolve from discarded junk to things of beauty and purpose once more.
I hope you enjoy the trip... I do!
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


text:
Filed under: Comment | Tags: Australia, Holocaust, Ideology, Revenge, Satire, self-determination, Shoah, Youth
Today marks Yom HaShoah, Israel's national Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes Memorial Day, and around the country and the world, ceremonies are being held to commemorate and consecrate those who perished under the Nazi regime. In Israel, the theme centres around "The Voices of the Survivors", and the ways in which survivors themselves have contributed to Holocaust commemoration over the years.
But what happens when there are no more survivors to tell their own stories? How will we carry the heavy burden of remembrance?
Take a look at this double-header from September 2009, on the power of commemoration and the importance of maintaining its relevance for future generations.
Filed under: Comment, media | Tags: Australia, Journalism, media, PR, University, work, Youth
Reading this story on Gawker got me thinking about university and the nasty game of graduate journalism. It's been three years since I graduated, and lo and behold, while I am still in the media field, I have gone over to the dark side. Not because I lost the spark of independence, or my sense of the power and justice of the fourth estate. Nope. I needed the money, and this job was not only looking to hire, pay, and respect me for my time and efforts accordingly, but they hired, paid and respected me a helluva lot more than most graduate journalism jobs.
It starts with the fight to get the marks to get into the degree, and the smarts to keep up with the fast paced course, unforgiving markers, and the burning hole in your pocket kept smouldering with hundreds of dollars of investment in chasing stories.
If that doesn't kill the fire to tell Australia and the world something worth sharing, when you finally land that (unpaid) job at a regional/local/suburban paper (because the other 70 applications bounced right back atcha) the painstaking hours spent pitching, preparing, driving, meeting, interviewing, transcribing, writing, typing, editing, re-editing, re-working, photographing, captioning, editing – It's little wonder Journalists are known for their drinking habits. I'd be driven to the bottle too.
Given that even seasoned journalists everywhere are fighting to keep their jobs in the wake of one of the greatest revolutions of modern news media, it is a bleak future ahead for those who are looking to make it big as a reporter. A boom in blogging, online media start-ups (drudge report, huffington post – even our very own JC), and a shift to Public Relations has saved some, but far too many are being convince that the only way is the hardest way.
Call me crazy, but the second a graduate lawyer or physician or accountant has to work for free, I'll just right on the bandwagon and enjoy the ride. Hell, it might even get my parents off my back for choosing Journalism over Law. Maybe.
But in Australia, you can't get a job unless you've been working for that paper/news organisation for free all the way through university, and then someone managed to convince someone up high that you are worthy of taking that maternity leave gig, or fortnightly column, or that you don't mind going under the pen-name "News Desk Staff".
With that being said, there are plenty of smart, talented, ambitious students who have worked hard, learned fast, and put in the networking hours to get a great job as a radio/tv/print/online journalist. But there are far more who are working nights, steadfast in their belief that a television captioning gig, media monitor/summaries job, or working for by-lines (and little else) is the way to the top.
Sadly for the time being, it may not be right, but it's true. It's a long, long way, and if you don't know the right people, have the right timing, or got the endurance, it can be a bumpy ride.
Filed under: Comment, Jewish Community | Tags: Australia, Education, Identity, Ideology, JC, Jew, Religion, School, Tikkun Olam, Tzedaka, Youth
I remember sitting in early morning Prayers in high school, a quietly fuming 14 years old and one detention note closer to threatening to turn the whole institution on its head. No, I wasn't the kid who called in bomb threats to get out of History exams, nor was I the student who lit the computer room on fire, or the idiot who stood on a chair to get the teacher's frayed attention and stuck his hand in the fully operational ceiling fan. They were the best of times and the worst of times …
Nope. I was a rebel with a cause, and that cause was the hypocrisy I could smell on every teacher in every carpet in every classroom. My school reeked of it, and I recall this morning in morning prayers because that is when I came face-to-face with the woman whose hypocrisy went so deep, even Easy-Off BAM's poor example of grammar couldn't have scrubbed it out. Looking back it was a simple matter of insubordination – a refusal to a direct order to open a prayer-book. But I stuck it out, protesting the inadequacy of prayer recited without proper intention, and made an offer of silent meditation in its place. My peace-offering rebuffed, I went to that afternoon detention with a smile on my face, content in the knowledge that I had stood up for what was right, and not submitted to what was expected.Lo and behold, over a decade later, I am (sadly) shocked to happen upon the same stench, thick and repulsive, all these years later. It's still just as offensive, and although I am an adult, with power, influence and killer letter-writing skills, I can still feel the rage of underage subjection and underestimation stinging my senses.
Except that this time, it isn't happening to me. It's happening to other vulnerable, underrepresented young JC. And that is something I cannot abide.
One would assume growing up in a tightly encircled JC subculture would more than prepare me for a move from the Big Smoke to the Smaller, Less populated Smoke. And of course, the fact that I grew up in what Real Estate agents and lazy journalists refer to as the 'Leafy North Shore", the sea change would really be more like a sleepover at a mate's house just over Mona Vale Rd.
What I didn't expect, was how much I would come to dread the return to said Big Smoke. The noise, the pollution, the traffic – everything country bumpkins have hated about Sydney, was suddenly everything I hated about Sydney. The pretension, the 'extra hot skinny lattes – but do you have equal?' coffee drinkers, the distance between everything, the tourists, the haphazard arrangement of suburbs and of course, the saturation of JC.
Sure, it's a pretty Jüden time of year – Exodus season and all, but there was something about a particular gig last night that really irked me. And it was the sheer quantity of JC that I knew crammed into one tight Roundhouse spot.
Filed under: Comment, Jewish Community | Tags: Australia, Betrayal, Dating, Family, JC, Jew, Marriage, Relationships, Sex, Youth
As someone who never really 'got' the relationship game, it probably wouldn't surprise you to find out that I am the only singleton in my group of girlfriends. Not that I mind in the slightest. In the community where being attached to a significant other is to be 'figured out', it has definitely ruffled a few feathers, and everyone from my Lubavitch uncle, to my friends, to my employer has tried (and failed, thankfully) to get me right, and fix me up with someone who is (always) perfect for me! And thankfully, I always dodged that bullet.
But what has got me writing this time is not so much about the single-relationship-marriage cycle that has defined the expectations of the majority of young Jews (those who take it seriously, of course). It is the unexpected conversation I had with a girlfriend of mine, who happens to be the official girlfriend of her parter.
After a whirlwind romance that broke all the rules (no professions of interest, guy must always been older, no sex on the first date, wait two to three days before calling, wait until she calls), a year later this remarkably odd couple are still going strong. She is the consummate lady, he is the ragamuffin, and surprising both their friends and themselves, they have it down. At least, I thought so.
It's worth mentioning that the reason I find myself single is not for lack of opportunity, but more for lack of accessibility – I've never subscribed to the belief that there is one person for me. Rather, there are many people who float in and out of your life to make your world a little brighter for the time they are destined to be there. My Grandfather, for example, found love a second time after the death of his first wife, my Grandmother, and married again on his 80th Birthday. Mazal Tov! Unfortunately there seems to be a firm belief that, like fondue, once you dip there is no going back for seconds, regardless of how tasty that cheese may be.
So, believing myself to be the only person in my circle who followed this kind of thinking, I was surprised to find out, over the phone, that this ladyfriend of mine had done the unthinkable – and cheated on her partner.
Well, kissed another bloke, but let's assume any and all exchange of bodily fluids constitutes betrayal. And let's also ignore the fact that he was H.O.T.
In a community where we are prepared to neglect the Orthodoxy of our faith, the geographic togetherness of our families, the traditional gender roles, the traditional professional roles and even the expectations of our parents to seek our own destiny – what about cheating, seemingly betraying those closest to us? What about it makes it so morally reprehensible, when everything else is ok, and ours for the taking? Why are we so intent on sleeping with/kissing/seeing films with only one other person. It's definitely a risk, and one that doesn't seem to have a pay off big enough to warrant it. Sure, companionship is one thing, but why limit yourself to one significant other? Seems a significant waste of investment.
There is no doubt a high premium paid to enter into a relationship these days, and far too many of us are paying the excess to get rid of our exes.
Filed under: Comment, Israel | Tags: Advocacy, Australia, Boycott, Film, Israel, media, Middle East, Palestine, Politics, University, Youth
Well, as Israel Apartheid Week draws to a close, we thank those ballsy fellows for their patronage, and wish them good luck until next year.
During the meantime, here are some interesting, some relevant, and some gratuitous links to keep you …er, occupied.
A sharp beginner's guide to the Israel Apartheid Week phenomenon. Author Jon Hollander is a Columbia University Senior, Majoring in Economics.
Alive in Joberg (Neil Blomkamp – Director, District 9) – This short film was the impetus for the feature film, which deals succinctly with the injustice and ultimate fallibility of the Apartheid (Afrikaans for Separate) system in South Africa. Check out the District 9 trailer here.
The Australiasian Union of Jewish Students represents at the Melbourne university Israel Apartheid Forum, handing out material to attendees and donning sweet vests. Check out the IAW trailer here. Sick beats.
The counter: First Annual Israel Peace Week, active across US and Australian campuses.
The new kid on the US lobby block, J Street comments on IAW, and the Boycott Divestment and Sanctions movement, calling for "Invest, don't Divest" activities to promote investment in Palestinian state-building. Find out more about J Street here.


text:
When you open your heart and allow Universe to delight you,
You will be delighted beyond anything you could ask for.
As an empath, I live through my senses. I love the element of delight, and I love the element of surprise. When I open my heart to express love and gratitude to World, in return I often receive an experience that thrills my entire being. This requires that I release self-limiting beliefs (in my past, surprise equaled drama, so I learned to deflect all surprises) and to embrace the vulnerability of allowing for the unexpected. One of my daily affirmations is quite simply: when I ask Universe to delight me, I will be delighted.
When I found these words written by Kara Rane accompanied by an incredibly powerful painting, my entire being was thrilled! I felt the words spoke right to me, and the painting captured my vision of the words:
Seeing in the Darkness,
not with your eyes and definitely not by thinking.
Feeling the moon has wings,
to show the stars
irradiate Our Heart.
Your inner Sun,
more powerful
than any earthly thing,
leads to Kindness
for each and every One.
Please click the above link to view the painting. Absolutely amazing!
So, it is with great pleasure, that I share space today with Kara. May the words and the collage of paintings that she chose to share here speak to you, thrill you!, as they do me.
Being the Ocean of You
by Kara Rane
Our bodies are composed of nearly 70% water. We are the elements surrounding us, the sea, the sky, the earth, air and fire. What we do to our environment we do to ourselves, there is no separation. All are One.
Salt water covers approximately 70% of the Earth, this is not a coincidence it is a direct reflection of You. Yet, only 2% of the water is fresh water, thus suitable for drinking. It is one of the most precious, vital, elemental resources we have, without it we will die.
Contemplate something so simple, pure, and essential as not available. This is a reality for many people currently living today. They do not have access to clean drinking water.
This is overwhelming. How can I affect change, to mend the wrongs that have been occurring? Can I take personal responsibility? Will we value that which is a living right for all? What can we do?
Balance. This is what we are seeking. The pollution that is evident everywhere is a symptom of our own disease. It is an emergency that needs attention now or the consequences will be detrimental to all living beings. As a society we have the ability to make choices every day, from small to large they can amount to change. What we do matters, our actions are important, and they are founded in our beliefs. As we think and feel so do we act.
Find it within yourself to be kind, nurturing, truly centered in wholeness. Believe that You are Love. As you learn to love yourself, it is impossible not to love the elements that you are. This is a challenge, how do we love ourselves? It is the same way that we express love to the ocean. We do not buy the sea a new pair of jeans, an over-sized house, or another tech gadget. Instead, we feel an unconditional love that surpasses all material longing. We cherish the soul that is within. We are transformed and re-newed simply by being in the presence of nature, Our Nature.
People are feeling this. There is a growing dissatisfaction with mass produced stuff. The United States is a materially wealthy country, yet its' people are one of the poorest spiritually. Many people are unhappy, over-weight, sick, stressed, and polluted with things that have no meaning, with point-less plastic trash and toxic chemicals.
Now it is time to live your life in accordance with value. I love the Ocean. Many people do, this gives me great hope, faith, and courage. It brings joy to my heart. Surround your self with all that is good and right. Support the beliefs that come from a place of balance. As You heal, so too will Our dear beloved Ocean. One by One we can be the change we want to Live.
Thank you for being you, Kara, and for sharing such beauty with us!
Kara Rane is an Artist working in a variety of materials and media. From oil paintings, to sculptures, to large scale installations on glass, each project is contextual, unique. She has had solo and group art shows in galleries, design boutiques and artist collectives from San Francisco to New York City. She has won several awards, most notable from "American Women Artists" in outstanding portraiture. Kara Rane is a Yoga to Meditation guide, an Ocean Swimmer, an Eco-Lover, an Entrepreneur and a person of ideas.
¿Have you ever seen a Buddhist monk yelling 'Lucky to be You'*!? This statement is the foundation for her life, translating the core message to the miracle of Being, to breathing in this moment fully with Peace, Bliss, One-ness, Y?U.
Please visit her websites for more information. www.kararane.com & www.Lucky2bU.com
Images (clockwise) "Vieques" , "Gringo Beach", "Being", & "Live in Peace". available here –> http://www.etsy.com/shop/kararane
Much peace and abundant love,
Reminder: Experiment. Explore. Experience.


text:
The Sochi Winter Games gave people a lot to share on social media — and share they did.
According to Facebook, nearly 45 million people chatted about the Winter Olympics on Facebook from Feb. 6-23, for a total of 120 million combined posts, comments and "likes." (See the full post by Sports on Facebook below for more details.)
On Twitter, the most popular hashtag, #Sochi2014, appeared in more than five million tweets in the last 30 days, according to Topsy.com. The hashtag #Sochi appeared another 1.1 million times, while related hashtags such as #Sochi14 and the Star's own #StarSochi appeared another 40,000 times.
Instagram logged around one million photos with Sochi-related tags.
Made in Canada
#WeAreWinter, the Canadian Olympic Committee's hashtag, was a huge hit with patriotic fans on both Twitter and Instagram. And at the beginning of the Olympics, when journalists and athletes were arriving in Sochi to find disorganized staff and disturbing brown water coming out of the sinks, the hashtag #SochiProblems (started by a Centennial College student ) went viral.
As for what dominated the conversation, the most talked about sport on Facebook globally was ice hockey, followed by figure skating and bobsled. A map shows that whenever a Canadian women or men's team played, hockey dominated Facebook conversations in the country. Worldwide, one of the most-discussed athletes was Carey Price, the Montreal Canadiens' star and Team Canada goalie.
Viral moments
The Games, which wrapped up Sunday with the closing ceremonies , had plenty of viral moments, beginning with the now-infamous ring malfunction during the Opening Ceremonies.
Star columnist Cathal Kelly's heartwarming tale of Canadian ski coach Justin Wadsworth's kindness towards a Russian athlete is one of the most-shared stories on thestar.com so far for 2014 and earned kudos from around the world.
There were plenty of silly moments, and U.S. bobsledder Johnny Quinn starred in two of them. First Quinn became a viral smash hit on Feb. 8 after he tweeted a photo of a bathroom door he destroyed in the athlete's village when the lock jammed and he needed to get out. In just a week, the tweet was seen by an estimated 10 million people on Twitter alone. Then he got stuck again , this time in an elevator.
When a puck glanced off the goal post during a shot on an empty net in the women's hockey gold-medal game, it was celebrated on social media as much as any player, including Canadian golden-goal scorer Marie-Philip Poulin. The goal post also played a pivotal role in Canada's 3-0 win over Sweden in men's hockey, writes Kelly .
Related: Rosie DiManno's A-Z list of Olympic moments.
Your turn
What was your favourite Olympic moment shared on social media? Share in the comments below or by tweeting @StarOlympics with the hashtag #StarSochi
Shauna Rempel is the Toronto Star's editor in charge of social media. Email: firstname.lastname@example.com


text:
This dreamlike condo suite is suspended 12 FLOORS above the Pacific Ocean and the Mexican Riviera.
Astounding views merge with uncommon décor to create a one-of-a-kind vacation for you and up to 7 other people. With 2 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, and corner location with a huge wraparound balcony, this condo will enchant you from the moment your in-unit elevator doors slide open.
Casa Kimberly Dawn is the best of the best – the crown jewel condo at Icon Vallarta.
And you found it!
Enjoy your own personal travel concierge—one that I employ specifically for Casa Kimberly Dawn guests—plus a valet, security, laundry service, a private beach with full-service bar and grill, fitness and spa center, and a sparkling infinity pool that appears to flow into the sea.
Your Casa Kimberly Dawn concierge will be available throughout your stay to make suggestions or restaurant reservations, answer questions, and help in an emergency.
Here, you'll feel at home, while also sensing that this is a place unlike anywhere you've stayed before.
I designed and decorated the unit with loving care down to the details. I wanted to create a space that's comfortable, yet a little bit surprising.
Our guests agree that Casa Kimberly Dawn is tops at Icon Vallarta (the above quote is from one happy visitor!).
Here are some of my favorite details:
Cobalt blue walls contrasted with a sunflower yellow L-shaped couch. Reclaimed, rustic wood tables accented with metal detail (the coffee table is made from reclaimed railroad ties found in Thailand). A warm, modern kitchen wrapped in wood. Some knockout pieces of art, like an imaginative chandelier over the dining table, and a coral tree in the living area.
An accent wall created from wood etched to mimic waves showcases a 50" 3D flatscreen with Apple TV and Netflix for an unsurpassed movie night by the sea!
And most attention-grabbing of all—a wall-to-wall glass view of the Pacific coast and the endless sky.
Beyond the sliding glass doors is a HUGE wraparound balcony—one of the largest in the building. Two balcony areas offer dining space, lounging space, and morning-coffee space.
Need to work a little while on vacation? Set up shop in the den at the desk with printer. Or, take your laptop to the balcony and tap out some emails in view of the Pacific Ocean. Free Wi-Fi reaches every corner of the condo. We also provide free Vonage phone service, with free long distance calls to the US & Canada. A cell phone is available for local phone calls.
Another feature we love: open the front and back balcony doors, turn on the ceiling fans (found in every room), and experience a cool cross-breeze from the back bay that refreshes the entire apartment.
You'll want to enjoy at least one meal in this stunning eating/entertaining area facing boundless ocean views. One dining table seats 8 indoors. The other, out on the wrap-around balcony, seats 4 to 6.
Uncork a bottle of wine and hit the kitchen to prepare a gourmet meal with stainless steel appliances and all the kitchen utensils and tools you could need, plus a few common spices, oils, salt & pepper, and condiments like ketchup, mustard, and relish.
Other appliances include an Espresso machine, a wine fridge, a washer & dryer, blender and toaster.
Because the dining and living areas are adjacent, the cook doesn't have to be miles away from everyone.
Don't feel like cooking at all? Not a problem. The Icon Vallarta provides room service delivery from their restaurant, OR, even better, a personal chef will come to your condo and prepare a special dish for you right on the spot.
Three luxury bedrooms can coax anyone into a glorious night's sleep.
All three bedrooms feature en-suite bathrooms stocked with organic toiletries, butter-soft Jennifer Adams sheets, flat screen TVs, iPod docking stations, and access to the wraparound balcony through 8-foot glass sliding doors, which also ensures that everyone wakes up to a spectacular view of the coast.
Because you're booking the trip, you should claim the first Master bedroom, with wraparound views on two sides and a king-sized, pillow-top bed with a one-of-a-kind Christopher Guy Pebble Headboard. From this cloudlike space, wake up in the morning to the sun rising over the mountains. The en-suite master bathroom features bowl sinks, spa-quality towels and organic toiletries, including shampoo, conditioner, and bodywash dispensers right in the shower.
The other elegant Master also features a king-size, pillow-top bed and hues of old-world silver and sage green. The third bedroom—in bright, sunny yellows and rich blues—has two twins that combine to create a full-size for flexible accommodations.
Car rental is not necessary. Attractions and shopping are within walking distance, and taxicabs are readily available. The grocery store is within 5 minutes walking distance, and a general store just 2 minutes away.
If renting a car, there is one assigned complimentary parking space for this unit in the underground parking garage. Valet parking is also available at no additional charge.
POOL and BEACH
• Featuring a full-service beach bar and grill serving poolside.
•500 feet infinity-edge pool, divided into an Olympic-length lap and recreation pool overlooking the Pacific Ocean, and wading pool with tables and chairs in the water.
• Poolside private cabanas with dining option.
• Oceanfront beach bar restaurant and juice bar designed by YOO by Starck
• Private dining available in your suite with a personal chef.
• Full range of spa services.
• Full array of free weights and weight equipment – NO EXTRA CHARGE AT THE GYM
• State-of-the-art cardio equipment/cardio theater.
• Aerobic studio featuring energizing yoga, Pilates and aerobics classes.
• In-room massages and therapeutic treatments.
• His and hers lounges and relaxation areas.
• Whirlpool tubs and cold-plunge pools.
• Steam room and redwood saunas.
• Personalized fitness training.
• 24-hour valet parking.
• 24-hour security service.
• In-room dining service and personal chef.
• Currency conversion and exchange services.
• Pre-arrival provisioning—grocery shopping and delivery.
• Dry-cleaning and laundry services.
• Nanny/babysitting services.
• Overnight shoeshine.
• Pet services.
• Preferred theatre and event tickets.
• Personal IT support assistance.
• Newspaper delivery
With wireless high-speed Internet access, audiovisual catering for meetings, luncheons and dinner parties.
We hope you will come and experience this exceptional condo for yourself.
Please contact us today to book your dates, as our reservation calendar is filling fast for 2015.


text:
North American Hunter- Old Guns Never Die
The old rifle sat in the corner of my dad's shop for as long as I can remember. The barrel reads: "Old Reliable," Sharps Rifle Co., Bridgeport Conn.
The round barrel had been cut down to a fraction of its once 30-inch length, but it remained on the original Model 1878 hammerless .45-70 Govt. sporter action that rested on a beat-up replacement of the original stock. We'd never fired the rifle because it was extremely old and appeared fragile.
The gun was something that my father and I had taken little interest in—until this year when I made the decision to invest in "Old Reliable" and have the once state-of-the-art sporting rifle restored to her original glory by Doug Turnbull of Turnbull Restoration and Manufacturing Co.


text:
The Moscow State Circus returns to Nottingham this week with its latest and greatest production to date.
Spending a week at the Forest Recreation Ground, the big top will stage performances from tonight (February 16) until wednesday February 24.
This year's show is based on the Russian folklore story of Cvetik-Semicvetik, or "the flower with seven colours," by Valentin Petrovich Katayev where each of the petals represent a wish. It is the perfect back drop for what is undoubtedly the greatest and most famous circus on earth.
Wizard Wacko and his crazy side kick Natalia Mezentceva invite the audience to a mysterious enchanted garden, a place where dreams come true and a place to see magnificent feats of human achievement, the likes of which have never been witnessed in Great Britain before.
The loveable buffoons guide the audience through this tantalising tale, granting wishes to the beautiful Kushka Veslovskaya who plays Zhenya, surrounded by a multitude of flying, back flipping, juggling, wire walking and roller-skating performers.
This years show features the award winning Troupe Leontiv on the flying parallel bars, Stynka on the horizontal bouncing Russian bar, Veslovskiy performing roller-skating revolutions, Trio Atlas on the floating globes, Olga Rozhkovskaya wire-walking and Moscow flying jugglers and dynamic Diablos.
Don't miss this amazing show.
Visit www.moscowstatecircus.com for information and tickets.
Performance times are:
Tuesday 16 to Friday 19 3pm and 7.45pm
Wednesday 17, 5pm only
Saturday 20, 3pm and 6pm
Sunday 21, 2pm and 5pm
Monday 22 and Tuesday 23 5pm and 7.45pm


text:
Environmentally responsible standards are slowly being incorporated into mainstream residential development. Large developers have already begun to facilitate the installation of green homes into the U.S. housing sector. Recent years have witnessed a steady increase in energy efficient homes, even throughout the recession.
According to data provided by McGraw Hill Construction, green homes contributed $25 billion to the housing market and accounted for approximately 20 percent of all newly built homes in 2012. Analysts predict this upward trend will continue well into 2016, as energy efficient green homes are expected to reach between 29 percent and 38 percent of all new U.S. properties.
"The green homes market has evolved beyond the crunchy-granola, Boulder types," said David Johnston, a Colorado consultant and co-author of "Toward a Zero Energy Home." "We have mainstream builders doing this."
Federal tax credits have served to promote the installation of environmentally friendly features. Incorporating the following elements into a home may increase a homeowner's refund:
- Energy Star rated
- Energy efficient lighting
- Insulated windows
- Ceiling fans
- Hardwood floor
- Low flow faucets, toilets and shower heads
- Drought tolerant landscaping
- Insulation
- Geothermal heat pumps
While going green may promote higher construction costs, a recent reduction in material prices has allowed the average homeowner to participate in the recent trend. According to Bruce W. McIntosh, chief operating officer of Nexus Energy Homes, green homes will only cost between five and 10 percent more than the average house.
Research suggests that the addition of green features to a home will increase its value when it comes time to sell. A 2012 study by two professors at the University of California, Berkeley and the University of California, Los Angeles found that homes in California with a green label sell for about nine percent more than a comparable, less ecological house.
According to an Executive Summary Issued by the EPA's Office of Sustainable Communities, environmentally conscious investments such as this are "attractive to private-sector interests because they can find a ready market and compete financially. They appeal to local governments because they can be the building blocks of a growing economy and high-quality, economically sustainable neighborhoods and communities while also helping to create a cleaner, healthier environment."
The benefits of going green are starting to catch the eyes of consumers. As more people become environmentally conscious and fiscally responsible, trends in green housing will continue to rise.


text:
Picos de Europa
Key information: Picos de Europa
- Remarkable, jagged range of limestone mountains running along Spains northern coast.
- A surprisingly untouristed areas: high summer-grazing land scattered with isolated, unique villages beneath dramatic crags and rocky spires. Unrivalled flora and fauna.
- A network of walks at varying levels and lengths through one of Europes last true wildernesses.
- This is high country, exposed to Atlantic weather; rain is common, trails can get cut off by snow in winter, and the area is famous for sudden and dramatic mists.
Walkopedia rating(Top 100)
- Walkopedia rating91
- Beauty34
- Natural interest17
- Human interest6
- Charisma34
- Negative points0
- Total rating91
Vital Statistics
- Length: Variable
- Maximum Altitude: Around 2,500m
- Level of Difficulty: Variable
The Picos de Europa (Peaks of Europe) are an offshoot of the Cantabrian mountain range: an area of jagged limestone peaks (said to be the largest single mass, over 2,000m thick in places, of limestone mountains in Europe) 20km inland from Spain's northern coast. It is generally assumed that the name originates from the fact that they would be the first sight of landfall for travellers crossing the Bay of Biscay from America: Cantabria's capital, Santander, was the primary jumping-off post for the Americas for many years.
The area has been inhabited (as evidenced by a large amount of cave art) since Paleolithic times, and has been consistently farmed for the past 5,000 years, producing a landscape of meadowlands, forests and tiny summer-pasture villages, their lush plateaux isolated from each other by giddying river chasms and overlooked by stern, precipitous peaks. Above the meadows and forests is a harshly beautiful world of ice-cracked cliffs, spires, towers and scree. Think Dolomites. In the summer, the upper meadows resound to the musical bells of livestock brought up from the valleys; in the winter, the villages are almost entirely deserted, the plateaux mostly cut off by snow.
The Picos saw Romans building roads to help conquer resistant Celts, and the Moors' first defeat in Spain. There has been a lot of mining, with old shafts in ludicrously inaccessible cliff-faces and some disfiguring spoil, but this has left a lot of walkable tracks.
A national park since 1918 (and Spain's first), this area has remained delightfully unaffected by modernity and Spains tourist trade. Many locals still have no language other than their own, and much agriculture is still carried on without the benefit of machinery. As a result, the area has a stunning array of flora and fauna and the area is home to endangered species such as the Cantabrian brown bear, the Iberian lynx, wolves and the delightful local Cantabrian chamoix (the rebeco), as well as huge vultures, choughs, buzzards and a diverse population of butterflies.
The walking here is as good as it gets. While there can be tough slogs and scrambles to and from the high ground, the high plateaux can contain easy tracks over pastures or cracked rock surrounded by towering peaks and spires. New vistas open up repeatedly as you turn corners, cross ridges or rivers or emerge from ancient woods. An alpine-style idyll at its best.
There is a multitude of fabulous walks, ranging from a few hours to multi-day hikes from refuge to refuge. Some of the very best are the following:
The Central Picos Traverse, which arrows across the highest parts of the central massif.
The famous Cares Gorge.
The Jermoso Traverse, which crosses the peculiarly beautiful and dramatic western corner of the central massif.
A Central Picos Circuit. There are many options, but we did (and recommend) a combination of the Central Picos Traverse, the Cares Gorge and the Jermoso Traverse. Cicerone has an alternative Tour of the Central Massif.
The Tour of the Western Massif, suggested by Cicerone.
Other good walks include the Rio Casano and the La Molina gorge (easy; 5km/1h30), with bonus swimming; the Bedoya valley circuit (easy; 5km/1h30), where each village comes with its own palacio; Potes-Frama-Lubayo-Collado de Porcieda-Tudes-Porcieda-Inerval de Tolibes-Potes (moderate; 13km/4h): which goes through some of the area's more remote villages. More Mediterranean in flavor: La Ruta de Treviso (moderate-strenuous; 12km/5h), old mining trail to an isolated village: some tough sections with spectacular views; Puerto san Glorio-Cosgaya (easy; 10km/2h50): a straightforward walk through high country (pass closed May-November) affording spectacular views (best to park in Potes as the start and end points are not linked by bus).
Other accounts: share your experiences
Your comments on this walk, your experiences and suggestions, and your photos are very welcome. Where appropriate, you will be credited for your contribution.
We have a lot of helpful practical information and tips about this walk, covering everything from the best books and maps, to timing and weather, geting there, possible problems, whether you need a guide and where to find them, and useful websites. This section is only open to members.
Membership is FREE AND JOINING TAKES 30 SECONDS. To login or sign up click here
Safety and problems: All walks have inherent risks and potential problems, and many of the walks featured on this website involve significant risks, dangers and problems. Problems of any sort can arise on any walk. This website does not purport to identify any (or all) actual or potential risks, dangers and problems that may relate to any particular walk.
Any person who is considering undertaking this walk should do careful research and make their own assessment of the risks, dangers and possible problems involved. They should also go to "Important information" for further important information.
Anyone planning an expedition to this place should see further important information about this walk.
Name: ChrisSass
Posted on: 11/12/2016
Poncebos to Cain on the Cares Gorge
Your comments on this walk, your experiences and suggestions, and your photos are very welcome. Where appropriate, you will be credited for your contribution.
share your experiences
Add your experiences, suggestions and photos. We would be delighted to receive your writing and ideas (which will be attributed appropriately where published).
Anyone planning an expedition to this place should see further important information about this walk.
Responsible travel matters, a lot. How you travel will make a real difference - for better or worse. PLEASE consider this when making plans. Read more


text:
16 Days of Activism against gender-based violence
For the 16 Days of Activism, IWSAW in partnership with ESCWA, ABAAD, and UN Women promoted awareness against gender-based violence, through an online video competition which invited Arab youth to create a short innovative, creative, and regionally relevant video to show their solidarity with the 16 days of activism campaign.
We are proud to announce that the winner of the online video competition is Kourken Papazian, a first year student in TV/Film at LAU, who produced a creative 30 second video entitled 'Covering up'.
Papazian's message is simple and straight forward: "By covering their bruises, women are keeping the issue taboo. They are hiding it, while reporting violence is the only way to stop it."


text:
So, I'm trying to figure out how he should spend his summer. Most kids in our area have been scheduled out for a couple months. Most kids have camp and plenty of fun activities. I haven't been able to pull a few minutes together to do anything. I was on the fence on whether we should put him in a camp with kids that will go to his school next year, but where he is likely not to know many (or any) other kids. OR a camp with a friend or two, but would not have kids he'll go to school with next year. Think I'm over-thinking this one a tad bit? I opted for the camp that is most convenient and that's the one most likely to have kids he won't know.
Once I got over dragging my feet, I decided tonight would be my deadline. And I forced myself to do it... Our park district schedules camp by the week, so I had to go through a four step process for EVERY SINGLE WEEK. Just as I was registering my last week I was kicked out due to inactivity. INACTIVITY. My shopping cart was cleared. I lost 20 precious minutes. I started again... Three weeks in and I was kicked out again.
This does not set a good tone for the summer I'm hoping for W. This simple little summer that I have in my head, but can't seem to get him registered for... And it turns out simple might not be so simple. Three days of half-day camp, plus his swimming, piano lessons, and maybe a sport... Maybe that isn't quite as simple as I thought it would be. And - wow - he is five.
This post was inspired by Bittersweet by Miranda Beverly-Whittemore, a novel that exposes the gothic underbelly of an American dynasty, and an outsider's hunger to belong. Join From Left to Write on May 20 we discuss Bittersweet. As a member, I received a copy of the book for review purposes.


text:
Trade fair services
You will find that there are many useful and convenient services on offer for visitors during transport logistic. We would recommend finding out about any services you wish to make use of before arriving at the event.
Are you looking for specific business services such as printing facilities, or WiFi access? Do you need a bank, a dry cleaner, or a pharmacy? Or would you like to find out more about accessibility at our venue?
At one of Europe's most state-of-the-art trade fair centers, we offer visitors a wide range of service facilities to make your time at transport logistic as enjoyable as possible:
Lufthansa bagage drop-off
Check in online for your Lufthansa flight*. Simply drop off your baggage on your day of departure, at least five hours before the flight, at the signposted baggage drop-off counter. Lufthansa will organize free transport for your baggage and will check it in for your flight directly at the airport.
You can then have a relaxed journey from the trade fair center to Munich airport and save time on checking your bags. When you arrive at your destination airport, you just need to pick up your baggage as usual from the baggage reclaim.
You will find the Lufthansa baggage drop-off counter at the West Entrance.
* This service is available for flights with LH-, LX- and OS- flight numbers (flights with Lufthansa, SWISS International Air Lines and Austrian Airlines).
|Opening times, June 4–7, 2019
|Thursday, June 6, 2019
|Friday , June 7, 2019
* This service is available for flights with LH-, LX- and OS- flight numbers (flights with Lufthansa, SWISS International Air Lines and Austrian Airlines).


text:
Viber or Whatsapp: 008613463017175
For people with IgA Nephropathy, it's necessary for them to know what foods are beneficial for their condition. Well, can they eat blueberry?
Also known as Berger's disease, it is defined by the presence of IgA immune complexes in the mesangial area of kidneys. Over time, these deposits may trigger inflammatory reaction, resulting in progressive decline of kidney function.
According to the statistics, blueberry is loaded with many substances, such as vitamins, calcium, iron, amino acid, etc. Below are some of the benefits of blueberry for IgA nephropathy:
Prevent urinary tract infection For people with this disorder, some of the patients may have urinary tract infection. And eating this fruit in moderation can help inhibit the growth of bacteria to a certain degree, thereby, UTI can be prevented.
Treat heart disease Due to its high content of fiber, antioxidants and the ability to lower Low Density Lipoprotein level, blueberries can be added to your diet to treat heart disorders.
Boost immunity Blueberries are also rich in antioxidants, vitamin C, vitamin E, vitamin A, zinc and iron, it can help strengthen the immunity and fight against bacteria or viruses. Additionally, this fruit can also help prevent constipation and improve digestion.
Except for blueberry, other fruits are also helpful:
Cranberry According to the survey, cranberry can help deal with infections, support cardiovascular heath, anti-aging and so on.
Apple As the old saying goes "an apple a day keeps the doctors away", due to high fiber content and anti-inflammatory compounds, it has been proven that apple can help reduce cholesterol level to a certain extent.
The above are mainly on whether blueberry is good for IgA nephropathy patients. As the condition varies, the diet should also be different. If you are interested in this, please email to email@example.com to get a personalized food list.


text:
DICE producer Ali Hassoon often communicates with fans through social media, and due to this we now have some new details on when several modes are coming to Battlefield 1. One fan asked the DICE employee if a classic mode would be added to the first-person shooter, and the response he received was very positive. "I love it too," responded Hassoon. "It's coming down the line. It's on our to do list."
While details are still scarce, the fan linked to a forum thread discussing what a classic mode would contain. Fans want a mode with 100% health without regeneration, and features such as the kill camera disabled. This is different from another fan request, which is a hardcore mode, as it still has a HUD and players can take the regular amount of damage.
Speaking of the planned hardcore mode, Hassoon also discussed that with several fans. He revealed that while health would stay at 100%, bullet damage would be set to 200% (although did specify that the percentage might change by the time it is finalized). He also said that while he doesn't have a date on when it would be added, that he believes the mode is "coming sooner than you think!"
That's great news to hear for Battlefield 1 fans, as clearly the studio is listening to feedback from players. That can already be seen, as they are soon changing the way the game's Squad Leader assignments operate, as players will get replaced if they aren't issuing orders.
Let us know in the comments below if you've been enjoying Battlefield 1 so far, and if you're excited about the upcoming changes!


text:
Opinion Editorials
12 quotes to inspire success in your business
Business inspiration
Running a business takes a lot of hard work, dedication, and even inspiration. One of the best ways to find inspiration is to gather it from your predecessors and associates in the professional world. Being inspired professionally will also bleed into your personal life, as these are often connected. The proper inspiration will guide you in becoming a better professional, a harder worker, and a well-rounded human being. So, here are twelve business-related quotes to inspire you to continue doing business and doing it well.
"Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently." – Henry Ford
"Every sale has five basic obstacles: no need, no money, no hurry, no desire, no trust." – Zig Ziglar
"All lasting business is built on friendship." – Alfred A. Montapert
"A business absolutely devoted to service will have only one worry about profits. They will be embarrassingly large." – Henry Ford
"A project is complete when it starts working for you, rather than you working for it." – Scott Allen
"Whenever you see a successful business, someone once made a courageous decision." – Peter F. Drucker
"In the end, all business operations can be reduced to three words: people, product and profits. Unless you've got a good team, you can't do much with the other two." – Lee Iacocca
"A satisfied customer is the best business strategy of all." – Michael Leboeuf
"Do what you love to do and give it your very best. Whether it's business or baseball, or the theater, or any field. If you don't love what you're doing and you can't give it your best, get out of it. Life is too short. You'll be an old man before you know it." – Al Lopez
"It is difficult, but not impossible, to conduct strictly honest business." – Mahatma Gandhi
"Good business leaders create a vision, articulate the vision, passionately own the vision, and relentlessly drive it to completion." – Jack Welch
"I do not believe a man can ever leave his business. He ought to think of it by day and dream of it by night." – Henry Ford
As one of the best innovators and business owners in history, it's no wonder that Henry Ford has three of the twelve quotes above. He and all of the others quoted have been the source of professional and personal inspiration for many years. Aligning yourself with these people and their professional beliefs will only make you and your business stronger – not a bad place to be.
1 Comment
Leave a Reply
Opinion Editorials
Culture can be defined by what employees don't say
(OPINION) What your employees say defines your business. What your employees don't say defines your culture.
Whether the boss realizes or not, employees – the folks who often manufacture, handle, and sell the products themselves – can see sides of the business that management could easily overlook, including potential risks and improvements. So how do you make sure your employees are speaking up? A new study by Harvard researcher Hemant KakkarSubra Tangirala reveals that when it comes to speaking up, your company culture is probably either encouraging or discouraging it.
Tangirala wanted to compare two theories as to why employees choose to stay quiet when they could share their worries or ideas with company management. The "personality perspective" presumes that shy, reticent employees simply don't have the gumption to speak up; therefore, the way to get more perspective from your employees is to make a point to hire extroverted people.
Meanwhile, the "situational perspective" posits that the company culture may either be encouraging and even expecting employees to speak up or discouraging it by creating an environment wherein employees "fear suffering significant social costs by challenging their bosses."
In order to test these two theories against one another, Tangirala surveyed nearly 300 employees and 35 supervisors at a Malaysian manufacturing plant. First, the survey measured each employee's "approach orientation," that is whether or not, all things being equal, they had a personality more inclined to speaking up or staying mum. Next, employees were asked whether they thought their input was expected, rewarded, or punished. Lastly, supervisors were asked to rank the employees as to how often they spoke up on the shop floor.
The survey showed that both personality and the work environment significantly influenced whether or not an employee would speak up – however, it also showed that environmental factors could "override" employees' natural inclinations. In other words, if employees felt that they were expected or would be rewarded for speaking up, they would do so, even if they aren't naturally garrulous. On the other hand, even the most outspoken employees would bite their tongues if they thought they would be punished for giving their opinion.
The study also identified two major areas wherein employees could be either encouraged or discouraged from sharing their perspective. First, employees can be encouraged to suggest improvements or innovations that will increase workplace safety and efficiency. Secondly, employees should be expected to speak up when they witness dangers or behaviors that could "compromise safety or operations."
Although the study was limited, it seems to point towards the importance of creating a workplace culture wherein your employees are rewarded for speaking up. Doing so could potentially provide you with invaluable insights into how to improve your business – insights that can only come from the shop floor.
Opinion Editorials
How to change your negative mindset into something of value
(EDITORIAL) Once you're an expert, it's easy to get caught in the know-it-all-trap, but expertise and cynicism age like fine wine, and can actually benefit you/others if communicated effectively.
In conversation with our friend John Steinmetz, he shared some thoughts with me that have really stuck with us.
He has expanded on these thoughts for you below, in his own words, and we truly believe that any individual can benefit from this perspective:
Over the last few years I have realized a few things about myself. I used to be trouble, always the dissenting opinion, always had to be on the opposite side of everyone else.
Then, I started reading everything I could get my hands on dealing with "how to change your attitude," "how to be a better team player," etc.
Over the course of that time I realized something. I realized that there was nothing wrong with me, only something wrong with how I communicate.
Unfortunately, once someone sets the context of who you are, they will never see you as anything else. I was labeled a troublemaker by those who didn't want to "rock the boat" and that was that.
In my readings of books and articles by some of the most prominent technical leaders, they all had something in common. Paraphrasing of course, they all said "you can't innovate and change the world by doing the same thing as everyone else." So, in actuality, it wasn't me, it was my communication style. For that reason, you have to say it out loud – "I will make waves."
There are two things I reference in physics about making waves.
- "A ship moving over the surface of undisturbed water sets up waves emanating from the bow and stern of the ship."
- "The steady transmission of a localized disturbance through an elastic medium is common to many forms of wave motion."
You need motion to create waves. How big were the waves when the internet was created? Facebook? Just think about the natural world and there are examples everywhere that follow the innovation pattern.
You see it in the slow evolution of DNA and then, BAM, mutations disrupt the natural order and profoundly impact that change.
Where I was going wrong was, ironically, the focus of my career which is now Data. For those who do not know me, I am a product director, primarily in the analytics and data space.
More simply: For the data generated or consumed by an organization, I build products and services that leverage that data to generate revenue, directly or indirectly through the effectiveness of the same.
I was making the mistake of arguing without data because "I knew everything." Sound familiar?
Another ironic thing about what I do is that if you work with data long enough, you realize you know nothing. You have educated guesses based on data that, if applied, give you a greater chance of determining the next step in the path.
To bring this full circle, arguing without data is like not knowing how to swim. You make waves, go nowhere and eventually sink. But add data to your arguments and you create inertia in some direction and you move forward (or backward, we will get to this in a min).
So, how do you argue effectively?
First, make sure that you actually care about the subject. Don't get involved or create discussions if you don't care about the impact.
As a product manager, when I speak to engineering, one of my favorite questions is "Why do I care?" That one question alone can have the most impact on an organization. If I am told there are business reasons for a certain decision and I don't agree with the decision, let's argue it out. Wait, what? You want to argue?
So, back to communication and understanding. "Argue" is one of those words with a bad connotation. When quite simply it could be defined as giving reasons or citing evidence in support of an idea, action, or theory, typically with the aim of persuading others to share one's view.
Words matter
As many times as I have persuaded others to my point of view, I have been persuaded to change mine.
That is where my biggest change has occurred.
I now come into these situations with an open mind and data. If someone has a persuasive argument, I'm sold. It is now about the decision, not me. No pride.
Moving forward or backward is still progress (failure IS an option).
The common thought is that you have to always be perfect and always be moving forward. "Failure is not an option."
When I hear that, I laugh inside because I consider myself a master of controlled failure. I have had the pleasure to work in some larger, more tech savvy companies and they all used controlled experimentation to make better, faster decisions.
Making waves is a way of engaging the business to step out of their comfort zone and some of the most impactful decisions are born from dissenting opinions. There is nothing wrong with going with the flow but the occasional idea that goes against the mainstream opinion can be enough to create innovation and understand your business.
And it is okay to be wrong.
I am sure many of you have heard Thomas Edison's take on the effort to create the first lightbulb. He learned so much more from the failures than he did from success.
"I didn't fail. I just found 2,000 ways not to make a lightbulb; I only needed to find one way to make it work." – Thomas Edison
It is important to test what you think will not work. Those small failures can be more insightful, especially when you are dealing with human behaviors. Humans are unpredictable at the individual level but groups of humans can be great tools for understanding.
Don't be afraid
Turn your negative behavior into something of value. Follow these steps and you will benefit.
- Reset the context of your behavior (apologize for previous interactions, miscommunications) and for the love of all that is holy, be positive.
- State your intentions to move forward and turn interactions into safe places of discussion.
- Learn to communicate alternative opinions and engage in conversation.
- Listen to alternative opinions with an open mind.
- Always be sure to provide evidence to back up your thoughts and suggestions.
- Rock the boat. Talk to more people. Be happy.
A special thank you to John Steinmetz for sharing these thoughts with The American Genius audience.
Opinion Editorials
Why tech companies should embrace Artist Residency Programs
(EDITORIAL) With technology founders wiping themselves with money while also truly caring about culture and inclusion, they're missing a huge opportunity by ignoring artist in residency programs. Even Amtrak does it – come on, y'all.
There's a ton of cash in the tech industry. Like, more money than your primate brain can process, like "get-the-country-out-of-debt" money – Scrooge McDuck swimming in gold levels of cash. That's how profitable technology has become.
And we're not just talking laptops and smartphones, either. All of those monthly subscriptions you're not thinking about, the Hulu, Netflix, Microsoft Office, that extra storage for your MacBook or iPhone, that's all got a name: Software as a Service (SaaS) and with major players like Apple and Disney upping their stakes in the game – this model ain't going anywhere.
Our thermostats are connected to our iPhones, and our cars are plugged into a matrix that's fed into the Internet. Everywhere you look, the tech industry is changing everything. Everyone has a smartphone, a tablet, and a laptop, or a television that's Internet-enabled.
And for everything that's connected to the Internet, someone's making a buck.
According to CTA, the tech industry will make $398B this year, and The Big 5 – Google, Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, and Facebook are worth a combined three trillion dollars. What do these companies do with all of the cash?
These companies typically pay well. To hire the best, workers want a payday. That's fine, everyone who bangs at their job should get their slice of the action. After that, companies invest in culture and hiring that next tier of top talent. But, after the company offsites in a wooded cabin, the multi-million-dollar research projects, and the fully covered healthcare are accounted for, there's still dough to play with.
Let's get creative.
A lot of the more prominent tech companies have established that giving back is critical to their mission. Teams do charity work, they fly to other countries to help build schools; all kinds of amazing wonderful things are happening thanks to some of the world's biggest players.
But what if those same companies established a new precedent – What if they established artist in residency programs?
One of the greatest professional experiences of my life was working for Atlassian and traveling between the Austin, San Francisco, and Sydney offices. While I was there to write for them, I'm still a writer, I always worked on my stuff. I've written in cafés in North Beach after browsing City Lights books where Ginsburg stomped his feet. I've been in bookstores in Sydney, never taking for granted for a second that I was beyond lucky to have this chance; that experience opened up a world that money had prevented me from exploring.
Can you imagine being allowed to fly to another office to work in a different environment, just for a change of scenery? It's staggering what a comprehensive program could do for the arts community. The money and infrastructure is there, and so long as companies continue their dedication to paying it forward, this should be an added flavor to that mission.
This might sound like a shocker, but most of your friends who pursue art for a living ain't exactly making windfalls of cash.
Most artistic types are freelancers or have multiple side hustles – they wait tables, or slug away in the bars, they cut corners on life's everyday expenses in pursuit of their art. Your average painter, cartoonist, writer, filmmaker, they're all chasing the project that gives them a chance to make their art their living. The problem is, for most creatives, it's a dog chases its tail kinda life and that tail ain't getting any longer or tastier.
How would it work?
Companies should work with the Alliance of Artist Communities (AAC) and set up a residency program. The AAC had been setting up residencies across the country for years, so while this is a feel-good philanthropic endeavor, the organization knows every tax break and loophole out there.
And realistically, the AAC has to, considering the culture of treating the arts in our communities is seen more of a begrudging, "we should probably do this" offense rather than an important investment. Most artistic programs receive pennies on the dollar, and most creatives live hand to mouth in pursuit of their dreams, and for many tech founders, the story is relatable, only they're masters at problem-solving. Creativity doesn't have to be pen to paper and the outcome being a funny doodle of a dog riding a skateboard, the creative mind is our innate core, we're programmed to search for inventive ways to solve problems.
We just turn it off as society deems creativity an expendable commodity.
Creativity shouldn't be relegated as frivolity, but essential.
In the world of artistic residences, paying bills is an issue. So, many programs have to drum up funds, find donors, seek out worthwhile endowments, search for tax breaks. Many are non-for-profits because they need grants for just about everything.
But in tech, cash is there aplenty.
Instead of throwing a Christmas party with a $100K budget for each office around the world, that money could be better spent on social enrichment. I've worked in the tech world for the past six years, and I've seen a lot of wasteful spending. While I love a good massage chair experience, that money could have been spent elsewhere versus giving staff of over three hundred already fabulously well paid people fifteen minutes of "me time."
For one year or whatever predetermined amount of time, a company would allow a creative in their city to "join the team."
What's that look like?
Allow someone to create in these offices that are more like adult Disney World with their free snacks, open collaboration, catered meals, and endless perks. Give an artist a space that was once a small meeting room and let them do their thing.
The culture aspect of a creative being dropped in the average technology environment would blow their minds – most tech companies strive for diversity and inclusivity, and this program would be a brushstroke in that palette of reasoning.
By giving the creative the chance to mix it up with people who think in code, in marketing campaigns or how to "disrupt the market," the influence would be impactful: a developer might become a nature photographer, or maybe a mixed media artist helps the marketing team see a problem from a different point of view. If there are anything companies in tech suffer from, it's a little too much inward focus.
Change everything with a pen stroke.
Some campuses are so big (Facebook, Apple to name just two), they could support two or three artists at a time.
Indeed, Atlassian, Oracle, Uber, Lyft, all have multiple offices around the world. Imagine an extroverted painter working in a common room, while people move to and from meetings, getting that flash of inspiration, even if minute.
That's beautiful.
Maybe instead of continually talking about code depositories or the next sprint, people got hip to new books? Maybe an essayist learns how to use Trello to manage their weekly pitches or maybe even further, they learn about how agile principles work could make their processes more manageable?
And while this person is getting paid, maybe they're earning more money than they've ever seen. What if someone who's always worked minimum wage jobs were given an $80K gig to create? Sure, you'd need to coach them on saving up for when the program is over, but for that period, being restricted to the dollar menu wouldn't be everyday life.
The results would be staggering. The average working artist has to grind while others are asleep, early in the morning or late at night, they find ways to communicate their feelings, but while still making sure rent is on time.
Companies could establish an annual open competition where artists of whatever designated mediums submit their work.
Maybe it's film or painting, or gosh, even a writer. But for that year, the winner gets to attend the fun parties, the culture building events, but most importantly gets paid well for their residency.
If the competition is opened up beyond the borders of the company's home base, that works, too. Most bigger companies have a few corporate apartments that are barely used. Giving someone a room wouldn't be that big of a deal.
Artists could donate their skills to workshops, creative programming, even create art specifically for the space. Most offices anywhere could use a little freshening up, or at least an ongoing blog series, something.
As for the perception of "selling out" the artistic culture has changed, where it was once punk rock to keep everything as DIY as possible, most of us creatives are fighting against a sea of other talented people all of the time, the chance for exposure on a bigger level, but also being financially free is worth wearing a few corporate branded t-shirts. And honestly, tech companies generally aren't as gross as the old school monoliths of the past, most of the executive boards are made up of actual people who started from the bottom.
As my friend Jason Saul of BirdNote once told me, "don't think of it as 'selling out' we're in a hip hop-driven culture, you're blowing up."
There are residency programs on farms, a recycling center in SF, in the woods, the Florida keys, Amtrak got into the residency game for a while, just as Padre Island in Texas, the national parks all have them, even the CERN large hadron collider has an artist in residence program.
To double-down even further, even The Mall of America, the place where you can buy a corn dog or visit one of five Victoria's Secret stores (who needs that many panties?) or ride a rollercoaster, has an artist in residence program.
The artist is given $2500 for a week, plus a hotel room and are allowed to roam the mall 24/7. LaGuardia airport in New York rehabbed an old Hudson News and converted it into a kiosk to people watch and create, so why not the tech companies who purposely set up shop in buildings in the heart of downtowns across the world or amongst trees in sprawling acreage?
This is possible.
Who's going to be first?
Facebook is raising funds to launch a cryptocurrency #ThanksIHateIt
Is this normal (you wonder about your business)?
How companies are embracing the gig economy to fight employee burnout
Calculator for what your freelance rate should be
MeWe – the social network for your inner Ron Swanson
The most important business advice my dad ever gave me
MeWe – the social network for your inner Ron Swanson
10 podcasts that every business owner should hear
Starting a business when you're broke (and how to make it work)
How to work with someone who's a never-ending stress mess
Amy's Ice Cream founder on Austin's business risks and rewards #WhyAustin
Turns out a lot of people are in between introverted and extroverted
P. Terry's founder on the booming economy in Austin #WhyAustin
Ladies and gentlemen, the U.S. National Anthem
Indeed President, Chris Hyams tells us #WhyAustin [video]
Our Great Partners
American Genius
news neatly in your inbox
Subscribe to our mailing list for news sent straight to your email inbox.
Thank you for subscribing.
Oh boy... Something went wrong.
Emerging Stories
Social Media1 week ago
MeWe – the social network for your inner Ron Swanson
Business News2 weeks ago
How to work with someone who's a never-ending stress mess
Business Entrepreneur2 weeks ago
Culture Codes is the guide you need for company culture questions
Business Marketing2 weeks ago
7 ways Instagram Stories get people pumped about your brand
Tech News2 weeks ago
Want to know how your passwords could get hacked?
Business Finance1 week ago
Calculator for what your freelance rate should be
Opinion Editorials1 week ago
Culture can be defined by what employees don't say
Business Finance1 week ago
How to spot and avoid crowdfunding scams


text:
Donate Now
For Safe Environment information visit protect.diokzoo.org
Contact Us
Bishop Bradley
Bishop's Annual Appeal
Diocesan Priorities and Goals
Diocesan Directory
The Tribunal
Catholic Charities
Pastoral Plan
Diocesan Map
Diocesan Pastoral Center
Past Bishops
Diocese of Lodwar
General Secretariat
Business Office
Catholic Community Center
Human Resources
Immigration Assistance Program
Mt. Olivet Diocesan Catholic Cemetery
Permanent Diaconate
Safe Environment
Second Collections
Stewardship & Development
Trauma Recovery
Worship & Liturgy
Secretariat for Catholic Education and New Evangelization
Catholic Homeschool resources
Catholic Schools
New Evangelization
Secretariat for Communications & Public Affairs
Southwest Michigan Catholic
The Good News
Diocesan Insider
Diocesan Directory
Get Connected
Secretariat for Parish Life & Lay Leadership
Institute of Missionary Discipleship
Multicultural & Hispanic
Domestic Church
Sanctity of the Human Person
Courage/Encourage Ministry
Young Adult & Adult Ministry
Southwest Michigan Catholic Magazine
Church issues in the News
News Releases & Statements
Bulletin Announcements
List of Events
The Good News
Epiphany Radio Show
Kalamazoo United
Sisters explore establishing permanent home in the Diocese of Kalamazoo
by Vicki Cessna
Sisters from a religious order in Colombia are progressing in steps to establish a permanent home here in the Diocese of Kalamazoo. Misioneras Siervas del Divino Espiritu (Missionary Servants of the Holy Spirit) arrived in the Diocese in 2014 due to the generosity of Catholic Extension's U.S.-Latin American Sisters Exchange Program.
The grant program awards funding religious sisters from Latin American congregations who will come to minister among Latino immigrant populations in a "mission diocese" in the United States. It would be the first foundation of the Order established in the United States. Currently, Sisters Maryud Cortes and Yuliana Rua live on the grounds of San Felipe de Jesus Mission Parish in Fennville.
Last month Bishop Bradley along with Rev. Fabio Garzon, Pastor, St. Peter Parish, Douglas, San Felipe de Jesus, Fennville and Immaculate Conception, Hartford, travelled to La Ceja, in the Diocese of Medellin, Colombia. During his visit, Bishop Bradley met with Mother Consuelo, as well as Bishop Fidel, for continued discussions on the sisters establishing a permanent foundation order in the Diocese of Kalamazoo.
In his letter of gratitude to Mother Consuelo Bishop Bradley stated, "…It [is] also a grace to review with you the wonderful work currently being done by the Sisters in Fennville and in many other parts of our Diocese, and to see the fruitfulness borne of their love and deep commitment to the Lord Jesus. For these and so many other reasons, I am very happy to grant permission to begin the process of canonically erecting a foundation of your Religious Community within the territory of the Diocese of Kalamazoo.
Aware of the time and effort that this will require, it is nonetheless an historic moment and an exciting opportunity to see the establishment of a Community of Sisters for the first time in our Diocese since 1889. We have already begun to prepare, and look forward to bringing this project to realization with the help of the Lord."
The canonical process to establish a foundation can take a period of time as the request is submitted to the Vatican. Meanwhile the Sisters continue their ministry to the growing Hispanic/Latino community.
For a detailed account of Bishop Bradley's pastoral visit to Colombia visit: